Charlotte Hornets wing Miles Bridges hopes to return to the NBA next month, having not played all season while under an NBA investigation.
The 24-year-old was arrested in June for felony domestic violence and in November pleaded no contest to the charge. He was sentenced to three years of probation and no jail time.
Bridges was accused of assaulting his then-girlfriend in front of their two children. Two other charges were dismissed, but he has remained under NBA investigation with the threat of disciplinary action.
"It's been a long process," Bridges told The Associated Press on Tuesday. "I might be back in March."
Hornets general manager Mitch Kupchak said earlier this month that they were letting the investigation take its course before making any decisions on Bridges' future.
"I don’t know when the investigation is going to end," Kupchak said. "When the investigation ends, we will have more information and we’ll go from there."
Bridges averaged career highs of 20.2 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.8 assists in the 2021-22 season before the arrest, coming just days before he entered restricted free agency.
The Atlanta Hawks announced on Monday they had fired head coach Nate McMillan after reaching the All-Star break with a 29-30 record.
It was meant to be an exciting season in Atlanta as McMillan prepared for his second full campaign in charge, having taken over from Lloyd Pierce shortly after the All-Star break in the 2020-21 season.
That year, after taking charge, McMillan led the Hawks to a blistering 27-11 finish, earning the fifth seed in the East and going on to make the Eastern Conference Finals after winning series against both the New York Knicks and the Philadelphia 76ers.
They took a step back the following season, finishing eighth in the East with a first-round playoff exit, and they continued trending in the wrong direction this time around.
At least with last season's disappointing end, the team could point to the fact that they had the league's second-best offense in the regular season, but were just weighed down by the fifth-worst defense.
Now the Hawks sit 16th in offense and 21st in defense, lacking any kind of identity. With the trade deadline having already passed, this is the group Atlanta will have to win with down the home stretch, and ultimately the franchise decided McMillan had run out of ideas on how to right the ship.
According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, assistant coach Joe Prunty will take over as interim head coach while they conduct a "wide-ranging" search for a permanent solution.
Wojnarowski claims the Hawks are looking for a coach who has shown an ability to develop players, produce a top-10 offense and defense, and take accountability.
He states former Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyder is viewed as a top candidate, while The Athletic's Shams Charania adds Milwaukee Bucks associate head coach Charles Lee – who spent four seasons as a Hawks assistant before following Mike Budenholzer to Milwaukee – is also a "serious candidate".
Other names mentioned as potential hires were Golden State Warriors assistant and former Brooklyn Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson, Sacramento Kings assistant coach Jordi Fernandez, San Antonio Spurs assistant coach Mitch Johnson and G-League head coach Miles Simon.
Brooklyn Nets head coach Jacque Vaughn has signed a multi-year contract extension.
The Nets have the NBA's fifth-best record at 32-19 since Vaughn replaced Steve Nash – initially as acting head coach – on November 1.
Having helped stabilise the franchise during a turbulent campaign which has seen Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving depart for the Phoenix Suns and Dallas Mavericks respectively, Vaughn has been given the chance to lead the team for the long haul.
While the Nets did not reveal details of Vaughn's new deal per the team policy, a report from ESPN has claimed the contract will run through the 2026-27 season.
Brooklyn general manager Sean Marks said: "Jacque has made an immediate and immeasurable impact on our entire organisation since assuming the role of head coach earlier this season.
"On the court, he's clearly demonstrated his leadership through his ability to connect and communicate at a very high level while displaying tremendous instincts for the game.
"As a person, they don't come any better than Jacque. We are thrilled to have Jacque lead the Nets for years to come."
Lonzo Ball will not return before the end of the NBA season, meaning the Chicago Bulls point guard will have missed the entire 2022-23 campaign.
Ball last played in January last year and has since been sidelined by a knee injury that has required multiple surgeries.
Indeed, Ball has played only 35 games since being traded to the Bulls and then signing a four-year, $85million contract in August 2021.
The Bulls have struggled in his absence this season, down in 11th in the Eastern Conference with a 26-33 record, and the team have told the 25-year-old to now focus on next year.
"Despite making significant increases in strength and function over the past several months, Bulls guard Lonzo Ball continues to experience performance-limiting discomfort during participation in high-level basketball-related activities," said Arturas Karnisovas, the Bulls' executive vice president of basketball operations.
"Considering the required time period to achieve the necessary level of fitness to return to play and the current stage of the NBA season, Ball will not return this season.
"The focus for Ball will continue to be on the resolution of his discomfort and a full return for the 2023-24 season."
Bam Adebayo is thrilled about the Miami Heat securing Kevin Love following his buyout with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Love fills an urgent need for a shooter in the frontcourt, as he will slot in as the only player on the Heat roster taller than six-foot-five while averaging at least one made three-pointer per game.
The five-time All-Star is also leading the league this season in defensive rebounding percentage, but had found himself out of the Cavaliers' rotation leading into the All-Star break as they prioritised their youth.
Love, a champion in 2016 when his Cavs came back from a 3-1 deficit in the NBA Finals, is averaging career-lows in both points (8.5) and rebounds (6.8), but Adebayo believes he will bring value that extends beyond just his minutes on the floor.
"It's exciting. We've got fresh legs on the team," he said. "We've got a guy like Kevin Love, who has been through those wars, came back from 3-1.
"You've got a battle-tested guy like that who has won – it's big for us. He's really underrated as a team player.
"He's underrated for what he does. I know what he'll bring to our team will make us more successful."
Adebayo has spent time with Love previously as they trained together with Team USA in the lead-up to the 2020 Olympic Games.
He went on to compare Love to Heat stalwart Udonis Haslem, with the 42-year-old now in his 20th season in Miami, providing leadership from the bench despite only actually playing in 17 combined games since the end of the 2018-19 season.
"[Love is] smart, he stretches the floor, and you can learn from a guy like that, having a guy like that in your corner," Adebayo said. "Him and 'UD', two different walks of life, but now they're kind of going down the same road.
"Having guys like that, it'll help me tremendously. He's an all-around great person."
Miami will come out of the All-Star break sitting seventh in the Eastern Conference with a record of 32-27.
Patrick Beverley confirmed on Monday that he will be signing for the rest of the season with the Chicago Bulls.
Beverley, 34, began the season with the Los Angeles Lakers, starting all 45 of his appearances before being traded to the Orlando Magic at the deadline in exchange for Mo Bamba.
With the Magic in the midst of a youth revolution and in the advanced stages of their rebuild, they decided to negotiate a buyout with Beverley to allow him to head elsewhere.
A defensive specialist, Beverley is a three-time NBA All-Defense selection (one First Team, two Second Teams), while also boasting a solid career three-point percentage of 37.6.
Unfortunately, his shooting has dipped over the past couple of seasons, setting a career-worst mark of 34.3 per cent in 2021-22, and he is only slightly better this campaign at 34.8.
Meanwhile, his combined steals and blocks figure of 1.5 is his lowest since the 2018-19 season, and tied for the second-lowest of his career.
He has not been at his best this season on a tumultuous Lakers team, but he theoretically fills a couple of needs for the Bulls, and is excited to return to his hometown.
Chicago are averaging the fewest made three-pointers per game (10.3) and the fewest attempts (28.8) – areas Beverley will provide a boost in compared to current starting point guard Ayo Dosunmu.
Dosunmu is averaging 0.8 made threes per game at a mediocre 32.4 per cent clip, and while Beverley's percentages are down, he is still making 1.2 per game.
The move also helps the Bulls lean into their strong suit this season, as they sit 24th in offensive rating, but are seventh in defense.
Beverley will join Alex Caruso to make a menacing defensive back-court, with Caruso emerging as an advanced stats darling on that end of the floor.
Caruso is seventh in the league in steal percentage (1.7 per cent), while sitting third in defensive box plus/minus, and a clear number one overall in defensive RAPTOR.
Giannis Antetokounmpo has "avoided serious damage" after further testing on his injured right wrist ahead of the Milwaukee Bucks' run to the playoffs.
Antetokounmpo played only 20 seconds in Sunday's All-Star Game where Team Giannis won 184-175 over Team LeBron in Utah.
The Greek forward exited with a wrist injury that he had initially suffered in Thursday's win over the Chicago Bulls trying to block a Coby White shot.
The 28-year-old had also opted out of Saturday's skills challenge, replaced by Bucks team-mate Jrue Holiday.
Antetokounmpo's right wrist was wrapped while standing on the sidelines supporting his team throughout the All-Star Game.
ESPN reported that he would be heading for further testing in New York, with The Athletic's Shams Charania saying on Monday the player had "avoided serious damage in his right wrist after further testing", adding: "Antetokounmpo could miss some games, but an overall sigh of relief for the Bucks..."
"Taking it day-by-day, try to get healthy," Antetokounmpo told reporters after Sunday's game. "You know, obviously I had the incident three days ago. I don't think it's smart in any way to play a lot of minutes in the All-Star Game.
"Take a break here, take care of it, and hopefully I can be available for my team when they need me."
The Bucks are second in the Eastern Conference with a 41-17 record on the back of a 12-game win streak, with their next game after the All-Star break coming on Friday against the Miami Heat.
Antetokounmpo is averaging 31.8 points (third in the NBA), 12.2 rebounds (second in the NBA) and 5.4 assists this season.
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