OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Warriors star Stephen Curry didn't mean it.Curry told ESPN this week he was joking when he questioned on a podcast whether astronauts landed on the moon, comments that sent social media into a tizzy.He also said he will accept NASA's invitation to tour the lunar lab at the Johnson Space Center in Houston."Obviously I was joking when I was talking on the podcast," Curry told ESPN. "(Then) I was silently protesting how stupid it was that people actually took that quote and made it law as, 'Oh my God, he's a fake-moon-landing truther,' whatever you want to call it, yada, yada, yada. So I was silently protesting that part about it, how the story took a life of its own."But in terms of the reaction that I've gotten, I am definitely going to take (NASA) up on their offer."___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Kawhi Leonard sat out Toronto's showdown against the Golden State Warriors because of a bruised right hip.The star forward was inactive for the second straight game Wednesday night, but the Raptors cruised to a 113-93 win at Golden State.Earlier in the day, Leonard was deemed questionable while getting treatment on his hip. Toronto coach Nick Nurse spoke to reporters 90 minutes before tip-off and said he was uncertain about Leonard's status.The Raptors improved their NBA-best record to 23-7. They beat the Los Angeles Clippers 123-99 without Leonard on Tuesday night and then completed a season sweep of the two-time defending champion Warriors.Toronto beat Golden State 131-128 in overtime on Nov. 29. The Warriors played that game without All-Stars Stephen Curry and Draymond Green, both of whom were back in the lineup for the rematch Wednesday.___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/tag/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Kawhi Leonard is sitting out Toronto's showdown against the Golden State Warriors because of a bruised right hip.The star forward is inactive for the second straight game. Earlier in the day, he was deemed questionable while getting treatment on his hip. Raptors coach Nick Nurse spoke to reporters 90 minutes before tip-off and said he was uncertain about Leonard's status.The Raptors began the night with the best record in the NBA at 22-7. They beat the Los Angeles Clippers 123-99 without Leonard on Tuesday night and are seeking a season sweep of the two-time defending champion Warriors.Toronto beat Golden State 131-128 in overtime on Nov. 29. The Warriors played that game without All-Stars Stephen Curry and Draymond Green, both of whom were back in the lineup for the rematch Wednesday night.___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/tag/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (AP) — As the Santa Cruz Warriors huddled after practice, Darius Morris provided a quick recap of his adventure to the Arizona desert a day earlier to interview with the Suns. Phoenix needed a point guard given Devin Booker's hamstring injury, and Morris was at least in the mix.Santa Cruz coach Aaron Miles, who so wishes he were still playing professionally, had a little fun leading the offense in Morris' absence.Just one example of life in the topsy-turvy, changing-by-the-day G League, when Golden State or another club might come calling at a moment's notice to swipe a top player for promotion to the NBA.Or, as is the case for Santa Cruz this week, send one of the NBA's best big men out on rehab assignment.Miles will have the chance to work alongside DeMarcus Cousins, assigned to Santa Cruz on Monday as he continues his rehab from left Achilles tendon surgery. Cousins' younger brother, Jaleel, is on the team, too.One moment, Miles might be setting a screen or bouncing... [More]

So much changed after Kawhi Leonard crashed to the Oracle Arena floor on May 14, 2017.The San Antonio Spurs had a 23-point lead on the Warriors in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals when Leonard departed with 26 points, poised to take away home-court advantage in the series between teams who won more than 60 games.Leonard injured his ankle when he landed on Zaza Pachulia's foot after taking a jump shot, and things were never the same again for the Spurs or Leonard. The Spurs couldn't hold on to win that game or any other in the series without their All-Star forward, whose ankle injury would be followed by a lingering thigh injury that would limit him to just nine games the following season and strain relations between the team and player. Leonard was ultimately granted his desire to leave San Antonio when he was traded to Toronto in the offseason.If Leonard doesn't go down, maybe the Spurs win that game, maybe the series and maybe another championship. Maybe Leonard wouldn't have wanted... [More]

So much changed after Kawhi Leonard crashed to the Oracle Arena floor on May 14, 2017.The San Antonio Spurs had a 23-point lead on the Warriors in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals when Leonard departed with 26 points, poised to take away home-court advantage in the series between teams who won more than 60 games.Leonard injured his ankle when he landed on Zaza Pachulia's foot after taking a jump shot, and things were never the same again for the Spurs or Leonard. The Spurs couldn't hold on to win that game or any other in the series without their All-Star forward, whose ankle injury would be followed by a lingering thigh injury that would limit him to just nine games the following season and strain relations between the team and player. Leonard was ultimately granted his desire to leave San Antonio when he was traded to Toronto in the offseason.If Leonard doesn't go down, maybe the Spurs win that game, maybe the series and maybe another championship. Maybe Leonard wouldn't have wanted... [More]

Vince Carter could have gone anywhere.To a contender, to chase a ring. To retirement, because he has nothing left to prove. To television, which seems like it will be his next vocation whenever his playing days end.Instead, he chose Atlanta — a young team, a rebuilding team, a team that probably has minimal chance of making the playoffs.And he's happy."I'm with a great bunch of guys," Carter said. "I enjoy helping young guys who want to learn, who are willing to be coached and let you coach them and ask questions. It's a small thing, but it's a major thing — because if you're asking questions, that means you're trying to learn and grow. And these guys are all great."He's the NBA's oldest active player, someone who turns 42 next month. When he was drafted in June 1998, neither Trae Young nor Kevin Huerter had been born yet. And they're the starting backcourt for the Hawks this season, Carter's 21st in the league, with Atlanta being the eighth team he's played with.Carter talked with Dwyane... [More]

TORONTO (AP) — A letter from a 9-year-old girl has helped Stephen Curry fix online access to his shoes for kids.Riley Morrison of Napa, California, wrote to Curry to tell him she couldn't buy his Curry 5 shoes because they weren't available on the Under Armour website. They were only marketed to boys.She wrote "I know you support girl athletes because you have two daughters and you host an all girls basketball camp. I hope you can work with Under Armour to change this because girls want to rock the Curry 5's too."The two-time MVP and five-time All-Star replied with an apology , saying in a hand-written response he's been working with Under Armour to remedy the situation. Curry promised to send Morrison two pairs of shoes, including the new Curry 6 model.He also invited her to the Warriors home game on March 8, International Women's Day."That's the beauty of Steph," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said before Thursday's game at Toronto. "He understands his power. He understands the impact he can make on people's lives. And I'm just incredibly proud of him."He missed his 11th straight game Thursday because of a strained left groin and didn't speak to reporters. Curry is expected to return Saturday at Detroit.

TORONTO (AP) — A letter from a 9-year-old girl has helped Stephen Curry fix online access to his shoes for kids.Riley Morrison of Napa, California, wrote to Curry to tell him she couldn't buy his Curry 5 shoes because they weren't available on the Under Armour website. They were only marketed to boys.The two-time MVP and five-time All-Star replied with an apology , saying in a hand-written response he's been working with Under Armour to remedy the situation. Curry promised to send Morrison two pairs of shoes, including the new Curry 6 model.He also invited her to the Warriors home game on March 8, International Women's Day."That's the beauty of Steph," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said before Thursday's game at Toronto. "He understands his power. He understands the impact he can make on people's lives. And I'm just incredibly proud of him."Curry missed his 11th straight game Thursday because of a strained left groin and didn't speak to reporters. He's expected to return Saturday at Detroit.

TORONTO (AP) — Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry wants girls of all ages to have the same access to his basketball shoes that young boys do.Nine-year-old Riley Morrison of Napa, California, wrote to Curry to tell him she couldn't buy his Curry 5 shoes because they weren't available in her size on the girls section of the Under Armour website. They were available for boys.The two-time MVP and five-time All-Star replied with an apology , saying he's been working with Under Armour to remedy the situation. Curry also promised to send Morrison two pairs of shoes, including the new Curry 6 model, and invited her to the Warriors home game next March 8, International Women's Day."That's the beauty of Steph," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said before Thursday's game at Toronto. "He understands his power. He understands the impact he can make on people's lives. And I'm just incredibly proud of him."Curry missed his 11th straight game Thursday because of a strained left groin, and did not speak to reporters beforehand. He's expected to return Saturday at Detroit.

Under the former NBA schedule, the first month of the season would just be coming to a close this week.The earlier start that the league went to last year, with the regular season beginning two weeks sooner, means some teams are now already more than a quarter of the way through their 82-game schedules.The extra time doesn't make it any easier to explain things so far.The Clippers and Nuggets are up. Houston and Boston are down. Golden State has already been both, flying out to a fast start that quickly came to a halt after Stephen Curry was hurt.The restructured schedule, done to build in more opportunities for rest and fewer back-to-back games, trimmed the preseason and reduced the number of exhibition games, in some cases forcing coaches to continue tinkering around Thanksgiving when they'd prefer to be done with it by Halloween."Just like every team in the league, in November you're not going to be the same team as you are in April or May," Portland coach Terry Stotts said. "So you... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Stephen Curry is expected to resume practicing next week with a strong chance he would return to game action during an upcoming five-game road trip as he works back from a strained left groin.The Golden State star was re-examined Saturday after making significant progress in recent days. He did some scrimmaging work at the practice facility, and coach Steve Kerr said there were no lingering physical issues from a car accident Friday in which Curry was unharmed."He's doing much better and we're just going to keep taking it day by day," Kerr said.Curry missed his ninth straight game Saturday against Sacramento and also was set to be sidelined for Monday's matchup with the Orlando Magic to conclude a four-game homestand. The 30-year-old two-time MVP, who played in just 51 regular-season games last season and missed the opening round of the playoffs, was injured Nov. 8 against Milwaukee trying to contest a shot by Eric Bledsoe in transition."He's anxious to get back,... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — The Golden State Warriors said star Stephen Curry wasn't injured after two drivers hit his car on a rain-slicked freeway on Friday.Curry was driving a black Porsche on State Route 24 in Oakland when the driver of a Lexus lost control and struck his car, the California Highway Patrol said.Curry stopped in the center median, and as he waited for officers to arrive, another sedan lost control and rear-ended his Porsche, CHP Officer Herman Baza said.Baza said no one was injured or arrested and that rain was a factor in the crash."Don't need any reminders but All the Time God is Great and God is Great all the time," Curry later tweeted.The two-time MVP is out with a strained left groin that's set to be re-evaluated Saturday. Curry was scheduled to miss his eighth and ninth straight games when the Warriors play at home Friday and Saturday nights.He was hurt Nov. 8 against the Bucks.

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — The Golden State Warriors said star Stephen Curry wasn't injured after two drivers hit his car on a rain-slicked freeway on Friday.Curry was driving a black Porsche on State Route 24 in Oakland when the driver of a Lexus lost control and struck his car, the California Highway Patrol said.Curry stopped in the center median, and as he waited for officers to arrive, another sedan lost control and rear-ended his Porsche, CHP Officer Herman Baza said.Baza said no one was injured or arrested and that rain was a factor in the crash."Don't need any reminders but All the Time God is Great and God is Great all the time," Curry later tweeted.The two-time MVP is out with a strained left groin that's set to be re-evaluated Saturday. Curry was scheduled to miss his eighth and ninth straight games when the Warriors play at home Friday and Saturday nights.He was hurt Nov. 8 against the Bucks.

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — The Golden State Warriors say star Stephen Curry wasn't injured after two drivers hit his car on an Oakland freeway.Authorities say Curry was driving a black Porsche on Friday when the driver of a Lexus lost control and struck his car.California Highway Patrol Officer Herman Baza said Curry stopped in the center median and as he waited for officers to arrive, another sedan lost control and rear-ended his Porsche.Baza said no one was injured or arrested and that rain was a factor in the crash.The two-time MVP is out with a strained left groin that's set to be re-evaluated Saturday. Curry was scheduled to miss his eighth and ninth straight games when the Warriors play at home Friday and Saturday nights.He was hurt Nov. 8 against the Bucks.

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — The Golden State Warriors say star Stephen Curry wasn't injured after two drivers hit his car on an Oakland freeway.Authorities say Curry was driving a black Porsche on Friday when the driver of a Lexus lost control and struck his car.California Highway Patrol Officer Herman Baza said Curry stopped in the center median and as he waited for officers to arrive, another sedan lost control and rear-ended his Porsche.Baza said no one was injured or arrested and that rain was a factor in the crash.The two-time MVP is out with a strained left groin that's scheduled to be re-evaluated Saturday. Curry was scheduled to miss his eighth and ninth straight games when the Warriors play at home Friday and Saturday nights.He was hurt Nov. 8 against the Bucks.

There was a two-season stretch during which JaVale McGee scored a total of 141 points. He was a target of jokes, wildly misunderstood by many in the NBA, almost an afterthought of sorts whose career seemed to be closer to flaming out than taking off.And in those darkest days, McGee kept asking himself the same question."Is it over?"The answer now is obvious: No, it wasn't over. Fast forward, and it may just be getting started.He's living the life that few in the NBA get to experience. He's teamed up with the best players of this generation — Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry, LeBron James. He's won two championships, part of Golden State's back-to-back titles over the last two seasons. And now he's the starting center for the Los Angeles Lakers, getting a chance to play big minutes and put up numbers for the first time in nearly a decade.In his 11th season, McGee has basically gotten a basketball rebirth."I played against him in the last two NBA Finals and I wanted him on this team because I... [More]

DALLAS (AP) — Golden State's Stephen Curry knows that the rift between teammates Kevin Durant and Draymond Green might be viewed by outsiders as something that can doom the Warriors this season.To them, he has a message."That's not going to happen," Curry said.Curry spoke publicly Saturday night for the first time about the testy exchange between Durant and Green — they went at each other late in what became an overtime loss to the Los Angeles Clippers last Monday night, and the fallout has been a major talking point around the NBA since — and lauded both players for the way they're handing the situation."I think the way we've handled it as a team, the way Draymond's handled it, the way KD's handled it, it's been nothing but professionalism," Curry said.Green is getting the weekend off; the Warriors held him out of their game in Dallas on Saturday because of an ongoing issue with a toe on his right foot, and he isn't expected to play when the two-time defending NBA champions visit San Antonio... [More]

DALLAS (AP) — Golden State's Draymond Green will miss the game against the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday night with a recurrence of a right toe injury.It will be the second time in three games that Green has been sidelined. The volatile forward was suspended for a game by the team following a testy exchange with Kevin Durant at the end of regulation in an overtime loss at the Los Angeles Clippers.Green was suspended for the Warriors' win at home against Atlanta before returning in a loss at Houston. Green has already missed two games with a right toe sprain after getting injured against Memphis on Nov. 5.Golden State also will be without star guard Stephen Curry for the fifth straight game. Curry has a strained left groin.___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Stephen Curry won't play during Golden State's three-game Texas road trip as he recovers from a left groin strain, though he is traveling with the Warriors.The team traveled Wednesday to Houston, where the two-time defending NBA champions will play Thursday night. They have games Saturday at Dallas and Sunday at San Antonio.Curry was injured during a Nov. 8 game against the Milwaukee Bucks and has been sidelined the past three games. He is scheduled to be re-evaluated in 10 days. The team says he continues to be monitored by the medical staff as he rehabs from his latest injury.The two-time MVP played in only 51 regular-season games last season because of a left knee injury and a sprained right ankle. He returned from the knee injury for Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals after sitting out the first round of the playoffs.Curry, 30, is averaging 29.5 points, 6.1 assists and 5.0 rebounds while shooting 49.2 percent from 3-point range.___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports