Some moments from the 2022-23 NBA regular season:
Oct. 18: Boston defeats Philadelphia and Golden State beats the Los Angeles Lakers on opening night. The Warriors received their championship rings from last season in a ceremony preceding their game.
Oct. 20: NBA referee Tony Brown, 55, dies of pancreatic cancer. He worked more than 1,100 games in a two-decade career.
Nov. 4: Nike suspends its relationship with Kyrie Irving and canceled plans to release his next signature shoe, part of the massive fallout caused by the Brooklyn Nets' guard tweeting a link to a film containing antisemitic material. Nike and Irving eventually part ways; Irving eventually apologizes and returns to the Nets.
Nov. 5: Sacramento's De'Aaron Fox hits from just inside the midcourt stripe at the buzzer of overtime, giving the Kings a 126-123 win in Orlando.
Nov. 8: To commemorate Election Day, the NBA plays no games. The league encourages its teams and fans to spend the day participating in civic engagement.
Nov. 11: The arena where the Miami Heat play starts the process of getting a new name, after the cryptocurrency exchange FTX collapses. FTX was in the early stages of a 19-year, $135 million naming rights deal with Miami-Dade County.
Nov. 13: Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid scores a career-best 59 points in a win over Utah. He adds 11 rebounds, eight assists and seven blocked shots.
Nov. 28: Andrew Nembhard hits a 3-pointer at the buzzer and Indiana stuns the Los Angeles Lakers 116-115. The Pacers trailed by 17 with 9:27 remaining; it was the biggest fourth-quarter comeback in the NBA this season.
Dec. 13: The NBA announces a rebranding of its MVP award, revealing a new trophy and a new name — The Michael Jordan Trophy.
Dec. 17: In Mexico City, Miami defeated San Antonio 111-101. It was the NBA’s first game in Mexico City since 2019.
Dec. 20: Mortgage billionaire Mat Ishbia strikes a deal to purchase embattled Robert Sarver’s share of the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury in a deal that values the franchise at $4 billion.
Dec. 25: Philadelphia tops New York, Dallas beats the Los Angeles Lakers, Boston beats Milwaukee, Golden State tops Memphis and Denver edges Phoenix in the NBA’s Christmas quintupleheader.
Dec. 27: Dallas’ Luka Doncic has a 60-point triple-double in the Mavericks’ 126-121 win over New York. He added 21 rebounds and 10 assists in the first 60-20-10 game in NBA history.
Jan. 2: Cleveland's Donovan Mitchell scores 71 points in the Cavaliers’ 145-134 overtime win over Chicago. Mitchell was 22 of 34 from the field, 7 of 15 on 3-pointers and 20 for 25 from the foul line. He also had 11 assists, marking the first time anyone had more than 70 points and 10 assists in an NBA game.
Jan. 10: Miami goes 40 for 40 from the foul line in a one-point win over Oklahoma City. The 40-for-40 breaks the previous NBA record of 39-for-39 by Utah in 1982.
Jan. 13: At the Alamodome in San Antonio, the Spurs sell an NBA-record 68,323 tickets for a game against Golden State.
Jan. 19: With presumed 2023 No. 1 draft pick Victor Wembanyama sitting courtside, Zach LaVine scores 30 points and the Chicago Bulls ease past the Detroit Pistons 126-108 in Paris. France was the seventh different country to host an NBA practice or game this season.
Feb. 6: Brooklyn trades Kyrie Irving to Dallas, ending his up-and-down stint with the Nets that was more memorable for off-the-court challenges than actual play.
Feb. 7: LeBron James makes a 14-foot jumper late in the third quarter to break Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s career NBA scoring record. Abdul-Jabbar held the mark since 1984 and was in Los Angeles to watch James’ record-breaker.
Feb. 9: Brooklyn trades Kevin Durant to Phoenix, a blockbuster on NBA trade-deadline day.
Feb. 16: Boston removes the interim title from 34-year-old coach Joe Mazzulla, the former assistant who took over the Celtics in September after now-former coach Ime Udoka was suspended by the team for having an inappropriate relationship with a woman in the organization.
Feb. 18: Philadelphia’s Mac McClung puts on a scintillating show to win the dunk contest at All-Star weekend. Portland’s Damian Lillard wins the 3-point contest and Utah players Jordan Clarkson, Walker Kessler and Collin Sexton combined to win the Skills Challenge.
Feb. 19: Boston’s Jayson Tatum scores a record 55 points and Team Giannis tops Team LeBron 184-175 to win the All-Star Game in Salt Lake City.
Feb. 24: Sacramento defeats the Los Angeles Clippers 176-175. The 351 combined points are the second-most in NBA history, behind only Detroit’s 186-184 win over Denver on Dec. 13, 1983.
Feb. 26: Portland’s Damian Lillard scores 71 points in the Trail Blazers’ 131-114 win over Houston. Lillard made 22 of 38 shots from the field, 13 of 22 from 3-point range and all 14 of his free throws. He also led Portland in assists, with six.
Feb. 27: Atlanta introduces Quin Snyder as its new coach, after firing Nate McMillan about a week earlier.
March 4: Memphis guard Ja Morant live-streams himself holding a gun while inside a Denver-area strip club. He quickly announces he was taking “some time away to get help” and ultimately was suspended for eight games by the NBA for his personal conduct.
March 17 and 19: A tale of two comebacks. San Antonio blew a 29-point lead on March 17 and lost to Memphis 126-120; two nights later, the Spurs rallied from a 24-point second-half deficit and beat Atlanta 126-118. It was the biggest second-half comeback for the Spurs under coach Gregg Popovich.
March 29: Jrue Holiday has 51 points, eight assists and eight rebounds, while Giannis Antetokounmpo adds 38 points, 17 rebounds and 12 assists, and Milwaukee tops Indiana 149-136. It's the first time in NBA history two teammates have had at least 38 points, eight assists and eight rebounds in the same game.
April 1: In the early morning hours, the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association strike a handshake deal on what, if approved by owners and players, will be a seven-year Collective Bargaining Agreement that will take effect in July and ensure labor peace in the league until at least 2029.
April 7: Dallas sits several regulars, including Kyrie Irving, and plays Luka Doncic for only about a quarter in a loss to Chicago. The loss eliminated the Mavericks from postseason contention and the team's motivation for losing catches the eye of the NBA, which opens an investigation the next day.
April 9: Udonis Haslem scores 24 points in his final regular season game, as his 20-year career with the Miami Heat draws to an end. At 42, he's nearly two years older than anyone else to have scored at least 24 points in an NBA game.
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Tim Reynolds, The Associated Press
