WASHINGTON (AP) — NBA Commissioner Adam Silver wants half of all new referees joining the league to be women — and he would like to see teams hire female coaches, too. In an appearance Thursday for The Economic Club of Washington, D.C., Silver said two of the past five refs added from the developmental G-League were women, bringing the total ...

BOSTON (AP) — Expectations overflowed prior to the season for a Boston Celtics team expected to ascend to the top of an Eastern Conference without LeBron James. The season will be remembered for how poorly Boston did fulfilling its potential following false starts, some regression by its young players and an early exit from the postseason. Last season, the Celtics ...

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Lakers are trying to quickly rebound in their head coaching search after failing to land Tyronn Lue. A person familiar with the search said former Indiana and Orlando coach Frank Vogel will be interviewed for the opening. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Thursday because the person wasn’t ...

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Bucks center Pau Gasol will miss the rest of the NBA playoffs after surgery to repair a stress fracture in his left foot. The Bucks said Friday that the surgery done a day earlier was successful and Gasol is expected to make a full recovery. The 38-year-old Spaniard was signed by the Bucks on March 3 after ...

HOUSTON (AP) — In the Western Conference finals last season, the Houston Rockets had home-court advantage and took a 3-2 lead over the Golden State Warriors before Houston star Chris Paul went down with a hamstring injury that kept him out for the rest of the series. As these teams prepare for Game 6 of the conference semifinals Friday night, ...

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Jimmy Butler lived up to his Jimmy Buckets nickname. With “Jimmy! Butler!” chants ringing from the rafters, he helped Philadelphia force a seventh game against Toronto in the Eastern Conference semifinals, hitting big baskets in bunches and scoring 25 points in the 76ers‘ 112-101 victory over the Raptors on Thursday night. “I play to win,” Butler said. ...

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The shots were finally falling for Damian Lillard. Lillard had 32 points, including 17 in the third quarter, and the Portland Trail Blazers staved off elimination to force a decisive Game 7 in their series with Denver with a 119-108 victory on Thursday night. Lillard had been fairly quiet for the previous two games in the ...

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Damian Lillard had 32 points, including 17 in the third quarter, and the Portland Trail Blazers staved off elimination to force a decisive Game 7 in their series with Denver with a 119-108 victory on Thursday night. The Nuggets head home with a chance to make it to the Western Conference finals for the first time ...

It begins. When the buzzer sounded in Milwaukee on Wednesday night, the question immediately became this: Has Kyrie Irving played his last game for the Boston Celtics? It’s very possible. Welcome to free agency, Kyrie. He’s now in the place that other big names like Kevin Durant, Jimmy Butler, Kawhi Leonard and Klay Thompson all will be whenever their respective ...

The NBA Draft Lottery is less than a week away. Who will end up with the all-important #1 pick…and the chance to draft Duke superstar Zion Williamson…we will find out on Tuesday night. Below are the odds for each team eligible in the NBA Draft to win the #1 overall pick. Geoff Burke Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports