I’m not sure how I feel about this, but the 76ers reportedly just used their amnesty clause on Elton Brand to clear $18 million-worth of cap space. At almost the exact same time, news is out that Philly has agreed to a free agent deal with Nick Young. Yep, they essentially used their magic salary bullet to clear some space for Nick Young.

So what is Philly up to? Read More »

The Lakers didn’t lose the series last night in OKC. They lost it in Game 2, and in Game 4 in Los Angeles. The Thunder’s series-clinching 106-90 win last night was merely a formality, and even as Kobe Bryant (42 points) tossed up three quarters of a throwback performance, no one could truly convince themselves this thing was still in doubt. There were no answers whatsoever for Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden, who combined for 70 points, and by the fourth quarter, it felt like one big party … Read More »

The Lakers were pretty much done by the opening minutes of the third quarter, and by the end of the third frame, OKC had disposed of the bodies in a covered ditch. A 15-2 run spanning the end of the second quarter to the start of the second half, which was punctuated by a Russell Westbrook lob and then a pull-up transition triple from Kevin Durant, put the home team up by 22 and it only got worse from there. In Game 1 of perhaps the most hyped series of the playoffs so far, the Thunder strangled L.A., 119-90. In a way it was shocking. But then again, it wasn’t, even if Metta World Peace was shocked enough to leave center stage with nearly an entire quarter to go and head back to the locker room. Read More »

Seriously this guy is unreal. Only Kobe Bryant could’ve pulled off something like this. Miss 15 in a row… the most he’s missed in a row in a game EVER, and still find a way to get it done. Zero points through three quarters, and then when it comes down to it, down two with under 30 seconds to go, Bryant pulls up and cans a triple to win the game. After New Orleans couldn’t get a shot to fall, someone crowned Bryant’s night (3-for-21 shooting, 11 points) as the ultimate Tim Tebow night. It’s true: screw up all game, play like complete garbage all night… and then when it’s absolutely necessary, you make the game-winning play. Unreal … Read More »

So many story lines to watch during Sunday’s Mavs/Knicks national TV matchup: Carmelo Anthony’s anticipated return ultimately being postponed another day; the Phoenix glory days reunion with Amar’e Stoudemire, Mike D’Antoni and Shawn Marion; Dirk Nowitzki’s chance to prove he really does deserve an All-Star berth; Jason Kidd and Vince Carter playing on the Madison Square Garden court for perhaps the final time in their respective careers; Tyson Chandler seeing his former Dallas teammates for the first time since they won a championship together; NYC native Lamar Odom playing in front of his hometown crowd; and newly-signed J.R. Smith playing his first game as a Knick … Read More »

The Knicks decided real basketball was for the birds, and started launching a monsoon of treys. That might work against some teams, but not Miami, especially when Dwyane Wade is healthy and cooking. With Carmelo Anthony sitting out, the Heat weathered a random Bill Walker night (21 points, all on treys) and a bunch of other weird stuff (in the first half the Knicks were 5-for-19 on twos and 10-for-23 on threes) to pull away in the fourth quarter, 99-89. LeBron and D-Wade were all over the place, combining for 59 points and only 15 missed shots. Read More »

Watching Eddy Curry last night was like seeing a ghost. I can’t remember the last time I saw him play, and had given up hope he’d actually make it back. He was like Detox: You heard the word “comeback” so often that no one bothered to care or believe it anymore. The hype was gone. But then out of nowhere, Curry made his entrance last night, scored the first time he touched it, and even had a tip-in dunk. Read More »

Beast of the Night: Derrick Rose put up 31 points, three boards, 11 assists, a steal, two blocks and four three-pointers last night against the Timberwolves. He shot 55 percent (12-22) from the field, 75 percent (3-4) from the free-throw line and had three turnovers. For the season, Rose is scoring less than he did in 2010-11, but he’s dishing out 8.6 assists per outing, an improvement of nearly a full assist per game. Rose has put up top 15 averages so far, a bit disappointing given his first-round expectations heading into the season. Read More »

Say hello to the bad guy. We have a new beast in the West. In probably the most physical game of the NBA season so far, the Blazers showed why everyone is so frightened of playing them up in the Northwest by punking the Clippers and Blake Griffin, 105-97. With the NBA’s newest A-List team threatening them over and over, Portland answered every call. Between Gerald Wallace, LaMarcus Aldridge and Marcus Camby, they did work on Griffin, holding him to the most up-and-down 18 and 12 night you’ll ever see. Read More »

We take enough shots at the Clippers. When you have a racist owner – someone who heckles his own star players – then you deserve it. But we can still show love to perhaps the only good thing L.A.’s JV team has done in the past 20 years outside of drafting Blake Griffin. Elton Brand might’ve had all of Philly ready to sucker punch him these past three years, but during the 2005-06 season, he was a fantasy kingpin. 24.7 points a night. 10 boards. 2.5 blocks every game. Those are Tim Duncan numbers. Those are “get on my back” numbers. Those are “I’m blowing up in the world” numbers. Read More »