Following the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago and feedback from various individual workouts around the league, we can continue to fine-tune how the draft will play out after the top spot. In the second of many Dime mock drafts leading up to June 23, keep in mind that this is a combination of what we think teams should do and what we think they will do: Read More »

It seems like a million different versions of the Nike Hyperdunk 2010 have dropped this year, but I don’t hear anyone complaining. And I must say, I like this version personalized for Dirk Nowitzki a lot. Maybe it’s the Mavs colorway, or maybe it’s his “Dirk 41″ logo on the tongue, but either way I like it. Check ‘em out: Read More »

Do you still hate LeBron? Chances are if you live in Cleveland then you probably do. As the playoffs have gone on, the former Cav King has taken the same dagger used in the Decision, and casually twisted it and turned it, digging deeper with each round. All the questions, answered. All the weaknesses he had in Cleveland, covered. Luckily for Cleveland fans and ‘Bron haters worldwide, there’s now a place to go. Read More »

One of the most acclaimed basketball writers in the world, Charley Rosen has spent years around the game. He played it at an MVP-level for Hunter College from 1959-62. He played it in the Eastern League (a forerunner to the CBA). And he coached it with Phil Jackson.

Since then, Rosen has authored 15 well-received books, among them Barney Polan’s Game, Scandals of ’51 and Maverick (co-authored with Jackson), a ballplayer-turned-journalist. Read More »

We’ve all heard that the 2011 NBA Draft isn’t exactly star-studded. Still, there’s much to be said for what a team – whether it be rebuilding or a championship contender – can do to put complementary players around its key pieces. J.J. Barea and Mike Miller are pretty important to the title hopes of the Dallas Mavericks and the Miami Heat, after all. So who in this year’s draft could end up being the next big-time role players? Here’s five guys to keep an eye on: Read More »

I moved around a lot as a kid. New York. Pennsylvania. Maryland. Massachusetts. House. Apartment. Condo. School to school. Public to private. I never really felt settled, never felt completely home. I tried to stay in touch, but once you leave someone’s life, you can never totally get back in. The door isn’t locked, but it’s closed. They move on. You’re stuck on the past. Read More »

With the sudden retirement of Shaquille O’Neal from the NBA, we got to thinking about all the great players that the Big Social Security Applier played with during his 19 seasons in the league. There’s a long list of All-Stars, but in making the list, we ask this question: Who was at their best while playing with Shaq? For example, the Kevin Garnett that O’Neal played with this season won’t rank as highly as the 2007-08 Amar’e Stoudemire that he shared the court with in his Phoenix stint.

Obviously, we’ll save all the center slots for the Big Aristotle himself, but without further adieu, we present the First, Second and Third All-Shaq teams: Read More »

Every year in the NBA there are 16 teams that make the playoffs and 14 who are relegated to the NBA Lottery. Those 14 teams hope that their draft pick can be a building block for the future and help their team become one of the 16 in the playoffs the following season. This article evaluates how well this year’s lottery teams have drafted the past five years: Read More »

For his first and only Dime cover story in Dime #38 (December 2007/January 2008), we wanted to get Shaquille O’Neal‘s take on his legacy, the new crop of NBA big men waiting in the wings and some of the most pressing issues facing the League, and basketball in general, at the time. I spoke to Shaq towards the end of the exhibition season one day after practice. His Heat squad was facing an uncertain future, knowing that Dwyane Wade would be out until at least mid-November, and the interview took place shortly before the team jettisoned Antoine Walker to Minnesota for Ricky Davis in an effort to keep afloat until Wade came back… Read More »

Shaq. Shaqfu. Shaqtus. The Big Shamrock. Shaq-deezy. The Diesel. Superman. And of course, Kazaam. Shaquille O’Neal retired today after 19 seasons, the Big Shamrock himself finally calling it quits via the new social media platform Tout (never heard of it) – leaving us with one of, if not the most dominant, big man careers of all-time. Forgot what Shaq was before he started looking like a “before” picture from a Nutrisystem commercial? We’re talking four rings, fifth all-time in scoring, three Finals MVPs, a 58% career field-goal percentage, one MVP, Rookie of the Year, thirteen 20 and 10 seasons, and one famous late-night club freestyle where he requested his favorite former teammate share how his “ass tastes.” Read More »