And on this roadtrip, where the Jazz will face the Pelicans once more on Monday night, it was really, really important for the Jazz decision makers to find a way to finagle a loss against the Pelicans.

The Utah Jazz have hit the cellar of the Western Conference. Zion Williamson highlighted a 24-point, 14-rebound performance with an array of thunderous dunks during a dominant fourth-quarter stint, and the New Orleans Pelicans beat the Utah Jazz 136-123 on Friday night to open a two-game set.

T he Miami Heat and Jimmy Butler have had a falling out, and all indications are that the relationship could be beyond repair. A new piece by ESPN's Ramona Shelburne explains how

The battle of the second and third-ranked teams in the Western Conference features some of the league's up-and-coming franchises. The third-seeded Memphis Grizz

The Cavaliers are 20-2 on their home court. Cleveland ranks third in the Eastern Conference with 29.1 assists per game led by Darius Garland averaging 6.8. The Suns are 8-12 on the road. Phoenix allows 114.3 points to opponents and has been outscored by 1.1 points per game.

Players have reported to camp this week, as preseason has officially begun across MLS. You can jump on the social media platform of your choice and see clips of your dudes jogging, joking and hopefully not sporting too many extra pounds from the holidays.

Early returns: Utah made a high-risk trade for Sergachev — in terms of acquisition cost and with the seven seasons left on his contract at an $8.5 million cap hit, especially coming off an injury-plagued year. It’s too early to make a long-term read on the trade, but the early dividends have been promising.

The St. Louis Blues will host the Calgary Flames again on Thursday to complete an unusual two-game series featuring a postseason vibe.

The Thunder has a 99.8% chance of being the No. 1 seed in the West, according to basketball-reference.com. Seems low.

BOTTOM LINE: Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves host the Cleveland Cavaliers in a non-conference matchup. The Timberwolves are 10-9 on their home court. Minnesota is third in the Western Conference in team defense, allowing just 107.6 points while holding opponents to 45.3% shooting.

But Sunday, Jan. 12 NHL action has two of the Western Conference leaders looking to skate, shoot and score in their push to the top of the conference. The Vegas Golden Knights (28 wins ...

The Miami Heat's young forward duo are struggling to fully put the pieces together. After impressive rookie campaigns, Jaime Jaquez and Nikola Jovic have not t