Sean Barnard Articles - Page 12

It feels the Miami Dolphins have turned a corner. They are coming off their second straight winning season, Mike McDaniel has taken the reins at head coach and the Dolphins recently made a blockbuster trade to land Tyreek Hill. Acquiring the superstar wide receiver emptied a good deal of the franchise’s draft capital, but it […]

The Memphis Grizzlies have found their stride after struggling out the gates this postseason. The Grizzlies now lead the series 3-2 and are back to their usual on-court production and swagger. The victory in Game 5 occurred on a game-winning layup by Ja Morant after a great performance by the Timberwolves. The job is not […]

The Minnesota Timberwolves lost a heartbreaking Game 5 matchup with the Grizzlies due to a game-winning layup at the buzzer. The Wolves put together an impressive performance, but unfortunately now trail the series three games to two. While the Game 5 loss was certainly the biggest gut-punch of the series, Minnesota must look to get […]

Flashback to the 2021 offseason and there was nothing but excitement surrounding the Atlanta Hawks. The youthful squad had over-performed in a major way. They made it to the conference finals before losing to the eventual champions, the Milwaukee Bucks. With the same roster core intact this season, the Hawks did not see the same […]

It has not been an ideal start to the playoffs for the Phoenix Suns. After holding the best regular-season record in the NBA by eight full games, this postseason has been a struggle. The injury to Devin Booker has changed the team a great deal and the Pelicans have proven they are unwilling to roll […]

The NFL Draft is nearly upon us with each team around the league still faced with questions about their roster. At the forefront of these is the Washington Commanders who are coming off a 7-10 season. The team made headlines this offseason by trading for Carson Wentz. It is clear they have the intent of […]

There is no denying what a disappointment the 2022 season was for the Brooklyn Nets. The team that was regarded as the title favorite for most of the season was recently swept in the opening round by the Boston Celtics. The Nets season was overshadowed by trade rumors, drama with Kyrie Irving, and an overall […]

The Utah Jazz are a mess. The Mavericks have outplayed the Mavs through the entirety of the series regardless if Luka Doncic has been there or not. The Jazz have little time to get back on track with the Mavs leading the series 3-2. Following the 102-77 blowout loss in Game 5, the Jazz must […]

After taking a dominant 3-0 lead to open the series, the Sixers have seen this begin to slip away. The Toronto Raptors have awoken after their slow start to the series and rediscovered their team identity. The Raptors have played a swarming defense, dominated the rebounds, and gotten out in transition. The Sixers have produced […]

The Indianapolis Colts have struggled to find a long-term solution at quarterback since Andrew Luck retired. His decision to walk away from the game early put the franchise in disarray and has led to multiple bad decisions for their quarterback choice. The Colts did not find a long-term solution in Phillip Rivers and were even […]

The New Orleans Pelicans have been one of the biggest surprises of this year’s playoffs. Despite their 36-46 record in the regular season, the Pelicans have seemingly peaked at the right time and are playing their best basketball of late. They enter Game 5 tied 2-2 in their series with the Phoenix Suns. This is […]

The Toronto Raptors picked up a massive win on their home court to avoid the sweep against the Philadelphia 76ers. They will need to continue this type of effort if they hope to extend the series even further. The Raptors will travel to Philly for Game 5 and need to build off the impressive defensive […]

The Phoenix Suns have had an incredibly impressive season this year. Securing a 64-18 record, this tied for the 23rd best regular-season record of all time. The Suns were regarded as the title favorite heading into the playoffs and for good reason. Phoenix was expected to handle the 36-46 New Orleans Pelicans with ease, but […]

If you asked Dallas Mavericks fans how they would feel splitting the series 2-2 while playing three games without their superstar, the response would be pretty positive. However, Dallas lost Game 4 in heartbreaking last-second fashion. Rudy Gobert was able to slam home an alley-oop from Donovan Mitchell with 11 seconds left to play. This […]

The Utah Jazz made a statement in Game 4 by finding a way to win despite the return of Luka Doncic. The exclamation point was put on the game by Rudy Gobert slamming home an alley-oop to put the Jazz on top with 11 seconds still to play. This was a massive win for Utah […]

Heading into the postseason, the Toronto Raptors and Philadelphia 76ers matchup was expected to be a competitive series. Toronto was a popular upset pick over the 4th-seeded Sixers. This has not proved to be the case with Philly jumping out to a 3-0 series lead early on. The Raptors have shown some fight and managed […]

The Golden State Warriors have put the NBA on notice in the opening round of the playoffs. Jumping out to a 3-0 lead in the series, the Warriors have looked dominant in the series. The Nuggets clearly lack the talent to match up with the Warriors’ deep roster and effective system. Denver gave their best […]

The Brooklyn Nets find their backs against the wall just two games into the postseason. After seemingly saving themselves for the playoffs all year, Brooklyn is in danger of being a first-round exit. The Boston Celtics have put together an impressive game plan to stop the Nets superstar duo and secured a victory in the […]

The NBA MVP is a flawed award. It does not hold a clear definition for what the qualifications are and the standards seemingly switch every year. While “Most Valuable Player” may seem obvious enough, the debate for most valuable vs. best player are two very different conversations. This debate has been ratcheted up many notches […]

The Dallas Mavericks were one of the hottest teams in the NBA heading into the playoffs. Ending the season by going 15-3 in their final 18 games seemed to indicate they were primed for playoff success. The franchise got some disappointing news when Luka Doncic injured his calf in the final game of the regular […]

Expectations were high for the Memphis Grizzlies heading into the postseason. They possess one of the most impressive young rosters in the NBA and have proven to be a high-caliber contender. This has been put to the test early on in the postseason with their matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves. The TWolves were able to […]

The Phoenix Suns have been the NBA’s most impressive team all season. Their 64-18 record secured them the top seed in the West with the second-place Grizzlies eight full games behind them. The Suns lost in the NBA Finals last season and were the championship favorites heading into this postseason.   These hopes took a […]

The Miami Heat seemingly felt as if they were disrespected heading into the postseason and for good reason. After an extremely impressive regular season where they secured the top seed in the Eastern Conference, it feels as if Miami is still not considered a legitimate contender. Heading into the postseason the Heat had the 5th […]

The Game 2 victory was a massive win for the Pelicans. The team has continued to fight despite being largely overmatched by the Phoenix Suns. The tides of the series certainly changed when Devin Booker was forced out of Game 2 with a hamstring injury. This was clearly incredibly frustrating for Booker, who already had […]

The Atlanta Hawks appeared to be hitting their stride toward the tail end of the season. They carried this momentum into the play-in games and managed to punch their tickets as the 8th seed. Unfortunately for the Hawks, they are matched up with the top-seeded Miami Heat in the first round who have played with […]

The Denver Nuggets are not the only team down 2-0 in the opening series, but it feels as if they may be the most frustrated. The opening two games have been a nightmare for the Nuggets. Tempers began boiling over with arguments between teammates breaking out on the bench. Nikola Jokic’s ejection put the icing […]

The Dallas Mavericks should be feeling pretty good about where they are sitting after the opening two games. With Luka Doncic sidelined with a calf strain, the team still showed up in a major way. The Mavs split the series 1-1 and will head back to Utah for Games 3 and 4. This was a […]

The Utah Jazz head into Game 3 against the Mavericks with the series tied at one win apiece. An impressive 41-point performance from Jalen Brunson helped secure the Mavs a 110-104 victory in Game 2. This was a massive opportunity missed by the Jazz as it appears Luka Doncic may be able to return for […]

The Toronto Raptors had a great deal of momentum following the regular season. Their length and athleticism made them a popular upset pick over the Sixers heading into the first round. Despite this, the Sixers have outclassed them on both sides of the ball and jumped out to a dominant 2-0 series lead. Both teams […]

The Philadelphia 76ers hold a commanding 2-0 series lead in their first-round matchup with the Toronto Raptors. After winning the first two games by a combined 35 points, the two teams will head to Canada for Game’s 3 and 4. While the series has been off to an ideal start for the Sixers, it could […]

The NBA MVP votes have already been placed with the regular season finally over. While we all must await the award announcement, basketball never stops. The playoffs are now in full swing with all three MVP candidates putting their fingerprints on their team’s success. It was quite clear that Giannis Antetokounmpo did exactly this in […]

There cannot be enough said about how impressive the Phoenix Suns have been this season. Running away with the best record in the NBA during the regular season, the Suns improved on their great season last year. The 2021 championship runner-ups are the title favorites this postseason and for good reason.   In game one […]

The Golden State Warriors got off to an ideal start to the 2022 NBA Playoffs. The Warriors secured a series lead in a convincing 123-107 Game 1 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Saturday.   With their second straight game at home, the Warriors have an excellent chance to go up 2-0 in the series. […]

The Denver Nuggets have an incredibly difficult matchup at hand with the Golden State Warriors. The Bay Area natives check just about every box you look for in a championship contender and proved this in Game 1. Led by Jordan Poole, the Warriors shot the lights out. This effective shooting helped the Warriors secure a […]

The Toronto Raptors’ first-round matchup with the 76ers is expected to be one of the tightest opening series across the entire NBA. The hard-nosed defense of Toronto appeared ready for the challenge against a Sixers team that has not met expectations in the second half of the season. Despite this, the Sixers cruised to a […]

The LA Clippers received some unfortunate news when it was announced that Paul George has entered health and safety protocols on the day of their do-or-die play-in game. They will have to face the New Orleans Pelicans without him. This is a huge blow for the Clippers, who have looked entirely different since George has […]

The 2021-22 NBA season didn’t go quite as hoped for the Chicago Bulls after they got off to a roaring start. The Bulls failed to maintain that high level of play, going from 39-21 to 46-36 to finish the season. In the process, they drew a tough matchup with the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks.   […]

The Los Angeles Clippers suffered a disappointing loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves after holding a lead for the majority of the first play-in game. The Timberwolves rallied around their home crowd late and secured the scrappy 109-104 victory.   Due to the setup of the play-in tournament, the Clippers are not eliminated yet and will […]

The Utah Jazz have been attempting to get over the hump in the Western Conference for the past few seasons. They are led by Donovan Mitchell who leads the team in scoring at 25.9 points per game. Behind their superstar, the Jazz have a well-run system that accounts for elite floor spacing and an array […]