Suns' Kevin Durant out after injuring ankle in pregame slip
Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant slipped on the floor during pregame warmups and was ruled out Wednesday night against the Oklahoma City Thunder because of left ankle soreness.
Bucks use lopsided run after Nash ejected, beat Nets 110-99
Giannis Antetokounmpo had 43 points, 14 rebounds and five assists as the Milwaukee Bucks went on a lopsided run after Brooklyn coach Steve Nash was ejected in the third quarter and beat the Nets 110-99.
James rallies Lakers past Pacers 124-116 after suspension
LeBron James made the tiebreaking 3-pointer in overtime and followed with a back-breaking 3 in his return from the first suspension of his career to help the Los Angeles Lakers beat Indiana 124-116 on Wednesday night.
![Beal, Westbrook lead Wiz past Pacers 142-115 for East 8 seed](https://www.ksat.com/resizer/bbxEGp-taPu3OAQUEwg0HMe7mFI=/800x533/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65):fill(FFF)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gmg/42J42IHH7BDDVD5A4NR35MJ4PI.jpg)
Beal, Westbrook lead Wiz past Pacers 142-115 for East 8 seed
Russell Westbrook nearly had a triple-double and Bradley Beal scored 25 points in just 29 minutes to help the Washington Wizards reach the NBA playoffs as the Eastern Conferenceโs No. 8 seed by overwhelming the Indiana Pacers 142-115 in the play-in round.
![Sabonis leads Pacers past Hornets 144-117 in play-in round](https://www.ksat.com/resizer/Xm35I5hRMOfDQQwFiABl-MGo1N8=/800x533/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65):fill(FFF)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gmg/LHVBBJTSPFDHVABVMYCLTW44Q4.jpg)
Sabonis leads Pacers past Hornets 144-117 in play-in round
Domantas Sabonis had 14 points, 21 rebounds and nine assists, and the short-handed Indiana Pacers routed the Charlotte Hornets 144-117 in the Eastern Conferenceโs first play-in game.
![Pacers rally late for 103-94 win to snap 76ers streak,](https://www.ksat.com/resizer/UbDVKp7jQWAijhpr_9iPgfLBDAc=/800x533/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gmg/2E2R5BZZUVHOBAPACS5EF3EMQU.jpg)
Pacers rally late for 103-94 win to snap 76ers streak,
Domantas Sabonis had his ninth triple-double of the season and Caris LeVert added 24 points to help Indiana rally past Philadelphia 103-94, ending the 76ers eight-game winning streak.
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LeVert, Pacers await test results before plotting next move
He was eager to meet his new teammates, join the starting lineup and make his Pacers debut. LeVert spent his first 4 1/2 seasons with the Nets after the Pacers selected him in the first round of the 2016 NBA draft. Though teams conduct physicals at the start of each season, LeVert wasn't sure if the Nets ever scanned his lower back. That changed when he joined the Pacers, who came up with a diagnosis LeVert never expected. And until LeVert does return, first-year coach Nate Bjorkgren will be dealing with a short-handed roster.
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Mass on kidney to keep LeVert out indefinitely for Pacers
Brooklyn Nets guard Caris LeVert (22) brings the ball upcourt in the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Memphis Grizzlies, Friday, Jan. 8, 2021, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)INDIANAPOLIS โ The Indiana Pacers will be without newly acquired Caris LeVert indefinitely after an MRI showed a mass on his left kidney during a physical to complete this week's blockbuster four-team trade. โOn behalf of my family and myself, we want to thank the Indiana Pacers for their support and guidance," LeVert said in a statement. LeVert was expected to replace Oladipo and help replace forward T.J. Warren, who is out indefinitely after having surgery to repair a stress fracture in his left foot. โWe acquired Caris because of who he is as a young man first and foremost," Pacers president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard said. Plus, LeVert is signed through 2022-23 as are three other Pacers starters.
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Dragic scores 23, 5th-seeded Heat sweep Pacers to advance
Tyler Herro had 16 points and Bam Adebayo added 14 points and 19 rebounds for the Heat, who made it out of the first round for the first time since 2016. Victor Oladipo had 25 points and Myles Turner added 22 points and 14 rebounds for the Pacers, who have dropped four straight postseason series to the Heat since 2012. Dragic's layup at the end of the third quarter gave the Heat an eight-point lead and the Pacers never mounted a serious comeback in the fourth. Heat guard Jimmy Butler left the game in the first quarter with a left shoulder strain. Pacers: T.J. Warren had 21 points for Indiana.
![Lillard wins Bubble MVP, Williams picked as top coach](https://www.ksat.com/resizer/U8NlyhCE7kItnufm9-tzJ6oum9w=/1600x1067/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gmg/2U4WD5WU75GFLE55G47SFBUS4E.jpg)
Lillard wins Bubble MVP, Williams picked as top coach
Phoenixs Monty Williams, who led the Suns to a perfect 8-0 record in the bubble, was chosen as the top coach of the seeding-game schedule. Joining Lillard on the first team for games played at Disney between July 30 and Fridays end of the seeding-game season was Phoenix's Devin Booker, Indiana's T.J. Warren, Dallas' Luka Doncic and Houston's James Harden. Booker was second in the Bubble MVP race, with Warren third. Second-team selections were Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Los Angeles Clippers' Kawhi Leonard, Brooklyn's Caris LeVert, Denver's Michael Porter Jr. and Dallas' Kristaps Porzingis. ___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
![Warren scores 39, Pacers surge past Lakers late, 116-111](https://www.ksat.com/resizer/tKgEZMnySC0Gnnb0BEBxwStrnUc=/1600x1066/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gmg/WSTWIFFWY5EQHCDV335OLDGLDY.jpg)
Warren scores 39, Pacers surge past Lakers late, 116-111
Warren scored 18 in the first quarter, one off the franchise record he tied in a bubble-opening win over Philadelphia a week ago, before getting held without a shot in the second quarter. TIP-INSLakers: After Justin Holliday opened the second quarter with a 3 that pushed the Pacers' lead to 13, the Lakers went on a 22-5 run for a 46-42 lead. James scored six straight points on layups to start the run and later hit a 3. Pacers: Indiana's JaKarr Sampson had back-to-back putback dunks in the first quarter to finish a run to a 32-17 lead. ... Aaron Holiday had seven points and matched James with a game-high seven assists.
![No shortage of points scored inside the NBA's bubble](https://www.ksat.com/resizer/EGq2OAOlptet4A-f3wcmW9hOJck=/1600x1066/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gmg/WFI4AP3GNNCHJGSLVVLUCTUIAY.jpg)
No shortage of points scored inside the NBA's bubble
Scoring numbers are soaring inside the NBAs bubble, where the restarted season is happening at Walt Disney World. Games on average have seen nine points more than what had been the norm this season. There was a six-game NBA schedule on Feb. 21, 1988, and all the teams playing that night scored at least 110 points. That hadnt happened, on a day of five or more games, again in the NBA until July 31 the second day of bubble games. And the fact that, you know, the skill sets of NBA players are increasing exponentially by the month.
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Analysis: Early returns say so far, so good for NBA bubble
If that wasnt enough, the quality of play is so good that its almost like the NBA hadnt stopped playing for 4-1/2 months. In all honestly, its better than I was expecting ... talking about all the teams in general, San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said. So, you see some of the talents these guys have are coming out.The numbers inside the bubble are ridiculous. Try 36 points again, 18 rebounds and eight assists in the Bucks loss to Houston on Sunday night. The Rockets beat the Mavs 153-149 in overtime Friday and then tried 61 3-pointers to tie an NBA regulation-game record Sunday.
![Warren scores career-high 53 as Pacers beat 76ers 127-121](https://www.ksat.com/resizer/Di7PzTlF17C6plcaTEiY_V1VQA8=/1600x1066/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gmg/2LJZCQ5M7BAHRKRJY5TLMHIX3E.jpg)
Warren scores career-high 53 as Pacers beat 76ers 127-121
I just wanted to be aggressive, do what I do best, Warren said. Tobias Harris scored 30 points for Philadelphia, and Ben Simmons had 19 points and 13 rebounds. But the leading trio for the Sixers wasn't enough to overcome Warren, who matched a franchise record with 19 points in the first quarter. He punished us tonight from the beginning of the game on.The Pacers got the restart-opening win without two starters. The Sixers were down 35-29 after the first and had eight turnovers, including two each from Embiid and Milton.
![Brogdon scores 26, Pacers forced to rally late to beat Spurs](https://www.ksat.com/resizer/yf3xrVdgiQEDdajVUJqJPwKMgK4=/992x558/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/arc-anglerfish-arc2-prod-gmg.s3.amazonaws.com/public/VQ4PXGQEUBCKNA3ZHIBEIHQXY4.jpg)
Brogdon scores 26, Pacers forced to rally late to beat Spurs
SAN ANTONIO, Texas โ Indiana found its bearing in the paint after losing its composure late against San Antonio. Malcolm Brogdon scored 26 points, T.J. Warren added 23 and the Pacers rallied to beat the Spurs 116-111 on Monday night after blowing a 15-point lead. Patty Mills scored 24 points to lead San Antonio and Trey Lyles added 20. โItโs all about being competitive and executing and youโve got to do it for more of the 48 minutes than your opponent,โ San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said. โWe didnโt do anything in the second quarter to help ourselves.