Kobe given royal send-off, hailed as 'inspiration' 11:52 PM ET print LOS ANGELES -- Thousands of fans gathered outside Staples Center hours before Kobe Bryant's final game Wednesday night, creating a scene reminiscent of a championship celebration. Enormous photos of iconic moments from his 20-season NBA career graced the walls outside the arena with the hashtag … [Read more...]

Lakers go all out for Kobe's finale, give away Kobe toy helicopter You might not have heard this — we've been keeping it kind of hush-hush over here — but Kobe Bryant will play in the final game of his 20-year NBA career on Wednesday night, suiting up in the purple and gold one last time to lead the Los Angeles Lakers against the Utah Jazz before officially heading off into retirement. As … [Read more...]

Mavs nearly acquired Kobe in 2007, Cuban says 8:39 PM ET Tim MacMahonESPN Staff Writer Close Joined ESPNDallas.com in September 2009 Covers the Dallas Cowboys and Dallas Mavericks Appears regularly on ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM print DALLAS -- Kobe Bryant almost became a member of the Dallas Mavericks, according to owner Mark Cuban. On the final night of Bryant's career, Cuban revealed … [Read more...]

Scene from Staples Center for Kobe's farewell 7:41 PM ET print In just a few hours, Kobe Bryant will take the court for his final NBA game with hundreds of media members and thousands of fans in attendance. The scene is set early for what is sure to be an unforgettable night. Outside Staples pic.twitter.com/pLZPfM8u0B — Baxter Holmes (@BaxterHolmes) April 13, 2016 Every inch of … [Read more...]

Lakers on Kobe's send-off: Prepare for a show 4:41 PM ET print EL SEGUNDO, Calif. -- Los Angeles Lakers coach Byron Scott said he has one simple plan for Kobe Bryant's final NBA game Wednesday night. "Like I told him: 'This is the last hurrah. Let's have some fun. Let's go out with a bang,'" Scott said after shootaround at the team's training facility hours before the Lakers face … [Read more...]

NBA playoffs: Wednesday's stakes? Eight seeds, and Jazz need help 10:00 AM ET print It's the final day of the 2015-16 regular season, and there are no fewer than eight seeds still undecided. That's enough to make anyone's head spin with playoff matchups. Luckily, ESPN.com has a handy cheat sheet for the possible outcomes Wednesday: Eastern Conference The Miami Heat will be seeded: … [Read more...]

Playoff Preview: NBA Playoff Player Rankings Playoff leagues have become popular way to extend the fantasy hoops season, while DFS sites will be going strong until they run out of two-game nights. Here is my take on how you might want to approach a playoff draft. I’ve got one on Thursday night, and I’m guessing you might too if you’re reading this. Winning one of these leagues often comes down to … [Read more...]

Feature Presentation: 2015-16 BDL Second-Most Valuable Player We at Ball Don't Lie enjoy healthy debate about basketball and its strange cast of characters, from Oscar Robertson's "get off my lawn" diatribe on Stephen Curry to D'Angelo Russell's sting operation on a self-dubbed dude named Swaggy P and his Australian hip hop artist fiancé. (Yup, those things happened.) It's NBA with a twist … [Read more...]

Feature Presentation: 2015-16 BDL Executive Decision of the Year We at Ball Don't Lie enjoy healthy debate about basketball and its strange cast of characters, from Oscar Robertson's "get off my lawn" diatribe on Stephen Curry to D'Angelo Russell's sting operation on a self-dubbed dude named Swaggy P and his Australian hip hop artist fiancé. (Yup, those things happened.) It's NBA with a … [Read more...]

Haslem to miss Heat regular-season finale 12:18 PM ET Associated Press print MIAMI -- Udonis Haslem will miss Miami's regular-season finale at Boston on Wednesday night with soreness in his left foot. Haslem was hurt in the fourth quarter of Miami's win at Detroit on Tuesday, limping immediately to the locker room after leaving the game and not returning. Miami's Udonis Haslem will … [Read more...]