SAN ANTONIO (AP) — The Latest on the San Antonio Spurs and coach Gregg Popovich, whose wife died at 67 (all times local):___10:35 p.m.Winning one for Pop will be an uphill climb for the San Antonio Spurs.They trail Golden State 84-72 heading to the fourth quarter.San Antonio is playing without coach Gregg Popovich, whose wife Erin died Wednesday.A win by Golden State will give the Warriors a 3-0 lead and place the Spurs at the brink of elimination in the best-of-seven NBA playoff series.___10:00 p.m.The Golden State Warriors lead the San Antonio Spurs 52-46 at halftime behind 17 points from Kevin Durant.The Spurs are playing without coach Gregg Popovich, whose wife Erin died Wednesday.The team did not air a video tribute or hold a moment of silence for Erin Popovich in an apparent attempt to make the game as routine as possible for its players, but that was impossible.The Spurs had an emotional start as the sold-out crowd at AT&T Center attempted to invigorate the home team with some... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Hassan Whiteside's numbers are down. He's trying not to be the same way.Game 3 of the Eastern Conference first-round series was difficult on many levels for Miami's center. He was in foul trouble throughout, finished with only five points and was largely a nonfactor in his team's 128-108 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday night.Whiteside has a total of 11 points in three playoff games this season, after averaging 14 points in the regular season."It's just different, man. I feel like our offense is a lot different," Whiteside said. "I'm not involved in as many dribble-handoffs as I was and post-ups as I was during the regular season. That's what Coach wants. Coach wants me to just be in a corner and set picks. I mean, that's what he wants so I've just got to trust it."For his part, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said he's trying to find ways to get Whiteside involved."That's part of my job, is to figure it out," Spoelstra said.The Heat trail the series 2-1, with Game 4 on... [More]

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — The Latest on the San Antonio Spurs and coach Gregg Popovich, whose wife died at 67 (all times local):___10:00 p.m.The Golden State Warriors lead the San Antonio Spurs 52-46 at halftime behind 17 points from Kevin Durant.The Spurs are playing without coach Gregg Popovich, whose wife Erin died Wednesday.The team did not air a video tribute or hold a moment of silence for Erin Popovich in an apparent attempt to make the game as routine as possible for its players, but that was impossible.The Spurs had an emotional start as the sold-out crowd at AT&T Center attempted to invigorate the home team with some of the most deafening cheers of the season.Already on the edge of their seats for the first home game of the playoffs, the fans erupted when Rudy Gay threw down a one-handed dunk over Golden State's JaVale McGee. The cheering was nearly constant as the Spurs scored the game's first six points before the Warriors began to settle in.___9:20 p.m.The San Antonio Spurs trail... [More]

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — The Latest on the San Antonio Spurs and coach Gregg Popovich, whose wife died at 67 (all times local):___9:20 p.m.The San Antonio Spurs trail Golden State 26-23 after the first quarter of Game 3 of their NBA playoff series.The Spurs, who dropped the first two games, took the court with heavy hearts, mourning the death of coach Gregg Popovich's wife, Erin. Popovich did not coach the game. Ettore Messina, a Spurs assistant since 2014, was on the bench in his place.There was no moment of silence or tribute before the game.Fans roared when the Spurs took the court and scored the first six points. One fan held up a sign that read "Popovich Strong."___1 p.m.San Antonio Spurs guard Tony Parker says he has always viewed coach Gregg Popovich and his wife, Erin, as like his mom and dad.Parker broke in to the NBA when he was 19. He says Erin Popovich's death this week at the age of 67 is very emotional. He spent time with the family on Wednesday night.The Spurs will be without Popovich... [More]

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — LeBron James fought back tears. Former President Bill Clinton offered condolences. Craig Sager's daughter tweeted that she was "just sick" over the news.Such is the regard that so many, from so many walks of life, have for San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, whose 67-year-old wife, Erin, died Wednesday after a long battle with a respiratory problem.Spurs star Manu Ginobili says the team is "devastated, we are all hurting." But the players will "go out there and compete" and respect Popovich's philosophy of playing with "fire" and "determination."Added San Antonio's Tony Parker: "It puts everything in perspective. It's way bigger than basketball."The Spurs trail the Golden State Warriors 2-0 in the first round, with Game 3 in San Antonio on Thursday night. The 69-year-old coach ran practice Wednesday but will not be on the sideline for the game. Assistant Ettore Messina will coach the team.Clinton reached out on Twitter to the coach and his daughters: "I join the NBA... [More]

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Trail Blazers coach Terry Stotts says forward Evan Turner is unable to play in Game 3 of Portland's first-round playoff series against the New Orleans Pelicans.Turner had been listed as questionable after injuring a toe on his right foot during Game 2 on Tuesday night. Stotts says he's unsure about Turner's prospects for returning later in the series.Stotts says Maurice Harkless will play more in Turner's absence Thursday night and that the void will be filled "by committee."The 6-foot-7 Turner started 40 games and averaged 8.2 points during the regular season. He also started the first two games of the playoffs, scoring 13 points in Game 1.The 6-9 Harkless returned from knee soreness in Game 2 and scored 11 points in 27 minutes.___More NBA basketball: https://apnews.com/tag/NBAbasketball

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Indiana Pacers look loose and sound confident.They were laughing, smiling and joking around at practice Thursday as turned to a new task — protecting their home court this weekend against LeBron James.Sure, his sensational 46-point, 12-rebound effort in Game 2 exposed flaws in Indiana's defense and allowed Cleveland to even the series, but it sure didn't shake the faith of the fearless Pacers."It's a good sign when you lose by three and the best player in the world has a game like that," Indiana point guard Darren Collison said.The Pacers shouldn't be rattled.They are 4-2 against the three-time defending Eastern Conference champs this season, fought back from an early 18-point deficit Wednesday with Victor Oladipo in foul trouble and still had a chance to tie the score on Oladipo's wide-open 3-pointer with 27 seconds left.They still can seize control of the series by winning the next two in Indianapolis.To avoid such a plight, the Cavs could give their star player... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Joel Embiid is done with Philadelphia's latest process.Listed as doubtful in the morning, Embiid was upgraded to probable and eventually put in the starting lineup by the 76ers for Game 3 of their Eastern Conference first-round series against the Miami Heat on Thursday night.Embiid participated in the team's morning shootaround, and apparently coach Brett Brown saw enough from his All-Star center to approve his return."We like what we have seen over the past few days," Brown said.Embiid has missed Philadelphia's last 10 games while recovering from a concussion and surgery to repair a fractured orbital bone around his left eye. He's no longer in the NBA's concussion protocol, and took to social media after Philadelphia's Game 2 loss to Miami to announce that he is "sick and tired of being babied."Translated: Embiid was declaring himself ready to play, and now the 76ers agree. So does the NBA, in the sense that the league needed to approve the style of mask that Embiid will wear... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Two games into their first-round playoff series, Milwaukee point guard Eric Bledsoe and his Boston counterpart, Terry Rozier, still seem to be having trouble remembering each other's names.Maybe it's the sign of a festering feud with the Celtics up 2-0 as the series shifts to Milwaukee. Perhaps it's a case of Bluegrass State bragging rights between Bledsoe, who played at Kentucky, and Rozier, who played at Louisville, though they never faced each other in college.Or it could be just a case of good-natured gamesmanship between two competitors.Through two games, it is advantage Rozier with Game 3 coming up Friday night.He had 23 points in Game 2 on 8-of-14 shooting, including 3 of 5 from the 3-point line, to match his postseason career scoring high set in Game 1. Rozier is shooting 7 of 16 from beyond the arc so far this series.So much for the Celtics being at a disadvantage at the point without Kyrie Irving, who is out for the playoffs following knee surgery."We've talked... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Joel Embiid is apparently done with Philadelphia's latest process.Listed as doubtful in the morning, Embiid was upgraded to probable by the 76ers on Thursday afternoon — hours before Game 3 of the Philadelphia-Miami Eastern Conference first-round series.Embiid participated in the team's morning shootaround, and apparently coach Brett Brown saw enough from his All-Star center to approve his return."We like what we have seen over the past few days," Brown said.Embiid has missed Philadelphia's last 10 games while recovering from a concussion and surgery to repair a fractured orbital bone around his left eye. He's no longer in the NBA's concussion protocol, and took to social media after Philadelphia's Game 2 loss to Miami to announce that he is "sick and tired of being babied."Translated: Embiid was declaring himself ready to play, and now the 76ers agree. So does the NBA, in the sense that the league needed to approve the style of mask that Embiid will wear to protect his face.Embiid... [More]

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — LeBron James fought back tears. Former President Bill Clinton offered condolences. Craig Sager's daughter tweeted that she was "just sick" over the news.Such is the regard that so many, from so many walks of life, have for San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, whose 67-year-old wife, Erin, died Wednesday after a long battle with a respiratory problem.Spurs star Manu Ginobili says the team is "devastated, we are all hurting." But the players will "go out there and compete" and respect Popovich's philosophy of playing with "fire" and "determination."Added San Antonio's Tony Parker: "It puts everything in perspective. It's way bigger than basketball."The Spurs trail the Golden State Warriors 2-0 in the first round, with the playoff series shifting to San Antonio on Thursday night. The 69-year-old coach ran practice Wednesday but will not be on the sideline for Game 3. Assistant Ettore Messina will coach the team.Clinton reached out on Twitter to the coach and his daughters:... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Joel Embiid is apparently done with Philadelphia's latest process.Listed as doubtful in the morning, Embiid was upgraded to probable by the 76ers on Thursday afternoon — hours before Game 3 of the Philadelphia-Miami Eastern Conference first-round series.Embiid participated in the team's morning shootaround, and apparently coach Brett Brown saw enough from his All-Star center to approve his return.Embiid has missed Philadelphia's last 10 games while recovering from a concussion and surgery that repaired a fractural orbital bone around his left eye. He's no longer in the NBA's concussion protocol, and took to social media after Philadelphia's Game 2 loss to Miami to announce that he is "sick and tired of being babied."Translated: Embiid was declaring himself ready to play, and now the 76ers agree."It's a collaborative thing with Joel and doctors and me," Brown said. "It's all this stuff that revolves around comfort, and feeling like we're responsible with his health, those types of things."Embiid wore his protective mask and went through practice Wednesday, getting used to contact again. His initial playoff appearance this year will be the first postseason game of his career.Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said Miami was prepared for the possibility that Embiid would play Thursday."You can't spend too much time on an uncertainty," Spoelstra said. "But you have to spend a little bit of time."Embiid averaged 22.9 points and 11 rebounds in 63 games this season.

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — LeBron James fought back tears. Former President Bill Clinton offered condolences. Craig Sager's daughter tweeted that she was "just sick" over the news.Such is the regard that so many, from so many walks of life, have for San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, whose 67-year-old wife, Erin, died Wednesday after a long battle with a respiratory problem.Spurs star Manu Ginobili says the team is "devastated, we are all hurting." But the players will "go out there and compete" and respect Popovich's philosophy of playing with "fire" and "determination."Added San Antonio's Tony Parker: "It puts everything in perspective. It's way bigger than basketball."The Spurs trail the Golden State Warriors 2-0 in the first round, with the playoff series shifting to San Antonio on Thursday night. The 69-year-old coach ran practice Wednesday but will not be on the sideline for Game 3. Assistant Ettore Messina will coach the team.Clinton reached out on Twitter to the coach and his daughters:... [More]

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — The Latest on the San Antonio Spurs and coach Gregg Popovich, whose wife died at 67 (all times local):1 p.m.San Antonio Spurs guard Tony Parker says he has always viewed coach Gregg Popovich and his wife, Erin, as like his mom and dad.Parker broke in to the NBA when he was 19. He says Erin Popovich's death this week at the age of 67 is very emotional. He spent time with the family on Wednesday night.The Spurs will be without Popovich for Thursday night's Game 3 at home against Golden State. The Warriors won the first two games of the playoff series.Parker says the Spurs will do their best to get a win for Popovich.___NoonSan Antonio Spurs veteran Manu Ginobili says when the time comes, the team will play — even as they mourn the loss of Erin Popovich, the wife of coach Gregg Popovich.Ginobili says family is first, and it's hard to prepare for Thursday night's Game 3 against Golden State. Popovich will not be on the sideline with the team, which is down 0-2. Erin Popovich... [More]

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — The death of the wife of San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich has brought an outpouring of support across the NBA.Erin Popovich died Wednesday at 67, the team said without disclosing details. Her death came after a long illness, the San Antonio Express-News reported.Spurs star Manu Ginobili says the team is "devastated, we are all hurting." But the players will "go out there and compete" and respect Popovich's philosophy of playing with "fire" and "determination."The Spurs trail the Golden State Warriors 2-0 in the first round, with the playoff series shifting to San Antonio on Thursday night. The 69-year-old coach — one of the NBA's most respected figures — ran practice Wednesday but will not be on the sideline for Game 3. Assistant Ettore Messina will coach the team.Spurs general manager RC Buford said at Thursday's shootaround he spoke to Popovich in the morning and he's "overwhelmed by the support.""Erin and Gregg were best friends who were together for 40 years,... [More]

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — The NBA is paying tribute to the wife of San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich.Erin Popovich died Wednesday at 67, the team said. Her death came after a long illness, the San Antonio Express-News reported.LeBron James, who was playing Game 2 of Cleveland's first-round series against Indiana, was visibly upset when told after the game."Obviously, I'm a huge Pop fan. I love Pop. That's such a tragedy," James said during his postgame interview on TNT. "My best wishes go out to Pop and his family. That's devastating news."The NBA family, we all stick together. I know we compete every night. But something like this happens, it puts everything in perspective."Popovich is the current Olympic men's basketball coach. James calls him a "mastermind of the game" and has said he'd consider playing for the U.S. team under Popovich at the 2020 Tokyo Games after skipping the Rio Olympics.Popovich has coached San Antonio since 1996, leading the Spurs to five NBA titles. San Antonio trails... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Joel Embiid remains mired in Philadelphia's latest process, one he's found frustrating.Embiid was still listed as doubtful by the 76ers on Thursday morning, hours before they would face the Miami Heat in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference first-round series.Embiid practiced Wednesday in Miami and was back on the floor Thursday for the team's game-day shootaround."He still remains doubtful," 76ers coach Brett Brown said before the shootaround. "He went through stuff yesterday that was decent. He had a little bit of contact, trying to get used to the mask, felt some bodies."Embiid has missed Philadelphia's last 10 games while recovering from a concussion and surgery that repaired a fractural orbital bone around his left eye. He's no longer in the NBA's concussion protocol.He was not made available to reporters at the morning practice. He took some foul-line jumpers, 3-pointers and then a handful of 40-footers during the portion of the 76ers' time of the floor that was visible... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Joel Embiid remains listed as doubtful by Philadelphia for Game 3 of the 76ers' Eastern Conference playoff series at Miami on Thursday night.Embiid was on the floor with the 76ers for their morning shootaround practice, but coach Brett Brown says there's no change in the All-Star center's status.Embiid has missed Philadelphia's last 10 games while recovering from a concussion and surgery that repaired a fractural orbital bone around his left eye. He's no longer in the NBA's concussion protocol.He took to social media after the 76ers lost Game 2 of this series to the Heat, saying he's tired of being "babied."Embiid has averaged 22.9 points and 11 rebounds in 63 games for the 76ers during the regular season.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Jrue Holiday's postseason production is providing Pelicans All-Star Anthony Davis with a more comfortable margin for error — and has left Portland with precious little.Holiday's 54 points, 16 assists and slew of defensive successes in the first two games are big reasons why the sixth-seeded Pelicans hold a surprising 2-0 series lead over the third-seeded Trail Blazers as they prepare for Game 3 Thursday night in New Orleans."Playoff Jrue, I guess," Davis quipped after Holiday scored 33 — including a late, deep 3-pointer — in the Pelicans' Game 2 triumph in Portland on Tuesday night. "He's in a different mode."Philadelphia visits Miami in one of two other Game 3s on Thursday night, while the Spurs' return to San Antonio after a pair of double-digit losses at defending champion Golden State.Pelicans general manager Dell Demps bet big on Holiday on the first day of free agency last summer, giving the 27-year-old guard a five-year contract worth about $126 million. But if... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue has tweaked his starting lineup for Game 2 against Indiana.Lue will start forwards J.R. Smith and Kyle Korver over Jeff Green and Rodney Hood as the Cavs try to even their Eastern Conference series on Wednesday night.Green went 0 for 7 from the field and missed his three free throws in the opener. Hood scored nine points, but he was excused from shootaround Wednesday as his wife gave birth to twins.Lue had wanted to start Korver in Game 1, but the elite shooter has been slowed by a sore right foot.The Cavaliers started slowly in the opener and were beaten 98-80 by the Pacers, who snapped Cleveland's 14-game winning streak in first-round games and a 21-game winning streak by LeBron James in playoff-opening series.Lue has spent the entire season shuffling lineups due to injuries and three trades at the Feb. 8 deadline.___More NBA basketball: https://apnews.com/tag/NBAbasketball