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LeBron James had a triple-double and hit a game-winning 3-pointer, and Jayson Tatum exploded for 50 points in 2021. On Tuesday night, Kyrie Irving drained his first 12 shots on his way to 34 points in the Nets’ win over the Cavaliers. Cleveland guard Darius Garland matched Irving with 34 points of his own. NBA LEAGUE PASS: Sign up to unlock live out-of-market games (7-day free trial) And yet, when it comes to bookkeeping, the impressive statistics from these games are floating off to the side....

Point spreads and totals listed here are the Las Vegas consensus as of Friday afternoon. Visit our odds page for updated betting lines. Bucks (41-41 SU, 45-35-2 ATS) at Bulls (50-32 SU, 39-43 ATS) Series odds: Bulls -700, Bucks +525Game 1 Line: Bulls -7.5, Total: 185.5 Chicago has significant players on the injury report, but all are expected to play. The Bulls will face one of the league’s best against-the-spread teams in the Bucks....

This year’s postseason will tip off with the NBA Play-In Tournament, which first debuted last year. The play-in was such a hit that the NBA plans to incorporate it in every season from now on. “As I’ve mentioned before, when we first were examining it, we were very focused on the actual Play-In games themselves,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver told reporters. “What we’re seeing is a far greater impact essentially on the last month of the season, where teams are either jockeying to get into the Play-In Tournament itself or jockeying to get out of the Play-In Tournament with a locked-in sixth seed....

Turns out he would instead deliver the Nets all the problems they could handle, posting 12 points on 6-of-7 shooting and grabbing four rebounds in the first quarter. MORE: Raptors coach takes subway to Game 7 | Eastern Conference first-round images Johnson didn't exactly have to be nimble because the Nets play veteran forward Paul Pierce at power forward. Because of that fact, Johnson just took advantage of his size, and he either scored over the top from the post or placed in an extra effort on offensive rebounds....

Back in the depths of the 2011 NBA lockout, it was a popular phrase for both then-commissioner David Stern and his deputy, Adam Silver. The idea was that the league’s collective bargaining agreement was being negotiated on two tracks: the split of league money between players and owners, and the fixes to the rules of free agency and salary caps that the league felt would be necessary to address competitive balance....

After a chaotic stretch run, we now know the eight Western Conference playoff teams: the Rockets, Warriors, Trail Blazers, Thunder, Jazz, Pelicans, Spurs and Timberwolves. The Nuggets were eliminated from postseason contention Wednesday night after an overtime loss in Minnesota. NBA PLAYOFFS: Odds to win championship On the other side, the East playoff bracket is set. The Heat jumped to No. 6 with an overtime win against the Raptors, clinching the Southeast Division title and keeping the Wizards at No....

The Bucks leveled their semifinal series with the Celtics thanks to Tuesday’s 123-102 victory in Milwaukee, having dropped the opener 112-90. Questions were asked of Antetokounmpo and the Bucks after the ‘Greek Freak’ was limited to seven-of-21 shooting for 22 points in Game 1. However, Antetokounmpo showcased his MVP credentials with 29 points and 10 rebounds in Game 2 — going seven for 16 and 13 of 18 from the foul line....

The 29-year-old forward came off the bench and tallied a team-high 20 points in Boston’s 110-106 win over the Pacers. He also added three rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block as his team secured a sweep in Indiana. “Close-out game. I really wanted to win,” Hayward told reporters after the game. “Just trying to be a competitor out there. Juices were flowing, for sure.” Hayward was inconsistent for much of the regular season as he continued to recover from a devastating leg injury that cost him almost all of 2017-18....

The 25-year-old center scored just 11 points on 2-of-7 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds as Philadelphia fell to Toronto 101-96 at the Wells Fargo Center. Embiid revealed after the game he was dealing with an illness. “I didn’t have a good night,” Embiid told reporters, via KYW Newsradio. “Didn’t sleep. Guess I needed an IV at six in the morning. But, just try to play and try to get the win....

The defense gets turned up to another level, as does the intensity and pressure, and teams have a chance to make multiple adjustments as the series progresses. Rookies often struggle come playoff time given the magnitude of the moment — and that’s only if they manage to reach the postseason with most first-year players stuck on struggling teams. This year’s rookie class is as good as we have seen in quite some time....

Since the remaining 22 teams will be playing at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Fla., why not add a little Disney-Pixar twist to the list? We will break down the entire field with divisions based on characters from the animated masterpiece “Toy Story.” (If you don’t agree it is a masterpiece, stop here. It’s just not going to work between us.) Important note before we dive in: These power rankings are meant to be a fun exercise, so don’t fret too much over the placement of your team....

Ime Udoka found himself under the scanner after his relationship with a Celtics staff member came to light. While the relationship was reported to be consensual, it was still considered a violation of the organization’s code of conduct. This in itself earned him a one-year suspension from head coaching activities. While many thought this would be the end of all matters, the situation only continued to spiral as more information about the situation surfaced....

The duo’s departure signalled the end of the franchise’s first era in Oklahoma City, and general manager Sam Presti is believed to be open to more deals ahead of the trade deadline. With this in mind, Nick Crain of Forbes is reporting that the futures of Dennis Schroder, Steven Adams, and Chris Paul remain in doubt: In case you didn’t know… Since moving to Oklahoma City back in 2008, the Thunder have been among the NBA’s most competitive teams....

That has not always been the case with the NBA regular season in recent years, when it seemed that not only the champion was predetermined, but the matchup itself — Cavs-Warriors, four straight years — was easily predictable by the end of July. This year, with LeBron James leaving the Cavaliers and heading to the Lakers, the East is finally free from his grip. James has a run of eight straight Finals appearances going, but it’s safe to say that will end here....

The series is tied 2-2 and both teams will be looking to land the telling blow in Game 5. Let us see how things stand ahead of the clash tonight. The Philadelphia 76ers perspective The 76ers have been inconsistent on the road but they will need to set that record straight when they take on the Raptors. As a team, the 76ers are shooting 33.6% from beyond the three-point line and 46....

The NBA Draft 2020 is on the 18th of November, 2020. Before the top prospects in the draft get the opportunity to put on an NBA jersey for the first time, teams have an opportunity to trade their picks. NBA Draft 2020: Which team needs the Minnesota Timberwolves’ No. 1 pick more than the rest? Even though the class of NBA Draft 2020 is weaker than that of previous years, the talent among the top 5 prospects is undeniable....

As we get ready to kick off the college season, maybe tamped-down expectations are a good thing. After all, last year’s class of rookies were expected to be a life-changing group, and while it is obviously quite early in their development, the initial results have been ho-hum: Only one draftee, Jabari Parker, is averaging double-digits in scoring, and he is shooting just 41.9 percent from the field and 46.2 percent from the free-throw line....

It turns out Gilgeous-Alexander has been working out in Los Angeles ahead of the draft, and rather than traveling to workouts, sources told Sporting News that his agent, Thad Foucher of the Wasserman Group, had teams interested in drafting Gilgeous-Alexander visit LA to watch him. Gilgeous-Alexander could go as high as No. 6 to Orlando. Cleveland had interest, too, at No. 8, as well as the Hornets at 11. One reason the flow of teams to watch Gilgeous-Alexander was so tightly controlled, a source speculated, was a desire to have him drafted by the Clippers, who have back-to-back picks at Nos....

However, to optimize the best NBA DFS lineup, you will need to focus on the value players around the 6-7k price range. This will allow you to have enough of your salary cap to have a strong overall nine-man roster and pick up one superstar player with a price above 9k or higher. This article will examine the best FanDuel lineup for today’s five-game slate, determined by data-driven analysis with player stats, matchup history, and previous performance....