Mitch Kupchak shouldn’t be playing hardball. In his desire to trade Pau Gasol, the GM of the Los Angeles Lakers should not have insisted on receiving Dion Waiters or a first-round pick from the Cleveland Cavaliers. Nobody has overpaid for a rental since Ernie Grunfeld sent Ray Allen to Seattle for Gary Payton — and that was a long time ago. Kupchak should have lowered his demands to match the team’s expectations. The Lakers are done for this season and should be
On a night that was filled with overtime thrillers and buzzer-beaters, there was plenty of action Friday night that kept fans on their toes in arenas and on the edge of their sofas in their living rooms. There were nine games, three of which went to overtime. Need a rundown without having to click your mouse two dozen times? That’s what we’re here for. Here are 10 Fast Facts from last night’s games, plus video highlights at the bottom of this post. [Read more…]
Damian Lillard is very good. Okay, maybe we knew that already. But watching him carry the Blazers to an incredible win against a Cavs team that was very much on top of their game tonight, and then cap it with a game-winning three… that was something else. LaMarcus Aldridge is also very good, and so are Wesley Matthews and Nic Batum. But it’s Lillard who makes the whole thing work. [Read more…]
Remember back in October, when the handicappers in Vegas said the Philadelphia 76ers would win about 16 or 17 games? And remember in November, when the 76ers started their season with three straight wins, beating the Miami Heat, Washington Wizards and Chicago Bulls with Derrick Rose? How are those 17 wins looking now? Without the Hubble telescope, the Sixers can’t see them. The small sample size of the season’s first week – three surprising wins, a rookie as Player of the Week – is
PHILADELPHIA — Evan Turner is in the top 20 in the NBA in scoring – No. 20, to be exact – and still feels unloved. Turner is still paying the price for not being what was expected three years ago as the No. 2 pick in the 2010 draft – even though he is starting to do it now. He’s still being judged by what he considers unreasonable standards, as if he was supposed to be a flawless stone rather than
The Bucks have played as badly as Danny Schayes looks in this photo. Just kidding, Danny! The Milwaukee Bucks are terrid. That’s right—they’re so bad, I had to make up a new word to describe them. It’s like that Sonic commercial where they needed to make up words to describe how delicious that chicken sandwich is. (I’m still trying to work “spice-dictive” into a sentence for the first time). Terrid is easier, though. It’s a combination of “terrible” and “horrid,” and
The NBA holiday shopping season is upon us a little early this year. It usually starts December 15, the first day players who were signed in the offseason become eligible to be traded. But after seeing Rudy Gay’s immovable contract somehow sent from Toronto to Sacramento, it is clear that shopping season is under way. Come next Sunday, NBA general managers will have increased flexibility when looking to improve their rosters, which was Kings GM Pete D’Alessandro’s approach in acquiring Gay, or their payroll,
The gambling life ain’t easy, folks — which is where today’s tale begins. But by the time you get to the end of today’s column, hopefully you’ll be amused by my personal adventures and enlightened by my leaguewide analysis. We are at the quarter-pole of the NBA season, and trends have emerged. First, to truly appreciate what it means to gamble on the NBA on a daily basis, you had to experience what it was like to bet on the Philadelphia 76ers