RUDY GAY

It's already been a busy offseason for player movement in the NBA.

The Atlanta Hawks have cleared significant salary cap space by agreeing to trade forward John Collins to the Utah Jazz for veteran forward Rudy Gay and a future second-round draft pick, according to a person with knowledge of the deal.

Gregg Popovich became the winningest coach in NBA regular-season history, getting his 1,336th victory when the San Antonio Spurs rallied to beat the Utah Jazz 104-102.

Donovan Mitchell scored 26 points, Rudy Gobert added 16 points and 14 rebounds and the Utah Jazz stayed hot with a 118-114 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Sunday.

LeBron James scored 15 of his 33 points in the fourth quarter as the Los Angeles Lakers rallied for a 14-point second half deficit to defeat the Utah Jazz 106-101 Wednesday night.

Devin Booker scored 33 points, Chris Paul had 15 of his a season-high 27 points in the fourth quarter, and the Phoenix Suns rallied for a 115-109 win over the short-handed Utah Jazz.

Jordan Poole scored 20 points to lead a balanced Golden State scoring attack, and the Warriors held off a late Utah rally to beat the Jazz 94-92.

Bojan Bogdanovic scored a season-high 36 points and the Utah Jazz stretched their road winning streak to 10 games by beating the Denver Nuggets 115-109.

Dillon Brooks scored eight of his 24 points in the fourth quarter to help put Memphis ahead to stay and the Grizzlies eliminated the San Antonio Spurs 100-96 on Wednesday night in the first Western Conference play-in game.

Alec Burks scored a season-high 30 points in his return from a three-game absence and the New York Knicks kept up their chase of home-court advantage in the playoffs by rallying to beat the San Antonio Spurs 102-98.

DeMar DeRozan had 23 points and the San Antonio Spurs set a franchise record for points in the first half while rolling to a 146-125 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.

Erik Spoelstra got a milestone win, and it didn’t come easily.

The NBA says the rate of players needing to miss games because of injuries is down from last season and within the normal range for what the league has seen over the last five seasons.

Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid will both be unable to start the second half of the season with the Philadelphia 76ers, though neither All-Star will be missing from the Eastern Conference leaders’ lineup for long. Both will miss Philadelphia’s game Thursday in Chicago, and Simmons will also miss the 76ers’ contest on Friday against Washington. Provided both continue to test negative for COVID-19, they would be cleared after those games, the 76ers said. Simmons and Embiid both traveled to Atlanta for Sunday’s All-Star Game, only to learn the night before that they were flagged by contact tracing data. Dallas and Washington both have 38 games remaining, tied for the third-most in the league.

Brooklyn Nets' James Harden, left, and San Antonio Spurs' Patty Mills chase the ball during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, March 1, 2021, in San Antonio. “I thought they were great,” San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said. All five starters scored in double figures for San Antonio. San Antonio is still without Rudy Gay, Keldon Johnson, Derrick White, Devin Vassell and Quinndary Weatherspoon, who are sidelined due to the league’s health and safety protocols. Spurs: The Spurs announced fans can return to the AT&T Center beginning March 12 against Orlando.

San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, right, talks to San Antonio Spurs forward Keldon Johnson during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Charlotte Hornets in Charlotte, N.C., Sunday, Feb. 14, 2021. (AP Photo/Nell Redmond)The San Antonio Spurs are still dealing with a coronavirus outbreak, their state is reeling from the aftereffects of a deadly icy blast that has affected millions of Texans, and one of their best players is mourning the death of a parent. Given all that, basketball seems secondary to the Spurs right now. They will be without at least six players when they return to the court Wednesday at Oklahoma City. The NBA initially said last week that four Spurs players had tested positive for COVID-19, without identifying any by name.

Los Angeles Lakers' Anthony Davis, right, keeps the ball from San Antonio Spurs' Rudy Gay, left rear, and Drew Eubanks during the first half of an NBA basketball game Friday, Jan. 1, 2021, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)SAN ANTONIO – Anthony Davis had 35 points and 11 rebounds and LeBron James added 26 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists as the Los Angeles Lakers rallied to beat the San Antonio Spurs 109-103 on Friday night. The Lakers closed the game with a 9-0 run for their second win against the Spurs in three days. Keldon Johnson had a career-high 26 points and added 10 rebounds and DeMar DeRozan had 23 points, nine rebounds and seven assists for San Antonio. Johnson blocked James’ layup attempt, but Kyle Kuzma tipped in the follow to give the Lakers a 105-103 lead with 53.9 seconds remaining.

A win by the Trail Blazers over Philadelphia would eliminate New Orleans from postseason consideration. Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry called it a Game 7-type game beforehand but stayed with the plan of playing Williamson in short bursts. In the fourth, Gentry took Williamson out with 6:53 left, putting him back in for the last-ditch try about two minutes later. Williamson scored the next eight points by himself, kick-starting what became a 28-12 run by the Pelicans to end the quarter. DeRozan scored inside on the next San Antonio possession, and a late 8-0 spurt by the Spurs sealed the deal.

Jordan Clarkson scored 24 points off the bench to lead the Jazz, while Tony Bradley had 15 points on 7-of-9 shooting and 11 rebounds. ... Joe Ingles played 16 minutes in the first half and finished with 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting from the field. He did not play in the second half as the Jazz just wanted to help him condition. Spurs: Will play the Jazz again on Aug. 13UP NEXTJazz: Play the Nuggets on Saturday. Spurs: Play the Pelicans on Sunday.

FILE - In this Sept. 30, 2019, file photo, San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich talks with the media during NBA basketball media day in San Antonio. And for the San Antonio coach, a couple days of lockdown at Walt Disney World brought back the memories of doolie life. Lockdown at Walt Disney World, he said, reminded him of those days. But two days, anybody can do that, the San Antonio coach said Saturday. The NBA restart will be about raising awareness on social issues and combating racism, and Popovich wants to be a big part of that conversation.

(AP Photo/John Raoux, File)After four months of waiting and planning, the NBA bubble is ready to be tested. The first six teams Brooklyn, Denver, Orlando, Phoenix, Utah and Washington are scheduled to arrive Tuesday at the Disney complex. Another eight teams arrive Wednesday, the last eight arrive Thursday, and with that training camps will be on the cusp of beginning. If the plan works, all teams will be at Disney for at least 5-1/2 weeks and some teams will be there for more than three months. But once the games start, theyre every other day, I think the players will be fine.