PHILADELPHIA – For nearly five decades, Jerry Colangelo has been pro basketball’s version of Annie Sullivan: a miracle worker. No, he never taught a blind and deaf Helen Keller how to “read.” But he did take over the expansion Phoenix Suns in the late 1960s and build them into a legitimate NBA power, twice winning the Western Conference and coming close to a championship with a team that was almost always respectable. That made him an institution in the Valley of the
The newest craze to hit social media everywhere — Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube — is the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. What is the Ice Bucket Challenge? Well, assuming you haven’t heard of it yet, it is a choice, whereby someone either donates $100 to the ALS Association or they accept the challenge and dump a bucket of ice water on their head. Many people are opting to do both, making a donation and taking the proverbial plunge. The purpose of the challenge is
With much of the national discourse centering on Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling, the reality of the matter is that a lifetime ban and a $2.5 million fine is the limit to what NBA commissioner Adam Silver is capable of doing. The rest falls on the shoulders of 29 team owners, as they—according to the NBA’s Constitution and By-Laws—must vote with a 3/4’s majority to force the sale of the team. Players, media pundits and people all across the nation
A year ago at this time, the Philadelphia 76ers were filled with optimism. Coming off a postseason run that left them four minutes short of the Eastern Conference finals, front office personnel were still slapping each other’s backs about the way they had not only landed big man Andrew Bynum, but at the same time unloaded Andre Iguodala and Nikola Vucevic. With Bynum in the paint, an array of 3-point shooters on the wings and emerging guards Jrue Holiday and Evan Turner
The playoffs start tomorrow. With the schedule for the first weekend released, we can now see which playoff teams the NBA thinks will draw the most viewers. And to nobody’s surprise, the Heat, with their Sunday evening time slot, are one of them. The other game that pulled a prime time slot is the Chicago Bulls visiting the Brooklyn Nets. Which also shouldn’t be surprising, considering they’re two of the biggest markets in the country. As for who is driving viewers
(This entry is the second in a series of 30 guest columns that will run during 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) There’s absolutely nothing in the NBA worse than mediocrity. It’s a top-heavy league where if you’re not in the top five, the bottom five, or you don’t have a superstar,