A player must be a really bad man [in that tough guy kind of way] for a team to be weary of him alone. If you follow the Twitter account of the Eastern Conference leading Atlanta Hawks, perhaps one of the most entertaining sports team handles out there to follow, then you know they have a way of taking the negative in situations and making it a bit humorous. After having the league’s best record in December and running off 18 wins
Superstar LeBron James will miss at least two weeks while he recovers from knee and back strains, the Cleveland Cavaliers announced Thursday. The seemingly indestructible James sat out the last two games with what was called soreness in his left knee. He underwent a barrage of tests at the Cleveland Clinic that included an MRI and revealed strains to his left knee and lower back, the team said in a statement. Treatment will include anti-inflammatories, rehabilitation, training room treatments and rest. James’
ATLANTA — The Cavs may have to re-purpose an old Alfred Lord Tennyson quote: “‘Tis better to have [Kevin] Love and lost than to never have Love at all.” Not quite what Tennyson had in mind, but one might have asked such a question after the dismal performance the Cleveland power forward gave prior to leaving Tuesday’s marquee Eastern Conference matchup with the Atlanta Hawks. Love made only one of eight shots — a three-pointer — and hit four free throws for
While many GMs were working the phones this week, Knicks president Phil Jackson was using a different, more contemporary form of communication: Twitter. On Thursday, Donnie Nelson and Danny Ainge swung a five-player trade that sent Rajon Rondo to Dallas and draft picks to Boston. On Friday, Daryl Morey, Flip Saunders and Sam Hinkie worked a three-team deal that landed Corey Brewer and Alexey Shved in Houston and draft picks in Minnesota and Philadelphia. But not Jackson, and not the Knicks. Jackson doesn’t
The Eastern Conference’s leader in Win Shares signed a highly publicized free agent contract this past offseason with the East’s best team. That player is not LeBron James but Kyle Lowry, the undisputed leader of the Toronto Raptors. And it is Toronto – not Cleveland – which has the East’s best record at 18-6. Lowry and the Raptors are 5-3 without All-Star shooting guard DeMar DeRozan, who injured his groin the day after Thanksgiving in a loss to Dallas. SheridanHoops went one-on-one with Raptors
The hottest team in the Eastern Conference doesn’t have a three-headed monster like the Cleveland Cavaliers. It doesn’t have a scrutinized superstar returning from injury like the Chicago Bulls or a rapper sitting courtside at every home game like the Toronto Raptors. Heck, it doesn’t even have a national TV appearance, even though it plays in TNT’s backyard. But the Atlanta Hawks have won nine of their last 10 games, flying well under the radar toward the top of the conference. The Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks, expected by some experts to finish out of the playoffs coming into the 2014-15 NBA regular season, are doing well … very well. At present, nearly a quarter of the way through the season, Atlanta sits in second place in the Eastern Conference with a 13-6 record — just a game-and-a-half back of the first place Toronto Raptors, who were also expected to be lower in the standings. This may be due, in large part, to the slow start
We all know what the Philadelphia 76ers are doing. Call it whatever you want – tanking, rebuilding, deconstructing, hoarding – the 76ers are openly, unabashedly and intentionally sinking to the bottom of the NBA, because GM Sam Hinkie has convinced ownership that is the fastest way to get back to the top. Hinkie has constructed a roster that is inherently non-competitive. The Sixers have the fewest first-round picks and the most undrafted free agents of any team. Their highest-paid player makes $6.6