Ashish Mathur Articles - Page 157

Toronto Raptors general manager Bobby Webster says he and Pascal Siakam’s camp are still in talks on a possible extension ahead of the Oct. 21 deadline. Siakam is eligible for a contract extension. If he doesn’t sign one before the upcoming season starts, he’ll enter restricted free agency next summer. Webster said he and Siakam's […]

Toronto Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry says he will be ready to go for opening night when the Raptors host the New Orleans Pelicans. Lowry had a procedure to repair a tendon injury in his left thumb in July. He practiced with the team on Tuesday for the first time since undergoing surgery. Lowry said […]

Los Angeles Lakers superstar small forward LeBron James believes Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey was misinformed about his China tweet. Morey voiced support on Twitter for pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong. A lot of damage has already been done because of Morey’s tweet. “I believe he was misinformed and not educated on the situation,” […]

Los Angeles Lakers superstar big man Anthony Davis did some pregame shooting on Monday at Staples Center. The MRI on the right thumb of Davis came back negative. AD suffered the injury during a preseason game against the Brooklyn Nets in China. We’re awaiting an update on both Anthony Davis and Kyle Kuzma that should […]

Los Angeles Lakers small forward Kyle Kuzma has been cleared for non-contact practice, according to head coach Frank Vogel. Kuzma continues to recover from a stress injury in his lower left leg. Kyle Kuzma has been cleared for non-contact practice, according to Frank Vogel. — Dave McMenamin (@mcten) October 15, 2019 Last season for the […]

Houston Rockets head coach Mike D’Antoni confirms reports of shooting guard Gerald Green’s foot injury. D’Antoni says Green probably broke his left foot: Mike D'Antoni confirms reports of Gerald Green's foot injury. "It's probably broken." — Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) October 14, 2019 Green is likely to miss several months if surgery is required. He appeared […]

Houston Rockets head coach Mike D’Antoni says he would “definitely” consider playing Ryan Anderson as a backup center this season. D’Antoni says Tyson Chandler’s availability, how opposing teams guard the Rockets and other things will dictate if he uses Anderson at center. D'Antoni says Tyson Chandler's availability, how opposing teams guard Houston, and other things […]

Boston Celtics legend Paul Pierce says Los Angeles Clippers superstar small forward Kawhi Leonard is already a top-30 player of all time. Leonard has won two Finals MVPs with two different teams — the San Antonio Spurs and Toronto Raptors. He’s also a three-time All-Star and two-time Defensive Player of the Year. Pierce says Leonard […]

Philadelphia 76ers All-Stars Ben Simmons and Al Horford will sit out on Tuesday when the Sixers host the Detroit Pistons. Simmons has some back tightness, while Horford is sidelined for rest. Both James Ennis (right calf strain) and Ben Simmons (back tightness) will sit out tomorrow nights preseason game vs. Detroit (precautionary). Al Horford (rest) […]

Dallas Mavericks power forward Kristaps Porzingis played two seasons with Carmelo Anthony on the New York Knicks. By all accounts, the current Mavs star and Anthony had a good relationship in New York despite not winning a lot of games in The Big Apple. Porzingis, who is one of the brightest young talents in the […]

Zach LaVine led the Chicago Bulls in scoring last season, and the high-flyer expects to do it again in 2019-20. LaVine averaged 23.7 points per game last season. He’s the most talented scorer on the Bulls and knows it’s his job to carry the scoring load in The Windy City. “I think I defined that […]

San Antonio Spurs point guard Dejounte Murray is eligible to sign a rookie-scale extension with the club. If Murray and the Spurs can’t agree to a deal before Oct. 21, Murray would enter restricted free agency next summer if San Antonio offers him a qualifying offer worth $3.5 million. Murray wants to be on the […]

Dallas Mavericks star power forward Kristaps Porzingis says one of his goals for this season is to win Defensive Player of the Year. The Mavs big man is one of the best shot-blockers in the league thanks to his 7-foot stature. Porzingis says blocking shots is just one aspect of being a good defensive player. […]

Miami Heat swingman Justise Winslow is opening up about dealing with mental health issues. In a one-hour documentary titled “HeadStrong: Mental Health and Sports,” Winslow talked about his struggles with mental health last season. The Heat forward is comfortable about sharing his story since he knows he’s not the only person who deals with it. […]

Power forward Julius Randle wants to lead the New York Knicks to the playoffs this season and make the All-Star team. Randle signed a three-year, $63 million deal with the Knicks this summer in free agency. He’s looking to be the main reason why New York shocks the world this season and makes the postseason. […]

For Chicago Bulls shooting guard Zach LaVine to make the All-Star team this season, three things need to happen. One, LaVine needs to build off his 2018-19 campaign offensively and continue to find ways to become more efficient. Two, the Bulls’ leading scorer has to lead Chicago to more than 22 wins. But the most […]

San Antonio Spurs legend Manu Ginobili made a surprise appearance on the San Antonio big screen on Sunday. During the Simba Cam segment, Ginobili and his son had a fun moment together which was shown on the San Antonio jumbotron: https://twitter.com/spurs/status/1183824340112031744?s=20 Ginobili spent his entire legendary career with the Spurs. He will be a first-ballot […]

The Boston Celtics have exercised options on Jayson Tatum and Robert Williams, according to multiple reports. Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium broke the news on Tatum, while Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports relayed the Williams tidbit: The Boston Celtics have exercised forward Jayson Tatum's $9.9M fourth-year team option, league sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium. […]

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr is not pleased with how his team is rebounding thus far. It’s only preseason, but Kerr points out the Warriors are the second-worst rebounding team in the preseason, which includes some international teams since the NBA has taken on some teams outside of the U.S. in the preseason. […]

Houston Rockets superstar point guard Russell Westbrook bumped knees with someone on Monday and left practice. However, Westbrook is “fine,” according to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle: Russell Westbrook bumped knees with someone and left the practice, but word is "he is fine." Judging from the cheerful moods when I asked about it, I'd […]

It looks like NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley may have some competition for the worst golf swing. Washington Wizards big man Moe Wagner tried to enjoy his off day at Top Golf, but instead was the butt of a joke after his golf swing went viral on the internet. Wagner’s former teammate on the […]

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr admits Marquese Chriss has “got more skills as a passer and screener” than he realized. Chriss, who is on a training camp deal with the Warriors, is trying to make the Warriors’ opening-day roster. Steve Kerr on Marquese Chriss: “He’s got more skill as a passer and screener […]

Buddy Hield is looking for a contract extension from the Sacramento Kings, something point guard De’Aaron Fox is hoping gets done so he gets to continue to play with the sharpshooter. Hield is eligible to sign a rookie-scale contract extension with the Kings. If Sacramento and Hield can’t agree to an extension, Buddy would enter […]

The Boston Celtics had talks with the Brooklyn Nets and Charlotte Hornets to execute a three-team trade which would have sent Kyrie Irving to Brooklyn, Terry Rozier to Charlotte and Kemba Walker to Boston, according to Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald. The deal might have convinced Al Horford to stay with the Celtics. Horford […]

Jimmy Butler clocked in at 3:30 a.m. so he could work out before the Miami Heat held their first practice of the season. Count Cleveland Cavaliers All-Star Kevin Love has someone who thinks that was all for show. The Heat practiced at 10 a.m. As we all know, however, Butler has a world-class work ethic […]

Toronto Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry is questionable to face the Chicago Bulls on Sunday. Lowry had a procedure to repair a tendon injury in his left thumb in July and has yet to take the floor with his Raptors teammates at training camp and hasn’t played in the preseason. Raptors are listing Kyle Lowry […]

Chicago Bulls point guard Coby White claims he can “shoot the ball well enough to play the two.” The Bulls drafted White to be their point guard, but so far in the preseason, he’s played more like a shooting guard. White is averaging 16.3 points in just 27 minutes while shooting 40 percent from the […]

New Orleans Pelicans rookie Zion Williamson is off to a hot start in the preseason. His point guard, Lonzo Ball, says he’s never seen anything like what Williamson is doing efficiency wise. It’s just preseason, but Williamson has 55 points on 21-of-25 shooting in the last two games. Ball says he tells Zion all the […]

Memphis Grizzlies center Jonas Valanciunas has no structural damage in his foot, but he won’t play in the remaining preseason games, according to David Cobb of the Memphis Commercial Appeal. Valanciunas has been dealing with foot soreness. The Grizzlies don’t appear to be worried. There are no structural issues with Jonas Valanciunas’ foot, according to […]

Golden State Warriors star point guard Stephen Curry has been telling his new backcourt mate, D’Angelo Russell, “just be who you are” as the lefty adjusts to the Warriors’ system. Curry wants Russell to play his game and not worry about changing his style of play just because he’s on a new team now. “Just […]

Jay Williams is picking Los Angeles Clippers forwards Kawhi Leonard and Paul George as the best duo in the NBA this season, while his good friend Jalen Rose is going with Los Angeles Lakers stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis. The battle for Los Angeles is going to be epic this season with Leonard and […]

New York Knicks power forward Julius Randle wants to “make people better on the court” and take a jump defensively this season. Randle isn’t worried about scoring the ball since that aspect of his game comes easy to him. The Knicks big man is looking to become a more polished player by making his teammates […]

The Detroit Pistons have no plans to start Derrick Rose over Reggie Jackson during the regular season despite Rose’s strong preseason play, according to Rod Beard of the Detroit News. Rose has arguably been the best player for the Pistons in the first three preseason games. The former MVP put up 10 points and four […]

Toronto Raptors head coach Nick Nurse says their load management strategy on superstar Kawhi Leonard last season prepared the team for life without him. Leonard missed 22 games last season for the Raptors, who went 17-5 without their best player in 2018-19. Nurse is obviously going to miss Leonard, but he believes the Raptors aren’t […]

Analytics say Chicago Bulls shooting guard Zach LaVine shouldn’t shoot mid-range jumpers. LaVine, one of the most consistent mid-range shooters in the NBA, disagrees with analytics telling him to abandon that aspect of his game, via Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times. “I know … ain’t this crazy,’’ LaVine told the Sun-Times on Friday, when […]

With Kawhi Leonard gone, it appears the Toronto Raptors are ready to hand the keys to the offense to small forward Pascal Siakam. Raptors head coach Nick Nurse says Siakam could maybe become Toronto’s “primary option” this season. “I think a situation has been created for him to expand his role a little bit,” Nurse […]

Portland Trail Blazers big man Pau Gasol is recovering from surgery to repair a stress fracture in his left foot, so he won’t play on Saturday against the Phoenix Suns. It wouldn’t be a surprise if we don’t see Gasol in the preseason. Pau Gasol (left foot) will not play in Saturday's preseason contest versus […]

New York Knicks power forward Marcus Morris wasn’t suspended after receiving a Flagrant 2 ejection against the Washington Wizards on Monday. Morris says the NBA didn’t speak to him, pointing out how the league has bigger fish to fry with the whole Daryl Morey tweet controversy with China. Marcus Morris was happy to not be […]

Veteran small forward James Johnson is back with the Miami Heat after being banished for not meeting the team’s conditioning requirements. Johnson passed his conditioning test with Miami, but Heat president Pat Riley wanted the swingman to lower his weight and body fat. Speaking to local reporters on Friday, Johnson said it felt good to […]