Kyrie Irving's big second half leads Mavericks past Hawks 129-119

ATLANTA (AP) — Kyrie Irving had 32 points, six assists and seven rebounds, and the Dallas Mavericks beat the Atlanta Hawks 129-119 on Monday night without star Luka Doncic.

Jaden Hardy had a season-high 23 points in his first start of the season for Dallas, which has won five of six. Naji Marshall and Spencer Dinwiddie had 22 points each.

Irving had 10 points at halftime after being stifled by Hawks guard Dyson Daniels but heated up in the second half, including a stretch where he hit five consecutive field goals.

Doncic missed his third straight game with a right wrist strain.

Jalen Johnson had 28 points and 10 rebounds for the Hawks, who have lost four of five. Trae Young had 18 points and 16 assists.

Mavs: Dallas lost in overtime at Miami on Sunday night and is in the middle of a 15-game stretch that includes 11 away games. Klay Thompson (plantar fascia) and Quentin Grimes (illness) also sat. Still, they had enough to win without Doncic, who scored 73 points in the Mavs' lone visit to Atlanta last season.

Hawks: After a series of early-season injuries, the Hawks had a full complement of players and two days of rest, but they still couldn't get past a team that was playing the second half of a back-to-back.

Irving scored 14 points in a three-minute stretch in the fourth quarter, during which the Mavs went from trailing 104-103 to leading 118-109.

Marshall and Hardy, late additions to the starting lineup for the Mavs, combined for 45 points and nine rebounds.

The Hawks will face the NBA-best Cavaliers in their next two games — at Cleveland on Wednesday and at Atlanta on Friday. The Mavs will host the New York Knicks on Wednesday.

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Atlanta Hawks forward De'Andre Hunter (12) shoots against Dallas Mavericks forward Naji Marshall, center, during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (11) moves the ball up court against the Dallas Mavericks during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson (1) shoots against Dallas Mavericks forward Olivier-Maxence Prosper (8) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Dallas Mavericks center Daniel Gafford (21) loses the ball against Atlanta Hawks forward Onyeka Okongwu (17) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Atlanta Hawks forward De'Andre Hunter (12) moves against Dallas Mavericks forward Maxi Kleber (42) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Dallas Mavericks forward Olivier-Maxence Prosper (8) takes the ball from Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson (1) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

NEW YORK (AP) — Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, is rolling back its diversity, equity and inclusion policies, joining a growing list of major corporations that have done the same after coming under attack by conservative activists.

The changes, confirmed by Walmart on Monday, are sweeping and include everything from not renewing a five-year commitment for an equity racial center set up in 2020 after the police killing of George Floyd, to pulling out of a prominent gay rights index. And when it comes to race or gender, Walmart won’t be giving priority treatment to suppliers.

Walmart's moves underscore the increasing pressure faced by corporate America as it continues to navigate the fallout from the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in June 2023 ending affirmative action in college admissions. Emboldened by that decision, conservative groups have filed lawsuits making similar arguments about corporations, targeting workplace initiatives such as diversity programs and hiring practices that prioritize historically marginalized groups.

Separately, conservative political commentator and activist Robby Starbuck has been going after corporate DEI policies, calling out individual companies on the social media platform X. Several of those companies have subsequently announced that they are pulling back their initiatives, including Ford, Harley-Davidson, Lowe's and Tractor Supply.

But Walmart, which employs 1.6 million workers in the U.S., is the largest one to do so.

“This is the biggest win yet for our movement to end wokeness in corporate America,” Starbuck wrote on X, adding that he had been in conversation with Walmart.

Walmart confirmed to The Associated Press that it will better monitor its third-party marketplace items to make sure they don’t feature sexual and transgender products aimed at minors. That would include chest binders intended for youth who are going through a gender change, the company said.

The Bentonville, Arkansas-based retailer will also be reviewing grants to Pride events to make sure it is not financially supporting sexualized content that may be unsuitable for kids. For example, the company wants to makes sure a family pavilion is not next to a drag show at a Pride event, the company said.

Additionally, Walmart will no longer consider race and gender as a litmus test to improve diversity when it offers supplier contracts. The company said it didn't have quotas and will not do so going forward. It won't be gathering demographic data when determining financing eligibility for those grants.

Walmart also said it wouldn't renew a racial equity center that was established through a five-year, $100 million philanthropic commitment from the company with a mandate to, according to its website, “address the root causes of gaps in outcomes experienced by Black and African American people in education, health, finance and criminal justice systems."

And it would stop participating in the Human Rights Campaign's annual benchmark index that measures workplace inclusion for LGBTQ+ employees.

“We’ve been on a journey and know we aren’t perfect, but every decision comes from a place of wanting to foster a sense of belonging, to open doors to opportunities for all our associates, customers and suppliers and to be a Walmart for everyone,” the company said in a statement.

The changes come soon after an election win by former President Donald Trump, who has criticized DEI initiatives and surrounded himself with conservatives who hold similar views, including his former adviser Stephen Miller, who leads a group called America First Legal that has challenged corporate DEI policies. Trump named Miller to be the deputy chief of policy in his new administration.

A Walmart spokesperson said some of its policy changes have been in progress for a while. For example, it has been moving away from using the word DEI in job titles and communications and started to use the word “belonging.” It also started making changes to its supplier program in the aftermath of the Supreme Court affirmative action ruling.

Some have been urging companies to stick with their DEI policies. Last month, a group of Democrats in Congress appealed to the leaders of the Fortune 1000, saying that DEI efforts give everyone a fair chance at achieving the American dream.

FILE - A Walmart logo is displayed outside of a Walmart store, in Walpole, Mass., Sept. 3, 2019. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File)