Nate McMillan denied a report from The Athletic that he has considered stepping away as the head coach of the Atlanta Hawks. 

"I read that article briefly. I've never spoke to that reporter before. I think the last two weeks he's written a couple of articles with some sources in our organization that are making some comments about me and some things that I'm saying and doing," said McMillan on Friday.

McMillan added that he'll coach out the rest of this year, then re-assess his situation during the offseason. 

McMillan added that retirement is potentially in the picture. 

"Look, at the end of the year, I'll do as I've always done. I'll talk with my family and see if that flame, that fire, to continue next season, but that's the end of the season.

"All of us think about retiring, but that's at the end of the season. We're going to move past that, that story."

Viewership for the NBA's Christmas Day slate was up 5% from last season, with the five games averaging a 1.8 rating with 4.31 million viewers.

The Bucks-Celtics matchup recorded the highest viewership in the day with 6.08 million viewers and a 2.25 rating. Viewership was up 17% from last year's equivalent game, with the Celtics win also representing the first time since 1995 that the most-watched Christmas Day did not feature Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, or LeBron James. 

Three out of the five games registered a double-digit increase in viewership. The Grizzlies-Warriors and Lakers-Mavs were both down in ratings from their equivalent time slots last season.

With an average of 1.9 and 4.07 million viewers, the Sixers-Knicks was the most-watched Noon ET Christmas Day game since 2011.

The Suns-Nuggets was also the most-watched late-night Christmas game since 2015. 

The San Antonio Spurs announced that they have sold over 50,000 seats for their January 13 home game against the Golden State Warriors at the Alamodome.

The game is part of a celebration for the franchise's 50th season and also represents the most-ever tickets sold for a Spurs game.

The NBA attendance record is 62,046 when the Hawks hosted the Bulls in 1998. 

Luka Doncic finished with 60 points, 21 assists, and 10 rebounds in the Dallas Mavericks' 126-121 overtime win over the New York Knicks.

The total represents the first 60-point game in Mavs franchise history, along with the first 60-20-10 game in league history.

The Mavs were at one point down by nine points with 33 seconds left in the fourth quarter. Doncic would tie the game at 115 with one second left after rebounding his own missed free throw and hitting a jumper.

Teams were previously 0-13,884 in the last 20 seasons when trailing by at least nine points with less than 35 seconds remaining in a game. 

Joe Mazzulla missed the Boston Celtics' 126-102 win over the Houston Rockets due to eye irritation.

With an announcement made around 10 minutes before the start of the game, Mazzulla was replaced by Damon Stoudamire.

Mazzulla, who was elevated to interim coach at the start of training camp, will not get the tag removed during this season. 

The Dallas Mavericks unveiled a statue of Dirk Nowitzski in front of American Airlines Center on Sunday.

"It's a promise that gives me joy to deliver on, because you earned it," Mark Cuban told Nowitzski during the ceremony.

The white bronze statue measures 24 feet tall and pays tribute to Nowitzski's one-legged fadeaway jumper. The base of the statue reads "Loyalty never fades away," alluding to Nowitzski spending his entire 21 year career with the Mavs. 

The statue was designed by Omri Amrany, who has also designed statues of Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, and Jerry West, among others. 

"I just kind of sat down, like, 'What do people associate you with in Dallas?' It was these two things. It was the fadeaway and the loyalty. We kind of combined that. It was just a fun fact that it was 21 letters for the 21 years," said Nowitzski of the statue. 

The NBA investigated the New York Knicks over the hiring of Rick Brunson and the signing of Isaiah Hartenstein.

The league found no violations with either move.

The news comes on the heels of the team getting penalized a 2025 second-round pick for tampering surrounding Jalen Brunson's signing. 

Several high-profile figures became eligible for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame for the first time on Wednesday, including Dirk Nowitzki, Gregg Popovich, and Dwyane Wade.

Other first-time nominees include Tony Parker, Pau Gasol, and the 1976 U.S. Olympic women’s team.

Finalists for the 2023 class will be announced during All-Star Weekend, with the induction ceremony taking place on April 1. 

The Chicago Bulls' half-time dispute against the Minnesota Timberwolves last Sunday revolved around Zach LaVine's defense, sources told Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times.

The Bulls would lose the game 150-126.

There were reportedly several "blow-ups" during half-time, with Billy Donovan having to come into the locker room to calm down the players.

Donovan confirmed that there was an incident before Wednesday's game against the Heat.

Cowley adds that while LaVine's name was not specifically called out during the dispute, much of the criticism was directed at him.

The Athletic reported earlier in the day that LaVine and DeMar DeRozan have been navigating an on-court disconnect throughout the season. 

Damian Lillard passed Clyde Drexler on Monday night to become the all-time leading scorer of the Portland Trail Blazers.

Lillard surpassed Drexler's 18,040-point mark in the third quarter of the Blazers' loss to the Thunder.

"It's a great feeling to reach the top. It's been a goal of mine, and the list has so many players, great history of our organization, so to finally be No. 1 is a special accomplishment that I'm proud of," said Lillard after the game.

Drexler played 867 games for the Blazers, with Lillard breaking the record in his 730th game for the team since getting drafted in 2012.