Jack Winter Articles - Page 4

The Sacramento Kings already have one obviously talented yet objectively limited seven-foot center from Lithuania on the roster. Would pairing franchise stalwart Domantas Sabonis with fellow countryman Jonas Valanciunas this summer really be an optimal move for Sacramento? Let’s just say the oddsmakers in Vegas don’t share your skepticism. As Valanciunas’ foray into free agency […]

There’s no denying that Bronny James has benefited from being LeBron James’ son. Not only is the younger James blessed with a genetic makeup similar to the one that helped make his father arguably the greatest basketball player of all time, but Bronny has also developed his game for years under the tutelage of coaches, […]

LeBron James’ 21st season in the NBA didn’t end the way he wanted. The Los Angeles Lakers were summarily dispatched from the playoffs by the Denver Nuggets again, this time building comfortable leads in each of their four losses following what many called the most competitive postseason sweep ever a year ago. Jamal Murray hit […]

Donovan Mitchell emerged as the NBA’s latest subject of incessant trade speculation even before the injury-ravaged Cleveland Cavaliers’ season officially came to a close. Less than 24 hours after his current team was eliminated by the Boston Celtics from the playoffs on Wednesday night, Mitchell has ostensibly continued doing all he can to quell rumors […]

The future is now for the Orlando Magic. After completely changing the tenor of their first-round series with the Cleveland Cavaliers by winning Game 3 in blowout fashion, the young Magic picked up where they left off on Saturday, pulling away with an utterly dominant second half to beat Cleveland 112-89. The series shifts back […]

The Milwaukee Bucks fell 121-118 to the Indiana Pacers in overtime on Friday, forced to climb out of a 1-2 hole as the series continues. Making matters even worse? Already down Giannis Antetokounmpo due to a calf strain, Milwaukee now has to worry about Damian Lillard’s availability going forward, too. Lillard put a major scare […]

It’s safe to say Patrick Mahomes is pleased with the Kansas City Chiefs’ first two selections in the 2024 NFL Draft. After the two-time defending Super Bowl champions traded up on Thursday night to select Texas wide receiver Xavier Worthy at No. 28, the Chiefs moved up again in the second round to take BYU […]

The Los Angeles Lakers are on the verge of getting swept out of the playoffs by the Denver Nuggets for the second straight season. Making those dire straits even worse, they’re coming off what many league followers legitimately and sarcastically called the “most competitive sweep ever” by coming closer to beating the defending champs while […]

The NBA, shocker, is fully embracing streaming in its next TV deal. Amazon Prime Video has agreed to the parameters of a broadcasting contract with the league that will make the streaming giant one of the NBA’s primary coverage partners beginning for a decade-long period beginning with the 2025-26 season, Andrew Marchand of The Athletic […]

A fragile, surgically repaired left knee and physical, suffocating defense of the New York Knicks aren’t the only limiting factors Joel Embiid is managing during the first round of the playoffs. After he led the Philadelphia 76ers to a pivotal Game 3 win over New York on Thursday night, it was revealed that Embiid has […]

The Boston Celtics aren’t some regular-season paper tiger. Any team in NBA history would struggle to emerge victorious when its opponent shoots 53.5% from beyond the arc en route to 23 made triples. Jimmy Butler and Terry Rozier both remained sidelined, but the shorthanded Miami Heat’s stunning 111-101 victory over Boston in Game 2 should […]

The Charlotte Hornets are entering a new in 2024-25. Finally disabused of the notion Charlotte could be competitive in the foreseeable future after finishing toward the bery bottom of the standings yet again this season, new owners Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall have begun turning over the Hornets’ lead decision-makers. Jeff Peterson, long considered one […]

The highly anticipated first-round matchup between the Minnesota Timberwolves and Phoenix Suns shifts to the desert with the home team facing what might as well be a must-win Game 3. Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, Bradley Beal and company were sorely out-classed at Target Center during the first two games of this series, unable to stem […]

Tyrese Haliburton said Tuesday night that a racial slur was directed at his younger brother during the Indiana Pacers’ two-game stay in his hometown state for a pair of playoff battles against the Milwaukee Bucks. Asked after the Pacers’ commanding 125-108 Game 2 win over the Bucks what it was like to be playing back […]

Shocker! The officiating crew in the New York Knicks’ wild 104-101 win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday night at Madison Square Garden didn’t get every call or non-call correct in real-time. The NBA released the Last Two Minute Report for Game 2 on Tuesday afternoon, revealing four referee mistakes of omission—three of which benefitted […]

The Los Angeles Clippers will have to make do without their best player as the postseason tips off. Kawhi Leonard has officially been ruled out of Game 1 against the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday, Clippers coach Ty Lue said during pregame media availability, per ClutchPoints’ Tomer Azarly. Leonard last took the floor on March 31st, […]

The Philadelphia 76ers fell 111-104 to the New York Knicks on Saturday at Madison Square Garden, losing touch late amid a barrage of threes from the home team’s role players. Digging themselves out of a one-game hole isn’t the Sixers’ most pressing concern as what could be the most competitive, physical series of the first […]

The Minnesota Timberwolves lost one of their most versatile defenders early in Saturday’s action against the Phoenix Suns. Kyle Anderson was forced to leave Game 1 of the teams’ highly anticipated first-round playoff series early in the second quarter after suffering a hip injury. The injury occurred at the 10:26 mark of the second quarter, […]

New Michigan basketball coach Dusty May continues racking up wins on the recruiting trail. Former Yale big man Danny Wolf has committed to play for the Wolverines, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. “ESPN Sources: Former Yale C Danny Wolf has committed to play for Michigan and Coach Dusty May. Wolf averaged 14.1 points, 9.7 rebounds, […]

So much for the Golden State Warriors’ underdog run through the play-in tournament and deep into the playoffs. As the Dubs turn the page toward what could be a truly transformational summer, let’s look back at everything that went wrong in the Bay during a tumultuous 2023-24 season. Draymond Green’s multiple suspensions Mike Dunleavy Jr. […]

The Golden State Warriors got the stop they so desperately needed in the fourth quarter Tuesday night, daring Davion Mitchell to take a wide-open pull-up three as De’Aaron Fox waited to sub in at the scorer’s table. Mitchell’s miss bounced hard off the back of the rim, landing just a couple feet inside the left […]

The Golden State Warriors’ rocky season ended with a palpable thud on Tuesday night in a 119-94 play-in tournament loss to the rival Sacramento Kings. Instead of living to play another day before what would’ve been a highly anticipated potential first-round matchup with the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Dubs have gone home early, suddenly facing […]

Most hand-wringing associated with the NBA’s new minimum games threshold for postseason awards has come with respect to All-NBA selections. While the vast majority of individual honors are now subject to the prerequisite of 65 games played, no achievement effects more players and their future earnings potential than the 15 slots for All-NBA. Tyrese Haliburton […]

The Golden State Warriors need a win in their final game of 2023-24 to potentially improve their chances of advancing the past play-in tournament. Given the postseason ‘gauntlet’ the Dubs will face regardless, they’ve chosen to prioritize to rest ahead of getting a victory in the regular season finale. Stephen Curry and Draymond Green will […]

So much for Brandon Aiyuk officially requesting a trade from the San Francisco 49ers. Just a few hours after it was reported on Sunday morning the Second Team All-Pro told team officials he wanted to continue his career elsewhere, Aiyuk’s agent directly refuted that notion on Twitter. “You need better sources,” Athletes First agent Ryan […]

The NBA enjoyed a much-needed breather on Saturday, the entire league getting the day off following a frantic Friday night in which all 30 teams took the floor. There’s not much more rest coming for the weary, either—at least among the 20 teams that have already punched their ticket to the postseason, the vast majority […]

The postseason arrived early on Friday night at Chase Center, with the Golden State Warriors and New Orleans Pelicans engaging in a basketball slugfest that carried massive seeding implications for both teams. The Dubs won three rounds of the bout, jumping out to an early double-digit lead in the first quarter before out-scoring the Pelicans […]

There may not be a player in the NBA more intimately familiar with Victor Wembanyama’s ongoing development than Rudy Gobert. The Minnesota Timberwolves star has known his San Antonio Spurs counterpart since Wembanyama was just 13 years old, and has had a front-row seat to his growth into one of the best prospects in basketball […]

Karl-Anthony Towns will make his long-awaited return from injury on Friday as the Minnesota Timberwolves host the Atlanta Hawks. Ahead of his first game since suffering a meniscus injury on March 4th, the Timberwolves star hyped up his  late-season comeback by posting a highlight reel of his recent workouts and practice participation on Twitter. The […]

Stephen Curry trudged to the sideline with just over five minutes left in Thursday’s critical late-season matchup with the Portland Trail Blazers, hardly hiding his frustration. The Golden State Warriors superstar repeatedly shook his head as he sat down on the bench and play resumed, clearly exasperated by Steve Kerr’s decision to give him a […]

Vying to avoid falling into the play-in tournament might be the least of the New Orleans Pelicans’ worries as the regular season comes to a close. Zion Williamson left his team’s pivotal Thursday matchup with the Sacramento Kings in the first half after suffering an apparent injury to his left hand or wrist. The play […]

Rashee Rice turned himself into Glenn Heights, TX police on Thursday after an arrest warrant was issued for his role in a late March car crash that left several people injured. The Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver was reportedly taken to the DeSoto jail, where he posted $40,000 bond and was released, according to ABC […]

Victor Wembanyama is truly one of one. The San Antonio Spurs phenom has somehow exceeded the hype in his debut NBA, running away with Rookie of the Year honors over the second half of the season while cementing his stake as one of the best prospects in the history of basketball. How do you market […]

Duke basketball didn’t quite finish the 2023-24 season how it hoped. After defeating top-seeded Houston in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament, the Blue Devils faced off with upstart North Carolina State with a berth to the national semifinals on the line. Duke, obviously, came up short against their in-state rivals, failing to advance […]

Dereck Lively II won’t have much time to ramp up for his first foray under the postseason microscope after all. The Dallas Mavericks rookie center will not play in any of his team’s last three regular season games as he continues recovering from a right knee sprain, Jason Kidd said before Wednesday’s matchup with the […]

So much for their perceived willingness to pay luxury tax making Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore the preferred owners of the Minnesota Timberwolves. As the pair continues a contentious legal battle over future stewardship of the franchise with longtime owner Glen Taylor, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Taylor backed out of the sides’ previously agreed-upon […]

Tuesday’s highly anticipated clash between the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers could still very well be a play-in tournament preview. Given the palpable two-way absence of Anthony Davis, though, most strategic takeaways from the Dubs’ victory won’t prove a harbinger of what’s likely to come in a do-or-die postseason battle.  Still, that reality […]

The New Orleans Pelicans will have their best player available for what might be the team’s biggest game of the regular season. Zion Williamson was listed as questionable to play in New Orleans’ pivotal clash with the Phoenix Suns on Sunday due to a left finger contusion, but he has since been upgraded to available. […]

Purdue basketball is hardly some upstart underdog in the national title game. The Boilermakers were earmarked as a championship contender long before 2023-24 tipped off, living up to that status throughout a regular season that saw star center Zach Edey become the most dominant force in college basketball as his team won the Big 10 […]