For the first time in roughly two decades, the Eastern Conference is better than the Western Conference from top to bottom. Nine East teams are at .500 or better – nearly twice as many teams as last season, when sixth-seeded Milwaukee finished 41-41. And the East actually has a winning record against the West this season at 100-98 What changed so quickly from last season, when articles were written about how there was the greatest disparity in conference strength in recent memory? “I
The problem with giving midsummer report cards is that they’re like a “progress report” from your kid’s school. “So-and-so is in danger of getting a D in math,” one such report from my youngest son’s school said. He ended up with a B-plus. Being halfway through the summer means a lot of things (halfway toward a supertan, a month closer to a second straight golf-free year), but it does not mean you can give an entirely accurate reading of a team’s offseason.
The 2015 NBA free agency period in July started off with a bang that lived up to the hype and more thanks to the “Days of Our Lives” soap opera that was the DeAndre Jordan saga, LaMarcus Aldridge signing with the Spurs and many more lucrative deals. With August upon us, we now enter the bargain-shopping phase of free agency. In my latest top 10 free agents list, I updated possible destinations for Kevin Seraphin, J.R. Smith, Carlos Boozer, Norris Cole and
Free agency shopping at the end of July is similar to waiting all month for the giant coupon booklet from your neighborhood grocery store. With that in mind, which players will be this year’s bargains on the clearance shelf? Can you find a scoring guard and a big man off the bench with a $2.8 million mid-level exception? Yes, that is somewhat akin to a two-for-one deal on soon-to-expire potato chips at your favorite grocery store. Some of the unrestricted free agents in
You hear the phrase all the time: “Don’t drink and drive.” Unfortunately, Denver Nuggets guard Ty Lawson still hasn’t gotten the memo. Lawson was arrested for DUI in Los Angeles early Tuesday morning at 2:30 AM, TMZ reported. This is Lawson’s second DUI arrest this year. Lawson was also arrested for DUI back in January. There’s simply no excuse for this once, let alone twice. Lawson is on the books for $12.4 million this season and $13.2 million the following season. Simply put, he
“Fuhgetaboutit!” That’s what Brooklyn Nets fans were saying on Twitter when the team announced it had agreed to terms with Andrea Bargnani. Nets fans in Little Italy applauded the move. The agreement is reportedly a two-year deal for the veteran’s minimum salary, according to the New York Post. The second year of the deal is a player option. Barring a catastrophically bad season, Bargnani would opt out after this season. Fans of the Toronto Raptors and New York Knicks may laugh at the signing,
What is the next big surprise? When will it happen? We are inside of 48 hours until the league’s moratorium ends, so fasten your seatbelts, folks. This summer’s free agency period has provided as much suspense and excitement as the NBA Finals. The San Antonio Spurs have agreed to terms with LaMarcus Aldridge and David West while retaining Tim Duncan, Kawhi Leonard, Manu Ginobili and Danny Green in hopes of returning to the Finals. West said he wanted to play for a title
After the Washington Wizards ended a season-high five-game losing streak Saturday with a 37-point victory over the Brooklyn Nets, Marcin Gortat wasn’t quite ready to declare that their earth was back on its axis. “At the end of the day, it was Brooklyn, so we can’t get really excited,” he said. There’s nothing like perspective. And Gortat is right: One win against a plodding, tired team is nothing to get excited about. What the Wizards should be is concerned. Prior to the win