Despite the fact that Yao Ming is gone from the NBA, the Houston Rockets will be virtually unchanged next season – assuming they can re-sign its only free agent (Chuck Hayes) when the NBA resumes. New head coach Kevin McHale shouldn’t really hinder the production of these players, who formed a surprisingly effective offensive machine in 2010-11. With a potent backcourt, a blossoming swingman and some intriguing fill-ins, the Rockets have more than their share of fantasy appeal for the next NBA season. Read More »

UPDATE: Tyreke Evans has committed to play for Team Philly.

What started as a friendly debate between former Syracuse teammates Carmelo Anthony and Hakim Warrick, has turned into a full-blown, winner-take-all grudge match. And as with all basketball debates, this one can only be settled on the court. On Sept. 25 at 6 p.m., ‘Melo will take his talents down I-95 to the City of Brotherly Love, along with a squad that features LeBron James, Chris Paul and Kevin Durant. They will compete against Warrick’s team featuring Philly products Wayne Ellington, Markieff and Marcus Morris, John Salmons, and Flip Murrary. Read More »

Right after the Rockets hired Kevin McHale as their new head coach, he made one thing clear: Houston had to get big. So with the corpse of Yao Ming coming off the books this summer, they started by acquiring Donatas Motiejunas (7-0), Marcus Morris (6-9) and Chandler Parsons (6-9) on Draft Night to pair with Luis Scola (6-9) in the frontcourt. But apparently that was only just the start. They want Andris Biedrins. Read More »

Two twins back-to-back? Awesome. Houston seems to do really well with turning PFs into players. They do it all the time, whether it’s Luis Scola, Chuck Hayes or Carl Landry. Morris was considered the better player of the two twins, and wasn’t supposed to fall this far. Read More »

Can you believe it, the 2011 NBA Draft is under 36 hours away and most teams have an idea of what they are going to do. A few picks seem locked in, but other than that, this is going to possibly be the wildest and most unpredictable draft in recent memory. With new information and chatter, here is how things look to shake out on June 23rd at the Prudential Center in New Jersey: Read More »

Picks 11-20 of the NBA Draft are tainted. Damaged goods. George’s fabled red dot-ruined cashmere sweater. There’s just something wrong, something incomplete. That’s why they fall out of the top 10. Last week I covered the sacred teachings of “Seinfeld” as they relate to picks 1-10 of the Dime Mock Draft 3.0. Luckily, the knowledge of NBC’s greatest comedic creation is never ending. So let’s dive in and see what the Jewish prophets can teach us about picks 11-20. Read More »

The NBA Draft Combine was about a month ago, and a whirlwind of changes have since transpired. At the top we are seeing consistency, especially up to Sacramento at pick No. 7, but after that the show begins. With workouts happening daily, chatter at its highest possible magnitude and the rumors swirling left and right, it is time for a new addition of the Dime NBA Mock Draft. This time of year prospects are working their hardest, agents are earning their money and teams are doing their utmost diligence to find the future of their franchise. This is how we see it today: Read More »

Following the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago and feedback from various individual workouts around the league, we can continue to fine-tune how the draft will play out after the top spot. In the second of many Dime mock drafts leading up to June 23, keep in mind that this is a combination of what we think teams should do and what we think they will do: Read More »

Following tonight’s NBA Draft Lottery at the NBA Entertainment studio in Secaucus, New Jersey, now we can begin to get an idea of how the rest of the draft will play out after the top spot. This is the first of many Dime mock drafts leading up to June 23. As usual, it’s a combination of what we think teams should do and what we think they will do: Read More »

After an outstanding three-year career at Kansas, which included a 2008 NCAA Championship and three Big 12 titles during his tenure, Cole Aldrich was a Lottery pick this June. First selected by the Hornets before being trading to the Thunder on Draft Night, the Bloomington, Minn., native gladly returned to the Midwest. So with everyone’s expectations for the Thunder going through the roof this season, we decided there was no one better to turn to for the inside scoop on life in OKC. In his fifth entry, Cole talks about the D-League Showcase, Serge Ibaka in the dunk contest and his best Christmas gift. Read More »