Free Republic

Jonathan Isaac exited Sunday's game between Orlando and Sacramento after suffering an apparent left leg injury. The third-year forward fell to the ground in the fourth quarter after planting his feet on a drive to the basket. He remained there clutching his knee, and a wheelchair was eventually brought out to help him off the floor. Isaac, whom the Magic drafted sixth overall in 2017, was enjoying a career year with averages of 12.1 points, 6.9 rebounds, 2.4 blocks and 1.5 steals per game. It has also been an injury-tested season for Isaac, who only just returned from a hyperextended...

The NBA resumed its season Friday night with two televised games. How were the ratings? Ethan Strauss of the The Athletic reports: After a four-and-a-half month absence, tons of lead-up media coverage regarding the bubble, with little competition on the airwaves and a schedule specially constructed to deliver us the draw of Zion Williamson, Pelicans-Jazz garnered 2.1 million viewers. For context, that’s roughly 400,000 fewer viewers than the average audience of a TNT game in the 2011-12 lockout season. Notably, the NBA’s official Friday viewership news release did not mention the season’s opening game at all. The more feted Lakers-Clippers...