Usually there is no “D” in D’Antoni, however a few minor moves seem to indicate that the Knicks are finally committed to stopping their opponent on the defensive side of the floor. Although the Knicks head coach has had plenty of both regular season and postseason success, his lack of an NBA Finals appearance has caused the public to dub him as too offensive-minded to ever win a championship. For all of those D’Antoni doubters, help is finally on the way. Read More »

Do you have any friends or relatives who are just a constant optimist? Everything that happens, whether good or bad, they’ll find the positives. The glass is always half full. When it comes to the NBA lockout, we have our go-to optimists as well. All of us have that one guy who’s always down to cheer us up or say something, anything, to put the bad stuff in the rearview. That dude ain’t LaMarcus Aldridge. He’s one of our favorite players and all, but he vented a little bit to The Oregonian, saying “it’s going to be awhile” until the lockout ends. Read More »

Would you pay to get Kobe to play? It seems like Besiktas is willing to take anything at this point. The club is on the verge of making the biggest international signing ever, but don’t quite have to funds to pull Bryant from the States. Depending on who you talk to, Kobe is interested or had his managers contact the team or is waiting on an offer that might not be worth it unless a sponsorship steps up to front the loot. However, the New York Times is reporting that the Turkish club has indeed made an offer to the Laker and is only waiting on a response from his agent … Read More »

In his first nine months as majority owner of an NBA franchise, Michael Jordan has been through a few years’ worth of experiences:

He watched his Charlotte Bobcats make their first-ever playoff appearance, then watched them suffer their first-ever postseason series sweep. In free agency he re-signed a promising future building block (Tyrus Thomas), then let a potential All-Star point guard walk (Ray Felton). Now he has helped facilitate the departure of his team’s head coach, Larry Brown, meaning Jordan’s next big task will be hiring a replacement. Read More »

By hiring former Mike Woodson assistant Larry Drew as its next head coach, the Hawks sent a message: Things need to change around here … but not that much.

The Hawks have improved each year for the last five, including a 53-win campaign this season where they earned the No. 3 seed in the East. And even if All-Star Joe Johnson leaves in free agency, Atlanta still has a solid young core in Josh Smith, Al Horford, Marvin Williams and Jeff Teague, plus a couple of solid vets in leadership positions, Jamal Crawford and Mike Bibby. Read More »

It’s easier when your team sucks. At least it’s easier for the GM/executive/owner in charge of hiring a new head coach. When an NBA team sucks (Clippers, 76ers, Nets) just about anybody who’s different from the previous coach is a good hire. If he’s got a solid resume and some name recognition? Gravy.

But when a team is replacing a coach who was relatively successful, the process becomes tougher. Read More »

On just about every level of basketball, a coach’s fate is largely determined by the expectations preceding him. For proof, look no further than the Atlanta Hawks and Milwaukee Bucks.

It’s been a couple of weeks since coach Mike Woodson‘s Hawks waxed Scott Skiles‘ Bucks in Games Six and Seven of their first-round playoff series, and yet today it’s Skiles whose team is considered moving in the right direction, while Woodson is unemployed and his former team faces a mini-rebuilding summer. It worked out that way because the Bucks overachieved beyond preseason expectations that they’d be one of the worst teams in the NBA, while the Hawks fell short of expectations, looking like they didn’t belong on the court with the Eastern Conference’s elite after eliminating Milwaukee.

So with Skiles’ job secure for the foreseeable future, what do the Bucks have to do this offseason to stay on the right track? Read More »

The NBA is off until Sunday, when the Celtics and Magic tip-off the Eastern Conference Finals (Lakers vs. Suns begins Monday). In the meantime, be prepared for 24/7 LeBron James coverage. With everybody weighing in yesterday to either breakdown what went wrong for the Cavs or speculate where LeBron will end up this summer, it was LBJ overload on Friday. Realistically, it’s going to come down to three teams: Cleveland, Chicago or New York. They’re going to throw everything they have at LeBron, but what happens for the two franchises that miss out on him? Read More »

Forget about NBA championship dreams for now — the Atlanta Hawks are just trying to avoid getting swept out of the second round for the second year in a row.

While last night’s Game 2 loss wasn’t nearly as bad as the 43-point wiping they took in Game 1, the Hawks have yet to show they can steal a game from the Orlando Magic, let alone four games and a series. Last night the Hawks were up eight at halftime and down one going into the fourth quarter before losing by 14. They couldn’t stop Dwight Howard early and couldn’t stop Vince Carter late. Read More »

I said going into the playoffs that, under the radar, Hawks/Bucks could be the best series of the first round. It’s looking like Spurs/Mavs will take that title, but with the Hawks and Bucks tied up at two games apiece going back to Atlanta for tonight’s Game 5, it could still be the only series to go seven games in the first round.

That didn’t seem possible after the Hawks won Games 1 and 2 handily, but then they got swept in Milwaukee, as Brandon Jennings and John Salmons finally started playing well at the same time, and Carlos Delfino went off for six triples and a Dunk of the Playoffs candidate in Game 4. Read More »