The Wolves won Thursday night’s draft lottery drawing, but unlike last year, there is no obvious pick at No. 1. The Class of 2020 is light on star power, though teams may find important rotational pieces sprinkled throughout their draft boards. There is also a high degree of uncertainty surrounding the event because it is unclear how much the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic will impact the salary cap. It’s difficult for front offices to build out a roster without having the final cap number, and that could lead to the draft and free agency being pushed back several weeks from their original mid-October dates, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski....

After winning the 2022 NBA Draft Lottery on Tuesday, the Magic will make the first selection in the 2022 NBA Draft. Will they go with one of the star freshmen in Duke’s Paolo Banchero, Gonzaga’s Chet Holmgren or Auburn’s Jabari Smith Jr.? Or will they go off the beaten path with star guards like Purdue’s Jaden Ivey or Kentucky’s Shaedon Sharpe? And while Orlando was the biggest winner of the night, other teams like the Thunder and Kings were fortunate enough to take a leap in comparison to their lottery odds....

LIVE: Follow SN’s draft tracker for grades and analysis With tons of movement along the draft order prior to tonight’s selection show, the board could break any number of ways, . Once considered the no-doubt No. 1 overall pick, LaMelo Ball (of “Ball in the Family” fame), is slotted to go anywhere from No. 1 to No. 3 overall, with Memphis center James Wiseman sandwiched in between. The draft also features a bevvy of intriguing international prospects, headed up by Deni Avdija (Maccabi Tel Aviv), who many expect to be a top-10 pick....

Cousins reportedly was working out in Las Vegas on Monday when he suffered the injury and left the court. As the news broke Thursday, there was also an outpouring of well wishes and support from fellow NBA players on Twitter.

In addition to the three NBA playoff games that were postponed following Milwaukee’s boycott, multiple MLB, MLS and WNBA games were put on hold as athletes voiced their anger, sadness and frustration following the shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wis. It’s clear players are fed up with the lack of real action from those in power. MORE: Kenny Smith walks off “NBA on TNT” set in support of boycott...

MIAMI — LeBron James scored 38 points, Mario Chalmers added 15 and the Miami Heat survived a 3-point barrage from New York's J.R. Smith on the way to dealing the Knicks' playoff hopes a big blow with a 102-91 victory on Sunday. Chris Bosh added 14 points and Ray Allen had 12 for the Heat, who remained atop the Eastern Conference standings. MORE: Bobcats clinch playoff spot | Anthony dealing with shoulder injury | NBA top performers...

Having come through a quadruple-overtime epic to take a 2-1 series lead Friday, the Blazers lost their advantage, going down 116-112 to a Nuggets team again inspired by Nikola Jokic. But Portland won Game 2 in Denver and Lillard says that his team can take confidence from the experience of that victory as it goes back on the road Tuesday. “It happens,” Lillard told a news conference after scoring 28 points....

A LeBron James-led team had won the conference and advanced to eight straight finals. But James left the Cavaliers and signed a four-year, $153.3 million with the Lakers in July. Los Angeles went on to miss the playoffs this season. The Eastern Conference is loaded with talent and four teams have a legitimate chance to play for the title. There should be multiple close series and plenty of entertaining basketball....

Both events were scheduled to take place in May in Chicago. The decision came out of a conference call with the league’s Board of Governors, which voted to postpone the lottery and combine but delayed deciding on the draft itself, which is scheduled for June 25. SN MOCK DRAFT: Warriors face tough decision with top pick The group also discussed the possibility of moving the start of the 2020-21 season back to December, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski....

We’re well beyond the small sample sizes phase of the season as those spurts have become trends. Teams like the Grizzlies and Cavaliers have shocked the NBA world, while teams like the Lakers, Hawks and Celtics have not lived up to expectations. Which teams are overachieving, underachieving or right on track? Take a look and find out below. (Note: Preseason wins projections are courtesy of Action Network’s over/unders. Current wins projection is courtesy of FiveThirtyEight’s predictions model....

After 3 1/2 days of deliberation, the jury came back with not guilty verdicts on all counts. Rittenhouse had been charged with homicide, attempted homicide and recklessly endangering safety after killing two men and wounding another with an AR-15 rifle. The shootings occurred amid protests over police violence against Black people during the summer of 2020. If found guilty, he would have faced life in prison. Following the news that Rittenhouse was acquitted, James Cadogan, executive director of the National Basketball Social Justice Coalition, released a statement....

The 31-year-old NBA guard said he tested positive for coronavirus before the Houston Rockets team left for Orlando to begin this year’s season in the so-called “bubble.” “I tested positive for COVID-19 prior to my team’s departure to Orlando. I’m currently feeling well, quarantined, and looking forward to rejoining my teammates when I am cleared. Thank you all for the well wishes and continued support. Please take this virus seriously....

So when it comes to the hottest ticket for Raptors home games this season, there should be major interest in quality of roster, and not necessarily the intensity of a rivalry. But the real question will be how often these out-of-conference star players actually suit up when their respective teams make the rare trip across the border. Another topic of conversation and contention this offseason has been that of resting players....

Pretty good, right? Now imagine this 76ers team with Chris Paul. NBA STANDINGS: Seeding scenarios, breakdown for playoff spots A Paul-to-Philly trade may have happened this past offseason if the future Hall of Famer had expressed any interest in joining the Sixers. But Paul was reportedly a “driving force” behind the deal that sent him from the Thunder to the Suns in November. From The Athletic’s Sam Amick: It’s unclear why Paul didn’t entertain the idea of playing for the Sixers....

At last season’s trade deadline, a deal between the Clippers and Rockets that centered around Jordan and Houston big man Clint Capela gained “semiserious traction,” according to ESPN’s Zach Lowe. Los Angeles would have acquired Capela, draft picks and more players, per Lowe, but the two sides ultimately failed to come to an agreement. TRADE RUMORS: Don’t expect Knicks to move young prospects for Bledsoe Jordan, a Houston native, has steadily improved over nearly a decade with the Clippers, earning his first All-Star selection after averaging 12....

Even as Golden State easily won this year’s NBA Finals, the running question throughout the five-game series was just how many times fans could be expected to get excited for a Warriors-Cavaliers championship matchup. A meeting of the two next June was all but inevitable, the only question being whether we’d get the same pairing in 2019, too. MORE: Which team is a good fit for Kyrie Irving? But the history of the NBA shows that you’d lose a lot of money over the years betting on presumed dynasties....

And if you think that’s an exaggeration, check out the list. NBA TRADE DEADLINE: Biggest winners and losers Yes, all of that happened, but plenty of teams backed away from deadline chaos Thursday. The Clippers kept Lou Williams and DeAndre Jordan despite constant speculation about which team would finally persuade LA to let them go, and the Grizzlies retained Tyreke Evans after putting him on the shelf under the assumption he would be sent to a contender....

The news was particularly unfortunate for the Oklahoma City Thunder, whose regular-season win total dropped from 57.5 to 54 at the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook. Additionally, their odds to win the Northwest Division lengthened slightly from 1-to-4 to 2-to-7. The Portland Trail Blazers, OKC’s top competition in the division, is the second betting choice in the Northwest at 14-to-5, a tick shorter than the 3-to-1 number they were seeing prior to Durant’s injury....

Monuments to Confederate leaders have become targets for protesters against racism and police brutality in the wake of the death of George Floyd, a black man who died while in the custody of Minneapolis police officers. While some cities in North Carolina have voted to place Confederate monuments in storage to prevent them from being destroyed or defaced, a state law enacted in 2015 prohibits their removal. In their Wednesday letter, members of the North Carolina legal community cited the monuments stand in conflict with the Constitution....

The lawsuit was filed in North Carolina’s Middle District Court on behalf of an adult and two minors by three law firms. Lilith Campos, the adult plaintiff, is wrongly identified on her birth certificate as male, the lawsuit said. Another plaintiff, a young woman identified as M.D., is wrongly identified on her birth certificate as male. The third plaintiff, a young man identified as C.B., is wrongly identified on his birth certificate as female....