basketball Page 315 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

For One Quarter Last Night, Steph Looked Like Steph Again
In the grand tradition of LeBron’s Heat and, uh, LeBron’s Cavs, the Warriors’ new superteam has gotten off to a bumpy start. There was that dumbfounding opening night massacre at the hands of the Spurs, but even Golden State’s next two victories—an eight-point win over the Pelicans and a six-point w...

Ray Allen Paved The Way
Ray Allen hasn’t played in an NBA game since July 2014, but the 41-year-old shooting guard was not officially retired until this morning, when he announced his exit from the NBA in an essay published on The Players’ Tribune....

The Thunder Are Locking Up What They Have
The Oklahoma City Thunder still have to figure out how to be a consistent playoff contender without Kevin Durant anchoring the roster, but they made two moves today that have given the future (the near future, at least) a more defined shape....

I Still Haven't Wrapped My Head Around This LeBron James Pass
I know you’ve seen this pass LeBron James made during Saturday’s game against the Magic:...

76ers Apologize For Preventing Singer With "We Matter" Shirt From Singing Anthem
The Philadelphia 76ers did some dumb shit before their home opener on Tuesday night, cancelling singer Sevyn Streeter’s scheduled performance of the national anthem because Streeter was wearing a shirt with “We Matter” written on it....

A Very Informative And Timely 2016-17 NBA Season, Uh, Preview
Holy smokes, the NBA season is here! Good thing I started working hard and diligently on this season preview a long time ago, and definitely not on Tuesday afternoon, in the back of a rental car on the way to the airport....

Desiigner Got Booed Off The Court By Sixers Fans
Desiigner, a popular rapper whose song “Panda” hit No. 1 on the charts despite having only one verse, performed at halftime of the Philadelphia 76ers’ season opener. He did what he does during all of his live performances—which is to say he made a lot of weird noises and spazzed out and never really...

Doug Gottlieb Is Too Soft To Stand By His Incorrect Takes
Here is a timeline of events:...

Joel Embiid Says He Learned To Shoot By Watching White People Online
Joel Embiid, who’ll make his NBA debut tonight, wants our attention, so badly. He seeks it in many ways: by guzzling Shirley Temples by the syrupy pitcher, by clowning on Andrew Wiggins, or by publicly asking out Rihanna. And we give it to him, maybe a little begrudgingly, because the content is goo...

Indian-American Church Basketball Is A World All Its Own<em></em>
A priest takes the first shot. ...

Steven Adams Was Too Busy Watching Dope Anime To See The Warriors Get Crushed
Given the ass-kicking that former Thunder star Kevin Durant suffered in his first game with the Warriors, it’s not unreasonable for reporters to be curious about what Durant’s former teammates thought of the game. Unfortunately for them, Steven Adams was too busy watching anime to cook up any juicy ...

So, The Warriors Got Their Asses Kicked
Let’s briefly acknowledge all the required caveats: that this was just the first game of a long season, that recent history has proven super teams always take time to gel, that the Golden State Warriors are still going to kick tons of ass this year....

Former Indiana Player Alleges Bobby Knight Punched Him In Head, Squeezed Players' Testicles
Basketball coaches and books, man. ...

NCAA Rejects UNC's Stick-To-Sports Response, Moves Forward With Investigation
The NCAA issued yet another response in its convoluted back-and-forth with the University of North Carolina over the institution’s response to UNC’s sham Afro-American Studies department, which funneled athletes through paper classes....

Andrew Bogut Dunked On, This Time On Twitter <em></em>
Dallas Mavericks and former Golden State Warriors center Andrew Bogut’s political beliefs are exactly what you would expect them to be. He complains about the rappers, cars, and the bling bling in the NBA; goes on random right-wing podcasts; is anti-workers rights; and frequently tweets profoundly u...

Somebody Save Kevin Ollie
The American Athletic Conference held its men’s basketball media day this morning; Cincinnati was picked by the beat writers as the favorites to win the conference, edging out UConn by a single first-place vote. Also, Kevin Ollie—former NBA player, current Huskies head coach, 2014 NCAA champion—had ...

Rick Pitino Denies Responsibility For Louisville Prostitution Scandal, Once Again Invokes 9/11
Last year, a book written by a self-described madam detailed allegations that the Louisville basketball program provided strippers for team parties within the dorms, and that some of the strippers were paid to have sex with athletes, as a means of attracting recruits. Former graduate assistant Andre...

Nick Kyrgios Picks NBA Celebrity Game Over Tennis Tournament, Which Is Actually Good As Hell
Nick Kyrgios has done dumb things lately and has taken plenty of heat for it—from disappointed fans, from hand-wringing commentators, and from the ATP itself via heavy fines and suspension. They’ll all be tempted to wag their fingers again after Kyrgios’s latest move: pulling out of February’s Rot...

Celtics Fan Enjoys Himself
I’m usually unimpressed by the dinguses who do wacky things behind the broadcast table at NBA games, but I have to admit that this dude’s routine during last night’s Knicks-Celtics game made me chuckle:...

Draymond Green Will Be Tolerated As Long As He Continues Helping The Warriors Win<em></em>
Draymond Green is the straw that stirs the Golden State Warriors’ drink, and that is precisely the problem, posits an ESPN deep dive into Green and the Warriors. All last season, small instances of Green simmering—chasing triple-doubles, yelling at his teammates—were reported, but mostly filed away ...