Danny Ainge and the Celtics have received more value in dismantling the Big 3 era than they sent out in putting the roster together. Read more »
Basketball Blog
A Golden Parachute Of Epic Proportions
Previewing NBA Finals Game 3: Adjustments Over Time & On The Fly
Erik Spoelstra and Gregg Popovich have made a series of adjustments over a period of several years to get to this point of sophistication in their offense and as this series advances into Game 3, their ability to find viable Plans B and C will be the difference with these two teams so evenly matched. Read more »
The Jackson-Barnes Play: Deconstructing The Rule
In common conversational usage, Matt Barnes' contact did cause -- i.e., set in motion actions that led to -- the ball sailing out of bounds, but not before it touched Reggie Jackson's other hand. Read more »
Western Conference Twice As Good, Nine Degrees Warmer
The Western Conference is nine degrees warmer on average than the Eastern Conference, which must be considered as a factor in why it has been a far deeper conference over the past two decades. Read more »
Grading The Deal: Clippers Trade In Bledsoe For Better Roster Balance
The Clippers have long been waiting to trade in their biggest asset in Eric Bledsoe to improve the construction of their roster and found it in the form of J.J. Redick and Jared Dudley. Read more »
Team-By-Team Gold Medal Winners
The Jazz and Thunder have had the most Gold Medalists since the USA began bringing NBA players in 1992, while Duke leads amongst colleges. How do the other 29 NBA teams rank? Read more »
USA 2016 Will Threaten 1992 For Best Team Ever Assembled
LeBron James Dwight Howard and Kevin Durant will presumably be at their peaks in 2016 at the ages of 31, 30 and 27 respectively, and the depth of talent joining them will be remarkable and similarly in their prime. Read more »
The NBA's Clustering Of Stars
When the All-NBA teams were expanded to include a third team in 1989, 52% of the league had a representative. In 2012, it was just 33% as the Heat, Thunder, Knicks, Lakers and Clippers had multiple representatives. The Nets will likely join them in 2013 with Deron Williams and Dwight Howard. Read more »
The Center Depth Of The 2008 Draft Class
The centers of the 2008 Draft class figure prominently in the 2012 free agency and comprise six of the 30 starters at the game’s most valuable position. Read more »
Previewing The 2012 McDonald's All-American Game
Without the top-ranked recruit Nerlens Noel participating, the MVP of the 2012 McDonald's All-American Game could come down between Shabazz Muhammad and Gary Harris. Read more »
Lin's Influence On New York's Offense
While the general consensus is that Jeremy Lin’s statistical output will inevitably begin to taper off, the brilliance of his play over the past six games reconfirms the brilliance of the NBA’s superstars who consistently play at this type of level. Read more »
Grading The Deal: Rose Signs Max Extension With Bulls
The big win for the Bulls is that Derrick Rose didn’t insist on a player option that became vogue in 2006 with the extensions signed by LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. Read more »
Grading The Deal: Nuggets Keep Nene, Afflalo
The Nuggets may have lost Wilson Chandler, J.R. Smith and Kenyon Martin to China (temporarily or forever), but only Nene and Aaron Afflalo were irreplaceable. Read more »
Grading The Deal: Blazers Sign Jamal Crawford
Longshots are longshots for a reason, but the Crawford signing does have the look and feel of something that will seem much more important in hindsight like Tyson Chandler, Trevor Ariza and James Posey. Read more »
Grading The Deal: Chris Paul To Turn L.A. Into Lob City
Chris Paul will now join Blake Griffin to form a super-tandem of their own that will be the most purely electric brand of basketball the city of Los Angeles has seen since the Showtime Lakers. Read more »
The NBA's Final Seven-Year Man
Jamal Crawford, Kobe Bryant, Kenyon Martin and Erick Dampier were the last players to sign seven-year contracts. Read more »
Grading The Deals: Clippers Match On Jordan, Bid On Billups
For a stretch of time on Monday, the Clippers were at the nexus of the NBA universe by matching DeAndre Jordan's $43 million contract, bidding on Chauncey Billups and trying to trade for Chris Paul. Read more »
Grading The Deal: Sixers Keep Thaddeus Young
Thaddeus Young is a very good off the bench scorer at either forward position, but his ability to improve his jumper will determine if he makes the lead to full-time lead weapon. Read more »
Grading The Deal: Clippers Sign Caron Butler
The Clippers had cap space and a need at small forward, so they filled it with a former All-Star coming off a knee injury. Read more »
Grading The Deal: Knicks Improve Interior Defense, Rebounding With Chandler
Swerving from their strategy of preserving cap space for a 2012, the Knicks signed Tyson Chandler and improved their biggest weaknesses. Read more »