NBA OFFSEASON REPORT CARDS. Click here for Part I, here for Part II, and here for Part III. Ryan Anderson of the New Orleans Hornets NEW ORLEANS HORNETS — They were a punching bag around here, and rightfully so, but did turn it on quite admirably at the end of the season. They have a new owner in Tom Benson who brings more stability than they’ve ever had, they made the wise move of extending coach Monty Williams,
NBA OFFSEASON REPORT CARDS: Click here for Part I, here for Part II, here for Part III and here for Part IV. New Blazers coach Terry Stotts PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS – There will come a time at some point during the season when one of the Vulcan vultures will fly down from Seattle, have a meeting with the coaching staff and front office, after which Neil Olshey, Terry Stotts and Jay Triano – three of the nicest guys
PHILADELPHIA—In the adjacent room of the National Constitution Center, unsuspecting little old ladies posed for pictures with statues of the Founding Fathers, the men who were instrumental in the birth of a nation. Chances are they’d never heard of Andrew Bynum, the man whom the Philadelphia 76ers hope will be just as instrumental in their own rebirth as a true NBA power. Into the center of the hall he marched Wednesday, ringed by hundreds of boisterous basketball fans whose voices have been
Are you happy that the interminable saga surrounding Dwight Howard’s next destination is mercifully over? Yeah, us too. Most NBA observers – and we’re talking about everyone from Commissioner David Stern to billionaire owners to sleep-deprived GMs to fellow superstars to media members to fans to forum flamers – are mentally moving on from Howard now that he finally has been traded from the Orlando Magic to the Los Angeles Lakers. Yes, there is a faction of folks who feel there may be
// The blockbuster went down today, and Dwight Howard is going to the Lakers. Who won? Who lost? We’ll take it team-by team: LOS ANGELES LAKERS — They are replacing the best center in the Western Conference with the best center in the Eastern Conference. And let there be no doubt — Dwight is twice the player that ‘Drew is. Howard has 41 career 20-20 games (scoring at least 20 points and grabbing at least 20 rebounds), with his last one coming in what
So we’re all getting a reminder of how things are really day-to-day in the Olympics, eh? A couple days ago, Carmelo Anthony had the new U.S. Olympics scoring record (37) and Team USA was considered unbeatable after they out Dream Teamed the original Dream Team and beat Nigeria by 83. Then we get through Day 4 of the competition, and the world has turned upside down. The single highest-scoring game now belongs to Patty Mills of Australia, who dropped 39 on Great
After examining the biggest losers among NBA players this summer, it’s only right that we examine those that have cashed in. Centers always have and always will be hot commodities in the NBA, but some of the players below have found themselves in new situations with excellent opportunities. Sometimes, winning as a free agent is a result of being in the right place at the right time. And sometimes, it requires falling down before dusting yourself off and finding a new beginning.
Earlier this week, our Mark Heisler reported that the Orlando Magic would be willing to wait until next summer to trade Dwight Howard if that is what it takes to get fair value for the superstar center. It’s hard to imagine Howard even coming to training camp with the Magic, let alone playing the entire season in Orlando, where he is slightly more popular than George Zimmerman and Casey Anthony. But what if he did? The NBA schedule was released Thursday, and more