Last season, the Portland Trail Blazers had one of the worst benches in the NBA. Portland’s reserves were last in minutes (13.3), points (18.5), rebounds (10.5), offensive efficiency (21.1) and defenseive efficiency (minus 17.7). It was a big reason they had three players in the top nine in minutes per game, including rookie Damian Lillard, who led the entire NBA in minutes played. It also was a big reason why those players burned out and Portland lost its last 11 games
Things have changed since we published Mock 1.0 on April 1. The NCAA field is down to four teams, and a couple of the players in our Top 30 have decided to return to school or wait another year in Europe (Darko Saric). Hence, Mock 1.0.1. [Read more…]
It’s a dark, snowy Tuesday night in Hamden, Connecticut, the kind that last all basketball season in the Northeast. John W. Adams is sitting by himself in the last row at the TD Bank SportsCenter, preparing to take in yet another game in the long stretch of games that make up his life each winter. Over the next five months, the NCAA’s head of men’s basketball officials will traverse the country, going from city to city, small gym to huge arena, to
While the nation learned of the name C.J. McCollum last night thanks to a 30-point performance in leading the 15th-seeded Lehigh Mountain Hawks in a major upset over Duke, those in the Patriot League are familiar with the silky smooth lead guard. Living in the Northeast, I’ve had the opportunity to see McCollum several times this year, and his ability to combine his supreme athleticism within a very structured and disciplined system is a major plus in his ledger. McCollum possesses a