DENVER (AP) — The Denver Nuggets were without two big pieces of their offense in Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. for their game against the short-handed Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night.
Murray missed a second straight game due to tightness in his right hamstring. Porter was a late scratch as he deals with a family situation, Nuggets coach Michael Malone said.
“I told Michael, ‘Listen, family is more important than anything. You’ve got to be with your family,’” Malone said.
Malone didn't elaborate on Porter's family matter. Malone added: "Obviously, our thoughts and prayers are with Michael and his entire family at this time.”
Murray is averaging 21.6 points and six assists this season. Porter has been an outside threat, hitting a team-leading 182 3-pointers this season while averaging 18.2 points.
“The game becomes that much more challenging without two starters that average whatever many points they average combined,” Malone said. “We as a group, we’ve shown this year, many times, when undermanned, when we dig deep, what we’re capable of.”
With Murray, Porter and Julian Strawther (left knee) all sidelined, Malone was asked how that might alter his team's spacing of the floor.
“You wait and watch, baby. We just put it in — a new offense — 15 minutes ago,” Malone cracked
Really, though, it remains the same — get the ball to NBA MVP Nikola Jokic, who's averaging 29.3 points, 12.8 rebounds and 10.2 assists.
“Honestly, it’s not how well-spaced the floor, because our guys will space the floor correctly. It’s how will they guard us? That’s really the question,” Malone said. "Because whether that’s Michael Porter in the right corner or Peyton Watson in the right corner, we’ll space it correctly. Now we have to read and react to how they’re going to guard us.
"Obviously, without a Jamal Murray out there, without a Michael Porter Jr. out there, we expect to see a lot more double teams, a lot more crowds, and that’s where hopefully we can find a way to get some not only stops, but defensive rebounds so we can get out and run. If we’re playing half-court basketball tonight, this could be a long night for us.”
The Timberwolves were without center Naz Reid and guard Donte DiVincenzo, who both received a one-game suspension for their roles in an on-court altercation against the Detroit Pistons on Sunday.
The league announced suspensions for both teams Tuesday.
“Glad we were able to get news of it early enough so we could plan, adjust, move on,” Minnesota coach Chris Finch said.
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Utah Jazz guard Collin Sexton, right, is stopped while driving the lane by Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. in the second half of an NBA basketball game Friday, March 28, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Milwaukee Bucks guard Kevin Porter Jr., back right, is blocked by Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, back left, as guard Jamal Murray heads to the basket in the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, March 26, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
U.S. and Iranian negotiators are in Switzerland on Sunday for talks on working out key details of their interim agreement to end the Iran war.
A team led by U.S. Vice President JD Vance, including Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, is to meet with g Iranian negotiators led by parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.
Pakistani envoys are also in place, as well as Qatari mediators, for the technical-level discussions to end the conflict that began in late February.
Vance said he was optimistic about making progress in talks about Iran’s nuclear program and a ceasefire in southern Lebanon.
On the eve of the talks, Tehran announced it has closed the Strait of Hormuz again over Israel’s ongoing military campaign in Lebanon. The interim deal between the U.S. and Iran is meant to stop fighting on all fronts, including Lebanon, as well as calling for billions of dollars of Iran’s assets to be unfrozen.
U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened to impose American tolls in the strait if a final deal with Iran isn’t reached in 60 days. The interim agreement calls for toll-free travel for 60 days in the waterway that is vital for the world's oil supply.
Here is the latest:
Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei says Tehran will mainly focus during the talks on Sunday on the ongoing fighting in Lebanon.
Tehran insists that the deal’s implementation start with a cessation of all fighting — including between Israel and Hezbollah.
Baghaei said the U.S. “has been unable or unwilling” to hold Israel to the ceasefire.
Iran will meet in the morning with Pakistani and Qatari mediators, and in the afternoon, there will be a four-way meeting including the U.S. negotiating team. There is currently only one day of negotiations planned, Baghaei told the state news agency.
“The implementation of any document is more important than its signing,” Baghaei also said Sunday.
Iran’s president has said that Iran will maintain its right to a nuclear program.
“What is certain is that we will never back down from the right to enrich uranium, and the other side is also forced to accept it,” Masoud Pezeshkian said on Sunday, according to state media.
As the U.S.-Iran talks were to kick off in Switzerland, a ceasefire appears to be holding in Lebanon, a lull that came after another day of heavy fighting.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry reported over 50 killed in Israeli strikes since the deal was signed on Thursday. Five Israeli soldiers were also killed.
Israel says it targeted Hezbollah infrastructure on Saturday, including a tunnel network in the southern Lebanese town of Kfar Tebnit.
But by Sunday morning, residents in southern Lebanon reported a lull in Israeli strikes. There also were no reports of Hezbollah fire from the Israeli side.
Israel’s military has received instructions to uphold the ceasefire, and said it is only acting defensively, according to an Israeli military official who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with military guidelines.
—Melanie Lidman in Tel Aviv, Israel
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir are also in Switzerland for the high-level U.S.-Iran talks, the prime minister's office said without providing further details.
The technical-level talks at Bürgenstock Resort near the Swiss city of Lucerne are being held after Sharif dispatched his special envoy, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, to Tehran to persuade Iranian authorities to send a delegation to Switzerland. The meeting was originally scheduled for Friday but was delayed because of concerns raised by Iran.
Naqvi later informed Islamabad that Iran was willing to attend the talks. Pakistan subsequently conveyed the development to Washington.
The strait has emerged as a key focus, with Iran’s joint military command saying on Saturday that it was closed again because of the U.S. “clear breach of its commitments” by failing to end the war. The interim deal is meant to stop fighting on all fronts, including in Lebanon where Israeli forces are battling the militant Hezbollah group.
The U.S. disputed Iran’s announcement, with the U.S. Central Command saying that traffic continues to flow and that 55 merchant ships transited on Saturday with more than 17 million barrels of oil.
Ships began transiting after the interim U.S.-Iran agreement was signed last week. The U.S. lifted its blockade of Iran’s ports and now allows Tehran to sell its oil freely — terms that have left some in U.S. Congress asking whether the war was worth it.
The interim deal signed by Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian gives negotiators 60 days to reach a nuclear agreement, but the time can be extended.
U.S. Vice President JD Vance, right, meets with Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, during high-level talks aimed at advancing a deal to end the Middle East conflict, at the Bürgenstock Resort in Obbuergen, near Lucerne, in Switzerland, Sunday, June 21, 2026. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)
U.S. Vice President JD Vance waits, alongside U.S. President Donald Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff, second right, and Jared Kushner, right, to meet with Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for high-level talks aimed at advancing a deal to end the Middle East conflict, at the Bürgenstock Resort in Obbuergen, near Lucerne, in Switzerland, Sunday, June 21, 2026. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)
Flags of the U.S., Qatar, Iran, Pakistan, Nidwalden and Switzerland, from left, are seen at the Buergenstock resort in Obbuergen, near Lucerne, Switzerland, Sunday, June 21, 2026. (Urs Flueeler/Keystone Pool via AP)
U.S. Vice President JD Vance, gestures as he meets with Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, during high-level talks aimed at advancing a deal to end the Middle East conflict, at the Bürgenstock Resort in Obbuergen, near Lucerne, in Switzerland, Sunday, June 21, 2026. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)
Vice President JD Vance speaks to reporters at Joint Base Andrews, Md., Saturday, June 20, 2026, en route to Switzerland. (Elizabeth Frantz/Pool Photo via AP)
Vice President JD Vance, center, and second lady Usha Vance, left, walk from Marine Two as they arrive at Joint Base Andrews, Md., Saturday, June 20, 2026, en route to Switzerland. (Elizabeth Frantz/Pool Photo via AP)
Speaker of the Islamic Parliament of Iran Mohammed Bagher Ghalibaf, center, arrives at the Buergenstock resort in Obbuergen, near Lucerne, Switzerland, early Sunday, June 21, 2026. (Urs Flueeler/Keystone, Pool via AP)
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi, center, arrives at the Buergenstock resort in Obbuergen, near Lucerne, Switzerland, early Sunday, June 21, 2026. (Urs Flueeler/Keystone, Pool via AP)
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi, center, and Speaker of the Islamic Parliament of Iran Mohammed Bagher Ghalibaf, left, arrive at the Buergenstock resort in Obbuergen, near Lucerne, Switzerland, early Sunday, June 21, 2026. (Urs Flueeler/Keystone, Pool via AP)
