Jedd Pagaduan Articles - Page 66

The Golden State Warriors are defiant in that they are looking to contend for another championship even though they have fallen down the league’s totem pole over the past two seasons. Now, this is not very delusional of them. Any team with Stephen Curry leading the way has a fighting chance of mounting a deep […]

The NLDS matchup between division rivals San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Dodgers has been an emotionally-charged affair. But so far, it’s the Padres that have come out on top against the reigning NL West champion. In Game 3 of the series, the Padres managed to secure a 6-5 victory, thanks in large part to […]

The Minnesota Lynx, much like the Minnesota Timberwolves, are excelling in their respective leagues. As a show of solidarity, Timberwolves guard Mike Conley congratulated the Lynx for advancing to the WNBA Finals after defeating the Connecticut Sun, 88-77, in Game 5 of the semifinals, with a two-emoji tweet. “💪🏾💪🏾,” Conley wrote on his official account […]

The Brooklyn Nets are embracing a rebuild after coming up short in their contending years with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in the fray. They brought in new head coach Jordi Fernandez to try and steer the ship back to the right direction, but make no mistake about it, getting the Nets back to playoff […]

All the makings are there for the Oklahoma City Thunder to take another leap as a team during the 2024-25 season. Last year, they broke out as a contending team, but this time around, they look like the favorite to win the Larry O’Brien trophy. However, competing for a championship is never easy. No team […]

Not even two weeks have passed since Karl-Anthony Towns became a member of the New York Knicks following the blockbuster trade that ended his nine-year stint with the Minnesota Timberwolves in a flash, and yet Towns is already endearing himself to the Knicks faithful. In fact, Josh Hart has already bestowed upon Towns a new […]

There wasn’t much to separate the Cleveland Guardians and Detroit Tigers for most of Game 2 of their ALDS clash. The Guardians could not have asked for much more than to give the ball to closer Emmanuel Clase in the ninth inning while protecting a 0-0 score line to set up a potential walk-off run. […]

Game 2 of the ALDS did not go according to plan for the New York Yankees. The highest-scoring team in the AL could not manufacture more than two runs, and in the end, the Kansas City Royals tied up the series with a 4-2 win. The Royals did their damage during a fateful fourth inning […]

The Detroit Tigers continue to stun the world as they look to make a Cinderella run in this year’s playoffs. In Game 2 of their ALDS matchup against the Cleveland Guardians, the Tigers stole homefield advantage from their division rival, taking a 3-0 win as the series heads to Comerica Park — the first playoff […]

The Los Angeles Dodgers have not begun the first two games of their NLDS clash against the San Diego Padres on the best of notes. While going down 3-0 early in the contest did not cost them in Game 1, they could not muster the same comeback magic in Game 2, with the Padres running […]

The San Antonio Spurs figure to be one of the most exciting teams to watch for the upcoming season, and it’s not hard to see why. All the makings are there for Victor Wembanyama to have a monster sophomore season, and the Spurs have assembled a roster that complements Wembanyama’s strengths quite well. Moreover, the […]

The Orlando Magic are continuing on in their path to sustained playoff contention. On Monday night, the Magic kept a member of their starting lineup for the long haul after coming to terms to a three-year, $59 million extension with Wendell Carter Jr., per Shams Charania of ESPN. Carter still had two years left on […]

The Las Vegas Aces may have refused to go down without a fight, but in the end, their 2024 season met its premature end and their bid for a three-peat falls at the hands of the New York Liberty after suffering a 76-62 defeat in Game 4 of the WNBA semifinals. Many believed that the […]

The early reports coming out of Los Angeles Lakers training camp regarding Bronny James were very promising. The word was that James was turning heads in camp, especially when he drained a triple over his father, LeBron, during one of the scrimmages. Thus, hope began to spring that, maybe, Bronny might be more ready to […]

Before Game 2 of the NLDS completely got away from the Los Angeles Dodgers after a late home-run barrage from the San Diego Padres (en route to a 10-2 win for the latter), things had already gotten heated between the two teams. The NL West rivals were engaged in a highly emotional affair, with Jurickson […]

The NFL has caught on to Taylor Swift fever ever since the 14-time Grammy Award-winning pop icon became Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce’s significant other. Swift has been a prominent part of Chiefs broadcasts, and her name has been featured by the NFL in multiple marketing efforts in an attempt to broaden their […]

The Las Vegas Aces stared at the face of elimination as they entered Game 3 of their WNBA Semifinals clash against the New York Liberty. The Liberty has gotten the best out of them over the past two games, with Sabrina Ionescu and Breanna Stewart doing whatever it takes to avenge their loss to the […]

All the makings are there for the New York Yankees to snap their World Series drought of 15 years in the running. But they cannot rest on their laurels, for anything can happen during October baseball. The Yankees will need to put their best foot forward in the coming weeks, beginning with their ALDS matchup […]

The New York Knicks, encouraged by the progress they’ve made as a franchise over the past two seasons thanks in large part to the emergence of Jalen Brunson as a legitimate MVP candidate, have decided to go all-in this offseason. They traded away a boatload of draft capital to bring Mikal Bridges in, and then […]

The Minnesota Timberwolves pulled off a stunning blockbuster trade a week ago when they dealt longtime face of the franchise Karl-Anthony Towns to the New York Knicks for a package headlined by Julius Randle. Randle figures to play a huge part in the Timberwolves’ ongoing quest for a championship, and fans could very well see […]

The Philadelphia Phillies may be the cream of the crop of the NL East this season, but this wasn’t always the case. In fact, the Phillies missed the playoffs for 10 consecutive seasons before simply qualifying for the postseason in 2022 by the skin of their teeth. Regardless, despite being a Wild Card team over […]

Over the past two seasons, the Philadelphia Phillies have entered October as a team on a mission. Despite entering the playoffs as a Wild Card team in both 2022 and 2023, the Phillies managed to make it deep into the postseason. Alas, they have yet to break through with a World Series title — something […]

The Milwaukee Brewers’ incredible 2024 season came to an end in a flash after they failed to protect a two-run lead in the top of the ninth inning in Game 3 of their Wild Card series clash against the New York Mets. It seemed as though the Brewers’ pitching corps had done its job, but […]

The playoff format the MLB has used since 2022 has given way to plenty of heartbreak. For the second-consecutive season, the Milwaukee Brewers, despite winning the NL Central, were unable to make it to the NLDS. This time, the Brewers exited the postseason in rather gut-wrenching fashion, with two-time All-Star closer Devin Williams failing to […]

Josh Giddey endured a difficult 2023-24 season with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Not only was he marginalized in the team’s offense amid Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s continued ascent, the public’s perception of him also took a nosedive after he was alleged to have had improper relations with an underaged girl. But the 2024-25 campaign carries with it […]

Myles Turner is entering Year 10 of his career, and yet here he remains as a member of the Indiana Pacers. Turner, for what feels like his entire career, has been at the forefront of trade rumors aplenty, but he appears to be off the market for now with the Pacers having blossomed into one […]

It’s safe to say that the Golden State Warriors are not among the favorites to win the championship next season. Stephen Curry remains elite at what he does, but the roster outside of him, despite all the Warriors’ moves this offseason, has plenty of question marks. Plenty of things have to go right at the […]

The Los Angeles Dodgers are once again the champion of the NL West; they have claimed the division title 11 times over the past 12 years, and with this level of dominance comes the expectation that they will reign supreme in the playoffs as well. Alas, the past two seasons have brought nothing but disappointment […]

The Kansas City Royals are finally back to playing October baseball, thanks in large part to the MVP-caliber season Bobby Witt Jr. has had. Not much was expected from the Royals heading into 2024, but they have defied expectations and continue to do so as they managed to sweep the Baltimore Orioles in the AL […]

The Baltimore Orioles have turned their fortunes around over the past two seasons; they ended the previous decade by hitting rock bottom, destroying the team so they could rebuild from scratch, and in 2023, they emerged as a powerhouse in the AL East. However, the past two seasons have borne little in the way of […]

The locker-room dynamic between LeBron James and Bronny, the first father and son duo in NBA history, will be one of the major subplots of the Los Angeles Lakers’ season. It seems like Bronny’s presence on the team is already reinvigorating his father amid all the talk of vibes being immaculate at the start of […]

The Golden State Warriors, in the aftermath of franchise legend Klay Thompson’s departure in free agency, decided to return to their “Strength in Numbers” ethos. They signed multiple key pieces in De’Anthony Melton, Buddy Hield, and Kyle Anderson as they look towards filling the void Thompson left as a collective. Brandin Podziemski, in particular, appears […]

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr will have some tough rotation decisions to sort through during training camp. Only Stephen Curry and Draymond Green are the nailed-on starters, with, perhaps, Brandin Podziemski also being favored to start alongside Curry in the backcourt. Training camp could very well decide which players Kerr decides to start […]

The New York Knicks threw caution to the wind and went all-in, trading away Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo (as well as a heavily protected first-round pick) in exchange for Karl-Anthony Towns. Towns is a four-time All-Star who has gradually lost his luster over the past few seasons due to the emergence of Anthony Edwards, […]

The New York Knicks were by far the most active team on the trade market this offseason, at least in the blockbuster department. Not only did they trade for Karl-Anthony Towns last Friday, they also dealt away a plethora of first-round picks to bring Mikal Bridges in. They sense that there is a major opportunity […]

Suffice to say, last season was a major disappointment for Damian Lillard and the Milwaukee Bucks. The Bucks decided to trade away one of the backbones of their 2021 championship-winning roster in Jrue Holiday to bring Lillard in, and yet they ended up becoming a worse team, unable to land on their feet following an […]

Klay Thompson appears to be in a much better state of mind now that he’s with the Dallas Mavericks. To say that his two final seasons with the Golden State Warriors was difficult is an understatement. It became very clear that a divorce was necessary for the betterment of both Thompson and the Warriors, and […]

LeBron James and Anthony Davis showed during their brief time representing Team USA in the 2024 Paris Olympics that they can still go out and compete with the best of the best and come out on top. However, the Los Angeles Lakers have found it difficult to reach title-contending heights ever since they won it […]

The Toronto Raptors are not about to win big (again) anytime soon. Even starting center Jakob Poeltl has admitted as much. Regardless, what the Raptors excel at is in listening to their fans. Their fans have been clamoring for a return of one of the franchise’s most iconic jerseys, and the Raptors organization basically said, […]