San Antonio Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan, right, defends against Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen (23) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Feb. 25, 2023, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Lauri Markkanen scored 27 points and recent signee Kris Dunn added 15 as the Utah Jazz rallied from a 14-point deficit and beat the struggling San Antonio Spurs 118-102 on Saturday night. Markkanen sealed the game with 14 points in the fourth quarter, and Walker Kessler recorded four of his five blocks in the final minutes. Kessler added 12 rebounds and nine points. Dunn, playing his second game on a 10-day contract with the Jazz, was signed for his defense. He ended up being a playmaker and late-game scorer when the rest of his teammates were struggling. Jeremy Sochan scored 22 points, Keldon Johnson had 18 and Zach Collins added 15 for the Spurs, who lost their 16th straight game. In 23 minutes, Dunn went 7 for 13 from the field and had game-high eight assists and seven rebounds, all along with strong defensive play. Dunn hadn’t scored 15 points since Jan. 20, 2020, against Milwaukee, when he was playing

Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen (23) reacts after a dunk against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the second half of an NBA basketball game Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Lauri Markkanen hit three free throws with 4.6 seconds left in overtime to give Utah the lead and finished with 43 points and 10 rebounds as the Jazz beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 120-119 on Thursday night. Markkanen scored 18 points in the fourth quarter, helping the Jazz rally from a nine-point deficit early in the period. Walker Kessler tipped in a layup with 4.6 seconds remaining to force overtime. Fresh off playing in his first All-Star Game on the Jazz’s home floor, Markkanen is evolving into a crunch-time leader for Utah. “Yeah, I’m more confident,” Markkanen said. “My mindset going into games is go make a difference and be a finisher.” Jordan Clarkson added 24 points and six assists for Utah. Kessler had 18 rebounds and seven blocked shots, Kelly Olynyk and Ochai Agbaji chipped in 12 points apiece, and Kris Dunn added 11 in his Jazz debut. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 39 points and missed a potential game-winning jumper

Photographs of Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James, left, Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic, center, and New Orleans Pelicans’ Zion Williamson are shown in the Vivint Arena during the transformation taking place inside the arena before the start of the NBA basketball All-Star weekend Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2023, in Salt Lake City. More than 60 players are making their way to Salt Lake City for All-Star weekend, some of them for the first time, one of them for the 19th time. And while some events will tout the league’s future, many will be celebrating the past.(AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — There will be an NBA game in Salt Lake City on Sunday night, something that hasn’t been said for more than two decades during the regular season. The Utah Jazz traditionally don’t play home games on Sundays out of respect to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, known widely as the Mormon church. About 60% of Utah residents are Mormons. But the Jazz are hosting the All-Star Game. The team said it didn’t have discussions with church officials about the plans to bring the All-Star Game to Utah. The NBA awarded Salt Lake City the game in

Members of the media are taken on a tour during the transformation taking place inside Vivint Arena before the start of the NBA basketball All-Star weekend Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2023, in Salt Lake City. More than 60 players are making their way to Salt Lake City for All-Star weekend, some of them for the first time, one of them for the 19th time. And while some events will tout the league’s future, many will be celebrating the past.(AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — If so inclined, and if fellow captain LeBron James was to cooperate with his own selections, Giannis Antetokounmpo could pick Luka Doncic, Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid and Lauri Markkanen to play on his team Sunday night. Imagine that: an All-International All-Star starting lineup. It’s one of the many possibilities for this weekend’s events in Salt Lake City. NBA All-Star weekend is almost here, with many of the principals arriving in Utah on Thursday and a few more set to arrive on Friday in time for the official three-day lineup to begin. More than 60 players from the NBA and G League will be part of the showcase — the All-Star Game on Sunday, the dunk, 3-point and

Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson (00) stumbles over forward Kelly Olynyk during the first half of the team’s NBA basketball game against the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2023, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill) MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Jaren Jackson had 26 points, nine rebounds and four blocks and the Memphis Grizzlies beat the Utah Jazz 117-111 on Wednesday night in the last game for both teams before the All-Star break. Desmond Bane scored 24 points and Ja Morant had 20 points — on 8-of-26 shooting — and nine assists. Jackson also had five steals. Kelly Olynyk led the Jazz with 28 points and 14 rebounds, and Jordan Clarkson had 20 points, nine rebounds and six assists. Utah, which trailed by 24 in the first half, cut the Memphis lead to 111-110 when Ochai Agbaji (17 points) scored on a dunk with 1:28 left. But Morant scored the next three points for Memphis and the Grizzlies held on for their second straight victory. “Being up 24, you definitely don’t want to go into the All-Star break after losing a (big) lead, but we survived,” Memphis coach Taylor Jenkins said. Jackson said there were several key factors that helped

Indiana Pacers guard Bennedict Mathurin (00) fouls Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler (24) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Monday, Feb. 13, 2023. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy) INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Jordan Clarkson and Lauri Markkanen each scored 29 points and the Utah Jazz beat the Indiana Pacers 123-117 on Monday night. Clarkson hit a 3-pointer for a 115-110 lead with 2:03 remaining, and added a 13-foot baseline jumper to extend the lead to 117-113 in the final minute. “Jordan was in the zone tonight,” Jazz coach Will Hardy said. “I wish I could take credit for any of that. We just try to make sure in those moments when he has that going that we’re executing from a spacing standpoint as a team, making sure we give him enough space to operate when he gets in those grooves. He’s incredibly capable of getting as hot as anybody in the league.” Clarkson scored 22 in the second half and finished with six 3-pointers. “I know when my shots are there, what shots I can get to in a game, and I’m very confident that I’ll make those,” Clarkson said. “At the end of the game, (coach) called

Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson (00) goes to the basket as Orlando Magic center Wendell Carter Jr., right, looks on during the second half of an NBA basketball game Friday, Jan. 13, 2023, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo is teaming up with his brothers once again on All-Star Saturday. Portland’s Damian Lillard is taking a third shot at the 3-point title, Indiana’s Buddy Hield will aim to win that one again and Philadelphia’s Mac McClung now can be a slam-dunk champion at the NBA and high school levels. The NBA released the full list of participants for All-Star Saturday’s events in Salt Lake City — the Skills Competition, the 3-point contest and the dunk contest. It’ll be a particularly busy weekend for 11 players who are now slotted to be in multiple events during the three days of action in Utah. 3-POINT CONTEST Hield, the 2020 winner, is back to try to become the eighth player with multiple 3-point crowns. He’ll face his Indiana teammate Tyrese Haliburton, the Portland duo of Lillard and Anfernee Simons, Miami’s Tyler Herro, Sacramento’s Kevin Huerter, Utah’s Lauri Markkanen and Boston’s Jayson Tatum. Huerter is one of four Kings picked

New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) drives against Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen (23) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Feb. 11, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Bryan Woolston) NEW YORK (AP) — Jalen Brunson scored 22 of his 38 points in the first half, Josh Hart had 11 points off the bench in his Knicks debut and New York outlasted the Utah Jazz 126-120 on Saturday night. Julius Randle added 31 for New York, which has won three of four to improve to 31-27. R.J. Barrett scored 20 points before fouling out, and Immanuel Quickley finished with 15. “We have a lot of unselfish guys who are willing to do whatever it takes to win,” Brunson said. “As long as we’re keeping that our main priority, we’re going to continue to get better.” Hart, acquired Wednesday night from Portland, made a quick impact on his new team while adding seven rebounds and four assists. “Josh was huge. How many did he have? Seven? Seven rebounds, something like that,” Barrett said of his new teammate. “He brought a lot of effort, toughness.” Lauri Markkanen scored 29 points to lead the Jazz, who lost for the

Utah Jazz’s Lauri Markkanen (23) is defended by Toronto Raptors’ Chris Boucher and Pascal Siakam, right, during the first half of an NBA basketball game Friday, Feb. 10, 2023, in Toronto. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) TORONTO (AP) — Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler each scored 23 points, Collin Sexton had 22 and the Utah Jazz overcame a 12-point deficit in the final five minutes to beat the Toronto Raptors 122-116 on Friday night and snap a three-game losing streak. Kelly Olynyk scored 15 points and former Raptor Rudy Gay had 12 for the Jazz, who won despite shooting 6 for 24 from 3-point range, matching a season low. Utah also made six 3-pointers in a Feb. 6 loss to Dallas. The Jazz lost 143-118 to Minnesota on Wednesday, their worst home defeat of the season — the same day they traded four players, including veteran guard Mike Conley. “Last game, that’s a hard day,” Jazz coach Will Hardy said. “Today, I just felt like everybody was a little more settled. The nerves of the trade deadline are over, the uncertainty of all that is over, which helps settle everybody’s mind.” Sexton liked the way the Jazz responded to

Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson (00) goes to the basket as Minnesota Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels (3) defends during the second half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2023, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Anthony Edwards scored 31 points and Jaylen Nowell added a career-high 30 to lead Minnesota to a 143-118 win over Utah on Wednesday night amid word the Timberwolves, Jazz and Los Angeles Lakers were part of an eight-player swap hours ahead of the NBA trade deadline. “It was crazy, the last six hours,” Edwards said. “But, I mean, we’re here to play basketball at the end of the day. We can’t really feed into that — we have nothing to do with that. (My teammates) did a great job of staying locked in and they kept me locked in.” Playing loose, the Timberwolves set a season high with 79 points in the first half and led 107-80 midway through the third quarter, helped by 64% shooting from the field and 61% from 3-point range. While not speaking directly about a trade that hadn’t been announced, Minnesota coach Chris Finch detailed the difficulty if playing while the roster was in