Whenever I’m asked if I have been watching the NCAA Tournament, I say, “No. I haven’t.” That raises some eyebrows in my home state of Connecticut, where both genders of Huskies basketball have been winning national championships for nearly a generation and are followed religiously by the Nutmeg State’s hoops fans. But among the many reasons I don’t go mad in March is because over that same generation, the college game has become less and less of a barometer for NBA success.
Which former first-round picks are trying to earn their way back to the NBA via Europe? Gone are the days where being a first-round pick nearly guarantees at least a four-year NBA career, with several opportunities to produce before teams give up on you. With the new CBA, teams are cutting costs from every possible angle, and with many options for minimum salary players from the D-League and overseas developing, more and more first-round picks are finding themselves on the outside
In Sunday night’s preseason game between the Lakers and the Warriors, we witnessed something that may take a while to get used to: Steve Nash was running the floor alongside Kobe Bryant in a Lakers uniform. If you’re not a Lakers fan, what we saw was bad news because Nash – as he always does – made the game look so darned easy for everyone else. The Warriors actually blew the game open for a 110-83 victory and showed promising
Before Ray Allen agreed to join the Miami Heat, nothing of major significance happened in free agency today, with the exception of the return of one Brandon Roy and the Philadelphia 76ers making some major roster adjustments. Aside from that, today’s news is filled with teams and players’ options, desires, possibilities and opinions. First reported by Jason Quick of the Oregonian, Brandon Roy has agreed to deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves: “Brandon Roy has agreed to a two-year, $10 million deal
Usually, the winners make the headlines. In today’s roundup, however, the losers were the story of Saturday night as a handful of teams fighting to make the playoffs came up short. With three different teams — Milwaukee, Utah and Phoenix — still within reach of the eighth and final playoff seed in their respective Conferences, how many of them came out with a victory? None. Starting with the most inexplicable blowout of the night – the only game on national television – the Spurs
Who needs Kobe Bryant? Not the Lakers, if last night’s impressive road win means anything. You have to start with Andrew Bynum grabbing 30 rebounds, which has happened exactly twice in 12 years. He added 16 points but was unhappy with his 7-20 shooting. Metta World Peace had 26 points, easily a season high, and Pau Gasol (21 & 11) played well. It was a rare off-night for the Spurs: Danny Green scored 22, but Tony Parker went just 2-12
We may have to start making these a bit tougher. Three readers nailed the right answer to last week’s edition of The Bernucca List, which was Team USA’s 2002 World Championships roster, a squad that finished a resounding sixth despite owning home-court advantage. Reader Little Al gets extra credit for adding Nick Collison as an alternate. Edition IV is below. Know the answer? Tweet it to me or post a comment. The Bernucca List Earl Barron Derrick Brown Jonathan Bender Joe Crawford J.R. Giddens Eddie House Larry Hughes Marcus Landry Tracy McGrady Darko