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Golden State Warriors
11mJ.A. Adande

The Warriors vs. conventional wisdom

Golden State Warriors
11mJ.A. Adande

The Warriors vs. conventional wisdom

The biggest challenge this postseason for the top-seeded Warriors might be what history has taught us is needed in playoff ball, writes J.A. Adande.

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Top Headlines

Play2:53
3hMarc Stein

Sources: NBA cap could pass $100M by 2017-18

At this week's NBA Board of Governors meetings in New York, teams were advised ‎that the league's salary cap could rise past the $100 million mark as soon as the 2017-18 season, sources said.

Kevin Sullivan/Zuma Press/Icon Sportswire
Amin Elhassan, Bradford Doolittle and Kevin Pelton

Insider: Scouting Spurs-Clippers, all series

ESPN Insider's team of NBA experts provides scouting reports for every NBA playoff series, plus offseason previews for non-playoff teams and eliminated teams.

Play3:17
Milwaukee Bucks
4hBrian Windhorst

Bucks need to dig in on arena project

The Bucks must build an arena by 2017 or face relocation. Investors hope to break ground by fall to show the NBA good faith, but who will foot the final costs is unclear as taxpayers balk.

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Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE/Getty Images
3h

NBA to use ref names in play-by-play reports

The NBA will include referee names in its official play-by-play feeds alongside all calls reported to the table starting with the playoffs.

AP Photo/Brandon Wade
8hKirk Goldsberry

Maverick: Cuban on playoffs, more

Talking with Dallas owner Mark Cuban about the playoffs, the Rockets rivalry, Rajon Rondo, Tim Donaghy and his 15 outspoken, wild and successful years in the NBA.

TrueHoop TV

James Harden led the league in minutes (2:39)

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Play1:20
San Antonio Spurs
1d

How The West Will Be Won

This season's Western Conference might be the best the game has ever seen. Want to reach the promised land? You'll have to survive the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.

Jayne Kamin-Oncea/USA TODAY Sports
23hBaxter Holmes

Sixers' rebuilding plan baffles Lakers GM

Mitch Kupchak doesn't appear to be much of a fan of the Sixer's approach to rebuilding. "I still don't understand what they're doing."

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@sagesteele

Getting set for our 1hr @NBA playoff preview show..breaking down every single matchup! 10et on @Espn w @jalenrose & Coach Collins

Royce Young @royceyoung

Russell Westbrook was named Western Conference player of the month for April, his third consecutive player of the month.

Darren Rovell @darrenrovell

NBA adding referees calls to play by play record for fans. David Stern complained about conspiracy theories. Adam Silver dismantles them

Abdul-Jabbar undergoes heart surgery
NBA 

Yesterday, on his 68th birthday, Lakers legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar underwent quadruple coronary bypass surgery. The hospital released a statement that said the surgery was successful and Abdul-Jabbar is expected to make a full recovery.

AP
NBA 

NBA cap could pass $100M by 2017-18
NBA 

Sources told ESPN's Marc Stein that, based on current projections, league officials expect the salary cap to increase from its current $63.1M figure to $67.1M next season, $89M in 2016-17 and $108M in 2017-18. Salaries set to skyrocket

Steven Freeman/Getty Images
NBA 

Calvin Watkins @calvinwatkins

Kevin McHale just said on 790-AM Houston he's liking what he's seeing from Clint Capela. He could get more PT vs Dallas.

Popovich on Splitter: 'He's progressing'
NBA 

Spurs C Tiago Splitter participated in practice Friday, but coach Gregg Popovich was unsure if Splitter would play Sunday: "I don't deal in levels of `happy' and `optimistic' and `sad' and `concerned' and all that sort of thing." Game 1 in doubt

Soobum Im/USA TODAY Sports
NBA 

History says Spurs needed 2 seed
NBA 

San Antonio would have been the 2 seed had it won on the final day of the regular season. Instead, the Spurs fell to 6, which could be bad news:

  • The Spurs have won the title 40% of the time they've been a top-two seed during the Duncan era.
  • San Antonio has failed to even reach the conference finals 71% of the time they've been a 3 seed or lower in the same span.

NBA 

Everybody love everybody, maybe
NBA 

David Thorpe on Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and squabbling with teammates: "Can [the Clippers] do what the Celtics did a few years back and put their difference aside for three months or so ... ignore the differences until the day after [they] win the championship?"

Play5:01
NBA 

Mark Cuban endorses Harden for MVP
NBA 

"James Harden is so good. That’s what analytics have begot. ... James Harden, I think, is the MVP. Because that’s not a very good team over there.” Cuban on Rockets rivalry

Jerome Miron/USA TODAY Sports
NBA 

Howard laughs off 'soft' label
NBA 

“Basically when I hear it, I just laugh because if they knew all the things that I’ve been through on the floor, playing through the injuries I played through with the back, a torn labrum, knee issue, cracked sternum, I never complained about it."

Elsa/Getty Images
NBA 

Same old Spurs
NBA 

San Antonio finished the season on a 21-4 run, becoming a championship favorite in the process. So what changed down the stretch? Said Tony Parker: "Nothing. We do the same thing every year and people bury us every year."

Play3:26
NBA 

Calvin Watkins @calvinwatkins

James Harden said no comment when told Mark Cuban comments about Rockets being not that good. Josh Smith said team isn't trash talking.

Parsons hopeful for Saturday
NBA 

Mavs F Chandler Parsons is expecting to play in Game 1 vs. the Rockets after missing the final six games of the regular season with a sore right knee. Parsons averaged 15.7 PPG in his first season with Dallas.

AP Photo/LM Otero
NBA 

Bulls' Game 1 injury report vs. Bucks
NBA 

For Saturday's game:

  • Kirk Hinrich (left knee) is questionable
  • Joakim Noah (left hamstring tendinitis) is probable
  • Taj Gibson (left shoulder) is probable
  • Derrick Rose (left knee) is probable

NBA 

Arash Markazi @ArashMarkazi

I'm hearing the Clippers are exploring changing their logo, colors and uniforms and could introduce changes as early as this summer.

Chad Ford @chadfordinsider

Rest of draft order: 15. ATL (via BKN), 16. BOS 17. MIL 18. HOU (via NO) 19. WAS 20. TOR 21. DAL 22. CHI 23. POR 24. CLE 25.MEM 26. SAS

Chad Ford @chadfordinsider

If neither team wins the lottery, the Pacers will pick 11th, the Jazz will pick 12th in the 2015 NBA Draft

Ian Begley @IanBegley

It doesn't sound like Adam Silver is interested in taking any action re: teams resting star players who are healthy during the season

Spurs, Clippers evenly matched
NBA 

If you base anything on the regular season, then the L.A.-San Antonio first-round matchup will be tightly contested.

NBA