Jonathan Isaac's season is over after just 11 games, adding to the Orlando Magic forward's injury woes.
The Magic announced on Friday that Isaac had received surgery to repair a torn left adductor muscle, ending his campaign.
The 25-year-old only returned in late January from a full two years on the sidelines after suffering an ACL injury during the 2020 NBA bubble.
"Our thoughts are with Jonathan, whose fortitude in dealing with adversity is unique," Magic president Jeff Weltman said in a statement.
"Jonathan has worked extremely hard to return to the court this season and has demonstrated his impact on our team. We will be by his side as he focuses on the work ahead."
The confirmation from the Magic on Friday said: "An MRI conducted on Wednesday revealed the injury, after [Isaac] felt discomfort following Tuesday's practice in Milwaukee."
Isaac was the sixth overall selection in the 2017 NBA Draft, and has made 147 appearances for Orlando since, averaging 11.9 points per game in the 2019-20 season, but only managed 5.0 points and 0.5 assists per game in his 11 games this season.
The duo of head coach Quin Snyder and general manager Landry Fields can bring the Atlanta Hawks success.
That is according to owner Tony Ressler, who also acknowledged the team has been underperforming, sitting eighth in the Eastern Conference on a record of 31-31.
Speaking to ESPN, Ressler was not shy in saying he expects better from the Hawks, and believes that will happen with Snyder on board and Fields making decisions.
"We have a relatively young team that I think is very talented... that I do not think long term is a mediocre team," he said. "Right now, we're at .500. I think we should be better than that. I hope we will be better than that.
"And I can tell you this: Landry and [assistant GM] Kyle [Korver] are running a much better, much more collaborative front office. That's of huge importance to me because I think that's how you get better.
"Having ownership, a front office, a coaching staff and the right roster – when all of those folks work well together, I think results improve. That was the objective, and that's why I made the change that I did."
The Hawks dismissed previous coach Nate McMillan in February, and quickly moved for Snyder, signing the former Utah Jazz coach to a five-year deal.
Snyder lost his debut game to the Washington Wizards, but has a chance to get his first win against the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday.
"What I've always done is rely on people who know more than I do to run a business better than I could," Ressler added.
"Who makes the decisions [now], it's undoubtedly Landry with Kyle, with Quin. [They] are going to work beautifully together from what I can tell. I do believe we will make better decisions going forward than we have done in the past."
The surging Denver Nuggets (44-19) host the struggling Memphis Grizzlies (38-23) on Friday in a clash between the top two teams in the Western Conference.
Since the turn of the year, only the 22-5 Milwaukee Bucks have boasted a better record than Denver's 21-7, and the Nuggets have surged to a five-game lead atop the West.
Their closest challengers are the Grizzlies, who have been flailing since starting center Steven Adams suffered a knee injury on January 22, going 7-8 in the 15 games since.
Adams is only averaging 8.6 points per game in his 27 minutes of action, while shooting a league-worst 36.4 per cent from the free-throw line, but his impact on the Grizzlies' success has proven to be immense.
During the first 46 games of the season – prior to Adams' injury – the Grizzlies owned the best defensive rating in the NBA, while also boasting the second-best rebounding rate, and a top-10 offense.
Since then, Memphis have held up surprisingly well defensively and have been fourth in defense over the past 15 games, but their offense has cratered – becoming the 24th-ranked unit – and their ability to rebound has fallen off a cliff.
Adams leads the team at 11.5 rebounds per game, but his value goes far beyond just the rebounds he hauls down himself, as he is almost universally considered the physically strongest player in the league, and he uses that to wreak havoc on the offensive boards.
The Grizzlies have been 27th in rebounding rate since his injury, falling from the second-best offensive rebounding team to 18th in that category, while also dropping from 15th in defensive rebounding to 28th.
While it is easy to point to some recent cold shooting from Memphis as the reason for their recent struggles – 29th in three-point percentage (31.7 per cent) since Adams' injury – it is their failure in the rebounding department that is ruining a lot of their good work.
It is great to have a top-five defense, but when you are only gathering 68.2 per cent of opponents' misses, it means that even your strength is no longer a strength.
It goes to show that while Jaren Jackson Jr is Memphis' best defensive player – and a strong favourite to win Defensive Player of the Year – Adams may be their most important piece on that end.
That is even more true when the other team rolls out a center like Nikola Jokic.
Jokic, the reigning back-to-back league MVP and favourite to earn the first three-peat since Larry Bird from 1984-86, is essentially unguardable, but it is incredibly helpful to have a physical presence like Adams who is impossible to push around and can at least dictate Jokic's catch positions.
With Adams out, Jackson will likely assume the responsibility, and while that is a mouth-watering matchup between arguably the league's most gifted players on each side of the ball, the Grizzlies ace will need to be on his most disciplined behaviour.
Leading the league with 3.3 blocks per game, Jackson also sits sixth in fouls per game (3.4), and could leave his team without an anchor on the defensive end if the crafty Jokic draws a couple of early calls and puts his opponent in foul trouble.
But Jokic, while almost flawless on the offensive end, still has his own exploitable warts defensively.
The Serbian has shed the reputation of being a poor defender – leading all centers with 1.3 steals per game – but remains a liability when it comes to protecting the rim, with Denver ranking 25th when it comes to preventing points in the paint.
That is where the Grizzlies will see their greatest advantage as the league leaders for points in the paint, with Ja Morant's 14.8 points per game in that area trailing only Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (15.5) for the most among all guards.
Denver's plan of attack will likely be the complete opposite, as Memphis are the fourth-best team at preventing points in the paint but allow the fourth-most made three-pointers per game, while the Nuggets lead the league in three-point percentage (39.2 percent).
PIVOTAL PERFORMERS
Memphis Grizzlies – Ja Morant
Sometimes it is complicated to see whose impact will have the greatest effect on their team's success, and sometimes it is painfully obvious.
Morant is the Grizzlies' franchise player, leading scorer (27.1 points per game), leader in assists (8.2) and the heartbeat of their fast-paced, rim-attacking offense.
It will be his responsibility to exploit Jokic's defensive deficiency and generate high-quality looks inside for himself and team-mates, as Memphis are likely doomed if they have to rely on outside shooting (24th in three-point percentage).
Denver Nuggets – Jamal Murray
The Nuggets know what they are going to get from the metronomically consistent Jokic on a nightly basis, but the contributions from second star Jamal Murray are often what make or break their results.
In the 35 wins he has played in this season, Murray is averaging 21.7 points and 6.1 assists per game while shooting 48.3 per cent from the field, 41.6 per cent from deep and 85.5 per cent from the free-throw line.
In 14 losses, those figures plummet to 16.3 points and 5.5 assists on dismal shooting splits of 38.2/29.7/76.9 – illustrating that when it is not Murray's night, it is usually not the Nuggets' night either.
KEY BATTLE – Can Denver capitalise on the absence of Adams?
While Jokic is one of the best defensive rebounders in the league, having the third-best rate among players averaging at least 20 minutes, he is not even close to the same kind of threat on the offensive boards, where Adams' absence will be felt.
If Memphis can figure out how to limit Denver to one shot per possession and secure the defensive glass, it will not just limit second opportunities, but it will ignite the Grizzlies' fast-break offense and allow Morant to operate in the open floor with a runway.
Another key factor is that while Denver have been shooting the lights out, and Memphis have been struggling from distance, three-point percentage is often a stat that regresses to the mean over time, meaning at some point their fortunes will likely reverse.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
These sides have split their two meetings this season, with Denver securing a 14-point home win in December, before Memphis evened the ledger with an 18-point home win of their own in January.
It fits with their evenly matched recent history, with a 2-2 record from their past four meetings, and a 5-5 record dating back to January 2020.
Kyrie Irving feels he has finally "joined the party" after partnering with Luka Doncic to make franchise history in the Dallas Mavericks' 133-126 win against the Philadelphia 76ers.
The pair became the first Mavs team-mates to score at least 40 points each in the same game, with Doncic shooting 13-of-22 for his 42 points and Irving 15-of-22 for 40.
It is the third time Irving has reached the 40-point mark this season, and the first time since making a high-profile trade from the Brooklyn Nets on February 6.
The eight-time NBA All-Star spoke about "scaling back the pressure" earlier in the week in order to "show up to the party", and he did just that with his display against the Sixers.
"Like I said last time I was sitting up here, I just had to join the party and just make sure my team-mates were going to follow along," he said.
"Luka was ready for the party, I was ready for the party tonight, and it was one of those games where we had some special performances. I'm grateful that the work translated.
"I've got to keep it up. I've just got to keep it up and stay consistent in terms of just being prepared for when he's going to pass and get used to his flow in the game."
Irving has averaged 27 points across his 48 games for Dallas and Brooklyn this campaign, while fellow superstar Doncic leads the way in the NBA with 1,801 points overall.
The duo also combined for 18 assists, eight rebounds and four steals in Thursday's win against Philly at American Airlines Center, while hitting 13-of-21 from three-point range.
"I enjoyed watching those two working off of each other," Mavs coach Jason Kidd said. "As much as we play the game on paper, it's still played on the court.
"They've got to work through the kinks, but I think at the end of the day, we'll be happy with what we have."
Irving is the only player in NBA history to be part of a team-mate duo scoring 40-plus points each in regulation for two different teams.
The 30-year-old previously did so with LeBron James during his time with the Cleveland Cavaliers, and it is now Doncic who is starting to build a strong partnership with Irving.
"Playing with him is so easy," said Doncic on the back of his sixth 40-point, 10-assist showing of the season. "He helps me a lot.
"The offense I don't think is a problem. I think offensively, we're good. It's just the defensive end. We've got to get stops."
The 33-31 Mavs are sixth in the Western Conference ahead of facing the Phoenix Suns on Sunday.
Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving made some franchise history during the Dallas Mavericks' 133-126 home win against the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday.
It was the first time ever two Mavericks team-mates scored at least 40 points each in the same game, with Doncic shooting 13-of-22 for his 42 points, while Irving was 15-of-22 for 40 points.
The duo also combined for 18 assists, eight rebounds and four steals, while hitting 13-of-21 from three-point range.
It was a close contest through a high-scoring first half, but after Dallas came out of the locker room leading 71-67, they put their foot on the gas.
Dallas put together a 39-24 third period to jump out to a 20-point lead, and the final score was flattering for the 76ers, who trailed by 14 with under three minutes remaining before a garbage-time run.
Philadelphia's failure was no fault of their top trio, with Joel Embiid putting together 35 points (13-of-21 shooting), eight rebounds and two steals, while James Harden had 27 points (eight-of-12 shooting) with 13 assists, and Tyrese Maxey added 29 points (12-of-21).
The win gets the Mavericks back on the right foot after dropping five of their past six, now sitting sixth in the Western Conference at 33-31.
Philadelphia fell to 40-22, but remain well clear in the Eastern Conference's third seed.
Poole goes for a splash
A 34-point Jordan Poole eruption led a second-half trouncing by the Golden State Warriors in their 115-91 home blowout against the Los Angeles Clippers.
Poole finished nine-of-20 from the field, five-of-12 from deep and 11-of-12 from the free throw line, and all five of his three-pointers came in the second half as Golden State took the third and fourth quarters by a combined margin of 70-35.
Kawhi Leonard played an efficient game despite his side's struggles, shooting eight-of-12 from the field for 21 points, seven rebounds, two steals and two blocks.
The win is the Warriors' fourth in a row, and they now sit fifth in the West at 33-30 on the back of the NBA's fourth-best home record (26-7).
Wizards stay in the hunt
The Washington Wizards fended off the resurgent Toronto Raptors 119-108 to keep themselves in the thick of the Eastern Conference Play-In Tournament placings.
Kyle Kuzma led the way against a Raptors team that came into the contest with 10 wins from their past 12, scoring a game-high 30 points on 10-of-24 shooting with five rebounds and five assists.
Kristaps Porzingis added 25 points (eight-of-12 shooting) and two blocks, while defensive specialist Delon Wright flashed some ability as a starting point guard, racking up 11 assists to go with his six rebounds and three steals.
The Wizards have now won six of their past nine, improving to 30-32 to create a 1.5-game buffer between themselves and the Chicago Bulls in the race for the 10th seed.
The Golden State Warriors are hoping to get Stephen Curry back in their lineup as soon as Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers.
Curry, who suffered an injury to his left lower leg on February 4, has participated in multiple team scrimmages, including one Thursday morning.
After Thursday's shootaround, reporters asked Warriors coach Steve Kerr if Curry could be available Sunday in Los Angeles.
"I suppose," Kerr replied.
Curry has already been ruled out for Golden State’s game against the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday.
Entering play Thursday, the Warriors are 12-12 this season without the two-time league MVP, but his return will be welcome news for a team in the thick of the jumbled Western Conference playoff picture.
Before Thursday’s games against the Los Angeles Clippers, the defending champion Warriors sat in fifth place in the West at 32-30, just 2.5 games up on the 11th-place Lakers.
Despite dealing with shoulder and leg injuries in his 14th NBA season, Curry is having one of his best individual campaigns, scoring 29.4 points per game on 42.7-percent shooting from beyond the arc.
The Warriors' season has been a rocky one – especially given the team's 7-23 road record – but they remain contenders when healthy.
One development of note has been the reemergence of Curry's 'Splash Brothers' running-mate Klay Thompson, who has averaged 26.2 points in 21 games since January 2.
LeBron James' foot injury will be reassessed in three weeks, the Los Angeles Lakers have confirmed.
The 38-year-old sustained the injury in the third quarter of Sunday's victory over the Dallas Mavericks and subsequently missed the defeat to the Memphis Grizzlies and the victory against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Reports on Thursday stated that James would not require surgery and, although not confirmed by the team, the Lakers have said it is a right foot tendon injury.
A team statement said: "LeBron James has been evaluated by Lakers team physicians and medical staff, and it has been determined that he has sustained a right foot tendon injury.
"James will be reevaluated in approximately three weeks."
There is just over a month remaining of the regular season, with the Lakers facing a battle to secure a spot in the playoffs, sitting 11th in the Western Conference on a record of 30-33.
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