David Yapkowitz Articles - Page 35

The Phoenix Suns were part of the next set of dominoes to fall in NBA trade season with the acquisition of Nick Richards in a trade with the Charlotte Hornets. The Suns were in need of frontcourt help and Richards certainly fits the bill. In fact, Nick Richards’ Suns debut was brilliant in the sense […]

The Toronto Raptors are about development this season, while still trying to be competitive. The team is going to finish with one of the better odds at a top lottery pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, but the Raptors have seen strong development from some of their young players. Continuing with the development theme, the […]

LOS ANGELES – It was a Friday night and D’Angelo Russell was back in town, his first matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers since being traded to the Brooklyn Nets. So it seemed fitting that with the game on the line, the ball would find itself in his hands. D’Angelo Russell ended up missing the […]

LOS ANGELES – When the Los Angeles Lakers traded D’Angelo Russell to the Brooklyn Nets last month, it meant Austin Reaves was officially the full-time starting point guard. That move was kind of made clear when Lakers head coach JJ Redick moved Russell to the bench early in the season. But the trade cleared any […]

The Los Angeles Lakers returned to action on Monday night, but fell to the visiting San Antonio Spurs, 126-102. It was the team’s third consecutive loss, and they’ll try to get back in the win column against the visiting Miami Heat on Wednesday. They might be a little short-handed though. In a season where the […]

LOS ANGELES, CA – As the Los Angeles Lakers prepared for their first game back on the court since having their previous two games postponed, one of the main topics on everyone’s mind was the ongoing wildfires. Lakers head coach JJ Redick revealed how he challenged the team to simply give him their best in […]

Special moments between NBA players and their children always resonate with fans. Just yesterday, Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick’s sons shared a special moment with Chris Paul and Victor Wembanyama following the Spurs’ win against the Lakers. The latest moment to go viral was between Chicago Bulls star Zach LaVine and his young […]

The WNBA free agency negotiation period doesn’t begin until Jan. 21, but in the meantime teams are allowed to assign core designations as well as tender qualifying offers to restricted and reserved free agents. A few teams, such as the Chicago Sky, have tendered qualifying offers to their restricted free agents. Others, like the Las […]

Myles Turner is the longest tenured player on the Indiana Pacers roster, so it stands to reason that he’s going to have quite a bit of a following among Pacers fans. Turner has withstood constant trade rumors and has become one of the most respected members of the team. All throughout, he’s remained loyal to […]

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Lakers were ready to get back to work on Monday against the visiting San Antonio Spurs. Amid the ongoing wildfires in Southern California, the Lakers’ previous two games against the Charlotte Hornets and Spurs were postponed. Monday’s game was given the green light to proceed, but the Lakers had […]

After having their last two games postponed due to the ongoing wildfires in Southern California, the Los Angeles Lakers are expected to return to the court on Monday evening against the visiting San Antonio Spurs. On the injury front, the Lakers should have Cam Reddish back in the lineup after missing the previous game against […]

For the past three seasons, DeMar DeRozan and Lonzo Ball were teammates with the Chicago Bulls. While Ball was sidelined due to injury for most of that time, the pair, both Southern California natives, had a bond as teammates. DeRozan left the Bulls this offseason via a sign and trade deal with the Sacramento Kings […]

The Indiana Pacers have been trying to stay afloat in the Eastern Conference amid an inconsistent season. And now they’re hoping that things won’t get worse amid their game against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday. Pacers star point guard Tyrese Haliburton was ruled out of the remainder of their game against the Cavs with a […]

The New York Knicks are coming off an embarrassing loss at home to the Oklahoma City Thunder during which they were completely humiliated. Amid the loss, the Knicks are have been fielding comments from the outside regarding their rotation this season. The latest to take issue with the Knicks’ rotation is former NBA player, turned […]

The Philadelphia 76ers have been trudging through a disappointing season after they were supposed to be a contender in the Eastern Conference following the signing of Paul George in free agency. But instead, the team has looked far from a title contender, with Paul George making comments about playing center that are sure to  raise […]

The 2025 WNBA free agency period officially kicked off this weekend with teams being able to extend qualifying offers to restricted free agents as well as designated core tags to players. A couple of moves have already been made with the Las Vegas Aces coring Kelsey Plum and the New York Liberty expected to core […]

The Los Angeles Lakers have reportedly been one of the more active teams in the midst of trade season, and in the weeks leading up to the NBA trade deadline. They’ve already made one trade, acquiring Dorian Finney-Smith and Shake Milton for D’Angelo Russell, Maxwell Lewis and draft compensation. But while that move certainly helped […]

With the Los Angeles Lakers’ last two games being postponed amid the ongoing wildfires in California, there are obviously bigger things to worry about instead of basketball. But whenever the Lakers do end up taking the court again, they’ll be another step closer to having Jarred Vanderbilt return from injury. During an emotional practice availability […]

The Philadelphia 76ers have been trying to rebound after a very poor start to the 2024-25 season, but they took a major step back on Friday. The 76ers lost to the very short-handed New Orleans Pelicans, 123-115. But if they want to find anything positive about the game, it was the thunderous dunk that Kelly […]

Since the Sacramento Kings fired head coach Mike Brown, they’ve gone 6-1. That one loss was against the Los Angeles Lakers in the immediate aftermath. Following that loss, the Kings have rattled off six consecutive wins, with the most recent being a major win, 114-97, against the defending champion Boston Celtics. It was Kings’ star […]

The Los Angeles Lakers are set to square off against the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday, and as of publication, the game is scheduled to proceed. The Lakers’ game against the Charlotte Hornets on Thursday was postponed due to the ongoing wildfires in California. But should the Lakers’ matchup against the Spurs proceeds, they’ll get […]

During the 2022 offseason, Jalen Brunson and Isaiah Hartenstein both joined the New York Knicks together. Brunson was coming off a career year with the Dallas Mavericks while Hartenstein had a strong season with the Los Angeles Clippers. Both were among the better free agents at their position and both signed with the Knicks. But […]

The Golden State Warriors were without Andrew Wiggins during their most recent game, a 107-104 win against the Detroit Pistons on the road. Andrew Wiggins was listed on the Warriors injury report as being out due to personal reasons, and following the Pistons win, head coach Steve Kerr gave an update on his status for […]

The Golden State Warriors came into their road matchup against the Detroit Pistons a little bit short-handed with no Andrew Wiggins or Jonathan Kuminga available. But amid the key absences in the Warriors’ rotation, they got a huge boost from Gui Santos as they managed to grab a 107-104 win. Following the Warriors’ win, Gui […]

Amid the Philadelphia 76ers’ tough start to the season, one of the few bright spots was the Rookie of the Year campaign from rookie guard Jared McCain. But just a couple of months into Jared McCain’s rookie season, he suffered a devastating injury. On on Thursday, the 76ers just confirmed what had already been common […]

There’s no question that Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum is one of the top NBA players in the league right now. Coming off his first championship and helping lead his team as one of the top contenders this season, his legacy is still being written. But with such success also comes the detractors. One of […]

Amid the ongoing wildfires that have engulfed a large portion of the Los Angeles area, many NBA personnel were among those affected by the disaster. Los Angeles Clippers’ star Kawhi Leonard took a leave from the team to attend to his family who were among those evacuated by the Palisades fire. Golden State Warriors head […]

LOS ANGELES – Since Max Christie was moved into the Los Angeles Lakers’ starting lineup, he’s drawn some of the toughest defensive assignments in the league. Last month, he found himself matched up against Ja Morant, Trae Young, Cade Cunningham and ultimately Stephen Curry. Albeit the tough matchups, he’s proven himself as one of the […]

Last season, Cam Spencer was on top of the world. In his final year of college basketball eligibility, he transferred to UConn and ended up played a pivotal role in the Huskies’ 2024 national championship run. He was one of the top players during the NCAA Tournament and was selected in the second round of […]

As the NBA trade deadline is about one month away, the biggest name swirling in trade rumors is Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler. Following a statement by Heat president Pat Riley that the team would not be trading Butler, the 14-year veteran essentially requested a trade. That was followed by the Heat suspending Butler for […]

In what was a possible NBA Finals preview, the Oklahoma City Thunder dispatched the visiting Boston Celtics, 105-92. The Thunder improved to 30-5 while the Celtics dropped to 26-10. Immediately following the big win, the Thunder made a couple of roster moves on a pair of young players, as per Clemente Almanza of Thunder Wire. […]

The Minnesota Timberwolves are still trying to find their footing after the Karl-Anthony Towns to New York Knicks trade that shocked the NBA world. The Wolves are currently 17-17 and in tenth place in the Western Conference standings. Perhaps looking to add quality depth, the Timberwolves made a recent roster move with the signing of […]

The Detroit Pistons have been a vastly improved team behind the All-Star campaign of Cade Cunningham, firmly in the mix for a playoff spot after finishing with the worst record in the NBA in 2023-24. They recently suffered a setback though following the worrisome injury to Jaden Ivey. In a move that could address their backcourt […]

The Sacramento Kings drew plenty of criticism last month when they decided to fire head coach Mike Brown amid a disappointing start to the 2024-25 season. It’s more likely that the real culprit of the team’s poor start is their roster construction. With the NBA trade deadline approaching next month, the team is looking to […]

Following the Los Angeles Lakers’ 119-102 win against the Atlanta Hawks on Friday, they moved up into the top-five in the Western Conference standings with a record of 20-14. The Lakers have a big test coming up on the road against the Houston Rockets on Sunday. Ahead of their matchup against the Rockets, the Lakers […]

LOS ANGELES – When the Los Angeles Lakers squared off against the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday, they welcomed a familiar face back in the lineup. With Anthony Davis out due to injury, Jaxson Hayes stepped into the Lakers’ lineup as he made his return from an ankle injury that kept him sidelined for 21 […]

LOS ANGELES – When it comes to defense, the Los Angeles Lakers’ game-plan starts and ends with Anthony Davis. The Lakers’ big man is one of the best and most versatile defenders in the NBA. So when you add a defensive-minded player like Shake Milton, the way the Lakers did via trade with the Brooklyn […]

LOS ANGELES – When the Los Angeles Lakers decided to trade D’Angelo Russell to the Brooklyn Nets this past weekend, it signaled two things. The first was their need to address their front-court depth and versatility, which they did by acquiring Dorian Finney-Smith. The second was it signaled the Lakers’ confidence in Austin Reaves playing […]

The New York Knicks were set to square off against the Utah Jazz on Wednesday, but they received a bit of worrisome news before the game even started. Knicks backup guard Miles ‘Deuce’ McBride, a key reserve this year, suffered an injury during warmups, as per James L. Edwards III of The Athletic. Miles McBride […]