NBA

4:35 PM ET Kendra AndrewsESPN SAN FRANCISCO — At one point early in the NBA playoffs, Golden State Warriors general manager Bob Myers and head coach Steve Kerr had a conversation about how they didn’t feel their team was championship caliber. They saw themselves as a Western Conference finals team, maybe, but compared with the

6:13 PM ET The Detroit Pistons are trading forward Jerami Grant to the Portland Trail Blazers for a 2025 first-round pick via the Milwaukee Bucks, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The 2025 first-round pick via Milwaukee is protected Nos. 1-4, sources said. Detroit sends Grant into a $21 million trade exception, and the Pistons now

12:00 PM ET Former National Player of the Year Jimmer Fredette and potential top-10 NBA draft picks Ausar and Amen Thompson headline the 2022 field for The Basketball Tournament. The 64-team TBT bracket, which was released on Wednesday, features a record 71 players with NBA experience as well as 29 college alumni teams. For the

4:57 PM ET Houston Rockets guard John Wall exercised his $47.4 million player option for the 2022-23 season, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The Rockets will continue to seek trade scenarios in the coming weeks, but are expected to work with Wall on a contract buyout if a swap can’t be found, sources said. Wall,

6:19 PM ET NBA free agency doesn’t begin until June 30 at 6 p.m. ET, but the news is already rolling in from around the Association. Much of the early buzz is coming out of New York, where Kyrie Irving‘s contract status has pundits and fans speculating about the future of the Brooklyn Nets‘ star

11:38 AM ET Tim BontempsESPN After Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum had a rough NBA Finals, Brad Stevens had a simple message for his team’s franchise player. “I just told him to go on vacation,” Stevens, Boston’s president of basketball operations, said with a smile during a videoconference call with reporters after Boston’s season ended

7:47 PM ET Kendra AndrewsESPN SAN FRANCISCO — It’s been two years since the Bay Area hosted a championship parade, but the city, nor the Warriors, forgot how to take in the moment. Stephen Curry hopped on top of a banister at a Muni train station stop and started hitting the sign that was next

2:12 PM ET An emergency protective order filed last month against veteran NBA point guard Rajon Rondo in Louisville, Kentucky, has been dismissed. The protective order, which was filed against Rondo by a woman on May 13, was dismissed on Thursday after the “parties reached an agreement,” according to the document, which was obtained by

8:00 AM ET Tim BontempsESPN The NBA Finals wrapped up only a few days ago, but The Association’s calendar stops for no one. This week, the next generation of players will be welcomed into the league when the Orlando Magic begin the 2022 NBA draft Thursday night at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center. From there, free agency

11:31 AM ET Tim BontempsESPN Denver Nuggets forward Jeff Green has exercised his $4.5 million player option for the 2022-23 season, sources told ESPN. Green had until Monday to decide whether to opt into the deal, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks. Green, who will turn 36 in August, averaged 10.3 points in 75 games (63

8:26 PM ET The Los Angeles Lakers have agreed to hire Atlanta Hawks assistant Chris Jent as Darvin Ham’s top assistant coach on his staff, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Ham, a first-time head coach, made Jent a priority and recruited him hard after getting the Lakers job, sources told Wojnarowski. Ham and Jent coached

4:44 PM ET Associated Press In a couple of weeks, Bradley Beal‘s future might look a lot clearer. At this point, the Washington Wizards star isn’t tipping his hand. When asked Saturday about how he expects the start of free agency to go, he replied: “Crazy. probably — like it always is.” When asked how

3:39 PM ET Kenny Atkinson has decided he won’t become the Charlotte Hornets‘ head coach and instead will remain with the Golden State Warriors as the top assistant, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Atkinson was offered the job during the NBA Finals, but after further conversations Atkinson was led to believe it would be best

8:18 PM ET Kendra AndrewsESPN SAN FRANCISCO — Amid the champagne showers that drenched Golden State’s locker room in the TD Garden, Jordan Poole and Andrew Wiggins hopped on Instagram Live to share the celebration with their followers. In the livestream, Poole looked at Wiggins and proclaimed, “You’re going to get a bag.” An uncontrollable

11:43 PM ET Kendra AndrewsESPN BOSTON — For the fourth time in eight years, the Golden State Warriors have been crowned champions, as they eliminated the Celtics 103-90 on Thursday night in Game 6 of the NBA Finals. The Warriors won their first title since 2018 and became the first team to go from the

8:00 AM ET The Golden State Warriors are the 2022 NBA champions, Stephen Curry has his long-awaited Finals MVP award and the Warriors’ big three of Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green tallied title No. 4. OK, what’s next? After battling in the Finals, where do the Warriors and Boston Celtics check in for the

2:30 PM ET One day after Stephen Curry added a fourth NBA title and first Finals MVP Award to his illustrious résumé, his alma mater, Davidson, announced that the Golden State Warriors star would have his number retired by the school at an August ceremony. Davidson athletic director Chris Clunie said Friday that Curry’s No.

9:00 AM ET Tim BontempsESPN BOSTON — With 63 seconds remaining in Game 6 of the NBA Finals, Boston Celtics coach Ime Udoka, his team trailing by 11, waved the white flag and replaced all five of his starters. Jayson Tatum, after slowly trudging off the court, exchanged greetings with Boston players and coaches, untucked