NBA RUMORS AND NEWS

TSN "Houston Rockets guard Sterling Brown is expected to make a full recovery from what the team is calling an "assault" that left him with facial lacerations. The Rockets say the incident took place Sunday night in Miami. "Last night, Sterling..." April 19

Bleacher Report "The idea of Kobe Bryant playing for any other team besides the Los Angeles Lakers may seem blasphemous now, but there was apparently a time when he strongly considered joining the other squad in town. During an appearance on All The..." April 19

NBC Boston "When the Indiana Hoosiers were looking for a new basketball coach, one of the coaches that they were targeting from the get-go was Brad Stevens.W Despite the rumors, the Boston Celtics' coach remained steadfast that he was going to stay with the team, and eventually, Indiana..." April 19

Fadeaway World "The Los Angeles Lakers are a championship contender this season and have a fairly stacked roster around their two superstars in LeBron James and Anthony Davis. However, there could be massive upheavals on the roster next season: while LeBron James and Anthony Davis are locked in for the..." April 19

Clutch Points "Lamar Odom reflected on how much Lakers legend Kobe Bryant meant to him during his appearance on Showtime’s All The Smoke podcast with Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson. Odom got emotional speaking about Bryant’s mindset and constant drive to be great. He..." April 19

Sportsnaut "In what can’t be considered too much of a surprise, Gonzaga combo-guard Jalen Suggs has officially declared for the 2021 NBA Draft after leading his Bulldogs to the National Championship Game this past season.  The 6-foot-4 guard has been ascending the NBA Draft..." April 19

SLAM Online "According to EuroLeague insider Chema de Lucas, point guard Mike James will join the Brooklyn Nets for the remainder of the season, leaving Russia’s CSKA Moscow.  Chris Sheridan of Basketballnews.com would confirm the report. " April 19

Bleacher Report "The estate of Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant has declined to renew his endorsement deal with Nike, according to Complex's Brendan Dunne.  The contract officially expired on April 13, per Dunne, but Nike is still planning to release previously planned new..." April 19

Fadeaway World "Anthony Edwards was drawing a lot of praise around the NBA even before making his debut as a professional. His brief stint at the University of Georgia was more than enough to prove that he was worthy of being last year’s first-overall pick. Edwards struggled with an..." April 19

Hoops Rumors "APRIL 19: The Warriors have officially signed Gary Payton II, per a team tweet. APRIL 18: Gary Payton II will sign a second 10-day contract with the Warriors, tweetsAnthony Slater of The Athletic. The versatile..." April 19

NBA.com "The LA Clippers announced that the team has signed Yogi Ferrell to a 10-day contract. Ferrell, 27, appeared in two games for the Cleveland Cavaliers this season, averaging 9.5 points. 3.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 steals. The 6-foot-0 guard also appeared in 14 games for the Salt..." April 19

Cavs Nation "With their loss to the Chicago Bulls on Saturday night, the 2020-2021 NBA season is all but over for the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavaliers are currently 20-36 with 16 games remaining, which puts them 13th in the Eastern Conference. The league’s new play-in mini-tournament..." April 19

TSN "NBA teams can begin negotiating with pending free agents on August 2 and begin officially signing them on August 6. The dates were announced after the National Basketball League and NBPA agreed upon the opening of free agency ahead of the 2021-22 season. The negotiation..." April 19

Heat Nation "Miami Heat second-year guard Tyler Herro has struggled mightily recently. In fact, over the past four games, Herro has only logged one double-digit scoring effort. He scored 10 points in that game. In a recent episode of the “Inside the Paint”..." April 19

Bleacher Report "NBA fortunes can change overnight. Sometimes the stars align—literally, in a two- or three-star conglomerate—and an also-ran transforms into a top-flight title contender. That's the fun kind of basketball metamorphosis. Not to drag the room down, but..." April 19

USA Today "Kevin Durant had been back in the Brooklyn Nets lineup for less than two weeks when he suffered his latest injury. Durant left the Nets' game Sunday against the Miami Heat early in the first quarter after suffering what the team called a left thigh contusion. He scored..." April 19

Clutch Points "Like it or not, Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic is a top 10 player in the NBA, perhaps top 5 offensively. He is a rare breed of talent that automatically makes everyone around him better, and he is one of the most unique players the league has seen in recent memory. Therefore it is all the more..." April 19

The Big Lead "The Sacramento Kings won their first game in the month of April last night, beating the Dallas Mavericks, 121-107. De'Aaron Fox was immaculate yet again, posting 30 points and 12 assists on 12-of-21 shooting. Unfortunately, it probably won't mean much in the long run as the team is..." April 19

The Athletic "We’re getting to the stretch run of a chaotic NBA season. We passed up the third-quarter mark for every team during the past week, meaning we just have one quarter of the season left before the postseason process begins. That gives teams roughly 15-18 games left to make their..." April 19

SI "" April 19

Bleacher Report "Dating back to 2005-06, there’s been an average of three ACL tears each NBA season, according to injury buff Jeff Stotts at In Street Clothes. Jamal Murray’s season-ending injury last week marked the fourth player to tear his ACL during this cam “Blame..." April 19

The Score "Shaquille O'Neal's criticism of the five-year, $205-million extension handed to Utah Jazz big man Rudy Gobert last year appears to have been spurred at least in part by jealousy. During an appearance on "The Rex Chapman Show" earlier this month,..." April 19

Total Pro Sports "Former Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets player Darius Morris is at the center of some major controversy as he is now being sued by a woman for alleged assault and battery, according to new court papers. Kristen Summer filed the Manhattan Supreme Court summons against the 30-year-old this..." April 19

Hoops Rumors "The disabled player exceptions that teams have been granted throughout the 2020/21 season will expire if they go unused on Monday. April 19 is this year’s deadline to use or lose those exceptions. As our breakdown shows, the Warriors, Nets, Heat,..." April 19

ESPN "The NBA league office is eliminating restrictions on international travel for fully vaccinated personnel, according to a memo to teams obtained by ESPN. NBA team personnel based in the United States had been barred from traveling internationally for scouting purposes for the entirety..." April 19

Larry Brown Sports "Victor Oladipo gave Miami Heat fans a scare with his recent non-contact injury. But like Arnold Schwarzenegger, he is declaring that he will be back. Oladipo told Andy Slater of FOX Sports 640 South Florida this weekend that he will play again this season.  " April 19

Pro Basketball Talk "Pelicans coach Stan Van Gundy ripped his team after losing to the Knicks yesterday: “High school guys could’ve done what they’re supposed to do.” With New Orleans up three in the final seconds of regulation, Eric..." April 19

USA Today "First, Jordan Clarkson spent the beginning of his NBA career playing with and learning from Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. Since then, the Utah Jazz guard has become intent on pursuing a path that sounds both familiar and foreign to his two former star teammates. Just..." April 19

Clutch Points "Charlotte Hornets owner Michael Jordan will speak at the Hall of Fame induction ceremony on behalf of Kobe Bryant in May. It is only right that Jordan was bestowed this honor. The two of them shared a special bond and had a big brother-little brother relationship throughout the..." April 19

Hollywood Life "Antron Pippen, the oldest child of NBA legend Scottie Pippen, has died at age 33. Here’s what you need to know. “I’m heartbroken to share that yesterday, I said goodbye to my firstborn son Antron [Pippen],” Scottie Pippen posted to social..." April 19

Total Pro Sports "Sara Jay appears to be a huge fan of the surging New York Knicks. On Sunday, the Knicks extended their win streak to six games after defeating the New Orleans Pelicans in OT at home. The team is 19-17 against Eastern Conference opponents and the best team in the East at limiting..." April 19

Bleacher Report "While few NBA teams will have max cap space this offseason, there's still plenty of talent to be found for the price of a mid-level exception (or less). Perhaps no team nailed their value free-agent signings more than the New York Knicks last offseason, moves that have propelled..." April 19

The Sports Daily "The NBA Playoffs are just around the corner, with the Heat still not having hit their stride, and their superstar leader is making it clear that they need to step up their aggression. Jimmy Butler is the heart and soul of the Heat, although the team might eventually be Bam..." April 19

Talk Basket "Oklahoma City Thunder wing Luguentz Dort has expressed interest in potentially playing for Team Canada this summer at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament. “Team Canada, yeah I’m looking to tryout and try and make the team for this summer and to compete for the..." April 19

TMZ "Ex-NBA star Nate Robinson raked in more than $2 MILLION for that horrific boxing performance against Jake Paul back in 2020 ... and there's a chance they could run it back!! That's all according to ESPN's Stephen A. Smith who says he spoke..." April 19

Sporting News "Indiana was unable to lure Brad Stevens away from Boston, but the Celtics coach certainly didn't turn down the job because of a lack of financial incentive. During Saturday's edition of "NBA Countdown," ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski revealed that Indiana was..." April 19

Sportsnaut "San Diego State standout Matt Mitchell has declared for the 2021 NBA Draft, USA Today reported Sunday. Mitchell had the option to return for a fifth season under NCAA rules installed because of the coronavirus pandemic, but the Mountain West Conference Player of the Year instead hired..." April 19

Fadeaway World "Bol Bol might not be getting a lot of action on the court but he definitely is off the court. The Denver Nuggets sophomore is making very good moves in his personal life, scoring a big win with his girlfriend. Recently, Instagram model Mulan Hernandez was spotted at the Toyota Center in Houston..." April 19

Star Tribune "Fans who think the Minnesota Timberwolves and Lynx will leave the state as soon as new owners gain control of the operation have likely underestimated Glen Taylor. The men's team, the National Basketball Association's Timberwolves, didn't win nearly enough for Taylor to..." April 19

The Athletic "Zion Williamson loves playing in New York. “Honestly, outside of New Orleans, obviously, I think this might be my favorite place to play outside of New Orleans,” Williamson said Sunday, after his first NBA game at Madison Square Garden. It wasn’t just..." April 19

SNY TV "If you’re a Knicks fan, maybe you woke up on Saturday thinking about possible playoff matchups for your team. Or Julius Randle’s case for Most Improved Player. Or how everyone’s underestimated RJ Barrett. It’s totally understandable if you are..." April 19

New York Daily News " It’s no small accomplishment, given the developments of the last two years, that Julius Randle has made us forget about Kristaps Porzingis. You remember the 7-3 Latvian, right? He is playing well enough for the Mavericks, carrying the same intrigue as a space-the-floor..." April 19

CBS Sports "An undercurrent of disrespect permeated LaMarcus Aldridge's 2015 free agency. For a week that July, he was the center of the NBA universe, the lone championship-altering force on a market accustomed to players just a hair greater. Aldridge was never LeBron..." April 19

The Athletic "Earlier in the week, we wrote about how the Utah Jazz need to make some decisions when it comes to rest and the overall health of their roster. Especially with the playoffs looming in the next month. And Saturday afternoon’s 127-115 overtime loss to the Los Angeles..." April 19

Star Tribune "The 2021-22 season has been shaping up, for probably the last two years since Gersson Rosas took over as Timberwolves President and at least a year since a massive roster overhaul paired D'Angelo Russell with Karl-Anthony Towns, as a defining season in the franchise's..." April 19

TMZ "Welcome to the Dozens ... starring Barack Obama?!? He's got jokes! Fat jokes. Gambling jokes. Shaq jokes!! Plus, actual information about the COVID vaccine (no joke!)!! Obama sat down virtually with Charles Barkley and Shaquille O'Neal as..." April 19

SI "Hasheem Thabeet is looking to make an NBA comeback, his agent Jerry Dianis told me on Saturday. The 7'3" big-man just won MVP honors while playing in Taiwan for the Hsinchu JKO Lioneers. "Bottom line Hasheem Thabeet was given a opportunity, and he killed it," Dianis..." April 19

The Athletic "With Andre Iguodala in his face, Kevin Durant received the ball alongside the baseline, took two dribbles and stopped. His former teammate jumped at his pump fake, allowing Durant to hit a fadeaway, one of his trademark shots, and sank it. Less than two minutes later, he was..." April 19

New York Post "Pelicans superstar Zion Williamson had just suffered a tough overtime loss to the Knicks — the Pelicans’ third straight. And the players were just chewed out by their head coach Stan Van Gundy for botching the final play of regulation while on defense. But Williamson..." April 19

Sportsnet "The Toronto Raptors have signed Yuta Watanabe to a standard NBA contract, the team announced Monday. Prior to this, Watanabe was signed to a two-way contract with the team, which he inked on Dec. 20, 2020. Terms of the deal were not disclosed per team policy. " April 19