Basketball

New Orleans Pelicans (18-9, first in the Western Conference) vs. Utah Jazz (16-14, eighth in the Western Conference) Salt Lake City; Thursday, 9 p.m.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jayson Tatum scored 44 points, Jaylen Brown added five of his 25 in overtime, and the Boston Celtics blew a 20-point lead in the second half before rallying from a late 13-point deficit for a thrilling 122-118 victory over the Los

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 30 points while Bobby Portis finished with 25 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Milwaukee Bucks over the Golden State Warriors 128-111 Tuesday night in a matchup of the NBA’s last two champions.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jayson Tatum scored 44 points, Jaylen Brown added five of his 25 in overtime, and the Boston Celtics blew a 20-point lead in the second half before rallying from a late 13-point deficit for a thrilling 122-118 victory over the Los

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Malik Beasley made five 3-pointers and scored 21 points, and the Utah Jazz cooled off Zion Williamson and the New Orleans Pelicans with a 121-100 victory on Tuesday night.

HOUSTON (AP) — Jalen Green had 26 points and Kevin Porter Jr. added 18 as the Houston Rockets never trailed in a 111-97 win over the slumping Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Joel Embiid scored 31 points, James Harden had 21 points and 15 assists, and the Philadelphia 76ers scored 80 points in the first half and cruised to a 123-103 win over the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday night.

NEW YORK (AP) — Isaiah Wilkins scored 22 points as Longwood beat Saint Francis (Brooklyn) 63-57 on Tuesday. Wilkins shot 9 for 14, including 4 for 4 from beyond the arc for the Lancers (6-5).

There’s been an evolution of the NBA’s Most Valuable Player trophy in the 70 or so years since it was first dreamed up. It used to be called the President’s Trophy. Players used to do the voting.

Michael Jordan was moments away from hoisting his third of what would become five NBA Most Valuable Player awards, and then-Commissioner David Stern greeted him at the midcourt ceremony with words that were both simple and profound.