nba-finals Page 5 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Try telling Kyrie Irving that ANTA is a significant step down from Nike
Kyrie Irving held a significant place in shoe culture up until he ran his mouth and got his Nike deal revoked. The mercurial point guard (pretty sure he single-handedly turned that phrase a cliche) consistently had the most popular sneaker at the company despite his on-again, off-again relationship ...

Assessment after 2 summer league games: Victor Wembanyama is scary
Victor Wembayama’s rookie summer league didn’t have quite the immediate impact of Zion Williamson’s. There was no steal in which he wrestled the ball from the clutches of NBA starter and went Daryl Dawkins on the rim, nor an earthquake that stopped the game. What Wembayama was able to accomplish thr...

NBA fans aren’t amused by the new in-season tournament
If you’re an NBA fan, you’ve probably seen or heard about the official announcement of the new in-season tournament set to jump off in November. Those who follow The Association on social media, most notably Instagram, may have received a direct message from former NBA baller Richard Jefferson expla...

The 15 Most Valuable Professional Sports Franchises
This story was corrected and revised on July 6, 2023. ...

Damian Lillard and James Harden need to exchange travel plans
The two superstars residing on the NBA’s bustling trade block have their bags packed. Damian Lillard has been hinting at Miami as his preference for weeks while the mutual interest between Harden and the Los Angeles Clippers is hard not to notice. Check back in a year and Harden may change his mind ...

Philadelphia should be ready to move James Harden along to the highest bidder
Here we go again with another episode of should he stay or go. This time featuring the Philadelphia 76ers and former NBA MVP James Harden. The bearded baller opted to pick up the last year on his current contract, which will pay him over $35 million for the 2023-24 campaign. While there have been ru...

Joey Chestnut’s dominance over the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest isn’t as staggering as you think
Is there a surer bet in sports than Joey Chestnut inhaling wieners, sliding those all-beef dogs down his throat faster than anyone else on America’s Independence Day? Well, I guess that it happens on Coney Island on the southern coast of Brooklyn, or than Nathan’s will supply the buns, weins, severa...

James Harden is chasing an ideal that doesn’t exist
It’s fair to ask the question, what does James Harden want? Is it a ring? Is it a lifestyle? Is it his own team? The 33-year-old former one-man wrecking crew is no longer an indestructible pinball, bouncing off of everything, and amassing high score after high score. No team is going to hand him the...

The Spurs like to mess with us, but it would have been unwise to use Victor Wembanyama to do so
Look at the San Antonio Spurs doing their part to properly sell the NBA. For a time there was a chance that Victor Wembanyama might be making his handful of NBA Summer League games in Sacramento and not during the league’s big event in Las Vegas....

The Reggie Evans Bad Basketball Basketball Hall of Fame 2023 inductees
Studies have shown that negative news garners more of the public’s attention than positive news, so with that knowledge, I propose an alternative to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. The Basketball Hall of Fame has the prestige, but it doesn’t generate as much conversation as Twitter ramblings f...

Kevin Durant jumps in Twitter Space about himself and sons the participants
In 2023, there is nothing unusual about staying inside on a Friday night. Outside are gouged prices for steaks and cocktails, while inside provides unimpeded toilet access and a personal wifi connection. Spending the night in a Twitter Space arguing about whether or not Kevin Durant is currently a t...

There’s less shame in porn than on the set of <i>First Take</i>
The easiest way to get clicks for the past week or so hasn’t been Victor Wembanyama content, or Damian Lillard trade destinations. No, if you really wanted to gin up page views and subscribers, put Zion Williamson and Moriah Mills in a headline. It’s the reason why Stephen A. Smith has repeatedly go...

NBA Draft: From No.1 pick to the Hall of Fame
Tonight is the 2023 NBA Draft, which is taking place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Some years the No. 1 pick is up for debate. This year, it’s almost certain that the San Antonio Spurs, winners of the Draft Lottery, will take French prospect Victor Wembanyama first....
![With addition of Bradley Beal, Phoenix Suns are determined to become the NBA’s next superteam [Updated]](https://images.deadspin.com/tr:w-900/661d17efbe5fe1a89cb6b35eeaa5f074.jpg)

Ja Morant fittingly suspended 25 games for a couple moments of idiocy
The other Nike dropped for Ja Morant on Friday with NBA commissioner Adam Silver levying a 25-game suspension for one the league’s brightest stars. The Memphis Grizzlies All-NBA point guard also will have to fulfill a program that he formulates himself (whatever good that’ll do) as part of his punis...

Kyrie Irving in Miami would be another disaster
If you love NBA rumors and gossip, we’ve entered your favorite time of year on the league calendar. The Nuggets have only been champions for a few days, and the rumor mill is already working overtime just ahead of the NBA draft. One of this week’s biggest stories involves this year’s runner-up and E...
![Conor McGregor won't be charged after alleged sexual assault during NBA Finals [Updated]](https://images.deadspin.com/tr:w-900/e73a77e3c12bd540427fe16dbf60e307.jpg)
Conor McGregor won't be charged after alleged sexual assault during NBA Finals [Updated]
Update, Oct. 18: Conor McGregor won’t be charged in relation to sexual assault allegations in Miami, according to authorities. ...

2023 All-Postseason Team, a FANtastic performance by these 5 players
America, glad to see the NBA playoffs were able to hold your attention again. With an average of 5.47 million viewers per game, the 2023 postseason was the most watched in five years. And more importantly, per Darren Rovell, since April of the 20 most watched programs by Americans under 50, the NBA ...

Deadspin's 2023 All-NBA Finals Team
The 2023 NBA Finals was not a sexy matchup on paper. A team from the mountain time zone with a mountain in the middle of lane, against a team from South Florida with no flash. These were the two teams that kept America from the NBA’s most classic championship matchup, Los Angeles Lakers vs. Boston C...

The Miami Heat ran out of gas, just like they did in 2014, 2020 NBA Finals
When we were all stuck in the house in the middle of the pandemic, basketball was the first sport available to watch on TV. The Bubble proved that sports could go on despite COVID-19. And while the 2020 NBA Finals were forgettable to some, it gave us one of the best memorable memes of all time — exh...