You could say I’ve been following the NBA for a while. The first game I ever attended was Game 3 of the 1972 NBA Finals, which featured seven members of the 50 Greatest Players – Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry West, Walt Frazier, Jerry Lucas, Earl Monroe, Dave DeBusschere and Willis Reed, who was injured. It also featured Pat Riley and Phil Jackson, two of the 10 Greatest Coaches. I grew up in Brooklyn, which wasn’t wired for cable. You could watch whatever the
The three-team deal sending Jeff Green to Memphis has been completed, adding another top Western Conference contender to the list of teams that have made upgrades. Grades for all the deals made by West teams can be viewed here. To remind you: The Rockets got Corey Brewer in a trade and signed Josh Smith; the Mavericks acquired Rajon Rondo; the Suns picked up Brandan Wright; and the Thunder added Dion Waiters. In the East, the Cavs have brought in Timofey Mozgov, Iman
Sometimes weirdness creeps up on you slowly. You are aware of it, but because it happens gradually, you get used to it. But you watch what’s happening in New York, then you look at the larger overall NBA picture, and you think how strange is it that three of the greatest winners in the history of basketball had become either tolerant of or responsible for losing? Five years after winning his 11th NBA title as a head coach, Phil Jackson has the
Did you hear LeBron James is back in Cleveland? And Derrick Rose has returned from injury! Stop the presses! It’s an exciting time in the NBA’s Eastern Conference, to be sure, but those two stories aren’t the only two worth mentioning as the league’s opening day gets closer and closer. The Toronto Raptors are legit, and there is reason to think they could improve on their breakout performance last season in 2014-2015. For starters, to state the obvious, the East is a
The New York Times brought the front page news recently that more people watched The Walking Dead and NCIS; New Orleans last week than Game 1 of the World Series. Which leads me to Prediction No. 1 for the 2014-15 NBA season: Commissioner Adam Silver is going to take on the national pastime, move up the start of the season by a week and see what happens. Which leads us to prediction No. 2: When Silver does this, his league will outdraw the
In an attempt to quicken the pace of games and time spent on replay reviews, the NBA has opened a brand new replay center focused on just that. The replay center will help referees to make the right calls on reviewable plays, in a much more timely fashion. With the ability to view multiple different camera angles on one screen at a time, the refs will have what they need to expedite these often lengthy periods of review. The facility is
As many fans often suggest, Sunday is a day for football. And, with the NBA’s 2014-15 regular season yet to have started, many fans, including those within the association, have their eyes afixed on the entertainment that is the National Football League. The Sunday Night Football game between the Broncos and 49ers drew attention from many eyes around the NBA, among which included 13-time NBA champion and New York Knicks president of basketball operations Phil Jackson. [Read more…]
The Big Aristotle is back in full-on clown mode. With the NBA season just over a week away, and the NBA On TNT crew is due to kick things off with a doubleheader on opening night, the timing is all too perfect for Shaquille O’Neal to be entertaining fans with a top-notch Charles Barkley and crew Photoshop. What better way to go than to feature the Round Mound of Rebound and TNT cohorts Grant Hill, Chris Webber and Kenny Smith in their