BASKETTBALL

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A front-runner for the Most Improved Player award, Deni Avdija is on a meteoric rise. But with the Portland Trail Blazers’ project still shrouded in uncertainty, one has to wonder if this breakout is actually working against the franchise.

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NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said Thursday a planned European basketball league must “respect the traditions of European basketball”, while confirming talks with EuroLeague side Real Madrid about the proposed competition.

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Golden State Warriors star forward Jimmy Butler will be out for the remainder of the 2025-206 season after he tore his ACL in the third quarter of Monday’s matchup against the Miami Heat.

Butler’s surgery date for his right knee will be determined at a later time.

“Obviously a gut punch on every level for Jimmy and the entire group, but I firmly believe that this is a part of the journey,” said Butler’s ⁠agent Bernie Lee in a statement. “We can’t only expect to take the good things out of it. I’ve known for over 10 years now that Jimmy is going to win a championship before he is done. My belief in that is unwavering.”

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German forward Franz Wagner hit his stride late to help the Orlando Magic rally for a 118-111 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Thursday in the first NBA regular-season game ever played in Germany.

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LeBron James’ 21-year NBA All-Star Game starting streak came to an end on Monday after the Los Angeles Lakers star was excluded from the 10 starters named for next month’s mid-season showpiece.

The 41-year-old NBA icon, who has been named as an All-Star starter in every season since 2005, was the biggest omission from this year’s event, at the Los Angeles Clippers’ Intuit Dome on February 15th.

The 10 starters named on Tuesday – five from the Western Conference and five from the Eastern Conference – will be joined by 14 players selected by the All-Star Game coaches.

The Western Conference starters include James’ Lakers team-mate Luka Doncic and Oklahoma City Thunder’s reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

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For a few days, the circus is in town. The NBA is making its mark on Berlin before moving on to London, but the era of brief visits may soon be over. After years of speculation, plans for a European branch, NBA Europe, are becoming increasingly concrete – with a launch targeted for autumn 2027.

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Tobias Harris scored 25 points as the Detroit Pistons held off the Boston Celtics to score a 104-103 victory in their top-of-the-table Eastern Conference showdown on Monday.

Harris was one of four Detroit players to finish in double figures, with Jalen Duren adding 18 points and point guard Cade Cunningham scoring 16 points with 14 assists.

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On the eve of the first regular-season NBA game in Germany, European basketball pioneer Detlef Schrempf is “proud” of the role he played in making the league a worldwide phenomenon.