When you think about what Tracy McGrady used to be and what he is now, it’s generally considered a sad thing. McGrady, who many believed to be an equal to Kobe Bryant (or better, depending on who you ask) in his prime, just finished the previous season as a bench-warmer with the San Antonio Spurs at the age of 34. It just doesn’t sound quite right, does it? No one envisioned the superstar’s career to wind down in such an anticlimactic way, but
After jettisoning Dwight Howard in August 2012, the Orlando Magic fully embraced a rebuilding plan, starting over with two young prospects in Nikola Vucevic and Moe Harkless and a veteran contributor in Arron Afflalo. After a surprisingly strong 12-13 start which had some folks around the NBA wondering if they could make the playoffs, the Magic floundered to the finish, losing 49 of their final 57 games. Along the way, they lost Glen Davis to two injuries – one which would
VICTOR OLADIPO 6-4, 215 lbs. School: Indiana Class: Junior Selected 2nd overall by Orlando Magic STRENGTHS: Oladipo was a do-everything player and National Player of the Year candidate at Indiana this past season. He was the key cog that made the Hoosiers go, averaging 13.6 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game. Oladipo is a tremendous athlete with great leaping ability. He’s also a terrific defensive player, and could earn his keep in the league on that end of the floor. He’s a great
Happy Draft Day! Tonight when David Stern approaches the podium and is booed by the crowd at the Barclays Center at his final NBA Draft, we will finally have our answers. In the meantime, Alex Len remains on top of our Final Mock as sources in Cleveland have emphatically stated the 7-footer from Maryland is on top of the Cavs’ draft board. However, Cleveland’s first choice is to trade the pick and there are a half-dozen teams they were still talking to
NEW YORK — Nerlens Noel grew up fixated on playing in the NBA. “Since I was a little kid, like 8 years old, I’ve wished for this to come true, to play in the NBA and now it’s finally here,” said Noel. “All the hard work has paid off.” Meanwhile, halfway around the globe in Ukraine, Alex Len didn’t know what basketball was all about until he was a 13-year old who was still participating in gymnastics. “Dude, you don’t belong there,” explained
Before we begin our journey up to the 2013 NBA Draft, I personally believe it is very important to get a brief history lesson when it comes to previous drafts. Here were a few proposition bets prior to last years NBA Draft for a decent brief comparison: Anthony Davis was the unanimous selection to go number one in the draft, which was made obvious by the fact that you had to lay almost $5,000 to win $100. When it came to the
We are less than 48 hours away from the NBA Draft and there is absolutely no certainty at the top. Who are the Cleveland Cavaliers going to choose? SheridanHoops’ own Joe Kotoch believes it is Alex Len…today. Tomorrow? Your guess — and his — is as good as mine. Kotoch isn’t totally convinced Cleveland will still own the pick. [Read more…]
Victor Oladipo reminds me of Dwyane Wade, which is one of the reasons why I believe the Orlando Magic will take him with the No. 2 pick in the NBA draft Thursday night. Even if Nerlens Noel is available (our draft guru, Joe Kotoch, has Alex Len going No. 1 overall to the Cleveland Cavaliers in his latest Mock), the Magic have no need for Noel because they already have Nikola Vucevic, who may just become the best center in the