NBA

6:59 AM ET The league looks a little different since our last rundown of all 30 teams. Star guards Russell Westbrook and John Wall swapped teams. Jrue Holiday and Gordon Hayward changed uniforms. The Philadelphia 76ers got a new head coach and a new president of basketball operations. What about the Los Angeles Lakers? L.A.

7:05 PM ET Andrew LopezESPN Zion Williamson will head into his second NBA season with “no restrictions,” the New Orleans Pelicans star said Sunday. Talking to reporters as the Pelicans opened their training camp, Williamson flashed the biggest smile of the day when asked about what limitations he might have this season. “Me and [Pelicans]

7:00 AM ET The NBA returns to regular-season action on Dec. 22 following an abbreviated offseason — one that saw the draft and the start of free agency compressed into the same week — with some uncertainty. With the coronavirus pandemic ongoing, the league is facing decisions about how to undertake a campaign outside the

5:20 PM ET Russell Westbrook may be changing teams and jersey numbers, but the Washington Wizards‘ newest point guard said he isn’t going to change his demeanor on the court no matter what people think of him. Westbrook joined the Wizards on Saturday but did not practice due to paperwork from the trade having just

6:02 PM ET Michael Porter Jr. is ready to do more than just fill the void on the Denver Nuggets caused by the departures of key wing players like Jerami Grant and Torrey Craig. The second-year forward is prepared to not only be a full-time starter, but believes he’s ready to be the third star

2:50 PM ET The NBA has warned teams that protocol violations that lead to coronavirus spread impacting opposing teams and causing schedule derailments could result in “fines, suspensions, adjustment or loss of draft choices and game forfeitures,” according to a memo obtained by ESPN. For players violating safety protocols this season, the league warns that

4:21 PM ET The NBA schedule has been released for the first half of the 2020-21 season. The regular season tips off on Dec. 22, 72 days after the Los Angeles Lakers hoisted the Larry O’Brien Trophy inside the NBA’s Orlando bubble. Since then, we’ve had the NBA draft, a flurry of coaching changes and

10:35 PM ET LOS ANGELES — Anthony Davis said he signed the lengthiest contract he possibly could to stay with the Los Angeles Lakers — inking a five-year, $190 million pact Thursday — in part as an insurance policy should he suffer a career-threatening injury. “That could have been a two-year, three-year deal,” Davis told

12:44 PM ET Tim BontempsESPN Philadelphia 76ers star Ben Simmons said Friday that the Sixers didn’t do a good enough job of holding themselves accountable last season, and it played a significant role in the team’s disappointing 2019-20 campaign. “One hundred percent,” Simmons said when asked whether former Sixer Josh Richardson‘s comments about the team’s

5:26 PM ET First-year Houston Rockets head coach Stephen Silas has not been in regular contact with James Harden, saying he is giving the disgruntled face of the franchise “space” as the season nears. Harden has informed the Rockets that he wants to be traded to the Brooklyn Nets, according to sources, preferring a fresh

8:40 PM ET LOS ANGELES — Anthony Davis might have filled his bank account by signing a five-year, $190 million extension with the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday, but one of his teammates now wants him to fill his awards shelf, too. “I’m expecting AD to go for the MVP,” Lakers forward Jared Dudley said

7:40 AM ET All-NBA forward Anthony Davis is finalizing a five-year, $190 million maximum contract to stay with the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers, Klutch Sports CEO and Founder Rich Paul told ESPN. The deal includes an early termination option prior to the fifth year of the deal in 2024-2025, Paul said. Davis, a free

8:02 PM ET The Houston Rockets have agreed to trade Russell Westbrook to the Washington Wizards for John Wall and a first-round draft pick, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Westbrook, as well as fellow Rockets star James Harden, had expressed concern about the direction of the Houston franchise in the wake of the departures of

8:09 PM ET Paul George said the LA Clippers failed to make any adjustments during their stunning NBA playoff meltdown last season when they blew a 3-1 second-round series lead to the Denver Nuggets. Appearing Wednesday on the “All The Smoke” podcast with Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes, a candid George talked about the Clippers’

1:06 PM ET Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James has agreed to a two-year, $85 million contract extension with the Los Angeles Lakers, his agent Rich Paul told ESPN and multiple outlets Wednesday. James was named the 2020 NBA Finals MVP after leading the Lakers past the Miami Heat in six games. He became the

11:21 PM ET LeBron James is confident that the Los Angeles Lakers‘ offseason moves will put them in position to defend their NBA championship. “We can [repeat]. I mean, it’s that simple,” James said on an episode of “Road Trippin’,” hosted by Richard Jefferson, Channing Frye and Allie Clifton, that aired Tuesday on Spectrum SportsNet.

8:45 PM ET The NBA’s Christmas Day schedule is set, and all five matchups are packed with star power. Zion Williamson makes his Christmas Day debut as the New Orleans Pelicans face the defending Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat. Stephen Curry, back from a broken left hand, leads the Golden State Warriors against reigning two-time