Each Wednesday, we’ll be assessing how the top prospects of the 2013 NBA Draft are faring in college and overseas. Stick with us each week for assorted thoughts, including the biggest risers and fallers, the standouts, the sleepers and what we know and don’t know about the next NBA Draft class… Read More »

The last time Rick Pitino and Mike Krzyzewski met up in a NCAA Tournament game, they were a part of one of the most memorable moments in basketball history. This time, 21 years later, their latest matchup will be remembered for an entirely different reason. Read More »

It had been 19 years since Michigan had made the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament. But dabble in a little Trey Burke, and add in some copious amounts of the Kansas Jayhawks — who have a history of this sort of choking — and it all adds up to the best comeback of March Madness … After overtime, the final score read, 87-85, Michigan, but make no mistake: it wasn’t the Wolverines that won the game. It was their point guard. Read More »

Midnight Madness is over, and with it went the smoke machines, dunk contests and laser shows that kick off the season. College basketball begins now, and while the excitement still remains it’s time to peel the hype back and see who the nation’s best truly are. That’s why Dime has you covered with individual previews of the nation’s top 15 teams and a few others just outside, all over the course of the next few weeks. Today, Duke. Read More »

Watching Jay Williams address the completely enrapt New Hampton Prep basketball team late Sunday night at the Hoophall Classic, it was clear he was firmly in his element. Basketball has obviously always been a big part of Williams’ life, but you could make a case he’s never been quite as immersed as he is now.

As an ESPN college basketball analyst, Williams splits his time between calling games and working on studio shows, while also commentating for the network’s rapidly expanding interest in high school ball. The latter assignment gives him the opportunity to take part in one of his favorite pastimes: mentoring young athletes. There isn’t a player on any level that doesn’t have the utmost respect for the former No. 2 pick in the NBA Draft, and he commonly takes time to pull players aside and offer a few words of wisdom. Read More »

A few weeks ago, Detroit dismantled St. John’s on national television. While this may have surprised a few people, it came as no surprise to hardcore basketball recruiting fans. Ray McCallum denied offers from the likes of Duke and Kansas to play for his father at Detroit. While it is unlikely that McCallum’s decision would have been for Detroit had his father not been the coach, his decision brought up an interesting question: should high-major recruits turn down big offers to play for lower-level schools? Read More »

With Twitter and such slashing attention spans and news cycles, our culture more than ever possesses an instant gratification mentality that screams, “What have you done for me lately?” Never mind your last performance, you’re only as good as your last moment.

How else to explain the relentless early-season scrutinization of Duke freshman guard Austin Rivers? Read More »

If Duke played all of their games out in Maui, they might end up as the greatest college team ever. Yesterday they added to their all-time perfect record (14-0) there and clinched a spot in the championship game, beating Michigan 82-75. Living and dying by the three is the way of the college game now, and however unpredictable it might be, Duke is the best at it. It came through for them again. Michigan needed a perfect night of basketball, but they certainly didn’t get it during the first half. Tim Hardaway Jr., for all the praise we’ve been giving him, was terrible for most of the night. The Devils shut him out in the first half and built up a double-digit lead that withstood any comebacks the Wolverines countered with in the second frame. 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 »

So after months and months of rambling back and forth, he reported she reported, and the owners and players doing a fair amount of snipping back and forth, it looks like we will have some type of resolution within the next four or five days. Whether it’s the resolution we want is another story. The negotiating is over, and for the players this is really the last realistic deal they will have a chance of signing before the entirety of this season goes bye bye. Some, like Danny Granger seem to think this offer will be rejected by the players. This whole thing comes down to this: the players know they’re getting a raw deal. They know it’ll be conceding defeat. But it’s this or nothing. Do they really want to lose a whole season? … Read More »