David Yapkowitz Articles - Page 7

During NBA All-Star Weekend, one of the participants in the Rising Stars Game was New Orleans Pelicans rookie forward Derik Queen. Queen has been enjoying a strong season with the Pelicans as one of the top rookies in the NBA. In fact, Pelicans’ teammate Trey Murphy III can’t help but continue raving about him, as […]

The Kansas Jayhawks are looking to get back in the win column this week as they face off against Oklahoma State on Wednesday, and trying to erase the bitter taste of their lopsided loss against Iowa State this past weekend. Kansas’ loss to Iowa State snapped an eight-game win streak, and following the loss, head […]

The Michigan State Spartans come into their game against UCLA on Tuesday looking to get back in the win column following a disappointing blowout loss to Wisconsin. The game against UCLA has a little added significance as former Spartans’ forward Xavier Booker is set to make his return to campus as an opponent. Prior to […]

Following the 2026 NBA All-Star Game, it was Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards who walked away with the MVP trophy. Edwards helped lead Team Stars in the final game of the new round-robin tournament format to a 47-21 win against Team Stripes. The Timberwolves’ star finished with eight points, four rebounds and two assists in […]

LOS ANGELES – As he alluded to on Saturday, it was a short stint for Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Doncic during the NBA All-Star Game. Doncic took the court for the first time since suffering a minor hamstring injury back during the Lakers’ win against the Philadelphia 76ers on Feb. 5. During his media […]

The ‘flow state,’ when a basketball player gets in the zone and seemingly can’t miss a shot, is a real thing. Just ask RJ Davis. The former North Carolina guard, now in his first professional season in the G League with the South Bay Lakers, reached that pinnacle en route to dropping a career-high 45 […]

LOS ANGELES – When the smoke cleared and the dust settled, Los Angeles Lakers’ big man Jaxson Hayes failed to advance to the final round of the Slam Dunk Contest at NBA All-Star Weekend. After a combined score of 91.8 in the first round, Hayes was edged out by Miami Heat wing Keshad Johnson and […]

LOS ANGELES – For the first time since 2019-20, the Los Angeles Lakers have a participant for the Slam Dunk Contest at NBA All-Star Weekend in big man Jaxson Hayes. It was Dwight Howard in his lone season with the Lakers who took part in the contest last. Howard did not advance to the final […]

LOS ANGELES – Luka Doncic missed the Los Angeles Lakers’ last four games before NBA All-Star Weekend due to a hamstring injury. Doncic initially suffered the injury during the first half of the Lakers’ win against the Philadelphia 76ers back on Feb. 5, and was ultimately ruled out for the second half. Prior to the […]

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Lakers defeated the visiting Dallas Mavericks, 124-104 on Thursday night, going into the All-Star break on a high note. But following the Lakers’ win, the number one storyline on everyone’s mind was yet another career milestone for LeBron James in becoming the oldest player in NBA history to get […]

If you ask Utah Jazz assistant coach Jason Terry, being part of NBA All-Star Weekend is a great way to keep his name in the general public. “For me, as a guy that retired seven years ago, it keeps you relevant because people recognize you,” Terry laughed during an exclusive interview with ClutchPoints. “They know […]

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Lakers have been without Luka Doncic since the second half of their win against the Philadelphia 76ers last Thursday after he exited the game due to a hamstring injury. Following the game, Lakers head coach JJ Redick was optimistic Doncic’s injury wasn’t too serious, and prior to the team’s […]

LOS ANGELES – With five players sitting out for the Los Angeles Lakers during their 136-108 loss to the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday night, it provided the Lakers’ young guys and two-way contract players with an opportunity to play. Since signing with the Lakers back in November, Drew Timme has already helped the team […]

When it was announced that Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry would not be participating in the All-Star Game, that left the possibility of the San Antonio Spurs getting another selection. With Victor Wembanyama already in, both De’Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle have been putting up All-Star seasons for the Spurs. Neither one was selected, […]

With the Atlanta Hawks and Indiana Pacers being two teams that were looking for big man help at the NBA trade deadline, one name that was on both teams’ radar was Dallas Mavericks center Daniel Gafford. The Mavericks had discussions with teams regarding the availability of Gafford, but there was one key reason as to […]

While Jaren Jackson Jr. ultimately ended up with the Utah Jazz in a blockbuster trade at the deadline, they were not the only team that registered interest in the former Memphis Grizzlies All-Star big man. Quite a few teams reached out to the Grizzlies inquiring about a potential deal, with a couple of surprise teams […]

The Minnesota Timberwolves host the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday night, and Anthony Edwards popped up on the injury report as questionable. Edwards is coming off a 30-point performance in a win against the Atlanta Hawks, and he is dealing with an illness. Here is everything we know about Anthony Edwards’ injury status for the […]

During the San Antonio Spurs’ 136-108 win against the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday, Victor Wembanyama’s dominance was on display, dropping 37 points in the first half. Although he would only score three more points the rest of the game, it brought up a topic of conversation as to whether or not Victor Wembanyama could […]

After the Olympics, the next most prestigious international basketball competition is the FIBA World Cup. Held every four years, and two years before the Olympics, it’s a good tournament to gauge the level of competition around the world. It’s set for next month, and several WNBA players will be making their Team USA debuts including […]

LOS ANGELES – When it was announced the LeBron James, Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves and Marcus Smart were all ruled out for the Los Angeles Lakers’ game against the San Antonio Spurs, it was clear that it was going to be an uphill climb for the Lakers. Sure enough, the Spurs walloped the Lakers, 136-108, […]

LOS ANGELES – Throughout the regular season, the Los Angeles Lakers have stressed the need to match other teams’ physicality from the opening tip. The Oklahoma City Thunder were in town on Monday night, and they’re among the most physical teams in the NBA. Although the Lakers lost to the Thunder, 119-110, Jake LaRavia believes […]

Before Tuesday, Jalen Johnson was the Atlanta Hawks’ lone representative for All-Star Weekend. But following an abdominal injury to Oklahoma City Thunder guard Ajay Mitchell, the Hawks will have one more representative as Zaccharie Risacher was selected as the replacement for the Rising Stars event, as per Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints. While Zaccharie Risacher will […]

Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum took a major step in his potential return from injury as he practiced with the team’s G League affiliate, the Maine Celtics this week. While practicing with G League squads often signal a pending return to the court for some players, Tatum was non-committal when asked about what his practice […]

Monday night in the NBA was a hectic one that featured two different altercations. Perhaps the most significant one was the brawl between the Detroit Pistons and Charlotte Hornets that saw four players ejected from the game. Official league punishment has not yet come down, but in the aftermath, Pistons wing Duncan Robinson is being […]

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Lakers’ three-game winning streak was snapped following their 119-110 loss to the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday night, a game in which the Thunder were short-handed without All-Star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. It was a game the Lakers were in until late in the fourth quarter, and from head […]

LOS ANGELES – Following the NBA trade deadline, the Los Angeles Lakers used their open roster spot to sign Kobe Bufkin who had been playing with their G League affiliate in South Bay. The signing happened rather quickly, leaving fans on social media pondering about potential buyout candidates. But prior to the Lakers’ game against […]

The Memphis Grizzlies had a surprising NBA trade deadline, signaling they are close to hitting the reset button as they shipped Jaren Jackson Jr. to the Utah Jazz. In the aftermath of the deadline, the Grizzlies waived veterans Eric Gordon and Georges Niang, opening up one roster spot. The Grizzlies temporarily filled their 15th roster […]

The Miami Heat host the Utah Jazz on Monday night, with both Bam Adebayo and Norman Powell on the injury report. Adebayo is probably while Powell is questionable. Adebayo had been dealing with a hip injury while Powell has back tightness. Here is everything we know about Bam Adebayo and Norman Powell’s injury status going […]

The LA Clippers seemingly decided to blow it up at the NBA trade deadline, opting for young players and draft picks over established veteran stars. James Harden and Ivica Zubac were jettisoned with Darius Garland, Bennedict Mathurin, Isaiah Jackson and two first-round picks in their place. And supposedly, rival teams tried to pry away the […]

The St. John’s Red Storm pulled off a major upset win over the weekend, defeating UConn, 81-72. At the time of the game, UConn had been ranked No. 3 in the AP men’s basketball poll, and St. John’s used the win to vault themselves into the top-20 at No. 17. The Red Storm had previously […]

The Houston Cougars grabbed a massive Big 12 win on Saturday following their 77-66 win against BYU, and it vaulted them all the way to the No. 3 spot in the latest AP men’s basketball poll. With the win, Houston improved to 21-2 overall, and 9-1 in Big 12 play. The Cougars have now won […]

The Los Angeles Lakers came out of the NBA trade deadline making only one deal, a swap with the Atlanta Hawks for Luke Kennard in exchange for Gabe Vincent. With one open roster spot, the Lakers signed Kobe Bufkin to a two-year contact on Saturday, ensuring the former first-round pick and G League standout stays […]

LOS ANGELES – After last season’s disappointing playoff flameout in the opening round of the NBA playoffs against the Minnesota Timberwolves, it was widely agreed that the Los Angeles Lakers needed a major upgrade at the center position. However, this season center might actually be a position of strength for the Lakers, and Jaxson Hayes […]

In the race for seeding in the Eastern Conference standings, the New York Knicks grabbed a huge road win, 111-89, against the Boston Celtics. With the win, the Knicks and Celtics are tied record-wise at 34-19, with the Knicks currently sitting in the No. 2 seed. But following the game, one of the Celtics’ announcers […]

The Chicago Bulls are coming into their game against the Brooklyn Nets on Monday looking to snap a four-game win streak. It’s not yet clear though if the Bulls will be short-handed, or if they will have reinforcements. Both Josh Giddey and Tre Jones appeared on the Bulls’ injury report ahead of the team’s game […]

After suffering what JJ Redick called a mild hamstring injury, Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Doncic missed the team’s win against the Golden State Warriors on Saturday as he was ruled out on the injury report. With the Lakers set to face off against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday night, Luka Doncic was officially […]

LOS ANGELES – Newly acquired sharpshooting guard Luke Kennard made his Los Angeles Lakers debut during the team’s 105-99 win against the Golden State Warriors on Saturday. It was a mere two days after the trade deadline in which the Lakers dealt for Kennard in a deal with the Atlanta Hawks that sent Gabe Vincent […]

Following the NBA trade deadline, the Lakers had one open roster spot which they used to sign Kobe Bufkin to a two-year contract, as per Shams Charania of ESPN. Bufkin had previously played for the Lakers on a 10-day contract last month, and the team opted not to re-sign him to another 10-day. After his […]

LOS ANGELES – With the Los Angeles Lakers taking on the Golden State Warriors in a primetime matchup on Saturday, new acquisition Luke Kennard was available to make his team debut. The Lakers acquired Kennard at the trade deadline in a deal with the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for Gabe Vincent and a second-round pick. […]