Jack Winter Articles - Page 91

There’s no fraternity quite like that of the NBA’s head coaches. Across the league, everyone from icons like the San Antonio Spurs’ Gregg Popovich to unknown assistants toiling away in anonymity subscribe to an etiquette that deems public criticism of coaching peers foul. As such, it’s hardly surprising to hear Chicago Bulls coach Jim Boylen […]

Giannis Antetokounmpo just can’t seem to shake the ankle issue that has plagued him for the last two weeks. With the playoffs fast approaching, don’t be surprised if the Milwaukee Bucks take an extra cautious approach to ensuring the health of their franchise player. According to Matt Velasquez of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Antetokounmp has […]

Sacramento Kings forward Nemanja Bjelica will miss his team’s game against the Houston Rockets on Saturday with a stomach bug, the team announced. https://twitter.com/SacramentoKings/status/1112058083914731521 The 2018-19 season has been the finest of the Serbian star’s four-year career. After spending the first three seasons of his NBA tenure with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Bjelica signed a three-year, […]

The next time Anthony Davis shares the floor with the Los Angeles Lakers, there’s a chance he’s wearing forum blue and gold. The New Orleans Pelicans superstar is a game-time decision for his team’s matchup with the Lakers on Sunday as he deals with a sore back. Some #Pelicans injury updates: Miller likely out for […]

Jimmy Butler is poised to receive a villain’s welcome when he returns to Minneapolis on Saturday night for the first time since he forced a trade from the Minnesota Timberwolves. If the Philadelphia 76ers star is to be believed, though, he’ll relish the boos raining down from an angry Target Center crowd. Why? As Butler […]

Los Angeles Clippers forward Danilo Gallinari will miss his team’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday to rest a sore left ankle. Danilo Gallinari (ankle) will be OUT for the #Clippers today to rest against the visiting Cleveland #Cavs. It’s the first half of a back-to-back against the Cavs and #Grizzlies for L.A. — […]

LeBron James has nothing to play for but pride over the final two weeks of the regular season. If the four-time MVP’s ongoing gloating about his esteemed level of recent play is any indication, though, don’t expect him to take it easy. The morning after dropping 27 points and nine assists on 11-of-19 shooting in […]

The Philadelphia 76ers finally have some breathing room for the third seed in the Eastern Conference. As a result, with the playoffs fast approaching, the team is taking no chances with the health of Joel Embiid. Sixers coach Brett Brown told reporters on Saturday that the superstar big man will miss his team’s next three […]

Fred Hoiberg wasn’t without a job for long. According to Chris Heady of the Omaha World-Herald the former Chicago Bulls coach has finalized a deal to become the University of Nebraska’s head coach. “Fred Hoiberg finalized a deal to become Nebraska’s next head basketball coach, a source with knowledge of the negotiations told The World-Herald.” Nebraska […]

The Boston Celtics have occasionally lacked the edge this season that’s been a lasting hallmark of the green and gold ever since Brad Stevens was hired as head coach in 2013. But in a crucial matchup on Friday against the Indiana Pacers, the Celtics rebounded from surrendering a double-digit lead, outplaying their fellow Eastern Conference […]

LeBron James’ first season with the Los Angeles Lakers didn’t exactly go as planned. As the regular season winds down with the four-time MVP missing the playoffs for the first time since 2005, though, those unfortunate circumstances haven’t kept him from enjoying himself. Case in point: James, along with Lonzo Ball, breaking out the air […]

Kevin Durant tried his hardest to avoid criticism of the officiating after the Golden State Warriors’ 131-130 to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday night. When asked by reporters to decide which call was worst among multiple controversial whistles late, he was even initially able to rein himself in, wary of a likely fine from the […]

Steve Kerr has a unique understanding of the mental fortitude it takes to defend a championship. He won three consecutive Larry O’Brien trophies with the Chicago Bulls in the late 1990s, and earned a fourth straight ring as a member of the San Antonio Spurs in 1999 before winning his fifth and final title four […]

When they met at Oracle Arena on April 5th, 2016, the Minnesota Timberwolves were lottery-bound for a twelfth straight season, while the Golden State Warriors were making history, en route to what seemed like an imminent second consecutive Larry O’Brien Trophy. The early portion of the game made the teams’ wildly disparate circumstances abundantly clear […]

Much of the New York Knicks’ future will be decided by what transpires in the draft and free agency this summer. Regardless of how ultimately successful New York’s potentially franchise-changing offseason is, though, coach David Fizdale needs those already on the roster to make major strides between now and next season. Among that group is […]

Expectations were high for Frank Ntilikina coming into 2018-19. Not only was the former eighth overall draft pick poised to reap the benefits of rookie-year growing pains as a sophomore, but he also literally grew a full inch between the time he was drafted and late last summer, suggesting the Frenchman could exploit his enviable […]

The  San Antonio Spurs raised Manu Ginobili’s No. 20 to the AT&T Center rafters after beating the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday night, celebrating the storied career of a player who Gregg Popovich said was truly indispensable to the team’s four championships during his 16 years wearing black and silver. Many of Ginobili’s former teammates, including […]

Newly-adopted player-safety rules, while wholly necessary, already make one aspect of the job asked of defensive backs close to impossible. The last thing defenders playing in open space need is for the league to make it even harder for them to prevent catches in the first place, when tackling receivers after they’ve caught the ball […]

Patrick Mahomes is coming off arguably the most impressive season of any first-year starter in all of professional sports – ever.  He joined Peyton Manning in 2018 as the only players in NFL history to throw for at least 50 touchdowns and 5,000 yards, outdoing the top season of the quarterback many believe is the […]

There was a time early in Manu Ginobili’s career when the future Hall of Famer’s penchant for daring got on Gregg Popovich’s nerve, to the point the San Antonio Spurs coach tried to rein him in. It was only once Popovich learned to live with Ginobili’s inevitable mistakes that the genius playmaker began living up […]

As incumbent starter Alex Smith continues his long, arduous recovery from a devastating knee injury, Washington Redskins quarterback Case Keenum seems to be the odds-on favorite to be his new team’s starting quarterback. With Washington picking in the middle of a first round that could include several quarterbacks, though, coach Jay Gruden is insisting the […]

Don’t believe what you hear about the Pittsburgh Steelers. Despite the hot-button departures of Antonio Brown and Le’Veon Bell and several other former players calling the team out for its supposed preferential treatment of Ben Roethlisberger, cornerback Joe Haden insists ever-stoic coach Mike Tomlin is in total command of the Steelers’ locker room. “He has […]

Greg Schiano announced on Thursday that he was stepping down from his post with the New England Patriots, suddenly leaving the reigning champions without a defensive coordinator. One of the coaches credited most with conjuring the team’s masterful defensive game plan against the Los Angeles Rams is gone, too, as Brian Flores was introduced as […]

Giannis Antetokounmpo can make it look too easy. Blessed with game-changing length and remarkable overall athleticism for a player his size, the Milwaukee Bucks superstar has honed his body in the weight room over the years to become arguably the league’s most devastating physical presence since Shaquille O’Neal was in his prime. Every game, Antetokounmpo […]

It’s almost impossible to choose the single attribute that most accounts for Luka Doncic’s success. His rise to stardom this season has been due in large part to an un-guardable step-back jumper that would make any player in the league but James Harden blush. His size as a 6-foot-8 primary ball handlers allows the Dallas […]

It’s still unclear whether Dirk Nowitzki will retire at season’s end. But like the rest of the league throughout 2018-19, the Miami Heat took it upon themselves on Thursday to congratulate the Dallas Mavericks icon on his stellar career nonetheless, posting this awesome highlight reel on twitter of he and Dwyane Wade – who’s actually […]

The Kansas City Chiefs’ defense will almost be unrecognizable to longtime fans next season. Franchise icon Eric Berry, stalwart outside linebacker Justin Houston, and star pass-rusher Dee Ford will all play elsewhere in 2019 as the team revamps a unit under new defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo that ranked second-to-last in yards allowed last season. One […]

There never has been and there never will be another Manu Ginobili. The future Hall of Famer was one of the most unique players basketball has ever seen, combining plus athleticism and prototypical size with preternatural court sense, evolutionary footwork, and the type of overall stylistic flair that’s impossible to duplicate. Ginobili’s legend with the […]

Alen Smailagic is a long way from developing into an impact player in the NBA. The Golden State Warriors are so confident in the 18-year-old’s long-term potential, though, they’re already going to extra lengths to keep his name from getting out. A 6-foot-10 forward, Smailagic is averaging 9.1 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.0 assists in […]

No team in the league, let alone one with legitimate championship aspirations, has turned over its roster this season to the extent of the Philadelphia 76ers. As such, Brett Brown’s team is still searching for the continuity, comfort, and consistency needed to reach its full potential with the playoffs fast approaching. The abrupt departure of […]

Support for including pass interference under the purview of replay review reached a zenith after the New Orleans Saints were robbed on a crucial no-call late in their overtime loss to the the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Championship game. Responding to widespread pressure from players, coaches, and fans alike, NFL owners voted 31-1 […]

The New England Patriots are in the need for another replacement defensive coordinator. Greg Schiano, hired in early February to replace the departed Brian Flores, announced on Thursday that he was “stepping down” as the Patriots’ defensive coordinator. “I have informed Mr. Kraft and coach Belichick that I am stepping down from my position at […]

The Los Angeles Clippers, defying most preseason and all post trade deadline prognostications, clinched a playoff berth earlier this week, but the work of Doc Rivers’ team is far from over. Just two games separate the fifth-place Clippers from the eighth-place San Antonio Spurs in the standings, with two weeks remaining in the regular season. […]

If Kevin Durant affirms over a year’s worth of rumors by signing with the New York Knicks this summer, the two-time reigning Finals MVP’s unparalleled scoring acumen is what will get Madison Square Garden rocking loudest. But defense wins championships, the trope goes, and Durant is also one of the league’s best defenders both on […]

The Los Angeles Lakers’ season didn’t exactly go as planned. LeBron James’ debut campaign in forum blue and gold wasn’t just beset by chemistry and injury-related drama, but it will end with the three-time champion missing the playoffs for the first time since 2005. In response to Los Angeles being eliminated from the postseason last […]

The Portland Trail Blazers didn’t have the mental wherewithal to celebrate clinching a sixth consecutive playoff appearance on Monday night. After their dramatic 148-144 double-overtime win over the Brooklyn Nets, Damian Lillard and company were much too consumed by emotions gleaned from Jusuf Nurkic’s devastating season-ending leg injury to think big picture. Despite the pain […]

Kenneth Faried’s time as an impact player in the NBA is supposed to be over. Undersized big men with no history of three-point range and limited defensive awareness, after all, are something close to dinosaurs in today’s league, where small-ball reigns supreme. Since signing with the Houston Rockets in January, though, Faried has re-established himself […]

The Washington Wizards are positioning themselves to be on the vanguard of the NBA’s gambling revolution. Team owner Ted Leonsis announced on Wednesday that the Green Turtle Bar inside Capital One Arena will be turned into a sportsbook. “There will be a sportsbook in the building accessible from the outside,” he said, per ESPN’s Darren […]

Ndamukong Suh wasn’t the impact player the Los Angeles Rams expected him to be last season. Whether or not they will miss the talented, inconsistent defensive tackle going forward, though, still remains to be seen. Los Angeles general manager Les Snead all but officially confirmed Suh’s departure on Tuesday, calling his potential return to the […]