David Yapkowitz Articles - Page 13

When Cameron Brink checked into the game for the Los Angeles Sparks back on July 29 with just over two minutes to go in the first quarter, it marked the first time in over a year that she was back on a WNBA court. After a devastating injury that ended her rookie season prematurely, Brink […]

The next couple of days, and weeks, are going to be busy for NBA teams as they finalize their training camp rosters and work towards finalizing their regular season rosters. For the Los Angeles Lakers, media day is on Monday and training camp begins right after. The Lakers have a full 15-man roster and so […]

There is a lot of uncertainty coming into the 2025-26 NBA season for the Philadelphia 76ers when it comes to the availability of Joel Embiid. During the team’s media day this past week, Embiid himself acknowledged there is no set timetable for his return as he continues to rehab from a knee injury. But one […]

Coming into the 2025-26 season, there is still a lot of uncertainty surrounding the Philadelphia 76ers. All-Star center and MVP candidate Joel Embiid is currently sidelined due to injury, and there is no concrete timeline for his return to the court. Paul George, the 76ers’ prized 2024 offseason acquisition, is also sidelined due to injury […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder are on top the NBA world right now after having won their first championship in the Thunder era. With contract extensions given out this offseason to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams, the Thunder ensured they have their title core together for at least the next few seasons. But with […]

With NBA training camps set to open this coming week, and a few already underway, there are still two major free agency situations yet to resolved. While the Jonathan Kuminga situation with the Golden State Warriors has been well-chronicled, Quentin Grimes’ contract situation with the Philadelphia 76ers has been flying under the radar a bit. […]

The 2024-25 season was a highly successful year for the Georgia Bulldogs considering the team reached the NCAA Tournament for the first time in ten years. The last time Georgia made it to the Big Dance was the 2014-15 season when they reached the round of 32 under former coach Mark Fox. The program obviously […]

Media Day for the Los Angeles Lakers is on Monday, and after that comes the official start of training camp. The Lakers regular season roster is essentially set, and they have one two-way contract spot open. The final two-way contract spot was reportedly going to rookie forward Eric Dixon, but those plans have yet to […]

The New York Liberty shocked the WNBA world with the firing of head coach Sandy Brondello almost immediately after the team was eliminated in the opening round of the WNBA Playoffs by the Phoenix Mercury. The decision came even after Liberty star Breanna Stewart scoffed at a question that seemed to suggest Brondello’s job could […]

The Utah Jazz come into the 2025-26 season armed with a plethora of young talent. In order for the Jazz to come out of their rebuild and start competing in the Western Conference, they’re going to need several of those young players show growth and development quite soon. Looking at the Jazz roster, there is […]

The Utah Jazz are in the midst of a rebuild, and although the draft lottery odds did not shine their way, they still managed to grab arguably one of the top prospects in the draft in Ace Bailey with the No. 5 overall pick. With training camps set to open next week, the Jazz, like […]

After pulling off a blockbuster trade to acquire Kevin Durant, the Houston Rockets had vaulted themselves into potential contender status. Those hopes and notions took a major hit this week with the announcement that starting point guard Fred VanVleet suffered an ACL injury, in all likelihood ending his season prematurely. What is a positive for […]

The Sacramento Kings are one of those teams that’s seemingly stuck in ‘no-man’s land.’ That is, a team that is not bad enough to get a high draft pick and accelerate a rebuild, but not good enough to be a threat in the playoffs. With the Western Conference shaping up to be as tough as […]

When it comes to WNBA free agency, a lot of players have cited facilities as being one of the biggest concerns in terms of making their free agent decisions. As a result, WNBA teams have been quick with announcements regarding team-specific practice facilities. In the case of the expansion team Portland Fire, they will share […]

With NBA media days already jumping off and training camps set to open at the end of the month, the Philadelphia 76ers took the opportunity to announce they would bring back an old jersey design for the 2025-26 season. Among the promo images for the 76ers’ announcement was a photo of second-year guard Jared McCain […]

When Hakeem Olajuwon roamed the court, the Houston Cougars were a powerhouse making it to three straight Final Fours and three national championship game appearances. So it would make sense that Houston would recruit Hakeem Olajuwon’s son, Aziz. But Aziz Olajuwon turned down the Cougars in favor of Stanford this weekend, as per Joe Tipton […]

Following a tumultuous 2024-25 season in which the Dallas Mavericks were heavily criticized, to put it mildly, over the shocking Luka Doncic trade, the team is ready to compete off the heels of drafting Cooper Flagg with the No. 1 overall pick. With NBA training camps set to open at the end of the month, […]

Houston Rockets rising star big man Alperen Sengun had a coming out party this summer at EuroBasket for Turkey. Turkey ended up in the gold medal game, and to get there they had to beat Giannis Antetokounmpo and Greece in the EuroBasket Semifinals. The Milwaukee Bucks star struggled in that game being guarded by Ercan […]

It must be the dull days of the NBA offseason when hypotheticals start making headlines. One debate that has seemingly garnered steam on social media is whether or not former NBA star Tracy McGrady would have NBA titles playing alongside a prime Shaq like the late Kobe Bryant did. A few months ago, Tracy McGrady […]

Las Vegas Aces star A’ja Wilson made WNBA history on Sunday becoming the only player to have won the MVP Award four times. Wilson was presented with the award ahead of the Aces Game 1 matchup of the WNBA Semifinals against the Indiana Fever. During the presentation, Aces head coach Becky Hammon had a special […]

The underdog Indiana Fever kept on rolling on Sunday following their 89-73 takedown of the Las Vegas Aces in Game 1 of the WNBA Semifinals. Although the Fever are without star guard Caitlin Clark due to injury, Clark has been very vocal on social media during the team’s playoff run. Clark continued her social media […]

The Washington Wizards have assembled an intriguing mix of young players with potential for the 2025-26 season. With two-way contracts, NBA teams are able to keep tabs on young players they are interested in without having to use a standard roster spot. The Wizards made such a roster move this weekend with the late offseason […]

The results of the WNBA’s MVP voting were released this weekend, and Las Vegas Aces star A’ja Wilson made history becoming the first player to win the award four times. The complete results of the voting were revealed by Meghan L. Hall of USA Today Sports, and one of the most surprising MVP votes was […]

When the 2025-26 season officially opens later next month, the Washington Wizards will be chuck-full of young prospects as they continue to navigate a rebuild. The Wizards are not going to be contending for anything anytime soon, but they have managed to assemble an intriguing group of prospects. Playing time is going to be crucial […]

When the 2025-26 season officially opens later next month, the New Orleans Pelicans are a team looking to turn things around and compete in the Western Conference. Going back to last season’s trade deadline, the Pelicans made a couple of trades to shake up their core in trading Brandon Ingram to the Toronto Raptors and […]

With the 2025 WNBA season in the books for the Dallas Wings, there is no question that Paige Bueckers is their franchise player for now and the foreseeable future. It’s not just on the court, but off the court as well as the star guard has amassed quite a following. Fresh off winning the Rookie […]

When the 2025-26 season officially opens later next month, the Toronto Raptors are hoping to be among the teams vying for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Raptors have not made the playoffs since the 2021-22 season, but with a few teams in the East taking a step back, they could be the […]

With NBA training camps set to open at the end of the month, the Jonathan Kuminga free agency drama threatens to drag into that for the Golden State Warriors. At the forefront of the negotiations is Kuminga’s request for a player option in a new contract, as per ClutchPoints’ NBA insider Brett Siegel. Another potential […]

Following four seasons under Ben Johnson, the Minnesota Gophers opted to go in a different direction, parting ways with Johnson and hiring Niko Medved as head coach. With the 2025-26 season not even underway yet, Medved still got to the recruiting trail already landing two recruits for the 2026-27 season. Minnesota added a third recruit […]

Following the Achilles injury to Jayson Tatum during the Eastern Conference Semifinals last season, the Boston Celtics pivoted their focus for this upcoming season. They traded high-priced veterans such as Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis, while taking fliers on younger talent like Anfernee Simons, Josh Minott and Luka Garza. The Celtics continued the trend of […]

The Indiana Fever pulled off the unthinkable on Thursday when they defeated the Atlanta Dream, 87-85, in Game 3 of their opening round series of the WNBA Playoffs. While the Fever were without several key players due to injury, the Dream were 100 percent healthy. That’s probably why all nine of ESPN’s experts picked the […]

If Game 2 of the opening round series of the WNBA Playoffs between the Indiana Fever and Atlanta Dream was any indication, fans are certainly tuning in to see a potential underdog emerge victorious. That came true on Thursday when the Fever eliminated the Dream, 87-85, in Game 3 to advance to the WNBA Semifinals […]

During the Indiana Pacers run to the NBA Finals last season, one player who stood out in particular in addition to Tyrese Haliburton, was his backup in TJ McConnell. McConnell endeared himself to Pacers fans when he single-handedly tried will the team back in Game 7 against the Oklahoma City Thunder following Haliburton’s injury. TJ […]

The Wofford basketball team was at the forefront of a major story this week when it was revealed that six players on the team were found to be ineligible due to reportedly using a campus meal plan while living off of campus. In the initial report, it was said that the NCAA had a hand […]

With the WNBA hitting an all-time high in fan popularity, it’s no surprise that, that momentum has carried over into the playoffs. While some of the league’s biggest names are not in the postseason such as Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese, that doesn’t seem to stop fans from watching. Earlier this week Game 2 of […]

Over the past couple of seasons, the Indiana Pacers and Milwaukee Bucks have been developing a bit of a rivalry. The rivalry kind of took route when the Pacers defeated the Bucks in the inaugural in-season tournament when Tyrese Haliburton used Damian Lillard’s ‘Dame Time’ celebration. It crescendoed when Giannis Antetokounmpo angrily confronted several members […]

When it comes to outspoken voices on podcasts, perhaps there is none greater than former NBA player Patrick Beverley. The latest comments to garner headlines from Patrick Beverley were about Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young, comments that ultimately received a bewildered response from Houston Rockets star Kevin Durant. Kevin Durant responded to Patrick Beverley on […]

With the explosion of the transfer portal in college basketball, it’s made that much harder for high school basketball prospects to land a coveted Division 1 scholarship upon completing their senior year. For incoming South Carolina State Bulldogs transfer Rayniel Wright, it was precisely the reason why it took him a little longer to get […]

The Vanderbilt Commodores experienced a major turnaround in just one season under new head coach Mark Byington. After seven straight years of missing the NCAA Tournament, and five losing seasons in that time frame, the Commodores reached the postseason, albeit losing in the round of 64. The success seems to have gotten noticed by potential […]