the-nba Page 32 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Hey NBA— stop allowing players to 'defend' with bogus charge calls
I was born decades after the Great Depression, so I never had the opportunity to meet Dr. James Naismith. I know that he wanted a game without contact but to make an honest attempt at that goal, players on defense should not be allowed to slide in front of players on offense whose feet are at most o...

Russell Westbrook — flaws and all — was crucial in the Clippers’ Game 1 victory
For those who may be too young to remember Russell Westbrook’s best work, show them from the 1:08 mark in the fourth quarter of the Los Angeles Clippers 115-110, 2023 Game 1 playoff victory against the Phoenix Suns, to when the clock stops at 10.1 seconds....

Bronny James got a Hollywood NIL deal
Bronny James was born at the right time. With the NIL runway cleared for takeoff, James is soaring at cruising altitude. He is doing so well that you will likely see a commercial of his many times during the NBA playoffs. In an ad for the 10th installment of the Fast and Furious franchise. James’ fa...

Sacramento arena security tells Bay Area rap legend E-40 when to go
The Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings began their northern California playoff battle Saturday night at Golden 1 Center in Sactown, and it surpassed the hype. They were the main event during a full day of opening-round postseason matchups, and the NBA certainly did right with its scheduling,...

Finding the NBA playoff X factors
The NBA playoffs are where superstars can add to — or subtract from — their legacies. They may come up clutch, or absolutely choke under the spotlight. The same goes for coaches. But there are always subplots around certain youngsters, role players, and unknowns who can make a name for themselves. T...

Here's which NBA playoff teams will boom or bust
NBA fans are preparing for one of the most equitable and competitive playoffs in recent memory. The lack of an active dynasty or superteam has the door open for nearly any team to make a Finals run. We’ve highlighted five teams headed toward playoff glory and five teams destined for despair. We cons...

Isn’t it ironic, don’t you tank?
The Dallas Mavericks went from the Western Conference Finals to being fined for punting on the postseason in less than a year. As a result of a decision to sit key guys and play Luka Dončić only a quarter in essentially an elimination game against the Chicago Bulls on April 7, Mark Cuban’s pockets a...

How can you get credit for games served when you’re not in the NBA?
The NBA on Friday announced that Charlotte Hornets restricted free agent forward Miles Bridges — who pleaded no contest to a felony count of injuring a child’s parent in exchange for three years probation and no jail time after allegedly assaulting his girlfriend in front of their two children — wil...

A sale isn't enough — Dan Snyder needs to face the consequences of his actions
Washington football fans are rejoicing this week as two bids for the Commanders have reportedly come in that would shoot Dan Snyder into the strata of the atmosphere occupied by Donald Sterling, Robert Sarver, and other discarded ex-owners of professional sports franchises. Let’s call it Irrelevancy...

Leave Zion Williamson alone. Did Simone Biles and Naomi Osaka not teach us anything?
From college to the NBA, as long as we’ve been watching Zion Williamson play basketball, he’s never had a season that wasn’t impacted by an injury. Since his one-and-done year at Duke to his four seasons with the New Orleans Pelicans, the league’s most electrifying player still hasn’t been able to s...

The NBA has a Charles Barkley problem — again
TNT’s flagship show Inside The NBA is at its best this time of the year, as fans tune in multiple times per week to watch Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, Ernie Johnson, and Shaquille O’Neal do their thing. But what happens when the star of the NBA’s biggest and best studio show gets on TV to tell fans...

The Sports Emmys are lacking, so Deadspin is here to pick up the slack
A problem with the Sports Emmys is there simply aren’t enough categories for individuals. Most awards are for shows, segments, reports, documentaries, etc. Only a handful acknowledge the on-air personalities, so those who care about bringing home some hardware are in for an uphill battle....

No one wants to get their teeth kicked through their skull by the Bruins
If the NHL ever considered instituting its own play-in tournament, and they have, and last night’s Lakers-Timberwolves what-have-ya wasn’t enough to dissuade them, then the Islanders and Penguins have recently showed the league that were they forced to waylay into each other in a single-elimination ...

Shaq dismantilizes the English language on TNT
Over the years, Shaquille O’Neal and the TNT crew on Inside the NBA have given us plenty of hilarious moments. Just about every episode at this point produces a segment that gets picked up and goes viral on social media. Many of those moments have come out of the mouth of Dr. O’Neal, and the latest ...

The Lakers need to get their stuff together if they wanna advance any further
Once again the Los Angeles Lakers found themselves in a game that they desperately needed to win, clutching victory with one hand hoping that the opposing team would fall off of the cliff first. That is certainly a path to a 108-102 overtime victory against the Minnesota Timberwolves who were missin...

The play-in is butt and the NBA is laughing at all of us
Let’s not bury the lede here. The last five to eight minutes and overtime between the Los Angeles Lakers and Minnesota Timberwolves was some of the worst basketball on offer this season, and certainly a contender for worst fare offered up in what is supposed to be an important game. Between the Lake...

The excitement factor of the NFL Draft is forever ruined by insiders — and it sucks
Anyone who grew up watching the NFL draft (and others) before social media existence probably misses that anticipation of not knowing who their favorite team would select. That nervousness, sweaty palms, butterflies in the stomach, hoping one’s team would draft that next generational talent or even ...

The Calgary Flames were undone by a gimmick
While sneaking into the bottom rung of the playoffs is something to be eschewed in the NBA given that it rarely leads anywhere, there’s still a perception in the NHL that all you have to do is “get in.” The NHL has dined out for decades on the idea that the playoffs set everything anew, and that one...

When Rajon Rondo retires, no one will remember him like my mom will
Love is a mysterious thing. It can’t always be explained. It involves a certain kind of alchemy. Sometimes the people you love are widely adored. Other people hear about your love for them and think, “Gee, that’s only natural.” Other times, the people you love are misunderstood, overlooked, or even ...

Gregg Popovich isn't here for your thoughts and prayers
Before the NBA’s regular season wrapped up, before his San Antonio Spurs beat the Dallas Mavericks in the finale, Gregg Popovich didn’t want to talk about his future. The 74-year-old Hall of Famer brushed off questions about his retirement. Instead, during his pregame media availability, the all-tim...