Marty Fenn Articles - Page 131

The Cleveland Indians have held dominion over the American League Central for the last three seasons. With former AL Central champs like the Kansas City Royals and Detroit Tigers finally selling out to rebuild and the Chicago White Sox and Minnesota Twins seemingly years away from reaching their full potential, the Indians ran the Central […]

The Texas Rangers are not going to be contenders in the American League West division by the time October rolls around. Their starting rotation is among the worst in all of baseball, and their bullpen is not much better as even lights-out closer Jose Leclerc lost the role early in the season. Still, the Rangers […]

The 2018-19 MLB offseason was primarily about one man: Bryce Harper. The former Washington Nationals phenom was about to embark on what was supposed to be one of the wildest bidding wars in league history, and almost certainly was bound for record-breaking dollars in terms of guaranteed money. Harper was all but out of Washington […]

The Sacramento Kings made a massive leap in the 2018-19 season, winning 12 more games and even flirting with a Western Conference playoff spot for a good portion of the season before eventually succumbing to injuries and, for lack of a better term, youth. Still, that same youth is the reason that the future is […]

Portland Trail Blazers center Meyers Leonard has hardly been a focal component of head coach Terry Stotts’ rotations this season. The former first-round draft pick averaged just 14.4 minutes per game in 61 appearances for the Blazers this season, and he has been averaging 13.0 minutes these playoffs Yet Leonard was named a surprise starter […]

The 2019 NBA Draft promises to be one of the most intriguing in recent memory. From the hype surrounding the presumptive No. 1 pick, Zion Williamson, to the potential maneuvering of teams like the Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks, this draft will provide an opportunity for a number of organizations to improve their […]

The Toronto Raptors have their backs against the wall in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals as they get set to do battle with the Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday night, but that did not stop Charles Barkley from predicting that the Raptors would win on their home court. Chuck is back in his favorite […]

The Golden State Warriors may hold a 3-0 lead over the Portland Trail Blazers, but they understand that they have to go out and close the job against a team that battled tooth and nail just to get to the Western Conference Finals. Warriors forward Draymond Green spoke about the Warriors’ need to have a […]

The New Orleans Pelicans took the first step in a potential rebuild when they hired former Cleveland Cavaliers general manager David Griffin to be the team’s executive vice president of basketball operations, and have followed that up by hiring former Brooklyn Nets assistant general manager Trajan Langdon to be their own GM. Langdon, who played […]

The Toronto Raptors find themselves in a 0-2 hole against the Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference Finals — and in desperate need of some adjustments. Head coach Nick Nurse indicated that some of those changes will come early in the hopes of finding more favorable matchups on both the offensive and defensive side of […]

As if falling into a 0-3 hole against the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference Finals was not bad enough, the Portland Trail Blazers are now the butt of the joke in a recent piece by hometown paper, The Oregonian. Writer Tim Brown decided to put up an article that aggregated a number of […]

If you think back to some of the most famous championship teams in NBA history, nearly all of them had “glue” guys or bench players who played as big a role in providing moral support as they did in grabbing rebounds or knocking down shots. The 1996-97 Bulls were coming off the best season in […]

The Golden State Warriors have dealt with myriad injury issues during the 2019 playoffs. Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson suffered ankle injuries, and Curry dislocated a finger on his non-shooting hand in Game 2 of the Western Conference Semifinals against the Houston Rockets. Kevin Durant went down with a mild calf strain in Game 5 […]

Draymond Green has never been afraid to show his emotions or use his voice on the basketball court. And while that emotion and tenacity have already made him one of the most beloved players in the history of the Golden State Warriors franchise, it can also get him into trouble. Green had already racked up […]

The Golden State Warriors have managed to take a commanding 3-0 series lead over the Portland Trail Blazers in the Western Conference Finals despite the absence of Kevin Durant. The Warriors could be without another key player when they attempt to close out the series in Game 4, as Andre Iguodala suffered an apparent calf injury […]

The Golden State Warriors have certainly experienced their fair share of drama this season. Early tension between Draymond Green and Kevin Durant dominated headlines, and questions surrounding Durant’s impending free agency were only heightened with his refusal to speak with the media during the middle portion of the season. More drama awaited the Warriors in […]

In the modern age, many athletes want to be remembered for more than just what they contributed on the field of play. From LeBron James producing a documentary entitled Shut Up and Dribble to Dwyane Wade attending the Miami Pride parade in support of his 11-year-old son, NBA players have become more and more vocal […]

Milwaukee Bucks MVP candidate Giannis Antetokounmpo may be just 24 years of age, but he has already become one of the most determined leaders and fiercest competitors in the NBA. From guiding the Bucks to the best regular-season record in the league to being named captain of one of the All-Star teams, Antetokounmpo’s maturity has […]

Comparisons across sports have become the norm in the modern age, and even NBA players as distinct as Stephen Curry and Draymond Green are subject to such comparisons. Both Curry and Green have been equally tremendous in the Golden State Warriors’ first three games of the Western Conference Finals, routinely torching the Portland Trail Blazers […]

The rapid ascension of Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo has almost felt like destiny. Antetokounmpo was drafted with the 15th pick of the 2013 NBA Draft, and he had only ever played in the second division of Greece’s professional basketball league. And yet, his length and skill set seemed to scream star potential. However, as […]

The New Orleans Pelicans have already had an extremely busy offseason. From hiring former Cleveland Cavaliers general manager David Griffin to serve as executive vice president to landing the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft and now having to think about what to do with Anthony Davis, the Pelicans are likely to […]

If you have watched closely during the Western Conference Finals between the Golden State Warriors and Portland Trail Blazers, you will have noticed that Golden State routinely goes to the same play when they need a bucket. The Dubs will isolate one side of the floor, and immediately initiate a pick-and-roll with Draymond Green and […]

The 2019 playoffs have been quite the wild ride for Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors. From dealing with a pesky Clippers team and Patrick Beverley in a grinding, six-game series in the first round, to injuries galore and shooting struggles against the Rockets, there have been times where the Warriors have shown vulnerability. […]

The saga of Kris Dunn in Chicago has been a rather unpleasant one. Dunn was supposed to be the organization’s point guard of the future as part of the deal that sent Jimmy Butler to the Minnesota Timberwolves on draft night in the summer of 2017. But in spite of some decent numbers, Dunn’s inability […]

The Cleveland Cavaliers were one of many teams that left the NBA Draft Lottery feeling somewhat disappointed. The Cavs initially shared the best odds of landing the top overall pick, but instead fell to the no. 5 position. Whereas Cleveland had hoped for the chance to draft one of Zion Williamson, Ja Morant or R.J. […]

The reason that the NBA Draft Lottery is so special is because of the shock and awe factor that comes with each new drawing. Some teams (like the Cavaliers or Bulls) leave feeling mostly disappointed, while others (such as the Pelicans, Grizzlies and Lakers) are totally ecstatic. Whereas the Pelicans and Lakers have tons of […]

Before the NBA Draft Lottery on Tuesday night, numerous mock drafts had Duke standout RJ Barrett landing with the Cleveland Cavaliers around the no. 3 spot. But matters were complicated when the Cavs fell to the fifth pick, likely missing out on the chance to draft Barrett. Still, Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders reports that […]

When you think of dominant starting rotations, you might think of the power arms of Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole for the Houston Astros. Or perhaps Washington’s combination of Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg come to mind. Corey Kluber and Trevor Bauer are almost always come up as possible trade pieces at the deadline, but […]

No single player has improved his draft stock over the course of the last two years as much as Virginia standout De’Andre Hunter. The Third Team All-American showed some promise as a freshman at UVA, averaging 9.2 points and 3.5 rebounds on just 19.9 minutes per game. When he was thrust into a starting role […]

The Portland Trail Blazers have hardly had the greatest success against the Golden State Warriors. The Dubs bounced Portland in both the 2016 and 2017 playoffs, with Portland winning just one game over those two series. Then there was the “beef” between C.J. McCollum and Kevin Durant “beef” that escalated when Durant appeared on McCollum’s […]

The Houston Rockets were the subject of immense criticism following their six-game loss to the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference semifinals. After the Warriors won the series’ first two games, the Rockets defended their home court and took the next two in Houston to even the series at two games apiece. In Game […]

When the Milwaukee Bucks and Toronto Raptors got underway in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, it appeared that Raptors star forward Kawhi Leonard was going to embark on yet another prolific series. Leonard had scored 29 points through the first three quarters and was getting to the free-throw line at will. But in […]

The Milwaukee Bucks and coach Mike Budenholzer had struggled to defend Kawhi Leonard through the first three quarters of Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals. Leonard had poured in 29 points and–along with Kyle Lowry–had kept the Raptors in the lead. But when it mattered the most, the Bucks put the clamps on Leonard, […]

The New Orleans Pelicans may have lucked into the No. 1 overall pick and the chance to draft Zion Williamson, but that does not necessarily mean that superstar forward Anthony Davis is ready to change his trade demands. The Boston Celtics are aware of this. With their franchise player still expressing discontent with the franchise, […]

The Chicago Bulls entered the NBA Draft Lottery with the fourth-best odds at securing the top overall pick on Tuesday night, but would leave the evening extremely disappointed. While the New Orleans Pelicans, Memphis Grizzlies and Los Angeles Lakers all jumped into the top four, the Bulls fell all the way to the seventh pick, […]

The Indiana Pacers are showing interest in a local product, according to J. Michael of the Indianapolis Star. Indiana will meet with New Albany native and Indiana University standout Romeo Langford this weekend in Chicago: The @Pacers will meet with Romeo Langford of @IndianaMBB on Friday, I’m told, at the #NBADraftCombine in Chicago. He’s expected […]

Before the 2018-19 NCAA season even commenced, the Duke Blue Devils were already making headlines. Head coach Mike Krzyzewski had managed to secure the top three high school players in the class of 2018, and RJ Barrett, Zion Williamson and Cam Reddish were projected to be the top three picks in the 2019 NBA Draft. […]

The Boston Red Sox were supposed to be in “serious trouble.” The defending World Series champions had gotten off to the worst start of any defending champ since the 1998 Marlins, a team that would totally implode just one year after winning the title in 1997. Mookie Betts and Andrew Benintendi were not hitting like […]

No Kevin Durant, no problem for the Golden State Warriors in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals. With Durant still sidelined due to a mild calf strain, the Warriors dominated the series opener 116-94 while completely shackling the Portland Trail Blazers and their explosive backcourt of Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum. Lillard finished the […]