While everyone normally talks about summer hoops in NYC, L.A. and D.C., you’d be crazy to forget about Raleigh, N.C., and the Greater NC Pro-Am. Known by many as the “Rucker of the South,” this summer league brings out the best from the area, which last night meant Raleigh’s own John Wall going head-to-head with former NC State star Julius Hodge. In front of a packed house of 3,000 people, Wall (12 points) and incoming UNC freshman P.J. Hairston squeaked out a two-point victory over Hodge (20 points), Jawad Williams, Miles Plumlee and incoming Duke freshmen Quinn Cook and Marshall Plumlee.
In one of the most storied rivalries in sports, Duke and North Carolina played last night at Cameron Indoor Stadium, in what turned out to be a great game. For a collegiate clash that date’s all the way back to 1920, Duke got their 100th win in the all-time series, although UNC still leads 130-100. With everyone still buzzing about Tobacco Road this morning, we decided to ponder what an alumni game with current NBA players would look like today. Read More »
In the NBA’s offseason, coaches are just like fantasy owners: Tinkering with their roster at home like kids would arrange and re-arrange battalions of plastic Army toys, to the point where some already have a rotation in place by the time training camp begins.
Brand-new Golden State Warriors coach Keith Smart, for example, said he has his lineup in place less than a week into camp: Stephen Curry, Monta Ellis, Dorell Wright, David Lee and Andris Biedrins. Meanwhile, other coaches will use camp to let players compete for jobs. Read More »
Last call for last-minute entries into the Carmelo Anthony sweepstakes. While the NBA world waits to see if the Nuggets pull the trigger on the four-team deal that would send ‘Melo to the Nets, at least one new team is getting into the mix. The Sixers have reportedly pitched a scenario where Andre Iguodala would go to Denver as part of a package for ‘Melo … Philly has never been on any of Anthony’s wish lists, but he could do a lot worse in finding a new home. It’s a major East Coast media market, it’s not that far from NYC, and the Sixers’ future prospects are looking good. Read More »
Looks like not everyone wants to leave Ohio. As we noted in Smack, Cleveland native Jawad Williams has accepted the Cavs’ one-year, partially guaranteed qualifying offer for $1.02 million this season. After becoming a rotation player and even starting six of the 54 games he played in last year, take a look at what Cavs fans have to look forward to.
After the Heat brought in LeBron and Chris Bosh to play with D-Wade, and the Miami roster began to take shape, the next obvious question was, “Where will they play?” It’s not like the ’07 Celtics, where it only made sense to plug in Ray Allen at the two and KG at the four because Boston had pieces set in place elsewhere. With this Miami group, having Mario Chalmers and Carlos Arroyo at PG, and everybody yet nobody at center, plus throwing multi-positional Mike Miller into the mix, there are lots of possibilities. Coach Erik Spoelstra cleared up some confusion in an interview with the Miami Herald. Read More »
Imagine the disappointment that swept across the NBA TV studios when they found out LeBron was sick and going to miss last night’s big preseason game between the Cavs and Wizards. No tense ‘Bron/DeShawn encounters, no real reason for highlight montages of LBJ taking Washington’s heart in the playoffs, no smooth segues to talk about Mike Miller wearing LeBron’s signature shoes. And to top it off, starting in LBJ’s place was Jawad Williams, who scored 21 points (4 threes) in his last Smack mention of the season, a Cleveland loss … Gilbert Arenas put up 18 points for the Wiz, while Miller scored 24 (5 threes) and Randy Foye scored 21. However, Antawn Jamison hurt his shoulder in the first quarter and didn’t return. Read More »
Now that James White (of legitimate free-throw line dunk contest fame) has taken the big leap from the D-League to the Houston Rockets, we’re on the lookout for the next D-Leaguer bound for the League.
Check out these 10 guys who have been killing it as of late.
10. Jared Jordan – Everybody’s favorite Marist guard, Jared Jordan led the nation in assists in college, just under 9 per night. It seemed as though his dream of playing in the NBA was fading at the beginning of this season, when he finished December averaging 4.8 points and 4.2 assists. But he’s come on incredibly strong as of late, proving to be one of the best passers in the D-League. Read More »
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