Houston Rockets rookie forward Jabari Smith Jr. is well regarded for his defensive potential, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that he appears to greatly respect Golden State’s Draymond Green. Over his 10-year NBA career, Green has averaged just 8.7 points in 28.5 minutes per game. Yet, he’s played a vital role on four NBA championship teams with the …

Philadelphia 76ers star James Harden turned 33 years old on Friday and as he should, the future Hall of Famer had himself a good time for his special day. Harden spent his 33rd birthday on a yacht spending time with friends and he looked like he was having a good time. He was dressed in all white with the shades …

Indiana Pacers v Utah Jazz There’s a simple logic for why both the Jazz and Knicks want to finalize a Donovan Mitchell trade before training camp ideally, and certainly before the season begins (the Knicks remain the clear frontrunner to land Mitchell). The Knicks want Mitchell to get as much time in the system and alongside their other new guard, …

This offseason has been very long and taxing for the Brooklyn Nets organization, but it gave talented forward Ben Simmons three or so months of recovery time. Simmons is already caught in Nets rumors as there is chatter that the playmaking wing could be stretched to the five-position. A report from NBA insider Alex Schiffer of The Athletic indicates that the …

After making All-NBA First Team for the first time in his career in the 2021-22 season, star Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum undeniably cracked the list of the top 15 players in the league simply by achieving that status. But after putting in a near Most Valuable Player level performance towards the end of the season, speculation began to build …

USATSI The son of Detroit Lions legend and NFL Hall of Famer Barry Sanders is following in his father’s athletic footsteps, but he is doing so in a different sport. Michigan State released its official 2022-23 roster on Friday, and Nicholas Sanders was listed among the players joining Tom Izzo’s team. Now that the roster is out, it makes sense …

The Boston Celtics have reportedly signed unrestricted free agent center Bruno Caboclo per new reporting from Celtics Blog’s Keith Smith. The Brazilian big man is a versatile big able to play down to the 3 but has mostly played the 4 and 5 in recent years. He last played for the São Paulo FC of the Novo Basquete Brasil (NBB) …

With training camp right around the corner, For the Chicago Bulls, health was the biggest factor last season, as the Bulls fell to the No. 6 seed in the East, ultimately losing in the first-round to the Milwaukee Bucks. One of those factors stems around Lonzo Ball’s health, who underwent surgery to repair a meniscus tear in late-January and was …

The college basketball season is still 74 days away from tipping off, but CBS Sports is already looking ahead to the NCAA Tournament field in March. According to Jerry Palm’s latest bracketology update, the Gators are projected to finish the regular season as a 10-seed in the Midwest Region. That draw puts them up against No. 7 seed Virginia with …

This offseason was quite a stressful one for the Brooklyn Nets as superstar Kevin Durant requested a trade from the team and after a long summer, relations finally improved, despite the two parties coming together NBA legend and sports personality Charles Barkley sounded off about Durant. The former MVP joined the Arizona radio show Bickley & Marotta to discuss the …

Bulls need Williams to take big step next season originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago Patrick Williams turned 21 on Friday. That means the Chicago Bulls’ third-year forward can legally gamble in a casino should he so choose the next time he stops by to visit his younger teammates at NBA Summer League in Las Vegas. Not that there’s any …

The Utah Jazz appear to be headed to a rebuild after offseason trades involving the likes of Rudy Gobert, Royce O’Neale, and Pat Beverley. The Houston Rockets are under a year away from when they will likely be active in pursuing veteran additions, thanks to a large amount of salary cap room and the knowledge that future draft-pick obligations to …

Phoenix Mercury v Las Vegas Aces – Game One Part of the reason Becky Hammon left the bench in San Antonio next to Gregg Popovich to come to the WNBA was the chance to prove she could thrive as a head coach. Looks like she was right so far. On Friday, Hammon was named WNBA Coach of the Year for …

Dates, facility set for Sixers training camp in Charleston originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia The Sixers are a month away from taking a business trip to Charleston, South Carolina. The Citadel announced Friday that the Sixers will hold training camp from Sept. 27 to Oct. 2 at the military college’s McAlister Field House. The facility hosts the school’s basketball, …

Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell could be traded within the next month. The team is reportedly looking to move Mitchell before NBA training camps open at the end of September, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said on his podcast. “[Tim] MacMahon, you said I believe last week that you thought that the Jazz would make a Donovan Mitchell trade before the [regular …

After the Los Angeles Lakers traded Shaquille O’Neal and cut ties with head coach Phil Jackson in the summer of 2004, Kobe Bryant was effectively marooned on a desert island. He was left on his lonesome to carry the team the following season without any real reinforcements, and everything fell apart around him, as it finished 34-48 and missed the …

Former Badger big man Micah Potter is on the move. After spending time with the Sioux Falls Skyforce and playing in three games for the Detroit Pistons during his rookie season, the sophomore pro has been acquired by the Motor City Cruise. The Cruise are the NBA G-League affiliate of the Pistons and acquired Potter’s returning player rights on Thursday. …

The Athletic published an article recently that listed out the players and coaches with the most to prove for each NBA team heading into the 2022-23 season. For the Oklahoma City Thunder, the answer was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who will be entering his fifth season in the league and his fourth with the team. “Let’s be clear: The Thunder are still …

The Lakers are LeBron James‘ team. Which is why — certainly on the court, but more importantly at the box office for the business — LeBron is worth every penny of the $97.1 million he signed with the Lakers this summer. Don’t take my word for it, check out what new Lakers coach Darvin Ham said about the extension to …

Getty Images Minnesota Timberwolves forward Taurean Prince was arrested in Florida on Thursday night on drug charges. Prince was taken into custody at Miami International Airport on an out-of-state warrant stemming from Texas.  The Timberwolves issued a statement, which read: “We are aware of the alleged report regarding Taurean Prince and are in the process of gathering more information.” Specific …

The Houston Rockets and starting point guard Kevin Porter Jr. continue to share mutual interest in a potential contract extension this offseason, according to Kelly Iko of The Athletic. “Porter is extension-eligible this offseason, and both sides want to get a deal done before the new campaign kicks off,” Iko writes in a story published Friday. “Regardless of the outcome, …

Despite being the son of Hall of Famer and six-time NBA champion Scottie Pippen, Scotty Pippen Jr. wasn’t drawing a whole lot of attention as a college basketball player. He has a solid career at Vanderbilt University, averaging 17.5 points, 4.3 assists and 1.6 steals per game in three seasons there, but he wasn’t universally considered a legitimate NBA draft …

Stashed Boston Celtics point guard Yam Madar had a bit of a tough outing with the Israeli National Team on Thursday, scoring 11 points, an assist, and 2 steals in 27 minutes of play against the Finnish National Team in EuroBasket play. But it wasn’t enough to overcome Cleveland Cavaliers big man Lauri Markkanen’s 28 points as Finland pulled off …

LAS VEGAS (AP) — A special pregame surprise was awaiting the U.S. World Cup qualifying team Thursday night, in the form of a pep talk from Mike Krzyzewski. Coach K’s words worked for the Americans again. John Jenkins scored 22 points on 8-for-9 shooting — including a 6-of-7 effort from 3-point range — and the U.S. had little trouble on …

The Boston Celtics can finally concentrate on finding the players on finishing their roster with the Kevin Durant trade request from the Brooklyn Nets rescinded, and in so doing will likely create some new alumni in the process by bringing on a few new players in place of the depth that they had in the 2021-22 NBA season. But where …