NEW YORK (AP) — Han Xu understandably grew up idolizing Yao Ming, mesmerized by the giant shadow the 7-foot-6 Hall of Famer cast each time he stepped onto an NBA court.
Standing 6-10, Han would like to emulate Yao's impact — including his influence on the sport in China.
LAS VEGAS (AP) — As NBA summer league winds down in Las Vegas and teams begin making plans to finish up and leave this coming weekend, some players might have done better than most in showing their potential.
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Five-time All-Star John Wall signed a free-agent deal with the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday.
Wall posted photos on his social media accounts of him signing his contract and receiving congratulations from owner Steve Ballmer in Las Vegas, where the Clippers have a team in the NBA Summer League.
Paolo Banchero, the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft, scored 13 of his 17 points in the first half, Caleb Houstan had 20 and the Orlando Magic breezed to a 91-77 victory over the Houston Rockets on Thursday night to open play in the Las Vegas Summer League.
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Here’s what happened in the first few seconds of this year’s NBA Summer League: Amid the squeaking of sneakers, and the noise generated by the people filling just about every lower-bowl seat in the arena, one voice could still be clearly heard.
LAS VEGAS (AP) — In Las Vegas, there’s always a big show happening.
Welcome to the stage, Paolo Banchero. He’s about to have his opening night.
NBA Summer League starts Thursday in Las Vegas, with Banchero — the now-former Duke star forward who was the No.
John Wall and the Houston Rockets have agreed that his contract will be bought out, a move that will free him to sign with any team of his choosing, two people with knowledge of the situation said Monday night.
HOUSTON (AP) — After falling to the third overall pick by the Houston Rockets after most projected him to go No. 1 in the NBA draft, Jabari Smith Jr. wasn't worried about the two teams that didn't pick him.
A person with direct knowledge of the agreement said the Houston Rockets are trading center Christian Wood, their leading scorer and rebounder this season, to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for four players and a draft pick.
BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — Before Jalen Green joined the Houston Rockets, becoming the highest-drafted Asian American player in the NBA, he'd already experienced close up how passionate the people of the Philippines were about the game he loved to play.
MIAMI (AP) — Not this time. After being thwarted on the doorstep of the NBA Finals three other times in the previous five seasons, the Boston Celtics have broken through.
Time for the NBA draft lottery, where some team will get a nice reward for a miserable season.
Not the Los Angeles Lakers, though. Their misery is set to make a good year even better for the New Orleans Pelicans.
HOUSTON (AP) — Optimism abounds for the Houston Rockets despite finishing with the NBA’s worst record for a second straight season.
“We didn’t have the season we wanted to, but we showed glimpses of what we can be,” rookie Jalen Green said.
HOUSTON (AP) — Atlanta coach Nate McMillan is certainly glad his team's season didn't end Sunday with the regular-season finale.
But next year he hopes the Hawks aren't clawing for a spot in the play-in tournament during the last few days of the season.
TORONTO (AP) — Pascal Siakam had 29 points and 12 rebounds, Gary Trent Jr. made the winning layup with 4.8 seconds left and the Toronto Raptors beat the Houston Rockets 117-115 on Friday night.
Trent added 26 points for the Raptors in their home finale.
NEW YORK (AP) — Kyrie Irving scored 42 points and the Brooklyn Nets beat the Houston Rockets 118-105 on Tuesday night to improve their position in the race for play-in seeding.
Irving had 17 points in the fourth quarter to help the Nets pull away again after their 21-point lead dwindled to six.
HOUSTON (AP) — Anthony Edwards scored 33 points, Karl-Anthony Towns added 28 and the Minnesota Timberwolves built a huge lead and held on for a 139-132 win over the Houston Rockets on Sunday night.
HOUSTON (AP) — Harrison Barnes scored 25 points, and the Sacramento Kings beat the Houston Rockets 122-117 on Friday night.
The Rockets and Kings were playing each other for the second time in three days following Sacramento’s 121-118 win on Wednesday.
HOUSTON (AP) — Davion Mitchell, Damian Jones and Trey Lyles scored 24 points each, and the Sacramento Kings outlasted the Houston Rockets for a 121-118 win Wednesday night.
It was a wild back-and-forth game where both teams had double-digit leads before staying close in the fourth quarter.
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — NBA prospect Dyson Daniels will be tuned in for this weekend’s Final Four, watching college players pursue a national championship while maybe making endorsement money along the way.
HOUSTON (AP) — Dejounte Murray scored a career-high 33 points and the San Antonio Spurs held on for a 123-120 win over the Houston Rockets Monday night to inch closer to the final play-in spot in the Western Conference.
MIAMI (AP) — Kevin Durant scored 23 points, Seth Curry added 17 and the Brooklyn Nets overwhelmed Miami 110-95 on Saturday night, sending the Heat to their season-worst fourth consecutive loss.
Andre Drummond had 13 points and 11 rebounds for Brooklyn, which got 11 points from Kyrie Irving — who will play his first home game of the season for the Nets on Sunday — and 10 from Nic Claxton.
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Alperen Sengun scored 27 points off the bench, Jalen Green had 25 points and the Houston Rockets defeated the Portland Trail Blazers 115-98 on Saturday night to complete a back-to-back sweep.
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Jalen Green had 23 points, including five 3-pointers, and the Houston Rockets built a big early lead before coasting to a 125-106 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday night.
DALLAS (AP) — Jalen Brunson scored 28 points and Spencer Dinwiddie added 26 with Luka Doncic resting a sore right ankle, and the Dallas Mavericks overwhelmed the Houston Rockets in the second half for a 110-91 victory Wednesday night.
HOUSTON (AP) — Late in a difficult season, Christian Wood gave the Houston Rockets a reason to smile Monday night.
Wood set career highs with eight 3-pointers and 39 points as the Rockets used a huge second-half run to rally for a 115-97 win over the Washington Wizards.
HOUSTON (AP) — Desmond Bane had 24 points and the Memphis Grizzlies overcame the absence of star Ja Morant with balanced scoring in a 122-98 victory over the NBA-worst Houston Rockets on Sunday.
Bane was one of six Memphis players to score at least 13 points on a day Morant sat out with a sore knee.
HOUSTON (AP) — Malcolm Brogdon scored 25 points and Goga Bitadze added 23, including two key baskets down the stretch, to help the Indiana Pacers beat the Houston Rockets 121-118 on Friday night.
A 3-pointer by Tyrese Haliburton cut Houston’s lead to two with about 2 1/2 minutes left.
HOUSTON (AP) — Devin Booker scored 36 points, Mikal Bridges added 26 and the NBA-leading Phoenix Suns beat the Houston Rockets 129-112 on Wednesday night for their third straight victory.
Booker shot 15 of 24 from the field and scored at least 30 points for the second time in the last three games.
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Jonas Valanciunas had 32 points and 10 rebounds, and the New Orleans Pelicans emphatically snapped a four-game skid with a 130-105 victory over the Houston Rockets on Sunday night.