I always wait until the final day of the season to make up my mind on my official NBA ballot choices. Why? Because during the lockout-shortened NBA season in 1999, I was in San Antonio covering a forgettable game at the Alamodome when I spoke with a veteran writer for a national publication who had already submitted his ballot after only 44 of the 50 games had been played. I asked him, and I asked myself … “What’s the rush?” I was working at
Hello and welcome to the Evening News. (Apologies to those of you in Oz). As the NBA regular season dies down and the playoff races heat up, we’ll keep you updated every evening. What’s happening today? Here’s the latest news around the league: [Read more…]
Tonight at midnight, like I do every year at this time, I will face East, toward Springfield, Mass., and give a prayer of Thanksgiving. Thank heavens that’s over! I mean to tell you, it was a long season out here in the place I named Lakerdom – or actually stole from Lester Hayes, the great cornerback and quote machine who made up Raiderdom. Of course, Lakerdom now vies for its very existence with Clipper Nation, which used to put in rare appearances, like
NEW YORK — Rasheed Wallace will not be rescuing the New York Knicks in the playoffs. If someone comes out of nowhere to help them, it will be well-traveled center Earl Barron. One day after signing Quentin Richardson after the release of Kurt Thomas, the Atlantic Division champs made another roster move. On the final day of the regular season, and the last day for a player to sign and be playoff-eligible, Knicks VP of basketball operations Glen Grunwald announced the team
Featuring picks and comments by Rob Dudek Click on this banner to sign up for DraftStreet daily baseball leagues Every MLB team is scheduled to play, but the 12:10 Eastern start (Royals at Braves) and a game at 3:35 (HOU at OAK) will not be included in the majority of leagues. There are plenty of early-closing events that do include them, but we’re going to focus primarily on the 7:05 contests. [Read more…]
The Atlanta Hawks are going to lose to the New York Knicks tonight. The only question is by how much? A victory would not be a good thing for Atlanta. They would move up to fifth place (along with a Chicago loss), and they would be setting themselves up for a second-round beatdown against the Miami Heat — if they were first able to defeat Brooklyn in Round One. And no, the Hawks would not be the ones beating anybody down if
With the regular season just about over, it’s time to hand out the annual awards. MVP and Rookie of the Year are forgone conclusions: it’s LeBron James and Damian Lillard’s to lose. Case closed. It gets much murkier after that, though, as no one else has truly separated themselves to be called unanimous candidates to win any particular award. [Related: Chris Bernucca – The Envelops, Please] [Read more…]
The difference between talent and skill is one of the most misunderstood concepts of the NBA – and sports in general, for that matter. Talent you have naturally. Every player in the NBA has some form of natural talent. But skill can only be developed by hours and hours of working on your craft. 10,000 hours, as Malcolm Gladwell has famously professed. This is as true for individuals as it is teams. [Read more…]