sports news update

Despite nursing a lingering knee injury, Celtics point guard Kemba Walker scored 16 points in 19 minutes and wanted more in Boston's loss on Friday to Milwaukee. But he was held out in the name of the long game. Every weekday, SI’s Chris Mannix will check-in with his Bubble Bits, a quick hit on something notable from inside the NBA’s campus LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – One possession game, four minutes to play and Boston’s most accomplished offensive weapon stood on the sidelines. Kemba Walker was fresh, having played just 19 minutes. He was sharp, with 16 points on a tidy 5-9 shooting. And he wasn’t going back in. “I’m not playing that game,” Celtics coach Brad Stevens said. “Kemba’s knee is the most important thing. We’re trying to strengthen it. The 18-20 minutes, whatever he ended up with, that was part of the plan. We’re not going to stretch that.” Boston resumed its season on Friday and lost to the Bucks, 119-12, as the health of its All-Star point guard loomed large. A kne...

LeBron James said that finding a rhythm on offense might take time for the Los Angeles Lakers. Defending, though, is crucial when the Lakers aren't at the top of their game offensively, he believes. The Lakers hope to enjoy a better offensive showing Saturday night when they meet the Toronto Raptors in a matchup of top NBA contenders at The Arena near Orlando. Toronto has won the past 10 meetings. Despite shooting only 39 percent, the Lakers opened their restart campaign Thursday with a 103-101 win over the Los Angeles Clippers. Anthony Davis scored 34 points and grabbed eight rebounds as the Lakers (50-14) increased their edge in the Western Conference standings to 6 1/2 games over the Clippers with seven contests remaining in the abbreviated regular season. James scored the winning bucket inside with 12.8 seconds left, converting after getting the rebound of his own missed shot. He finished with 16 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists and also forced Paul George to miss a ga...

NBA's restart kicked off on Thursday and out of the first 3 games- Issac was the only player to stand during the national anthem Orlando Magic forward Jonathan Isaac was the only player standing during the national anthem in a game vs the Nets on Friday. NBA's restart kicked off on Thursday and out of the first 3 games- Issac was the only player to stand during the national anthem and also the only player not wearing a Black Lives Matter shirt. Instead, the 22-year-old wore his Magic Jersey. When asked about his decision Issac said,  "I do believe that Black Lives Matter, but I just felt like it was a decision that I had to make and I didn’t feel like putting that shirt on and kneeling went hand in hand in supporting Black lives, or that it made me support Black lives or not. Issac also spoke about his faith during the press conference saying, " For me, Black lives are supported through the gospel, All lives are supported through the gospel.” The DeVos family, ...

Things were a lot different the last time the Oklahoma City Thunder and Utah Jazz were preparing to play. On March 11 in Oklahoma City, the sports landscape shifted suddenly when Utah center Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19. A bit after the scheduled tip-off time, the game was announced as postponed "due to unforeseen circumstances," and that night, the NBA announced an indefinite shutdown due to the pandemic. Within days, most other sports had followed suit. Saturday afternoon, the NBA's restart continues with the Thunder and Jazz meeting. Oklahoma City, playing its first game of the restart, will be the home team but instead of playing at a packed Chesapeake Energy Arena, the teams will be meeting at The Arena at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex near Orlando. "It's a helluva coincidence that that's who our first game is against," Thunder point guard Chris Paul said. The game will be Utah's second of the restart, with the Jazz b...

Orlando Magic forward Jonathan Isaac is the only player so far to stand during the national anthem at the NBA's season restart. Ahead of the Orlando Magic-Brooklyn Nets game on Friday, Magic forward Jonathan Isaac stood out among the rest by being the lone player to stand while the national anthem played. Isaac was also the only player to not wear the Black Lives Matter shirt adorned by others during pregame. “Absolutely I believe that Black lives matter,” Isaac said after the game . “A lot went into my decision…kneeling or wearing a ‘Black Lives Matter’ t-shirt don’t go hand in hand in supporting Black lives. I do believe that Black lives matter, I just felt like it was a decision I had to make, and I didn’t feel like putting that shirt on and kneeling went hand in hand with supporting Black lives.” Isaac is, so far, the only player at the NBA's restart in Orlando to not kneel for the anthem or wear the Black Lives Matter shirt. He explained his reasoning in response to a ...

The Philadelphia 76ers limped into the shutdown when All-Star Ben Simmons was sidelined with a back injury. Simmons was able to rest during the long layoff since March, and he'll enter the first game completely healthy as the Sixers (39-26) play the Indiana Pacers (39-26) on Saturday night near Orlando. Before the NBA restart, Sixers head coach Brett Brown shifted Simmons from point guard to power forward. Regardless of what position Simmons will occupy, he's ready to compete again. "I'm feeling good, I put on a lot more muscle, just ready to go," said Simmons, who has produced six triple-doubles this season. "This is kind of like a resetting point. I was able to get pilates in almost every day, lifting weights and taking care of my body and getting back to 100 percent." The Sixers, currently the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference, were a league-best 29-2 at home and just 10-24 on the road when the games halted. It will be fascinating to see how...

The Los Angeles Clippers are headed to the NBA playoffs. The New Orleans Pelicans face an uphill climb to reach the playoffs. Both those things were true when the season was suspended in March, and they're still true in the early stages of the restart. The Clippers (44-21) are in second place in the Western Conference and the Pelicans (28-37) are four games out of the final playoff spot as the two teams prepare to meet Saturday. Both teams lost in the final seconds of their first games Thursday after the 20-week hiatus. The Clippers lost their first game of the seeding schedule to the Lakers, 103-101, when Paul George's last-second jumper missed. That happened just a couple of hours after the Pelicans lost to the Utah Jazz, 106-104, when Brandon Ingram's last-second jumper missed in the game that tipped off the resumption of the season. "We've got to use these games to build some habits and just build team chemistry," Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard said....

The Pac-12 released its 10-game conference-only schedule for the 2020 football The Pac-12 released its 10-game conference-only schedule for the 2020 football season on Friday. Following the Big Ten's lead in July, The Pac-12 was one of the first leagues to announce they would be moving to a conference-only schedule. The league will play 5 games at home and 5 games on the road. Sport's Illustrated's host Kaitlin O'Toole is joined with Dan Raley from HuskyMaven for insight on what we can expect to see from the Pac-12 this season. FOR MORE CONTENT FROM SI:  Pelicans, Jazz Kneel for National Anthem Ahead of NBA Restart's First GameNotre Dame's 2020 Alliance With the ACC Is Ultimately a Marriage of ConvenienceDoes LeBron James Have Anything to Prove In the Bubble?Fantasy Football Bust of the Year: Which 2019 Stud Should You Fade in 2020?Christian Pulisic Eyes FA Cup to Add to List of Achievements, Successful First Chelsea SeasonNBA Finals Predictions: Picking Fa...

The Pac-12 released its 10-game conference-only football schedule for the 2020 season. The Pac-12 released its 10-game conference-only schedule for the 2020 football season Friday. The new schedule will start on Sept. 26, four weeks after the season was originally set to open with Hawaii facing Arizona in a non-conference game on Aug. 29. The conference plans to start Week 1 with an aggressive schedule, including matchups between USC vs. UCLA, Arizona State vs. Arizona and Washington vs. Stanford. All three games were originally scheduled for November. The Pac-12 will also give schools the option to delay the start of the season by a week if needed.  Each team will play five home games and five road games. Any games that are unable to be played on their scheduled date can be made up in their bye weeks or in Week 12 (Dec. 12). The conference championship game is now slated for Dec. 18 or 19 and will be held in a home-hosted model instead of in Las Vegas. Training cam...

SI Senior Writer Chris Mannix has been living inside of the NBA bubble, and breaks down what he saw for the showdown between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers to kick off the resumption of the NBA season.  LeBron James and Anthony Davis performed as the stars they are billed as, while the Clippers performed extremely well with a team that did not have all their players on the court.  For more NBA Coverage: LeBron's Lakers Win an Eerily Subdued Battle for Los Angeles in Orlando to Restart the NBA Pelicans, Jazz Kneel for National Anthem Ahead of NBA Restart's First Game 140 Days Later: Re-Previewing the (Rest of) the NBA Season

SI Senior Writer Pat Forde breaks down why its big news for Notre Dame Football to join the ACC, even for one season. With the coronavirus pandemic shaking up college schedules, the famously and historically independent Notre Dame football team will participate in ACC football for the 2020 season.  For more from Pat Forde: Notre Dame's 2020 Alliance With the ACC Is Ultimately a Marriage of Convenience ACC's Shrewd Schedule Announcement Cements Self-Serving Power 5 Conference Mentality After Weeks of Delaying, Decision Time Is Here for College Football

SI's Fantasy and Gambling analyst Corey Parson runs through his bestNBA bests and top daily fantasy plays for Friday, July 31 in the Orlando bubble. Day two of the NBA Bubble will have an NCAA Tournament style feel to it as the NBA gives us six games to sweat and build daily fantasy lineups around. Today will be the day that the NBA youth uprising will begin. Best Bets  Memphis Grizzlies vs Portland Trail Blazers: Grizzlies +3 When the NBA restart schedule was released, this was the first game that caught my eye and my exact thought was this will be a great day to catch the points with the Memphis Grizzlies.  This game opened up as a pick'em, but my feeling all along was that the public money would start to come in on the Trail Blazers, mainly because the Trail Blazers are an experienced team that was just in the Western Conference just last season. Well, that's not the same Trail Blazers team that will take the court today. To be fair, Jusuf Nurkic is back and has lo...

The venue is different, the arena is empty and instead of preparing for next season, teams are finishing up the 2019-20 campaign. Regardless, the goal remains the same for the Miami Heat and Denver Nuggets, who restart their respective campaigns against each other on Saturday afternoon at the ESPN Wide World of Sports campus near Orlando. Both teams have eight games remaining in this run up to the postseason, where positioning means less than first-round matchups because the idea of home-court advantage is moot in the bubble. The Heat (41-24) can climb as high as the second seed in the Eastern Conference or drop to sixth depending on how these eight games go, but the most important thing is they're playing meaningful basketball again. "Our guys are competitors. They love this," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "They're really enjoying this environment, having an opportunity to feel normal and get in between those four lines and compete. We're excited abou...

There was to be some rust expected from NBA players in the league's return, but when it came to the crew for TNT's Inside the NBA, there was none. As Chuck, Shaq, Ernie and Kenny were back in midseason form immediately in the first night of action. Sports Illustrated host Robin Lundberg discussed the incredible chemistry continuously displayed by that broadcast team with SI media media columnist Jimmy Traina. For more NBA Coverage: LeBron's Lakers Win an Eerily Subdued Battle for Los Angeles in Orlando to Restart the NBA Pelicans, Jazz Kneel for National Anthem Ahead of NBA Restart's First Game 140 Days Later: Re-Previewing the (Rest of) the NBA Season

Shaq showed up late, Kenny set the Magic City record straight and more. 1 . The NBA made an impressive return Thursday night, with two close games and outstanding television production from the Orlando bubble. This is such a cool look, in my opinion. While there were many unknowns going into the return, one thing we knew we didn't have to worry about was the Inside the NBA crew delivering, as they always do. Things got off to an outstanding start when Shaq was missing for the opening of the show, which prompted Charles Barkley to ask, "What kind of dummy is late for work the first day?" Shaq, who was stuck in traffic because of an accident, eventually showed up, and his outfit was ripe for mockery. Once Shaq got to the extra-long desk put in place for social distancing, he and Chuck quickly got back to their vintage taunting, with Barkley telling O'Neal he won titles only because "you had Kobe Bryant and Dwyane Wade," while O'Neal taun...

Rudy Gobert, appropriately enough, scored the first and final points of the NBA's return game, a Utah Jazz win over the New Orleans Pelicans. The loss dropped the Pels further in the standings and Zion Williamson, who was on the bench as a precaution in the last minutes, was the story afterwards. Sports Illustrated host Robin Lundberg discussed whether the league needs Zion and the Pelicans to make the playoffs with SI's Ben Pickman and "The Fantasy Exec" Corey Parson. For more NBA Coverage: LeBron's Lakers Win an Eerily Subdued Battle for Los Angeles in Orlando to Restart the NBA Pelicans, Jazz Kneel for National Anthem Ahead of NBA Restart's First Game 140 Days Later: Re-Previewing the (Rest of) the NBA Season

Normally, game-winning free throws wouldn't be the most exciting finish to a game but it's 2020 and there's nothing normal. The first game of the NBA restart could not have had a more fitting ending than Rudy Gobert sinking two free throws to give the Utah Jazz a 106-104 win over the New Orleans Pelicans, just four months after his positive test for COVID-19 essentially shut down the sports world. Normally, game-winning free throws wouldn't be the most exciting finish to a game but it's 2020 and there's nothing normal.  Even the lead up to the play felt like it was drafted up by Walt Disney. With less than 10 seconds remaining, Donovan Mitchell moved toward the paint and drew the Pelicans defenders toward him before passing to Gobert, who got hacked before getting to the rim. These are the two guys whose relationship was reportedly fractured after Mitchell also tested positive for the coronavirus. After the game, Gobert, who also scored the first points of ...

From demonstrations to presentation to the action on the court, the NBA's return made fans proud. From a beautiful demonstration on the court before the game, to LeBron James locking down both Kawhi Leonard and Paul George to end it, the NBA definitely gave its fans something to be proud of in its return. As though the fans there were only virtual, I have to imagine virtually everyone watching was impressed with the league’s return. I certainly was. First there was the presentation, and for something that should’ve felt awkward, I thought the aesthetics highlighted the action, as my eyes were drawn to the court and the sound that was pumped in was natural to my ears. Then there was the product, and Lakers-Clippers is the best they have to offer. It’s hard to come away from that game knowing who would win a series, but the Lakers took the opener because they are good enough to withstand shooting struggles from James, thanks in large part to the presence of Anthony Da...

From a beautiful demonstration on the court before the game, to LeBron James locking down both Kawhi Leonard and Paul George to end the Lakers-Clippers showdown, the NBA definitely gave its fans something to be proud of in its return. Sports Illustrated host Robin Lundberg recapped the action from opening night and explained how while the league's return felt bigger than basketball, it sure was good to have basketball back. For more NBA Coverage: LeBron's Lakers Win an Eerily Subdued Battle for Los Angeles in Orlando to Restart the NBA Pelicans, Jazz Kneel for National Anthem Ahead of NBA Restart's First Game 140 Days Later: Re-Previewing the (Rest of) the NBA Season

Day two of the NBA restart has 12 teams in action, so there will be plenty of betting and daily fantasy sports options. Sport's Illustrated's Corey Parson likes the Sacramento Kings to pick up where they left off before the break, and Devin Booker could be the DFS Play of the day. All Grizzlies Anthony Sain speaks about the Memphis Grizzlies feeling disrespected as the season resumes. For more SI Fantasy and Gambling: • Fantasy Football Busts • Breakout Player of the Year • Updated AL/NL MVP Odds • Updated AL/NL Cy Young Odds • QB Battle: Mahomes vs. Jackson • 6 Fantasy Football Stashes

The SEC has decided to play a 10-game, conference-only schedule this fall, eliminating the possibility for an ACC-SEC rivalry game. The SEC has decided to play a 10-game, conference-only schedule this fall, sources told Sports Illustrated . Yesterday the ACC released their 11 game schedule leaving an option for 1 non-conference game but the SEC decision today eliminates the possibility for a rivalry game. Sports Illustrated's host Kaitlin O'Toole is joined by SI's senior write Ross Dellenger for insight and his reaction to the conference only schedule. FOR MORE CONTENT FROM SPORTS ILLUSTRATED: Pelicans, Jazz Kneel for National Anthem Ahead of NBA Restart's First GameNotre Dame's 2020 Alliance With the ACC Is Ultimately a Marriage of ConvenienceDoes LeBron James Have Anything to Prove In the Bubble?Fantasy Football Bust of the Year: Which 2019 Stud Should You Fade in 2020?Christian Pulisic Eyes FA Cup to Add to List of Achievements, Successful First Chelsea Seas...

After coming together to protest for Black lives, the Lakers and Clippers played a thrilling game to welcome back the NBA. But the bizarre environment will take some getting used to. LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – Virtual fans and piped in crowd noise. A head-to-head between two ex-Finals MVPs played in front of a smattering of real faces. A battle for Los Angeles some 3,000 miles from Staples Center. Lakers 103, Clippers 101. The NBA is back. Opening night in the NBA’s resumed season was finally upon us Thursday, and what a strange experience. A late-season Lakers-Clippers game would be a near impossible ticket in Los Angeles. Fans would pack LA Live hours before tipoff. Scalpers would have a field day. In the bubble, witnesses to this marquee matchup were a dozen or so media members, a few more NBA staffers and a handful of players who bussed over to watch from socially distanced seats. Lawrence Tanter, the Lakers legendary public address announcer, provided the introductions, pre-r...

Before the NBA abruptly suspended the regular season due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Houston Rockets were in the throes of a grand experiment, intriguingly embracing a small-ball lineup while eyeballing another potentially extended postseason run. Four-plus months later, the Rockets (40-24) will pick up where they left off, facing the Dallas Mavericks (40-27) on Friday in a seeding game at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex near Orlando. The Rockets enter the restart in sixth place in the Western Conference standings. With the remainder of the regular season and the playoffs set to be contested in Central Florida, the concept of home-court advantage has been devalued, rendering seeding an exercise in securing favorable first-round matchups. For teams that fancy themselves as title contenders, that work is beginning. "These three preseason games and our practices, we've used those as opportunities to work on our offense and defense and make sure we're in shape t...

The Sacramento Kings and San Antonio Spurs reboot their final run toward the NBA playoffs when they square off Friday at the Visa Athletic Center near Orlando, Fla., in the two teams' first official game since the stoppage for COVID-19 on March 11. Twenty-two teams (13 of them in the Western Conference) will return to play during the 2019-20 season restart. The teams consist of the 16 (eight per conference) already in playoff position and the six teams, five of them from the West, that are within six games of the eighth seed in their respective conferences. The teams will play an eight-game schedule at the NBA "bubble" in the ESPN Wide World of Sports complex at Walt Disney World. From these, the top seven teams in each conference will advance, with the final eighth seed in each conference being determined by a potential play-in tournament before the traditional 16-team playoffs. The Spurs hit the reboot with a record of 27-36, the second-worst record of the Western ...

The SEC’s decision to play a 10-game conference-only model in 2020 eliminated some of college football's biggest rivalry games. If 2020 wasn’t already bad enough, it will not include the following: Florida-Florida State. Georgia-Georgia Tech. South Carolina-Clemson. Texas-LSU. Tennessee-Oklahoma. Arkansas-Notre Dame. The SEC’s decision Thursday to adopt a 10-game conference-only model came at a price. Some of college football’s biggest marquee matchups are eliminated. This feels weird. It doesn’t feel right. In fact, it feels terrible. So, it feels very 2020. Administrators from some of those schools fought to preserve those games—South Carolina’s president even voted against the scheduling model—but alas, it couldn’t be done. This is 2020—the Year of the Terrible—and we’ll all need to come to grips with a season, if played at all, that is beyond the bizarre. We’ll try to answer two questions in this column: 1) Why did the SEC chose that schedule model? 2) How might ...

Players and coaches from both teams, as well as the game's referees, knelt together as the national anthem was played. As the NBA prepared to take the court for the first time during its Orlando restart plan, the New Orleans Pelicans and Utah Jazz knelt on the sideline during the pregame national anthem. Coaches and game referees also joined in the kneeling, while both teams wore Black Lives Matter shirts on top of their warm-ups. On Wednesday, NBA commissioner said he respected the teams' decision to participate in peaceful protest, and that he supports the players and coaches. "The NBA has had a rule in its books that preceded David Stern, which was standing for the National Anthem," Silver said on Good Morning America on Wednesday. "Having said that, I respect peaceful protest. I'm not sure what our players will do when they come out tomorrow night, and we'll of course address it at the time, but I also understand these are highly unusual t...

The Irish will play a full ACC schedule this fall amidst the pandemic, but don't expect the arrangement to last. The uncatchable bachelor moved in with the faithful, patient suitor who has been waiting for him. It’s the unfulfilled sitcom romance that finally comes together—but it also comes with an expiration date. This is college football love in the time of COVID-19. Notre Dame and the Atlantic Coast Conference are going to share towels and dishes and even a bank account for one season. (If the season happens. We all get that caveat.) Prior to now, the ACC leaders let Notre Dame store some of its stuff at their house—basketball teams, baseball, volleyball, soccer, etc.—without getting too pushy and demanding a full commitment. Then, when the Fighting Irish wound up down on their scheduling luck, they came knocking. It’s the romcom of the year. A box-office smash. The stuff of fever dreams for covetous conferences everywhere who have tried to tie down the ultimate football fl...

The Milwaukee Bucks boasted the NBA's best record at 53-12 before the league's season was interrupted in March due to concerns surrounding COVID-19. Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks bid to shake off the rust accumulated following a 4 1/2-month absence on Friday when they "host" the Boston Celtics (43-21) near Orlando. Antetokounmpo and company also will need to acclimate themselves to a different set of circumstances than when they last played in March. That being, residing in a bubble and competing without a live audience watching their every move. "Doesn't matter what happens outside the lines, you lose yourself in the game," Antetokounmpo said. "As we play more, we'll get used to it." The Bucks likely will have time to adjust when they begin an eight-game stretch during the NBA's 22-team restart. Milwaukee holds a comfortable 6 1/2-game lead over second-place Toronto, while Boston resides three games behind the Raptors and 2 ...

The NBA season restart in Florida includes a pivotal matchup on Friday between the Memphis Grizzlies and the team just behind them in the Western Conference standings, the Portland Trail Blazers. When the COVID-19 pandemic forced the NBA shutdown more than four months ago, the Grizzlies (32-33) occupied the eighth and final seed in the West, with three teams 3 1/2 games behind, including the Trail Blazers (29-37). That 3 1/2 number is noteworthy, especially during the two-week sprint of seeding games. Memphis needs at least a 4 1/2-game lead over its nearest competitor in the standings to avoid a two-game play-in series for the No. 8 seed. The Grizzlies last played a regular-season game on March 10, losing to the eight seed in the Eastern Conference, Orlando, 120-115. Memphis pulled to .500 on the season before the loss, rebounding from a five-game losing streak in late February with wins in four of five. Memphis won its final scrimmage in the NBA bubble Tuesday, 128-110 over the ...