Let’s get something out of the way here. Russell Westbrook is awesome. Westbrook is one of the game’s top five players, and I’ve felt that way for a couple of years. He may not be a better conventional point guard than Chris Paul or Tony Parker or Stephen Curry. But if any of those guys even dream about being a better player than Westbrook, they better wake up and get back to reality. I also love watching Westbrook play. I cannot recall
BROOKLYN — A lot has changed since Brooklyn last wore its home whites on Feb. 6. The Nets have played better basketball in their fight for an Eastern Conference playoff spot with the help of smaller, younger lineups, going a very respectable 3-5 on a vicious eight-game Western Conference road trip that ended with a big win in Dallas on Saturday night. “I’m excited to be home, but I’m also excited that we’ve played better, been more competitive,” said Nets head
The MVP is James Harden’s to lose, right? And Coach of the Year is a two-man race between Steve Kerr and Mike Budenholzer, correct? Not so fast. It is still February, the temperature here in New York is going to hit zero again tonight, and the number zero was an accurate reflection on the chances of Russell Westbrook contending for the MVP award and Stan Van Gundy being in the mix for Coach of the Year as recently as Christmas. To refresh your
It is pretty unusual for a team in the playoff picture to make wholesale changes at the trade deadline. While it is common to add a piece or two, trading featured stars or half the roster is not common for teams in the hunt. This season it was surprising that so many impactful trades were made at the trade deadline, the busiest one in NBA history. With Phoenix and Oklahoma City fighting for the last playoff spot, team instability is something
Why is the trade deadline different from all other nights of the year? It’s not. The West just got tougher. In the East, where there’s no life-or-death importance attached to getting better, the top teams sat this one out while the bad teams—your Knicks and 76ers—dumped, shut down or otherwise disposed of their best players in order to tank more definitively. [Read more…]
The NBA trade deadline usually brings a lot of activity with it each year. Thursday, however, there was a surplus of trade activity. It almost seemed as if, if there was a deal to be done, it was done. If you’re looking for the details of the trades, our own Chris Sheridan broke down the trade deadline activity earlier this afternoon.. [Sheridan: Analyzing Thursday’s Trade Deadline Deals — Sixers Win] If you want to know what the players were thinking as the deals
We are now less than 48 hours away from the NBA trade deadline, and I have set the over/under on the number of trades made Thursday at 4 1/2. Does that seem low? Well, with the number of trades that have already taken place this season, it stands to reason that things will be more quiet this year than they have in years past. With that being said, here are a couple things I expect to happen: [Read more…]
NEW YORK — Be yourself, Russell. Just be yourself. That was the message LeBron James had for the MVP of the 2015 NBA All-Star Game, and you know what? There aren’t that many people bold enough to say what LeBron said about Russell Westbroook. Don’t get me wrong … there are plenty of people with plenty of opinions on the guy who wears a zero on his uniform for the Oklahoma City Thunder. Stuff like: “Stop shooting so much.” Or: “Give the