Devin Booker suffered a recurrence of his groin problem in the Phoenix Suns' overtime loss to the Denver Nuggets on Christmas Day.
The shooting guard had sat out his team's last three games with soreness, missing a win over the Los Angeles Lakers and defeats to the Washington Wizards and Memphis Grizzlies.
Any hope of a smooth comeback was dashed early in the first quarter against Denver after Booker's groin injury flared up, forcing him out of an eventual 128-125 overtime loss on Sunday after clocking just over four minutes on court.
The three-time All-Star needs just seven more three-pointers to pass Steve Nash for first place on the Suns' all-time franchise list, having scored 1,045 in his career with them to date.
In Booker's absence, Deandre Ayton and Chris Paul posted a combined 39 points to take the Suns within a whisker of victory, only to come up short at the end.
Nikola Jokic proved best-in-show for the Nuggets again, with 41 points, 15 rebounds and 15 assists as Denver notched 77 points after the half-time interval.
Return trips to the Grizzlies and the Wizards are next on the agenda for the 19-15 Suns, before they close out 2022 with a visit to the Toronto Raptors on Friday.
Jeff Van Gundy to join Clippers as lead assistant coach
Jeff Van Gundy will finally make his NBA coaching return next season after reportedly agreeing to become Los Angeles Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue’s top assistant.
The 62-year-old Van Gundy spent this season as a senior consultant for the Boston Celtics, who won their 18th NBA title by beating the Dallas Mavericks 106-88 in Game 5 of the Finals on Monday.
Prior to working with the Celtics, Van Gundy was a television analyst for ESPN for 16 years after being the head coach of the New York Knicks and Houston Rockets.
Van Gundy took over the Knicks in March 1996 and resigned 19 games into the 2001-02 season, a stretch that saw New York reach the NBA Finals in the lockout shortened 1998-99 campaign.
Houston hired Van Gundy in June 2003 and fired him after a first-round playoff exit in 2007.
Van Gundy owns a career coaching record of 430-318 in the regular season and 44-44 in the playoffs.
The Clippers went 51-31 this season and won the Pacific Division title for the first time since 2013-14, but they were eliminated by the Mavericks in six games in the first round of the playoffs.
Los Angeles signed Lue, who coached the Cleveland Cavaliers to the NBA title in 2016, to a five-year, $70million extension last month.
Irving backs Mavericks to be regular championship contenders after NBA Finals loss
Kyrie Irving is confident the Dallas Mavericks can be regular championship contenders after their NBA Finals loss to the Boston Celtics came as a "bitter" ending to a "really positive journey".
Jayson Tatum delivered a magnificent performance in Game 5 with 31 points, eight rebounds and 11 assists, as the Celtics capped a dominant season by cruising to a 106-88 victory over the Mavericks on Monday to capture their first league championship since 2008.
It was a difficult night for Irving at TD Garden. Boston's All-Star forward and Finals MVP Jaylen Brown compiled 21 points, eight rebounds and six assists and played lock-down defence on the Mavericks star, who was held to under 39 per cent shooting in three of Dallas' four losses.
Irving, who spent two seasons with Boston before signing with the Brooklyn Nets in 2019, went just 5 of 16 from the field while managing 15 points, the third time in the series he produced 16 points or fewer.
But Irving was looking at the positives despite the 4-1 series loss and hopes Dallas will be back to go one better in the years ahead.
"We answered a lot of questions this year on what we were capable of doing and now it is just about being consistent," Irving said, per ESPN.
"I said that I wanted to be remembered as one of the best teams of this era and our last few champions have been a new one each and every year.
"So, I see an opportunity for us to really build our future in a positive manner where this is almost like a regular thing for us, and we are competing for championships.
"From a spiritual standpoint, I think I enjoyed this journey more than any other season, just because of the redemption arc and being able to learn as much as I did about myself and my teammates and the organization and the people that I'm around."
After Dallas substituted its starters in the closing stages, Irving and Doncic exchanged an embrace and a few words on the sideline as the final seconds of the Celtics' victory ticked away.
"We said, 'We'll fight together next season, and we are just going to believe'," revealed Doncic.
Doncic battled injuries during the postseason and it remains uncertain if he will be able to represent Slovenia at the Olympic Games.
"I don't want to talk about what's next, man," Doncic said. "I have some decisions to make. I'm just trying to get a little bit healthier.
"It doesn't matter if I was hurt, how much was I hurt. I was out there. I tried to play but I didn't do enough."
With Doncic on the team, Mavericks coach Jason Kidd is optimistic there will be more NBA Finals appearances to come for Dallas.
He said: "For [Doncic] at the age of 25 to get to the Finals, to be playing his basketball at the level that he's playing...
"Now it's just being consistent. When you have one of the best players in the world, you should be always fighting for a championship."
Celtics' NBA title win will be remembered for the rest of my life, says Tatum
Jayson Tatum says the Boston Celtics' 18th NBA title is a "night I will remember for the rest of my life".
The Celtics capped a dominant season by cruising to a 106-88 victory over the Mavericks in Game 5 of the NBA finals on Monday, capturing their first league championship since 2008.
After recording the league's best regular-season record at 64-18, Boston continued that fine form in the post-season, going 16-3 to earn their record-breaking 18th title, moving them above the Los Angeles Lakers.
After losing Game 4 on the road, the Celtics responded in style, with Tatum the standout performer, getting 31 points, eight rebounds and 11 assists.
"I mean, this is going to be a night that I will remember for the rest of my life, from the game, the celebration, these moments," Tatum said.
"Over the last couple years, we had some tough losses at home in the playoffs. We've lost the NBA championship at home in front of our fans. We had a chance to beat Miami in Game 6 a few years ago and lost that one.
"So, to have a big win - the biggest win that you could have in front of your home crowd - I felt like that was really important to go out there and do everything in my power to make sure we won this game tonight."
"It means the world," Tatum said on stage. "It's been a long time. And I'm grateful."
Kristaps Porzingis missed Games 3 and 4 with a leg injury but managed 16 minutes off the bench to help his team to victory in the decider.
He confirmed after the game that he would need surgery on the injury but did not want to miss out on the occasion.
"I think something could have happened, for sure, especially compensating now on the other leg now, which I just came back from," Porzingis told ESPN.
"There was definitely some added risk, but I didn't care. I was like, 'I want to give everything I can and then fix it after if I need to.'"
"Since last game, I've been thinking ... 'How can I get my body ready for next game?'. Like, no matter how it is. And today I was like, 'I'm going to try everything possible to get out there.'
"And, man, it feels great to be a champion."
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