LOS ANGELES -- Lakers star LeBron James was ruled out of Saturday's game against the Indiana Pacers because of left ankle soreness, the team announced.

Newly acquired star Luka Doncic was out because of a left calf strain. Doncic is targeting making his Lakers debut when L.A. hosts the Utah Jazz on Monday, a source familiar with Doncic's plans told ESPN. Center Mark Williams, whom L.A. acquired from the Charlotte Hornets in a separate deal, was also ruled out, with coach JJ Redick saying the trade is still "pending."

It was James' fourth missed game this season. He is averaging 24.5 points on 51.6% shooting (39.1% from 3), 9.0 assists and 7.8 rebounds in this, his 22nd season. James scored a season-high 42 points on 14-for-25 shooting with 17 rebounds and eight assists in the Lakers' win over the Golden State Warriors on Thursday. It was the first time James topped the 40-point plateau since turning 40 years old in December.

The Lakers have won four straight games and 10 of their past 12 to move up to No. 5 in the Western Conference standings. Indiana, which has won seven of its last 10, is No. 4 in the Eastern Conference and coming off a 119-112 win over the LA Clippers on Thursday.

Ben Simmons has agreed to a contract buyout with the Brooklyn Nets and intends to sign with the LA Clippers after clearing waivers, sources told ESPN's Shams Charania on Saturday.

A three-time All-Star, Simmons joins the Clippers as a high-upside addition in the buyout field. The Clippers have had tremendous success on the buyout market in recent years, with productive stints from Russell Westbrook, Nicolas Batum and Reggie Jackson.

Simmons, 28, has spent three seasons in Brooklyn since he was acquired in a deal that sent James Harden to the Philadelphia 76ers. He has dealt with a variety of injuries in those years and has played more than 40 games just once with the Nets. In leaving the franchise, he gave back $1.1 million, the prorated minimum contract, in his buyout, sources told Charania.

Simmons now will team up with Harden in Los Angeles for a Clippers team that entered play Saturday seventh in the Western Conference standings after dropping three straight.

This season, Simmons is averaging 6.2 points, 5.2 rebounds and 6.9 assists in 25 minutes per game. He figures to give the Clippers another much-needed playmaker and ball handler who can help alleviate some of the pressure on Harden and Kawhi Leonard.

The Clippers also added Bogdan Bogdanovic this week to help create more offense and shotmaking for a team that has exceeded expectations this season because of its stingy defense. The Clippers traded Terance Mann to Atlanta as part of the deal that landed Bogdanovic. At 6-foot-10, Simmons can be the Swiss Army knife-like utility player that Mann was supposed to be for coach Ty Lue this season.

The Clippers will certainly hope that Simmons will be able to create more shots for teammates, be another defender with size and help on the glass as they continue to push for a top-six spot in the playoffs after the All-Star break.

Simmons is in the final year of a five-year, maximum contract he signed with the Sixers. He's set to hit free agency this summer. In addition to the Clippers, Simmons also met with the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday.

ESPN's Ohm Youngmisuk contributed to this report.

DALLAS -- Anthony Davis' dominant debut for the Dallas Mavericks was cut short when he suffered what the team called a "lower-body injury."

The Mavericks announced Davis as doubtful to return with less than five minutes left in the fourth quarter, but the star big man never came back onto the court after leaving late in the third. Dallas was still able to hold on for a 116-105 win over the Rockets.

Davis, the headliner of Dallas' return in the Luka Doncic trade that prompted a large pregame protest outside of the American Airlines Center on Saturday, exited with 1:37 remaining in the third quarter and headed to the locker room while clutching his midsection.

He had 26 points, 16 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 blocks in 31 minutes before exiting. Davis had missed the previous five games -- his final three with the Los Angeles Lakers and first two with the Mavs -- due to an abdominal injury.

Davis was injured while attempting to contest Alperen Sengun's driving dunk as a help defender. Davis went down in the paint while holding his midsection.

After the game, Davis said the area around his groin and quad got tight and he felt a little spasm but he ultimately brushed off the injury.

"It's nothing serious, I'm fine," he said.

Mavs general manager Nico Harrison's decision to trade 25-year-old face of the franchise Doncic, who led the league in scoring last season before leading Dallas to the NBA Finals, resulted in outrage among the fan base.

The pregame protest was attended by approximately 1,000 people, many of whom held signs and participated in chants that were critical of Harrison.

Harrison, who sources said has received multiple death threats since the trade, did not sit in his normal seat in the arena's lower bowl.

Davis had the arena rocking from the opening possession -- when he threw a lob to center Daniel Gafford -- until his early exit.

After a putback dunk with 7:34 remaining in the first quarter -- Davis' fourth bucket in the first four-plus minutes -- he prompted roars from the crowd by waving his arms at the stands when the Rockets called timeout.

"I'm here," Davis shouted as he pointed at the American Airlines Center court.

Davis, 31, a 10-time All-Star selection, has had durability issues for much of his career. He played a career-high 76 games last season.

Easterby has made just two changes for the Scotland game, bringing in Peter O'Mahony and Robbie Henshaw while retaining Sam Prendergast at fly-half ahead of Jack Crowley.

The battle between the out-halves has attracted intense debate, but Easterby believes the attention is "part of their growth".

"Jack had a bit more of that last year throughout the Six Nations and dealt with it really well.

"He's also had a period of not being selected every week so that's a different dynamic to what Sam's going through at the moment.

"But they would share experiences with each other. Jack's been through that and we're fortunate to have Johnny [Sexton] in camp as well to impart some of his experiences in that position over the years, his battles with ROG [Ronan O'Gara] and how that developed over time."

Easterby added: "They're pretty comfortable in their own skin. They are down to earth, level-headed, extremely competitive and ambitious but understanding as well that there are ebbs and flows in life, in games and your selection.

"They're just figuring out a the moment how to get through that and we're supporting them the best we can."

In Dublin last year, Ireland got off to a shaky start. In the opening minutes they gave away a penalty, a free-kick, got charged down and turned over. Finn Russell made it 3-0. An encouraging beginning.

Then Scotland messed up. They had a lineout close to their own line and threw it to Dan Sheehan, who went over. That game was a proper physical battle, with a four-point gap at the end. Scotland gave Ireland a free seven to Sheehan.

'Cheap points' is a term used by successive Scotland captains against Ireland. Over the 10 defeats, this kind of wounding error is a theme.

In 2022, while trailing 14-5, Stuart Hogg got greedy when going for the corner while Sam Johnson was free inside. Hugo Keenan put him into touch. A certain try was gone.

The piece-de-resistance of calamities came in 2020, when Hogg dropped the ball going over the Ireland line in Dublin. That was in the 50th minute. A converted try would have brought the score level at 13-13. And Scotland would have had momentum.

Tony Ward, the former Ireland fly-half working for RTE, said the Scots were the better team that day.

In 2019 Scotland started quickly at Murrayfield only to concede via a cock-up between Tommy Seymour and Sean Maitland.

The year before that, Peter Horne gave away an easy seven points early in Dublin when his pass was intercepted. Scotland butchered multiple chances that day, every error proving grist to Ireland's mill.

Every team makes mistakes but Scotland's mistakes in this fixture tend to be absolute whoppers. That has to stop.

Fin Smith is the man tasked with delivering a quantum leap forward.

The 22-year-old, with seven replacement appearances, totalling 122 minutes of Test action, to his name, starts at fly-half against the Six Nations favourites.

Fortunately he has broad shoulders.

Smith made his debut for Worcester at 18, lost his first 10 games for Warriors and then saw the club go bust at the end of his second season.

Since then he has twice steered Northampton into the play-offs, winning the Premiership title last season.

Still it is a bold call. Marcus Smith was the future once too.

Now, after eight straight starts in the 10 jersey, the Harlequins playmaker is shuffled back into his unfavoured and unfamiliar full-back role.

The theory is clear.

Fin Smith is a more conventional 10, playing flat to the line and finding holes with his selection of pass and breadth of vision, rather than Marcus' hot-stepping individual brilliance.

It is hoped he will give centres Henry Slade and Ollie Lawrence more of a platform. With fellow Saints Alex Mitchell at scrum-half and Tommy Freeman and Ollie Sleightholme on the wings, Northampton connections should help the team click.

Against a French team that kick for distance, rather than to set up aerial duels, Marcus Smith's ability to pick his way through a broken field will be either a deterrent or a weapon.

Elsewhere the back row is beefed up with the inclusion of Tom Willis, and the bench, which had won a cumulative total of only 81 caps against Ireland, has the experience of former captain Jamie George, with 97, and Elliot Daly, with 69, to guard against England's customary last-quarter fade.

That's the theory.

Whether it survives contact with France's mix of the balletic and the brutal though is another thing.

Captain Antoine Dupont's game appears to have been elevated to yet another level by his time with France's Olympic gold-winning Sevens team.

Last weekend's win over Wales was the mercurial Toulouse star's 24th straight victory as a starting scrum-half in the 15-a-side game a run stretching back to France's quarter-final defeat by South Africa in October 2023.

Matthieu Jalibert is a fly-half with devil to his game and a point to prove after being overlooked.

Full-back Thomas Ramos has been dead-eyed off the tee. Wings Damian Penaud and Louis Bielle-Biarrey have bullet pace.