In almost every other sport, being marked as a bench player is a designation that no player wants. Basketball does not have that issue. Some players, as talented as they may be, simply have a knack for giving their best production to a club by coming off the bench. [Read more…]
After the Los Angeles Clippers demolished the Phoenix Suns on Sunday night for their franchise-record 13th straight win, there were two telling quotes coming out of the losing locker room. The first came from Suns coach Alvin Gentry, who was very impressed. “That is the best team we’ve played,” said Gentry, whose club has faced Miami, Memphis, New York and Golden State but has yet to play Oklahoma City or San Antonio. [Read more…]
Finally using their best lineup, the Lakers played Steve Nash (12 PTS, 9 AST) for 41 minutes and won in overtime. Nash will be sore today after his first game in eight weeks, but should be ready to spend Christmas Day in Manhattan. [Read more…]
The best team flying under the radar has two rookies in its starting lineup. But it’s not the Charlotte Bobcats. It is missing its oft-injured big man. But it’s not the Philadelphia 76ers. It has All-Star candidates at point guard and power forward. But it’s not the Los Angeles Clippers. It is an original NBA franchise that has not won a title since the 1970s. But it’s not the New York Knicks. [Read more…]
(This is another in a series of 30 guest columns that will run in October, when optimism reigns supreme across the NBA. The theme will be “Five Reasons to Feel Positive About … ” We encourage you to follow the authors on Twitter and visit their sites. – CS) For fans of Golden State Warriors, the “We Believe” playoff run seems like it happened about 12 years ago and not five. One of the biggest upsets in NBA history against the
The decision of Dirk Nowitzki to have knee surgery isn’t a complete surprise. It will cost him all of November, a definite setback to his owners, including Mark Cuban. If there’s any consolation, Dirk should be much better in the second half; the non-surgical option might have ruined his entire season, with the Mavericks and in fantasy leagues. You cannot replace a Hall-of-Famer. Elton Brand will start at PF. How much he has left, we’ll find out. Brandan Wright is also in
In Sunday night’s preseason game between the Lakers and the Warriors, we witnessed something that may take a while to get used to: Steve Nash was running the floor alongside Kobe Bryant in a Lakers uniform. If you’re not a Lakers fan, what we saw was bad news because Nash – as he always does – made the game look so darned easy for everyone else. The Warriors actually blew the game open for a 110-83 victory and showed promising
We have some good news and some bad news today. The good news is, we are only days away from the start of training camp, where all the madness of an NBA season will begin for our pleasure. The bad news? Some players are already down and out due to injuries – the buzzkill of the sport (of any sport). See why a couple of Grizzlies players are out for a while, who is likely to miss some or all