Chris Paul returned to the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday. We don’t want to be party-poopers, but it probably should be pointed out that the Clippers were better without him. This does not mean that GM Gary Sacks should start exploring trade possibilities for a top-five player. And it doesn’t mean that coach Doc Rivers should go with the hot hand at point guard at the end of games. But it does mean that if the Clippers want to win a championship this
Finally. After much anticipation, and to some chagrin, the NBA’s coaches have submitted their list of reserves for the forthcoming 2014 NBA All-Star game in New Orleans, LA. Many of the All-Star reserve selections are expected, though there were a few selections (and snubs) that were unconventional, though deserving. In the Eastern Conference, Chris Bosh [Miami Heat], DeMar DeRozan [Toronto Raptors], Paul Millsap [Atlanta Hawks], John Wall [Washington Wizards], Joe Johnson [Brooklyn Nets], Roy Hibbert [Indiana Pacers] and Joakim Noah [Chicago Bulls] all join
It was a performance the entire league was talking about. The prolific scoring forward was going off, just knocking down jump shot after jump shot, rarely subjecting the ball to even the slightest graze of the rim. He had 20, then 30, then 40, and there was still plenty of time left in the fourth quarter. He was at NBA Jam levels of On Fire, replete with the flaming basketball and the echoed enthusiasm of the announcers. It was the type of game that
Martin Luther King Day is more than a day of celebration and reflection for the NBA, which probably has done more positive things for race relations than any other sport in the Civil Rights Era. It also has become the unofficial midway point of the season. By the completion of Monday’s action, more than half of the league’s 30 teams will have played half their games. With that in mind, we present our midseason awards with this reminder from the bookie of hopeless
Incoming commissioner Adam Silver said the NBA is “looking at everything” when it comes to making changes for the future. The first thing he needs to look at is changing the league’s playoff format. When spring arrives and there are eight first-round series, we can guarantee that four are going to be lousy unless they go seven games; and four are going to be so compelling that we’ll all feel cheated if they don’t go seven games. Of course, we are talking
NBA on ESPN analyst and Grantland editor in chief Bill Simmons maintains many titles: writer, fan, Los Angeles Clippers season ticket holder, husband, dad, among a few others. Among the many hats that he wears, he is an avid Boston Celtics fan. If you’ve followed his blogs or read his book, you know that he has been a big Celtics fan since he was a child—when his father would take him to the old Boston Garden. While still maintaining his Boston NBA
The Los Angeles Lakers surprised everyone when the season started by beating the Los Angeles Clippers 116-103 on opening night. Bill Simmons couldn’t believe what he saw, and many pundits questioned if the Clippers were really going to be contenders this season. On Friday, the two teams met up for the second time this season and the results weren’t quite the same: the Clippers routed the Lakers 123-87 – the largest margin of victory ever against the Lakers in franchise history. It
Advertisement The Western Conference is absolutely nothing like the Eastern Conference when it comes to championship odds. We have what I call a two-horse race in the East versus what I am going to call the six-plus team race in the West. In the 15 previous seasons, only four teams (the Lakers, seven times; the Spurs, five times, the Mavericks, two times; the Thunder, once) have won the Western Conference, which is a similar concept to what the Eastern