How the Golden State Warriors Rebuilt Their Elite Defense
December 22nd, 2016 by Erik Malinowski No comments »
When Golden State Warriors fans go to that dark place where they ponder the living nightmare that was Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers, a few images invariably stand out:
LeBron James' block on Andre Iguodala. Kyrie Irving's clutch three-point dagger. Kevin Love's improbable lockdown defense on Stephen Curry.
The one image that should stand out, however—and likely still does for avid fans across the Bay Area—is Anderson Varejao's playing critical third-quarter minutes.
While Cavs coach Tyronn Lue tightened up his rotations as the game clock ticked down, Warriors helmsman Steve Kerr elected to keep the net widely cast. Part of this was gut instinct on his part, but it was also largely necessitated by circumstance: Golden State simply didn't have size to spare. Andrew Bogut was knocked out of the series in Game 5 with a knee injury, Festus Ezeli was laboring through a dismal postseason and ...
NBA Trade Rumors: Latest Buzz on Paul George and Nick Young
December 22nd, 2016 by Andy Bailey No comments »
While people all over the country begin to take some time off for the holidays, the internet continues to remind us that there is no vacation for the NBA's trade rumor mill.
This week brought us fresh nuggets on a couple of wings who've been in rumors before now—and the new information makes it sound like they may not be headed anywhere soon.
The Indiana Pacers' Paul George would net a huge return, but the organization doesn't appear ready to make a move. Elsewhere, the Los Angeles Lakers' Nick Young may not bring much back, despite his resurgence this season.
Pacers Willing to Move Paul George?
The Pacers underwent a bit of an overhaul this past offseason, moving George Hill to the Utah Jazz and bringing in Jeff Teague and Thaddeus Young in an effort to play a faster brand of basketball.
Results have been up and down, but Indiana is currently .500 and ...
NBA Digital Announces Real-Time Mobile Game ‘NBA InPlay’
December 22nd, 2016 by Tyler Conway No comments »
NBA Digital in partnership with FanDuel announced the launch of NBA InPlay, a second-screen fantasy mobile app that will allow participants to make decisions on their lineup in real time during nationally televised games.
The game, which is available for free at the App Store and Google Play, became available Thursday morning ahead of TNT's doubleheader featuring the Los Angeles Lakers vs. Miami Heat and San Antonio Spurs vs. Los Angeles Clippers. NBA InPlay will be available going forward for every game on TNT, NBA TV, ESPN and ABC.
“We are always looking at ways to enhance the viewing experience, drive people to tune in to our broadcasts and increase the time spent watching live games,” said Melissa Rosenthal Brenner, the NBA's senior vice president of digital media. “NBA InPlay has the potential to meet these objectives while offering our fans an engaging, new way to experience the game.”
Much like standard daily fantasy offerings, ...
George Karl Blasts Carmelo Anthony in Upcoming Book ‘Furious George’
December 22nd, 2016 by Timothy Rapp No comments »
Former Denver Nuggets head coach George Karl took several shots against former Nuggets and current New York Knicks star Carmelo Anthony, calling him a "conundrum" and blasting his lack of defensive effort in his forthcoming book, Furious George, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post.
Karl criticized Anthony on several levels in one excerpt:
Carmelo was a true conundrum for me in the six years I had him. He was the best offensive player I ever coached. He was also a user of people, addicted to the spotlight and very unhappy when he had to share it.
He really lit my fuse with his low demand of himself on defense. He had no commitment to the hard, dirty work of stopping the other guy. My ideal — probably every coach's ideal — is when your best player is also your leader. But since Carmelo only played hard on one side of ...
Wednesday NBA Roundup: Marc Gasol Won’t Let Grizzlies’ Puzzling Season Unravel
December 21st, 2016 by Grant Hughes No comments »
The strangest thing about the Memphis Grizzlies' 98-86 win over the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday? The perfect sense it made.
Up until that result, fueled by a career-high-tying 38 points from a wholly dominant Marc Gasol, little about the Grizzlies' season felt logical.
It started with a run of clutch wins that seemed unsustainable...until Memphis sustained them. Then there was Gasol's inexplicable development into a three-point sniper. Next came the 7-2 mark without Mike Conley (who'd been playing the best ball of his life before a back fracture). And then, oddest of all, three straight losses following Conley's early return.
If that nonsensical streak had held, the Grizz surely would have lost Wednesday's meeting with a reeling Pistons team fresh off three straight losses, a players-only meeting and a thorough dressing down from head coach Stan Van Gundy.
But Memphis broke the pattern, and it did so in a way that hinted at how ...
Jaromir Jagr Ties Mark Messier for 2nd-Most Points in NHL History
December 21st, 2016 by Bleacher Report Milestones No comments »
Florida Panthers winger Jaromir Jagr tied Mark Messier for second-most points in NHL history with 1,887 in Tuesday's 4-3 shootout victory over the Buffalo Sabres. He reached the total in 94 fewer games than Messier, per Sportsnet Stats.
Not only did the veteran winger reach that mark, but he did so in dramatic fashion.
Jagr finished the night with three assists, becoming the first player ever to record multiple three-point games at age 44 or older, per the Elias Sports Bureau (via ESPN Stats & Info). The only other player to previously record one such game was Detroit Red Wings great Gordie Howe.
Jagr spent the first 11 seasons of his NHL career playing with Mario Lemieux as a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins and hoisted the Stanley Cup in each of his first two NHL seasons. While he hasn't won another championship since then, Jagr does have nine All-Star Game appearances and 10 different individual ...
Denver Nuggets Are Back to Maximizing Nikola Jokic’s Star Potential
December 21st, 2016 by Adam Fromal No comments »
DENVER — With 47 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter of a Dec. 19 contest against the Dallas Mavericks, Nikola Jokic hauled in his 15th rebound of the night. After dribbling down the floor, he handed the ball off to Emmanuel Mudiay and watched as his point guard launched a quick three-pointer.
The shot, which would have given Jokic his 10th assist and the first triple-double of his young career, was off target, much to the chagrin of the entire Denver Nuggets bench. But it was ultimately irrelevant since the whole team was able to celebrate the 117-107 win, which marked three consecutive victories and served as the latest step in Jokic's inexorable march toward stardom.
Though he couldn't get that final dime, he still finished with a sensational line: 27 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists on 13-of-17 shooting from the field.
"Maybe. Probably," he said when asked if it was the best performance ...
Dwyane Wade Comments on Bulls Fans Booing During Loss vs. Bucks
December 21st, 2016 by Joseph Zucker No comments »
After a 113-82 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Monday, one might have expected Dwyane Wade to be in a good mood. Instead, Wade took exception to Chicago Bulls fans who booed the team last Friday night at the United Center after it fell to the Milwaukee Bucks, 95-69, for its third straight loss.
CSN Chicago's Vincent Goodwill shared Wade's comments:
I'm an honest guy. I was very disappointed our fans booed us. We're trying to figure it out. We win home games against Cleveland, San Antonio. And then we get our butts kicked against Milwaukee. I don't think we deserved to get booed. We're out here trying. I'd like to see more patience and more support from everybody. Like I said at the beginning of the year, we're not winning a championship today. We're not winning a championship tomorrow. We got stages and levels to get where we want to get to. And ...
The Advanced-Stats Case for and Against Edmonton Oilers Defenceman Kris Russell
December 21st, 2016 by Jonathan Willis No comments »
Kris Russell is a player who draws a lot of criticism from people steeped in hockey analytics. Even an analytics-based approach to the game, though, recognizes that he does some things well. Edmonton Oilers head coach Todd McLellan seems to have identified what those things are.
The problem is that the things Russell does well are generally not appreciated. At the same time, many of the arguments raised in his defence are specious.
Take, for example, Oilers general manager Peter Chiarelli. Chiarelli has repeatedly argued that Russell is an exceptional transition defenceman, even telling Sportsnet’s Mark Spector that he makes more passes leading to zone entries than almost anyone else.
“He was second in the league behind only Niklas Kronwall last year,” claimed Chiarelli, “ahead of players like Duncan Keith, Kris Letang, Cam Fowler, Ryan Suter, Mark Giordano, Niklas Hjalmarsson and Erik Karlsson."
An internal metric that says Kronwall and Russell are the two ...
Larry Nance Injury: Lakers F Out Indefinitely with Bone Bruise
December 21st, 2016 by Tim Daniels No comments »
The Los Angeles Lakers announced an MRI revealed forward Larry Nance Jr. suffered a bone bruise in his left knee. He is out indefinitely.
The Lakers also noted further results were inconclusive because of swelling.
Nance has played a mostly limited role since the Lakers selected him with the 27th overall pick in the 2015 draft. He's showcased some promise as an across-the-board contributor, but he's still working to become more consistent to earn additional minutes.
He's dealt with a couple of injury issues this season that have slowed down his progress. He suffered a sprained wrist while getting ready for the campaign in the Las Vegas Summer League. More recently, he missed some time while recovering from a concussion.
If the latest setback sends the Wyoming product back to the sidelines, Thomas Robinson figures to see the biggest uptick in frontcourt playing time for the Lakers. Fellow forwards Metta World Peace and Tarik ...