Should we really be surprised that the league’s most interesting general manager chose to take the path of higher risk, higher reward? That’s where the Houston Rockets, led by daring and analytically driven GM Daryl Morey, enter the 2014-15 season. When we last saw them, contention didn’t feel far away. In the first year of the Dwight Howard-James Harden foundation, the Rockets went 54-28 in a loaded West and secured home court advantage in the first round. That was in line with preseason
On Thursday, we gave you our All-Breakout Team for the upcoming season for the Eastern Conference. Today, we bring you our Western Conference All-Breakout Team. These are the players we believe are on the verge of breaking out or standing out. We used the same parameters – five players, one at each position, but no rookies. Let’s get right to it. [Read more…]
HOUSTON — After being unexpectedly jilted by Chris Bosh, the Rockets found themselves in a precarious spot this summer. They are now hoping that Jason Terry, who just turned 37, can be a small part of the solution. General manager Daryl Morey has said since January that Houston needs to acquire the “third-best player on a championship team” to align with established stars James Harden and Dwight Howard, implying he did not believe that player would be found internally on the current
With about six weeks remaining until the Oct. 31 contract extension deadline for 2011 draftees, Klay Thompson and the Warriors are in a bit of a standoff. He wants a maximum-salary contract or close to it, while the team would undoubtedly love to find a friendlier number for their cap future. maybe something like the $44 million, four-year deal they struck with backcourt mate Stephen Curry two years ago. On the surface, Thompson isn’t a max player yet. Though known first for
Rajon Rondo and the Boston Celtics are no strangers to the occasional trade rumors that surround the NBA, and it appears that their latest situation is no different. According to ESPN’s Jackie MacMullan, Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo will not re-sign with the team. [Read more…]
When the Brooklyn Nets acquired Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Jason Terry last summer, Mikhail Prokhorov said, “Today, the basketball gods smiled on the Nets.” Neither Garnett, Pierce nor Prokhorov was smiling after the Miami Heat eliminated Brooklyn in the Eastern Conference semifinals in five games. “The only reason we came to Brooklyn was to win another ring,” Garnett said. In retrospect, Brooklyn took a gamble that didn’t pay off. The Nets gave up a king’s ransom to acquire Garnett and Pierce to
Lately I’ve been watching classic NBA games on YouTube. There’s a fair few of them up there in full, and while it’s obviously nice to watch Michael Jordan in his prime (and the Bad Boys-era Pistons, Charles Barkley in Philly, young Scottie Pippen… the list goes on), what’s struck me most has been the differences in how the game is played between then and now. Namely, I’m talking about the veritable avalanche of long twos. These days, if a player jacks
Sheridan is assessing each of today’s deals as they go down, but we don’t want to leave out the two deals that got done Wednesday. [Read more…]