The Phoenix Suns are part of the Jimmer Fredette buzz if the dynamic BYU scorer extraordinaire is available at the No. 13 pick in Thursday's NBA draft. Perhaps a more likely scenario has the Suns going for a power forward to bulk up a weak front line. The Suns, coming off a disappointing season in which they failed to make the playoffs, haven't had a selection this high since 2004, when they...

Dirk Nowitzki is considering joining the German national team this summer to help their chances of qualifying for the 2012 Summer Olympics. Nowitzki told ESPN 103.3 FM on Tuesday that he would decide within a few weeks. Germany must finish among the top six of the 24 teams at the EuroBasket tournament to be eligible to qualify for the next Olympics.

Dwane Casey hopes to bring a rugged, NHL-style of defense to his newest job in the NBA. The Toronto Raptors hired Casey as their coach on Tuesday, nine days after the Dallas assistant helped the Mavericks win the championship. Casey succeeds Jay Triano, a Canadian who became a consultant after the Raptors finished 22-60.

Charlotte Bobcats forward Boris Diaw has exercised his player option for next season that will pay him $9 million. Agent Doug Neustadt said Tuesday they informed the Bobcats of the decision earlier this week. Diaw said after the season that with the potential labor uncertainty this summer, it was a "no-brainer" to pick up the option and avoid becoming a free agent until 2012.

They're done measuring, timing and talking to prospective draft picks. It's time for the Cleveland Cavaliers to choose a few. Empowered with the Nos. 1 and 4 picks in Thursday's NBA draft, the Cavs will spend the next 48 hours deciding who to add to their roster. While all signs indicate they will select Duke point guard Kyrie Irving first overall, the Cavs have not yet made any final...

It's starting to sound like a mere formality that Frank Vogel will become the Indiana Pacers' next head coach. Team president Larry Bird spoke on Tuesday as though it is just a matter of dealing with a few final details. "He's going to get every opportunity to have this job," Bird said.

Pat Riley expects better days are ahead for the Miami Heat. Speaking Tuesday, more than a week after the Heat season ended with a loss to the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA finals, Miami's team president said that not winning the title was a disappointment -- but insisted the season still had plenty of successes.

Defending champion Spain included Oklahoma City Thunder forward Serge Ibaka in its preliminary team on Tuesday for the European championship. Ibaka, who was born in the Republic of the Congo, is still waiting to become nationalized by Spain before the championship begins on Aug. 31 in Lithuania. "We hope he can play, even though we are not sure that he will be able to," Spain coach Sergio...

If the NBA's offseason includes a work stoppage, consider the Oklahoma City Thunder in as good a position as any team heading into next season. General manager Sam Presti already has the core in place for the Western Conference finalists, with all five starters and coach Scott Brooks under contract for next season.

Don't expect Caron Butler to make a dramatic return to the Dallas Mavericks just in time to face the Miami Heat in the NBA finals. Coach Rick Carlisle said Friday that Butler's availability for this series is "unlikely, but I'm not sure." Butler has been out since tearing a tendon in his right knee on Jan.

Back in the NBA finals, back to trying to beat the Miami Heat. Pretty wild how things have worked out for the Dallas Mavericks, isn't it? "It doesn't really matter that much to me," Dirk Nowitzki said Friday. "No thought whatsoever," echoed Jason Terry. Oh, well. So much for the story line of the 2011 Mavs seeking redemption for 2006.

Derrick Rose vowed to learn from this, to get better, and insisted the Chicago Bulls would come back hungrier after the Miami Heat knocked them out in the Eastern Conference finals. Clearly, the standards are soaring now. As good as they were this season, the Bulls came up short. They blew a late 12-point lead and bowed out with a 83-80 loss to the Heat in Game 5 on Thursday.

The Miami Heat won the series and plenty of television viewers in the Eastern Conference finals. The five-game series between the Heat and Chicago Bulls averaged 10.4 million viewers on TNT. That's up 46 percent from last year's Celtics-Magic matchup in the East, and up 33 percent from Lakers-Suns on TNT in 2010.

As if the Bulls losing to Miami in the Eastern Conference finals wasn't enough, Hall-of-Famer Scottie Pippen has added to Chicago's pain by suggesting that LeBron James could be better than Michael Jordan. Pippen stirred the pot in an interview with ESPN radio on Friday morning, saying Jordan "is probably the greatest scorer to play the game" but James "may be the greatest...

Whenever he wants to feel humbled, LeBron James pops in the tapes of the 2007 NBA finals. No matter what, the outcome never changes. He got swept. San Antonio simply outclassed Cleveland four years ago in the title series, and that still serves as a colossal source of motivation for James -- who makes no secret that he's fueled by slights and disappointments.

Dwyane Wade stayed long after practice ended Wednesday, fine-tuning his shot for so long that he had to eventually be summoned off the court so the Miami Heat's plane could leave on time. Up 3-1 in the Eastern Conference finals, the Heat are still working. "We're desperate," Wade said.

Dirk Nowitzki wrapped his hands around the silver ball trophy that goes to the Western Conference champions and smiled. After five years, he and the Dallas Mavericks are kings of their conference again, earning another trip to the NBA finals. Yet Nowitzki didn't flash the wide, toothy grin of someone relieved to have accomplished his goal.

The young Oklahoma City Thunder keep getting better. They just are not ready to take that next step yet. Despite leading on the road for much of Game 5 of the Western Conference finals, they couldn't extend their season after giving Dallas Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki a second chance. Nowitzki hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:14 left, after Russell Westbrook couldn't handle the rebound on...