David Yapkowitz Articles - Page 27

The Denver Nuggets come into their opening round series of the NBA Playoffs against the LA Clippers with homecourt advantage as the No. 4 seed, but some ways they might be getting overlooked a bit when it comes to potential title contenders in the Western Conference. Part of that could be because of the Nuggets’ […]

After the Golden State Warriors defeated the Memphis Grizzlies in the play-in to earn the seventh seed in the Western Conference playoff picture, they got their opening round opponent of the NBA Playoffs in the Houston Rockets. The Rockets and Warriors have had battles in the past in the NBA Playoffs, and things have gotten […]

LOS ANGELES – While the Los Angeles Lakers’ ‘Big 3’ of LeBron James, Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves have drawn the majority of attention regarding news headlines heading into the NBA Playoffs, Rui Hachimura has quietly been one of the team’s most dependable role players especially after retuning from a knee injury. Rui Hachimura was […]

The Dallas Mavericks front office and ownership have continued to take heat since the shocking Luka Doncic trade back in February. The Mavericks organization certainly did not do themselves any favors following a reported closed door meeting this week with select media members alongside general manager Nico Harrison and CEO Rick Welts. The team has […]

The New York Knicks will begin their opening round of the NBA Playoffs against the Detroit Pistons at home. But when the series shifts to Detroit for Games 3-4, the Pistons have already announced that they intend to restrict ticket sales to local fans only, presumably keeping out of state Knicks fans from purchasing tickets. […]

In today’s day and age, many college basketball programs have taken to reloading on the fly by means of the transfer portal rather than recruit high school seniors. For the Kansas Jayhawks, they have a good mixture of incoming freshman recruits and transfer portal commitments. Kansas just landed a solid addition out of the transfer […]

When teams are preparing for the NBA Playoffs, it’s not uncommon for them to have a player on their roster simulate the opposing team’s best player. As the LA Clippers prepare for their opening round of the NBA Playoffs against the Denver Nuggets, they had Ben Simmons take the role of Nikola Jokic during their […]

The Los Angeles Sparks came into the 2025 WNBA Draft with three picks at No. 9, No. 21 and No. 28. They came away with Sarah Ashlee Barker at No. 9, Sania Feagin at No. 21 and Liatu King at No. 28. Looking at the team’s current roster, there are going to be some interesting […]

LOS ANGELES – With the Los Angeles Lakers heading into the NBA Playoffs, much has been made of Austin Reaves forming a ‘Big 3’ alongside LeBron James and Luka Doncic. Since the Lakers traded D’Angelo Russell, Reaves was slotted in as the point guard of the future and has seen his numbers take a huge […]

The Los Angeles Sparks’ 2025 training camp roster became a little more clear following their 2025 WNBA Draft. With a maximum of 18 players allowed in training camp, the Sparks’ draft picks brought them closer to that number. The final piece of the puzzle was brought in on Tuesday with the Sparks re-signing of veteran […]

The Phoenix Suns made a huge decision on Monday with the firing of head coach Mike Budenholzer. With Budenholzer’s firing, the Suns will be on their third head coach in as many seasons. Last year they fired Frank Vogel after only one season as well. But it appears as if the Suns top choice to […]

The Portland Trail Blazers had a strong finish to the second half of the season, and it resulted in head coach Chauncey Billups receiving a contract extension. Since January, the Blazers played at a .550 win pace. A big part of the Blazers turnaround was the All-Star level play of Deni Avdija this season. Following […]

The UCLA Bruins came into the 2025 NCAA Tournament as the No. 1 overall seed. The season didn’t end as they hoped as they were eliminated by UConn in blowout fashion in the Final Four. Following UCLA’s elimination, they lost several players to the transfer portal. But the Bruins got a major decision from a […]

LOS ANGELES – With the Los Angeles Lakers making the playoffs outright and clinching the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference, talk has begun to sprout up about the Lakers’ possible championship chances. One reason why the Lakers are being mentioned such talks is because of their defense. And it’s been the oldest player […]

The Los Angeles Lakers clinched the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference standings following their 140-109 win against the Houston Rockets. Having secured their playoff positioning, the Lakers are set to use their season finale against the Portland Trail Blazers as an opportunity to get guys some rest. The Lakers released their injury report […]

LOS ANGELES – Following the Los Angeles Lakers’ 140-109 win against the Houston Rockets on Friday, they secured the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference heading into the playoffs. With the Lakers clinching a playoff spot outright, talk has shifted to whether or not this team can contend for a championship. After the win, […]

The Indiana Hoosiers have already lost several key players from last season’s roster to the transfer portal following the team’s loss in the round of 32 to South Carolina. With only a handful of returners for the 2025-26 season, Indiana has had to dip into the transfer portal to help reshape their roster. Indiana got […]

The Texas Longhorns took a hit to their frontcourt following a run to the Final Four in the NCAA Tournament. Senior forward Taylor Jones is out of college basketball eligibility while sophomore center Abbie Boutilier entered the transfer portal. Following Texas’ loss to South Carolina, the Longhorns were tasked with improving their frontcourt. Texas managed […]

The Los Angeles Sparks underwent major changes during the offseason. They fired head coach Curt Miller and replaced him with Lynne Roberts. They received the No. 2 overall pick in the draft, and ended up trading it to the Seattle Storm in a three-team blockbuster trade that landed them Kelsey Plum. The Sparks ultimately ended […]

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Lakers returned home to square off against a Western Conference foe in the Houston Rockets following a successful three-game road trip. With the Lakers able to lock up the third seed in the West with a win, talk has begun to shift to how this Lakers team could possibly […]

With the 2024-25 college basketball season officially over, attention now turns to the transfer portal as teams try and improve their rosters for next year. The South Carolina Gamecocks made arguably the biggest move in the transfer portal with the commitment of former Florida State star Ta’Niya Latson. But it may have come at a […]

Following a decent 2024-25 season for Kentucky in the first year with Mark Pope at the helm as head coach, the Wildcats lost a prized commit as four-star guard Acaden Lewis made the decision to re-open his recruitment and decommit from Kentucky. Amid his decision, Lewis released a message to Pope and to the program, […]

During the NCAA Tournament, perhaps no player saw their NBA Draft stock rise as much as Florida Gators star Walter Clayton Jr. The senior point guard led the Gators to the national championship, Florida’s first since the Billy Donovan years back in 2006 and 2007. With the NBA Draft a little over two months away, […]

With the 2024-25 regular season winding down, this is often a time for rebuilding and non-playoff teams to identify potential young talent and prospects to evaluate for next season. Playoff and play-in teams are looking to fill the back end of their roster. The Toronto Raptors fall in the former category, and they opted to […]

With the 2024-25 college basketball season now over, the focus turns to the upcoming NBA Draft. Early entrants have until April 27 to declare for the draft, and players who maintain their college eligibility have until June 15 to withdraw and return to school. Several projected first round picks have already declared for the NBA […]

The Golden State Warriors suffered a major blow to their playoff aspirations following their 114-111 loss to the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday. Amid a few missed calls that actually benefitted them, the Warriors were sunk by a Harrison Barnes game-winning three-point shot. The loss put the Warriors in danger of falling into the play-in, […]

Luka Doncic made his return to Dallas on Wednesday as the Los Angeles Lakers squared off against the Dallas Mavericks for the final game of their road trip. The Mavericks honored Luka Doncic with a pregame tribute video that made the former Dallas star emotional. While Doncic admitted getting emotional during the video, it’s interesting […]

With a tight race in the Western Conference for playoff seeding, every game down the stretch is magnified. The Golden State Warriors found themselves in a close game against the San Antonio Spurs that ended with a Harrison Barnes game-winning three-point shot to win the game, 114-111. That shot put a serious damper in the […]

The Texas Tech Red Raiders received good news on Wednesday when it was announced that rising star JT Toppin would bypass the NBA Draft and return to the program amid a lucrative NIL deal. Following Toppin’s decision, Texas Tech received another bout of good news with the commitment of Tyeree Bryan out of the transfer […]

The 2025/26 offseason is going to be a crucial one for the WNBA. WNBA players have already announced their intentions to opt out of the league’s current CBA, bringing it to an end this coming October. Originally, the CBA was set to expire in 2027, but the players had the option of opting out following […]

The college basketball transfer portal has been humming for the past few weeks even as the NCAA Tournament was still going on. The Alabama Crimson Tide struck early with a transfer portal commitment from former Bucknell star Noah Williamson. But Alabama has also lost players to the transfer portal this offseason, with former four-star big […]

Back during the 90s era of the NBA, one of the most fierce and big rivalries in the league was between the Indiana Pacers and the New York Knicks. The Knicks, coached by the legendary Pat Riley at the time, were known for playing a physical style of basketball. So much so, that former Pacers […]

With the explosion of NIL (name, image, likeness) deals in college basketball, it’s had an effect on players deciding to declare for the NBA Draft. In some cases, the NIL deals might surpass what they might make on an NBA rookie contract. Texas Tech Red Raiders’ star JT Toppin opted to skip the NBA Draft, […]

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James is arguably the most recognizable and well-known NBA player off the court, and his popularity is set to reach new heights. LeBron James is set to be come the first ever NBA player and male professional athlete to have a Barbie doll made in their likeness, as per David […]

The Denver Nuggets made a shocking decision with the firing of head coach Michael Malone with just three games remaining in the season. The Nuggets are also in the midst of a four-game skid as they try and hang on to a top four seed in the Western Conference standings. But on the heels of […]

The Memphis Grizzlies shocked the NBA world when they fired head coach Taylor Jenkins with just nine games remaining until the playoffs. Well, the Denver Nuggets one-upped that surprising move with the firing of head coach Michael Malone with only three games remaining in the regular season. A potential head-coach replacement for the Nuggets following […]

The Michigan State Spartans were one of the best teams in the Big Ten this season, but their run came to an end in the NCAA Tournament as they fell to Auburn in the Elite Eight. Head coach Tom Izzo has seen plenty of players go on to the NBA, including former NCAA champion Jason […]

The Dallas Mavericks have yet to recover from the shocking Luka Doncic trade, and it certainly doesn’t help that the team is struggling for play-in positioning after reaching the NBA Finals a season ago. While many things have been writing attempting to understand the Mavericks rationale for the trade, one big reason appears to be […]

As the 2024-25 regular season winds down and the Dallas Mavericks in the middle of a positioning race for the postseason play-in tournament, having enough available players is key. The Mavericks are set to make a roster move involving two-way contract player Brandon Williams, as per Shams Charania of ESPN. The roster move to convert […]