Key moments of the NBA season, from the championship rings to the postseason field being set

A look at some of the key moments in the 2023-24 NBA regular season:

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Oct. 24 — The Denver Nuggets get their championship rings, raise the NBA title banner and defeat the Los Angeles Lakers 119-107 in the first game of the season. Nikola Jokic scores 29 points and grabs 13 rebounds.

Oct. 25 — Victor Wembanyama scores 15 points in his much-hyped NBA debut, but he and the San Antonio Spurs fall to the Dallas Mavericks 126-119.

Oct. 28 — Zach LaVine gets the first 50-point game of the season, scoring a career-high 51 in Chicago's 118-102 loss to Detroit.

Oct. 31 — James Harden gets his wish and is traded out of Philadelphia, being sent to the Los Angeles Clippers.

Nov. 9 — Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo scores a then-season-high 54 points, but the Bucks fall to Indiana 126-124.

Nov. 14 — Golden State’s Draymond Green grabs Minnesota’s Rudy Gobert around the neck in an on-court altercation, gets ejected and is suspended for five games the following day.

Dec. 9 — Anthony Davis scores 41 points and grabs 20 rebounds, and the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Indiana Pacers 123-109 in the championship game of the league's inaugural In-Season Tournament at Las Vegas.

Dec. 12 — Draymond Green is ejected from a game in Phoenix for striking the Suns' Jusuf Nurkic in the face, the latest entry in a series of questionable acts. A day later, Green is suspended indefinitely and winds up missing 16 games before playing again. The suspension was lifted after 12 games.

Dec. 13 — Giannis Antetokounmpo sets the season-high once again, scoring 64 points in Milwaukee's 140-126 win over Indiana.

Dec. 25 — Dallas' Luka Doncic scores 50 points in the Mavericks' 128-114 win at Phoenix. It's the fourth 50-point game on Christmas in NBA history, joining Bernard King (60 in 1984), Rick Barry (50 in 1966) and Wilt Chamberlain (59 in 1961).

Dec. 30 — The Detroit Pistons end their NBA record-tying losing streak at 28 games with a 129-127 victory over the Toronto Raptors. Detroit hadn't won in two months, tied the Philadelphia 76ers’ record of 28 consecutive losses and finished one shy of the record for the four major American and Canadian leagues, set by the Chicago Cardinals during World War II.

Jan. 9 — Erik Spoelstra and the Miami Heat agree on an eight-year, $120 million extension, the richest in total value ever given to an NBA coach.

Jan. 17 — Golden State Warriors assistant coach Dejan Milojević, a mentor to two-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic and a former star player in his native Serbia, dies after a heart attack. Milojević, part of the staff that helped the Warriors win the 2022 NBA championship, was 46.

Jan. 22 — Joel Embiid scores 70 points in Philadelphia's 133-123 win over San Antonio, on the same night that Minnesota's Karl-Anthony Towns scores 62 in the Timberwolves' 128-125 loss to Charlotte. It was the fourth day in NBA history when two players scored at least 60 points, the first since were April 9, 1978.

Jan. 23 — Despite a 30-13 record to that point, Milwaukee fires coach Adrian Griffin barely halfway through his first season. The Bucks hired Doc Rivers three days later.

Jan. 26 — Luka Doncic scores 73 points in Dallas' 148-143 win over Atlanta and Phoenix's Devin Booker scores 62 in the Suns' 133-131 loss to Phoenix. After Joel Embiid and Karl-Anthony Towns did something — scoring 60 on the same day — that the NBA hadn't seen in 45 years, Doncic and Booker matched the feat a mere four days later.

Feb. 3 — Golden State's Stephen Curry scores 60 points in the Warriors' 141-134 loss to Atlanta. It's the second 60-point game of Curry's career.

Feb. 17 — All-Star Saturday in Indianapolis is highlighted by Stephen Curry narrowly edging WNBA star Sabrina Ionescu in a 3-point contest.

Feb. 18 — Damian Lillard of the Milwaukee Bucks scores 39 points to win MVP honors and the Eastern Conference beats the Western Conference 211-186 in the highest-scoring All-Star Game in NBA history. The total points of 397 smashed the record of 374 set in 2017, while the East made 42 3-pointers to break the mark of 35 set by Team LeBron in 2019.

Feb. 19 — Brooklyn fires coach Jacque Vaughn.

Feb. 23 — Golden State agrees with coach Steve Kerr on a two-year extension, which coincides with the remaining time on Stephen Curry's contract with the Warriors.

March 2 — With a second-quarter layup, the Los Angeles Lakers' LeBron James reaches the 40,000-point mark for his regular-season career.

March 12 — Jamahl Mosley and the Orlando Magic agree on a contract extension that will keep the coach there through the 2027-28 season.

March 25 — The NBA confirms that it opened an investigation into Toronto two-way player Jontay Porter amid gambling allegations. Porter does not play for the rest of the season.

March 29 — New York's Jalen Brunson scores 61 points, taking 47 shots from the field, in the Knicks' 130-126 loss to San Antonio. Victor Wembanyama has 40 points and 20 rebounds in the same game.

April 1 — Phoenix's Devin Booker scored 52 points in a 124-111 win over New Orleans. It's Booker's third game of 50 or more points in a span of 2 1/2 months.

April 3 — Detroit's Malachi Flynn scores 50 points off the bench in the Pistons' 121-113 loss to Atlanta. It's the third 50-point game by a reserve in at least 40 years; Jamal Crawford (2019) and Nick Anderson (1993) had the others.

April 3 — Charlotte coach Steve Clifford announces he will step down at the end of the season.

April 7 — Philadelphia's Tyrese Maxey gets his league-high-tying third game of 50 or more points this season, joining Booker and Embiid in that club. Maxey scores 52 in a 133-126 win over San Antonio.

April 9 — Minnesota's Anthony Edwards scores 51 points in a 130-121 win over Washington.

April 14 — The NBA regular season closes with 15 of the 20 postseason spots decided all in one afternoon. Boston and Oklahoma City claim the No. 1 seeds for the playoffs. Excluding the 10 teams that were eliminated from contention, only Boston, Chicago, Atlanta, the Los Angeles Clippers and Dallas knew their postseason fates entering the final day.

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The shoes worn by Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards are seen during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Phoenix Suns Sunday, April 14, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Matt Krohn)

Dallas Mavericks' Luka Doncic, right, and Kyrie Irving, left, watch from the bench during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Detroit Pistons, Friday, April 12, 2024, in Dallas. Doncic and Irving were not playing due to injuries. (AP Photo/Jeffrey McWhorter)

Milwaukee Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo gets past Boston Celtics' Sam Hauser during the second half of an NBA basketball game Tuesday, April 9, 2024, in Milwaukee. The Bucks won 104-91. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr reacts to a call during the second half of the team's NBA basketball game against the Portland Trail Blazers in Portland, Ore., Thursday, April 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Steve Dykes)

New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson, left, hugs actor Tracy Morgan after the Knicks beat the Chicago Bulls in overtime in an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 14, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/John Munson)

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) grabs a rebound next to Milwaukee Bucks forward Chris Livingston (7) during the second half of an NBA basketball game Friday, April 12, 2024, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

Announcements broadcasted on the University of California, Los Angeles campus Wednesday evening told demonstrators to disperse or they would be arrested and face a misdemeanor charge. The protesters largely stayed in place, chanting pro-Palestinian slogans. Police stood by strapping on riot gear.

UCLA posted on the social platform X that campus operations will be limited Thursday and Friday with all classes required to pivot to remote instruction. The post urged people to continue avoiding campus and the Royce Quad area.

Currently:

— Dueling protesters clash at UCLA hours after police clear pro-Palestinian demonstration at Columbia

— Student protesters reach a deal with Northwestern University that sparks criticism from all sides

— How Columbia University became the driving force behind protests over the war in Gaza

— Trump’s comparison of student protests to Jan. 6 is part of effort to downplay Capitol attack

Here's the latest:

Muslim organizations and students blasted UCLA officials and police in a Wednesday news conference, saying they failed to intervene as students in pro-Palestinian encampment on the Los Angeles campus were verbally harassed, pepper sprayed and beaten during a brawl with counter-protesters earlier in the day.

“The community needs to feel the police are protecting them, not enabling others to harm them,” said Rebecca Husaini, chief of staff for the Muslim Public Affairs Council.

Speakers disputed the university’s account that 15 people were injured and one hospitalized, saying the number of people taken to the hospital was higher. One student described needing to go to the hospital after being hit in the head by an object wielded by counter-protesters.

Several students who spoke said they had to rely on each other, not the police, for support as they were attacked, and that many in the pro-Palestinian encampment remained peaceful and did not engage with counter-protesters.

UCLA Chancellor Gene Block said in a statement Wednesday that “a group of instigators” came on campus to “forcefully attack” the pro-Palestinian encampment, prompting the school to ask for assistance from outside law enforcement agencies.

“However one feels about the encampment, this attack on our students, faculty and community members was utterly unacceptable,” Block said. “It has shaken our campus to its core.”

Block promised the university will conduct a thorough investigation.

The Provost at Columbia University in New York says all final exams and any remaining class sessions should be held remotely for students at its Morningside Heights campus. Any papers, projects or presentations due this week also are being delayed until next week.

The university has been paralyzed by demonstrations, and police have cleared out a building that had been occupied by anti-war protesters.

The university is strongly encouraging students to leave campus and go home early for the semester.

Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations denounced ”the murderous cries of the pro-Palestinian mobs” on university campuses across the United States that were calling for the annihilation of Jews and Israelis.

Gilad Erdan said Wednesday that “anti-Semites failed to annihilate us during the Holocaust” and wars that followed and Hamas tried again in its Oct. 7 attacks in southern Israel, but they won’t succeed.

He said the protesters represent the Palestinian goal of a single Palestinian state “achieved through repeated Oct. 7ths against Israel and also against Jews.”

Erdan accused most of the 193 U.N. member nations of “collaborating with them and encouraging their racism and antisemitism,” and he blamed the United Nations for spreading “anti-Israel vitriol.”

He called for swift action against faculty backing “this mayhem,” the arrest and expulsion of students “who call for the murder of their peers or use violence,” and for university presidents and professors “to be held accountable for permitting this.”

Erdan spoke at a U.N. General Assembly meeting where the United States was defending its veto last week of a U.N. Security Council resolution that would have paved the way for Palestine’s full membership. The resolution was approved by 12 of the 15 council members with Britain and Switzerland abstaining.

A Texas journalist who was arrested during a protest on the University of Texas campus was booked and released Wednesday on misdemeanor charges of assault and interference with public duties.

The Texas Department of Public Safety has accused Carlos Sanchez, a photojournalist with Austin television station KTBC, of hitting a state trooper with a camera while covering the April 24 protest. Video on social media showed troopers pulling Sanchez to the ground after he followed a mass of protesters and police. Sanchez had originally faced a felony charge of assaulting a public servant, then was rebooked on misdemeanor charges.

“Let’s call this what it is— blatant retaliation and intimidation,” said Society of Professional Journalists president Ashanti Blaize-Hopkins in a social media post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Gerry Morris, Sanchez’s attorney, said in a statement Wednesday that he looked forward to someone taking a unbiased look at the evidence and exonerating Sanchez. DPS officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said Wednesday that about 170 of the 280 arrested at Columbia University and nearby City College the night before have received summonses.

The remaining 100 or so cases will be making their way through the court system, with the earliest arraignments later Wednesday afternoon and into the evening.

He said he didn’t yet have a sense how many of those arrested were students and how many weren’t affiliated with the colleges.

Interim university President Jeff Ettinger said he had “constructive dialogue” Wednesday with student leaders of an ongoing protest.

The protesters are demanding that the University of Minnesota divest from companies that do business in Israel and put out a statement that supports Palestinian students. Ettinger said the planned half-hour meeting stretched for 90 minutes.

University officials have allowed a “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” that includes dozens of tents and hundreds of people to remain in the heart of the Minneapolis campus. That’s despite earlier orders by police to disperse.

Georgia Republicans on Wednesday reiterated their support for a forceful police response to campus protests over the Israel-Hamas war.

Gov. Brian Kemp, before he signed laws related to policing, praised officers for “standing strong and maintaining order in the face of protests and disturbances on our college campuses.”

State troopers have aided local and campus police in breaking up encampments and arresting protesters at Emory University in Atlanta and the University of Georgia in Athens. Emory’s president has since apologized for calling outside officers after police used pepper spray balls, aggressively tackled protesters and used an electrical stun gun to shock at least one protester.

The governor said he supported suspending and expelling student protesters who break laws. “We are not going to allow Georgia to become the next Columbia University,” he said.

Protesters arrested at the University of Georgia were issued interim suspensions and barred from campus without being given a chance to appeal.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom said anyone who engaged in illegal behavior on the UCLA campus should be held accountable, “including through criminal prosecution, suspension or expulsion.”

“The law is clear: The right to free speech does not extend to inciting violence, vandalism, or lawlessness on campus,” said the Democratic governor.

His spokesman Izzy Gardon said the California Highway Patrol was deployed to the Los Angeles campus after “unacceptable” delays and limited response from campus police to clashes between dueling groups of protesters.

No one was arrested, and it’s not clear if all the demonstrators were students. The California Highway Patrol has not responded to further questions.

More than 100 people, most identifying themselves as Columbia University faculty and staff, marched and chanted near the school’s New York campus Wednesday.

They marched on the eastern side of the campus by Hamilton Hall, where, hours earlier, New York police burst in to break up a demonstration by protesters who had occupied the building.

Many marchers held signs reading “No cops on campus,” and chanted slogans aimed at Columbia University president Nemat Shafik, including “How many kids did you arrest today?”

Campus police spokesperson Marc Lovicott said four officers were injured Wednesday as police tried to remove protesters’ tents from a central square at the University of Wisconsin in Madison.

Lovicott said a state trooper was hit in the head with a skateboard and three sheriff’s deputies suffered injuries “directly related to the physical resistance from protesters.” At least 34 people were arrested.

Most of those arrested Wednesday were released “with no citation issued," Lovicott said.

The protesters’ tents and belongings were loaded into a truck and hauled away, but the protesters later erected several new tents on the mall.

The university said camping is prohibited under campus policy and state law.

Columbia University’s president released a statement Wednesday morning to members of the college community outlining why she called in police the night before.

Nemat Shafik said protesters taking over an administration building on campus early Tuesday was a “drastic escalation” of the encampment at the college, which “pushed the University to the brink, creating a disruptive environment for everyone and raising safety risks to an intolerable level.”

Shafik, who goes by Minouche, acknowledged the school has a “long and proud” history of activism on campus, but argued those occupying the building committed “acts of destruction, not political speech.”

“I know I speak for many members of our community in saying that this turn of events has filled me with deep sadness. I am sorry we reached this point,” she wrote.

Police at two campuses in Arizona have cleared out encampments and arrested pro-Palestinian protesters.

Several people were arrested by police in riot gear early Wednesday at the University of Arizona in Tucson after President Robert Robbins directed school officials to “immediately enforce campus use policies.”

And about 20 people were arrested at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff on Tuesday night on trespassing charges. Police dismantled a small fence made of chicken wire as well as nearly two dozen tents.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams said in an appearance on “CBS Mornings” Wednesday that police had identified organizations and individuals who weren’t university students, but professional agitators.

“Once I became aware of the outside agitators who were part of this operation, as Columbia mentioned in their letter and their request with the New York City Police Department, it was clear we had to take appropriate actions when our intelligence division identified those who were professionals, well trained,” Adams said.

Adams and the NYPD made similar claims before the arrests that the protest had been co-opted by outside agitators, though did not provide specific evidence to back up that contention. While people involved in the Columbia demonstrations acknowledge that some people not part of the college community have participated, they forcefully dispute the idea that outsiders were driving or unduly influencing the protests.

Dueling groups of protesters clashed Wednesday at UCLA, grappling in fistfights and shoving, kicking and using sticks to beat one another.

Hours earlier, police carrying riot shields burst into a building at Columbia University that pro-Palestinian protesters took over and broke up a demonstration that had paralyzed the school while inspiring others.

After a couple of hours of scuffles between pro-Palestinian and counter-demonstrators, police wearing helmets and face shields formed lines and slowly separated the groups. That appeared to quell the violence.

Police have swept through campuses across the U.S. over the last two weeks in response to protests calling on universities to stop doing business with Israel or companies that support the war in Gaza. There have been confrontations and more than 1,000 arrests. In rarer instances, university officials and protest leaders struck agreements to restrict the disruption to campus life and upcoming commencement ceremonies.

Demonstrators clash at a pro-Palestinian encampment at UCLA late Tuesday, April 30, 2024, in Los Angeles. Dueling groups of protesters have clashed at the University of California, Los Angeles, grappling in fistfights and shoving, kicking and using sticks to beat one another. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

Demonstrators clash at a pro-Palestinian encampment at UCLA early Wednesday, May 1, 2024, in Los Angeles. Dueling groups of protesters have clashed at the University of California, Los Angeles, grappling in fistfights and shoving, kicking and using sticks to beat one another. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

Demonstrators clash at a pro-Palestinian encampment at UCLA early Wednesday, May 1, 2024, in Los Angeles. Dueling groups of protesters have clashed at the University of California, Los Angeles, grappling in fistfights and shoving, kicking and using sticks to beat one another. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

Demonstrators clash at a pro-Palestinian encampment at UCLA early Wednesday, May 1, 2024, in Los Angeles. Dueling groups of protesters have clashed at the University of California, Los Angeles, grappling in fistfights and shoving, kicking and using sticks to beat one another. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

Demonstrators clash at a pro-Palestinian encampment at UCLA early Wednesday, May 1, 2024, in Los Angeles. Dueling groups of protesters have clashed at the University of California, Los Angeles, grappling in fistfights and shoving, kicking and using sticks to beat one another. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

A firefighter retrieves a Palestinian flag from a gate to the City University of New York, Wednesday, May 1, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

Madison Police carry a demonstrator protesting the war in Gaza as they work to remove a non-sanctioned encampment on the campus of UW-Madison in Madison, Wis., on Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (John Hart/Wisconsin State Journal via AP)

Police officers and a security guard stand outside Columbia University's Hamilton Hall, Wednesday, May 1, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

Fireworks erupt as demonstrators clash at a pro-Palestinian encampment at UCLA late Tuesday, April 30, 2024, in Los Angeles. Dueling groups of protesters have clashed at the University of California, Los Angeles, grappling in fistfights and shoving, kicking and using sticks to beat one another. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

Demonstrators clash at a pro-Palestinian encampment at UCLA early Wednesday, May 1, 2024, in Los Angeles. Dueling groups of protesters have clashed at the University of California, Los Angeles, grappling in fistfights and shoving, kicking and using sticks to beat one another. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

A person looks out as demonstrators clash at a pro-Palestinian encampment at UCLA early Wednesday, May 1, 2024, in Los Angeles. Dueling groups of protesters have clashed at the University of California, Los Angeles, grappling in fistfights and shoving, kicking and using sticks to beat one another. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

Demonstrators clash at a pro-Palestinian encampment at UCLA early Wednesday, May 1, 2024, in Los Angeles. Dueling groups of protesters have clashed at the University of California, Los Angeles, grappling in fistfights and shoving, kicking and using sticks to beat one another. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

Officers with the New York Police Department arrest pro-Palestinian protesters at Columbia University, Tuesday, April 30, 2024, in New York. The protesters had seized the administration building, known as Hamilton Hall, more than 20 hours earlier in a major escalation as demonstrations against the Israel-Hamas war spread on college campuses nationwide. (Marco Postigo Storel via AP)

Officers with the New York Police Department arrest Pro-Palestinian protesters at Columbia University, Tuesday, April 30, 2024, in New York. The protesters had seized the administration building, known as Hamilton Hall, more than 20 hours earlier in a major escalation as demonstrations against the Israel-Hamas war spread on college campuses nationwide. (Marco Postigo Storel via AP)

Officers with the New York Police Department raid the encampment by pro-Palestinian protesters at Columbia University on Tuesday, April 30, 2024, in New York. The protesters had seized the administration building, known as Hamilton Hall, more than 20 hours earlier in a major escalation as demonstrations against the Israel-Hamas war spread on college campuses nationwide. (Marco Postigo Storel via AP)

Officers with the New York Police Department raid the encampment by pro-Palestinian protesters at Columbia University, Tuesday, April 30, 2024, in New York. The protesters had seized the administration building, known as Hamilton Hall, more than 20 hours earlier in a major escalation as demonstrations against the Israel-Hamas war spread on college campuses nationwide. (Marco Postigo Storel via AP)

Pro-Palestianian protesters gather near a main gate at Columbia University in New York, Tuesday, April 30, 2024, just before New York City police officers cleared the area after a building was taken over by protesters earlier in the day. The building and a tent encampment were cleared during the operation. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)