Something is happening in Minnesota. The nucleus of some unbelievable NBA basketball is brewing in the Twin Cities through the duo of Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio, and their time will be here before you know it. Just not yet. The Miami Heat made sure of that last night in Minneapolis. The upstart T-Wolves gave them everything they could handle, leading for much of the game until letting it slip away from them in the final seconds, undone by turnovers, missed foul shots and blown defensive assignments – exactly the type of mistakes you would expect a young team to make, and the type of mistakes you would expect the Heat to use to their advantage … With the game tied at 101, and just under five seconds to play, Miami ran an inbounds play that saw LeBron hit Dwyane Wade with an alley-oop off of a high screen to put Miami up two. The Wolves had a final shot that was missed by Wayne Ellington … After the game, LeBron admitted that their final inbounds play was stolen from the Celtics … James, who was celebrating his 27th birthday yesterday, finished with 34. His 98 points through the first three games is the most in Heat history … While Miami won, the real story is the emergence of Ricky Rubio. Read More »

It started as an anecdote in Adrian Wojnarowski’s piece about how Michael Jordan’s shadow hangs over the new NBA season, and now looks like it’s about to become a reality. A week after Derrick Rose signed a five-year, $94.8 million contract extension with the Bulls, adidas looks like they’re about to pay the 23-year-old MVP a ridiculous $250 million over 10 years. Read More »

After Rutgers stunned No. 10 Florida, 85-83, in double overtime on Thursday night, nobody could stop talking about the brilliant performance by freshman Eli Carter.

Everyone except, that is, for Eli Carter. Read More »

The Dallas Mavericks haven’t won an NBA game in over six months. A crazy thought, but then again their last win on June 12 won them a championship. Mark Cuban isn’t worried about the Mavs’ 0-3 start this year, but should Dallas fans trust in the owner’s confidence? Read More »

By now you’ve seen Derrick Rose‘s latest signature shoe, the adidas adiZero Rose 2. But we guarantee you’ve never seen it like this. Introducing the “Baylor” edition, made exclusively for the undefeated Baylor Bears. Check it out: Read More »

One of the best releases of 2011 was the return of the adidas Crazy 8. And although the undefeated Baylor Bears had these last season, they’ve been seen on the court this year as well. Check ‘em out: Read More »

It’s funny how a game in Pittsburgh gets people to pay attention to Staten Island.

New York City’s reputation as basketball’s Mecca isn’t limited just to Madison Square Garden or Rucker Park — at least, that’s what second-year coach Dan Hurley is preaching at Wagner College. Getting that message to resonate has been aided by the Seahawks’ upset at Pitt, 59-54, on Dec. 23 for their first win over a ranked team since 1978. The Panthers had been 70-0 against teams from the NEC. Read More »

Up: Spencer Hawes is averaging top 10 numbers so far this season. Yeah, that doesn’t say too much, but his two-game averages of 9.5 points, 12.5 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 2.0 steals, 1.5 blocks and 2.5 turnovers, along with 56 percent shooting from the field and a perfect one-for-one from the free-throw line are impressive. If you say you saw this coming, I’ll call you a liar. But if you scooped him up, I’ll call you a savvy optimist. Hawes won’t keep this up for the whole season, but his current owners should squeeze him for all he’s got or shop him like there’s no tomorrow. [Sell] Read More »

In February, Kobe Bryant took the Black Mamba to a whole new level. In 2012, he aims to do it again. While we can’t tell you much, we can tell you this: it’s going to be insane. With that, check out the first KobeSystem teaser trailer released by our friends at Nike Basketball below. Read More »

If you’ve ever had the chance to talk with Ron Artest or Metta World Peace, you’re in for a treat. Always the most interesting man in the locker room, you know you’re going to get a real answer instead of a rehearsed one. But for some reason, the Lakers swingman has been mum on the reasoning behind his name change, until now. Read More »