Jedd Pagaduan Articles - Page 84

A puzzling cloud of indecision seemed to hover over the Toronto Raptors front office’s head throughout the 2022-23 season amid a lackluster campaign. Given their mediocrity, it wasn’t surprising at all to see the possibility of a few blockbuster trades sending away the likes of Pascal Siakam, Fred VanVleet, and OG Anunoby, among others, come […]

During the 2023 WNBA regular season, it became apparent that the Las Vegas Aces and New York Liberty were on a collision course for the right to be crowned as champion. The Aces and Liberty both had an embarrassment of riches, combining top-end talent with solid depth to separate themselves from the rest of the […]

The Portland Trail Blazers front office, led by general manager Joe Cronin, finally traded away Damian Lillard, but not to the Miami Heat. Instead, they dealt him to the highest bidder, the Milwaukee Bucks, for a package headlined by Jrue Holiday, the two-time All-Star and one of the best defensive guards in the association. This […]

James Harden is putting his feet on the ground, refusing to budge on his trade demands three months after initially declaring that he wanted out of the Philadelphia 76ers. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, Harden did not attend the Sixers’ media day on Monday morning, remaining “upset” that the team hasn’t yet given in […]

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James has been compared to the queen of a chessboard in the past, being a cheat code not just because of his overwhelming athleticism that allows him to move in ways that confound opponents even in his advanced age, but also because of his smarts on the hardwood that has […]

Sauce Gardner and the New York Jets, despite the star cornerback’s pregame proclamations, entered their Sunday night tussle against the Kansas City Chiefs as heavy underdogs, with the Chiefs being 8.5-point road favorites, according to FanDuel Sportsbook. But the Jets, during crunch time, appeared to have a golden chance to win the game, down by […]

The Phoenix Suns, after much anticipation, finally pulled the trigger on the trade that sent Deandre Ayton out of town. But instead of getting yet another All-Star to help their push for the franchise’s first championship, the Suns traded away Ayton to flesh out their depth, receiving Jusuf Nurkic, Grayson Allen, Nassir Little, and Keon […]

The Texas Longhorns football team is on a roll. Coming off a 38-6 win over the unranked Baylor Bears, the Longhorns will be approaching their Saturday afternoon clash against Big 12 rival Kansas Jayhawks with utmost confidence, raring to show everyone that their hot start is no fluke given how stacked their squad is. Head […]

Money may not be the be-all and end-all of what constitutes a successful professional sports franchise, but it certainly helps grease the wheels when it comes to assembling a roster that could compete for a championship. Entering the 2023 season, three MLB teams, in particular, flexed their financial might, with the New York Mets, New […]

The next time that Juan Soto and the San Diego Padres will be facing the 2023 NL West champion Los Angeles Dodgers will be in spring training of 2024, what with the Padres missing out on the postseason festivities thanks to an overwhelmingly disappointing season. But that doesn’t seem to have sapped Soto’s confidence one […]

Atlanta Braves star right fielder Ronald Acuna Jr. may be running away with the 2023 NL Most Valuable Player award… in a literal sense. Acuna, in recent days, became the founding father of the well and truly unique 40 home run, 70 stolen bases club. And he isn’t quite done yet making history for himself […]

Thanks to general manager AJ Preller’s relentless aggression when it comes to acquiring star-caliber players, whether via trade or via free agency, the San Diego Padres have amassed an impressive collection of talent. So with the regular season drawing to a close, a cursory look at the Padres’ roster would leave someone who hasn’t followed […]

The New York Jets may be in a bit of a crisis, particularly on the offensive end of the field, but that doesn’t seem to have sapped the confidence of their defensive personnel for at least a bit. This is evident in cornerback Sauce Gardner’s proclamations in the lead-up to the Jets’ Week 4 clash […]

There’s nothing that brings professional athletes together than shared adversity. And during the Milwaukee Bucks’ run to the championship, the team certainly went through a ton of turmoil, forever binding the star trio of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, and Jrue Holiday in the annals of NBA history after they hoisted the franchise’s first championship in […]

The Detroit Lions heartbreakingly missed out on the playoffs during the 2022 season, losing their spot in the postseason in the last game week of the regular season by virtue of losing the tiebreaker against the Seattle Seahawks. But Jared Goff and the Lions seem to have built nicely off of that trying moment. Now […]

The Green Bay Packers locker room is in a somber mood, and understandably so. Coming into their Week 4 game against the Detroit Lions, they were hopeful of starting the season off with a 3-1 record, given their solid ability to withstand adversity and opponents’ physicality. However, the Lions ramped up the aggression on Thursday […]

The Green Bay Packers, coming off a nip-and-tuck Week 3 win over the New Orleans Saints, approached their Week 4 matchup against the Detroit Lions with anticipation, hopeful of starting the season with a 3-1 record. However, the Packers, as a collective, were disjointed on Thursday night. Quarterback Jordan Love was not at his best, […]

The Portland Trail Blazers may have finally pulled the trigger on the much-awaited Damian Lillard trade, but it wasn’t quite as smooth-sailing as every involved party hoped it would. In fact, in recent weeks, it seems like Lillard was resigned to the fact that he’ll be starting the 2023-24 season still as a member of […]

Freddie Freeman has been one of the primary driving forces leading the way for the Los Angeles Dodgers’ second-ranked offense in terms of runs per game. The star first baseman has been raking unlike any other Dodger in the past, as evidenced by his ability to reach statistical benchmarks that no other player in franchise […]

The New York Jets’ 2023 season wasn’t supposed to unfold the way it has, with blockbuster offseason addition, star quarterback Aaron Rodgers, tearing his Achilles shortly into his debut for his new team. Now, the onus is on Zach Wilson to fill in Rodgers’ shoes. That is a very tough ask for anyone, much less […]

With the dust starting to settle in the aftermath of the Portland Trail Blazers and the Milwaukee Bucks’ blockbuster Damian Lillard trade, it’ll be interesting to see which team manages to pry away Jrue Holiday from the Blazers’ grasp. There have been many teams floated around as a possibility. For one, the Boston Celtics and […]

After much ado, Damian Lillard has finally received his much-anticipated trade — but not towards his initial preferred destination, the Miami Heat. On Wednesday afternoon, the Milwaukee Bucks pulled off a blockbuster trade with the Portland Trail Blazers, bringing in the seven-time All-Star point guard to improve the team alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo. Even after bringing […]

In NBA discourse, there appears to be no room for teams to settle into the dreaded middle-ground of mediocrity. If a team isn’t a genuine contender for a championship, it seems like the best route for them to take is to start from scratch, as the system rewards poor play with a chance to turn […]

In an offseason story that seems to go nowhere but around in circles, Damian Lillard still remains a member of the Portland Trail Blazers despite making his bombshell trade request over two months ago, with the Miami Heat being his preferred destination. But with less than a month left to go until the 2023-24 NBA […]

The Baltimore Ravens missed two important offensive pieces, among their considerable injury woes, during their Week 3 overtime loss to the Indianapolis Colts after wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. and running back Justice Hill were both unable to suit up for the team due to varying injuries. Beckham and Hill have been dealing with an […]

Dallas Mavericks legend and 2023 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Dirk Nowitzki was simply an unstoppable offensive force during his time. Nowitzki’s prime spanned over a decade, with the Mavs star rounding out his game from its pick-and-pop centricity to being one of the best post-up big men the league has ever seen […]

With less than a month to go before the 2023-24 NBA regular season begins, there’s no better time for pundits to make their picks for what would happen in the coming campaign. Of course, these pundits run the risk of eating their words in a few months’ time, but the fun lies in the speculation […]

The Charlotte Hornets franchise, at least from the outside, doesn’t appear to be particularly well-run at the moment. But Hornets fans still have plenty of reasons to be excited about the upcoming season. For one, fans will be hoping that LaMelo Ball puts his injury-riddled 2022-23 campaign completely in the rearview mirror. Another reason is […]

The Houston Texans entered the 2023 season without one of its key offensive linesmen to help protect rookie quarterback CJ Stroud, as they placed right tackle Tytus Howard on the injured reserve list after the 27-year old suffered a hand injury in training camp. But Howard appears to be progressing well from his broken hand, […]

At the end of the day, there wasn’t necessarily a wrong choice for who to crown as the 2023 WNBA Most Valuable Player, with Breanna Stewart, Alyssa Thomas, and A’ja Wilson all deserving of taking home the acclaim. However, Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon only has one horse in the race (Wilson, of […]

For much of the their Monday night matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals, the Los Angeles Rams had no troubles getting into favorable positions on the field. Multiple times, the Rams reached the red zone, and it seemed like at any point, they were bound to blow the game wide open against the Bengals given how […]

The Cincinnati Bengals, after two adversity-filled weeks, finally broke through in Week 3 against the Los Angeles Rams. In a battle of attrition, it was the Bengals that won out en route to a 19-16 win to open their win account for the 2023 season. However, the Bengals won despite yet another lackluster outing from […]

The Philadelphia Eagles haven’t exactly been on point offensively, with quarterback Jalen Hurts having his fair share of struggles in the throwing game. But what has kept the Eagles unbeaten through the first three game weeks, following their 25-11 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, has been their stellar defense. With Darius Slay still at […]

Joe Burrow is at the heart of a Cincinnati Bengals team with aspirations of winning a Super Bowl, coming off a strong 12-4 season in 2022. But 2023 hasn’t been an easy season at all for Burrow and the Bengals to this point. The 26-year old quarterback has been subpar through his first two games, […]

The Cincinnati Bengals entered the 2023 NFL season as the favorite to win the AFC North and, perhaps, mount a deep postseason run in the process. However, the Bengals haven’t found it easy at all to get some wins to begin the new campaign; in fact, even if they won their first game of the […]

Team USA may have arrived back home empty-handed after a disappointing showing at the 2023 FIBA World Cup, but that doesn’t mean that the experience the players gained playing for their country in one of the most prestigious international basketball tournaments there is isn’t helpful. In fact, New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau is […]

In recent weeks, it appears as though Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors entertained the idea of signing Dwight Howard to serve as additional depth for a thin frontcourt. The Dubs even brought Howard in for a workout, leading many to believe that a signing was just around the corner. In the end, however, […]

In Week 3 came an all-important matchup for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, as facing Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles would be a great litmus test for just how legitimate their 2-0 start to the 2023 season has been. In the end, however, Baker Mayfield’s squad did not have the requisite firepower to keep up […]

In terms of bouncing back from their defeat in Super Bowl LVII, the Philadelphia Eagles have done an incredible job, at least through the first three game weeks of the season. Jalen Hurts may not have had the best game at the point of attack, as he threw just one touchdown against two interceptions, but […]