After jettisoning Dwight Howard in August 2012, the Orlando Magic fully embraced a rebuilding plan, starting over with two young prospects in Nikola Vucevic and Moe Harkless and a veteran contributor in Arron Afflalo. After a surprisingly strong 12-13 start which had some folks around the NBA wondering if they could make the playoffs, the Magic floundered to the finish, losing 49 of their final 57 games. Along the way, they lost Glen Davis to two injuries – one which would
The Toronto Raptors are a team in flux. Gone is President and General Manager Bryan Colangelo and many of his front office staff. Now in charge – strangely enough – is his one-time understudy in Toronto, Masai Ujiri, fresh off an exceptional run as GM of the Denver Nuggets. Ujiri was lured away from the Nuggets by new Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment CEO Tim Leiweke. Ujiri and Leiweke represent not only a changing of the guard for the Dinos but potentially
Six years ago, the Boston Celtics opened what was supposed to be a three-year championship window after the acquisitions of Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen. Along with Paul Pierce, the new “Big Three” won one title and could have won two more if they had remained healthy. Like NASA getting extended use out of an aging Mars Rover, the Celtics trudged along as contenders for a few more years. The three-year window was open for a fourth year. Then a fifth.
This summer, the Brooklyn Nets transformed themselves from pretenders to contenders. However, the transformation came at a steep price. Owner Mikhail Prokhorov has the NBA’s only nine-figure team payroll, which translates to an $87 million luxury tax bill. (He can afford it. He is the NBA’s George Steinbrenner). Nets GM Billy King also mortgaged the future by trading first-round draft picks in 2014, 2016 and 2018 with the right to swap first-round picks in 2017 as part of a trade with Boston
The New York Knicks were stuck in neutral while other Eastern Conference teams improved mightily this offseason. Are they still No. 2 as they were last regular season? Probably not. After a disappointing loss to Indiana in the Eastern Conference semifinals that denied them a shot at the NBA champion Miami Heat, the Knicks essentially replaced Chris Copeland, Jason Kidd and Steve Novak with Metta World Peace, Beno Udrih and Andrea Bargnani. The team also re-signed J.R. Smith, Pablo Prigioni and Kenyon
MIAMI — Over Biscayne Bay, the skies are gray. And on Miami Beach, sunbathers are sparse. But still, in humid South Florida, the heat is on. And inside of the American Airlines Arena, the Miami Heat are on. The clock, that is. [Read more…]
This Eastern Conference finals between Indiana and Miami could go down as one of the best in the past decade. It has been filled with drama and great action. With the Pacers tying the series with a home win in Game 4, it has become a best-of-three to decide which team plays San Antonio in the NBA Finals. Below are the five keys for tonight’s Game 5 in Miami, the potential swing game. [Read more…]
With defensive tenacity and a punishing, menacing front line, the Indiana Pacers have reached the Eastern Conference finals. But if vanquishing the New York Knicks in six games seemed like a tall task, their path to the NBA Finals seems preposterously gargantuan in comparison. To defeat LeBron James in his prime and the Miami Heat in a best-of-seven series is akin to defeating a Michael Jordan-led Bulls team in his prime. James is the best player in the world. He has several