Jedd Pagaduan Articles - Page 76

For much of the 2023 MLB season, the topic of Shohei Ohtani’s impending free agency loomed large over the Los Angeles Angels organization’s head. After all, Ohtani would certainly command the biggest deal in MLB free agency history given how impactful he is as a two-way player, and even amid his injury that would prevent […]

The past three seasons haven’t been particularly kind to the Philadelphia Flyers. After missing the playoffs just five times from 1995 to 2020, the Flyers have missed the postseason for the past three years, and if their play to begin the 2023-24 season is any indication, it appears as though that rough spell won’t be […]

It was a tale of two halves for the Utah Jazz during the 2022-23 season. They began last season on fire, surprising pundits in the process after many believed that they’d be one of the frontrunners in the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes. But come February, after they dealt away their quality veterans, the Jazz struggled immensely, […]

The Toronto Raptors weren’t particularly fun to watch during the 2022-23 season. There was an atmosphere of disjointedness all over the roster, leading to an uninspiring 41-win season. Now, it was up to Masai Ujiri to clean up house, letting championship-winning coach Nick Nurse go and allowing Fred VanVleet to secure a huge long-term deal […]

Determined to prove that their Light The Beam 2022-23 season was no fluke, the Sacramento Kings began the season on fire with a decimation of the Utah Jazz in their season-opener. Since then, however, the Kings have looked rather unconvincing. They’ve lost twice to the Golden State Warriors and merely escaped with an overtime win […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder have done nothing but get better during the 2023-24 NBA season. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, coming off a stellar campaign in which he made the All-NBA First Team, continues to be an incredible driving force at the point of attack, while Chet Holmgren, after missing the entirety of last season with a Lisfranc […]

The Atlanta Hawks have looked like a much better team to begin the 2023-24 season, with head coach Quin Snyder doing wonders for a team that had gone stale over the past two seasons. Snyder, armed with plenty of experience in how to make a backcourt with two players in need of the ball sing […]

In the lead-up to the 2023 NBA Draft, some analysts questioned whether Ausar Thompson’s (and his brother Amen’s, for that matter) production in the Overtime Elite league will translate to the NBA. After all, the Thompson twins were considerably older than the other players in that league, and they also had their fair share of […]

The UConn Huskies, deemed as one of the best collegiate basketball teams in the nation during the 2022-23 season, won the National Championship over the San Diego State Aztecs, 76-59, with the likes of Jordan Hawkins, Adama Sanogo, and Tristen Newton leading the way. Since then, the Huskies have bid farewell to Hawkins and Sanogo, […]

There’s a laundry list of pundits that have gone scorched earth at the Minnesota Timberwolves for mortgaging their future back in 2022 just so they could trade for Rudy Gobert from the Utah Jazz. While trading for Gobert in a vacuum isn’t a bad move due to how transformative the Stifle Tower can be defensively, […]

Facing an inexperienced San Antonio Spurs team that was on the second night of a back-to-back, the Indiana Pacers were heavy favorites to take home the victory. However, the Pacers didn’t just come out with a win, they did so in emphatic fashion, defeating Victor Wembanyama and company in an out-and-out demolition that ended in […]

Jamal Murray, in his first season back with the Denver Nuggets after missing the entirety of the 2021-22 season with a torn ACL, was phenomenal. Sure, he missed a few regular season games here and there, but in the playoffs, Murray showed that there are no lights that are too bright for him. Now an […]

There were concerns from some pundits that the Milwaukee Bucks would have troubles on the defensive end of the court after they traded away Jrue Holiday in the Damian Lillard deal. Holiday, after all, enabled the Bucks’ stifling drop coverage scheme by going over screens and funneling ball-handlers towards Brook Lopez and Giannis Antetokounmpo, two […]

For the past few years, the NBA has tried to give players more incentive to take the All-Star Game more seriously. They installed the ever-entertaining All-Star draft, and even made it live and in-person during the 2023 festivities. The league also used the Elam Ending to give the game more thrill as teams raced to […]

Chris Paul may still be at the top of his game in the playmaking department, dropping dimes and taking care of the basketball to an unprecedented degree that even Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr was surprised at how magnificent the Point God has been in that regard. However, Paul has struggled to put […]

It may be hard to believe given how much he’s still producing on the court, but Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James will be turning 39 years old before the year ends. It’s truly difficult to imagine a league without James roaming the hardwood, but that moment is creeping up on everyone as much as […]

There were some promising signs for James Harden in his debut for the Los Angeles Clippers after a lengthy trade saga. Harden was a composed figure at the point of attack, he didn’t force too many shots, and if anything, he was a bit passive in hunting his own shot. Nevertheless, Harden’s Clippers debut game […]

The Los Angeles Clippers, amid all the hype surrounding them following their acquisition of James Harden, fell flat on their faces in The Beard’s debut for LA on Monday night against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. The Clippers failed to get into much of an offensive rhythm, with Paul George being one […]

The Arizona Cardinals have hit low point after low point in what has been a nightmare of a 2023 season to this point, and they may have reached rock bottom on Sunday afternoon. The Cardinals, missing two of their best offensive players in quarterback Kyler Murray and James Conner, suffered an embarrassing 27-0 defeat to […]

The Brooklyn Nets are currently without Cam Johnson, who is nursing a left calf strain, but another Cam has stepped up in the Team USA sharpshooter’s absence. Thomas has been unreal for the Nets every time he gets some consistent burn, and on Monday night, the 22-year old combo guard once again had his way […]

Three crucial members of the 2021 Phoenix Suns team that made the NBA Finals squared off against each other on Monday night, with Mikal Bridges now playing for the Brooklyn Nets courtesy of the Kevin Durant trade and both Jae Crowder and Cam Payne now plying their trade for the team that beat the Suns […]

Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics found themselves in a nip-and-tuck affair against Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday night, expectedly so. After all, this is a clash between an unstoppable force (the Celtics with the best offense in the NBA) and an immovable object (the Timberwolves with the best defensive rating thus […]

The Dallas Mavericks, after a disappointing 2022-23 season, look like they’re back with a bang to begin the new campaign. Luka Doncic has put in more effort on the defensive end of the court all the while maintaining his elite production on the offensive end, while Kyrie Irving, despite his shooting woes, has fully bought […]

Stephen Curry sparked a raging debate this past offseason when he declared himself as the greatest point guard of all-time over the widely-accepted answer that is Los Angeles Lakers legend Magic Johnson. The Golden State Warriors star definitely has a case to make for himself, but many old heads pushed back on the notion that […]

The Dallas Mavericks, despite all the doubt surrounding them entering the 2023-24 season, have been off to a terrific start, winning six of their first seven games. This is thanks in large part to the incredible play of Luka Doncic, who, to this point, is averaging 31.6 points, 9.6 rebounds, and 8.9 assists per game […]

The Minnesota Timberwolves have been the cream of the crop in the NBA when it comes to defensive work in the early goings of the 2023-24 season. Ranking first in defensive rating through their first five games, Anthony Edwards and the Timberwolves’ defense was put to the test against the team with the best offense […]

It has been a while since the home of the Golden State Warriors franchise has hosted the NBA All-Star Weekend. The last time it happened was back in 2000, when The Arena in Oakland, more commonly known as Oracle Arena or Roaracle, hosted the All-Star festivities. But much to Stephen Curry and the rest of […]

The Boston Celtics have looked every part of the genuine championship contender every pundit had them pegged in the early goings of the season. Jayson Tatum and the Celtics have put up the best offense in the league to this point, but they were going to face a huge, early test in their season on […]

The Minnesota Timberwolves, in the early goings of the 2023-24 season, have looked like the real deal, 21-point choke job against the Atlanta Hawks notwithstanding. They have posted the best defensive rating in the NBA entering their Monday night clash against the Boston Celtics, a team that, on the other hand, has the best offense […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder continue to climb the NBA’s totem pole, with Chet Holmgren’s emergence as one of the best young two-way stars in the NBA standing out as one of the biggest factors fueling their ascent. Holmgren had another strong night in the Thunder’s 126-117 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Monday night, which […]

The Milwaukee Bucks, pegged by many as one of the foremost championship favorites after trading for Damian Lillard, have endured a bit of a rocky start to the 2023-24 season. The Bucks’ offense has looked confused at times, while their defense, routinely ranking among the best in the NBA under the tutelage of former head […]

The Miami Heat, fresh off a trip to the 2023 NBA Finals, have looked rather unconvincing to begin the 2023-24 regular season. The Heat’s failure to trade for Damian Lillard has put the team in a tough spot, with their lack of depth hurting them to the tune of a 2-4 start to the season. […]

There was considerable hype surrounding the Los Angeles Clippers entering their Monday night contest against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden, as James Harden was set to make his LA debut following a drawn-out trade saga with the Philadelphia 76ers. However, the Clippers fell flat on their faces with a lackluster effort that […]

Chris Paul hasn’t hit the ground running with the Golden State Warriors scoring-wise. Paul, despite shooting 6-9 from the field and scoring 17 points in the Dubs’ 120-109 win over the Detroit Pistons on Monday night, is still only shooting 36 percent from the floor and 13.8 percent from beyond the arc on the season. […]

Andre Drummond may have fallen out favor in league circles over the past few years, but there’s no denying that the 30-year old big man has been one of the best rebounders over the past decade or so. And on Monday night, with the Chicago Bulls taking on the Utah Jazz, Drummond reached a new […]

The New Orleans Pelicans received some terrible news on Sunday when reports came out that starting point guard CJ McCollum had suffered a collapsed lung, knocking him out of action for an uncertain amount of time. A collapsed lung is a legitimate issue in and of itself, but the fact that McCollum has suffered the […]

Victor Wembanyama has had a stellar start to his NBA career already amid all the hype surrounding him, and the San Antonio Spurs have benefitted immensely. Wembanyama has indeed looked exceptional as a shot-creating, two-way force, and at 7’4, there’s no stopping the Spurs rookie when he gets it going. And now, the Wembanyama hype […]

The Utah Jazz have been off to an inconsistent start to begin the 2023-24 campaign, a stark contrast to how they opened last season. Last year, many counted out the Jazz after trading away their established stars, but they began the season with a 10-3 record before falling off. This time, it appears as though […]

One of the main reasons why the Green Bay Packers were confident about letting longtime quarterback Aaron Rodgers seek greener pastures was that they had extreme confidence that Jordan Love, the team’s first-round pick in 2020, would emerge as their long-term solution at the position. While it hasn’t resulted in exceptional team success just yet, […]