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Happy Birthday Tony Parker 17

Cleveland Cavaliers stars Evan Mobley and Darius Garland have been ruled out for Saturday's game against the Chicago Bulls, per cleveland.com's Chris Fedor.

Mobley is dealing with soreness in his right ankle, and Garland suffered a sprained right thumb in Thursday's loss to the Indiana Pacers. Garland has been receiving treatment on his thumb, per Fedor.

Mobley entered Saturday having appeared in all 36 games for the Cavs this season. However, he suffered a sprained right ankle during training camp practice on Oct. 1 and missed some time.

The 21-year-old is in the midst of a solid season after an impressive rookie year that saw him finish second in Rookie of the Year voting behind Toronto Raptors star Scottie Barnes.

Mobley averaged 15.0 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.7 blocks in 69 games last season while shooting 50.8 percent from the floor. So far this season, he's averaging 14.6 points, 8.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists while shooting 55.7 percent from the floor.

The 2021 third overall pick was a huge reason why the Cavaliers finished eighth in the Eastern Conference with a 44-38 record and were on the verge of making the postseason for the first time since 2018.

When the USC product is sidelined, veteran Kevin Love and Cedi Osman see more playing time.

As for Garland, he missed time earlier in the season after suffering an eye injury on Oct. 19 that knocked him out of the team's next five games. He also missed a Nov. 4 win over the Detroit Pistons with a left knee sprain.

The 22-year-old is equally as important to Cleveland's success. Through 30 games, he's averaging 21.3 points, 2.6 rebounds and 7.8 assists while shooting 45.0 percent from the floor and 40.0 percent from deep.

With Garland sidelined, Caris LeVert and Raul Neto figure to see more playing time alongside Donovan Mitchell. According to Fedor, LeVert will be in the starting lineup for Saturday's matchup alongside Mitchell, Love, Jarrett Allen and Lamar Stevens.

The Cavaliers are 22-14 this season, fourth place in the Eastern Conference. They'll need Mobley and Garland to remain healthy, especially following the addition of Donovan Mitchell, who should help them contend for a playoff spot.

LeBron James celebrated his 38th birthday with 47 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a 130-121 road win over the Atlanta Hawks on Friday.

The ageless 20-year NBA veteran made 18 of 27 field goals and 4 of 6 three-pointers despite starting the game 1 of 5. He notably scored half of his team's 32 fourth quarter points, including 10 in the final four minutes.

Much like Hawks legend Dominique Wilkins, James was a human highlight reel in Atlanta.

As Lakers reporter Mike Trudell noted, only 11 NBA players have played 20 or more NBA seasons. James also happened to be playing his third game in four nights.

And yet that didn't stop James from posting one of the best individual performances of the season from any NBA player. A host of people offered their praise postgame, including Kevin Durant, Magic Johnson and Pau Gasol.

James and the Lakers will now visit the Charlotte Hornets on Monday evening before returning home for a stretch of seven of nine games in L.A.

Atlanta Hawks head coach Nate McMillan has "strongly considered resigning from his position" amid a tumultuous and disappointing season that has reportedly included tension with star guard Trae Young.

The Athletic's Shams Charania reported the news Friday after speaking with anonymous league sources, though he added that a resignation from McMillan does not appear to be "imminent."

Hawks CEO Steve Koonin swiftly denied Charania's report during an appearance on 92.9 The Game in Atlanta.

McMillan also responded to the report, saying he would consider retiring after the season, per Pat Benson of Sports Illustrated

Earlier this month, Charania and Sam Amick detailed a "miscommunication" regarding a missed Dec. 2 shootaround by Young.

At the time, McMillan "asked [Young] whether he would participate in shootaround, receive treatment during walk-through and play in the game against the Nuggets."

Young, however, wanted to make a decision later in the day after receiving treatment on his shoulder. McMillan then gave him the option of either coming off the bench or not showing up against the Denver Nuggets. Young chose to not play.

McMillan took over for Lloyd Pierce during the 2020-21 season after Atlanta got off to a 14-20 start. He turned the team around and guided the Hawks to a 27-11 finish. Atlanta excelled in the playoffs as well, upsetting the top-seeded Philadelphia 76ers in the second round and reaching the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2014-15.

However, the Hawks have been a middling team ever since. They went 43-39 last year and quickly bowed out of the playoffs to the Miami Heat in the first round. This season's team is just 17-18 despite adding star guard Dejounte Murray from the San Antonio Spurs via a trade.

Young has struggled, shooting only 31.6 percent from three-point range. John Collins, who once appeared to be a franchise cornerstone, has been the subject of numerous trade rumors. Atlanta has the No. 21 net rating in the league at minus-1.0, per NBA.com, and the team has lost eight of its last 12.

All is certainly not lost, especially with more than half of the season remaining and the team sporting one of the league's most talented backcourts in Young and Murray.

But the latest report raises more concern regarding possible trouble behind the scenes as the Hawks search for the winning formula that propelled them to the Eastern Conference Finals just two years ago.

LeBron James might not be in a celebratory mood as he tries to find answers for the 14-21 Los Angeles Lakers, but fans are showering the future Hall of Famer with praise on his 38th birthday for what he's accomplished in 20 NBA seasons.

Despite the Lakers' struggles, James is playing at a high level. He's shooting 49.8 percent, ranks ninth in scoring average (27.8 points per game) and is tied for 14th in assists (6.6) and tied for 30th in rebounds (8.1).

Fans took to social media to show appreciation for James' career and how he's evolved since being the "kid from Akron" on the cover of Sports Illustrated at 17 years old.

This is the first season when James has started to acknowledge his age and that his time in the NBA will end sooner than later. Nike debuted a commercial in October in which the four-time NBA Finals MVP took on "Father Time."

James is one of 10 players in NBA history who has played at least 20 seasons. No one in that group played more than 22 seasons. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Kobe Bryant and Jamal Crawford all retired after their 20th season.

"I don't have a number," James told reporters after Wednesday's loss to the Miami Heat when asked how many more seasons he will play. "I know as long as my mind stays in it, I can play at this level for a minute. Now, that's up to my mind. My body is going to be OK because if my mind is into it, I will make sure my body is taken care of and I'll continue to put in the work."

James is only 574 points away from tying Abdul-Jabbar on the NBA's all-time scoring list. If he doesn't miss time and maintains his scoring average this season, he will move into the top spot in February.

Among the notable accomplishments on James' resume are four NBA titles in 10 trips to the Finals. His teams played in the Finals in eight consecutive seasons from 2011 to 2018.

He led the Cleveland Cavaliers to their only championship and engineered the only 3-1 series comeback in NBA Finals history against the Golden State Warriors in 2016.

James is one of five players to win the NBA MVP award at least four times. His four NBA Finals MVP awards rank second all-time behind Michael Jordan (six).

Despite sitting near the bottom of the Western Conference standings, the Los Angeles Lakers don't appear inclined to make a panic trade involving their highly-coveted future first-round draft picks in 2027 and 2029.

Per NBA reporter Marc Stein in his Substack newsletter, rival teams believe the Lakers want to keep those picks "in case a currently unforeseen shot to trade for a legitimate third star— like Washington's Bradley Beal—materializes suddenly."

This comes after The Athletic's Jovan Buha reported on Dec. 16 that Los Angeles' "ultimate pie-in-the-sky" trade scenario would be if one of Beal, Damian Lillard or Kevin Durant became available.

General manager Rob Pelinka told reporters before the start of the season that trading their "draft capital" would only make sense if it brought back a player or players who clearly improved the Lakers' championship odds.

It's perhaps not a surprise that Stein cited Beal as a potential option for the Lakers instead of Durant or Lillard.

The Brooklyn Nets' recent surge up the standings makes it impossible to envision a scenario where Durant is moved during the season.

Lillard's two-year contract extension signed in July stipulates he can't be traded until July 9, 2023. There's no indication he or the Portland Trail Blazers are looking to move on, but things could change during the offseason if the team misses the playoffs or has an early exit.

Beal's situation is hard to parse out. He admitted in October on JJ Redick's podcast that the market "wasn't too promising" before deciding to sign a five-year supermax extension with the Washington Wizards.

While Beal is almost certainly happy to have a contract that guarantees him up to $251 million, the Wizards remain a mess with a 15-21 record. The structure of his deal could also make a move complicated because it includes a full no-trade clause and a trade bonus of 15 percent.

Despite their lackluster performance so far this season, The Athletic's Josh Robbins recently noted the Wizards don't want to trade Beal and would prefer to upgrade around him.

There's been no indication at this point that Beal is going to seek a trade out of Washington.

Beal would definitely fill the Lakers' need for shooting help. He's making a career-high 52.7 percent of his field-goal attempts this season, along with shooting 34.3 percent from behind the arc.

Putting Beal on a roster with LeBron James and a healthy Anthony Davis could improve his scoring efficiency because defenses would focus their attention on stopping them, leaving him with open opportunities that aren't available with the Wizards.

The Lakers (14-21) have lost five of their last six games and are currently 13th in the Western Conference standings.

Victor Wembanyama became the youngest player to win the MVP award in the French LNB All-Star Game's history on Thursday night, per the Associated Press (h/t ESPN).

The French LNB's All-Star Game is a matchup between the league's French players and non-French players. Wembanyama, 18, helped his team secure a 136-128 victory with 27 points, 12 rebounds and four assists.

Wembanyama leads the French league with averages of 22.9 points and 9.6 rebounds this season. He turns 19 on Jan. 4.

The generational talent is expected to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NBA draft. He already showcased his talents in the United States during the Las Vegas showcase when the Metropolitans 92 took on the G League Ignite.

In two matchups against the Ignite, Wembanyama totaled 73 points, 15 rebounds, two steals and nine blocks.

In an interview with Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press in October, Wembanyama said his goal is to be like nothing the NBA has ever seen before:

"I'm gonna tell you something that's been going on in my life, like for my whole life, since I've been a kid, even before I played basketball. I've always tried to do [something] different. I'm not even talking about sports, whatever. Any field, I'm always trying to be original, something original, something one of one, something that's never been done before. And this is really how it worked in my life. I don't know where it comes from. I think I was born with it. I've always been trying to be original. Unique, that's the word."

Whichever team lands the No. 1 overall pick will get the opportunity to draft Wembanyama in the summer. The Detroit Pistons (9-28), Charlotte Hornets (10-26), Houston Rockets (10-25), and San Antonio Spurs (12-23) have the best odds of landing him.

Having already made their big trade to bring in Donovan Mitchell during the NBA offseason, the Cleveland Cavaliers are likely going to be in the market for wings as they pursue upgrades before the trade deadline.

Per ESPN's Zach Lowe, the Cavs are expected to pursue a "short-term wing option" on the trade market.

This isn't exactly a surprising revelation, as the Cavs roster is loaded with guards and big men. Dean Wade has been a pleasant surprise so far this season, but it's fair to wonder if he will be able to keep making 41.1 percent of his three-point attempts.

Kevin Love, Caris LeVert and Isaac Okoro are the other wings receiving significant playing time for head coach J.B. Bickerstaff. They are all incredibly flawed players. Love has been excellent at drawing charges, but he's otherwise a liability on the defensive end of the court.

LeVert has been good at scoring on a high volume of shots throughout his career. The 28-year-old is averaging 11.8 points on 10.7 attempts per game this season. His 35.1 three-point percentage is his highest rate since the 2019-20 season.

Okoro could be a key player for the Cavs in the second half this season because he's still young enough to believe in his upside. The Auburn alum is only 21 years old and was the No. 5 pick in the 2019 NBA draft.

It's a small sample size, but Okoro is averaging 9.5 points on 53.8 percent shooting in six games since Dec. 17.

Defense has been Cleveland's calling card so far this season. The team ranks first in the NBA in points allowed per game (106.3) and defensive rating (109.3).

Finding a wing who could be available at the right price for Cleveland could also be a challenge. Jae Crowder would be the most obvious short-term fit because he's in the final season of his contract, but there are going to be no shortage of suitors for his services.

Atlanta Hawks forward John Collins is seemingly always on the trade block, but he doesn't fit the Cavs' reported desire for a short-term option because he's signed to a big-money deal through 2024-25 with a player option for 2025-26.

Cleveland's success so far this season could prompt general manager Mike Gansey to go out of his comfort zone with the hope of reaching the NBA Finals.

The Cavaliers rank fourth in the Eastern Conference with a 22-14 record. Their +5.3 net rating is second in the NBA, behind only the Boston Celtics (+6.7).