NBA

AP Basketball WriterJimmy Butler to ESPN: I was 'brutally honest' with WolvesBy TIM REYNOLDSJimmy Butler is back with the Minnesota Timberwolves, and his first practice of the season had fireworks.He caused them - with his words and his play.Butler, who asked for a trade more than three weeks ago,...

AP Basketball WriterAP source: NBA set to vote on raising tampering finesBy TIM REYNOLDSBEIJING (AP) NBA teams could be fined up to $10 million for tampering and up to $6 million for entering into unauthorized agreements with players, a person with knowledge of the league's plans told The...

G CJ McCollum agrees to 3-year extension with Trail BlazersPORTLAND, Ore. (AP) CJ McCollum has agreed to a three-year contract extension with the Portland Trail Blazers.The 27-year-old McCollum averaged 21.0 points last season, helping Portland make it to the Western Conference finals. The 6-foot-3 shooting guard, who was...

Hall of Famer Julius 'Dr. J' Erving released from hospitalPHILADELPHIA (AP) Hall of Famer Julius Erving has been released from a hospital after he became ill at a Philadelphia 76ers' game.Erving's management team said Saturday that Erving had undergone a comprehensive medical evaluation and was expected to make...

AP Sports WriterCeltics stagger on without Thomas; guard may need surgeryBy TOM WITHERSCLEVELAND (AP) With his Boston teammates clawing to stay in the NBA playoffs, Isaiah Thomas can't do anything to help.Thomas, who turned to basketball for comfort after his sister's recent death, has been ruled out for...

Stephen Curry rose for another jumper, and by then even the Knicks probably figured it would go in. Curry had hardly missed in a scintillating second half of the NBA's most electric performance this season, the crowd cheering even before the ball left his hands. This time, Raymond Felton jumped with...

Associated PressRaptors' president encounter with deputy being investigatedBy OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ and ROB GILLIESSAN FRANCISCO (AP) Prosecutors will decide whether to charge Toronto Raptors President Masai Ujiri with misdemeanor battery after he was accused of shoving and hitting a sheriff's deputy in the face while trying to join...

AP Sports WriterMike Brown still waiting on Tyronn Lue to pay up overdue betBy JANIE McCAULEYOAKLAND, Calif. (AP) Mike Brown is ready for Tyronn Lue to pay up on a nearly two-decade-old bet. Yep, Lue owes him $100 and Brown plans to accept it at long last -...

AP Sports WriterWith Butler trade looming, Wolves take trip west for bondingBy DAVE CAMPBELLMINNEAPOLIS (AP) - For a team that didn't make any major moves during the summer, the Minnesota Timberwolves sure have their share of new players this season.The critical process of familiarization and integration will speed up...

AP Basketball WriterAnalysis: It's Knicks-Nets in Big Apple free agency battleBy BRIAN MAHONEYNEW YORK (AP) It's been seven years since the Nets crossed over the Hudson River and took up residence in the Knicks' city.A real rivalry might finally arrive Sunday.Rarely relevant at the same time on the...

The Latest: NBA game starts without disruption outside arenaSACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) The Latest on the fatal police shooting of an unarmed black man in Sacramento (all times local):7:30 p.m.The Sacramento Kings-Indiana Pacers game has tipped off without disruption from protesters outside the downtown arena.Police in riot gear stood...

AP Sports WriterCeltics star Hayward suffers gruesome injury in openerBy TOM WITHERSCLEVELAND (AP) Just five minutes into his Boston career, new Celtics star forward Gordon Hayward gruesomely broke his left ankle, an injury that may end his season.Hayward, who signed a four-year, $128 million free agent contract this...