R.P. Salao Articles - Page 2

The Oklahoma City Thunder acquired face of the franchise Shai Gilgeous-Alexander via trade. But the rest of their roster around him has been built through the NBA draft. Josh Giddey and Jalen Williams, OKC’s two latest lottery picks, have both flashed All-Star potential in their early campaigns. 2022 second overall pick Chet Holmgren still has […]

Bradley Beal is no longer the face of the franchise. The Washington Wizards are headed for a full rebuild after sending away their frontman to the Arizona desert to join forces with Kevin Durant and Devin Booker on the Phoenix Suns. With newly crowned execs Michael Winger, Will Dawkins, and Travis Schlenk serving as D.C.’s […]

After climbing to the very pinnacle of the NBA mountaintop, Nikola Jokic is back on solid ground. The Denver Nuggets big man is where he’s wanted to be since the second the final buzzer sounded on their NBA Finals win – watching horses race each other on the track. The Serbian center has made his […]

Is it 2016 all over again? The Chicago Cubs aren’t exactly poised to win another World Series as things stand, but Kyle Hendricks has been playing like his prime self of late. Hendricks has played in five games since coming back from nearly a year away from the mound after suffering a shoulder injury in […]

Rickie Fowler had a chance to take the solo lead heading into the final day of the US Open. All the 34-year-old had to do was sink a putt on the 18th hole that he’d usually be able to make with his eyes closed. Instead, he looked like one of us mere mortals trying to […]

The Golden State Warriors are still reeling from the loss of longtime general manager Bob Myers. Now their coaching staff takes a blow with the departure of assistant Jama Mahlalela. Mahlalela joined the Warriors in 2021 and made an impact on head coach Steve Kerr’s staff that earned a fourth championship in eight seasons. He’ll […]

Whatever the New Orleans Saints have needed from Taysom Hill, he’s more than obliged. He’s filled in at quarterback with several stints as the starting signal-caller for the Saints offense. Hill has also played several games as a running back and a wide receiver. Last season, first-year Saints coach Dennis Allen kept him on his […]

Jimmy Butler didn’t play up to his usual playoff standards in the NBA Finals. Was it because of the true severity of the Miami Heat star’s ankle injury? Whatever you do, don’t ask Erik Spoelstra about it. The Heat head coach was fearful when asked about whether or not Jimmy Butler’s ankle injury truly hampered […]

The Rockets have several key decisions to make this offseason. The specter of James Harden potentially returning to Houston hovers over most of them. This reportedly includes their decision when it comes to the fourth overall pick they own in the 2023 NBA Draft. In the latest mock draft from ESPN, writer Jeremy Woo dropped […]

Earlier this month, speculation swirled on Chris Paul potentially being waived by the Phoenix Suns. It hasn’t happened yet, but could it be because they’re waiting on a potential trade before they pull the trigger? The Suns are reported to be “actively engaged” in seeking a trade partner that wants Chris Paul with “multiple options” […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder will be flush with cap space this offseason. After falling just one game shy of making the postseason for the first time since their rebuild began three seasons ago, you better believe Thunder General Manager Sam Presti is ready to add pieces to help the team go from a young, developing […]

Everything Christian Braun touches turns to gold. The Denver Nuggets rookie, fresh off winning an NCAA title just last year, is now an NBA champion. That’s why it’s no surprise that Braun had the perfect first tweet since the confetti started falling in Ball Arena. PUT THAT IN YOUR PIPE AND SMOKE IT ! — […]

The Miami Heat are on the brink of elimination in the 2023 NBA Finals. It’s a place not unfamiliar to the elder statesman of the team Udonis Haslem. Haslem was a member of all three Heat title teams. He was also there for the three years they made the NBA Finals and lost. The juxtaposition […]

The writing appears to be on the wall for Deandre Ayton and his time with the Phoenix Suns. Reports have continued to trickle out that Ayton and veteran point guard Chris Paul could well be on their way out of Arizona. ESPN analyst Richard Jefferson confirmed the same thing. “Everything I’ve heard and seen, Deandre […]

The Golden State Warriors couldn’t repeat the fairytale finish that they had last season. Their campaign ended in six games against the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2023 Western Conference Semifinals. This gave their personnel some free time to talk about the NBA Finals. Draymond Green hosted Warriors head coach Steve Kerr on his podcast […]

The Los Angeles Rams had their worst nightmares come to life during their NFL title defense in 2022. There were a dozen different factors you could point to for what went wrong last season, with the death blow arguably being Cooper Kupp’s ankle injury that cut short his campaign. The Rams’ All-Pro wide receiver took […]

The Washington Commanders turned heads when they declined to pick up the fifth-year option on defensive end Chase Young. The move sparked understandable speculation about how they view their former 2020 first-round pick. Would he be a serious part of their future? Would he even be starting for Washington next season? The former remains to […]

The Miami Heat made a handful of adjustments that played out perfectly in Game 2 of the NBA Finals. The first one visible, before the game even tipped off, was reinserting Kevin Love into the starting lineup. The box score may not look all that spectacular for the Heat veteran. Love finished with just six […]

Ever since Tom Brady and Bill Belichick parted ways in 2020, many have speculated on the state of their relationship. Brady went on to find success outside of the New England Patriots organization, which arguably served as the final piece missing in his already GOAT-worthy resume. Brady’s Super Bowl win with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers […]

The Golden State Warriors have yet to make any roster decisions this offseason, but they’ve already been dealt a huge blow with the departure of GM Bob Myers. Myers parts ways after a dozen campaigns with the franchise. He served as the architect that ultimately built around Stephen Curry to form the dynasty in Golden […]

Just when Boston Celtics fans thought it couldn’t get any worse, their former coach Ime Udoka comes in and adds insult to injury. An already-thin Celtics coaching staff under Joe Mazzulla will reportedly be gutted further by Udoka, as he’s expected to bring in three assistants from Boston to join him on the Houston Rockets […]

The Miami Heat have an intriguing dilemma with Tyler Herro ahead of the NBA Finals. Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green weighed in on how he believes they should handle the unique situation. Tyler Herro has yet to play since his April 16th injury during Game 1 of the Heat-Bucks series in the very first […]

Aaron Rodgers is now officially a Jet. With his move to New York already official, tidbits from his latter years with the Green Bay Packers are starting to trickle out. While Rodgers was one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL for a good chunk of his 15 seasons with the Packers, he posted one […]

The New York Knicks and Golden State Warriors haven’t shared many similarities over the years. They did, however, see a similar departure this past week as both teams parted ways with their respective general managers: Bob Myers for the Warriors and Scott Perry for the Knicks. As the architect behind building the Stephen Curry-led dynasty, […]

Jimmy Butler isn’t fazed by many things. The Miami Heat frontman looked completely poised in Game 7 against the Boston Celtics on Monday night. But one thing did force Jimmy Butler to lose focus that evening: a bumblebee. While answering questions about the Heat’s looming matchup against the Denver Nuggets, he suddenly paused to pay […]

Udonis Haslem has only played in one playoff game for the Miami Heat this season. He’s yet to take the court during the last two rounds heading into the NBA Finals. And yet, he’s making history before any of the games even begin. The 42-year-old Heat veteran will officially become the oldest player in NBA […]

There are few playoff losses more tragic in Celtics history than Game 7 against the Miami Heat in Boston on Monday night. There are even fewer Celtics fans bigger than Bill Simmons. The former ESPN writer and The Ringer mogul looked utterly distraught as he witnessed the Celtics on the wrong side of history against […]

The speculation surrounding Damian Lillard’s future with the Trail Blazers has been a topic of discussion for ages now. Could this be the offseason that Portland finally moves on from their longtime star? New Orleans Pelicans vet and Lillard’s ex-teammate CJ McCollum weighed in on what his prediction will be for the Blazers’ upcoming offseason. […]

The season started off so bright for Zion Williamson and the New Orleans Pelicans. At one point early in the campaign, they sat atop the conference where the Denver Nuggets now stand, the best team in the West. But after another injury-plagued season, the Pelicans were trounced out early in the Play-In with Williamson unable […]

About three minutes into the third quarter of Game 3 between the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics, Jimmy Butler whipped out what was then an iconic bit of trash talk. Gave Vincent, who finished with a game-high 29 points that evening, splashed a pull-up three to put the Heat up 74-51 early in the second […]

The Jimmy Garoppolo era in Las Vegas continues to start off on shaky ground. The Raiders quarterback has yet to take the field for a single snap and yet his future with the team is already in question. In fact, there’s still the potential he’ll never be listed as a member of the Raiders at […]

Bradley Beal and the Washington Wizards are under new management. Does it mean sweeping changes are coming? The Wizards hired former Los Angeles Clippers General Manager Michael Winger to take over after the team dismissed Tommy Sheppard. Sheppard replaced longtime GM Ernie Grunfeld whom he worked under for years before ascending to the top job. […]

For a brief moment, Celtics-Heat Game 6 was completely up in the air. The final buzzer sounded just as Derrick White tipped in a go-ahead putback that would have made Schrödinger proud. The shot looked late enough to the naked eye for Celtics fans to think their season might have been over. But without confirmation […]

Just a couple of days ago, the Miami Heat were all but assured of an NBA Finals berth after taking a 3-0 lead in the Eastern Conference Finals. But after two consecutive Boston Celtics wins, the pressure is on in Game 6. Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, and Heat coach Erik Spoelstra have to lock in […]

There’s a new burner account fiasco in the NBA. We’ve heard rumors about players like current Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant and even team executives like former Philadelphia 76ers General Manager Bryan Colangelo owning secondary accounts on Twitter. But now, there’s speculation that longtime NBA referee Eric Lewis also allegedly owns a burner account as […]

Did Los Angeles Lakers fans really just witness Austin Reaves go from random bench player to third star on a Western Conference Finals team? That’s the reality we live in, folks. With the season officially over for the purple and gold, the attention now shifts to being able to re-construct a supporting cast around LeBron […]

The Boston Celtics kept their season alive for another day in Game 4, thanks in no small part to Jayson Tatum. The Celtics star did it all. Tatum’s 33 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists, and two blocks were all game-high marks and his 14-point third quarter helped Boston pull away for good. There have been […]

Ja Morant has made the headlines for the wrong reasons of late. The Memphis Grizzlies star has been lambasted for once again brandishing a gun on an Instagram live, the same thing he caught flak for earlier in the season. With the Grizzlies suspending him shortly after the incident and a good chunk of fans […]

Not even a day after the Los Angeles Lakers saw their 2022-23 season come to an end, the discussion has already shifted to potentially seismic changes for next season. Atlanta Hawks point guard Trae Young has reportedly been a topic of discussion amongst the Laker brain trust as the team continues to find a permanent […]