This is the third season of Rookie Rankings at SheridanHoops. In each of the first two seasons, a highly trusting coach has given a point guard the keys to the Ferrari and these instructions: “Try not to wreck the thing, OK, kid?” Two years ago, it was Damian Lillard of the Portland Trail Blazers, who became the first rookie to lead the NBA in minutes played since Elvin Hayes in 1970. Last year, it was Michael Carter-Williams of the tanking rebuilding Philadelphia
Jimmy Butler returned on Saturday after missing two weeks with a sprained left thumb. A bit of a surprise return at that, which was just what the Bulls needed after Derrick Rose was out after spraining his ankle in the second quarter of their Friday tilt against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Taj Gibson also missed the game with a sprained ankle suffered in the same game, leaving the Bulls a bit thin. Nearly every starter notched more than 30 minutes. Jimmy Butler,
On first blush, next summer’s free agent market seemed a bit fallow. The biggest names among 2015 unrestricted free agents have been out there for some time – Marc Gasol, Rajon Rondo, DeAndre Jordan, Paul Millsap and Tyson Chandler. A nice collection of players, sure, but nothing like the star power of the potential 2016 free agency market. Greg Monroe joined the fray when he accepted his qualifying offer from the Detroit Pistons. And there are likely opt-outs coming from Goran Dragic,
After months of waiting and a summer full of roster change and player movement, the dawn of the 2014-15 NBA regular season is now upon us. Play begins with three games Tuesday night. The New Orleans Pelicans host the Orlando Magic at 8 p.m. (EST). The game will air the local Fox Sports affiliates — FSNOLA and FS Florida, otherwise, you can find it on NBA League Pass. Meanwhile, the NBA on TNT crew will host a doubleheader, starting with the
Orlando Magic guard Victor Oladipo is out indefinitely after suffering a facial fracture in practice Thursday. The Magic announced Friday that Oladipo took an inadvertent elbow to the face during a practice drill. The second-year guard will undergo a surgical procedure Saturday. There is no timetable for his return. Oladipo already was nursing a sprained MCL suffered in preseason that had prevented him from playing in any exhibition games. He returned to practice Monday, and the Magic were hoping that Oladipo could
The Orlando Magic just secured the future of their post position for the foreseeable future, agreeing to a 4-year extension worth $54 million with their talented, young center, Nikola Vucevic. The extension serves as an early birthday gift for the Montenegran native, who turns 24 later this week. Yahoo! Sports NBA writer Marc Spears tweeted out the details of agreement. [Read more…]
Despite the Orlando Magic becoming a better and deeper squad this offseason, a playoff push in the 2014-15 campaign still seems a step too far, even in the weaker Eastern Conference. GM Rob Hennigan has done a good job of moving on from Dwight Howard, creating a manageable payroll and rebuilding the Magic with young, exciting and athletic players. Orlando has 10 players on their rookie contracts, several of whom have already established themselves as legitimate NBA players. For now, those players
On Thursday, we gave you our All-Breakout Team for the upcoming season for the Eastern Conference. Today, we bring you our Western Conference All-Breakout Team. These are the players we believe are on the verge of breaking out or standing out. We used the same parameters – five players, one at each position, but no rookies. Let’s get right to it. [Read more…]