The Los Angeles Clippers will be without Paul George for their upcoming two-game road trip due to injury.
Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue confirmed George's absence for games against the Minnesota Timberwolves and Chicago Bills as the NBA All-Star deals with a swollen right toe.
George has been sidelined for the Clippers' past two games.
"Staying back home and getting some treatment," Lue said of George on Tuesday. "And we'll re-evaluate when we get back."
The Clippers face the Timberwolves on Wednesday before visiting the Bulls on Friday.
George is averaging 24.4 points, 6.2 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game for the Clippers this season.
The Clippers (17-8) are third in the Western Conference, behind leaders the Utah Jazz (19-5) and defending champions the Los Angeles Lakers (19-6), following back-to-back losses.
LaMelo Ball is "fearless" and his shooting is only going to improve after the rookie starred in the Charlotte Hornets' 119-94 triumph over the Houston Rockets, says head coach James Borrego.
The 19-year-old had a game-high 24 points to go alongside 10 assists and a career-high seven three-pointers in Monday's contest.
Consequently, Ball joined Stephen Curry (2010) and Jason Kidd (1995) as the only rookies with seven-plus threes and 10-plus assists in a game and is the youngest to do so.
Borrego initially had concerns over Ball's shooting style, given the way his release point is at his chest not above his shoulders, but those fears were allayed by a trip to watch him at a workout in Los Angeles.
"When we went there, there was just a confidence about him and his shot," Borrego said.
"As I sat there with [Hornets GM] Mitch [Kupchak] I looked over and said 'he's going to be fine'. The kid is confident and believes it is going in. And that is at least half the battle.
"Whether he's at the line or two feet behind the line, it's almost effortless.
"[LaMelo] oozes confidence. He's going to continue that. He's fearless. He's going to continue to shoot it.
"He's got great confidence in [his shot] and he's going to keep getting reps and better shots as he goes. It's a great weapon to have and it sets up a lot of his game with the way he can get to the rim."
Ball himself added on his shooting style: "I stick with it. I say, 'this is how I shoot'.
"I'm confident in it and I feel good letting it go. I came here and they tried to adjust it a little, but I'm like, 'Ah, this is how I shoot'."
LeBron James was inspired by Tom Brady's latest Super Bowl achievement, but the Los Angeles Lakers star has no timetable regarding how much longer he plans to play in the NBA.
At the age of 43, Brady – considered by many as the greatest of all time – won a seventh ring after leading the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to Super Bowl LV glory against the Kansas City Chiefs.
It means the superstar quarterback now has more rings than any NFL franchise and was particularly impressive given it was his first season with Tampa after a golden era playing for the New England Patriots.
James himself continues to dominate in the twilight years of his NBA career, and recorded a sublime triple-double of 28 points, 14 rebounds and 12 assists as the Lakers earned a 119-112 overtime win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday.
Asked about Brady and his own career, James replied: "I mean he's one of the GOATs.
"I've been watching him my whole life, or it seems like my whole life. I've been watching him 20 years now or however long he's been in the NFL.
"I watched him when he was in Michigan, watched him quite a while now, just to see him go out and see the things he's done in his career, for him to win another one in the fashion that he won it was pretty cool.
"It was very inspiring for a guy like myself. But it's two different sports, two different positions. I don't know how long I'll play the game, how much more I'll be able to give to the game.
"But the way I feel right now, we'll see what happens. I have no timetable on it. I don't have no year of 30-this or 40-that. The game will let me know, we'll figure it out then."
The Lakers' win over the Thunder came just two days after the double-overtime triumph over the Detroit Pistons, following which James joked "my heart's not sustainable for two overtimes".
"It needed overtime in order for us to win this game," James added. "We did enough things to close in regulation but they forced us to take another five minutes.
"I'm good with one! I get home a little earlier, my heart don't feel as bad it did the other night."
LeBron James was the star of the show again as NBA champions the Los Angeles Lakers outlasted the Oklahoma City Thunder 119-112 in overtime.
James posted a triple-double after just three quarters, eventually leading the streaking Lakers past the visiting Thunder in Los Angeles on Monday.
The Lakers superstar finished with 28 points, 14 rebounds and 12 assists in the absence of team-mate Anthony Davis (Achilles).
Montrezl Harrell contributed 21 points off the bench as the Lakers won their fifth game in a row.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander forced overtime with free throws, but his double-double of 29 points and 10 assists was not enough for the Thunder – who were outscored 9-2 in OT.
Thunder team-mate Hamidou Diallo also recorded a double-double (20 points and 11 rebounds).
LaMelo dazzles
LaMelo Ball posted a game-high 24 points, 10 assists and a career-high seven three-pointers as the Charlotte Hornets topped the Houston Rockets 119-94. He joined Stephen Curry (2010) and Jason Kidd (1995) as the only rookies with seven-plus threes and 10-plus assists in a game.
Draymond Green put on a show for the Golden State Warriors, who lost 105-100 to the San Antonio Spurs. He became the sixth player in franchise history to reach 3,000 career assists. Green also had his third double-double of the season (10 rebounds and 10 assists). Curry scored 32 points for the beaten Warriors.
The Milwaukee Bucks extended their winning streak to five games thanks to two-time reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton. Antetokounmpo put up 30 points, nine rebounds and three blocks, while Middleton dropped 29 points, a career-high 12 assists and eight rebounds. The Bucks were 125-112 winners over the Denver Nuggets, who were led by Nikola Jokic's 35 points and 12 rebounds.
Fred VanVleet and Pascal Siakam each scored 32 points as the Toronto Raptors rallied past the Memphis Grizzlies 128-113. Norman Powell contributed 29 points for the Raptors, while Jonas Valanciunas' double-double of 27 points and a season-high 20 rebounds were not enough for the Grizzlies.
A season-high 36 points from Devin Booker fuelled the Phoenix Suns' 119-113 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers, while the NBA's leading scorer Bradley Beal finished with 35 points to lead the Washington Wizards to a 105-101 win against the Chicago Bulls.
Murray struggles in Denver
While Jokic starred, Nuggets team-mate Jamal Murray was inefficient in a loss to the Bucks. In 37 minutes, he was just four-of-17 shooting from the field, while he only made one of seven three-pointers for 11 points.
P.J. Tucker was scoreless for the Rockets after going 0-of-three from the field in 23 minutes.
Harrell says no!
With the Lakers looking to close out another win, Harrell produced an emphatic block to deny the Thunder late in OT.
Monday's results
Charlotte Hornets 119-94 Houston Rockets
Washington Wizards 105-101 Chicago Bulls
Toronto Raptors 128-113 Memphis Grizzlies
Dallas Mavericks 127-122 Minnesota Timberwolves
San Antonio Spurs 105-100 Golden State Warriors
Phoenix Suns 119-113 Cleveland Cavaliers
Milwaukee Bucks 125-112 Denver Nuggets
Los Angeles Lakers 119-112 Oklahoma City Thunder (OT)
76ers at Kings
The Eastern Conference-leading Philadelphia 76ers (17-7) travel to the Sacramento Kings (12-11) on Tuesday. The Kings have won four straight games.
Anthony Davis will miss the Los Angeles Lakers' clash with the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday due to an Achilles injury.
NBA champions the Lakers listed star Davis as out with tendonosis of his right Achilles tendon.
Davis, coming off a championship-winning season with the Lakers, posted 30 points, five rebounds, three assists and two blocks in the team's 135-129 double-overtime victory against the Detroit Pistons on Saturday.
The 27-year-old is averaging 22.3 points, 8.6 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game for the Lakers this season.
The Lakers (18-6) - in the midst of a four-game winning streak - are second in the Western Conference, behind the in-form Utah Jazz (19-5).
Derrick Rose has been traded to the New York Knicks by the Detroit Pistons in exchange for Dennis Smith Jr, it has been confirmed.
The Pistons also received a 2021 second-round draft pick via the Charlotte Hornets.
In New York, former MVP Rose reunites with Tom Thibodeau, who coached him at the Chicago Bulls and Minnesota Timberwolves.
It is Rose's second stint with the Knicks after the 2016-17 season, when he struggled in the triangle offense during Phil Jackson's reign as president of the franchise. He was subsequently picked up by the Cleveland Cavaliers in free agency following the fourth knee operation of his career.
Rose, who is in the final year of a contract that pays him $7.7million, averaged 17.2 points and 5.2 assists in 65 games for the Pistons, though his performances this season have not lived up to the promise he showed in 2019-20.
Smith made just three appearances for the Knicks in 2020-21 and reportedly volunteered to play in the G League bubble to get more minutes on the floor.
He will hope to avoid that after joining the Pistons, whose 5-18 record is the worst in the NBA.
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