Free agency started Sunday midnight ET. On Monday, the Brooklyn Nets and Dallas Mavericks are expected to make an unrelenting push for All-Star point guard Deron Williams, who is clearly the best available player. The team that lands Williams also has the best chance of acquiring superstar center Dwight Howard, who is not a free agent but has said that he would like to play alongside Williams. In terms of flexibility, the Nets have the inside track. They can offer Williams more money
Sheridan Hoops was well-represented at Thursday’s NBA draft in Newark, N.J. We had Joe Kotoch provide a pretty successful mock draft by anyone’s standards. We had Moke Hamilton breaking down a number of trades as he prepares for the firestorm of free agency that will start over the weekend. We had Nick Gibson offering his draft surprises, then following up today with his exhaustive draft grades. And we had yours truly and a trusty video camera, capturing some of the sights and sounds in and
In the days leading up to the NBA draft, Joe Kotoch provided Sheridan Hoops with six mock drafts. Not one, not two, not three … six. His final mock for our site arrived Thursday morning and was entirely posted – picks 1 through 60 – about six hours before the first boos rained down on Commissioner David Stern at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. How did Joe do? Pretty damn good, if you ask us. Despite the surprise selection of Michael Kidd-Gilchrist at
Word is that some members of the 2012 NBA Champion Miami Heat are still a bit hung over—literally—after defeating the Oklahoma City for the NBA’s crown just one week ago today. The Heat selected Arnett Moultrie, a 6’11” Power Forward from Mississippi State with their 27th overall pick in the draft, but they traded his rights to the Philadelphia 76ers for the 45th overall pick, Justin Hamilton, and a future first round pick. Moultrie is a long, athletic big that could probably
Mike Dunlap will be asked to cook the dinner in Charlotte. But he won’t be allowed to shop for the groceries. At least not at the NBA draft. Dunlap, the former St. John’s assistant hired as the new coach of the Charlotte Bobcats, told SheridanHoops he won’t have much input on the team’s No. 2 pick in Thursday’s draft – if it uses the pick at all. “I’m secondary,” Dunlap said in a lengthy telephone interview. “These guys (owner Michael Jordan, president of
Through his very last timeout huddle with his team, Oklahoma City Thunder coach Scott Brooks said all the right things. “We’re gonna treat them like they’re the champions,” Brooks instructed his club. “After this game, we’re gonna walk and shake their hands and acknowledge all of them. They beat us fair and square. However hard that hurts, they beat us fair and square. Give them credit.” Yes, Brooks said all the right things. It would have been nice if he had done all
// MIAMI — As Miami Heat owner Micky Arison tip-toed through his team’s locker-room in his black loafers, cigar in mouth and baseball cap covering his soaked hair, an ESPN NBA analyst gave me an excellent piece of advice. “Learn a lesson from me,” he said. “Next time, wear old shoes.” In the locker room, I stepped in a puddle of what was undoubtedly a mixture of Dom Perignon, Moet, and Budweiser—the three types of alcoholic concoctions sprayed in abundance in the
Nearly 20 percent of the NBA is comprised of international players, including some of the game’s biggest stars. But when it comes to international jersey sales, American players still dominate. On the first list of the top 15 international jersey sales released Thursday by the NBA, the top 10 spots went to American players, with tried-and-true veteran Kobe Bryant holding the No. 1 slot. The list was based on sales at adidas locations outside the United States during the 2011-12 season. Following Bryant