LeBron James hurt his ankle but played on as the Los Angeles Lakers were humbled by the in-form Phoenix Suns 108-88 led by Devin Booker with 24 points on Tuesday.
The Lakers had a major injury scare, with All-Star forward Anthony Davis already sidelined, after James rolled his left ankle driving to the basket in the third quarter, leaving him punching the floor.
The four-time MVP soldiered on, finishing with 34 points and seven rebounds, but spent the final few minutes on the bench as the Lakers were brushed aside by the Suns who improve to 25-5.
Phoenix have four straight and won six of their past seven games, having started the season 1-3. The Suns had seven different players in double figures on Tuesday.
Booker starred in his second game back after a hamstring injury with 24 points including six three-pointers, along with nine rebounds and seven assists. Suns center Deandre Ayton had 19 points and 11 rebounds.
Talen Horton-Tucker had a nightmare game for the Lakers, shooting one of 13 from the field and none of eight from beyond the arc, while Russell Westbrook had 22 points and 10 rebounds but also seven turnovers.
Lillard's heroics in vain as Blazers lose
Damian Lillard's 39 points, including six triples, were not enough to lift the Portland Trail Blazers past the New Orleans Pelicans, going down 111-97. Brandon Ingram finished with 28 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, while Jonas Valanciunas had 10 points with 16 rebounds.
Jalen Brunson stepped up in Luka Doncic's absence with 28 points including three triples in the Dallas Mavericks' 114-102 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves. Karl-Anthony Towns scored 26 points with 12 rebounds and seven assists for the Wolves.
Julius Randle had 21 points and 11 rebounds as the New York Knicks overcame the Detroit Pistons 105-91.
Brogdon injured as Pacers burnt by Heat
The Indiana Pacers' starting five combined for a measly 46 points in their 125-96 defeat to the Miami Heat. The Pacers were not helped by a sore right Achilles to Malcolm Brogdon which forced him off after eight minutes.
Bulls head coach highlights 'uphill battle' for Lonzo's recovery from third knee surgery
Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donovan called Lonzo Ball's road to recovery an "uphill battle" as the 25-year-old went under the knife on Monday for the third procedure on his troublesome left knee.
Ball last played in an NBA game on January 13 last year. The latest update on his situation was that he was failing to make any significant progress, and that this extra procedure – a cartilage transplant – could rule him out until the middle of 2024.
One of the best guard defenders in the league, Ball has a career average of 1.6 steals per game. This season there are only five players – O.G. Anunoby (2.0), Jimmy Butler (1.9), Fred VanVleet (1.7), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (1.7) and Herbert Jones (1.7) – averaging a higher figure.
Speaking ahead of Monday's game against the Philadelphia 76ers, Donovan said while it is a long road ahead, he is confident in Ball's work ethic and motivation to get back to full strength.
"I know he's going to work really hard [on his rehab]," he said. "[The doctors] felt like the surgery went well.
"I do know that Lonzo, just based on the information he was able to gather from different sets of doctors, [was] making the decision that he felt like this was the best chance to be able to get him back on the court.
"We all understand that that is going to be an uphill battle for him, but I know he's going to do everything possible in his rehab to get himself back on the court.
"He's certainly got a long road to recovery, a long road to get himself at a place where he can get back on the court and playing again.
"But I am hopeful with his work ethic and his commitment and drive and just how eager he is to play, that he's gonna exhaust every opportunity to do that."
Morant expected to make Grizzlies return on Wednesday against the Rockets
Memphis Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins is "hopeful" All-NBA point guard Ja Morant will make his return on Wednesday after completing an eight-game suspension.
Morant, 23, was suspended after a March 3 road game against the Denver Nuggets for "conduct detrimental to the league".
The NBA was forced to investigate after Morant appeared to brandish a gun on social media while at a nightclub.
Morant was "holding a firearm in an intoxicated state", the NBA said, but it did not prove the gun was owned by the Grizzlies star, or that he took it on the team flight or into any league facility.
When asked prior to Monday's game against the Dallas Mavericks, Jenkins said Morant had "a good first day back" with the team, which included addressing his team-mates and coaches after spending a brief stint in counselling.
Despite missing Morant's 27.1 points, 8.2 assists and 6.0 rebounds per game, the Grizzlies have gone 5-3 during his eight-game absence.
It was a similar story last season when they went 20-5 in the 25 games their star spent on the sidelines.
"What the group's done in his absence has been phenomenal from a defensive standpoint, offensive standpoint, execution standpoint, togetherness standpoint," Jenkins said.
"That's obviously our expectation with Ja reintegrating with the team. He's been connected with us player-wise, staff-wise, he knows what we're doing.
"He's excited to be a part of the group and get back and help his team [reach] our ultimate goal.
"I think it's going to be a seamless reintegration. We know how important he is to us. We know how important he is, he knows how important his team-mates are to him."
At 43-27, Memphis are tied for the second seed in the Western Conference, and they have 12 games remaining to overtake the Sacramento Kings, or even make a run at the top-seeded Nuggets (48-24).
Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino hired by St. John's
Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino has been hired by St. John's to revitalise a storied programme that has not won an NCAA Tournament game in more than two decades.
The school announced the hiring on Monday, and the deal is reportedly for six years.
"Coach Pitino is one of the most brilliant minds in the history of the game and has won at the highest levels everywhere he has coached," St. John's athletic director Mike Cragg said in a statement.
"There is no doubt in my mind he will restore a championship-level programme and culture for St. John's Basketball."
Pitino spent the last three years coaching at nearby Iona – leading the mid-major to a pair of NCAA berths – and this will be the 70-year-old's third coaching job in the Big East after stints at Providence and Louisville.
He guided Kentucky (1996) and Louisville (2013) to national titles, has been to seven Final Fours and has coached five schools to the NCAA Tournament, beginning with Boston University in 1983.
Pitino went 64-22 during his three seasons with Iona and takes the St. John's job three days after the 13th-seeded Gaels lost to UConn 87-63 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Now he is tasked with turning around a St. John's programme that has appeared in only three NCAA Tournaments over the last two decades – most recently in 2019 – and has not won a tournament game since 2000.
The Red Storm went 18-15 in 2022-23 and finished eighth in the Big East, leading to the firing of Mike Anderson on March 10.
In 34 seasons as a head coach, Pitino has an unofficial record of 834-293 (.740) – but 123 wins at Louisville have been vacated by the NCAA, including the 2013 national title, for recruiting violations.
Pitino was dismissed at Louisville in 2017 over corruption and allegations of NCAA violations.
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