After spending last year in Spain, Lucas Nogueira is preparing for his first NBA season. Lucas Nogueira, the Brazilian center that the undersized Atlanta Hawks shipped to the Toronto Raptors with Lou Williams for John Salmons and a second-round draft pick, is training with Hall of Fame center and two-time NBA Champion Hakeem Olajuwon. Olajuwon, otherwise known as “Hakeem the Dream” — widely known for his indefensible “Dream Shake” in the low post, has helped many NBA athletes
Last week we chronicled the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge as it it began to sweep through the NBA. Well, the challenge is still going strong, with many of the league’s top stars (like LeBron James) having participated — both in getting splashed with icy cold water and giving money to the cause. There are a number of players still taking on the challenge even today. Houston Rockets center Dwight Howard took the challenge in stride, facing it like few have before. He
So the World Cup is in three weeks, and I figured I should probably make an effort to watch this year. I’m not really up on my international basketball, so I decided to do a little research. And I found out that Andray Blatche plays for the Philippines, apparently because of a “naturalized player” provision allowing him to play for a country just because they asked him. I’m not necessarily saying this is a bad thing. What I’m more concerned with
In an interview in April 2013, Kevin Durant told Sports Illustrated he was tired of finishing second. Durant was the second player taken in the 2007 draft. He lost in the NBA Finals in 2012. He finished second in MVP voting four times. This past season, Durant took a huge step forward when he won his first MVP award, finally emerging from the shadow cast by LeBron James. But if he doesn’t win an NBA championship in the next two years with
A little more than a week ago, even as Chris Sheridan assured me LeBron James was going back to Cleveland, I dismissed his assurances and wrote a column saying the exact opposite. How could James leave a situation with a guaranteed berth in the Eastern Conference Finals – at worst? How could he play for an owner who called him a coward and a traitor? How could he play for a coach who had never coached in the NBA and who he had
For the third straight year, the Dallas Mavericks went into the summer trying to snag a superstar to line up alongside Dirk Nowitzki. Two years ago, the Mavericks went after All-Star point guard Deron Williams, who took a pass on playing in his home state with no local income taxes and re-signed with the Brooklyn Nets. The consolation prizes were Elton Brand, Chris Kaman and O.J. Mayo. Last year, the target was All-Star center Dwight Howard, who stung the Mavericks by signing
Could LeBron James and Dirk Nowitzki join forces in 2014-15? As Carmelo Anthony’s tour concludes Thursday with a meeting in Los Angeles with the Lakers completed and a meeting with the New York Knicks underway. Wednesday night, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban met with Anthony to make a pitch for his services. A day later, he and Dirk Nowitzki made a statement for the younger star free agents to take notice. They want a championship contending team. In addition
Tuesday brought forth the beginning of the NBA free agency period and, with it, the subsequent Carmelo Anthony World Tour. The tour began with a visit to Chicago to meet with Bulls staff and players. During his stop in the Windy City, he was greeted by coach Tom Thibodeau, who rode with him to the United Center, where they met general manager Gar Forman and executive vice president John Paxson along with Hall of Famer Scottie Pippen, Taj Gibson, Joakim Noah