L.A. Notes: LeBron, Luka, Thiero, Clippers’ Young Reserves
LeBron James, whose season debut has been delayed by sciatica on his right side, is ramping up his activity. The Lakers superstar practiced with the team’s G League affiliate on Wednesday, including doing contact five-on-five work, as Khobi Price of The Southern California News Group writes.
“It was also an incredible opportunity for [South Bay coach] Zach [Guthrie] and his staff and all the guys that are with South Bay right now to have that experience,” head coach JJ Redick said. “But the reports are that he looked good, and was moving well.”
James was also a full participant in South Bay’s practice on Thursday and showed no ill effects from Wednesday’s session, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN, who hears from sources that the 40-year-old forward could practice with the Lakers on Monday if he continues to experience no discomfort in the coming days.
Here’s more from Los Angeles:
- The Lakers were thoroughly outclassed by the Thunder on Wednesday, losing by 29 points. After being limited to a season-low 19 points (on 7-of-20 shooting), star guard Luka Doncic said he wasn’t concerned about the apparent gap between the two teams, instead using it as a source of motivation. “Definitely wasn’t our best game, probably one of the worst this season,” Doncic said, per Price. “They all did a great job on me. They’re champions for a reason. They showed that. We need to be more ready. Obviously, it starts with me. I need to be way better than that.”
- Lakers rookie Adou Thiero has been listed as questionable for Friday’s matchup in New Orleans, tweets Dan Woike of The Athletic. The 21-year-old was selected 36th overall in the 2025 draft, but has yet to make his NBA debut after undergoing left knee surgery in college. Redick previously expressed optimism that the high-flying forward could return during the team’s current road trip, which concludes Saturday in Milwaukee.
- While the Clippers have had a rough start to the season – they hold a 3-8 record after dropping six straight games – their young reserves have been a bright spot of late. Second-year guard Cam Christie had some encouraging performances late last week against Phoenix, notes Janis Carr of The Orange County Register, then Jordan Miller and Kobe Sanders received rotation minutes in Wednesday’s loss to Denver, with third-year wing Miller having a career night (22 points and four rebounds in 26 minutes). “I thought they came in, gave us a lot of energy … so they got to keep growing, these young guys,” head coach Tyronn Lue said (story via Carr). “They’re going to make some mistakes, we understand that. But I did love the way they played. I thought they played the right way. The ball moved, guys got open shots, we attacked the paint, made the right play, and so just kept giving those guys room to grow. And I thought tonight was a step in the right direction.”
Clippers Notes: Beal, Leonard, Collins, Harden
Bradley Beal‘s season-ending hip fracture isn’t related to any other injury he has experienced, Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank told reporters on Wednesday (Twitter link from Mark Medina).
Beal underwent a right knee scope in May and saw limited action during training camp. He had been on a minutes restriction all season before suffering the hip injury in Saturday’s game against Phoenix. Frank said the injury occurred on this play with 9:12 remaining in the second quarter.
“He did everything he (was) asked. He’s a high character guy. I feel horrible that he’s dealing with this,” Frank said. He added that doctors are “extremely optimistic he’ll make a full recovery” and said the time off will help him get over lingering “knee inflammation.”
In an interview with Medina for Essentially Sports, agent Mark Bartelstein also expressed optimism about Beal’s future and said his client had been making progress with the knee issues.
“It’s devastating for him. He’s put so much work into his body and recovered from the scope this past summer,” Bartelstein said. “He was actually going to have his minutes restriction lifted. So everything was trending in the right direction. He was going to be able to get back to play his normal minutes. Then to have this happen is devastating. There’s no way around it.
“But the good news is that he’ll have a full recovery. It’s going to take a while, just as it takes a while for these fractures to heal. But talking with all the doctors, he’s going to have a full recovery. He should do great with the surgery. We got to put all of our energy and focus toward the rehab, which is what we’re going to do.”
There’s more on the Clippers:
- Kawhi Leonard is dealing with a “significant” foot sprain as well as the right ankle sprain that was reported over the weekend, per Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. Frank said Leonard is making progress and will join the team for its upcoming road trip, where doctors will monitor his condition to determine when he can resume playing. “We will have a better feel for it next week,” Frank said.
- With John Collins making his second straight start tonight, Lue talked about how he expects Collins to fit into that role (Twitter video link from Law Murray of The Athletic). “Just understand spacing the floor, especially when you’re on the floor with (Ivica Zubac) and James,” Lue said. “There’s not really a lot of room in that paint area, that 15-foot area.”
- James Harden blames a lack of consistency for the team’s 3-7 start, saying that lineup changes from game to game have made it difficult for the players to establish any rhythm together, writes Janis Carr of The Orange County Register (subscription required). “Some guys haven’t played ever, some guys are just being put in the rotation,” Harden said. “Some guys are new here, their first 10 games. That’s a lot that goes into it, so I don’t think we can pinpoint and put our fingerprint on one thing. I think it’s a variety of things that’s happening that hopefully we can come to a halt very soon.”
Bradley Beal To Undergo Season-Ending Hip Surgery
Clippers guard Bradley Beal has been diagnosed with a fracture in his hip and will undergo season-ending surgery, reports Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).
“We met with numerous doctors and specialists around the country in collaboration with the entire Clippers medical staff over the last few days, and came to the decision unanimously that the surgery will allow Brad to have a full and complete recovery,” agent Mark Bartelstein said in a statement to ESPN (Twitter link).
According to Law Murray of The Athletic (Twitter link), who confirms Charania’s reporting, the projected recovery timetable for the procedure is six-to-nine months.
Beal had been hoping for a fresh start in Los Angeles this fall after two disappointing years in Phoenix. His time with the Suns came to an end over the summer when he and the team agreed to a buyout that left roughly $97MM in dead money on Phoenix’s cap.
The 32-year-old signed a two-year, $10.98MM deal with the Clippers with the expectation that he’d play a significant role in the rotation and help make up for the scoring the club lost when it traded Norman Powell to Miami in a three-team deal that sent John Collins to L.A.
However, Beal was able to suit up for just six games with his new team, averaging 8.2 points on .375/.368/.750 shooting in 20.2 minutes per contest. While those six games will be by far the fewest Beal has ever played in a single season, injuries have been a recurring problem for him in recent years — he hasn’t made more than 60 regular season appearances since 2018/19.
Beal’s season-ending surgery makes it more likely that he’ll opt into the second year of his contract with the Clippers. He holds a $5.62MM player option for 2026/27.
The Clippers will have the ability to apply for a disabled player exception in the wake of Beal’s injury, but it would only be worth about $2.68MM (half of Beal’s salary) and wouldn’t allow the team to surpass its hard cap. Currently, L.A. is carrying just 14 players on its standard roster and doesn’t have the ability to add a 15th man until January, at which point a prorated minimum salary will fit below the first tax apron.
With no reinforcements likely on the way in the short term, the Clippers will have to hope for more from veteran guards like Bogdan Bogdanovic and Chris Paul, who are off to slow starts this season. Additionally, Collins figures to be among the players who take on more offensive responsibilities to help James Harden and Kawhi Leonard (when healthy) shoulder the scoring load.
All-Star Game To Feature U.S. Vs. World Three-Team Format
This season’s All-Star Game will have a U.S. vs. World format, the NBA confirmed today in a press release. The game is scheduled to be played Sunday, Feb. 15 at 5 p.m. ET at the Clippers’ Intuit Dome in Inglewood, Calif.
Two teams of U.S. players and one team of international players (the World team) will compete in a round-robin tournament featuring four 12-minute games. The three teams will each have a minimum of eight players.
The NBA has experimented with an number of different formats to make the All-Star Game more entertaining and encourage players to take the game more seriously. This is the latest attempt by the league and Player’s Association to make that happen.
As in the past, 24 NBA All-Stars (12 from each conference) will be selected as follows: The five starters from each conference will be selected by fans (50% of the vote), current NBA players (25%) and a media panel (25%). The seven reserve players from each conference will be chosen by NBA head coaches.
This year, the All-Stars will be selected without regard to position. The process for assigning players to the two U.S. teams will be determined at a later date.
According to the release, if All-Star voting does not result in the selection of 16 U.S. players and eight international players (which can include American players with ties to other countries, if necessary), commissioner Adam Silver will select additional All-Stars to join either group to reach that minimum.
In the round-robin tournament, Team A will play Team B in Game 1. The winning team from Game 1 will take on Team C in Game 2, followed by the losing team of Game 1 meeting Team C in Game 3.
After Game 3, the top two teams by record will advance to face each other in the championship game (Game 4). If all three teams have a 1-1 record after Game 3, the tiebreaker would be point differential in each team’s two round-robin games.
The All-Star Game will be played earlier in the day than usual because it will be broadcast by NBC, which is building All-Star Weekend around the network’s coverage of the Winter Olympic Games, ESPN’s Tim Bontemps points out.
Injury Notes: Beal, Giddey, Harris, Adebayo, Curry
The Clippers are concerned that Bradley Beal could miss extended time with a left hip injury, head coach Tyronn Lue told reporters prior to Monday’s game vs. Atlanta (Twitter link via Justin Russo). Beal is currently undergoing tests to determine the severity of the injury, which was initially described as left hip soreness, tweets Tomer Azarly of ClutchPoints.
According to Kellan Olson of ArizonaSports.com (Twitter link), Beal said on Friday in Phoenix that he’s been dealing with an unspecified injury since last season, when he was a member of the Suns. The 32-year-old has battled a variety of health issues over the past several years, having played between 40 and 60 games each of the past six seasons.
In other Clippers news, John Collins received his first start with his new team on Monday. Lue said he plans to stick with Collins in the starting lineup “for a while,” per Russo (Twitter video link).
“We’ve been struggling rebounding the basketball, and career, statistically, he’s been a really good rebounder,” Lue said of the Collins, who will be an unrestricted free agent next summer if he doesn’t sign a veteran extension.
Here are a few more injury-related notes from around the NBA:
- While Josh Giddey missed Monday’s loss to San Antonio, head coach Billy Donovan said the Bulls don’t have any long-term concerns about his right ankle sprain, as Jamal Collier of ESPN relays. “We don’t feel like it’s anything too severe with his ankle,” Donovan said. “He didn’t have really much swelling after the game [Saturday]. He got some [treatment] yesterday and was just a little bit uncomfortable today at shootaround.” Giddey is considered day-to-day, according to Donovan.
- Pistons forward Tobias Harris is making progress from his high right ankle sprain, but there’s still no official timetable for his return, head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said on Monday (Twitter links via Hunter Patterson of The Athletic and Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press). Harris, who missed his fifth straight game tonight against Washington, will be a free agent in 2026.
- Five-time All-Defensive big man Bam Adebayo was ruled out for the third consecutive Heat game on Monday vs. Cleveland, notes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald (via Twitter). The 28-year-old forward/center was diagnosed with a sprained left big toe on Thursday after undergoing an MRI. Adebayo is considered day-to-day.
- Warriors superstar Stephen Curry (illness) was out again on Sunday during the win over Indiana, but he’s not on the injury report ahead of Tuesday’s game at Oklahoma City, as Anthony Slater of ESPN tweets. The 37-year-old guard contracted the illness last week and wound up missing three games, Slater writes for ESPN.com.
Kawhi Leonard Sidelined For "The Next Few Games"
- Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said Kawhi Leonard will miss “the next few games” with a sprained right ankle, according to The Associated Press. Lue didn’t provide any specifics about Leonard’s condition, but he stated that medical tests are indicating it won’t be a prolonged absence.
Leonard Out Again Saturday; Lue Preaching Patience Amid Slow Start
- Suns forward Dillon Brooks is questionable for Saturday’s rematch against the Clippers in Los Angeles, tweets Law Murray of The Athletic. Brooks has missed the past six games with a core muscle strain. Kawhi Leonard will miss his third straight game for the Clips as he continues to battle a right ankle sprain, Murray adds.
- The Clippers have gotten off to a rocky start — they hold a 3-5 record after being dominated by the Suns on Thursday. Head coach Tyronn Lue is preaching patience with some new faces on the roster, as Janis Carr of The Orange County Register relays. “We really haven’t had the chance to get to our full potential as far as lineups and things like that,” Lue said. “So, we just gotta be patient, let our guys get healthy and then we’ll see.”
Bradley Beal Criticizes Usage With Suns In Return To Phoenix
After getting a hostile reception from Phoenix fans on Thursday night, Clippers guard Bradley Beal indicated that he doesn’t have fond memories of his two years with the Suns, writes Law Murray of The Athletic.
Beal was booed during pregame introductions and again each time he touched the ball during a 13-point loss. He turned in his worst performance of the season, finishing with five points in 19 minutes on 2-of-14 shooting before being removed from the game with 6:02 left in the third quarter.
A prolific scorer in Washington, Beal was supposed to form a Big Three along with Devin Booker and Kevin Durant when the Suns acquired him from the Wizards during the 2023 offseason. Injuries limited him to 53 games during both of his seasons in Phoenix, and his reported refusal to waive his no-trade clause limited the Suns’ ability to alter their roster and made him an unpopular figure with fans.
Beal contends he was never properly used by head coaches Frank Vogel or Mike Budenholzer during his time in Phoenix.
“When you allow me to be that guy, I’ll be that,” Beal said. “But when you have two coaches that want you to set screens and play in the dunker, you’re not Brad Beal. You’re somebody else.”
Beal had two years and $110MM remaining on his contract, but he and the Suns were both eager to end their relationship after two frustrating seasons. He agreed to give back $13.9MM as part of a buyout agreement during the summer and joined the Clippers on a two-year, $11MM deal that includes a player option.
He told reporters that he didn’t feel he had anything to prove in his return to Phoenix, pointing out that the Clippers scored a decisive win over the Suns earlier in the season.
“To me, it wasn’t about get back,” Beal said. “We whooped y’all a couple weeks ago. So it wasn’t like, you know, I don’t think it’s about that. For me, it was — no disrespect to Phoenix — but it was more meaningful for me to go back to D.C. and play, after being there for 11 years and that’s my franchise, you know? I feel like I was more geeked about that than coming back here. There’s no disrespect … but they have their way how they feel.”
Injury issues have continued to hamper Beal as he tries to establish himself with another new franchise. He underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee during the offseason and remains on a minutes restriction. He hasn’t exceeded 22 minutes or played in the fourth quarter yet this season, but coach Tyronn Lue remains confident that he’ll eventually be a reliable scorer once he’s back to full health.
Beal emphasized that he has no hard feelings toward Phoenix fans or the organization, and he displayed that by signing autographs after Thursday’s game and embracing his former teammates, according to Murray. He won’t have to wait long to see them again, as the Suns will travel to Los Angeles for a rematch Saturday night.
“That’s basketball — we wouldn’t be pros if we couldn’t be mentally tough enough to move on to the next game or be mentally tough to move on to the next play,” Beal said. “It happens, man. It’s going to be games dudes might not make a shot. Might not get a rebound. But how you bounce back and how you respond to that is a testament to your character, who you are as a player. So, see you Saturday.”
Clippers Owner Steve Ballmer Sued By Aspiration Investors
Eleven former Aspiration investors have sued Clippers owner Steve Ballmer, alleging that he used the company to circumvent the NBA salary cap to pay star forward Kawhi Leonard, reports investigative journalist and podcaster Pablo Torre.
According to Colin Salao of Front Office Sports, those investors initially filed suit against Aspiration co-founder Joseph Sanberg and the company – which is now known as Catona – in July, well before Torre began reporting on Ballmer’s investments and Leonard’s apparent “no-show” endorsement deal. The Clippers owner was added to the lawsuit as a defendant on Monday in the wake of that reporting.
“It served Ballmer’s interest in getting extra money to Leonard so he could circumvent the salary cap, beat out the competition and re-sign his team’s superstar player,” the plaintiffs state in their suit. “Ballmer was complicit in and aided and abetted Sanberg’s fraud for his own self-serving purpose. Ballmer publicly endorsed Catona and infused over $50 million into the company. Absent Ballmer’s support, Catona could not have sustained the frauds set forth herein.”
The NBA is currently conducting its own investigation into the accusations of cap circumvention levied against the Clippers, having hired the law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to lead that probe.
While the NBA’s investigation is focused on possible violations of the league’s own rules, the lawsuit – filed in Los Angeles – is about recouping losses for investors defrauded by Sanberg, who recently pleaded guilty in federal court to two counts of wire fraud. Skip Miller, an Aspiration investor also serving as counsel for the plaintiffs, issued the following statement to Torre:
“A lot of people have been hurt here. This lawsuit is being brought to recoup their losses. We look forward to our day in court where everything will be aired out and justice will be done.”
For what it’s worth, the allegations made about Ballmer in the lawsuit appear to be based on reporting by Torre and other outlets — the suit doesn’t include a smoking gun or any new revelations. However, it could lead to more new information about the Clippers’ owner’s connection to the company surfacing as the legal process plays out.
“Plaintiffs allege that Ballmer transferred other funds to Catona to keep the company afloat and buy Sanberg’s support, cooperation and silence about the secret deal with Leonard,” the lawsuit reads, per Torre. “The full extent of Ballmer’s transfers of funds to Catona and Sanberg will be ascertained in discovery.”
Injury Notes: Luka, Giannis, Young, Holmgren, Beal, Sixers
After missing the past three games with finger and leg injuries, Lakers superstar Luka Doncic has been listed as questionable for Friday’s matchup at Memphis, as Khobi Price of The Southern California News Group relays.
It has been five days since the Lakers stated that the Slovenian guard would be reevaluated in about a week, though Price notes the actual left finger sprain occurred a week ago vs. Minnesota. Head coach JJ Redick said ahead of Wednesday’s win that the swelling in Doncic’s finger had subsided somewhat.
Free agent addition Marcus Smart, who has missed the past two games with a quadriceps contusion, is also questionable for Friday’s contest, Price adds.
Here are some more injury-related notes from around the NBA:
- Superstar Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo was a surprise scratch on Thursday against Golden State after being listed as probable in the lead-up to the game, notes Jamal Collier of ESPN. Despite being down their best player, the Bucks defeated the Warriors behind a career night from guard Ryan Rollins, who finished with 32 points (on 13-of-21 shooting), eight assists and five rebounds, tweets Eric Nehm of The Athletic. As ESPN’s Anthony Slater notes (via Twitter), it was a revenge game of sorts for Rollins, who was drafted by and later traded by Golden State. The former second-round pick had a big game on Tuesday as well, recording 25 points (on 8-of-11 shooting), four assists and four steals in 26 minutes.
- Star point guard Trae Young will be sidelined for Friday’s game in Indiana due to a right knee sprain, the Hawks announced (via Twitter). Young was reportedly scheduled to undergo an MRI today after he exited Wednesday’s game with the injury, which occurred late in the first quarter when a teammate was pushed and fell into his knee (Twitter video link).
- Thunder big man Chet Holmgren was off to an excellent start this season before lower back soreness sidelined him for both Tuesday’s win vs. Sacramento and Thursday’s victory over Washington. Head coach Mark Daigneault said there are no long-term concerns with Holmgren’s back issue, per Jeff Patterson and Justin Martinez of The Oklahoman (subscriber link). “He’s where he should be,” Daigneault said before Thursday’s game. “We’re being conservative with him. If he was, obviously, perfect he would play tonight. But we’ll go through the process that we always go through.”
- After missing the past two games with a sore back, Clippers guard Bradley Beal will be active for Friday’s contest vs. New Orleans, tweets Law Murray of The Athletic. Beal opened the season on a minutes restriction due to offseason knee surgery.
- Although Jared McCain (thumb surgery) and Paul George (knee surgery) participated in the Sixers‘ practice on Thursday, both players will remain sidelined for Friday’s matchup against Boston, according to Tim Bontemps of ESPN (Twitter link). In case you missed it, the 76ers picked up McCain’s third-year option on Thursday.