Earlier this season, Dime had a photo shoot set up with an NBA player who is notorious within the industry for being difficult with the media. This time, however, the player and his handlers were uncharacteristically cooperative and excited to do this shoot and be on their best professional behavior. Why? Because as his manager told us, Player X believed he had one more big contract left in him, so he wanted to do everything to get more exposure and project a positive image.

I wish I could tell you that Player X’s mindset is a rarity, but that’s how many pro athletes think. The desire to be put in position to win games and simply play at a high level isn’t necessarily the point. It’s all about the next contract. Read More »

With a bunch of teams in search of a point guard, GMs have started to scour NBA rosters. And one PG that has at least three teams buzzing is the Kings’ Sergio Rodriguez. According to the Sacramento Bee’s Sam Amick, Memphis, New York and New Jersey have all inquired about the fourth-year player, who is also in the final year of his contract. Read More »

As the NBA trading deadline approaches, no name has been thrown around more than Amar’e Stoudemire. An All-Star starter two years running and once thought to be the future of the Phoenix Suns, now it appears certain that if Amar’e isn’t traded this month, he’ll sign with another team in free agency this summer.

Back in Dime #52 (Oct. 2009), Amar’e talked about facing criticism, injuries, falling short of a championship, as well as the trade rumors that have followed him for the last year. Read More »

Following the highlight clip of Michael Redd raining a barrage of jumpers on the OKC Thunder over the weekend, the analysts in the NBA TV studio quickly agreed that Redd is one of the best “pure shooters” this game has ever seen.

I’ve thought the same thing before, and like the NBA TV crew, didn’t give it much debate. Read More »

The word “professional” is probably not the first adjective you would’ve chosen to describe Nate Robinson in the past. But that’s exactly what he was and how he acted like during his 13-game benching. Despite not playing for a month and having to deal with all the embarrassment and drama (mainly between his agent and the team), Robinson kept his mouth shut, cheered for his team and most importantly, stayed ready – both physically and mentally. Read More »

Working at Dime Magazine, a ton of headlines, news and opinions pass through our website each week. Everyday a new story breaks and we change our focus to the next game on the schedule. Before this week gets started, I’ll take the time to reflect on what the NBA taught me last week. Read More »

Nate Robinson has become the outcast in New York. But one person whose got Nate’s back is former NBA All-Star Jerry Stackhouse. A regular on the Chris Russo’s Sirius radio show, Stackhouse defended Robinson by taking some shots at Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni. Read More »

In the past few weeks, it seems the Knicks have found a winning formula and Nate Robinson isn’t one of the ingredients. Although he is perfectly healthy, the diminutive guard has not played in the Knicks’ last nine games due to coach Mike D’Antoni’s decision. In that stretch, the Knicks are 6-3 and when Nate is in the lineup, the team is just 0-9 when he scores 19 or more points. Whether or not those stats imply that the Knicks are better without Robinson in the lineup is debatable. But by the looks of D’Antoni’s actions, the coaching staff seems to think that’s the case. Read More »

The NBA is a point guard rich league. Almost every single team has a floor general who can kill you in a different way. Rajon Rondo can and will blow right past you in a blink of an eye. Jason Kidd can outsmart you and find those small edges that will give him even the slightest advantage. Tony Parker can destroy you with 18-footers all day long. But the point guard that is standing above the rest this season so far is, 35-year-old Steve Nash. Read More »

There is a buzz circulating around NYC as of late. For the past week, the Knicks have actually been playing some decent basketball. They’ve won three in a row and four of their last five (three of which were against winning teams). Coach Mike D’Antoni’s troops have definitely played harder and more importantly, they’ve been playing some defense. Last night against the Blazers, the Knicks forced 19 turnovers and blocked six shots. By the third quarter, New York was blowing out Portland. Read More »