Mike Cruz Articles - Page 23

It’s about damn time. Chris Webber is finally and well-deservingly so in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. It took a while for C-Webb to get the nod in the Hoops Hall, perhaps due to a couple of road bump and controversies he experienced along the way. But regardless of the journey, the most […]

Despite a heartbreaking NBA Finals defeat, the Phoenix Suns undoubtedly had one of their best seasons in nearly three decades. Obviously, they failed to reach their ultimate goal of winning a championship. And while injuries played a major role to their path to the Finals, they still deserve credit for their surprising playoff run in […]

The ping-pong balls dropped the Detroit Pistons’ way as they took home the no. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. With it, they selected Oklahoma State star Cade Cunningham in the hopes that he could be the man to lead their franchise over the next decade. In this post, though, we’re looking at […]

There are plenty of reasons why a young player may be struggling to find his niche in the NBA and not panning out with the team that drafted him. Lack of opportunities is arguably one of the reasons why players don’t develop the way they’d want to. They may be sharing the same position with […]

The 2021 offseason saw a lot of player movement around the NBA. The landscape of the league has changed quite a bit with some big names and key free agents taking their talents elsewhere. Some players definitely elevated their new teams to contender status with their respective arrivals, while others gave newfound hope to teams […]

Despite bannering a big three of Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Kyrie Irving, the Brooklyn Nets fell short of their goal of winning an NBA championship last season after getting bounced by the eventual champion Milwaukee Bucks in the second round. On paper, the Nets were undoubtedly the favorites to come out of the East. […]

The Los Angeles Lakers pretty much made a roster overhaul this past summer as they look to reclaim the NBA championship. Undoubtedly their biggest move is acquiring 2016-17 NBA MVP and 9-time All-Star Russell Westbrook from the Washington Wizards in exchange for three rotational mainstays Kyle Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. Doing so, however, […]

The Orlando Magic have revamped their roster over the past year after they traded All-Star center Nikola Vucevic and former No. 4 overall pick Aaron Gordon midway through the 2020-21 season. With those moves, along with trading Evan Fournier, Orlando made it clear they were headed for the tank. Doing so, they were able to […]

The Atlanta Hawks were arguably one of the biggest overachievers of the 2020-21 season. Well, many had high expectations for Atlanta and had them penciled in for a postseason berth. However, nobody saw them reaching the Eastern Conference Finals. The Hawks ideally aim to take the next by going to the championship round. However, on […]

The Boston Celtics’ offseason started out with a major change in their front office after longtime president Danny Ainge retired from his post. Now Celtics ex-coach Brad Stevens has taken over the job and has made moves to revamp the team’s roster. He made a splash with his first move as Boston’s president of basketball […]

It’s like clockwork at this point for the Sacramento Kings. Miss out the playoffs, hope for favorable ping pong balls, draft in the lottery. The California-based franchise missed the postseason for the 15th consecutive year in 2020-21, finishing with a 31-41 record and tied for 12th in the Western Conference. They landed the no. 9 […]

Two years after winning their first NBA championship in 2019, the Toronto Raptors found themselves out of the playoff picture and in the lottery. In many ways, this 2021 offseason sort of marked the beginning of a new era for Toronto. This summer saw the end of the tenure of arguably the greatest player to […]

The Detroit Pistons were pretty much in tank mode the entire 2020-21 season and finished with a 20-52 record, the 2nd worst in the NBA. Despite the dismal campaign, the draft gods rewarded Detroit with the most favorable ping pong ball in the lottery, landing the no. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft. […]

The Golden State Warriors see this upcoming 2021-22 season as the year they could finally compete again for an NBA Championship following a 5-year dominance from 2015 to 2019. Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green have proven in the past that they are capable of leading a squad to the top of the mountain. […]

The Indiana Pacers had a fairly quiet offseason following a disappointing 2020-21 campaign that saw them miss out on the playoffs. Their biggest change this summer came in the form of a coaching change. Indiana parted ways with Nate Bjorken after just one season and re-hired former head coach Rick Carlisle to take over the […]

The Boston Celtics saw a front office turnover this offseason with long-time president Danny Ainge leaving his post. Subsequently, Boston promoted head coach Brad Stevens to replace Ainge. Stevens did not waste his time in making a splash and revamping the Celtics roster. A couple of weeks after getting the job, Stevens traded away Kemba […]

As it stands, granted a clean bill of health, the Brooklyn Nets remains the team to beat in the NBA this 2021-22 season. It goes without saying that any championship-aspiring team needs a championship-level supporting cast to reach the top of the mountain. Brooklyn undoubtedly has the best foundation to build around with their Big […]

The Denver Nuggets’ championship hopes vanished the moment Jamal Murray went down late in the 2020-21 regular season with a torn left ACL. Their title chances remain murky, with their star point guard likely out for the entire 2021-22 campaign. In this specific post, though, we’re unleashing our Denver Nuggets 2021 NBA Free Agency grades. […]

The NBA has released the schedule for its marquee games this upcoming 2021-22 season. As usual, the 5-game Christmas Day slate will feature some of the league’s brightest stars, as well as intriguing match-ups among the NBA’s top current rivalries. The main headline will feature a colossal showdown between the NBA’s two powerhouse teams, the […]

Just a month after the NBA crowned the Milwaukee Bucks as NBA Champions, they are set to have another coronation night this Tuesday. This particular title match will feature the Boston Celtics and Sacramento Kings as they square off for the right to be called Summer League Champions. In this post, we’re doing our Celtics-Kings […]

The Phoenix Suns are coming off one of their best seasons in franchise history. Unfortunately, they came just two wins short of taking home the Larry O’Brien trophy to Phoenix. The Suns are undoubtedly motivated to make another run at the title next season by bringing back their own key free agents and signing additional […]

The Los Angeles Clippers locked up superstar forward Kawhi Leonard for at least the next three seasons, inking him to a 4-year, $176 million contract extension, with the 4th year being a player option. By securing the 2-time Finals MVP to a long-term deal, the Clippers now have both their star players in contract until […]

In the summer of 2017, the Washington Wizards inked John Wall to a massive four-year, $170 million extension that kicked in during the 2019-20 NBA season. Wall’s contract soon became the consensus worst deal in the league due to a number of injuries, and many saw the former No. 1 overall pick as an untradeable […]

The Los Angeles Lakers got their third star in Russell Westbrook to form their Big Three with LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Los Angeles acquired the former league MVP from the Washington Wizards while shipping over Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Montrezl Harrell, and Kyle Kuzma to the Capital City. Prior to the blockbuster deal’s completion, there were […]

Sorry to give it the Detroit Pistons, but Cade Cunningham isn’t the best player of his class. The Houston Rockets stole the top dog of the 2021 NBA Draft. But it isn’t Jalen Green. It’s actually Alperen Sengun. It’s definitely bold to say something like this based on just a couple of Summer League outings. […]

The Miami Heat have been one of the busier teams in NBA free agency. The acquisition of six-time All-Star Kyle Lowry is undoubtedly the big acquisition of their summer, tampering allegations aside. They also re-signed sharpshooting guard Duncan Robinson to a massive five-year, $90-million, which marks the largest contract ever by an undrafted player. They […]

The Golden State Warriors are in the midst of a busy offseason as they look to reestablish their standing as one of the top teams in the NBA. No doubt, a lot of their success hinges on their Big Three of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green. But just like any other team, rounding […]

The Toronto Raptors are rumored to be shopping All-Star forward Pascal Siakam as it looks to transition into a youth movement. While Siakam is still a young 27-years old, he is arguably Toronto’s top asset that could net them with the most value in a trade. Teams looking to shake things up will definitely welcome […]

Kawhi Leonard declined his $36 million player option with the Los Angeles Clippers for the 2021-22 season prior to free agency and is taking his sweet time in making a decision. The expectation is that Leonard will re-sign and return to the Clippers. However, with the five-time All-Star being as calculated as he is, it’s […]

The Los Angeles Clippers made valiant run in the 2021 NBA playoffs, where they made the Western Conference Finals for the first time in franchise history. Despite putting together their most successful campaign, L.A.’s outlook for the foreseeable future is still very much up in the air. To start, they have yet to re-sign Kawhi […]

The Washington Wizards just acquired Kyle Kuzma last week as a part of a blockbuster deal that sent Russell Westbrook to the Los Angeles Lakers. After a rather tumultuous tenure with the Lakers, Kuzma gets the opportunity for a clean slate and a fresh start with the Wizards. But what if there’s yet another Kyle […]

The Milwaukee Bucks are coming off the high of winning their first NBA championship in 50 years. Giannis Antetokounmpo and company undoubtedly want to feel that high again next season. Heck, they did boldly claim they plan to go back-to-back. Milwaukee will need to make some significant decisions this upcoming free agency to bring in […]

All eyes are on the Golden State Warriors and the moves they will be making this offseason. The Warriors reportedly looked into trading their  two lottery picks in the 2021 NBA Draft, but they ultimately stood pat and selected Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody. Kuminga is seen as a raw project who probably won’t be […]

The Toronto Raptors stunned NBA fans after they selected Scottie Barnes with the no. 4 overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft. Most mock drafts projected the Raptors to take Gonzaga stud Jalen Suggs. However, it seems like Masai Ujiri was more enamored with the lengthy 6-foot-9 forward out of Florida State and all the […]

After an impressive campaign with the G-League Ignite team last season, Jalen Green is set to take his talents to H-Town to kickstart a new era for the Houston Rockets. Houston took the Filipino-American with the 2nd overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft and Rockets Nation is understandably looking forward to seeing Green banner […]

The Toronto Raptors sent the first wave of shock in the 2021 NBA draft by passing on Gonzaga star Jalen Suggs and instead selecting Florida State standout Scottie Barnes with the 4th overall pick. Most mock drafts projected Suggs to go to Toronto and reports hours prior to the draft indicated the Raps gearing towards […]

New York Knicks fans had high hopes of seeing their beloved Knicks make a splash at the 2021 NBA draft. They had the 19th and 21st overall picks and had their sights set on drafting a scoring wing. Knicks general manager Leon Rose was aggressively looking into trading up to make sure they landed one […]

The Houston Rockets have selected Alperen Sengun as the No. 16 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft after trading up and sending a couple of picks to the Oklahoma City Thunder as they add to their insane load of draft picks. Houston is sending OKC two future first-round picks for No. 16, per source. […]

Oregon star Chris Duarte officially went to the Indiana Pacers as the No. 13 overall pick of the 2021 NBA draft. At 24 years old, Duarte is one of the most NBA-ready players in this year’s class. Unlike some of the younger and more raw prospects in the draft, the Dominican Republic native should be […]