At Presidents’ Weekend last season, the Miami Heat were in the running to make the playoffs in their first season following LeBron James’ departure. Chris Bosh told SheridanHoops after the All-Star Game that he was excited for Miami’s playoff push. Then came the shocking news that Bosh would miss the rest of the season with blood clots on his lungs. Without him, the Heat missed the postseason for the first time since 2008, the year before Erik Spoelstra took over as
This may become one of the most entertaining seasons in Utah Jazz history. The prospect of Quin Snyder coaching a talented young core led by growing stars Gordon Hayward, Derrick Favors and Rudy Gobert has elicited quiet whispers about making the playoffs. Will the Jazz’s supporting cast lift them up or let them down? What is GM Dennis Lindsey doing, and will his risks pay off in the long term? Basketball enthusiasts should watch the Jazz this season just to see how
In 2014-15, the Detroit Pistons’ season broke down into three key sample sizes: 1. Pre-Josh Smith buyout (Oct. 29-Dec. 22). Detroit went 5-23, was 28th in offensive rating (97.6) and 24th in defensive rating (105.8). 2. Post-Josh Smith buyout, pre-Brandon Jennings injury (Dec. 23-Feb. 19). Detroit did a virtual 180, going 16-10 with the sixth-ranked offensive rating (106.4) while improving their defensive rating to middle-of-the-pack status (15th, 101.9). 3. Post-Reggie Jackson acquisition (Feb. 20-April 15). The Pistons closed the season 11-17 and regressed to the mean
In his essay in Sports Illustrated last summer, LeBron James famously wrote, “I’m not promising a championship. I know how hard that is to deliver. We’re not ready right now. No way.” His prediction turned out to be correct – the Cleveland Cavaliers did not win the championship. Objectively, 2014-15 was still the best season in the history of the franchise. They made it to the NBA Finals for just the second time, won a Finals game for the first time,
The Milwaukee Bucks were one of last season’s biggest fairy tale stories. It’s not a common occurrence in the NBA for a team to go from a sorry 15 wins in one season to the playoffs in the very next campaign. But that’s exactly what the Bucks did in 2014-15. If that wasn’t remarkable enough, it is the factors that contributed to Milwaukee’s success that really stand out. Caoch Larry Drew was fired and replaced by Jason Kidd after Kidd’s power play
The Phoenix Suns are a fascinating bunch to watch, in the way fans watch a demolition derby for the promise of imminent destruction. Coach Jeff Hornacek, entering the final guaranteed year of his contract, has to right the ship without the benefit of a rising star to buoy hopes for the future. That Hornacek was able to cobble together an 87-77 record the last two years without a single All-Star is a testament to his coaching ability. But he lost
For the San Antonio Spurs, most of the summers over the past few years have been about adding a few minor pieces to the roster. Their core was usually intact, and the team never had too much cap space in free agency. However, this past July was a memorable one for the Spurs as they were actually a serious contender in the free agent market with maximum cap space available. The Spurs not only re-signed core pieces in Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili,
There was a train wreck at Penn Station last season. It was known as the New York Knicks, who endured the worst season in franchise history. It happened under the watch of Phil Jackson, one of the franchise’s heroes and a name synonymous with winning in the NBA. Jackson and the Knicks went to work this offseason in the draft and in free agency to get the team back on track. Despite concerns from fans about drafting the next Frederic Weis, the