What would it take for Kobe Bryant to win the 2015-2016 NBA MVP award? As we handicap the MVP race for the 2015-2016 season, we’ll take a look at last season’s top five finishers— Stephen Curry, James Harden, Russell Westbrook, Anthony Davis and LeBron James— along with Kevin Durant. But a question many Angelenos and basketball fans around the world have is what kind of numbers would Bryant have to put up in his age-37 season to take home the crown? To
Amar’e Stoudemire moved into very exclusive company this summer. By accepting the veteran’s minimum of $1.5 million in signing as a free agent with the Miami Heat, Stoudemire became just the second player in NBA history to take a $20 million pay cut. Last season, Stoudemire was on the books for $23,410,000, the final season of the five-year deal worth about $100 million he signed with the New York Knicks in 2010. That was the summer that the Knicks tried to position
See that guy? That white silhouette inside the red and blue? That’s Jerry West. He’s the NBA logo and has been since 1969, when he was still playing. Jerry West’s nickname was “Mr. Clutch.” Former Boston Celtics radio announcer Johnny Most, who disliked every player not wearing green and white, used to call him “Gentleman Jerry.” To my knowledge, Jerry West and Julius Erving are the only visiting players who ever received polite applause upon entering the lion’s den known as Boston
The NBA draft lottery is next week, and hopefully there won’t be a scandal involving deflated ping-pong balls. For a franchise in the lottery, it is a chance to hit the jackpot and find a player who can help the team become a playoff contender immediately and a title contender down the road. According to several league executives, Texas center Myles Turner has the potential to be that type of player. “He’s probably a late lottery pick with big-time upside now,” one general
For the third straight year, the Dallas Mavericks went into the summer trying to snag a superstar to line up alongside Dirk Nowitzki. Two years ago, the Mavericks went after All-Star point guard Deron Williams, who took a pass on playing in his home state with no local income taxes and re-signed with the Brooklyn Nets. The consolation prizes were Elton Brand, Chris Kaman and O.J. Mayo. Last year, the target was All-Star center Dwight Howard, who stung the Mavericks by signing
With the NBA draft coming up, it is kind of fun to remember back to my draft day in 1981. It’s like going through your wedding album years later. But instead of the burgundy tuxedo and ruffled shirt, its 1980s hair and wide ties. Going into my senior year at Syracuse, I was a relatively unknown player. I had played behind All-American center Roosevelt Bouie and had just played my first season as the starter. Scouting was primitive by today’s standards.
SALT LAKE CITY, UT — While the start of the 2014 NBA Playoffs mark the end of another marathon of a regular season, the eyes of the nation were just focused on Massachusetts as the country honored the departed from last year’s bombings in Boston and celebrated its survivors. The more than 200 surviving runners and spectators from the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings are adapting to their new lives with a variety of prosthetic limbs, crutches, wheelchairs and rehabilitation; all of which will
Last week, stars Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett played a road game. But not just any road game. It was perhaps the most significant road game of their careers. The future Hall of Famers returned for the first time to basketball-bonkers Boston, the city where they won hearts and championships. The former Celtics were given a warm welcome that included video tributes and had an emotional evening. In this era of free agency, many players have a similar experience. They move from a