David Yapkowitz Articles - Page 5

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Lakers have had dealt with multiple injuries to begin the 2025-26 season, especially in the backcourt. The Lakers’ injuries have opened up playing time for Bronny James, who is in the second season of his NBA career. James has been called upon by Lakers head coach JJ Redick in […]

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Lakers shocked the NBA world back in June when it was announced that an ownership change would take place with Mark Walter, the CEO of TWG Global, would purchase a majority share from the Buss Family. Walter also owns the Los Angeles Dodgers who won their second straight World […]

The Los Angeles Lakers return home from their brief, two-game road trip having gone 2-0 with wins against the Minnesota Timberwolves and Memphis Grizzlies. Sunday’s game for the Lakers will be against the Miami Heat, and starting center Deandre Ayton appeared on the team’s injury report. Deandre Ayton was officially listed as probable on the […]

The USC Trojans are entering their second year with Eric Musselman at the helm as head coach, and the Trojans have a brought in several key transfers for the upcoming season. USC will officially open the season on Monday, Nov. 3 against Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, and they’re hoping to have Rodney Rice in […]

The Indiana Pacers have suffered a recent bout of injury issues lately, with five key rotation players currently sidelined with various ailments. In response to injury woes, the Pacers were granted a hardship contract which they used on Saturday with the signing of Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, as per Shams Charania of ESPN. Robinson-Earl’s signing brings the […]

The Minnesota Timberwolves suffered a brief injury scare during their 122-105 win against the Charlotte Hornets on Saturday when Donte DiVincenzo left the game during the first half after taking a hit to the face. DiVincenzo eventually returned to the game, with his nose looking like it was in obvious discomfort. DiVincenzo’s facial appearance caused […]

The Milwaukee Bucks have started the 2025-26 season as one of the better teams in the Eastern Conference. One of the major reasons for their strong start has been the incredible play of superstar forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, who added to his list of highlights with an insane slam dunk following his own missed shot. Giannis […]

The Atlanta Hawks were dealt a major blow on Saturday with the announcement that star point guard Trae Young would be sidelined for at least four weeks due to an MCL injury, as per Shams Charania of ESPN. Young first suffered the injury during the Hawks’ game against the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday. After having […]

The NC State Wolfpack are entering the first year of the Will Wade era after the program hired Wade following the end of last season. Wade was coming off leading McNeese State to the NCAA Tournament, and is making his return to high-major Division 1 basketball after his dismissal from LSU in 2022. One of […]

The Baylor Bears come into the 2025-26 season looking to keep their streak of five straight NCAA Tournament appearances, a streak that began with the program’s national championship run in 2020-21. But with Baylor’s season opener set for Monday, Nov. 3 against UTRVG, the team got a concerning injury update on key transfer big man […]

The Boston Celtics have rebounded from an 0-3 start to the regular season to win three consecutive games. Coming into their Saturday matchup against the Houston Rockets, the Celtics got several injury updates for a couple of key players including Derrick White and Payton Pritchard, as per the NBA’s official injury report. Both Derrick White […]

LOS ANGELES – Back during the preseason, the Los Angeles Lakers’ bench unit, mostly composed of Jaxson Hayes, Jarred Vanderbilt and Marcus Smart all played key roles during the team’s final preseason game, a win against the Golden State Warriors. Since the regular season has begun, that trio hasn’t had much time on the court […]

Friday marked an important date for the WNBA and the players union in that it was the deadline for both sides to agree upon a new CBA. That failed to happen with both sides still far apart in CBA negotiations, and both the WNBA and the players agreed to extend the deadline another 30 days […]

The Cincinnati Bearcats come into the 2025-26 season hoping to get back to the NCAA Tournament after missing The Big Dance for the past six years. It will be the program’s fifth season with Wes Miller at the helm as head coach, and he’s done well in terms of posting a winning record. But Cincinnati […]

The Milwaukee Bucks and Golden State Warriors have been two of the better teams in the league to start the 2025-26 season, and it was the Bucks who emerged victorious on Thursday following their 120-110 win despite not having Giannis Antetokounmpo due to a knee injury. Former Warriors guard Ryan Rollins led the way with […]

VThe Golden State Warriors had their two-game win streak snapped on Thursday following their 120-110 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. The Bucks were without star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo who was sidelined due to a knee injury. But it was a former Warrior who sank Golden State as Ryan Rollins dropped a career-high 32 points. Stephen […]

The Los Angeles Lakers’ two-game road trip concludes on Friday against the Memphis Grizzlies, and it is likely they get much-needed reinforcements on the court. On Thursday afternoon, the Lakers listed both Luka Doncic and Marcus Smart as questionable on the injury report for the game against the Grizzlies. Friday’s game is the Lakers’ first […]

Following the Los Angeles Lakers’ 116-115 win against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday, much of the postgame chatter centered around Austin Reaves who capped off a phenomenal week with a game-winner. But as Reaves himself said, it was a total team effort with multiple players stepping up for the Lakers including Jake LaRavia who dropped […]

LOS ANGELES – When the Los Angeles Lakers traveled up north to face off against the Sacramento Kings last Sunday, they lost both Marcus Smart and Gabe Vincent due to injury during the game. As a result, two-way contract rookie Chris Mañon saw his first NBA minutes. Lakers head coach JJ Redick opted to play […]

The Miami Hurricanes are entering the program’s first season under new head coach Jai Lucas, and on Thursday, Lucas landed the first five-star recruit of his early tenure with the commitment of big man Caleb Gaskins, as per Travis Branham of 247 Sports. Gaskins is the first player from the class of 2026 to commit […]

Since the LSU Tigers moved on from former head coach Will Wade in 2022, they have not made the NCAA Tournament. This will be the fourth season with Matt McMahon at the helm for the Tigers, where they will be looking to improve on last season’s 14-18 record. LSU will open the 2025-26 season next […]

When the Utah Jazz tipped-off the 2025-26 season, they were missing a key player in Isaiah Collier who has been sidelined due to a hamstring injury. His rookie season was also delayed due to injury, but once he returned, Collier quickly became a big part of the Jazz’s lineup. And with the Jazz starting off […]

The Indiana Hoosiers are looking for a return to the NCAA Tournament in 2025-26, their first season under new coach Darian DeVries who was hired away from West Virginia. For a successful season, Indiana is going to be relying on a few key transfers including Nick Dorn who has been dealing with a foot injury […]

Coming into the 2025-26 season, the Colorado Buffaloes and head coach Tad Boyle are looking to get back to the NCAA Tournament after missing the Big Dance last season. As Colorado prepares for their season opener on Monday against Montana State, they got a key injury update on sophomore forward Sebastian Rancik, as per Jon […]

The Los Angeles Lakers are in the midst of a quick, two-game road trip, one that began with a thrilling, 116-115 win against the Minnesota Timberwolves following Austin Reaves knocking down the game-winner. The road trip concludes against the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday, and the Lakers might get more reinforcements soon. Lakers rookie Adou Thiero […]

The Los Angeles Lakers’s current two-game road trip got off to a thrilling start after Austin Reaves sank a game-winner to bury the Minnesota Timberwolves, 116-115. The shot capped off what’s been a massive week for Reaves beginning with his career-high 51 points he dropped on the Sacramento Kings last Sunday in a win. Following […]

The Boston Celtics have rebounded from an 0-3 start to the season to win back-to-back games. The Celtics’ latest win came against the Cleveland Cavaliers, a team that could emerge as a contender in the Eastern Conference. The Celtics rolled to a win in blowout fashion, and Anfernee Simons poured salt onto the wound for […]

The Indiana Pacers made a surprising roster move this week when they cut former No. 2 overall pick James Wiseman and signed reigning dunk contest champion Mac McClung to a multi-year contract. McClung got his first minutes with the Pacers on Wednesday during the team’s game against the Dallas Mavericks, and his first bucket might […]

The Dallas Mavericks suffered a blow during the first half of their game against the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday as Anthony Davis left early due to a leg injury. Without Davis on the floor, Mavericks rookie and No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg is going to have to step it up as he did during […]

The Atlanta Hawks came into their game against the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday looking to get back into the win column and snap a two-game losing streak. But if the Hawks want to get a win, they’re going to have to do so without star point guard Trae Young who left the game early due […]

The Atlanta Hawks suffered a major blow during their game against the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday when star point guard Trae Young left the game early due to a knee injury, the team announced. It was also revealed that he would not return to the game. The play occurred late in the first quarter when […]

The Philadelphia 76ers have been off to a surprising 4-0 start to the 2025-26 season, and a big reason for that is standout rookie VJ Edgecombe. While there is plenty of season left to be played, Edgecombe is the early frontrunner for the league’s Rookie of the Year Award. And while Edgecombe has been generating […]

The Dallas Mavericks have started off the 2025-26 season at 1-3, and are looking to add another game in the win column as the square off agains the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday. While there was some doubt earlier in the day, it appears as if the Mavericks won’t be as short-handed as initially thought as […]

LOS ANGELES – With seven players out on the injury report, Monday’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers presented an opportunity for some of the seldom-used players on the Los Angeles Lakers’ roster to step up. One of those players in particular was Dalton Knecht, the Lakers’ first round draft pick from 2024, and a […]

The Los Angeles Lakers are coming off a tough, 122-108 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, a game in which they were missing five key rotation players due to injury. The Lakers are set to embark on a brief, two-game road trip this week, and following the loss to the Blazers, head coach JJ Redick […]

As the Los Angeles Lakers continue to navigate the absence of LeBron James and Luka Doncic due to injury, they were dealt another blow amid the second night of a back-to-back against the Portland Trail Blazers. Gabe Vincent, who had been one of the Lakers’ starting guards to begin the season, was ruled out for […]

LOS ANGELES – As the Los Angeles Lakers prepared to face off against the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday, much of the chatter pregame was still on Austin Reaves’ incredible performance from the night before when he dropped a career-high 51 points against the Sacramento Kings in a win. Reaves stepped in in the absence […]

No Luka Doncic, no LeBron James, but that was no problem for the Los Angeles Lakers as they pulled off a 127-120 win against the Sacramento Kings on the front end of a back-to-back. It was Austin Reaves who stepped up for the Lakers, dropping a career-high 51 points while knocking down several big three-point […]

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Lakers were able to get into the win column on Friday night after defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves, 128-110. While much of the postgame focus was on Luka Doncic’s franchise record-setting night, a huge part of the win was the increased aggressiveness of Deandre Ayton, especially in the second half […]