The James Harden trade is a week old now, and while the book is obviously not yet written on what it’ll mean for everyone involved, we have a bit of a clearer picture than we did last Sunday. Harden has looked like a true superstar in Houston, dropping 82 points over his first two games, including a career-high 45. The outlook for the Thunder is a little more murky, but they haven’t shown a disastrous dropoff so far. We’ve got several
When the Oklahoma City Thunder traded James Harden on Saturday night, they revealed to everyone that they are a team far more concerned with the bottom line than the top of the heap. Probably a bit ahead of schedule, the Thunder reached the NBA Finals last season. As we have said before, they were a questionable foul call away from opening a 2-0 lead on the mighty Miami Heat that would have cultivated the doubt and derision that has swirled around
(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) The Atlanta Hawks spent the last seven years developing a contender in the Eastern Conference and the last five cultivating a core of Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, Al Horford and Marvin Williams. Dubbed
Here are this morning’s top NBA news stories: “Lawson, Nuggets nearing an extension?” by Yannis Koutroupis from HoopsWorld “For the Nets’ Joe Johnson, No more Iso-Joe,” by Howard Beck from the New York Times “Marcin Gortat aims to prove more than a Steve Nash creation,” by Michael Schwartz from Valley of the Suns “Andray Blatche of Brooklyn Nets wears No. 0 as a reminder of troubled stint with Washington Wizards,” by Zach Braziller from the New York Post “Presence of coach Mike Brown helped allure Antawn Jamison to L.A.,”
Here are this morning’s top NBA news stories: “Allen Iverson won’t sign with Maccabi Haifa for games in NBA,” from Sportando “Extending Manu Ginobli,” by Yannis Koutroupis from HoopsWorld “NY Knicks’ Kurt Thomas not thinking retirement as veteran enters season still feeling young,” by Frank Isola from the New York Daily News “Dwightmare seems very far away as Howard reboots with lakers,” by Ken Berger from CBSSports.com “Mavericks’ Dirk Nowitzki on new NBA flopping rules: ‘A bunch of crap,'” by Eddie Sefko from Dallas Morning News “Rose playing recruiter,” by Joe
One day after the NBA implemented a new anti-flop rule to penalize players with fines for flopping, there were plenty of reactions around the league, from happy campers to those that weren’t quite sure if it was the best of ideas. See what was said around the league about the change along with other news around the league on Thursday: Blake Griffin thinks the flopping rule is a great way for the league to make money on, from Marc J. Spears
(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) New city. New arena. New uniforms. New team. These aren’t your New Jersey Nets anymore. When the 2012-13 NBA season tips off and you see the black-and-white-clad Brooklyn Nets playing on their new
If MarShon Brooks scores 34 points in an NBA Summer League game, does he make a sound? That depends on who’s listening. The casual basketball fan would say no, it’s freaking Summer League. But coaches, GMs and observant fans understand that Brooks, like a teenager who ran out of ProActiv, is on the verge of a breakout. The 6-5 guard has been a gifted scorer his entire life. He once put up 57 points in a 16-and-under AAU game and stunned the college basketball