Whereas last summer reshaped the NBA and as a byproduct of that, helped usher in the extended lockout, the upcoming abbreviated free agency period won’t include a single franchise player. There are probably no future Hall of Famers available. Hell, there might not even be a single All-Star out there. But what is being given up will be replaced in a frenzy. The signings and player movement will be fast and furious, and without any sure things, there will be plenty of opportunities to criticize GMs who panic and throw ridiculous contracts at simply average players. Read More »
With the sudden end to the NBA lockout and abbreviated training camps rushing guys through to a regular season jammed with lots of games in short periods of time, I have no doubt that we’re going to be seeing an uptick in injuries across the League. There’s just no way around it. Injuries happen all the time, even when guys are in incredible basketball shape – the effects of a significantly longer offseason running right into an NBA season are going to take their toll on guys.
One of the first big injuries hit the Memphis Grizzlies over the weekend when they lost rising star Darrell Arthur, most likely for the season. Read More »
The top tier NBA free agents are signed, sealed and delivered, but there are still a handful of guys that can help impact teams this year. And with the season starting in nine days, it’s time to pull the trigger to get them into camp as soon as possible. With that, here are the Top 5 NBA Free Agents Available. Remember, spend your money wisely. Read More »
As many pointed out on Twitter yesterday, if the Lakers got both Dwight Howard and Chris Paul, they might as well start the next lockout immediately. We aren’t trying to rain on anyone’s “end of the lockout” parade. Quite frankly, we don’t believe it’ll happen either. But it’s a thought, a thought that a few people in the business have. What if it just so happened that the Lakers didn’t just get Dwight Howard (a very real possibility), but they also nabbed CP3 as well? Howard has this weird fascination with following whatever Shaq did. He also wants to play with Kobe more than anyone else. He also loves warm weather. The Lakers also have assets up the a–. The Magic are also extremely worried – getting more nervous by the day – that Superman 2.0 will leave them just like the original did. Read More »
The Utah Jazz are a frontcourt-heavy team. They have about 3-4 big men capable of producing usable numbers if given sufficient minutes, which means that unless a trade happens to free things up there, some frustrating minutes-based limitations are in the cards. That said, the Jazz have a nice balance of productive veterans and up-and-coming players ready to make an impact on fantasy basketball whenever the NBA starts again. Read More »
Kobe Bryant has maintained his spot as the best basketball player in the world because, even as his nagging injuries pile up and he moves into his 30′s, he relies more on his skills and fundamentals than simple athleticism and explosiveness.
Don’t get it mistaken, though: Kobe can still get up every once in a while, even if some analysts and fans talk about his hops like he’s Zydrunas Ilgauskas. Read More »
I have no clue exactly why Andrei Kirilenko, Nenad Krstic and that cat who looks to be former NBA player Viktor Khryapa are dancing on stage. But skip to the 1:06 mark if you want to A) get sent into a time machine and B) laugh. Or you can just watch the two ladies in the front…
There’s nothing else to say at this point, other than if they don’t get this deal done by Monday, David Stern and the rest of the NBA will start canceling games. The two sides met for four hours yesterday for what was deemed an enormously important negotiation day by pretty much everyone involved, and yet they came out of it still very much apart. The meetings basically ended when the owners low-balled the players with an offer of 47 percent of the basketball related income, down from the 57 percent in the previous CBA, and still much lower than the player’s offer of 53 percent … Read More »
We mentioned it in Smack, and then found the video. While this dunk was pretty nice, Timofey Mozgov should probably get more love for the 18 points he scored. He and Andrei Kirilenko (17) led Russia to an easy win, while Toronto’s finest Jonas Valanciunas finished with 14 of his own. For Mozgov, it’s good to see him dishing out some of that stuff that Blake Griffin used on him.
The dunk may be the most efficient method for securing two points, but it has evolved into the most visible platform for pure power, unbridled enthusiasm and exuberant jubilation. In the grand scheme of basketball, one basket midway through the game does little to change the outcome. Yet we cannot help but celebrate the supreme athleticism of the dunker and the abject misery of the dunked-upon. But our love, however cruel it may be to witness for the defeated, is honest. It is why thousands upload these moments of sovereignty and humiliation to YouTube on a daily basis. When Taj Gibson posterized Dwyane Wade in Game 1, I was obligated to relive the past glory of other immortalized playoff dunks. Here are, in descending order, the Top 10 NBA Playoff Dunks of the 21st Century. Read More »
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