David Yapkowitz Articles - Page 22

You would have to go back to when Magic Johnson was playing for the Los Angeles Lakers to arguably find an NBA trade on par with the Lakers’ bombshell acquisition of Luka Doncic. Johnson came to the Lakers in 1979, just a few years after Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was traded from the Milwaukee Bucks to the […]

To say the Los Angeles Lakers shocked the NBA world with their bombshell trade of Luka Doncic for Anthony Davis is a major understatement. This was arguably the biggest trade in the NBA in the last 15-20 years, if not longer. But with Anthony Davis gone to the Mavericks, the next question for the Lakers […]

Following the Los Angeles Lakers’ bombshell trade, acquiring Luka Doncic in exchange for Anthony Davis, one of the biggest questions in the aftermath was the future of LeBron James in Los Angeles. And now it appears as if that question has been answered. LeBron James reportedly intends to remain with the Lakers past the upcoming […]

The Los Angeles Lakers shocked the NBA world on Saturday, acquiring superstar Luka Doncic in a massive trade with the Dallas Mavericks. And all it cost the Lakers was Anthony Davis who is a perennial Defensive Player of the Year candidate and arguably the Lakers’ best player this season. To say this trade was a […]

The Los Angeles Sparks signaled their intent to accelerate the timeline of their rebuild with the acquisition of All-Star guard Kelsey Plum in a sign-and-trade deal during WNBA free agency. It’s a new beginning for Plum, who had spent the first eight seasons of her career with the Las Vegas Aces. It’s also a homecoming […]

The Los Angeles Sparks struck hard in WNBA free agency as part of a blockbuster trade to land All-Star guard Kelsey Plum. With Plum being their big addition of the offseason, the focus now turns to filling out the rest of the roster. The Sparks made a smaller move in WNBA free agency this week […]

The WNBA free agency period is underway, with players now able to officially sign new contracts. The New York Liberty lost Courtney Vandersloot to the Chicago Sky, which might not be all that surprising considering she was moved to the bench during their title run. The Liberty did manage to bring back a key bench […]

The Indiana Pacers continued their recent surge with a 132-127 win against the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday. With the win, the Pacers improved to 27-20. It was their third consecutive win and eighth in their last ten games. Not only that, but the Pacers tied a franchise record for most players with at least 15 […]

With the WNBA free agency moratorium period lifted and players officially able to sign new contracts, there were a flurry of free agent moves that had already been agreed upon. The Chicago Sky were among the most active teams in free agency, bringing back veteran point guard Courtney Vandersloot, and also signing veteran guard Kia […]

The last time the Boston Celtics and the New Orleans Pelicans squared off against each other, it was a close, thrilling game with the Celtics barely squeaking out a 120-119 win. So it came as no surprise that the second matchup between the two was just as nail-biting. The Celtics emerged victorious once again, 118-116, […]

It’s been a big week for San Antonio Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama, who was selected to his first NBA All-Star appearance. With the Milwaukee Bucks in town against the Spurs on Friday, Wembanyama found himself up against two All-Stars in Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard. From the get-go, Victor Wembanyama made it clear that […]

The Golden State Valkyries will begin play this season with 2025 being their inaugural year in the WNBA. Fielding a competitive roster is going to be important for the Valkyries, and they did their part trying to make a splash during the WNBA free agency period. The Valkyries made a push for free agent guard […]

The Indiana Fever, in their quest to get back to their glory days of championship contention, made a splash in WNBA free agency this week, agreeing to terms with free agent forward Natasha Howard. With Howard’s addition, just how close are the Fever to establishing themselves as an elite team in the league? Pretty close […]

The Los Angeles Lakers continued their Grammy road trip on Thursday with a 134-96 win against the Washington Wizards. The Lakers never looked back after the first couple of minutes of the first quarter, dominating the Wizards early behind an inspired effort by LeBron James. Following the game, Lakers head coach JJ Redick praised James […]

The Houston Rockets have been one of the surprise teams of the 2024-25 NBA season as they are currently 32-14 and in second place in the Western Conference standings. A big reason for the Rockets’ surge this season has been the steady presence of veteran leader Fred VanVleet, who could be in line for a […]

The resurgent Indiana Pacers, winners of ten of their last 12 games, have a couple of major decisions to make, especially as the NBA trade deadline approaches. The NBA trade deadline for the Pacers will once again involve Myles Turner, but not in the way you might think. With Myles Turner set to hit unrestricted […]

The WNBA made headlines this past year with the announcement of three new expansion teams set to begin play within the coming years. While the Golden State Valkyries will play their inaugural season this year in 2025, the latest franchises, in Toronto and Portland, will not make their debut until the 2026 season. While the […]

The 2025 WNBA offseason already has had a few major shockers during the free agency period with the Phoenix Mercury landing Alyssa Thomas, the Los Angeles Sparks set to acquire Kelsey Plum and Brittney Griner deciding to join the Atlanta Dream. Thomas, Plum and Griner were all among the top free agents this offseason, and […]

The Chicago Bulls are a team that is apparently open for business with the NBA trade deadline approaching. While major changes may or may not be on the horizon, the Bulls in the meantime, had a big game on Wednesday against the defending champion Boston Celtics. The Bulls were hit with a little bad news, […]

The Atlanta Hawks were dealt a major blow this week when it was announced that Jalen Johnson would miss the remainder of the season due to a shoulder injury. But the Hawks’ loss could end up being the San Antonio Spurs’ gain as the Jalen Johnson injury could end up netting the Spurs two lottery […]

The Los Angeles Lakers grabbed a 112-107 win against the Charlotte Hornets, to improve to 2-0 on their current road trip, and to notch their fourth consecutive win. The Lakers didn’t make things easy, even with Hornets’ star guard LaMelo Ball exiting the game due to injury and not returning. But a win is a […]

Charlotte Hornets star guard LaMelo Ball is playing like an All-Star this season and is one of the top vote getters for the All-Star Game. But the one key concern for him and the Hornets is his injury outlook. During the Hornets’ game against the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday, LaMelo Ball left the game […]

LOS ANGELES – When the Los Angeles Lakers traded for Dorian Finney-Smith in a deal with the Brooklyn Nets, they acquired the type of wing defender they lacked since the departures of Alex Caruso, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Danny Green. With almost one month having passed since the trade, the Lakers early returns on Dorian Finney-Smith […]

The Los Angeles Sparks were part of a blockbuster trade on Saturday, also involving the Seattle Storm and Las Vegas Aces, amid the WNBA free agency period. The main part of the trade for the Sparks is All-Star guard Kelsey Plum. The deal has to be a sign-and-trade for the Sparks since Plum had hit […]

The Los Angeles Lakers are coming off their third straight win after defeating the Golden State Warriors, 118-108 on Saturday. It was the first of a five-game road trip for the Lakers, and that trip continues on Monday against the Charlotte Hornets. Again, the main question for the Lakers is who will be available to […]

The Dallas Mavericks’ 2024-25 season has been hampered by injuries, and head coach Jason Kidd recently gave an honest answer about the team’s injury woes. In response to the Mavericks’ increasing number of injuries, the team announced that they had made a roster move in the form of a two-way contract. The Mavericks announced that […]

The Orlando Magic have seen their share of unfortunate injury luck this season. While they recently welcomed Paolo Banchero back in the lineup, and as well as getting Franz Wagner back from injury, they suffered another injury scare on Saturday. Jalen Suggs exited the Magic’s game against the Detroit Pistons with an apparent injury. Jalen […]

To say the 2024-25 season has been disappointing for the Philadelphia 76ers is an understatement. For a team that was supposed to be a contender in the Eastern Conference, the 76ers have struggled to stay healthy and to form any consistent cohesiveness. The latest bad news for the 76ers came in the form of a […]

A season ago, the Dallas Mavericks used a strong trade deadline to power a run to the NBA Finals. This season, the Mavericks are pace for the play-in, currently sitting in ninth place in the Western Conference standings. A big reason for the Mavericks uneven season has been their injury woes. Following the Mavericks’ 122-107 […]

It’s not often that an NBA players has a jersey retirement ceremony for two teams, but that’s exactly what happened with Vince Carter this season. Vince Carter had his jersey retired by the Toronto Raptors earlier this year, and this weekend he was scheduled to have the Nets retire his jersey amid their game against […]

With the days leading up to the NBA trade deadline going by, one of the biggest dominoes to fall will be Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler. Butler has already requested a trade from the Heat, and the Heat have also suspended Butler twice this month. Amid all the trade drama, Butler holds fond feelings for […]

The WNBA free agency negotiation period is underway, and some of the biggest name free agents, like Brittney Griner, have been taking free agent meetings with interested teams. But with only minor free agent signings official so far, there is apparently one potential move that is holding up the WNBA free agency dominoes from falling. […]

The Los Angeles Lakers begin a five-game road trip with a matchup against the Golden State Warriors on Saturday, but the main question has become who will be available to play. The Lakers got a big boost with Jarred Vanderbilt set to make his season debut, but LeBron James received a status update on the […]

LOS ANGELES – Throughout the 2024-25 season, Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick has often spoke about building a team identity and raising the standard. In recent games, results were disappointing against the Los Angeles Clippers, but much smoother against the Boston Celtics. Both of those teams are among the best defensive teams in […]

LOS ANGELES – With the NBA trade deadline rapidly approaching, the Los Angeles Lakers are going to be a team to keep an eye on. With both LeBron James and Anthony Davis reportedly putting pressure on the organization to make a trade or two, Lakers head coach JJ Redick was asked about that, along with […]

The Los Angeles Lakers have not fielded a healthy roster all season, but they took a step closer towards being whole with their upcoming game this weekend against the Golden State Warriors. Jarred Vanderbilt, who has not made his season debut yet due to injury recovery, was noticeably absent from the Lakers’ injury report, as […]

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Lakers shook off the bitter taste of their disappointing loss to the Los Angeles Clippers, with a dominant, 111-88 win over the Washington Wizards that had head coach JJ Redick remarking that the Lakers are trending in the right direction. During the Lakers’ win, Austin Reaves found LeBron James […]

Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark celebrated a big milestone this week with her 23rd birthday, and her boyfriend Connor McCaffery, made sure to dedicate a post on social media to her. McCaffery posted a few photos of him and Clark together with the caption, “Happy 23rd CC (finally we’re celebrating together this year)! You have […]

When it comes to former NBA players, there are few who are as vocal, especially on social media, as Nick Young. So it comes as no surprise that Young weighed in on the recent NBA trade deadline rumors. With the Phoenix Suns seemingly a favorite to make a potential Jimmy Butler trade, Young took to […]