EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Retirement is not in Kevin Garnett’s immediate future. Of course, “immediate future” is a phrase open to interpretation when a guy is entering his 20th season in the NBA. Yes, his 20th. For all we know, Garnett could play three more years. Or three more months. KG is not the type of guy who is going to show his hand. This much we know: He never had a worse season than last season. This we also know: Garnett’s value
A year can make an enormous difference in the perception of an NBA team. Last summer, the Washington Wizards had the same backcourt of John Wall and Bradley Beal but they were faced with immense pressure of having to make the playoffs to save the jobs of head coach Randy Wittman and general manager Ernie Grunfeld. Before the season began, Grunfeld made what many perceived as a panicky move and sent its first round pick to Phoenix for Marcin Gortat, who was
The NBA, like most sports, can often be defined by its different eras. And those eras are often defined by players, teams and rivalries. LeBron James has come to define this era of basketball, and he continues to shift the landscape of the NBA, specifically the Eastern Conference. In terms of competition, the East has been in another league compared to the Western Conference. And not it a good way. [Read more…]
Four players – three of them future Hall of Famers – took pay cuts of a staggering eight figures this offseason. Dirk Nowitzki, Pau Gasol and Paul Pierce all took salary slashes of more than $10 million to extend their careers with contending teams. They head the list of the top 10 individual pay cuts this summer. Our list uses exact salary figures from last season. In some cases, this season’s figures are averages of multi-year deals received by players. For example,
It is very easy to overlook the Washington Wizards. They are in contention for the title about as often as the Earth is under threat of alien invasion, they haven’t had an outsized personality in the locker room since Gilbert Arenas was telling Javaris Crittendon to “Pick One,” and they will undoubtedly be kept off national television next season because they just aren’t sexy. But you know what? They could very well contend for the best record in the Eastern Conference. Many
Yes, there are still free agents out there and teams still have slots to fill. But most of the big names are gone, and most of the contenders are done reloading, retooling or rebuilding for the 2014-15 season. With that in mind, here is another edition of the Three-Man Weave, looking specifically at the balance of power in the Eastern Conference and how it has shifted. 1. Which team is the favorite in the Eastern Conference? [Read more…]
The Washington Wizards have wasted no time in bolstering up their depth charts after losing Trevor Ariza in free agency to the Houston Rockets. The Wizards have engaged in talks with veteran small forward Paul Pierce to replace the gap left by Ariza. The news was broken earlier this evening by ESPN’s Marc Stein via Twitter. [Read more…]
As reported earlier in the week by Chris Sheridan, LeBron James is returning to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Standing by his source, all signs indicate that it is not a matter of it, but when James is ready to share his decision with the public. While the rest of us were eagerly anticipating a formal announcement all day, the four time MVP tended to his own affairs. As the host of the LeBron James Skills Academy, James was in attendance at the basketball