Oklahoma City Thunder All-Star forward Kevin Durant has come a long way with his backpack strapped to his shoulders. He has been sporting a backpack since grade school. From his hometown in Washington D.C. to Austin, Texas, then on to Seattle, Washington and now Oklahoma City. It is not without meaning. [Read more…]
MIAMI – During last season’s playoffs, at a time when Heat guard Dwyane Wade was struggling in the Eastern Conference finals, I wrote that I’d rather have Celtics guard Rajon Rondo than Wade. Nothing has happened to change that opinion. [Read more…]
Memphis Grizzlies forward Zach Randolph has said when it comes to backing up tough talk, “I don’t bluff.” That admirable stance will cost him $25,000. Randolph was fined by the NBA on Monday for confronting Oklahoma City Thunder center Kendrick Perkins in a corridor near the locker rooms in Chesapeake Energy Arena following Wednesday’s game. [Read more…]
LeBron James won his second straight NBA Player of the Week award Monday. Kenneth Faried didn’t. Last week’s winners were James, the superstar of the Miami Heat, and Faried, the emerging young forward of the Denver Nuggets. This week it is James – for the record 39th time in his career – and Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder. James is practically making a mockery of the award. The Eastern Conference winner led the Heat to a 3-1 record while averaging
Forget small ball. The NBA’s best team plays bully ball. The Memphis Grizzlies don’t have a fleet of sharpshooters standing on the arc. They don’t have a stretch 4. They don’t have a dual point guard backcourt. Heck, their shooting guard can’t even shoot. [Read more…]
Where to begin? Mike Brown’s exit? Phil Jackson’s overnight disappearance? The unending string of power forward injuries? A reformed J.R. Smith on the undefeated New York Knicks? This season has been full of shocking developments; if you look closely enough you can find a significant surprise in nearly every division and on every team. [Read more…]
One night, both of last year’s NBA Finalists competing, both NBA Finalists going down. The Memphis Grizzlies and the Los Angeles Clippers turned in two of the top performances of the young 2012-13 NBA season, as they beat the Oklahoma City Thunder and Miami Heat by 10 and 7 points, respectively, though the point differential isn’t an indicator of how well either team played: [Read more…]
Last week’s edition of The Bernucca List was correctly answered by reader Cory, who determined the five players listed all have been teammates of Michael Jordan. So congrats to Cory. Nice job, and please keep reading. Our first list of the season was up for less than 10 minutes before the right answer was posted. Our second list had been posted for less than an hour before Cory nailed the answer. So this week, we have come up with what we