Giannis Injury update!

 All-Star Giannis Antetokounmpo tweaked his ankle again in the Bucks' 128-118 win over the Clippers, but Giannis said he's going to play through the pain going forward.
Antetokounmpo's injury came with just eight minutes left in Thursday's game when he ran into Clippers forward Garrett Temple after throwing down a big dunk. He then fell down grabbing his right ankle and had a noticeable limp walking off the court. He watched the remainder of the game from the sideline after testing his ankle.

Antetokounmpo has been dealing with ankle issues for several days now after spraining his ankle March 17 against the 76ers. When asked about his ankle after the game, Antetokounmpo said he felt "good," though he indicated he hadn't fully recovered from the initial sprain.

"Usually when you sprain your ankle, you tweak your ankle, you stay out for two, three, four games," Antetokounmpo told reporters after the game. "But I don't like missing games, so I have to work through it while playing and try to get my strength with our practices."

The bucks main focus should be to make sure that Antetokounmpo is healthy for the playoffs he’s the most important piece to the puzzle for the Bucks. With these last weeks of the regular season they need to focus on letting him rest up for the playoffs due to the fact that they already clinch their playoff spot.

Karl-Anthony Towns $31 Million Bonus

Karl-Anthony Towns is on the verge of making a $31 million bonus, if he can make an All-NBA Team. With Joel Embiid and Nikola Jokic being locks for the 1st and 2nd team, can Towns actually make the 3rd All-NBA team?

Karl-Anthony Towns is averaging 24.7 points, 12.5 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks a game. Towns has been on an absolute tear this season, but the Timberwolves record doesn't reflect his great play. The Timberwolves are currently 34-41, sitting in the 10th seed. Towns is having a career year, posting career highs in points, rebounds, assists, and steals. Towns is also currently ranked 14th in scoring and 7th in rebounds in the entire NBA. Since All-Star Break he's been averaging 30.9 points and 14.6 rebounds a game. Towns has been absolutely unstoppable and giving opposing teams a hard time. It seems like he's finally living up to the potential of being one of the games top big men. Karl-Anthony Towns is having an absolutely incredible year and has serious potential to actually make the 3rd All-NBA team and should be considered by every voter.

With Towns absolutely destroying it this year whose realistically his competition to take his spot? Anthony Davis has missed too many games and has virtually taken himself out of the talks, with only playing 56 games out of 77 games. Davis has missed 21 games so far and could potentially sit out the last few games of the season. 

The only other real competition Towns would have is Rudy Gobert. Gobert is averaging 15.7 points, 12.8 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks a game. Gobert's team is currently in the playoffs, sitting at the 5th seed with a record of 45-30. Ultimately Towns' case is better than Goberts, Town is averaging 9 more points and only .3 rebounds less than Gobert. Towns was also an All-Star this season, where Gobert wasn't. 

Karl-Anthony Towns has a $31 million bonus looming, if he's selected on an All-NBA Team. Three years ago we saw Anthony Davis in the same situation, where if he would've made an All-NBA Team he would've had a bonus of $23 million. Ultimately Davis didn't get the money due to him missing games because of injuries. Karl-Anthony Towns will make the 3rd All-NBA Team and will get his bonus.

Why I like kobe post nba so much?

In the NBA players who have great NBA careers tend to either fade from the spotlight or become sport commentator.Very few go out of their comfort zone and explore new possible jobs of choice. Kobe Bryant is one of the newer ex players who have explored their life career. There are so many reasons why you should love his post career.

Kobe has won an Oscar! Not many players have had the privilege to say this achievement was possible. he won with the short film "Dear Basketball". Just years away from retiring winning such an award is a great show of talent and understanding. Kobe being in Los Angles for so long he picked up tricks to make it in Hollywood. Even the most experienced people in LA haven't had this fast of success. His attention to details helped him get his crew together with names like John Williams and Glen Keane putting it all together.

Kobe has also been teaching basketball to his daughters AAU team. Kobe has so much knowledge for the game. Teaching the younger generation how and why it takes to be a winner. Hard work, practice and attention to detail, these kids can learn this and put this to work in real life for other career. he isn't just teaching basket ball but great life lessons for better yourself in what they choose to do for a living.

Overall Kobe has done nothing but killed it off the court. Doing nothing but better himself in other industries. Also the help he has been giving the younger generation is the best way pass on his work ethic he has leaned from his ideals and role models.

Conor McGregor Announces Retirement

One of the most absorbing and electrifying careers in the history of mixed martial arts might have just come to an end. The 30-year-old Conor McGregor retires with a MMA record of 21 wins and four defeats.

McGregor tweeted out his retire early this morning he said "Hey guys quick announcement, I've decided to retire from the sport formally known as "Mixed Martial Art" today," McGregor said on his official Twitter account. "I wish all my old colleagues well going forward in competition. I now join my former partners on this venture, already in retirement."

UFC President Dana White also confirmed the news of McGregor's retirement via text message to ESPN shortly after it was announced. "He has the money to retire and his whiskey is KILLIN it," said White. "It totally makes sense and if I was him I would retire too." And If Dana White is backing up his retirement than it definitely has to be true.

But even with this such sudden new we can’t say we didn’t see this coming. McGregor's motivation to continue in the sport had been called into question over recent years, after his MMA inactivity and brief foray into boxing to fight Floyd Mayweather in 2017.
He made $30 million for the fight itself and reportedly pocketed close to $100 million in total through the various forms of revenue streams.
Since September 2018 McGregor has been busy promoting Proper No. 12, his own brand of blended whiskey, which retails for around $25 a bottle. He’s making a killing and has sponsors back him such as Beats by Dr. Dre, Burger King and Monster Energy drink. There is no need for him to put his life on the line anymore and bloody his brains for a dollar

McGregor said himself that “I don’t necessarily need to fight.I am set for life, my family is set for life, we are good.”  It’s sad to see him go but it’s for the best. He’s entering a new chapter of his life we all know that he’ll still have his fighting Irish spirit and will miss the ring. But it’s time for him to continue on in his next chapter of life outside the Octagon.

   

Does Chris Bosh Deserve His Jersey To Be Retired?

On March 26th the Miami Heat will retire Chris Bosh's jersey, but did Bosh do enough in his time with the Miami Heat to deserve his jersey to be retired? Bosh was the 3rd scoring option on the Miami Heat. He often was the blame for whenever the Heat would lose, and if they won he never got the credit he deserved. Chris Bosh would revolutionize the position and change everyones idea of what a power forward should do.

On July 10th, 2010 Chris Bosh would officially be in a sign-and-trade deal to the Miami Heat. Bosh would team up with LeBron James and Dwayne Wade to create a new super-team in Miami. In his first year with the Miami Heat, Bosh averaged 18.7 points, and 8.3 rebounds a game. In the first Finals they played together, Bosh was the 2nd leading scorer at 18.5 points and was the leading rebounder at 7.3 rebounds. Even though the Heat would ultimately lose to the Dallas Mavericks, Chris Bosh played a great series and would slowly begin to become a player of the future.

Throughout 2011-2013 the Miami Heat would win consecutive championships. The Miami Heat began to play Chris Bosh as a center and start to spread the floor. With Bosh starting to hit 3 pointers, this slowly began the new small ball lineups. Bosh would help spread the floor of opposing defenses and make it easier for LeBron and Wade to drive to the rim. In the 2012 Finals against the Thunder, Bosh would average 14.6 points and 9.4 rebounds. Chris Bosh took the backseat to LeBron and Wade, who averaged a combined 51.2 points a game. Chris Bosh took 5 3's during the series and made 2 of them, he would help spread the Thunder's defense and help the Miami Heat win their first championship.

In the second championship season against the Spurs, Bosh would ultimately be one of the reason's why they won the championship. Bosh averaged 11.9 points, 8.9 rebounds, 1.9 steals, and 1.6 blocks a game. Game 6 against the Spurs, things were bleak for the Heat, with half of the crowd leaving the game early, the Miami Heat rallied together and helped put themselves back into the game. In the final second of the game, LeBron James missed a 3 pointer, Chris Bosh was left uncovered and he grabbed the offensive rebound. Bosh found Ray Allen open in the corner and hit him, where Allen hit one of the most clutch shots in the history of the Finals. In Game 7 Bosh was held scoreless, but the Heat went on to begin the champs. Chris Bosh played a crucial part in both of the Miami Heat's Championships.

In the next season, LeBron James went on to return to Cleveland and the Miami Heat weren't the same contenders they were in the years prior. Bosh would resign with the Heat, but unfortunately he wouldn't play his entire contract. Chris Bosh was diagnosed with blood clots in his lungs during the 2015 season. Bosh would come back on the floor next year, but was taken out again with a blood clot in his leg this time. No team truly wanted to take a chance on Bosh, due to the fear of him passing away on the floor.

In Chris Bosh's time on the Heat he changed the game. The Miami Heat began to play the small ball lineups. Bosh would hit 3 pointers and would get absolutely killed by the media for shooting 3's at all. He paved the way for Centers/Power Forwards to shoot 3 pointers, with no criticism. Bosh would be apart of one of the iconic teams of this generation, with the Big 3 Miami Heat. Chris Bosh is 7th in rebounding and 5th in point per game in Miami Heat's history.

Chris Bosh absolutely deserves to have his jersey retired for the Miami Heat. He quite arguably is the most important factor to those championship teams. No one was criticized as much as Bosh was at that time and still he came out on top and is remembered as a first ballot Hall Of Fame Player. Chris Bosh will always be remembered as one of the greatest Toronto Raptor's and Miami Heat's players of all time.

James Harden deserves the MVP!

The NBA Season has seen so many great performances by many players in the league. This will help bring about the MVP discussions. The top two candidates are James Harden and Giannis Antetokounmpo for the race to MVP. But who will get the trophy?

James Harden has done so much in the league till now. He already has won the MVP. His come up was an odd one for most players stories. He was a good scorer in collage. Was drafted by the Thunder with two other talented scorers in Kevin Durant and Russel Westbrook. His role on the team was the sixth man role.He would would leave them and get more money at Houston. This season he has has shown That he is has skills to put the ball in the basket like no other of this generation. Jame has scored 30 points vs every team in the league this season. While Averaging 36.5 points a game he is proving he is an elite scorer. Getting on list that all time greats like Micheal Jordan and wilt have been. He has also keep his team in playoff contention because of these performances. There is a knock on him right now that the whole the league has talked about. They believe his game play hasn't promoted team play over individual play. Another player also suffered from this in the past. It was Kobe Bryant and he only ever won one MVP in his whole career. Harden has shown he can and will do anything to win games in the competitive west while his team can get there ducks in order.

Giannis has been a great player this whole year. He is averaging 27.7 points with 12 rebounds and 6 assist this season. His greatest achievements this year is taking the Bucks from low seed last season in the east to the top of the league in record of the season. They are 55-19 to this date. The bucks relay on him for the wins they have. This season he has shown he is unstoppable with jumping ability and length. He has more to improve on but the progression he has shown is truly great. His Field goal percentage is in the top ten in the league, being the only first option in the top ten. His numbers can be compared to Shaq when he was the same age. The thing is they are better in every way.

Overall the two players have played very well over the length of the season. But i do believe overall that James Harden should get this MVP. He will never have another season like now. this is what you call a legendary season. Only the greats could ever hope to have one like this. Giannis will get better and prove to be a MVP in the future but right now it is is Harden.

D'Angelo Russell Gets His Revenge On The Lakers

Revenge is a dish best served cold. For D'Angelo Russell he finally got his revenge on the Lakers on March 22nd. Russell scored 21 points and had 13 assists to end the hopes of the Laker's playoff. D'Angelo Russell has broken LeBron James streak of 13 straight playoff appearances.

To understand how big of a revenge game this is for D'Angelo Russell we have to look back to the comments Magic Johnson made when they traded him away. When Magic Johnson traded Russell away he said that Russell wasn't a leader. Magic also said that he needed someone who can make others better and that players want to play with. To be fair the Lakers didn't seem to want to play with Russell after the infamous iPhone scandal with Nick Young.

D'Angelo Russell is averaging 6.9 assists a game, he's really proving Magic wrong on not being a leader. In fact D'Angelo currently has the Brooklyn Nets in playoff contention in the Eastern Conference, currently in 7th.

Russell is quickly making a name for himself around the league. He became an All-Star for the first time this year and he's been on a tear this season. Since the All-Star game Russell is averaging 22.3 points and 8.1 assists a game. He's been on a tear this season and seems to be out right trying to prove Magic wrong.

Magic Johnson looks like a terrible GM now trading Russell away for Timofey Mozgov, Brook Lopzen and a draft pick, who turned into Kyle Kuzma. Timofey Mozgov is an overpaid center who isn't on the team anymore, Lopez is on a tear from the 3 point land for the Bucs. Kyle Kuzma looks like a star but the Lakers are trying to trade him away for any asset. 2 of those 3 players aren't on the team anymore and the other one isn't an All-Star. Russell is an All-Star who could've helped the Lakers make the playoffs this year.

When D'Angelo Russell hit a clutch 3, over his former Lakers, he turned around and silence the fans. This was more than just a 3 pointer for Russell, he was silencing all the haters and critics. He has finally lived up to his potential, that Magic never saw. Russell destroyed the Lakers playoff hopes and proved to Magic why he should've never traded him.

UCF's First Win In History

When UCF tips off against VCU all of the eyes and talks will be about the 7-6 center Tacko Fall. Tacko is a dominating presence down low, due to his height, he averages 2.5 blocks a game. If Tacko is hot he could be one of the most dominating players on the team, not many teams have a player who can match up to a 7-6 center.

Tacko Fall is a player who you can coach against, if you have a good coach. Fall is very slow and because of this if you play an uptempo play style, UCF will be forced to put in backup Chad Brown. Brown is a great defensive player but he is easier to match up against, compared to Tacko. However Tacko isn't the best player on UCF.

The best player on the team is guard Bj Taylor. Currently Taylor is averaging 16 points and 3 assists a game. Bj is the undeniable leader of the team, including putting the team on his back if he has to. On December 11th, against Georgia Southern, Taylor went ahead and scored 35 points. UCF will go as far as Taylor takes them in the tournament.

If UCF does beat VCU they will be tasked to beat an incredible team in Duke. Zion Williamson against Tacko Fall will be must watch tv. Zion will be trying to dunk on Fall, it could be his most incredible highlight all season. Zion dunking on a 7-6 center will be all over ESPN the next day. But during this game it'll be up to Bj to pull his team together and make sure they stay calm and level headed for the biggest game of the season.

Taylor is a hometown native to Orlando and picked UCF because he wanted to do something special for the city of Orlando. Bj has his best shot to be remembered as the greatest player in UCF's basketball history, all he has to do is be the leader he can be in the tournament. It is the first time in 14 years UCF has been in a March Madness tournament, and if Bj can lead them to a win against VCU it'll be the first tournament win in school's history.

Bj Taylor signed with UCF 5 years ago to put the school on the national stage and now they are on the verge of winning their first ever tournament game in UCF's history. Taylor's play will put him in conversation to be drafted, potentially in the 2nd round. Drafted or not Taylor has worked hard enough to deserve a shot at a Summer League roster. Even though Tacko is a larger than life figure who has quickly became a legend around UCF's campus and the talk of UCF's basketball program around the country, Taylor will be the star of the game.

Does AAU create baketball or hype?

AAU is a organization That is considered the top players of middle school or high school in basket ball.There has been many problems with this trend of players coming out of this system they have created within AAU. The problem is showing in the NBA with American vs European players with basic fundamentals. But what is the problem with AAU exactly?

The problems are plenty but the first major is skill sets from a young age. America has always been better then most of the world. The issue has grown with this attitude because now the AAU system now seems to take mindset to an extreme. Player are no longer get coaching for the fundamentals. the coaches are looking for two things. One is to have the most entertaining players on the courts so you can be famous for couching a young great talent. the other is winning. There is so much put on winning that the kids just look for the best game plan win Even if the kids don't get fundamentals in the process of it. Now a days you kids with great athleticism dominating these leagues because at the younger ages they are almost unstoppable on the court for there size and speed. On the other hand European players are getting the exact opposite because they are being taught in there home countries how to play basket ball like how futbol players are being taught to play their sport. With all the fundamentals when there young then later taught advance moves with the advantages they are born with.

The second major problems they are getting is the press one gets. Over in Europe they have systems in play to make sure their kids are being taught how to handle the fame they are getting at such a young age. Luka Doncic has been a pro since his early teen years so dealing with all the hype and pressure that bring to the player is very beneficial if your coaches can teach you how to do it when you make to the pros. In America it is different because the players have no one to turn too mostly. Young teens are treated like stars during there time of growing just because they have talent. The issue comes when they get drafted. They have no mentors or room, to grow. This comes full circle when and if they make the to the NBA. When these kids get signed has potently great player on there rookie contract, they have to now act like adults but no one taught them how.

Overall AAU doesn't address the major things the kids need to get. They are just making money off a kid without teaching them to handle the future. They need to start the process of fundamentals and media press control. They need to make sure these American players have skill sets for on the court and off the court.

The Charlotte Hornets Disaster

Ever since Michael Jordan bought the Charlotte Hornets they only have made the playoffs 3 times. Of those 3 times, they never made it to the second round and got swept in 2 of those series. The Hornets have had a very difficult time since returning to Charlotte in 2004. They have had very little success and only made the playoffs 3 times in total since 2004. The Hornets also have had the worst record of all-time percentage wise with a win percentage of .106.

The Hornets have dug themselves into a huge hole with giving awful contracts to players who aren't living up to those contacts. They also have had draft picks who haven't panned out exactly how they've hoped. The Hornets were all ready to pick Donovan Mitchell in the 2017 draft, until Michael Jordan stepped in and said to take Malik Monk instead. Monk was a very good college player, but in the pros he fell short to expectations. In his rookie year Monk averaged 6.7 points per game, and so far in his sophomore year he's averaging 9.4 points. Monk was suppose to come in and help take some of the scoring load off of Kemba Walker, but that hasn't happened.

Kemba Walker is on a tear this season averaging 25 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 4.3 rebounds. Walker is  currently the 13th highest scorer in the league. Kemba Walker was voted to be a starter in the All-Star game this season, and has been in talks for MVP. Walker is the best player in Charlotte and could be changing teams this offseason. Next season the Hornets have to pay $102 million in contracts, which doesn't give them much room to sign any new players. The Hornets are in a race to make sure they resign Kemba Walker.

Walker has a lot of options this offseason, with the Knicks, Clippers, and Lakers all have a realistic shot. According to the Charlotte Observer, the Dallas Mavericks are the biggest threats to steal Kemba from Charlotte. The Mavericks are operating at an aggressive position for Walker. Mark Cuban is an aggressive owner, who has a persona around the league as an owner you'd like to play for. The Mavericks have enough salary cap space to offer Walker a max contact, and is the teams top priority this offseason.

Mitch Kupchak, Hornets GM, is under a lot of pressure this offseason. He has to somehow convince his superstar player, Kemba Walker, to stay in Charlotte. If Walker does leave the Charlotte Hornets will drop in attendance rate. According to ESPN, the Hornets are currently 23rd in attendance per game, after Walker's departure they could drop to potentially last place.

Without Walker the Hornets have no true star to advertise to the city of Charlotte. This team could be face with a complete tailspin of a disaster if Walker does decide to leave. This team has already hurt Michael Jordan's post playing legacy and it's up to Kupchak to fix this problem. They need to draft better, to build better around Walker. The Hornets #1 priority this offseason will be to keep Kemba at all costs.

Player movement! Where is it going?

Players and owners have had so much going on. Everything that has happened could be apart of the problem both sides have with one another. Both sides want to control the movement of the individual players. Now if one thing goes wrong the other side blames the other. How long can this go on for?

The first major reason has to do with social media. Players having protection online has had some power to make the conversation before the owners could start it. Owners can no longer move with time because the power of social media gives to the players under them. Its a game of cat and mouse. who ever starts the conversation can control it easier when someone answers back. Players and Owners talking about there problems in public. There is less private conversations and more public battles.

The second point is the players being hard on teams. In a good and bad ways the league has seen the players holding the teams more accountable for mistakes they have done. With the help of agents the players have learned how to navigate the business part of the NBA. Players are leaning more towards risk over comfort. The leader of the movement is Lebron James. So much of the power these players have is controlled though short contracts and no trades clauses.

The last part of the equation is the owners. The owners are very powerful with many tricks to keep players on there teams. Owners can use super max contracts to attract their super star player to stay on their team. Also they have the benefit of having control of the rookies they draft for 7 years. the first four year on rookie contract and the follow contract that they could keep the player for at least another 3 years.

Jazz Backs up Westbrook against Racial Taunts

Thunder star Russell Westbrook was again involved in a heated exchange with Jazz fans.Westbrook was captured on video screaming “I'll f— you up, you and your wife” to hecklers Monday during Oklahoma City’s 98-89 win over the Jazz.

   After the incident, five spectators received "warning cards” for their behavior, according to the Deseret News. But, they were not kicked out of the arena and returned to their seats, the report says.Westbrook was fined $25,000 for “directing profanity and threatening language to a fan.

A day right after the Oklahoma City Thunder standout directed vulgar comments which were captured on video and went viral toward two fans, the Utah Jazz responded by banning a fan from their arena. Westbrook also got support from Jazz star Donovan Mitchell, Who surprisingly said that is not the first time a racially motivated event happened at a Jazz game.

“The Utah Jazz will not tolerate fans who act inappropriately,” the Jazz said in a statement. “There is no place in our game for personal attacks or disrespect.” But if this isn’t the first time obviously they must be allowing it to happen only this time they weren’t able to ignore the problem due to the situation being brought in to the light. 

The comment, and threatening a woman, is not a good look for the image conscious NBA especially since it came from a former Most Valuable Player and one of the game’s biggest stars. 

The New York Giants Need A New GM After Trading Odell Beckham

Dave Gettleman was brought into New York on December 28th, 2017 to be the teams General Manager, previously he was the GM of the Carolina Panthers. The Panthers did reach the Super-Bowl with him but they fell off immediately after losing the Super-Bowl. Gettleman released Steve Smith, arguably their best receiver, and let Josh Norman walk, their best defender. Gettleman was fired not even 2 years after reaching the Super-Bowl.

GETTLEMAN TRADED THE GIANTS GENERATIONAL WIDE RECEIVER IN ODELL BECKHAM JR. Odell is a generational player who is going to become one of the best wide receivers of all time. In return the Giants got a midlevel 1st round pick, 2019 3rd round pick, and Jabrill Peppers. Peppers would be a great addition typically, but not for the best receiver in today's game. On top of this trade, the Giants let go of their best defender in Landon Collins for nothing. They could've franchised Collins or at least trade him away before letting him walk for nothing. Collins was the best defender on the Giants and they got no one for him? The Giants also got rid of their best pass and rushing d-linemen in Snacks and Vernon for a pick and an offensive linemen. This would be okay at best if the Giants had other defensive linemen but we don't have anyone who matches their skill level.

Gettleman is a complete joke of a general manager who the Giants need to fire. We gave Odell $20 million a year because he deserved it but why pay him if we are going to get rid of him? In today's game the best teams are the ones with a rookie scale contract with a team built around them. The Giants should've drafted Dwayne Haskins and from there built a better team around him with Odell at receiver. Odell could've bailed out Haskins like how he's been doing with Eli for the last 2-3 years. Eli is awful without Odell and decent with Odell on the field. Odell makes quarterbacks better. The Giants need to finally part ways with Eli because it's time, he needs to go. Odell Beckham Jr is the best receiver in the league and to let him walk for practically nothing is a complete joke.

The Giants need to fire the head coach, Pat Shumur, whose record as a head coach is 15-34. Shurmur has a win percentage of .306%. On top of this awful coach, we have a worst general manager who doesn't believe in analytics. The Giants need a new front office after this offseason.

The Plane Ride That Changed The Celtics Season

Boston has been having a very turbulent season so it would only makes sense that a plane ride would fix the season. To begin the Celtics west coast road trip, Kyrie Irving and the team had a heart to heart about everything. According to Al Horford what happened was that "Kyrie was instrumental because he was the one that initiated everything as far as being like, ‘Hey, let’s have conversations, let’s play cards, let’s do this, let’s do that' on this plane ride.” Kyrie starting this conversation made this 6 hour plane ride go by faster, Horford said. Since this plane ride the Celtics are 3-1, and when they win they are winning by an average of 16 points on this stretch.

The Celtics did have a very impressive 33 point victory over the Golden State Warriors, with Hayward scoring 30 points. It was promising to see Hayward scored 30 points with the playoffs coming closer. If the Celtics are to become real contenders in the Western Conference playoffs Hayward needs to become more of a factor. The Celtics then went on to win a close game over the Kings, where Hayward hit the game winning shot. Against the Lakers, the Celtics won on National TV by 13 points. Against the Clippers, the Celtics got blown out by 25 points and had 140 points scored on them ultimately it was for the best.

In a blowout typically it only tells you that the team didn't go out there and truly put in their best effort, but this blowout was very telling to the state of the Celtics. Instead of walking right off the court, Kyrie Irving waited for every single one of his teammates to get off the court first. Kyrie high fived everyone one of his teammates, and even waited for Hayward so Irving would be the last person off the court. Kyrie was still clapping everyone of his teammates buckets in the 4th. This is very telling that this plane ride actually affected Irving, it gave him a better sense of how to be a leader for this team. This blowout shows that even when it goes bad Kyrie is still willing to prove that he's going to be the leader for this team. It also sends a message to the Celtics that they need to work on their defense. The Clippers had their highest scoring game all year at 140 points. The Celtics are aspiring to make the Finals this year, if they want to do this they all need to pay attention on defense. This needs to begin with Kyrie, as a leader if he begins to play defense all the other players will play harder on this side of the ball also.

The Celtics are looking more like a team and Kyrie Irving is the reason for it. Terry Rozier told reporters that "Ky's our leader and when he's in a great mood and he's feeling good, we're hard to beat and it's contagious. It rubs off on everybody else. Sometimes when he's not like that, it can get everybody uptight. So the way he's been acting has been great, and it's been good for us.” This just shows how much these guys do look up to Kyrie, he's the clear leader in this locker room and his mood effects how much this teams overall mood is. When Kyrie was mad that locker was almost toxic, they didn't talk to each other and on the court everyone looked to be distant from each other. Since this plane ride, the Celtics looks like a basketball team again. Everyone is cheering each other on and they seem to be together. The Celtics are starting to be as one cohesive unite and this should worry the league going into the playoffs.

Kyrie Irving doing this leadership technique right after the media had destroyed him is interesting however for this summer. Kyrie wants a max deal and doesn't want that to be effected by his leadership style or health reasons. The other reason he did this turnaround could be that he wants to resign in Boston. Kyrie had that famous fan event interview where he said he wants to come back as long as Boston wants him to come back. Throughout the season the rumors began that Kyrie and Kevin Durant would team up in New York. Maybe Kevin Durant told Kyrie he's going to resign with the Warriors, so Kyrie is now trying to repair his relationship with the Celtics so he can resign to them.

The Celtics season was saved because of a plane ride where Kyrie would become a better leader from it. Since this plane ride the Celtics are 3-1, almost completing a complete sweep of all the California teams. Kyrie Irving looks like he's becoming a better leader now and this should scare the league. The Celtics were within a few minutes and a Terry Rozier 3 of making the finals. Now the Celtics have Irving and Hayward, they are going to be a force in the playoffs and the teams in the East better be ready.

Lakers Bust!

Lakers have had a rough year for this NBA season. So many things happened for the team that was Lebron great destiny to win one for the Lakers. The problem is LA is to big for Lebron to be Lebron. But why is that a issue? There many reasons why this could work in this way.

One issue he has had is control and respect.When Lebron joins a team, there is level of respect he is given without trying to get. He is seen as an great player and many young players ideal player is him. He has progressed the player movement to new heights. With all that said the lakers young core develop a pride from last season where they were the lead guys. The feeling is lebron came in and tried to take all the power fast. The team didn't mess well overall. Also lebron has been known to get rid of coaches he doesn't like. It became very clear him and Luke didn't have a good relationship. With the injury and no support shown towards the coach with all drama. Lebron has wanted the same kind of influence that he has had in Cleveland for there many years.

The second and most important thing is expectation. lebron before this season was the best player in the league. No one could touch him when it came to the game of basketball. So coming to the lakers was a big move. La has one of the most historical teams in the NBA. So the two coming together should have been a dream. A good young core, the best player, and Magic Johnson has a GM is golden. There was nothing short then great of the combination. the problems came when they couldn't live up to that standards that was once welcome. Lebron was ready to wait for the young core but then he wasn't. The team fell expectation and nothing more.

Overall there is alot blame to pass around for the lakers.You blame the coach for not putting the roles of each player on the team. You can blame Lebron for not considering he was no longer in Cleveland and had to change his method of leadership. the blame can go to the owners and magic for not doing what they needed to do too play better and keep the peace. there is more then enough blame. There needs to be a shift in thinking if the lakers hope for any success.

James Dolan drops the Hammer?

There are 30 teams in the NBA right now in the league. We don't know all the owners of all the teams but when we do know them, they tend to be more impactful for there teams in both good and bad. Also the fame of the owners are very dangerous because they could lash out at fans.One of those owners has to be James Dolan.

James has been rumored to go over the head of his GMs when it comes to teams rosters. He always goes against the advice and judgment of his GM and coaches constantly. The one big mistake he did in recent years was going after Phil Jackson. He was the only GM that he didn't get in the way of. All the things that he let happen was just bad.The time he should have tried to stop he didn't. Phil never wanted that job but because he was getting more and more money he eventually accepted . if it took that for someone to say yes you should have given up and looked else where.

He has had many more interactions with fans were they don't like him. Recently he was he was heckled by a fan to sell the team. He then decided to ban the fan from all the knicks games because of anger. This isn't a one first time for the ban as well. In 2017, he did the same to a season ticket holder for the criticism of the Phil Jackson era. It is considered a crime in his head for people not liking his chooses for the team. It is everyone and anyone who dares to tell him is doing a good job.

James is the worst owner in the NBA right now. It is rumored that he wants to sell the team but keep the area for the profits. That even if he doesn't have control of the team he still has interest finical for the rest of his life. That is a bad deal for so many reasons but the Knicks need to be good again. james has done noting but hurt them.

Lakers Tanking? King James on minute Restriction

since the All-Star break, James has averaged a team-high 38.6 minutes per game, which is also the fourth-most minutes per game any player has averaged since the All-Star break. James has been effective with those minutes, averaging 28.6 points, 8.5 assists, 9.8 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game, but with playoffs almost certainly out of the question this season, it makes sense for him to play less. So is it a possibility that they Lakers are tanking the rest of the season? Probably not after all, 28 to 32 minutes per game is still a good amount of playing time, but it does mean that they’ve likely accepted that playoffs aren’t in the cards for them this season. With that being the case, there is no longer a desperation to win games and, coincidentally, no longer a need to play James heavy minutes.

With Lebron's minute reduction who will it be split upon? I feel as if the minutes will get split up between Lance Stephenson, Reggie Bullock, and Tyson Chandler, they always tend to give good useful minutes when they are out there it would only make since to increase their time for production.But, regardless of where the extra minutes go, the Lakers are wise to take them away from James, not because he’s not good, but because it’s probably in their best interest to have him on the bench.

As it stands, the Lakers are just a game back from having a top-10 pick in the upcoming draft. No, that pick might not get them a shot at Zion Williamson, but it could be seen as a valuable asset on the trade market this summer. After all, top-10 pick sounds better than lottery pick on paper.

I'm not saying that they should now just tank the rest of the season for a top 10 pick, but at this point in the season when you have no hope why not? 

Is RJ Barrett The Best College Prospect?

Duke has 3 of the top 4 college prospects by all accounts. This Duke team is absolutely sensational with the chance of winning the NCAA Championship this year. When Zion and Rj first came into college the debate was who was going to be better? Rj was the top ranked high schooler by ESPN, while Zion was lighting up the world with his dunks. As the season progressed it was clear that Zion was the better player, but now you can't help but question if Rj truly is the best player on Duke.

This season Rj is having an incredible year of averaging 23.3 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game. Barrett has just broken the Duke Scoring Record by a freshman in the season, this includes people like Marvin Bagley and Brandon Ingram. Barrett is having an incredible year and averaging more points than Zion is, which is 21.6 points. Barrett is also averaging 2 more assists than Zion, which means his playmaking for other is better.

Barrett's father is a retired professional basketball player, which I think means something. When a player's family member was in the pro's this will help ease the transition to the professional league. Look at Donovan Mitchell's rookie year, his father was a baseball player in the minors and Mitchell's ease to the pro's was easier than the average players. There's a number of professional athletes all throughout the leagues whose parents were in the pro's and their team easing into the professional league was easier. 

Barrett's godfather is Hall Of Fame Point Guard Steve Nash. Steve Nash is one of the greatest point guards of all time and his playmaking was phenomenal. With Nash showing Barrett a few things. it's no shocker that Barrett is averaging 4.2 assists without even bringing up the ball most plays. With Nash being a mentor to Barrett it'll help him become a great playmaker and better decision maker.

Coming into college, Rj was highly regarded as the best high school player. ESPN, Rivals, and 247Sports all had him ranked as the #1 overall high school player. Barrett was the most skilled player coming into college and during the McDonald's All-American game Barrett proved this to be true by dropping 26 points. 

Since Zion has gotten injured Barrett has stepped up tremendously, becoming the leader Duke needed. Rj Barrett will become in talks more for first overall if Zion remains to sit out. When you look at Barrett's stats his assists and rebounds have gone up, with him even dropping 33 points against UNC. Barrett should be considered the first overall pick if a team is looking for a potentially more skilled player. 

Tanking the way to Williamson?

The league has had a lot of teams not do well this year. For one reason or another there is just so many struggling franchise that the top teams are few. But saying that only three teams really have a shoot at the number one pick. The Cavilers, the Sun, and the Knicks are the front runners for that pick. The truth that we all know is the pick will probably be Zion Williamson. Should your team go after Him?

The Cavs have had alot of luck in the past with getting these picks. They are no strangers to having young talent who could have a great future. The benefits with the Cleveland team is clearly needs some hope to aid their young core. The young core could push forward with all the talent already on their team. Zion would bring much need spark to the fan base to see a future star. The question stands if he is a good fit for the team. Kevin love is still a big piece of the team. the team will find it impossible to trade him because of his contract. Also the team has promising young players who are showing great improvement for the last couple months. I think overall the team that cavs have isn't a long term team and they will try to build around Zion if they do get to pick him.

The suns are playing a odd game plan. They don't really have one right now to improve their team. They have lots of talent but no direction. Honestly If they were to pick Zion, it wouldn't change the team very much. They many win more games or the same. Devin Booker Is on the team and a stud. the only the thing is that he doesn't have the best judgment for the team. I believe the first real move the suns need is a new coach and GM. James Jones has not done a great job for the suns. Previously in the year he released Tyson Chandler for no real reason with a buyout. they could have put him in a trade package or something to benefit the team. Zion Williamson is the kind of player who needs to develop with a good team of mentors and coaches. He doesn't fit here because no one player will change the team. They have management problems and until they have a game plan with a new or old management that could work. Zion would be wasted here no matter what.

The last team is the Knicks. they have the most win or bust mode in the off season. they have traded they whole team away in hopes to get two super stars and the number one pick. If they do get all of these then Zion would be learning under two stars we cant yet because nothing happened yet or he could be alone on very low powered team overall. The knicks don't have anything right now minus some young players who could be good in the future. But only time will tell. If Zion does become Knicks it could the best situation or the worst. He does go alone they mostly build around him. the Knicks could use in any situation. It would be the most usage in any point.

The Warriors Worst Home Lost In Over A Decade

Last night the Celtics beat the Warriors 128-95. Gordon Hayward had one of his best games all season with 30 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists. According to Adam Himmelsbach, this was the first time since March, 27th, 2006 where the Warriors had a wire-to-wire lost. This basically means that the Warriors never had a lead at any point during the game, where the Celtics lead by as much as 35 points. The Warriors only shot 22.9% from 3's and didn't have a single quarter where they outscored the Celtics. The Warriors basically got destroyed last night and this isn't a good sign for the playoffs. If they want to make a deep run in the playoffs they need to take every game serious, even if it's a team with a lot of problems. This is a promising sign for the Celtics as they hopefully have seemed to have things going in the right position, we will see tonight if they continue this play against the Kings.

The Most Important Player To The 76ers

With the playoffs approaching the 76ers are the heavy favorite to win the Eastern Conference. They are the most dominating center in basketball with Joel Embiid, and a 6'10 point guard in Ben Simmons. The Sixers also have Tobias Harris, who arguably could've been an all-star this year and Jimmy Butler who is a 4 time NBA all-star. With all of this talent on one roster, the most important player to the Sixers playoff run is JJ Redick. 

JJ Redick is the best 3 point shooter they have, shooting at a 38.4% and making an average of 3 three pointers a game. The 76ers make an average of 11 3 pointer, that means that Redick is responsible for 27% of the 3's made a game. In today's game spacing is everything, and with Ben Simmons you need spacing due to his lack of an outside shot.

Ben Simmons is at his best on a fast-break and when he has space. In the playoffs every team is going to play off Simmons to limit what he can do, they are going to play more to the help. When JJ is in he can run off screens and help open the floor more with his 3 point shooting, creating more of a problem on the defenses. If Redick is hitting it will cause teams to play more tightly on Simmons to prevent the pass to JJ and help Simmons have an easier time to blow past the defender. 

Joel Embiid will have an easier time also with Redick on the floor. With Redick being the best 3 point shooter on the team, he can draw the defenders outside of the paint to help create a more one on one approach of defending to Embiid. Embiid is averaging 27.3 points per game and 13.5 rebounds per game, he's the most dominating center in the league. Embiid is going to be a huge contributing factor for the Sixer's playoff success, but without Redick his job gets a lot harder. 

With the floor spacing being important to shot creators, this only helps Jimmy Butler and Tobias Harris. As a shot creator you need as much room as possible to work your defender one on one. Typically teams will play some form of help defense, but with a deadeye 3 point shooter out there this makes it a lot harder to do. With a 3 point shooter, teams will be forced to have their defenders play tighter on them, causing a shot creator to have more of an isolation play.

When JJ Redick was out this season they had Landry Shamet come in and fill his role, running off screens hitting 3's. They don't have that anymore due to a trade prior in the season. Redick can not get hurt as they don't have any insurance in case he does. The Sixers tried to get Wayne Ellington, but he decided to go the Detroit Pistons. This makes Redick's presence a bigger importance as they don't have any true 3 point shooters coming off the bench in case of an injury. 

In the 2017 playoff's, JJ Redick was on the Clippers and they were playing against the Utah Jazz. The Jazz's game-plan was to stop JJ from breaking free and hitting 3's. That plan proved to be successful as they beat the Clippers 4-3 in that series, Redick helps makes other players jobs easier and without him being a factor it only makes their jobs harder. In the 2018 playoff series against the Miami Heat, JJ was unstoppable for the 76ers. He was hitting virtually every 3, averaging 2.6 3's made and 20 points per game. Redick was the MVP that series and the reason why the Sixers made it to the next round.

Redick is one of the clear leaders in the locker room and beloved by his teammates. On the JJ Redick Podcast you can find his teammates on there like Jimmy Butler, Joel Embiid, and Tobias Harris. They do admire his career he has had so far and do seem to have some admiration towards how good of a shooter he is. Redick has talked about how if Ben Simmons needs any help with his jumper, he'll be there to give him tips and he has given him tips.

JJ Redick is one of the best shooters of all time. He was a 3 point specialist with every team he's played for and been the vocal point to many of opposing defenses in the playoffs. If the Sixers want to have a long post-season run they need to incorporate Redick into the offense as much as they can. Redick is averaging a career high 17.9 point per game, with his scoring averages only going up every year. He is the key factor to the Sixers success and his importance shouldn't be devalued. 

Bogut's Returning To The Warriors

The Golden State Warriors has signed the NBL’s MVP Andrew Bogut, league sources tell "The Athletic NBA" Bogut’s representatives are working this week through letter of clearance process from Australia’s Sydney Kings.

After 13 seasons in the NBA, Bogut, 34, spent the 2018-19 season with the Sydney Kings. He averaged 11.4 points, 11.6 rebounds, and 2.7 blocks per game for the Kings, and was named the league's Most Valuable Player and Defensive Player of the Year. With his season in the NBL now over, Bogut is able to sign elsewhere. As we all know Bogut did announce that he was retiring from the NBA his plans has changed since then. 

Bogut, was originally selected by the Bucks with the first overall pick in the 2005 draft and went on to spend 13 years in the NBA. He last played with the Lakers during the 2017-18 season. He also played with the Golden State Warriors for four years and won an NBA title with them as well.

During his time in the NBA, Bogut averaged 9.8 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.6 blocked shots through 694 games. 

Bogut is a great pick up for the Warriors, but he has now had issues with both his back and his knees, two injuries that are often reoccurring. He seems to be developing a more longeterm approach to injuries/health compared to his younger days.

what is tampering?

Tampering is considered a evil practice in  many sports leagues. There are so many rules, but none of them are straight forward either. There are many problems with activity and who is doing it. But is this a real issue or just something the owners are using to control player movement .

For the players that have the player empowerment movement in mind are facing this tempering charge as slow down in the progress of it. The movement as push major strides for more money for the players and more guarantee contracts. This had led to many owners finding it difficult to control players actions. So I believe the tampering is a weapon used against the players and there agents.

For the owners the tampering rule is to protect small market teams that aren't great location. Teams like New York or LA aren't affected by the player movement because players want to play there mostly. The teams like Cavs or the pelicans struggle to get players because they don't win games or have a nice city. Other problems come when winning isn't happening ticket sales are very important. They need to make money and if businesses aren't around the small markets they need regular ticket sales and season tickets. The tempering chargers are to protect the small market beat all these odds.

The overall is the tampering chargers feel more like a balance of power for each side to prove who is stringer. Everyone is trying to beat the system. the players looking for loopholes while the owners are trying to block them. It is battle and I dont see it ending anytime soon.

Lonzo Ball out longer than we expect

Lonzo Ball went down with an ankle sprain and bone bruise against the Rockets on January 19. Since Ball has been out the Lakers defensive play has been plummeting while he’s been away. Ball’s absence to the team has been really detrimental to the team, even Lebron came out saying how his absence has impacted the team. We obviously miss another ballhandler, another playmaker," he said, per the Los Angeles Times' Brad Turner "A guy that’s very, very good defensively. With his ability to get a steal and pressure the offensive point guard and then push the pace for us, get into our early offense. So we miss that a lot."

It's been 14 games as of Thursday that he’s been out and from reports of the Lakers doctor it looks like they will be without him longer. Per Lakers beat reporter Mike Trudell, Ball still needs more time before returning to the court, stretching beyond the initial projection of a 4-6 week window

Even if doctors clear him for a return in a week's time, Ball is unlikely to make a big enough difference for the Lakers to get them back into the top eight of the Western Conference. The Lakers already put themselves and tough spot they are exactly three spots from the eighth seed. It’s highly unlikely they can put themselves into a contending spot. This truly might be Lebron’s first year in the league not making it to the playoffs.