This week, while NBA coaches pick the All-Star reserves, the NBA will pick the All-Star coaches. Neither task is as easy. David Blatt’s dismissal as coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers has added a bizarre twist to next month’s All-Star Game in Toronto. The Cavs have the best record in the Eastern Conference, which means their staff was on track to coach the East All-Stars. But Blatt has been replaced by Tyronn Lue, who will coach just five games before the deadline of
One of the main reasons so many fans were shocked by Cleveland’s decision to fire head coach David Blatt was that he and his players were guarded in their media commentary. [Read more…]
Where has Timofey Mozgov’s playing time gone? Just over a year after being traded from Denver to Cleveland for two first-round picks, the 7-1 Russian has played at least 20 minutes in just 14 of his 37 games this season. Averaging just 17.8 minutes, Mozgov has reached double figures in points just seven times and has yet to record a double-double. He is playing strong defense when given the opportunity, but it just doesn’t seem like there’s enough court time for him. It’s all the more
After the rather meek events of Monday’s showcase game, we can safely say the current NBA season has become sadly boring. All the elements of something monumental seemed in place with another matchup between the Cavaliers and Warriors, this time in Cleveland. Still aggravated that injuries left them shorthanded in their NBA Finals loss last season, the Cavs had even more motivation because of their loss on Christmas Day in Oakland. Also, the once-perfect Warriors had shockingly been defeated two times in their
A day before the game against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday, Stephen Curry joked that he hoped the visiting locker room still smells like champagne. Apparently, that rubbed LeBron James and the Cavaliers the wrong way, and that brought on some unexpected anticipation heading into the contest on TNT. [Read more…]
Welcome to another Gambling Guru column. The last few weeks in the NBA have had plenty of intrigue, including the news out of Brooklyn that the Nets – my team – fired coach Lionel Hollins and re-assigned GM Billy King. Chris Sheridan wrote a depressingly accurate Billy King obituary chronicling all of the disastrous decisions he made during his Nets tenure. For the record, I’m not as mad with the Paul Pierce/Kevin Garnett trade as many fans, analysts and journalists were. It was aggressive and
For the first time in roughly two decades, the Eastern Conference is better than the Western Conference from top to bottom. Nine East teams are at .500 or better – nearly twice as many teams as last season, when sixth-seeded Milwaukee finished 41-41. And the East actually has a winning record against the West this season at 100-98 What changed so quickly from last season, when articles were written about how there was the greatest disparity in conference strength in recent memory? “I
The Golden State Warriors’ historic start, led by Stephen Curry’s MVP campaign, and Kobe Bryant’s farewell tour have captured the headlines so far this season. We saw LaMarcus Aldridge become the biggest free agent to change teams and Kevin McHale became the first coach to get fired in Houston. Will Kevin Durant leave the Thunder this summer? Will Jeff Hornacek become the first coach fired in 2016? That’s just the tip of the iceberg. A new calendar year will bring more coaching changes,