Here’s the best news from week 15 in the NBA, and other news from around the world of basketball.

🚨 Ben Simmons is back with the Nets tonight! (29/01)

😳 You may have forgotten his name, but Ben Simmons is well and truly back on an NBA floor. Out since November 6, he had announced a return soon during the NBA game in Paris. So he’ll be joining his teammates against the Jazz tonight.

😬 Traded from Philadelphia for James Harden, Ben10 never really convinced in Brooklyn due in part to a temperamental back.

🔥 In his 6 games played this season, he is the only player with Nikola Jokić to have 10 rebounds, 5 assists and less than 3 turnovers on average. He will thus be able to bring transition play and a bit of offensive creation to a Nets team that is lacking in direction.

🚨Rondo arrested this weekend with guns and drugs in his vehicle! (29/01)

😳 The former Cleveland player was checked by a police officer in Jackson County, Indiana. With a whiff of marijuana, the police officer undertook a search and discovered a weapon and drug paraphernalia.

❌ Rondo is prohibited from possessing a weapon after being placed under an order of protection, as the mother of Rondo’s children had accused him of threatening her with a firearm.

💴 The former 2008 NBA champion was released in exchange for bail, but was charged with possession of marijuana and firearm.

🔵🟡Stephen Curry is ranked 1st in NBA jersey sales! (29/01)

🤯 Even after 14 years within the same franchise, Golden State jerseys stamped with number 30 are still selling like hotcakes. The ranking of jerseys sold by the NBA Store since the start of the season has been revealed.

🚨🔥🇫🇷 Our Frenchman Victor Wembanyama is ALREADY 4th on the list behind Tatum and LeBron but ahead of Giannis, Luka Dončić or even Devin Booker.

🤷‍♂️ Tyrese Maxey at 9th seems to be the surprise in the list. He’s ahead of teammate Joel Embiid at 12th. LaMelo Ball, even though injured for most of the season, is 13th. Defending champion Nikola Jokić is at 14th just ahead of Fox.

❌ Surprisingly, there is no Thunder player like SGA, or Wolves player like Edwards in the list. Tyrese Haliburton isn’t in the top 15 either.

🔥 Sabrina Ionescu challenges Stephen Curry to a 3-point contest! (30/01)

🎯 Stephen Curry offered to take on the reigning champion of the WNBA 3-point contest, Sabrina Ionescu! A challenge accepted by the one who holds the record for both contests combined with a jaw-dropping score of 37 points.

🤝 The plan was for Ionescu to shoot with WNBA balls at the WNBA line, while Curry will shoot with NBA balls at the NBA line. However, Sabrina tweeted that she will be shooting from the NBA 3-point line as well.

🚨 Marc Gasol has announced his official retirement at the age of 39! (31/01)

❌ After 20 seasons of professional basketball, including 13 in the NBA, Spanish international Marc Gasol has decided to end his great and honourable career.

🇪🇸 Responsible for French nightmares with the Spanish national team, he is the 2006 and 2019 World Champion, 2009 and 2011 European Champion.

🏆 An icon of the Memphis Grizzlies in the NBA, where his number 33 will most likely be retired, he was also a major contributor to the Toronto Raptors’ title in 2019.

🔥 Returning to Europe after the 20-21 season with the Lakers, he played for Girona in the club he himself founded to finish his career on home soil.

🚨 Devin Booker and Donovan Mitchell are the January players of the month! (01/02)

🔥 The NBA has unveiled this month’s players of the month: Booker for the Western Conference and Mitchell for the Eastern Conference!

☀️ Booker averaged 30 points, 4.4 rebounds and 6.3 assists in January. Suns’ record for the month: 11 wins to 5 losses.

🐎Mitchell averaged 28.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 7.6 assists. The Cavaliers were on fire in January with 11 wins to just 2 losses.

🤔The other nominees for the Western conference were Luka Dončić, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jaren Jackson Jr, Nikola Jokić, Kawhi Leonard, Lauri Markkanen and Domantas Sabonis. The other nominees for the Eastern conference were Giannis Antetokounmpo, Paolo Banchero, Jalen Brunson, Joel Embiid, Pascal Siakam, Myles Turner and Coby White.

🚨 Joel Embiid diagnosed with meniscus injury! (02/02)

🥴Joel Embiid, 2023 MVP, has suffered a lateral meniscus injury in his left knee according to Adrian Wojnarowski. This follows contact with Jonathan Kuminga at the end of the game against the Warriors on Tuesday night.

🩼 The 76ers center’s period of absence will be decided this weekend after further analysis. With this injury usually taking several weeks to recover, Embiid is therefore saying goodbye to a potential MVP title.

🥶 Indeed, NBA rules stipulate that players must play at least 65 games out of the season’s 82 to be eligible for individual awards. Embiid, who has already missed 13 of the 17 jokers allowed by the rule, is unlikely to win the MVP award this season.

😤 Some fans are critical about the rule, suggesting it places some pretty harsh pressure on players and can compromise their long-term health.

🚨 Russell Westbrook joins NBA legend! (03/02)

😱The king of the triple-double reached the 25,000-point mark in his career last night. He’s also racked up over 8,000 rebounds and 8,000 assists. He is quite simply the only guard to achieve this feat!

4️⃣ More widely, there are only Kevin Durant, Lebron James and James Harden, and recently Westbrook, as active players with a total of 25,000 points or more.

😱 Killian Hayes wants to leave the Pistons! (04/02)

🤝 Killian Hayes’ camp is in favor of a trade to get Killian out of Detroit and the Pistons wouldn’t mind either according to Detroit Free Press.

❌ The Frenchman seems to be out of Monty Williams’ rotation with his last two games without a single minute.

🙌 The San Antonio Spurs would be favourites to welcome Hayes who will be looking to get back on track after 4 years in Michigan.

Eliott Caillot