The NBA announced the All-Rookie Team on Tuesday. Sheridan Hoops announced it on April 11. We ran a weekly Rookie Rankings this season, and while the Rookie of the Year was decided sometime before the All-Star break, it remained to be seen who would join Portland’s Damian Lillard among the NBA’s top five rookies. [Read more…]
One of the most intriguing elements of the NBA playoffs is what the spotlight reveals about certain players – especially those who weren’t expected to be in the spotlight at all. We expect established superstars such as LeBron James and Kevin Durant to welcome the pressure of the postseason and elevate their play. That is part of the reason they are among the game’s best players. It is also not that surprising to see very good players such as Stephen Curry and
The Golden State Warriors have had three different leading scorers in its four games this round against San Antonio, which bodes well for the team not only in this series but in the future as well. With Stephen Curry hobbled by an injured ankle that nearly kept him out of the game altogether, it was the team’s balance that gave Golden State a pivotal Game 4 victory. It was Jarrett Jack’s turn to lead the charge, with 24 points on 9-of-16
Moving past the obvious in Miami’s Game 2 triumph How do you push past the obvious insight about Miami’s all-around 115-78 beatdown of Chicago in Wednesday night’s Game 2? What can you say besides the Heat shooting 60 percent to 35.5 percent for the Bulls? Let’s break down the major things that changed on both sides that helped lead to such a different result in Miami’s favor: Miami’s Big Three was way more efficient in Game 2, perhaps with more determination and urgency in
The two best games of the playoffs thus far have clearly been Game 4 between the Brooklyn Nets and Chicago Bulls and Game 1 between the Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs, which had a number of similarities. Both games went multiple overtimes. Both games had plenty of big shots. Both games had role players becoming unlikely heroes. And unfortunately for the Nets and Warriors, both games had huge collapses late in regulation. [Read more…]
The San Antonio Spurs are in the second round of the playoffs. That’s pretty much the biggest non-story of the postseason, given that they’ve failed to move past the first round just three times in the Tim Duncan era. For the Golden State Warriors, it’s nearly uncharted territory – they’ve made it to the conference semifinals only twice in the last 22 years: once back in 2007, when they upset the Dallas Mavericks as an 8th seed, and once back in 1991,
It’s been fairly evident that Stephen Curry has been the most important player in the Denver-Golden State series, which has now a nasty turn. Warriors Coach Mark Jackson said that the Nuggets were dirty on Wednesday night, but how did that impact Curry’s play in Game 5? And also in the Western Conference, Blake Griffin’s injury allowed Zach Randolph to shine in a crucial Game 5 win for Memphis. Can Los Angeles overcome Griffin’s limitations and once again vanquish the
