Reporting Articles - Page 348

The Portland Trail Blazers lost their fifth straight road game to open the regular season on Friday, falling to the LA Clippers 117-109 at Staples Center. After the game, Chauncey Billups bemoaned his team’s penchant for losing focus on defense away from the friendly confines of Moda Center, remarks echoed by Damian Lillard. The numbers, […]

The Los Angeles Lakers confounded their fans and the NBA world by letting Alex Caruso walk in free agency. Caruso landed a four-year, $37 million deal with the Chicago Bulls. He and his new team have been thriving (7-3) early into the 2021-22 season, while the Lakers have largely struggled, especially on defense. Alex Caruso […]

It has been a rough go for 2018 NBA MVP James Harden so far in the 2021-22 season. While the biggest story in Nets Land this year has been the absence of Kyrie Irving, things have not gone especially well for Harden. Some people are even beginning to wonder about a few nightmare scenarios, a […]

Following a recent Brooklyn Nets win in Canada against the Toronto Raptors, Nets superstar Kevin Durant was asked about returning to Scotiabank Arena, home of the Raptors, where he suffered his fateful torn Achilles during the 2019 NBA Finals. The NBA’s leading scorer was asked to compare the player he is now to the player […]

LOS ANGELES – The LA Clippers held off a late rally by Damian Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday night to win their fifth game in a row. In their eighth consecutive game without Kawhi Leonard and Marcus Morris, the Clippers got 20-point performances from Paul George, Reggie Jackson, and Nicolas Batum in […]

The NBA is still reeling after the worst altercation of this season occurred during the Miami Heat-Denver Nuggets game on Monday night. Heat forward Markieff Morris and Nuggets center Nikola Jokic were each ejected for their involvements in the shoving match late in the fourth quarter. That got both Marcus Morris and the Jokic brothers […]

Houston Rockets center Christian Wood kind of put the team in a tough spot this week after his comments about not feeling involved enough offensively. “It wasn’t difficult,” said Wood on his matchup with Nuggets star Nikola Jokic on Saturday. “I think it could have been better if I was more involved in the offense.” […]

Damian Lillard almost looked like his All-NBA self in the Portland Trail Blazers’ hard-fought 117-109 loss to the LA Clippers on Tuesday night at Staples Center. He scored a game-high 27 points and doled out six assists, playing maestro for a Blazers offense that at times played well as it ever has over the first […]

The Houston Rockets and the Detroit Pistons will both play their first and only game on ESPN on Wednesday night. This is due to the matchup between rookies Cade Cunningham and Jalen Green, the first and second overall picks in the 2021 NBA Draft, respectively. When asked about the matchup on Tuesday, Green was pretty […]

Anfernee Simons introduced to himself a global audience at last season’s All-Star Weekend, living up to years of local hype by being crowned champion of the slam dunk contest. But what Portland Trail Blazers fans have always known about Simons was surely surprising to those who’d only grown familiar with him from his stunning aerial […]

SAN FRANCISCO — The Golden State Warriors and Atlanta Hawks had an entertaining contest on Monday night that got a bit out of hand as the game went on. Trae Young and the Hawks led Stephen Curry and the Warriors at halftime, 65-61, but after that point, things went off the rails for Atlanta. After […]

The Philadelphia 76ers’ roster continues to thin out as yet another player has entered health and safety protocols. Originally out due to rest, reports emerged late Monday that Sixers All-Star Joel Embiid will be out at least 10 days after testing positive for COVID-19. He joined teammates Tobias Harris, Matisse Thybulle, and Isaiah Joe in […]

The Los Angeles Lakers may be forced to operate without their fulcrum, LeBron James, for either a few more games or a few more months, depending who you ask. In his (and other key rotation pieces’) absence, the Lakers will need their current and former All-Stars to lead the charge, build good habits, and deliver […]

The Brooklyn Nets fell to the Chicago Bulls, 118-95 on Monday. The final score makes it look a little less competitive than it really was. The big story in this one was the Nets’ abysmal fourth quarter where they were outscored, 42-17. It was the team’s second of a back-to-back, following Sunday’s big road victory […]

Despite an impressive start to the season, the Philadelphia 76ers continue to find themselves in a tough predicament. Health and safety protocol hit the team hard last season and has once again left Doc Rivers’ roster shorthanded. Early Monday afternoon, reports came out that Sixers star Joel Embiid will miss the team’s matchup with the […]

SAN FRANCISCO — The late addition of Gary Payton II this offseason has been a success for the Golden State Warriors. It’s not often the player fighting for the 15th and final roster spot on the team ends up a key rotation player. That’s what has happened here. Payton has earned every minute he has […]

After new reports came out almost daily regarding the Philadelphia 76ers’ Ben Simmons trade saga this summer, things came to a screeching halt once training camp was underway. Now that teams have gotten a handful of games under their belt, rumors are beginning to swirl again. In his latest news dump, Shams Charania of The […]

LOS ANGELES – The LA Clippers won their fourth game in a row on Sunday night, defeating the Charlotte Hornets, 120-106. While Paul George and the guys were excited to walk out with the win, they were also excited to get a big piece of their rotation in Serge Ibaka back. Ibaka made his season […]

SAN FRANCISCO – The Golden State Warriors are now 8-1, and one of the main reasons for their hot start is their defense. Of course, Draymond Green has a lot to do with the team’s defensive success, but another member of the squad might deserve some credit also. Jordan Poole spoke with the media after […]

After the Houston Rockets lost to the Denver Nuggets in a nail-biter on Saturday, they said the things you’d expect them to say. Competing hard against some of the best teams in the NBA and falling short every time would obviously put you in a bad mood. The team acknowledged that they were improving, but […]

The Los Angeles Clippers handed the Charlotte Hornets their fourth straight loss and they have now gone 0-3 in their road trip. The Hornets came out strong in the beginning though, holding a 13-point lead in the first half at one point and looked locked in on both sides of the ball. Fast forward to […]

The Brooklyn Nets improved to 7-3 with a hard-fought 116-1103 road win over the Toronto Raptors on Sunday. They now sit in third place in the Eastern Conference. James Harden came in struggling but dropped 16 points in the fourth quarter, finishing with 28 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists. Harden had that burst again […]

It was the prototypical rollercoaster game. The Toronto Raptors’ performance against the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday afternoon had everything—high highs, low lows and some straight-up bizarre turns, particularly in the final frame. But the most important element of the game (Pascal Siakam’s return) thankfully landed in that first category, signaling the start of better things […]

The Houston Rockets will probably win an away game this season, but it didn’t happen on Saturday night against the Denver Nuggets. Like Thursday, the Rockets fought and clawed to keep a lead over the Nuggets for a significant portion of the game. However, the superior talent and experience of Denver won out, so Houston […]

The Los Angeles Lakers might as well have not shown up to the Moda Center on Saturday to face the Portland Trail Blazers. LeBron James remained out with abdominal strain, while Anthony Davis — who was a game-time decision with a sprained thumb — exited in the first quarter with a stomach issue. The rest of […]

PORTLAND — It’s clear Damian Lillard didn’t break out of a career-worst slump the way he wanted during the Portland Trail Blazers’ 105-90 win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday. Only all-time shot-makers could be a bit displeased with their jumper after hitting six threes. “I thought I shot the ball better,” Lillard said. […]

Remember way back before the Brooklyn Nets’ training camp in September? Fans might have reasonably expected Steve Nash and Co. to field the best Big 3 in the game. They also may have guessed the team would struggle defensively, but blow the doors off teams on offense. Things don’t always go according to plan, do […]

Bringing back Andre Iguodala, the 2015 NBA Finals MVP, has been a success in the 2021-22 season. His basketball brilliance has impacted the Golden State Warriors on and off the court. After reaching a new season-high 10 assists, Iguodala talked about how things are from his vantage point. “I am just here, having fun. I […]

Lost amid Damian Lillard’s career-worst slump and the Portland Trail Blazers’ ongoing adjustment to playing under Chauncey Billups have been the struggles of Robert Covington. Acquired for a pair of first-round picks before last season, Covington has hardly lived up to that price tag in the early going of 2021-22, struggling to find his footing […]

The LA Clippers won their third game in a row on Friday night, defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves, 104-84. Paul George had been carrying the team offensively over the first few games of the season, but it was the other Clippers who came to his aid in the win over Minny. Paul George finished with his […]

PORTLAND — The Portland Trail Blazers used an 18-5 run over the game’s final four minutes and 48 seconds for a rousing and much-needed 110-106 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Friday night. The crunch-time identity that’s been the Blazers’ hallmark for the better part of a decade, though, was almost completely absent for the […]

James Harden is used to having haters. But it seems like the hate-buzzards may be circling him a bit prematurely in the season’s early going. The NBA made some important adjustments to the rule book this offseason, and it turned The Beard into a bit of a “poster boy” for new rule changes, if you […]

Anthony Davis (sprained right thumb) is questionable for the Los Angeles Lakers matchup with the Portland Trail Blazers at the Moda Center on Saturday. Frank Vogel provided the “update” during his post-practice media availability on Friday. (“Still a sprained thumb, questionable for tomorrow” were his exact words.) I put “update” in quotes because it’s not […]

After a razor-thin loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday, the Houston Rockets entered the Footprint Center to face the Phoenix Suns with the intention of getting their first road victory of the season against. They ultimately fell short, but like in a lot of their games as of late, they put up a […]

Yikes. Where to even begin. The Oklahoma City Thunder have won two games. Both have come against the Los Angeles Lakers. L.A. held leads of 19 or more in each one. LeBron James played in neither game. Still, the Lakers — the oldest, most accomplished team in the NBA — should beat the league’s youngest […]

Crunch-time went much different for Damian Lillard against the Cleveland Cavaliers than the basketball world has come to expect since he entered the league nearly a decade ago. The Portland Trail Blazers superstar had several golden opportunities to complete his team’s arduous comeback on Wednesday, including a game-tying look from three as the fourth-quarter buzzer […]

The Los Angeles Lakers — who have won five of six games and are just starting to find a rhythm — suffered a setback on Thursday, when it was announced that LeBron James has a strained abdomen and will miss one-to-two weeks, at least. James missed two games last week due to ankle soreness, and […]

Chauncey Billups wasn’t most frustrated by the Cleveland Cavaliers canning 15 threes en route to 50 percent shooting from beyond the arc. Jarrett Allen’s “monster” 24-point night didn’t draw much ire from the rookie head coach, either. What really left Billups displeased after the Portland Trail Blazers’ loss to the short-handed Cavaliers on Wednesday was […]

As you’ve surely heard by now, Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James will miss one to two weeks (at least) with what the team is calling a “rectus abdominis strain” — an upper ab injury. ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reported that LeBron aggravated his abdomen during the Lakers’ win over the Houston Rockets on Tuesday at […]