David Yapkowitz Articles - Page 20

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Lakers dropped their final preseason game, 117-116, against the Sacramento Kings on Friday, a game that served as a tune-up before their season opener against the Golden State Warriors next week. But there was slight concern following the game regarding backup center Jaxson Hayes who left the game early […]

LOS ANGELES – With LeBron James out to start the 2025-26 season due to a nerve injury, the majority of the playmaking and ball-handling duties for the Los Angeles Lakers are going to fall on Luka Doncic are going to fall on Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves. After Doncic sat out the first three preseason […]

The news that Philadelphia 76ers fans have been waiting to hear regarding Joel Embiid and his potential return from injury was revealed on Thursday. Longtime NBA insider Chris Haynes remarked that Embiid is likely good to go for the 76ers’ season opener next week against the Boston Celtics, but there is a catch to it. […]

The Sacramento Kings made a major addition to their roster this week with the signing of Russell Westbrook. Westbrook’s addition was met with mixed reviews from fans and media alike, and it will be interesting to see how it plays out on the court. But in any case, Westbrook immediately endeared himself to Kings fans […]

The Los Angeles Lakers will be without LeBron James for the start of the regular season as he deals with a nerve injury. The Lakers announced last week that James would be sidelined for at least three to four weeks, putting him out for the season opener and beyond. On Wednesday, a new update came […]

The Charlotte Hornets have the potential to be one of the most entertaining teams in the NBA this season regardless of how many games they win. The Hornets’ preseason game against the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday was filled with highlight reel plays including a LaMelo Ball lob to Miles Bridges on the break. LaMelo Ball […]

The Charlotte Hornets are a team that has an intriguing mix of young talent and veterans coming into the 2025-26 season. And if the Hornets want to be successful this year, they are going to need big seasons from both LaMelo Ball and Miles Bridges, who connected on a lob pass from Ball leading to […]

The Boston Celtics suffered a potential blow on Wednesday during their preseason game against the Toronto Raptors. Start wing Jaylen Brown sustained an apparent hamstring injury that caused him to exit the game early. He was announced as doubtful to return as per the Celtics. The injury to Jaylen Brown seemingly occurred as he dribbled […]

The Sacramento Kings signed veteran guard Russell Westbrook on Wednesday, one of the final major dominoes to fall before the start of the season. But the Kings were not done adding to their roster after the Westbrook signing. The Kings followed that up with another training camp signing of veteran wing DaQuan Jeffries, as per […]

The Sacramento Kings made one of the final major free agency moves before the start of the season with the signing of veteran guard Russell Westbrook. The Kings’ Westbrook signing was met with mixed reactions from across the NBA world, and media member Zach Lowe from The Ringer likened the Kings roster to the famed […]

LOS ANGELES – Following the Los Angeles Lakers’ disappointing playoff flameout in the opening round last season, it was painfully obvious that their most glaring offseason need was a starting caliber center. After a slow start to the preseason, Deandre Ayton showed that he is the answer for the Lakers up front following their 126-116 […]

When the 2025-26 NCAA season gets underway, there will be plenty of NBA eyes on the BYU Cougars and the debut of star freshman AJ Dybantsa. Dybantsa is the potential No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft and as such, is expected to be a one-and-done player at BYU. With the first AP […]

In the world of collectibles, NBA trading cards have always been a popular item. Topps Cards is the official licensee of NBA trading cards, and one of the league’s brightest up and coming stars in Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg, has already appeared in a few promotions ahead of the start of the season. Topps […]

While Joel Embiid’s injury status for the Philadelphia 76ers’ opening night game is still uncertain, fans got a glimpse of what the All-Star big man is still capable of during a recent open scrimmage. Embiid took part in the 76ers’ annual Blue vs. White scrimmage between the starters and the reserves, and he showed some […]

When the 2025-26 season tips-off for the Los Angeles Lakers, they will be without LeBron James for the time being as he is sidelined for the next three to four weeks due to a sciatica issue. But when James does take the court, it will be for an unprecedented 23rd year in the NBA. No […]

The Los Angeles Lakers picked up their first win of the preseason on Sunday following their 126-116 win against the Golden State Warriors. The Lakers have three more preseason games on the schedule before the start of the regular season, and they’re hoping to get Luka Doncic and Marcus Smart in the lineup for at […]

With the 2025-26 NBA season just right around the corner, there will be plenty of eyes on LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers this upcoming season. With LeBron James playfully flirting with retirement, we’ll be making our bold predictions for The King for this upcoming Lakers season. James is about to enter an unprecedented […]

The Las Vegas Aces defeated the Phoenix Mercury, 97-86, in Game 4 of the WNBA Finals to win the franchise’s third title in four years. At the forefront of the Aces WNBA Finals win was A’ja Wilson, who shared a touching moment postgame with her significant other, Miami Heat big man Bam Adebayo. Following the […]

The Las Vegas Aces are WNBA champions once again after dispatching the Phoenix Mercury, 97-86, in Game 4 to complete a 4-0 sweep and bring the franchise their third title in four years. The Aces won back to back championships in 2022 and 2023, failed to make the Finals in 2024, and after a sluggish […]

The Phoenix Mercury are trying to keep their season alive in Game 4 of the WNBA Finals against the Las Vegas Aces, and they’re going to have to do so without their head coach. Mercury coach Nate Tibbetts was ejected during the third quarter of Game 4 after expressing frustration with the officiating. Tibbetts approached […]

The Philadelphia 76ers have quite a bit of uncertainty coming into the 2025-26 season when it comes to the health of Joel Embiid. But one thing the 76ers can be sure of is the consistency of Tyrese Maxey, who exploded in the first quarter of the team’s preseason game on Friday against the Orlando Magic. […]

The Las Vegas Aces are on the verge of their third championship in franchise history following their thrilling 90-88 Game 3 win against the Phoenix Mercury in the WNBA Finals. The Aces faced a little adversity early as the Mercury sliced into a double-digit deficit to tie the game late in the fourth quarter, but […]

Wednesday night in the NBA seemed like the dunk contest. Houston Rockets big man Alperen Sengun threw down a dunk over Jazz veteran Kevin Love while drawing contact and getting the and-one. But that dunk was topped during the Miami Heat’s preseason game against the San Antonio Spurs when Jaime Jaquez Jr. did the unthinkable […]

Emotions flared during a preseason game between the Boston Celtics and Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday when Celtics star Jaylen Brown shoved Grizzlies guard Vince Williams Jr. after a seemingly hard foul. Brown was driving to the basket and came across the lane when Williams grabbed him across the arms and to prevent the play from […]

Athough Turkey did not the 2025 EuroBasket gold medal, the Houston Rockets had to be pleased with the continued development of Alperen Sengun. One of the building blocks of the franchise, Sengun is poised to take another big leap for the 2025-26 season. During recent preseason action between the Rockets and the Utah Jazz, Alperen […]

The Chicago Bulls main order of business this offseason was re-signing restricted free agent Josh Giddey, which they were able to do. Now they head into the 2025-26 season as a team that has some intriguing young players in place, with a firm direction finally in place. As training camp has gotten underway, the Bulls […]

With NBA preseason underway, there are quite a few new faces in new places. On Monday, some of those players, such as new Atlanta Hawks big man Kristaps Porzingis, got their first buckets in a new jersey. New Milwaukee Bucks big man Myles Turner was another one of those players getting his first Bucks’ basket […]

This past offseason, one of the major moves the Atlanta Hawks made was to trade for Kristaps Porzingis. With the Boston Celtics opting to shift focus in the wake of Jayson Tatum’s Achilles injury, the Hawks took advantage of the Celtics’ somewhat fire sale and added much-needed strength in the frontcourt. Kristaps Porzingis scored his […]

The father of Hall of Fame point guard and former NBA star Tony Parker Jr, Tony Parker Sr., passed away this week at the age of 70, as per Marca.com. No cause of death has been revealed yet by the family. While Parker Jr. had most of his basketball success in the NBA, Parker Sr. […]

Back during the summer, the Alabama Crimson Tide and head coach Nate Oats received good news when standout freshman guard Labaron Philon withdrew from the NBA Draft and opted to return to the program for his sophomore year. With Philon back in the fold, Alabama is awaiting word on another big piece of the puzzle […]

The Dallas Mavericks come into the 2025-26 season with a renewed sense of much-needed optimism following the bad taste left behind by the shocking Luka Doncic trade. A big reason for that sense of optimism this season is the arrival of prized rookie Cooper Flagg whom the Mavericks selected with the No. 1 overall pick […]

As the Milwaukee Bucks prepare for Doc Rivers’ second full season as head coach, they are headed to Miami for training camp. Last season, the Bucks went to California and UC Irvine for training camp, and this season is quite the difference. Doc Rivers explained the rationale for hosting training camp in Miami this season […]

When Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier stepped to the microphone for her exit interview this week, she unleashed a scathing rebuke of WNBA front office leadership, a rebuke that has continued to have ripple effect throughout the week. As more and more of Colliers’ peers get wind of her comments, more of them have come […]

While the college basketball transfer portal has garnered much scrutiny and attention over the past couple of years, the ‘unofficial’ coaches transfer portal is just as big. With coaches being fired and hired at the drop of a hat, there are a couple of recognizable names that could potentially be on the hot seat this […]

Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier caused quite the stir in the WNBA this week when she ripped into league front office leadership during her exit interview. Collier’s words reverberated around the league with several of her peers coming to her defense and co-signing her statement. One of the latest WNBA stars to stand alongside Collier […]

When Caitlin Clark was lighting up the court, the Iowa Hawkeyes emerged as a powerhouse in college basketball. With Clark’s departure to the WNBA, the Hawkeyes have still managed to remain a formidable team in the Big Ten. Clark helped build the program up to where Iowa has become a recruitment destination for top players, […]

The Sacramento Kings are entering their first training camp and preseason with Doug Christie as the head coach. Christie had his interim tag removed at the end of the 2024-25 season, following his takeover after the Kings fired Mike Brown in late December. With Christie overseeing his first camp, there is one player in particular […]

The Auburn Tigers were hit with shocking news last month when longtime head coach Bruce Pearl announced his abrupt retirement. His son Steven Pearl is set to take the helm as head coach for the Tigers starting with the 2025-26 season. Although questions arouse as to whether or not any of the players would hit […]

The Miami Heat locked up one of their most promising young players this week as they inked Nikola Jovic to a contract extension, as per Shams Charania of ESPN. The move comes as the Heat open training camp and prepare for the 2025-26 regular season. The contract extension that Nikola Jovic signed with the Heat […]