Ananth Pandian Articles - Page 5

Harkening back to the days when the Miami Heat and Indiana Pacers were battling it out in the Eastern Conference Finals for two straight years, LeBron James and Lance Stephenson have a bit of history. Stephenson tried to get a mental edge of James back then and continues to try to rattle the Cavs superstar in Indiana’s […]

The Toronto Raptors are named after the Velociraptor, the diminutive yet fearsome dinosaur that became part of popular culture thanks to the the myriad number of Jurassic Park movies. The Raptors, though, do have purple in their team colors, which is more reminiscent of another dinosaur — Barney. Calling attention to this, the Milwaukee Bucks played […]

One of the longest running jokes during Tim Duncan‘s illustrious career with the Spurs was that he was a robot. Duncan was so consistent throughout his career that it just seemed like he was a machine programmed to play basketball. Well, now that Duncan has retired, it seems like yet another Spurs All-Star is being […]

Usually entertaining more for his mistakes than his jokes, TNT analyst Charles Barkely had another classic hilarious moment on Inside the NBA on Wednesday. While talking about the first-round matchup between the Hawks and Wizards, Barkley was trying to figure out how Atlanta could actually beat Washington. So he decided to some math, guessing how many […]

Dismayed by team president Phil Jackson’s open criticism of Knicks All-Star Carmelo Anthony at his end of season press conference, Kristaps Porzinigis skipped his own exit interview with the Zen Master. Porzinigis’ frustration is simply not a good look for the Knicks, who are mired in dysfunction and if their young star is unhappy, that […]

For the third straight game, the Utah Jazz will look to try to beat the Los Angeles Clippers without potential Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert. The Jazz center hyperextended his knee seconds into Game 1 of the Jazz’s first-round series against the Clippers and according to the Salt Lake Tribune‘s Tony Jones, Gobert is […]

Essentially from their birth, LaVar Ball has been hyping up his sons: potential 2017 top draft pick Lonzo, and his brothers LiAngelo and LaMelo. LaVar’s endless hype machine is built on outlandish claims and exaggerations, but while his plan has its merits, it also has received plenty of criticism. One of those critics is George […]

Wanting to focus on the Warriors‘ pursuit of winning another championship, Stephen Curry took a page from LeBron James and decided to go dark on social media for the extent of the postseason. Or did he? Right before the start of Game 2 in Golden State’s first-round series against the Portland Trail Blazers, Curry tweeted […]

In the first-round series between the Washington Wizards and Atlanta Hawks, John Wall is dominating the point guard matchup with Dennis Schroder. And well aware of how great he is playing, Wall is letting Schroder know all about it. Stealing the ball away from Schroder in the third quarter of Game 2, Wall threw down […]

Starting in his first ever All-Star game and a leading candidate for the Most Improved Player award, Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo has quickly emerged this season as a burgeoning superstar in the NBA. Antetokounmpo has shown flashes of his potential in the past but this season he is beginning to put it all together and helped […]

Extremely animated in a now iconic postgame interview, Grizzlies coach David Fizdale harshly criticized the officials after Memphis’ Game 2 loss to the San Antonio Spurs on Monday. Fizdale was fined $30,000 on Wednesday for his comments but the Grizzlies coach doesn’t have to worry about paying it since his team is going to take care of things […]

Immediately after leading the Clippers past the Jazz in Game 2 of their first-round matchup, Chris Paul was asked about heading out on the road to play the next two games in Utah. Jazz fans are among the best in the league, so Paul acknowledged their fervent support for their team by saying, “They have […]

Every postseason, LeBron James goes off social media so he can be be focused on winning another championship. This has become an annual tradition for James and now it seems like Stephen Curry is following in the Cavs superstar’s footsteps. In an interview with ESPN’s Chris Haynes, Curry says he is quitting social media for the […]

Despite the tragic news of his younger sister’s death, Celtics All-Star Isaiah Thomas has amazingly been competing and playing at a high level in the first-round of the NBA playoffs. Throughout this difficult time, Thomas has received a widespread amount of support from his teammates, coaches, fans and other NBA players. Wanting to properly acknowledge […]

In the first-round of the 2015 NBA Playoffs between the Celtics and Cavs, Kevin Love got injured in Game 4 while battling for a rebound with Kelly Olynyk. Love ended up missing the rest of the postseason with a shoulder injury and was quite angry with Olynyk, who had grabbed the Cavs forward’s arm and […]

Down 0-2 in their first-round series against the Chicago Bulls, the Boston Celtics don’t resemble the team that earned the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference. The Bulls have taken the Celtics out of their game and Chicago just looks like a bad matchup for Boston. But the Celtics aren’t eliminated just yet and […]

Finishing with 13 points, eight rebounds, two steals and two blocks, Marcus Smart had a solid game in Boston‘s 111-97 Game 2 loss to the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday. Smart did however, not shoot well from three-point range, going just 1-of-4 from behind the arc. And on top of that, Smart may have had a run in […]

Thanks to the fiery and critical speech by Memphis coach David Fizdale, Grizzlies fans will be especially hyped for Game 3 of the team’s first-round series against the San Antonio Spurs. Likely in large part because of Fizdale, Grizzlies fans will surely pour into FedEx Forum and turn it into the Grindhouse. And now thanks […]

At 35 years old, Dwyane Wade is no spring chicken. But while Wade may be old in NBA-terms, he is still playing at a high level. Take for example his performance against the Boston Celtics in Chicago’s 111-97 victory on Tuesday. Wade finished with 22 points, including three three-pointers, and added four rebounds and two […]

Feeling confident that the Bucks could extend their first-round series lead to 2-0, Shaquille O’Neal picked Milwaukee to beat the Raptors in Game 2 on Tuesday. "I'm going with Milwaukee."@SHAQ believes the @Bucks can take a 2-0 lead in Toronto Tuesday. #NBAPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/HSQTCB945u — NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) April 18, 2017 O’Neal can be rather […]

Essentially in every game that he plays in, LeBron James will show off his amazing athleticism with a highlight reel dunk or another impressive offensive play. On Monday in Game 2 of Cleveland‘s first-round series against Indiana, James decided to go with a dunk in the first quarter and this simply just angered Pacers president […]

Instantly injecting the Pacers with a much needed jolt of energy, Lance Stephenson has played well since signing with Indiana near the end of the regular season. Stephenson though, with his antics and wild shots can be a rather confusing player at times. So naturally, it is not too surprising to see Stephenson hit a shot […]

Playing on Sunday with a heavy heart due to the death of his younger sister just the day before, Celtics All-Star Isaiah Thomas became quite emotional and started to openly weep during his team’s morning shootaround. Considering that Thomas’ sister just died, this is an appropriate reaction, especially since the Celtics All-Star was still going […]

At 35 years old, Dwyane Wade is not the athletic player he once was. Wade is still great, but his athleticism is definitely not what it used to be. This was quite evident in Game 1 of the Chicago Bulls‘ first-round matchup against the Boston Celtics on Sunday. Getting a steal and with only one defender […]

Still reeling from the devastating news that his 22-year-old sister, Chyna passed away in a car crash early Saturday morning, Celtics All-Star Isaiah Thomas was quite emotional before Boston took on the Chicago Bulls in Game 1 of their first-round matchup. Thomas broke down into tears during Boston’s morning shootaround and was consoled by teammate Avery Bradley, […]

Literally having unlimited range, Stephen Curry showed off his phenomenal shooting prowess before the Golden State Warriors played Game 1 of their first-round matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers on Sunday. As a customary part of his warmup, Curry swished numerous deep threes from the Warriors’ logo: 💦 @StephenCurry30 feeling it from the logo pic.twitter.com/Ti71fyaFoa — […]

Wanting to support his twin brother Markieff Morris in the playoffs, Marcus Morris wore the Wizards forward’s jersey to Washington’s Game 1 matchup against the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday. Now THIS is brotherly love. It's Detroit F Marcus Morris wearing twin Markieff's No. 5 #Wizards jersey at today's playoff game. pic.twitter.com/vp3E8ZyvDG — Candace Buckner (@CandaceDBuckner) […]

Facing insurmountable odds in the first-round against the Warriors, the Portland’s daunting task of actually upsetting the Warriors becomes that much more difficult in Game 1 as Blazers center Jusuf Nurkic will not be available to play. Jusuf Nurkic (right leg) will not play in Game One — Casey Holdahl (@CHold) April 16, 2017 Nurkic suffered […]

Always wearing his heart on his sleeve, Clippers guard Chris Paul is an emotional player. And Paul’s emotions were on full display in Game 1 of the Clippers’ first-round matchup against the Utah Jazz on Saturday. After Joe Johnson scored on a broken play in the closing minutes of Game 1, Paul stomped on the […]

Making the playoffs for the first time since 2012, the Utah Jazz did not have the most auspicious start to their postseason. Seventeen seconds into Game 1 of Utah’s first-round series against the Los Angeles Clippers, Jazz center Rudy Gobert sustained an injury and had to be helped off the court. Gobert banged knees with Clippers […]

Reacting to tragic news of the death of Isaiah Thomas’ sister on Saturday, the Boston Celtics released a statement, expressing their condolences to his family. We are terribly saddened by the tragic loss of Chyna Thomas. The thoughts & prayers of the entire organization are with Isaiah & his family. — Boston Celtics (@celtics) April 16, 2017 NBA commissioner […]

Wearing what look to be furry, mule-styled dress shoes, Tristan Thompson may have been feeling himself a bit too much after the Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Indiana Pacers 109-108 to win Game 1 of their first round matchup on Saturday. Tristan Thompson's shoes are __________. pic.twitter.com/4QZhpu1A9d — Dave McMenamin (@mcten) April 15, 2017 Finishing with eight […]

Tragedy struck the family of Boston Celtics All-Star Isaiah Thomas on Saturday. According to KIRO7, a CBS-affiliated television station in Seattle, Thomas’ young sister died in a car accident in Federal Way, Washington early Saturday morning. From KIRO7: The Tacoma woman who died in a one-car accident on Interstate 5 in Federal Way Saturday morning is Chyna J. […]

He may be from Philadelphia but Lakers legend Kobe Bryant continues to give back to his adopted hometown of Los Angeles. Partnering with Nike, Bryant has created the Mamba League, a basketball program for inner city youth ages 8-10 in Los Angeles. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YngkrG-eaIE “The Mamba League is a fun league,” Bryant says. “It’s to learn the game, […]

A leading candidate for the MVP award while averaging at triple-double, Russell Westbrook has been absolutely sensational this season. Westbrook’s historic campaign prompted the Thunder to hold a special ceremony at their final regular season game on Wednesday which included Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson. So naturally, plenty of Thunder fans showed up to the game wearing […]

Wednesday marked the end of the 2016-2017 regular season and now we have to wait until Saturday before NBA action resumes with the playoffs. So what are you going to do with two full days of no NBA games? Well, don’t fret because the league released an exciting compilation of all of the the best dunks […]

Facing off against the best team in the league, the Golden State Warriors in the first round, the Portland Trail Blazers face some insurmountable odds. History is not on Portland’s side as there have only been five times when a No. 8 seed beat the No. 1 seed in the first round. And even the […]

Ever since he was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers, Jusuf Nurkic hasn’t spoken too fondly of his former team, the Denver Nuggets. Nurkic has never disparaged his former teammates and has always said nice things about them. But, when it comes to the organization’s decision to bench him, Nurkic subtly threw a few shots […]

Recovering from a slow start, the Miami Heat became one of the hottest teams in the league in the second half of the year. Their late-season surge put Miami into the playoff hunt, as they found themselves neck-and-neck with the Chicago Bulls and Indiana Pacers for the eighth seed in the East. But after the […]