NBA TheFoxPosts.com

Once again, the Nets’ star is back on the injury report and what’s more, is that it’s due to the very same injury that saw him miss more than two months earlier this season i.e. nerve impingement in his back. To be clear, the point guard has only played in 57 of a possible 178 games since his trade to Brooklyn in 2022. What’s going on with Ben Simmons? While much has been made of Ben Simmons’ mental struggles, the reality is that the 27-year-old point guard has been able to stay physically fit for any reasonable stretch of time. If we think back to his stand-off with the 76ers prior to his trade, he was unable to play even then due to back problems such that he ended up missing the entire 2021-22 season. Last season was no better, as Simmons was only able to feature in a total of 42 Game s. this of course brings us to the present campaign in which he has only played in 15 Game s. Of course, that has not stopped Simmons from pocketing a cool $38 million. Indeed, the former 76ers star i...

Led by Luka Dončić , named the 2019 Rookie of the Year, the Mavericks returned to the playoffs in 2020 and even reached the Western Conference Finals in 2022, marking their first appearance since their championship in 2011 . However, they could not make it to the playoffs in 2023 and were even accused of intentionally losing some of their last games after it became clear that they would not qualify. Kyrie Irving has been traded to the Mavericks, per @ChrisBHaynes pic.twitter.com/UD0Fp8Mmqh — Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 5, 2023 Kyrie Irving’s transfer to the team in February 2023 generated much excitement during the same period. Still, despite his impressive individual performance with an average of 27.1 points, 6.0 assists, and 5.0 rebounds in 20 games for the Mavs , the team’s overall performance was disappointing, with a negative winning record of 8-12. With the summer break providing an opportunity for rest and recovery, the Mavericks are again focused on be...

Los Angeles Clippers star Kawhi Leonard appears to be making progress in his bid to return to action, and Friday's news was the best indication that he's closer although there is still no official timetable for when he'll see game action next, the team said. Leonard return ed to the floor last month after missing the entire 2021-22 season due to a torn ACL, but he's appeared in just two of Clippers' first three games, coming off of the bench in both contests, before again missing time due to a knee injury . Leonard has not played since Oct. 23, and while the Clippers have offered no definitive timeline yet for his return , coach Ty Lue acknowledged that he is getting closer on Friday. "He played five-on-five this morning with some of our guys, some of the players and some of our coaches," Lue said. "It was the first time he was able to get on the floor and play five-on-five. He ...

The Philadelphia 76ers will be without guard Tyrese Maxey for three-to-four weeks due to a bone injury in his left foot, according to Shams Charania. Maxey suffered the injury during the Sixers' 110-102 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday night.  Late in the first half, after Giannis Antetokounmpo missed a jumper, Maxey grabbed the rebound and took off up the floor. As he drove to the basket, he tried to maneuver around Jevon Carter and stepped on the foot of the Bucks guard . Maxey's ankle rolled and he hobbled all the way up the steps in the first few rows of seats in serious pain. Though he stayed in the game to shoot his free throws, it was clear he could not continue, and he checked out for good at the next dead ball. This is obviously a big blow for the Sixers, not only because Maxey has been terrific this season, but because they're already without James Harden. The former MVP went down e...

The Charlotte Hornets will be without forward Gordon Hayward due to a fractured shoulder, his agent told ESPN on Friday. Hayward is out indefinitely and will be evaluated for a return to play on a week-to-week basis.  Hayward's shoulder issue dates back to Nov. 2 when he did not return for the second half of the team's loss to the Chicago Bulls. He then sat out the next eight games with what was deemed a shoulder bruise, before returning on Nov. 18 against the Cleveland Cavaliers.  He played in three games, but did not look like himself and also appeared to reinjure the shoulder against the Washington Wizards on Nov. 20. Finally, after a poor outing versus the Philadelphia 76ers on Nov. 23, in which Hayward finished with seven points and four turnovers on 3-of-10 shooting, the team shut him back down. He did not play in their win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday and it's unclear when he'l...

Kevin Durant, who has played just three games for the Phoenix Suns thus far, was a late scratch for Wednesday's game against the Oklahoma City Thunder due to an injury suffered during a pregame workout. Though there has been no official update to Durant's status, The Arizona Republic is reporting that there is fear within the Suns organization that the superstar forward could be sidelined for the remainder of the regular season and the start of the playoffs with a Grade 2 ankle sprain. Durant is still set to undergo an MRI on Thursday to determine the severity of the injury . Video of the injury shows Durant warming up before Phoenix's Game against the Thunder, in which he slips on the floor and tweaks his left ankle while going toward the basket for a layup. Here’s video of Kevin Durant slipping on the floor pregame. He stayed down for a few seconds but then got up and finished his ...

This class of rookies is already turning out to be one of the most exciting crops of young players we've seen. You've got guys like Paolo Banchero and Bennedict Mathurin who are worthy of earning additional honors outside of just Rookie of the Year. There's also a wealth of quality role players we've seen so far from this group, like Shaedon Sharpe and Andrew Nembhard who have earned minutes by making an impact on the game when they step on the floor. It remains to be seen which of these rookies will go on to have the best career, because there are several candidates, but it's obvious that many of these guys have what it takes to stick around in this league. Now it's time to break down this week's NBA Rookie Rankings. Keep in mind that these rankings will reflect a rookie's performance on a week-to-week basis only, not the collective season. These aren't Rookie of the Year stan...

The Chicago Bulls announced Tuesday morning that Lonzo Ball will be shut down for the remainder of the season. Ball, who hasn't played since Jan. 14, 2022, has suffered several setbacks in what's been a lengthy recovery process from a meniscus tear in his left knee. After first undergoing arthroscopic surgery to address what at the time was called a small meniscus tear in January 2022, Ball never returned last season following the injury and had an additional surgery eight months later in September for the same meniscus tear.   Back in September, Ball was expected to be out for "at least a few months" with January being earmarked as the potential return date for the former No. 2 overall pick. However, when the Bulls would give updates on the star guard, it didn't sound like he was making any forward progress toward a return. Most recently on Jan. 28, Bulls head coach Billy Donovan said that B...

Luka Doncic had an MRI Friday morning to determine the severity of a heel contusion he suffered during the Dallas Mavericks 111-106 win against the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday night. The imaging revealed that the heel contusion is "not severe " per Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd, but his status for Saturday's Game against the Golden State Warriors is unknown at this time. Doncic didn't practice on Friday, and he won't travel with the team to San Francisco as it begins a five-game road trip that features games against the Warriors, Jazz, Clippers and back-to-back matchups with the Kings. However, Doncic hasn't been officially ruled out of the Warriors game or the rest of the road trip. In fact, the Mavericks are unsure if he'll need to miss any time at all. While talking to reporters after practice, Mavericks forward Dorian Finney-Smith alluded to Doncic not playing at the star...

Chicago Bulls guard Lonzo Ball is still sidelined due to a lingering knee injury and there is no guarantee that he plays at all this season , according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. Even in the best case scenario, Ball is not expected to play before the All-Star break in mid-February.  Ball has not played since Jan. 14 last season, when he suffered what the team originally diagnosed as a knee bruise. Further evaluation revealed a torn meniscus, and Ball underwent surgery that was expected to keep him out six-to-eight weeks. He had a setback during his rehab, however, and was later declared out for the remainder of the season.  Unfortunately, more rest and rehab during the offseason did not solve the problem. Unable to run or jump without pain, he underwent another surgery in late September that came with a timeline of four-to-six weeks. He has been spotted shooting free throws and working in the weight roo...

After a 15-point loss at the hands of the Cleveland Cavaliers Wednesday night, the Dallas Mavericks are back to being a .500 team with a 14-14 record. To make matters worse, the team announced Thursday that forward Maxi Kleber will be out indefinitely with a right hamstring tear. This is a significant blow to a Mavericks roster that is already thin in depth, especially in the frontcourt.  Kleber provides the Mavericks with floor spacing as a 6-10 big who can knock down 3s at a consistent clip. But even more so, Kleber is one of Dallas' best defenders, and without him in the rotation, the Mavs' already lackluster defense will suffer even more. With Kleber sidelined for what could potentially be between 6-8 weeks, according to The Athletic's Shams Charania, the Mavericks are going to have to rely on Dwight Powell and Christian Wood even more. Though Powell doesn't give Dallas any spacing on the of...

Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry will be out of the lineup with a left shoulder subluxation (i.e. a partial dislocation), the team announced on Thursday. While the Warriors have not released an official timeline for his return, The Athletic's Shams Charania reported that Curry will be sidelined for at least two weeks. Curry will not require surgery and is expected to return to the court in about a month, Charania reported during an appearance on Bally Sports.  ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski first reported  that Curry would miss a few weeks.  Curry left the Warriors' 125-119 loss after hurting his shoulder in the third quarter. On the preceding play, Curry missed a 3-pointer and the long rebound led to a Pacers fast break. As Jalen Smith went to the basket, Curry reached for a steal and hurt his shoulder in the process.  Steph went to the locker room after appearing to injure his left s...

In the midst of the Brooklyn Nets' 102-101 win against the Miami Heat Sunday night, the team lost superstar Kevin Durant, who left the Game in the third quarter with what the team announced as a right knee injury . After the Game , Nets coach Jacque Vaughn said that Durant will have an MRI on the knee Monday to determine the severity of the injury . The injury occurred at the end of the third quarter when Heat guard Jimmy Butler landed on Durant's knee after falling from an attempted layup. Durant immediately began grabbing at his right knee and stayed on the ground for a moment before ultimately limping back to the locker room. Shortly after, Brooklyn ruled him out for the rest of the Game . Here is the play where the injury occurred: Kevin Durant had to leave the Game after Jimmy Butler landed on his knee on this play. 🙏pic.twitter.com/pb7TVwSill — 𝐓𝐚𝐥𝐤𝐢𝐧' 𝐍𝐁𝐀 (@_Talkin_N...