David Yapkowitz Articles - Page 70

Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander came into the 2023-24 NBA season as a legitimate MVP candidate. He finished last season top five in the MVP voting and depending on how this season goes, he could be a legit contender for the award. He went up against an elite defense in the defending champion Denver […]

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is one of the top rising players in the NBA. He finished top five in the MVP voting last season and could potentially finish higher this season. He’s gotten off to a good start this season but had not yet encountered a team like the Denver Nuggets yet this […]

Philadelphia 76ers guard Patrick Beverley caused a little bit of controversy recently when he proclaimed that he isn’t scared of anyone on the Toronto Raptors roster. Beverley clarified that he meant no disrespect, but that the Raptors just didn’t have that toughness factor. The veteran guard certainly is not one to hold back, and sure […]

The Miami Heat came into Saturday’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves down Jimmy Butler and Kevin Love. Butler was ruled out by the Heat due to rest and Kevin Love was ruled out due to a shoulder injury he sustained agains the Boston Celtics the game before. While Butler will probably play on Monday in […]

Atlanta Dream All-Star guard Allisha Gray’s involvement with WnB Factory all started because Wing Stop was closed. Gray was hanging out with her brother AJ when he wanted Wing Stop but it was not to be as the popular chicken wings restaurant was closed. Luckily for them, a WnB Factory happened to be close by […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder are off to a solid start to the 2023-24 NBA season. They’ve been on the road for their first two games of the year and are 2-0. They caused a player’s only meeting by the Chicago Bulls in their season opener. They followed that up with a come from behind win […]

When the Boston Celtics acquired Jrue Holiday in a trade with the Portland Trail Blazers, the prevailing thought from fans and media alike was that the Celtics had an incredible defensive duo at guard with Holiday and Derrick White. Holiday wasted no time showing his defensive chops on opening night against the New York Knicks. […]

Under Dawn Staley, the South Carolina women’s basketball program has become one of the top powerhouses in the country. The program has won two national championships and has five Final Four appearances since Staley took over as head coach in 2008. They’ve also had quite a few players move on to the WNBA. Staley and […]

The Washington Wizards will not have their 2023-24 home opener until Saturday against the Memphis Grizzlies. They’re hoping that they have a much better performance than they did in their first game of the season, a 143-120 loss to the Indiana Pacers. This is a new era for the Wizards following an offseason of shakeup. […]

The Charlotte Hornets are hoping for a better 2023-24 season than the season they had last year. They’re a team that has lot of question marks surrounding the roster. They have a potential franchise player in point guard LaMelo Ball, an intriguing lottery pick in Brandon Miller and a few other worthwhile pieces. One player […]

The Memphis Grizzlies entered the 2023-24 NBA season with a decimated roster. Not only were they without star point guard Ja Morant who is serving his 25 game suspension, but they also are without two key frontcourt players in Steven Adams who was ruled out for the season, and Brandon Clarke who is still recovering […]

The Miami Heat whiffed out on both of their point guard trade targets in Damian Lillard and Jrue Holiday. After coming off a surprising run to the NBA Finals, the Heat were looking to further strengthen their roster to make another deep playoff run. Now, in order to do so, they’re going to be relying […]

The New Orleans Pelicans have gotten off to a 1-0 start to the 2023-24 NBA season after an impressive road win against the Memphis Grizzlies in their season opener. They were led by Zion Williamson who is looking healthy and spry and could be a potential MVP candidate. The one thing that’s been holding the […]

Giannis Antetokounmpo raised eyebrows this offseason when he suggested that his future might not be with the Milwaukee Bucks if they did not make the proper moves to maintaining a championship contender. The Bucks responded with a shocking trade for Damian Lillard. In turn, Antetokounmpo responded by signing a contract extension with the Bucks. In […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder are going to be one of the most followed teams in the NBA this season due to their potential star duo of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren. They got off to a good start to the 2023-24 NBA season following a 124-104 road win against the Chicago Bulls. The Thunder are […]

Toronto Raptors guard Dennis Schroder is no stranger to FIBA basketball. He’s been a member of the German national team since he was played for the under-18 team back in 2012. Most recently, he helped lead Germany to an upset of Team USA at the FIBA World Cup and a gold medal finish. Schroder carried […]

The Toronto Raptors got off to a good start to the 2023-24 season with a 97-94 win against the Minnesota Timberwolves at home on opening night. The Raptors came into the season having opted to run it back rather than blow the team up and rebuild. A big part of the Raptors potential success lies […]

The Denver Nuggets title defense got off to a good start following an impressive 119-107 win against the Los Angeles Lakers. Since the Nuggets swept the Lakers during last season’s playoffs, the two teams have exchanged verbal bars in the media with a little rivalry brewing. Until further notice though, it appears as if the […]

The Detroit Pistons came into the 2023-24 NBA season with a renewed sense of optimism. With a new head coach in Monty Williams and a promising young core, this could be the season they give Pistons something worthwhile to cheer about. While the Pistons dropped their season opener, 103-102, against the Miami Heat, some encouraging […]

The Sacramento Kings will get a much anticipated rematch against the Golden State Warriors on Friday, the team that knocked them out of the playoffs last season in a thrilling, seven game series. It should be a good test for the Kings who are looking to prove this year that last season was no fluke. […]

The Chicago Bulls did not get off to a good start to the 2023-24 NBA season. They opened the season at home against the Oklahoma City Thunder and actually lead, 35-33 after the first quarter. It was all downhill from there, however. They managed only 69 points the rest of the game and ended up […]

The New York Knicks made a flurry of roster moves this weekend as the start of the 2023-24 NBA season approaches next week. They originally had all three of their two-way contract spots filled but ended up with all three being vacant again. They brought back a familiar face from last season for one of […]

The start of the 2023-24 NBA regular season is this coming Tuesday, Oct. 24 and teams have until Monday, Oct. 23 to cut down their rosters to a maximum of 15 standard contacts and three two-way contracts. There has already been a flurry of roster moves this weekend and there will likely be more leading […]

The Houston Rockets underwent several changes this offseason. They added more of a veteran presence in free agency with the signings of Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks, Jock Landale Jeff Green and Reggie Bullock. The Rockets had been one of the youngest teams in the NBA and now they have vets in place to help guide […]

Collin Gillespie is technically entering his second year in the NBA with the Denver Nuggets. But he hasn’t played a single minute. Gillespie joined the Nuggets in the summer of 2022 after going undrafted as a fifth year player out of Villanova. He was signed to a two-way contract and suited up for the Nuggets during […]

The Boston Celtics vaulted themselves into one of the favorites to win the NBA championship this season when they acquired All-Star point guard Jrue Holiday in a trade with the Portland Trail Blazers. With their earlier sign and trade with the Washington Wizards for Kristaps Porzingis, the Celtics have as formidable a starting five as […]

The New York Knicks are coming off a successful regular season that saw them earn a top five seed in the Eastern Conference. They knocked off the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round without home court advantage before falling to the Miami Heat in the second round. They’ll have some key questions to answer heading […]

With the 2023-24 NBA season set to tip-off this week, the biggest storyline surrounding the Philadelphia 76ers is the James Harden trade drama. Harden had requested a trade in the offseason and had reportedly had the Los Angeles Clippers as his preferred destination. Those talks have seemingly stalled and while Harden initially reported to training […]

In recent years, the NBA’s G League has become a developing ground for NBA teams to stash potential prospects without them having to take up a regular season roster spot. These players are signed to two-way contracts allowing them to split time between their NBA team and their G League affiliate. They’re only allowed a […]

The Orlando Magic are a team seemingly in NBA purgatory. They’re not good enough to make the playoffs or the play-in tournament but they’re not quite bad enough to get a really high lottery pick. Even if they were that bad, they have had so many top lottery picks in recent seasons and nothing to […]

After winning the 2023 NBA championship, the Denver Nuggets found themselves looking to retool their bench. Head coach Michael Malone normally plays a tight rotation, but the Nuggets lost their top two bench options in Bruce Brown and Jeff Green to free agency. With Green in particular, he was the Nuggets backup big man and […]

With the 2023-24 NBA season set to tip-off next week, there’s going to be a flurry of roster moves within the next few days. Teams officially have until Monday, Oct. 23 to cut their rosters down to a maximum of 15 standard contract spots and three two-way contract spots. The Milwaukee Bucks certainly made a […]

The Toronto Raptors finished up their preseason schedule on Friday with a win against the Washington Wizards bringing their preseason record this year to a perfect 4-0. They will officially open the 2023-24 NBA regular season on Wednesday, Oct. 25 at home against the Minnesota Timberwolves. While the Raptors certainly have some questions to answer […]

The Phoenix Mercury sent shockwaves through the WNBA world this week when they announced the hiring of Orlando Magic assistant coach Nate Tibbetts as the franchise’s new head coach. Tibbetts is expected to become the highest paid head coach in the WNBA. Previously, that title belonged to Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon who […]

The 2023-24 NBA season hasn’t even started yet and the New Orleans Pelicans already have a lengthy injury list. Backup point guard Jose Alvarado suffered an ankle injury recently. Trey Murphy III suffered a knee injury during an offseason workout and is out and expected to miss the start of the season. Backup forward Naji […]

After trading longtime franchise cornerstone Damian Lillard to the Milwaukee Bucks, the Portland Trail Blazers are entering a new phase of rebuilding. Armed with draft picks and young players, the Blazers are going to suffer through some growing pains in the coming years. It helps though that they have a new potential franchise player in […]

The Minnesota Timberwolves are expecting a projected leap forward behind rising superstar Anthony Edwards. Edwards is coming off a phenomenal individual performance at the 2023 FIBA World Cup despite the overall team’s disappointing tournament. The Wolves fought their way through the play-in last season to grab the Western Conference’s No. 8 seed. Coming into the […]

With the preseason winding down and the 2023-24 NBA regular season set to tip-off next week, teams have until this coming Monday, Oct. 23 to finalize their rosters. They are allowed to carry 15 standard contracts and three two-way contracts. Expect to see plenty of roster shuffling in the coming days as they get their […]

With the 2023-24 NBA season approaching, the Washington Wizards are going to be a team that’s going to draw attention. Fans will be tuned in to see what Jordan Poole can do with a bigger role and the keys to the offense. The Wizards will open the 2023-24 season on Oct. 25 against the Indiana […]