Just six NBA teams have played at a .600 pace this season. A seventh briefly reached the threshold last week, and you have to wonder how in the world they got there. Consider that this team: Is in the bottom five in 3-point makes, attempts and percentage in the most prolific season for 3-pointers in league history. Has been without its best player for over a month. Responded to losing its best player by dealing two more of its top five remaining rotation players
NEW YORK – The Big East tournament featured two lottery picks, a local high school phenom, a breakout draft candidate and the latest Georgetown center with NBA potential. Kris Dunn and Henry Ellenson headlined the event as the top draft prospects, but it was former Lincoln High School star Isaiah Whitehead who stole the show. Whitehead made a runner off the backboard while being fouled against Villanova and then made the free throw to give Seton Hall the Big East tournament
As the NBA regular season approaches its final stage, it’s already Finals time in China. Contending for the title after a 1-1 tie at the conclusion of Game 2 it’s Liaoning and Sichuan. We’ve already introduced the two teams here and here respectively (not only that, we’ve also praised their accomplishments here), so we’ll spare the formalities and dive right into what’s going on in these Finals. But we’re not stopping here: while the last stage of the Chinese season is unfolding, some of its
It’s been just over three weeks since the NBA trade deadline and 10 days since the March 1 buyout deadline that saw numerous players joining playoff contenders. So which acquisitions are soaring and which are flailing? We’re going to look at 15 players who were recently acquired via trade or signing and sort them into three categories: Good, Bad and Obscure. The good players are making positive impacts on their teams, the bad players just haven’t been faring very well on their new
By now, the Golden State Warriors should be accustomed to the scrutiny produced by their championship last season and their pursuit of 73 victories this season. Everything they do is magnified, which was evident again on Sunday. Their bizarre loss to the woeful Los Angeles Lakers generated great debate throughout the sports world. On ABC, it was announced that no NBA team with 55 victories had ever lost to a team with 51 losses. So that is the biggest regular season upset
In the brave new world of basketball analytics, trends and modules, a simpler stat surfaced this week that was utterly inexplicable. Two teams have lost 10 games this season in which they led after three quarters. One is the league-worst Philadelphia 76ers, who have no one on their roster who knows how to win a game. The other is the Oklahoma City Thunder, who have two of the supposed best closers in the game in Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. [Read more…]
Welcome back for the first post All-Star break edition of the Gambling Guru column Speaking of All-Star weekend, was Aaron Gordon not absolutely ripped off in the dunk contest? I might be speaking from my wallet but that looked like daylight robbery to me! Greener pastures for Joe-Jesus As predicted in this very column earlier in the season – Joe Johnson found his way onto a contender. Surprisingly to me though, Joe chose a very marginal contender. As it stands, there are only four teams
Of all the superlatives that have been used to describe Stephen Curry this season, the best may have come from Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle, who in late December compared Curry to Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. “They changed our everyday life,” Carlisle said. “Steph Curry is changing the way our game will be played in the future.” Two months later, Carlisle had proof when Mark Cuban, his boss, said it is time to begin considering change. “It’s not long before the discussion