While Victor Oladipo and Trey Burke chase Michael Carter-Williams for Rookie of the Year, a handful of other rookies are helping their teams chase postseason berths and higher seeds. The Eastern Conference has three teams in the playoff chase whose finish will be somewhat impacted by the play of their rookies. The Western Conference has five teams in the hunt with rookies playing a prominent role. The team relying most on rookies is undoubtedly the Atlanta Hawks, who have two rookies in
I’m kinda high on what the Charlotte Bobcats did with Ben Gordon. The Bobcats waived Gordon on Sunday, preventing him from appearing in the postseason should he sign with another team. While they may have alienated his agent – not a trifle thing in the business world of the NBA – two things should be pointed out. 1. When teams waive or buy out players at this time of the season, they are essentially establishing a price they are willing to pay
Does anyone want Danny Granger? How about Jimmer Fredette? Perhaps Caron Butler? And how about this: Someone — the Memphis Grizzlies — wanted Beno Udrih so badly they claimed him off waivers. This is the last week for contenders to shore up their playoff rosters with NBA players for a run they hope will last into June. It is becoming known as February Free Agency. The official NBA rule is that teams have until 11:59 p.m. Eastern time on Saturday, March 1 to waive a
Could the Cleveland Cavaliers lose Kyrie Irving? This seems to be a recurring conversation. On January 31st, nearly four weeks ago, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst published a story regarding Kyrie Irving’s future and upcoming contract negotiations with the Cavaliers this summer. [Read more…]
The temptation is to stick a fork in the Knicks and pronounce them done. The reality? Even after last night’s double OT loss to the Orlando Magic, New York is 4 1/2 games out of eighth place in the Eastern Conference with 27 games remaining. That is more than enough time for them to put together something resembling a hot streak and gain enough ground to reach the No. 8 seed. [Read more…]
Before the season, championship expectations were attached to both the Knicks and the Nets. The Knicks were coming off the team’s first season with at least 50 or more wins and a trip to the Eastern Conference semifinals since the 1999-2000 campaign, when Jeff Van Gundy patrolled the sidelines, Patrick Ewing wrapped up his final season in New York and Allan Houston was in the prime of his career. The Nets were coming off their first trip to the playoffs in six years
The Atlanta Hawks are on the road Tuesday night facing the Chicago Bulls, the team his airness Michael Jordan put on the map with six championships in the 1990s. With their hometown set to embrace snowpocalypse 2.0, they begin a three-game road trip that ends after the NBA All-Star break. The game against the Bulls didn’t start so well, however. They fell behind by as many as 25 in the first half, eventually going into halftime facing a 58-39 deficit. What was
Finally. After much anticipation, and to some chagrin, the NBA’s coaches have submitted their list of reserves for the forthcoming 2014 NBA All-Star game in New Orleans, LA. Many of the All-Star reserve selections are expected, though there were a few selections (and snubs) that were unconventional, though deserving. In the Eastern Conference, Chris Bosh [Miami Heat], DeMar DeRozan [Toronto Raptors], Paul Millsap [Atlanta Hawks], John Wall [Washington Wizards], Joe Johnson [Brooklyn Nets], Roy Hibbert [Indiana Pacers] and Joakim Noah [Chicago Bulls] all join