A perfect blend of old school and new school. Read More »

Coach K is a pretty cool dude. Always smooth. Always chill. But at about the 12.9 second mark of the second half last night – after he had seen Michigan State chip into Duke’s lead and Mason Plumlee get called for a five-second violation – he had to be feeling that sweat on his brow just a little bit. But after a Spartan miss, the biggest drama of the night was over, the Dukies had won 74-69 and Mike Krzyzewski had the record. He’s now the winningest coach in Division I men’s basketball history with 903 wins, passing one of the men calling the game, Bob Knight. Seriously though, this joint couldn’t have been scripted any better: in MSG, against another great coach in Tom Izzo, playing against a gritty and tough team, and with his mentor looking on, Coach K got what he came for. Read More »

Sometimes when you’re putting together an issue it takes on a life of its own. That was definitely the case for Dime #66. Typically this would have been our NBA Preview Issue, looking at all the stars and storylines for the upcoming year. But with the 2011-12 NBA season indefinitely on hold until a new collective bargaining agreement is in place, a central theme began to arise while we were planning. Read More »

*College basketball is here (unlike the NBA), and this year might be one of the best in recent memory. The powerhouse is back, while the Cinderellas believe. That’s a deadly combination. We know some of y’all have been asking for some previews. We have you covered – the top 16 teams in the nation will be previewed individually in the next few weeks. After we broke down Florida this morning, we’ll keep this going with No. 9-ranked Memphis (ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll).* Read More »

“Do you believe in miracles?”

I don’t speak Russian, but I’m pretty sure that’s what I heard the announcers screaming on the Russian telecast as the final buzzer sounded on their 79-74 upset victory over the United States this morning.

After going 5-1 in group play, the top-seeded Americans were dropped in the quarterfinals of the 2011 FIBA U19 World Championship by a less-than-stellar Russian team that went 3-3 in group play. Read More »

Things were looking down for the United States.

It had blown a double-digit, second-half lead and Patric Young had missed a pair of free throws with 7.3 seconds left in regulation that would have iced the game. After Lithuania’s Arnas Butkevicius sent the game to overtime on a last-second basket, the US U19 squad fell behind by six midway through the extra period. Read More »

It’s crazy the difference a year makes. Last year at this time, the media attention swirling around the NBA was actually picking up steam. Game 7 of the 2010 Finals was an afterthought compared to the free agency craze. Atlanta got so hyped up, they threw Birdman money at Joe Johnson. Cleveland got so hell bent, they were ready to tear down buildings. We were throwing July 8th office parties. Miami was throwing “We are gonna win 10 championships” parties. And LeBron nearly ruined himself. Read More »

Five NCAA teams that got my attention this past weekend for various reasons:

1. Michigan State (7-3) Considering the Detroit Pistons’ fall from NBA grace and Michigan State’s rise to NCAA elite, I’m not sure if Saturday’s doubleheader at The Palace of Auburn Hills was meant to showcase Pistons/Raptors as the main event or the undercard. Before the Pistons blew a 25-point lead and lost their game, the Spartans barely hung on to beat unranked Oakland. Read More »

I called it. Monday night, your favorite player’s favorite player (Josh Selby) put on a show at the POWERADE Jam Fest as part of the McDonald’s All American Game. Thanks to our boys at Hoopmixtape, check it all out below.

If anyone is gonna bother making a season recap video for the Nets, 90 percent of it should focus on last night’s win over the Spurs. (The other 10 percent to the Lottery if they win the John Wall sweepstakes.) Not only did the Nets look like a real-life NBA basketball team for once, they avoided the stink of owning the League’s all-time worst win-loss record … Down five midway through the fourth quarter, Jersey went on a 13-2 run to take control, highlighted by an alley-oop from Devin Harris to Brook Lopez (after which we could’ve sworn Spurs announcer P.J. Carlesimo called Lopez “the rookie”). Read More »