David Yapkowitz Articles - Page 73

With the 2023 WNBA regular season winding down, the Atlanta Dream find themselves in a precarious situation. They currently sit in fifth place in the standings, but with a record of 16-17, their potential playoff future could be uncertain. They are only three games ahead of the ninth place Chicago Sky and they could conceivably […]

The NBA Draft isn’t always an exact science. Sometimes there’s a little bit of luck involved, a lot of good scouting, etc. When it comes to the lottery, NBA teams are hoping to find a generational star, or at least a high-level starting caliber player. The Oklahoma City Thunder certainly found a starting caliber player […]

Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown has been one of the top rising wings in the league. In 2022, he helped the Celtics reach the NBA Finals for the first time in 12 years and this past season he helped them to the Eastern Conference Finals where they eventually lost to the Miami Heat in seven […]

The 2022-23 LSU Tigers women’s basketball team won the first NCAA championship in program history behind head coach Kim Mulkey and a talented team headlined by rising star Angel Reese. Coming into the 2023-24 season, the LSU Tigers will be without Alexis Morris and LaDahzia Williams who both used up their college eligibility. Even so, […]

While most people saw the WNBA championship race coming down to the Las Vegas Aces and New York Liberty, and for good reason, the Connecticut Sun were looking to put a wrench in those plans. Led by the star duo of triple-double machine Alyssa Thomas and veteran leader DeWanna Bonner, the team looked like they […]

The biggest storyline facing the Memphis Grizzlies heading into the 2023-24 season is the suspension of Ja Morant. After a video surfaced of him flashing a gun on camera after he was already disciplined by the NBA for a similar incident, the league decided to suspend him for the first 25 games of the upcoming […]

With NBA teams needed to cut down to the roster maximum of 15 players by the start of the 2023-24 season, the Oklahoma City Thunder find themselves in an interesting situation. After some of their offseason roster moves, the Thunder had over 15 contracts. They cut down a little bit with the waiving of Rudy […]

While most NBA teams are finished with their rosters at this time of the offseason, some teams, like the Portland Trail Blazers, still have a few roster spots they may choose to fill. Much of the Blazers offseason has been dominated by the Damian Lillard trade drama which doesn’t look like it will be resolved […]

Since the offseason, the Las Vegas Aces and the New York Liberty have been considered as the two WNBA championship favorites for this season. So far, those predictions have looked spot on. The Aces and Liberty have consistently been the two best teams in the league and it was no surprise that they were the […]

The Washington Mystics are in the middle of a playoff push and are finally starting to get healthy. With a little less than one month to go in the regular season, the Mystics are sitting in seventh place in the WNBA standings at 14-16. They could potentially get to the fourth spot as they are […]

The Washington Mystics had been dealt a tough blow recently with all the injuries they’ve had. They were without three starters in Elena Delle Donne, Ariel Atkins and Shakira Austin as well as key reserve Kristi Toliver. This was all in the middle of a playoff push as well. The Mystics are currently holding on […]

The Phoenix Mercury have a puncher’s chance at a playoff spot this season despite their poor play. They currently stand at 9-21, tied with the Seattle Storm who hold the tiebreaker. They’re both three games back of the Chicago Sky who currently are in eighth place. The Mercury would also have to pass the Los […]

The Indiana Fever have been going through the growing pains this season. Amid the addition of Rookie of the Year candidate Aliyah Boston, the Fever currently hold the worst record in the WNBA at 8-23 and are 2-8 in their last ten games. While another lottery finish is on the horizon, the Fever have actually […]

The West Virginia Mountaineers were dealt a huge blow this offseason when head coach Bob Huggins was arrested on a DUI charge. While Huggins initially resigned, he later did an about-face and claimed he was forced into resignation and that he was looking to sue the university. While nothing major is expected from that, new […]

At this point in the offseason, most NBA team roster moves are end of the bench signings or training camp invites. Some of these signings though hold some significance as a few of these players may be competing to earn a two-way contract. With the league now allowing teams a maximum of three two-way contracts, […]

Throughout NBA history, the role of the 6th Man has always been very important. A dependable scoring threat off the bench who often plays starter minutes during some games. One of the best to ever play that role was Lou Williams who recently retired. Williams came off the bench for most of his career and […]

The Minnesota Lynx have been playing much better basketball ever since their poor start to the 2023 season. After dealing with several key injuries early in the season to Diamond Miller, Jessica Shepard and Aerial Powers, they’ve been relatively healthy. They had brief injury concerns with Napheesa Collier and rookie Dorka Juhasz, but since then […]

The transfer portal has changed the college basketball landscape forever. For good or for bad, college basketball will never be the same again. What it has done, is given players a little bit more freedom to move around and find the right situation for them. It has helped teams reload in anticipation of the coming […]

The NBA offseason is a time for summer pro-ams and open runs. For fans starving for basketball during the offseason, these pro-ams allow them to see some of their favorite NBA players up close without having to spend money on a ticket. In addition to these pro-ams, NBA players participate in pickup runs across the […]

NBA training camp opens in a little less than two months from now and the James Harden, Philadelphia 76ers trade drama has dominated NBA headlines in recent days. The latest iteration of this saga began over the weekend when it was reported that the Sixers had shut down trade talks with the Los Angeles Clippers […]

With training camp a little less than two months away, most NBA teams are going to making some key roster decisions. The maximum number of standard contracts teams are permitted to carry is 15, with three two-way contracts. Some teams will bring a few players to training camp and let them battle it out for […]

The creation of the two-way contract has benefited NBA teams in that it essentially created two additional roster spots. Under the new CBA, teams are permitted an additional two-way contract slot bringing the total number to three. While these players are obviously paid less than an NBA standard contract, they are still part of the […]

Every NBA team hopes to find undrafted gems who end up becoming solid rotation players. The Miami Heat are one of the best examples of that as they had multiple undrafted players playing key roles during their run to the 2023 NBA Finals. Teams also hope to find key contributors with their second round picks. […]

With former NBA player Juwan Howard at the helm as head coach of the Michigan Wolverines basketball team, the program has become a destination for potential high school recruits. It was a bit of a disappointing year though this past season for the Michigan Wolverines. They finished with an 18-16 record and went 11-9 in […]

The Atlanta Hawks cleared up some of the log-jam in their frontcourt this offseason when they traded John Collins to the Utah Jazz. Collins’ name had been in trade rumors for a while now and Hawks brass must have felt like it was time to pull the trigger. What the trade did was open up […]

For NBA fans looking for their basketball fix in the offseason, they have a couple of options. This summer specifically has the FIBA World Cup set to begin at the end of the month with friendly scrimmages leading up to the start of the event. There is of course the NBA Summer League in Las […]

Injuries have always been an unfortunate part of sports, but for the Washington Mystics, the 2023 WNBA season has been unfair. They had recently been without three starters in Elena Delle Donne, Ariel Atkins and Shakira Austin and one key reserve in Kristi Toliver. They recently got Austin back but are still without the other […]

When Becky Hammon retired from the WNBA, San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich made history when he brought her on as an assistant coach on his staff. To that point, there had only ever been one female assistant coach in the NBA in Lisa Boyer who was a volunteer on John Lucas’ staff with […]

The offseason is a time when NBA players take part in pro-am leagues across the country. For fans who might not be able to afford tickets to an NBA game, these leagues give them the opportunity to see some of their favorite NBA players up close. Former NBA player Jamal Crawford runs one of those […]

When fans think of some of the greatest European players to have played in the NBA, the names Dirk Nowitzki, Pau Gasol, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili come to mind. This weekend, Pau Gasol, Nowitzki and Parker are all being inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. But newer NBA fans might not be so […]

Despite losing in their opening play-in game against the Los Angeles Lakers, the Minnesota Timberwolves ended up grabbing the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference and gave the eventual champion Denver Nuggets arguably the toughest series they faced all playoffs. With a budding superstar in Anthony Edwards and an established star in […]

This offseason, the NBA saw trade requests from two of the league’s biggest stars in Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard and Philadelphia 76ers guard James Harden. In Lillard’s case, the Miami Heat emerged as his preferred destination. For Harden, it was the Los Angeles Clippers that were reported to be his preferred landing destination. […]

Under the new CBA, NBA teams are now permitted to sign up to three two-way contracts on their roster. In previous seasons they were only allowed two. Two-way contract players are allowed a maximum of 50 games with their NBA team and are not eligible to play in the playoffs. They spent the rest of […]

With the Basketball Hall of Fame set to take place this weekend, one of the top inductees for this year’s class is Miami Heat legend Dwyane Wade. Although Wade had stints with the Chicago Bulls and Cleveland Cavaliers, he will first and foremost be remembered for his exploits with the Heat. The No. 5 overall […]

At this point in the offseason, most of the free agency moves NBA teams make are end of the bench type moves. From two-way contracts to Exhibit 10 contracts to the 13th, 14th and 15th man, those are the types of signings that will occur between now and training camp. For some of those players, […]

At this late in the offseason, it’s uncommon for college teams to make any major roster additions. Most teams are already set with for the upcoming season. The transfer portal has died down by this point in the offseason as well. But the Xavier Muskateers weren’t finished adding to their roster just yet. The Muskateers […]

The West Virginia Mountaineers dealt with a bit of controversy during this offseason when longtime head coach Bob Huggins resigned from his position after a DUI incident. While Huggins has done an about face and threatened legal action saying he was forced to resign, nothing more has come from that and the Mountaineers will move […]

The Indiana Pacers made one of the biggest splashes in NBA Free Agency this offseason when they lured Bruce Brown away from the champion Denver Nuggets. Not only was Brown one of the biggest names on the free agent market, the contract the Pacers signed him to was one of the biggest handed out during […]

There’s no denying that the transfer portal has changed the college basketball landscape forever. While some may argue that it’s for the better and some may argue that it’s for the worse, what it’s done is allowed college players to enter a free agency of sorts and have a little more control over their NCAA […]