NBA Player News

Bamba (knee) has been ruled out of Saturday's preseason game against the Warriors, Tomer Azarly of ClutchPoints.com reports.

Bamba had been limited in training camp earlier this week, so his absence shouldn't be surprising, especially since the Clippers are being extremely cautious with the recovery process of their players in the early stages of the preseason. Bamba's next chance to feature will come against the Nets on Tuesday in another preseason contest.

Davis (rest) will play in Sunday's preseason game against the Suns, Mike Trudell of Spectrum SportsNet reports.

Davis will make his preseason debut Sunday after sitting out Friday's contest against Minnesota for rest purposes. Davis appears to be healthy heading into the 2024-25 campaign after making an impressive 76 regular-season appearances last year.

The Suns announced Saturday that Nurkic won't play in Sunday's preseason opener against the Lakers due to a left middle finger injury and will be re-evaluated in one week, Kellan Olson of ArizonaSports.com reports.

Nurkic's finger injury will keep him out of Phoenix's preseason opener. However, there is no indication that the 30-year-old big man will be forced to miss any regular-season action.

Reid will start at power forward in Friday's exhibition matchup with the Lakers, Alan Horton of the Timberwolves Radio Network reports.

With Julius Randle (shoulder) sidelined, Reid will get the start alongside Rudy Gobert in the frontcourt. When healthy, Randle is expected to start in the regular season, with Reid playing a similar role to what he saw in the 2023-24 campaign.

Hayes will start at center in the Lakers' preseason opening matchup against the Timberwolves, Khobi Price of The Orange County Register reports.

With LeBron James (rest) and Anthony Davis (rest) sidelined for the exhibition opener, Hayes will start alongside Rui Hachimura. The big man is looking to earn a role providing depth in Los Angeles' frontcourt this season.

Davis (rest) will be held out of the Lakers' exhibition opener versus the Timberwolves on Friday, Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times reports.

The Lakers will also be without LeBron James (rest), as they will likely be cautious with both his and Davis' minutes during the preseason. In the latter's absence, Jarred Vanderbilt (foot) and Jaxson Hayes are candidates to see bigger roles in the frontcourt.

Kornet scored six points (3-5 FG) while adding 11 rebounds, three assists and a steal across 22 minutes in Friday's 107-103 preseason win over the Nuggets.

The big man was tied for the team lead in the plus/minus department with plus-12, and he made his presence felt on both ends of the court, particularly as a rebounding threat and a passing option in the post. Al Horford will open the season as the starting center while Kristaps Porzingis (foot) works on his recovery, but don't rule out Kornet emerging as a realistic option for the backup role ahead of other options such as Xavier Tillman and Neemias Queta.

Jokic posted 14 points (5-7 FG, 4-5 FT), eight rebounds, two assists and two steals across 17 minutes in Friday's 107-103 preseason loss to the Celtics.

Head coach Mike Malone had already declared Jokic would have a reduced workload during Friday's preseason opener against the Celtics earlier in the week, so it wasn't surprising to see him log just 17 minutes. That said, it was more than enough to fill the stat sheet, and Jokic should remain one of the most productive players in the NBA, both in real life and fantasy, once the regular season begins later this month.

Horford (coach's decision) didn't play in Friday's 107-103 preseason win over the Nuggets.

Horford was expected to come off the bench, but he didn't step on the floor, and this could be a sign of the Celtics being extra careful with the veteran. Luke Kornet got the start at center and Xavier Tillman saw minutes off the bench as well, but Horford should be the starter once the regular season begins.

Robinson is being evaluated for a left knee injury and will be out of action until a diagnosis is confirmed, Sean Cunningham of Fox 40 Sacramento reports.

Robinson took a hit during Thursday's practice and will not return to action until the club evaluates his injury. The 24-year-old will have the opportunity to compete for minutes with Alex Len and Trey Lyles behind Domantas Sabonis, though it is currenty unclear whether he will be back for Opening Night.