Sunday night the Oklahoma City Thunder were whole. Center Serge Ibaka made his return from what was previously thought to be a season ending injury. His return was much needed, as he provided the defensive energy necessary for the Thunder to play free on the perimeter without worry or fear of Tony Parker, Tim Duncan or Manu Ginobili wreaking havoc in the paint near the rim. Ibaka had a profound impact on the game, as Oklahoma claimed a 106-97 Game 3 victory
For the second straight year, the Oklahoma City Thunder’s playoff push has been derailed by a season-ending injury. Last year it was All-Star guard Russell Westbrook, who went down in the first round with a knee injury as a result of a collision with Houston guard Patrick Beverley. This year it is forward Serge Ibaka, who suffered a left calf injury in the third quarter of Thursday’s clincher over the Los Angeles Clippers. Ibaka underwent an MRI on Friday that confirmed a left
Typically, there is an amazing tweet to talk about. However, this may be the exception to the rule. The folks at Bleacher Report took it upon themselves to put together an animated NBA adaptation of the hit HBO show, Game of Thrones. The ease with which the characters of the show—which is based on George R.R. Martin’s A Sword of Ice and Fire books—can be replaced with NBA teams and athletes is uncanny. The Miami Heat, being the two-time reigning champions are
I have already written a column imploring the Knicks to hire Mark Jackson and hire him immediately, which will turn Steve Kerr into Steve Who? The New York Times is reporting today that there are three primary candidates, Brian Shaw (who already has a job with the Nuggets), Luke Walton (who has never coached before), and Kurt Rambis, an assistant with the Lakers. The New York Daily News says also in the mix is Derek Fisher, who can’t really be interviewed right now given
It really all comes down to two questions as we look ahead to the Eastern and Western Conference finals: _ Do the Thunder have the Spurs’ number? _ Do the Pacers have any kind of chemistry whatsoever remaining, despite what that photo would suggest? You may remember the regular season. It ended a month ago, it was 82 games per team, and a couple of noteworthy things happened: Oklahoma City swept San Antonio, going 4-0; and the Pacers stood atop the Eastern Conference
I wish I could give you a brief synopsis of what is contained in this podcast, but that is not possible. I covered a heck of a lot of ground in this interview with Mark Malusis of CBS Sports radio, touching on coaching vacancies and playoff battles. So in brief, here’s what we hit upon: _ The Lakers coaching vacancy, which if I had to guess who the next guy to hold the job will be, I’d go with Jeff Van Gundy.
Among professional sports in America, the National Football League reigns supreme, but one would like to think that playoffs for any of the other major sports would be more important than the first round of another league’s draft. Apparently not. ESPN, which holds the broadcast rights to Thursday’s NBA playoff games, also hosts the NFL’s draft. Guess which show got top billing? Football’s offseason. Game 2 in Miami will be broadcast on ESPN 2, while 32 former college athletes will sit around
San Antonio Spurs general manager R.C. Buford won NBA Executive of the Year on Wednesday. Should he have? Unlike the other postseason awards, Executive of the Year is voted on by fellow executives, not the media. So it’s difficult to question the validity of the winner when he has been chosen by his peers. Still … [Read more…]