A player must be a really bad man [in that tough guy kind of way] for a team to be weary of him alone. If you follow the Twitter account of the Eastern Conference leading Atlanta Hawks, perhaps one of the most entertaining sports team handles out there to follow, then you know they have a way of taking the negative in situations and making it a bit humorous. After having the league’s best record in December and running off 18 wins
Young players having the best seasons in their careers right before they’re due a new contract is hardly a new phenomenon, but it takes on new significance due to the NBA’s current economic situation. A likely escalation in the salary cap this summer will allow free agents to obtain more expensive contracts from a larger pool of teams with newfound cap space. A quartet of these young, emerging stars— Milwaukee’s Brandon Knight, Chicago’s Jimmy Butler, Orlando’s Tobias Harris and Golden State’s
In today’s NBA, the formula for winning in recent years was simple: Accumulate as many maximum-salary stars as you can without breaking the bank. But when you start piling up eight-figure salaries against the luxury tax, the bank breaks pretty quickly. So teams fill out their rosters with minimum-salary veterans. And if you look at the top of the NBA standings right now, many teams are getting very productive seasons from veterans signed to minimum-salary deals. The Chicago Bulls added Pau Gasol to Jimmy
The 2014-15 NBA regular season continued on Sunday, January 4 with 12 teams taking part in six games. A legend sank a game-winner, contenders battled in a lopsided affair and an under-the-radar team continued a stunning turnaround. Here’s how it all transpired. [Read more…]
He proved that boundaries could be broken, that dreams do come true, and that no battle was ever too big to fight. He was a fighter, he never stopped fighting. He was as cool as the other side of the pillow. [Read more…]
The 2014-15 NBA regular season continued on Saturday, January 3 with eight games featuring 16 teams. Stars put on signature performances, under-the-radar contributors did the same and some of the league’s elite went into battle. Here’s how it all transpired. [Read more…]
The 2014-15 NBA regular season continued on January 2, 2015 with a heavy slate of 11 games featuring 22 teams. A star returned to play his former team for the first time, another hit his hometown in style and a cast of other players stepped up with big-time performances. Here’s how it all transpired. [Read more…]
Whether you are in the schoolyard or the prison yard, the theory remains the same: If you’re the new guy and want to prove your toughness, go pick a fight with the biggest guy in the yard. That’s what Boston Celtics rookie Marcus Smart did in Wednesday’s home win over the Sacramento Kings. In the fourth quarter with the Celtics pulling away, the 6-4, 220-pound Smart ran directly into the chest of the 6-11, 270-pound DeMarcus Cousins, who was trying to set