An essential element in the cult of Michael Jordan is the fact that the man never lost an NBA Finals. It’s how we choose to remember him: Perfect. 6-0 in the endgame. Unassailable. In doing so, we place him in the tiniest of circles, that being multiple champions who never lost a title. Read More »

This is the first post in a three-part series we will be running today on the best decade in NBA history. Was it the 1980s? The 1990s? Or the 2000s? Can you make the arguments that one of the earlier decades was even better? Sure. But not likely. Can you make an argument that one of these three was the best ever? Of course. And that’s what we’re doing…

The 1980’s was a wild decade. Bon Jovi dominated the charts. Wall Street was booming. I was conceived. But other than all that great stuff, it was the best decade for the NBA. If the 1970s had the best style of basketball and the ’90s featured the best players, the ’80s was the happy medium between the two. Although I was only alive for one year of it, I know that 1980’s basketball was a beautiful thing – a true incarnation of American glitz and glamour that defined the decade. Read More »

So you’re a fan of an NBA team other than the Cavs or T-Wolves (thank God) and you’re worried that your squad won’t be able to land in impact player in Thursday’s draft. Word on the street is that this year’s draft class is uglier than Shawn Marion’s jumper and conventional wisdom says that players drafted outside the lottery rarely pan out. Read More »

Playing in the same American Century Celebrity Golf Championship as Jimmer Fredette, Charles Barkley heads into the tournament with 500-1 odds. Arguably the most entertaining basketball personality on television, Barkley has no reservations about speaking his mind. I caught up with Chuck yesterday to talk about Jordan, LeBron, Shaq, gambling and the looming NBA lockout. Read More »

You may have noticed that the drama surrounding Scottie Pippen‘s comments concerning the NBA’s G.O.A.T. had begun to die down. Well, that was only because Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was late to the party. In the letter below posted on his website, he had some less than kind words for Mr. Pippen. Read More »

Even the most arduent Laker haters never saw this coming. A sweep? In the second round? To the Dallas Mavericks? There was no history to back it up, no real direct signs, nothing. L.A. had destroyed Dallas in their final matchup of the regular season, and most figured this playoff meeting would be much of the same. If anything, it was going to be just a bump in the road as the Lakers went about trying to win a third title. Read More »

Seventeen years later, I can’t quite remember her name or even what she looked like. But I’ll never forget what she did for me.

My sixth-grade school librarian, perhaps noticing the kid flipping through the same Sports Illustrated every day until the new issue showed up, cut me a deal: She would give me two old SI issues from the archives in the back room, and when I returned them, she’d give me two more. It was Netflix before its time, no fee. That’s how I learned to be a sports writer. Read More »

If we really thought Kobe Bryant is the most cold-hearted villain in professional sports and deserving of a role opposite Tobey Maguire in the next Spider-Man flick, here’s what we would have said happened last night: Kobe let Ray Allen have the first half, then spent the second half ruining Ray’s shining moment, then used the final minute to stick the proverbial rusty ice pick in Ray’s ribcage on national TV and in front of Ray’s girl and his Moms. But that’s only if we thought Kobe is really, truly cold like that. Surely everything that happened last night was mere coincidence … Read More »

Everyone has heard the name Stan Smith somewhere, but hopefully you’ve heard his name in reference to his accomplishments on the tennis court. If not, it’s likely you’ve seen or owned a pair of the classic adidas Stan Smith tennis shoes that are in their 40th year of production. With highlights that include winning the 1971 US Open, 1972 Wimbledon and a No. 1 overall ranking in the world, he was kind of a big deal. We were able to talk to the man worthy of bearing his name and face on a pair of shoes recently, about everything from playing high school basketball to hanging out with the Lakers to the Duke-Carolina rivalry. Read More »

Kevin Durant has always been a big-stage performer. He just needs the stage. So when no members of the Redeem Team suited up for Team USA at the World Championship this summer, Durant took full advantage of his opportunity to become basketball’s leading man. Now as his fourth NBA season is underway and he leads the League in scoring (again) — averaging 28.3 points per game through the Oklahoma City Thunder’s first 15 games — the 22-year-old occupies rarified air as perhaps the best player on the planet. Read More »