Jedd Pagaduan Articles - Page 153

The return of Zion Williamson may have taken the New Orleans Pelicans to an entirely different level, but it has severed Jonas Valanciunas’ involvement in the offense. However, at least for one night, Valanciunas staked his claim for a higher place in the Pelicans’ offensive hierarchy with an incredible scoring night, against the second-ranked defense […]

The Orlando Magic had a golden opportunity to extend their win streak to seven when they took on the Atlanta Hawks on Monday night. The Magic roared back from a late 13-point fourth quarter deficit and even took a 125-124 lead with mere seconds to go after Markelle Fultz drained two clutch buckets. However, the […]

Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks received much needed good news for their Monday night tilt against the streaking Orlando Magic. The Hawks welcomed Dejounte Murray and John Collins back from injury, and it appeared as if they were well on their way to halt Orlando’s six-game winning streak. With six minutes left in the […]

On the night Damian Lillard surpassed Clyde Drexler to become the Portland Trail Blazers’ all-time leading scorer, it was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander who stole the show for the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Blazers and Thunder traded barbs in the clutch all night long. But it was Gilgeous-Alexander who had the final word as he took on […]

Damian Lillard had already been mounting a strong case for being the best player in Portland Trail Blazers history. Since being drafted sixth overall in the 2012 NBA Draft, Lillard has been one of the most consistent scorers in the NBA. And now, all of Lillard’s hardwork has borne even more fruit as he etched […]

The Dallas Mavericks have failed to separate themselves from the pack in a crowded Western Conference despite the MVP-level play of Luka Doncic. Through 30 games, the Mavs have gone 15-15, with the loss of Jalen Brunson still proving to be a sore spot. Nevertheless, the Mavs could always decide to use the trade route […]

The past few weeks for the Chicago Bulls have been defined by turmoil and a sense of urgency to get back on track. DeMar DeRozan had already urged his team to wake up. After all, the Bulls, a playoff team last season, entered their Sunday night clash against the Minnesota Timberwolves with a putrid 11-17 […]

The France National Football Team had a golden opportunity to achieve something that’s only been done once in history – win a FIFA World Cup twice in a row. Alas, that was not to be, despite Kylian Mbappe’s best efforts against Argentina. And it appears as if France hasn’t only lost the Final, they might […]

For more than 10 years now, the Orlando Magic franchise has been one of uninspired, languid basketball defined by lack of ambition. Since trading Dwight Howard before the 2012-13 season, the Magic have only made the playoffs twice, suffering two first-round exits at the hands of the Kawhi Leonard-led Toronto Raptors and the Giannis Antetokounmpo-led […]

The Washington Wizards appear to have the bleakest outlook out of all NBA franchises at the moment. Not only are they stuck paying Bradley Beal, a solid All-Star caliber player for sure, yet is unable to guarantee a playoff appearance for his team, around $50 million until 2027, they also have little in the way […]

Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves haven’t had the most inspired season through the first two-plus months of the 2022-23 regular season. The injury to Karl-Anthony Towns hasn’t helped matters at all, and blockbuster offseason addition Rudy Gobert has missed his fair share of games as well. Nonetheless, at least for one night, Edwards and […]

The Los Angeles Lakers may not be the championship contender they’re cracked up to be. However, LeBron James’ nightly scoring exploits remain a sight to behold. Despite being 37 years old (set to turn 38 in 15 days), James remains an athletic marvel, someone that makes fans stop what they’re doing and tune in to […]

Luka Doncic is capable of a great many things. Doncic is able to function as the heliocentric foundation of the Dallas Mavericks’ offense, capable of dazzling the crowd with his vast bag of scoring tricks all the while feeding his teammates, including Christian Wood, some easy, open looks. Entering the league, however, there were concerns […]

The Atlanta Hawks have had to weather a few injury problems to three of their most crucial players, namely Dejounte Murray, John Collins, and Clint Capela. Even Trae Young has had to endure a few knocks of his own. And it seems like these issues couldn’t have come at a worse time. After a strong […]

The Chicago Bulls, to say the least, have underperformed in the first third of the 2022-23 season. After winning 46 games last year, the Bulls were expected to at least compete for a playoff spot in the crowded Eastern Conference. After all, the Bulls still boast the services of three All-Stars, namely DeMar DeRozan, Zach […]

There was an explosive scoring battle between two All-Star point guards on Friday night when Kyrie Irving and the Fred VanVleet took turns carrying their team’s offense. VanVleet, in particular, has snapped out of his slump in a huge way, scoring 39 points in consecutive games, doing everything he can to spur the Toronto Raptors […]

On a loaded Friday night slate, the Brooklyn Nets and Toronto Raptors were expected to deliver one of the best games of the night. And what an incredible game this was punctuated by incredible heroics from Kyrie Irving, who, at this time last year, couldn’t even have played in Toronto. He scored 32 points to […]

The Friday night matchup between the Boston Celtics and the Orlando Magic seemed to be a mismatch on paper, even if the Magic are currently on a four-game winning streak. After all the Celtics have 22 wins compared to the Magic’s nine. However, Orlando, led by Paolo Banchero and Moe Wagner, has given Boston everything […]

Michael Brantley, for the past decade or so, has been a positive contributor on the diamond while healthy. Since 2019, he’s been a huge part of three Houston Astros teams that made it into the World Series. Alas, Brantley missed the last five months of the season, including the playoffs, unable to help the Astros […]

Jacob deGrom was one of the most coveted arms in this year’s free agency. After all, he’s been one of the best pitchers in the entire MLB over the past nine seasons for the New York Mets. Thus, the Texas Rangers pulled out all the stops to acquire his services, signing deGrom to a five-year, […]

Losing takes its toll. It wouldn’t if professional athletes didn’t care about competing, but contrary to fans’ perception, they even have more skin in the game which makes them care with all they have. Such is the case for Philadelphia 76ers star James Harden, who admitted just how heavily the past few years of playoff […]

The Brooklyn Nets may be in a better place now than where they started the season from. However, the Nets endured tons of drama, from Steve Nash’s firing, to Kyrie Irving’s suspension, to questions about Ben Simmons’ commitment, at the start of the season. And it’s not as if the Nets’ offseason was free from […]

It has been a rollercoaster for Evan Fournier since he was traded from the Orlando Magic during the 2021 trade deadline. For six and a half years, Fournier and his All-Star teammate, Nikola Vucevic, led Orlando to some semblance of respectability, nabbing two playoff appearances during that span. This is why Vucevic, now with the […]

Khris Middleton missed the start of the season for the Milwaukee Bucks after undergoing wrist surgery to repair an injury back in July. The Bucks have remained one of the best teams in the NBA despite his absence, thanks to Giannis Antetokounmpo, but Middleton’s return was expected to put the Bucks over the top. After […]

The NFL playoff picture is beginning to take shape. The San Francisco 49ers clinched their playoff berth after defeating the Seattle Seahawks, 21-13, on Thursday night. That loss may be damaging to the Seahawks’ playoff chances, as they stand on the outside looking in at the moment, and Pete Carroll knows it. He knows that […]

For a variety of reasons, Nickeil Alexander-Walker just failed to carve out a solid role in his three years as a member of the New Orleans Pelicans. Thus, the Pelicans did not hesitate to include Alexander-Walker in a trade that landed them CJ McCollum, with the Jazz buying low on the third-year scoring guard. To […]

Jimmy Butler hasn’t had the best of seasons with the Miami Heat. He has missed a considerable amount of time due to knee soreness, and he hasn’t been available in back-to-back sets due to load management. However, with the Heat still looking to gain ground in the standings, every game matters. And Butler returned just […]

Two games during Thursday’s four-game slate were blowouts. The Memphis Grizzlies destroyed the Milwaukee Bucks, and the Phoenix Suns are giving the shorthanded Los Angeles Clippers the business. However, the matchup between the New Orleans Pelicans and Utah Jazz offered enough excitement to compensate for whatever those other games may have lacked. And that’s all […]

More often than not, things that could go wrong will go wrong. It’s called Murphy’s Law for a reason. But there are just some nights when everything falls into place. This is one such night for Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies. It’s not too often that any NBA team loses by 41 points. And […]

Many expected a heated Thursday night battle between the Milwaukee Bucks and Memphis Grizzlies. After all, these are top-two seeds in their respective conferences thus far this season. Moreover, they have superstars Giannis Antetokounmpo and Ja Morant squaring off, a matchup that’s sure to exhilarate even the most casual fan. But the game became ugly […]

Russell Westbrook has received plenty of criticism during his tenure with the Los Angeles Lakers, whether warranted or unwarranted. After all, the Los Angeles Lakers gave up solid role players for a past-his-prime superstar who isn’t the best fit alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis. However, it seems as if the former MVP has done […]

More often than not, free agency is a time for players to say goodbye to a place they’ve called home for the past few years. Rafael Devers penned a heartfelt goodbye to former Boston Red Sox teammate Xander Bogaerts last week, while Atlanta Braves manager Brian Snitker became sad just thinking about the possibility of […]

Bam Adebayo had already urged the Miami Heat to treat their next three games like any other despite going up against the three worst teams in the Western Conference. But with the Heat’s main man Jimmy Butler out due to injury, the Oklahoma City Thunder gave the Heat everything they could handle. But Tyler Herro, […]

It’s no secret that the Detroit Pistons, at 8-22, are looking to sell off some veteran pieces, most notably Bojan Bogdanovic, to add to their treasure chest of draft picks and young assets. While some Pistons are definitely untouchable in a potential trade (Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, and maybe even Jalen Duren and Isaiah Stewart), […]

Reports came out earlier this week that the Milwaukee Bucks almost pulled off a three-team trade for Phoenix Suns outcast Jae Crowder, with the hold-up being the Houston Rockets’ desire for a first-round pick for their involvement. However, the Bucks have stiff competition for Crowder’s services, with the Utah Jazz and Atlanta Hawks involved in […]

After winning a grand total of 25 games for the entirety of last season, no one expected the Indiana Pacers to be any good entering the 2022-23 season. However, the Pacers have already won more than half of the games they did last year, with 15 in only 29 games, thanks in no small part […]

The Chicago Bulls appeared to be turning their fortunes around following the acquisitions of DeMar DeRozan and Lonzo Ball. They made the playoffs last season as the sixth-seed, and things appeared to be looking up. Fast forward to now and the Bulls have become mediocre once more amid Ball’s injury and Zach LaVine’s struggles, going […]

The San Antonio Spurs, despite being in contention for most of the past 20 years, are clearly in rebuild mode. And with Jakob Poeltl in the last year of the three-year, $26.3 million extension he signed in 2020, it’s no wonder why other teams with dreams of playoff contention, namely the Golden State Warriors and […]

The Portland Trail Blazers have plenty of guys in their roster who are capable of magic with the basketball on any given night. Damian Lillard and Anfernee Simons always dazzle the crowd with their impressive imagination, sublime ball-handling, and incredible shot-making. But on Wednesday night, it was Jusuf Nurkic’s turn to turn some heads after […]