David Yapkowitz Articles - Page 19

This past offseason, one of the names that seemingly drew some of the biggest trade interest was Utah Jazz star Lauri Markkanen. The Jazz and Markkanen were able to come to an agreement on a contract extension, but even so, his future with the team may not be all that clear. When Lauri Markkanen signed […]

The Memphis Tigers punched their ticket to the AAC Tournament semifinals with an 83-80 win against Wichita State on Friday. The win was significant in that Wichita State eliminated the Tigers from last season’s AAC Tournament. The Shockers also snapped Memphis’ eight-game win streak earlier this season. The win was also significant in that Memphis’ […]

The Marquette Golden Eagles punched their ticket to the Big East Tournament semifinals on Friday with a thrilling, come-from-behind 89-87 win against Xavier this week. Following the win, Marquette head coach Shaka Smart lauded senior guard Stevie Mitchell who was instrumental in the win. Smart echoed praise heaped upon Mitchell from former Golden Eagles star […]

The Indiana Pacers got off to a slow start to the 2024-25 NBA season, but the Pacers have since rebounded a bit and are in the mix for a top playoff seed in the Eastern Conference. The Pacers had a huge game on tap on Tuesday against the Milwaukee Bucks, a team they’re chasing in […]

With the major changes that have swept across the college basketball landscape in recent years, many programs are turning to NBA personnel to help navigate the changes. Davidson made a huge splash recently with perhaps the biggest hire in Stephen Curry as the program’s assistant general manager. North Carolina just recently hired longtime NBA agent […]

The NBA world lost a bit of an icon on Tuesday with the passing of Junior Bridgeman. While not widely known for his playing days in the NBA, Bridgeman was in the spotlight more for what he was able to accomplish after he had already retired from playing basketball. In fact, former NBA star Shaquille […]

The Boston Celtics are the defending NBA champions and a favorite to repeat, and it’s not just because they have an incredible starting lineup. The Celtics have been able to get major contributions from key role players such as Payton Pritchard dropping 43 points as he did last week. This week, it was another Celtics […]

The Los Angeles Lakers’ eight-game win streak came to an end this week following their 111-101 loss to the Boston Celtics. But even more concerning for the Lakers was the groin injury suffered by LeBron James. The early prognosis is James could be sidelined for a couple of weeks. That would definitely mean that he […]

There hasn’t been much for the Charlotte Hornets to cheer for this season in terms of record. They are currently 15-48 and near the bottom of the NBA standings. But the Hornets have been an entertaining team thanks to LaMelo Ball and even Miles Bridges. During the Hornets’ game against the Miami Heat on Monday, […]

Dallas Mavericks fans have not been shy at expressing their disdain for the front office trading franchise star Luka Doncic. To make matters worse, Anthony Davis has been sidelined due to an adductor injury having only played one game since the trade. But Anthony Davis could be nearing a return to the court soon, which […]

When the Los Angeles Lakers traded Anthony Davis for Luka Doncic, while they were getting a franchise superstar, the prevailing thought was they still needed a starting caliber center. They thought they were getting one in Mark Williams, but that trade with the Charlotte Hornets was rescinded due to concerns over Williams’ health. However, the […]

LOS ANGELES – When the Los Angeles Lakers traded for Luka Doncic and did not have to give up Austin Reaves, they established one of the best backcourts in the NBA. With Doncic stepping in at the starting shooting guard position and Reaves at point guard, the duo gave the Lakers a unique blend of […]

Following the Los Angeles Lakers’ 113-109 comeback win against the New York Knicks, their win streak now sits at eight games. The Lakers are about to embark on a four-game road trip with stops in Boston, Milwaukee and Denver that will really say a lot about this team depending on the outcomes. In any case, […]

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Lakers are one of the hottest teams in the NBA with a seven-game win streak that has seen them climb the Western Conference standings to the No. 2 seed. The Lakers have gotten contributions from everywhere during this stretch, but perhaps a key reason why they’ve sustained this high […]

When it comes to NBA merchandise and player popularity, everything from jerseys to training cards to shoes play a big role in fan consumption. Two of the NBA’s most popular players of all-time are Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, so it stands to reason that their merchandise will fetch top dollar on the market. Such […]

The Toronto Raptors are in the midst of a rebuilding season, which in NBA teams, is code name for ‘tanking.’ While the team recently traded for a new star in Brandon Ingram, it’s a move that seems more for next season as Ingram is sidelined with an ankle injury. Raptors center Jakob Poeltl has openly […]

In the aftermath of the NBA trade deadline, the Los Angeles Lakers have climbed up the Western Conference standings with their new star duo of LeBron James and Luka Doncic. Since the Doncic trade, the Lakers have gone 11-2 and currently hold the No. 2 seed in the West. The Lakers’ rise in the standings […]

The Toronto Raptors are one of the teams in the running for a top lottery pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. They are currently 20-42 and have the fifth worst record in the NBA. Depending on how the rest of the season goes, the Raptors might need a little lottery luck if they want the […]

March is here and with it are college basketball conference tournaments across the country. The Big Ten women’s basketball tournament tipped-off this week, and the Iowa Hawkeyes, the reigning tournament champions, advanced to the second round with an 81-57 win over Wisconsin. During Iowa’s round game of the Big Ten Tournament, they had a familiar […]

Coming into the 2024-25 NCAA season, the Stanford Cardinal had the second-longest NCAA Tournament appearance streak behind only Tennessee, as per Alexa Philippou of ESPN. But following the retirement of legendary head coach Tara VanDerveer, Stanford’s NCAA Tournament streak is in danger. Following the Cardinal 63-46 loss to Clemson in the first round of the […]

The Los Angeles Lakers have been one of the hottest teams in the NBA as of late, having won seven consecutive games. With Luka Doncic finding his shot and his rhythm, the Lakers have shot up to the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference. The Lakers have another big game on Thursday against the […]

With the final stretch of the regular season in progress, the Boston Celtics are looking to defend their NBA title. Coming into the team’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday, the Celtics were without star wing Jayson Tatum due to a shoulder injury. But no Tatum, no problem as the Celtics made franchise […]

The Toronto Raptors made a major midseason move with the acquisition of Brandon Ingram at the NBA trade deadline. Ingram has yet to play for the Raptors though, and it’s more a move for next season. The rest of this season for the Raptors should be about evaluating younger prospects. The Raptors made a series […]

The New York Knicks came into the 2024-25 season hoping to be a contender in the Eastern Conference following the blockbuster trade for Karl-Anthony Towns. While the Knicks have been a top team in the East, they just don’t seem to be quite on the level of the Cleveland Cavaliers or Boston Celtics. The Celtics […]

LOS ANGELES – Since the offseason, it’s been no secret that the Los Angeles Lakers were searching for a starting caliber center, even when Anthony Davis was still on the team. Before the blockbuster trade, Davis made it clear that he wanted a center alongside him in the lineup. But with the arrival of Luka […]

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Lakers were hit with bad news over the weekend when it was revealed that Austin Reaves had suffered a calf injury. While Austin Reaves’ injury is considered day-to-day, it kept him sidelined for the Lakers’ 108-102 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday and will keep him out […]

The South Carolina Gamecocks will earn the No. 1 seed in the SEC Tournament over Texas due to a coin flip. A coin flip was necessary to determine the top seed in the SEC Tournament due to both South Carolina and Texas finishing with identical 15-1 records in the SEC play. The head-to-head record between […]

The New Orleans Pelicans’ 2024-25 season has been derailed due to injuries, with both Herb Jones and Dejounte Murray out for the season. The Pelicans moved closer to perhaps embracing a rebuild by trading Brandon Ingram to the Toronto Raptors at the trade deadline. The Pelicans continued to shape their post-trade deadline roster with the […]

The Utah Jazz are in the midst of rebuild, and this time of the NBA season is when rebuilding teams often scour the buyout market and the waiver wire for intriguing young prospects. The Jazz added to their roster signing former first round pick Jaden Springer to a 1o-day contract last month. With his 10-day […]

With the St. John’s 71-61 win over Seton Hall on Saturday, the Red Storm clinched their first outright Big East Conference regular season title win, and their first under head coach Rick Pitino. Following St. John’s Big East title-clinching win, Rick Pitino spoke with Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports on how this moment came to […]

It’s been a tough end to the week for Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards, who was hit with a fine by the NBA on Saturday. That followed his ejection from the Timberwolves’ loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday which resulted in an automatic suspension for Anthony Edwards. Anthony Edwards had picked up his […]

Looking at the last 15 games, the Los Angeles Lakers have held the NBA’s second-best defensive rating behind only the Cleveland Cavaliers, as per the league’s official website. The Lakers have gone 12-3 during the stretch, with LeBron James being a driving catalyst behind the team’s defense. The Lakers’ 106-102 win over the Los Angeles […]

This time of the season is a good time for NBA teams to give players roster tryouts by way of a 10-day contract. Sometimes it’s temporary help for the final stretch of the season, other times it’s to evaluate prospects. Teams like the Charlotte Hornets, used a 10-day contract to help with injuries. Following the […]

The Los Angeles Lakers squared off against their crosstown rivals, the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday, and while the game was still in progress, the Lakers ended up a little more short-handed than before. Lakers starting guard Austin Reaves was ruled out for the remainder of the game against the Clippers due to a calf […]

The Illinois Fighting Illini are fighting for their lives for a possible NCAA Tournament bid, although it’s looking increasingly unlikely barring an unforeseen run through the Big Ten Tournament. Illinois has two games remaining before the conference tournament, and head coach Brad Underwood believes they’ll be getting reinforcements soon. Underwood said that freshman forward Morez […]

It’s no secret that Dallas Mavericks fans are incredibly upset at the blockbuster trade that sent franchise star Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers. In the immediate aftermath of the trade, Mavericks fans staged a protest outside of the arena. One fan was escorted out of the arena for seemingly mouthing the words, ‘Fire […]

During the Minnesota Timberwolves’ 111-102 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday, All-Star guard Anthony Edwards was ejected after picking up two technical fouls. The second technical foul was Anthony Edwards’ 16th of the season, meaning an automatic suspension was forthcoming unless the NBA decided to rescind one of the technical fouls. Well, the […]

The San Antonio Spurs suffered a massive blow following the All-Star break when it was revealed that Victor Wembanyama would be sidelined for the reminder of the season due to a blood clot. Wembayama’s absence left the Spurs with a hole in the frontcourt which they filled by signing veteran big man Bismack Biyombo. With […]

The announcement that many WNBA fans had been waiting for, finally arrived this week when Phoenix Mercury star Diana Taurasi announced her retirement. Throughout the week, Taurasi’s WNBA peers and NBA players alike have been reflecting on her career. One of the latest NBA players to reflect on Diana Taurasi’s retirement was Dallas Mavericks star […]