Less than three weeks ago, the Los Angeles Lakers were mourning the death of owner Jerry Buss, refuting rumors that Dwight Howard would be traded and staring down the draft lottery. With his team mired in ninth place in the Western Conference, Kobe Bryant defiantly told Sports Illustrated, “It’s not a question of if we make the playoffs. We will. And when we get there, I have no fear of anyone – Oklahoma City, San Antonio, Denver … whoever. I have
What a horrible week for the Utah Jazz. They lost their first three road games by a total of five points before throwing in the towel last night and the Lakers have caught them for the final playoff spot. [Read more…]
It was almost a Magical upset, but LeBron James (26 PTS, 3 REB, 2 AST) drove to the hoop for the winning layup and Miami has won 16 straight. Dwyane Wade 24 PTS, 6 REB, 3 AST, 4 STL) and Chris Bosh (17 PTS, 10 REB, 3 AST, 2 STL, 2 BLK) also played well against their inspired visitors from up the Turnpike. [Read more…]
It’s March. And for those of us basketball junkies, that means it’s the most glorious month of the year. March is filled with sneaker-squeaking, pizza-scarfing, mini-hoop jamming madness. It’s a time when we fill out brackets until the blood from our paper cuts advance to the Sweet 16. We place an inordinate amount of self-worth into our clicker skills, hear buzzers sounding in our sleep and showcase Usain Bolt speed in media timeout fridge runs. [Read more…]
NEGA-DELPHIA—That’s how a former local pro football player turned talk show host refers to this town, which never met a glass filled to the brim without thinking there’s still something missing. Of course, with one championship from its four major pro sports teams in the last 29 years (the 2008 Phillies), there’s good reason for skepticism. Especially when it comes to pro hoops, where the 76ers have been mired in mediocrity for most of the past two decades – other than
Here at the Most Improved Player Rankings, we’re known for our hard-hitting journalism. We’ve been told that we make Anderson Cooper look like Ahmad Rashad. Woodward and Bernstein still wonder how we found out about Greivis Vasquez. So in that tradition, I decided to go ahead and interview our top candidate for the Most Improved Player award, Magic big man Nikola Vucevic. It hardly matters that Vucevic told me that he’s never heard of me or the column, or that he responded with
Much like President’s Day or Halloween, the All-Star break is a time for reflection. It’s a time when loved ones gather ’round to watch the greatest basketball players on Earth take part in an exhibition not bound by trivialities such as defense or traveling violations. [Read more…]
Things are almost back to normal in the NBA and fantasy hoops leagues. There are nine games tonight between extremely well-rested teams. [Read more…]