A number of clichés might be applied to Mark Cuban, but “flying under the radar” is not one of them. Cuban fielded a Dallas Mavericks team this year that had little if any reason to have high expectations. But, of course, he had grand plans. [Read more…]
We come to you today to praise the memory of the Swamp Dragons, who are part of NBA lore but not part of NBA history. They were so close to being real – at least as real as a nickname and mascot could be. But they were extinguished at the last minute, and the only part of them that lives is a logo. [Read more…]
Although I believe there are a number of practices conducted by the NBA where it would be appropriate for David Stern to apologize, depriving Miami Heat fans of the thrill of seeing Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker is not one of them. You want to apologize for unacceptable behavior? Let’s start with that Miami public address announcer – the one who greets every basket like Mel Gibson greets torture in Braveheart. [Read more…]
In the instant, overreactive world of sports, it’s always folly to make sweeping, long-term statements. For example, the Lakers started 1-4 this season and a few voices wondered aloud if the city of Los Angeles might become a Clippers town. [Read more…]
Watching DeMarcus Cousins yap at Tim Duncan in a game last week must have made Spurs broadcaster Sean Elliott feel like Lloyd Bentson when Dan Quayle compared himself to John F. Kennedy in 1988. [Read more…]
When the NBA lockout was announced in the summer of 2011, I was driving the streets of Dallas and checking out the three sports radio stations in the area. I listened briefly to each one to get their take on the major news of the day and then called my basketball cohort Mike Monroe in San Antonio. “Guess what the three sports radio stations are discussing?” I said. “Not the lockout?” wondered Monroe. “Hardly.” “Well then what?” “Two of the three are in animated discussions
If Steve Nash had a different set of skills, it wouldn’t be a reach to suggest he might have been David Copperfield. Nash is perhaps the most unlikely looking franchise player in NBA history – a 6-3, 195-pound guard who seems much shorter and slighter when mingling with the giants who usually dominate NBA games. Nash is so slick that he makes us forget how good he is. It seems, for example, that a long time has passed since the Phoenix Suns
As we get underway with the NBA season, we know we are in store for some wondrous action. We also know in the majority of the 1,230 regular season games on the schedule, the entertainment will be wonderful. And we know acts of wonder by players will be performed regularly. But as the season begins, we are face with a different sort of wonder – the one of uncertainty. So as we predict and project, I find myself contemplating these mysteries. Call them the Twelve