Nuggets' Jamal Murray: Probable Friday

Shocking and frankly terrifying news broke regarding Memphis Grizzlies superstar Ja Morant on Sunday afternoon. The story doesn’t quite paint the 2022 Most Improved Player or his associates in the most positive of lights either. The Athletic delivered a bombshell report that detailed the shocking incident. It occurred last month after a game between Morant’s Grizzlies Read more... The post NBA world reacts to absolutely shocking Ja Morant news appeared first on The Comeback: Today’s Top Sports Stories & Reactions.

Kyrie Irving is officially leaving the Brooklyn Nets to join forces with Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks. Irving requested to be moved ahead of the Feb. 9 trade deadline, and his wish was granted when the Mavs dealt for him on Sunday -- a move that drew plenty of reactions from the NBA world.

The NBA trade deadline is now less than a week away, and Kyrie Irving's request to be moved out of Brooklyn has added a whole new layer of intrigue. There are plenty of other rumors outside of Irving too, as teams are starting to kick things into hyperdrive leading up to deadline day.

Murray is listed as doubtful for Sunday's game against the Timberwolves due to left knee injury management. One night after registering a season-high 41 points (15-24 FG, 7-12 3Pt, 4-4 FT) to go along with seven assists, five rebounds and one steal across 36 minutes, Murray looks like he'll take a seat for the second half of a back-to-back set. Even though Murray played both ends of the Nuggets' previous back-to-back set (Jan. 17 and 18), Denver isn't expected to ask the point guard to shoulder big minutes for the second day in a row, especially since the Nuggets are traveling to Minnesota rather than playing at home. With three other starters (Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Nikola Jokic and Aaron Gordon) also listed as doubtful for Sunday's contest, the Nuggets offense could primarily run through Michael Porter and sixth man Bruce Brown.

Middleton logged 24 points (9-14 FG, 1-4 3Pt, 5-5 FT), seven rebounds, four assists and one steal in 20 minutes during Saturday's 123-115 win over the Heat. The Bucks have continued their slow ramp-up process with Middleton, who has played between 15 and 20 minutes in each of his seven appearances since returning Jan. 23 following a five-week absence due to a sore right knee. Aside from some issues with turnovers (2.7 per game), Middleton has more or less looked like himself in his first seven contests back in action, averaging 14.6 points, 4.0 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.4 three-pointers and 0.9 steals in 17.6 minutes while shooting 48 percent from the field and 95.2 percent from the free-throw line. Middleton's playing time could be restricted on some level through the All-Star break, but he's producing well enough to warrant an activation in just about every league.

Death is never something we like to talk about but recently the NFL lost someone at a very young age. Denver Broncos Super Bowl winning running back Ronnie Hillman has died at the age of only 31. Hillman had been battling a rare form of cancer called renal medullary carcinoma...

Kyrie Irving didn't seem to have a robust trade market in the offseason, but with the deadline mere days away, it appears as though several teams are attempting to trade for the mercurial guard. The Los Angeles Lakers, Phoenix Suns and Dallas Mavericks were reported quickly as possible candidates, but on Saturday, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that another team, the Los Angeles Clippers, have entered the fray.

Brown (illness) has been ruled out for Monday's matchup against the Pistons, Sean Grande of NBC Sports Boston reports. Brown was a late addition to the injury report Monday afternoon and will ultimately be sidelined versus Detroit due to an illness. In his absence, Malcolm Brogdon, Payton Pritchard and Grant Williams figure to garner increased roles, though Jayson Tatum will presumably dominate the playmaking opportunities when he's on the court.

Kyrie Irving was traded to the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday. In return, the Brooklyn Nets, who will also send Markieff Morris to Dallas, get Dorian Finney-Smith, old pal Spencer Dinwiddie, Dallas' 2029 first-round pick and two future second-round picks. There's a chance, perhaps a good one, that neither team is...

Suns head coach Monty Williams said Monday that he expects Booker (groin) to play in Tuesday's game against the Nets, Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic reports. Booker looks on track to suit up for the first time Christmas Day, and he'll presumably have a minutes restriction in place in his return from a six-week absence. With Booker expected back, Torrey Craig will likely shift to the second unit, and there will be less usage for Mikal Bridges and Cameron Johnson.

Beal (foot) will not suit up for Saturday's meeting with Brooklyn. Beal will sit the tail end of the Wizards' back-to-back set with left foot soreness after playing 32 minutes Friday. Fantasy managers should expect Beal to be a full go for Monday's game against the Cavaliers. While he's sidelined, Corey Kispert and Kendrick Nunn figure to see increased workloads.

The Brooklyn Nets are trading Kyrie Irving to the Dallas Mavericks, as confirmed by Bill Reiter of CBS Sports. In exchange, the Nets will receive Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith, an unprotected 2029 first-round draft pick and two future second-round picks. Irving, an All-Star starter, requested a trade on Feb. 3 after talks on a possible contract extension with the Nets broke down. He will now join his fourth team in seven seasons.

The Dallas Mavericks made a major splash in trading for Kyrie Irving Sunday afternoon. Dallas sent Dorian Finney-Smith, Spencer Dinwiddie, a 2029 first-round pick and two future second-round picks to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Irving and Markieff Morris. Irving requested a trade from the Nets just a few days ago after he couldn't agree to a contract extension with the team, an issue that dated back to last summer when he was seeking a max contract extension from the Nets.

The Denver Broncos managed to land Sean Payton as their new head coach after the Nathaniel Hackett experiment blew up in their faces, and it’s clear Payton is going to have a lot of work to do if he wants to turn things around in Denver. The first problem he will have to deal with, which also happens to be the biggest, involves the team’s starting quarterback, Russell Wilson.

Rubio has been ruled out for Monday's matchup against the Wizards due to left knee injury management, Danny Cunningham of 850 ESPN Cleveland reports. Rubio will sit out the second half of the Cavaliers' current back-to-back set to manage his surgically repaired left knee. Since making his season debut Jan. 12, the veteran point guard has appeared in 11 of 13 contests and is averaging 5.7 points, 3.8 assists and 2.6 rebounds in 16.2 minutes per game. In his absence, Raul Neto and Cedi Osman are candidates for increased roles behind Darius Garland.

Gobert has been downgraded to questionable ahead of Sunday's game against the Nuggets due to right groin soreness. The towering big man hasn't exactly set the world on fire in his first season with the Timberwolves, but losing him before a matchup against Nikola Jokic is less than ideal. If Gobert can't go Sunday, then Naz Reid would be in line for a bigger role. Gobert is averaging just 11.4 points and 10.7 rebounds per game across his last 10 outings.

Kuzma went to the locker room with an apparent left ankle injury during the second quarter of Saturday's game against the Nets, Josh Robbins of The Athletic reports. Kuzma rolled his ankle after stepping on an opponent's foot on a drive to the hoop. He should be considered questionable to return until further updates are provided.

Markkanen finished Friday's 115-108 loss to the Hawks with 25 points (8-19 FG, 3-11 3Pt, 6-7 FT), 10 rebounds and one assist across 37 minutes. Markkanen struggled to dial his shot in from beyond the arc, but he still managed to lead the Jazz in scoring. He also secured a double-double with his effort on the glass, marking his seventh double-double in his last nine games.

McCollum had 23 points (8-16 FG, 2-5 3Pt, 5-5 FT), two rebounds, seven assists and two steals in 39 minutes during Saturday's 131-126 win over the Lakers. McCollum has taken a step back in his scoring duties since the return of Brandon Ingram, but the veteran guard continues to find ways to impact the game while also putting up solid scoring figures. Over his last 10 games, McCollum is averaging 21.4 points, 5.9 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 0.9 steals and has reached the 20-point plateau in all but two contests during that stretch.

Jokic finished with 14 points (5-8 FG, 0-1 3Pt, 4-5 FT), 18 rebounds, 10 assists, two blocks and one steal across 34 minutes during Saturday's 128-108 win over the Hawks. Jokic took only five shots in the first half, knocking down three of them for eight points to go along with 11 boards and six assists. He added just six points in the second half on 2-of-3 shooting from the floor and played more of a facilitator role as Jamal Murray led the scoring charge with his season-high 41 points. The Nuggets' center finished with a game-high 18 rebounds and also tied Dejounte Murray with a game-high 11 assists, giving him his third consecutive triple-double. Jokic continues to pack the stat sheet despite being hampered by a hamstring injury as of late.