It wasn’t a welcome sight for the Lakers, but at the very least, their team was together. LeBron James sat on the bench wearing a walking boot and black hooded sweatshirt, not able to play but able to talk. 628 more words
Frank Vogel: LeBron James’ injury could influence Lakers’ roster moves — San Gabriel Valley Tribune
Indiana swept a two-game set with the Heat.
Justin Holiday’s OT threes help Pacers hold of Heat comeback, get win — ProBasketballTalk | NBC Sports
Norman Powell has thrived as a starter this season in Toronto.
Rumor: Toronto guard Norman Powell drawing trade interest — ProBasketballTalk | NBC Sports
Three takeaways from the Warriors’ 116-103 win over the Memphis Grizzlies (18-20) Friday night. Without Stephen Curry, Golden State improved to 22-20 and have now won three of their last four:
Three takeaways from the Warriors’ win over the Grizzlies, including Andrew Wiggins’ recent surge — Chico Enterprise-Record
RAPTORS NOTES
• The Toronto Raptors return home from three straight road games (Mar. 13-17) to host the Utah Jazz on Friday night at Amalie Arena. The Raptors have won 12 of their last 14 games against the Jazz and swept the season-series each of the last two seasons. Pascal Siakam has scored 27+ points in three straight
games vs. Utah, averaging 30.0 points. Vinik Sports Group and the Raptors will welcome a limited number of fans, with a capacity of 3,800, back to Amalie Arena for games starting Friday.
• Norman Powell scored a career-high 43 points (14-18 FG, 8-12 3PT, 7-9 FT) Wednesday at Detroit. Powell became the 13th player in franchise history to score 40+ points, and just the second to reach the 40-point mark without committing a turnover (Last: Chris Bosh – Dec. 22, 2007 at PHX).
• Norman Powell has scored 30+ points six times in the last 11 games (Feb. 19 – Mar. 17). Powell is averaging 26.8 points and is shooting .543 (101-186) from the floor, inlcuding .469 (45-96) from three-point range, during this stretch. Through 38 games, Powell is averaging a career-high 19.7 points (+3.7 ppg from 2019-20) and ranks eighth in the NBA shooting a career-best .446 (108-242) from beyond the arc.
• Chris Boucher is averaging career highs of 14.3 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.98 blocks and 24.2 minutes, and is the only Raptor to appear in all 40 games this season. Boucher ranks fifth in the NBA in blocks per game and is the only player in the league with 60+ three-point field goals and 60+ blocks (65 3PT, 79 BLK).
• Kyle Lowry recorded 15 assists Wednesday against the Pistons. Lowry dished out 15+ assists for the third time this season and eighth time in a Raptors uniform; third most in team history behind Jose Calderon (21) and Damon Stoudamire (11).
• Toronto used its 16th different starting lineup of the season March 17 at Detroit. The Raptors used 18 starting lineups in 72 games during the 2019-20 campaign. Toronto has had 12 different players start at least
one game this season. Fred VanVleet leads the team with 35 starts.
• Malachi Flynn, Patrick McCaw, Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet all returned to the lineup Wednesday at Detroit. Flynn, McCaw and VanVleet missed the previous five games, while Siakam was out for the last six, because of Health of Safety Protocols. OG Anunoby missed his sixth straight game against the Pistons also because of Health and Safety Protocols. Anunoby is expected to return Friday vs. Utah.
• The Raptors have lost six consecutive games (Mar. 3-17) for the first time since Dec. 3-12, 2012. Opponents are averaging 121.7 points and shooting .498 (253-508) from the field, including .397 (93-234) from three-point range, during this span. Toronto also has a -76 (277-to-353) rebounding differential over the last six contests. The last time the Raptors dropped seven in a row was Jan. 10-22, 2012 when they lost eight straight games. Toronto is six games below .500 (17-23) for the first time this season.
NEW YORK (AP) — Los Angeles Clippers star Paul George was fined $35,000 on Friday for saying conversations with referees are “just a bunch of lies” while questioning why more fouls weren’t called against Dallas in LA’s 105-89 loss to the Mavericks. George said after Wednesday’s game that it was “insane” the Clippers weren’t getting […]
Clippers’ George fined $35,000 for ‘lies’ comment about refs — FOX40
As the Lakers superstar takes on a share of the Boston Red Sox, examining the factors and motivations as he strives to own an NBA team
LeBron James an NBA owner? ‘Sooner than later.’ — Orange County Register
Five NBA players had triple-doubles Saturday – a single-day record.
NBA-record six players record triple-doubles Wednesday — ProBasketballTalk | NBC Sports
Please be advised of the following updates to the Raptors 2020-21 schedule:
• The Chicago Bulls at Toronto Raptors game originally scheduled for Sunday, Feb. 28 will be played on Thursday, Apr. 8 at 7:30 p.m. ET.
• The Toronto Raptors at Cleveland Cavaliers game originally scheduled for Friday, Apr. 9 will be played on Saturday, Apr. 10 at 7:30 p.m. ET.
-RAPTORS-
The trade deadline is roughly a week away, on March 25, and the uncertainty is natural for any NBA player who hears his name in the rumor mill, though it’s hardly a secret that Danny Ainge is trying to be a player in the market. But from what Brad Stevens can tell, most of his…
Celtics players sail through trade winds undeterred — Boston Herald
“I’m here, I’m alive, I’m breathing and I know there’s a lot of people that didn’t make it through COVID.”
Raptors’ VanVleet talks COVID-19 experience: ‘I wouldn’t wish it on anybody’ — ProBasketballTalk | NBC Sports
After another G League player called him “coronavirus” on the court, Lin, who is Taiwanese American, has been speaking out against the racism and bigotry that numerous Asian Americans have faced since former President Donald Trump began referring to the coronavirus as the “China virus” last year.
Jeremy Lin talks embracing Linsanity, denouncing racism and staying hungry — The Denver Post
The view from left field 