Home About Articles Gallery Contact Works

Basketball Insiders

Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Daily: Milwaukee Bucks Face Unique Situation

Despite beating the dominant Brooklyn Nets in seven games, the Milwaukee Bucks face more uncertainty about their future than any other team in the playoffs. Last season, the Bucks accrued a 56-17 record that was good for best in the league. However, the team disappointed and saw a second-round exit at the hands of the Miami HEAT.

After that disappointing finish to a season that many believed would lead to an NBA Championship, the Bucks faced many criticisms. In response, Milwaukee rushed to fix
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Daily: Tobias Harris Improving Before Our Eyes

The Philadelphia 76ers are engaged in a 2-2 deadlock with the Atlanta Hawks in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. During the series, most of the attention has gone to big-name stars Trae Young, Joel Embiid or Ben Simmons. However, one of the most important players from the entire postseason, Tobias Harris, is a signing that many Sixers fans originally detested.

After signing a huge $180 million contract with the 76ers in the summer of 2019, the same period that saw the franchise lose Jimmy Butl
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Daily: Looking Back on Phoenix’s Unlikely Playoff Path

The year is 2019. The NBA season had just concluded, and with it, the Phoenix Suns stretched their playoff drought to nine seasons. There were some reasons for hope scattered across those years, but the team was coming off firing its fifth head coach in that span of nine years. From Alvin Gentry to Igor Kokoskov, the Suns just couldn’t seem to find the answer to their head coach conundrum. And then came Monty Williams.

With the Suns eliminating the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers and now
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

Now What? – Charlotte Hornets

Welcome back to Basketball Insiders’ “What’s Next” series. We previously covered the teams that missed both the playoffs and the Play-In Tournament. Now, we’re focusing on teams that are either on the cusp of making the playoffs or are trying to build contenders. The Charlotte Hornets, despite the outcome, had quite a fantastic season. There’s a feeling around the organization that if Gordon Hayward and LaMelo Ball hadn’t suffered significant injuries, the Hornets could’ve pushed for homecourt a
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Daily: From 17-32 To Playoffs, Where Do The Washington Wizards Go From Here?

While it was quite the bumpy ride, the Washington Wizards clinched a playoff berth in the 2020-21 season despite starting the year at 17-32. It required big moves at the trade deadline, a 17-6 run to close out the regular season and a Play-In Tournament win but the Wizards managed to make the playoffs and steal a game from the top-seeded Philadelphia 76ers.

Despite the tremendous finish to the season, an ever-important question looms over the franchise — what’s next?

The first path, banking on
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Daily: The Clippers Face a First Round Conundrum

It’s dawn on the day of the Los Angeles Clippers’ most important game in franchise history. Down 0-2 to the Dallas Mavericks, the third game in the series could potentially dictate how the franchise operates moving forward. If Los Angeles goes down 0-3, its season is ultimately over, at least historically speaking. No team has ever come back from a 3-0 deficit in playoff history.

This wouldn’t be an issue if there wasn’t so much pressure on the Clippers to perform well this season. However, the
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Daily: Where Do The Indiana Pacers Go From Here?

Entering the season, there were high hopes for the Indiana Pacers following an impressive bubble showing and eruption from T.J. Warren. However, the team finished at a disappointing 34-38 mark, finishing at ninth in the Eastern Conference and getting eliminated in the play-in tournament.

A myriad of factors played into Indiana’s rough season, but no culprit was as crippling as the injury bug. To start, the Pacers lost Warren for the year just four games into the season in what was supposed to b
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Daily: Play-In Tournament Likely Here to Stay

Originally introduced as a way for teams to navigate losing players to COVID-19, the NBA’s play-in tournament that kicked off Tuesday, May 18, is likely here to stay.

In the 2019-20 NBA bubble, a modified play-in was introduced, allowing teams to duke it out for the eighth seed if they came within a half-game of one another. The Portland Trail Blazers and Memphis Grizzlies took part in the game, with Portland advancing to the playoffs after the eight seeding games took place.

The reason for th
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Rookie of the Year Watch – May 6

With the NBA season winding down, there is limited left time for rookies to make their cases for the Rookie of the Year award. In all, three rookies are leading the charge and will likely be named the top three rookies of the season. Without further ado, let’s take a look at how the race has changed over the last few weeks.

Rookies shouldn’t be able to do what Anthony Edwards can do. Edwards is still just a teenager, but he possesses some of the best natural talent the NBA has seen. Furthermore
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Most Valuable Player Watch – May 4

With just a couple of weeks until the end of the 2020-21 regular season, the NBA’s award races are getting closer to being complete. Though several contenders emerged across the year, one is beginning to set himself apart from the rest. Let’s take a look at how the race is shaking out toward the end of the year.

With under 10 games left in the regular season, it appears the MVP award is Jokic’s to lose. Much can happen in the last few weeks of the season, but Jokic has been phenomenal all year
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Daily: Depth Fueling Washington’s Turnaround

Since starting the season at a miserable 17-32 mark, the Washington Wizards have won 12 of their last 14 games. The unlikely run gave the team a shot at the postseason that would’ve seemed laughable just mere weeks ago.

Now, the team is on the verge of making the play-in tournament. Let’s take a look at two key factors for the team and what has sparked Washington’s turnaround.

The Wizards traded former franchise icon John Wall to the Houston Rockets on Dec. 2, 2020. The 2020-21 NBA season bega
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

Darius Garland Emerging For Cleveland

In a year with many Most Improved Player candidates, Darius Garland quickly rose into the top five with his dominant play over the last month.

While the Cleveland Cavaliers are 21-39 and all but eliminated from postseason contention, the team is in a far better spot than it was last season. The Cavs were able to add to their young corps this season, bolstering it with the likes of Jarrett Allen, Isaac Okoro, Lamar Stevens and Isaiah Hartenstein. For reference, the team has just four players wit
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Rookie of the Year Watch – April 16

With under 20 games to go in the NBA season, each award’s frontrunners are coming into clearer focus. A two-man race is forming at the top of the rookie ladder, with Anthony Edwards and Tyrese Haliburton leading the charge. Without further ado, let’s take a look at how the rookie race is shaking out mid-way through April.

Edwards is scorching hot and he’s bumped his scoring up to 18.1 points per game on the season. Since Basketball Insiders’ last rookie ladder, Edwards eliminated all concerns o
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Most Valuable Player Watch – April 13

Injuries to LeBron James and Joel Embiid, two of the top three MVP frontrunners for a majority of the season, are continuing to affect the MVP race. Now, several other players caught the injury bug and are likely to lose ground on the ladder. Let’s take a look at some of the major shake-ups in the rankings over the past two weeks.

Jokic’s recent scoring numbers haven’t jumped off the page as much as his early-season stats did, but he’s impacting winning in new ways. Before a loss to the Boston
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Daily: A Bright Future is Building in Oklahoma City

A staggering treasure chest of assets, something that means nothing if the team that owns those assets can’t draft well.

Thankfully for fans of the Oklahoma City Thunder, the franchise has already shown that it can build a competitive and fun roster no matter the circumstances.

There’s no sugarcoating it, the Thunder is truly awful this season. The team boasts a truly atrocious 104.7 offensive rating, good for 30th in the league while pushing out a less-than-stellar 112.8 defensive rating, goo
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Rookie of the Year Watch – April 2

In what’s been a devastating month in the NBA for injuries to award frontrunners, LaMelo Ball went down for what looks to be the remainder of the season. Since Basketball Insiders’ last rookie ladder, much has changed in the wake of Ball’s injury. Let’s take a look at how the rookie hierarchy is continuing to evolve.

Since becoming a starter, the Kings are 7-2 and are right back into the thick of the playoff race. During that span of time, Haliburton is averaging 16 points per game while shooti
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Most Valuable Player Watch – March 29

Since Basketball Insiders’ last MVP update, significant injuries struck two of the frontrunners of the race. Despite it being late March, with teams gearing up for playoff pushes, the MVP ladder looks drastically different. Without further ado, let’s take a look at the many shakeups that have occurred in the past two weeks.

The last man standing from this season’s earlier three-man MVP race, Jokic has a stronger case than anyone else. Jokic’s play is consistent and he’s leading the Nuggets furt
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Daily: Three Under-the-Radar Trade Deadline Acquisitions

Everybody’s favorite NBA holiday, the trade deadline, came and went on a day that saw a league-record 16 deadline trades. 46 players were involved in trades, with big names like Nikola Vucevic and Victor Oladipo on the move.

However, with 46 players being moved, some are bound to fall through the cracks and go largely unnoticed. But who? Without further ado, here are three of the most underrated acquisitions at the deadline.

The Chicago Bulls were one of the outright winners of the trade deadl
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Daily: Five Hottest Names at the Deadline

The trade deadline is just days away and, while this year looks to be quieter than years past, there is still the potential of plenty of action. In a year where it is easier for teams to make the playoffs, some on the border of contention will have decisions to make about the makeup of their rosters. Let’s take a look at which players are the most discussed on the trade market this year.

Lowry is the best player on the market this season in relation to his availability. Compensation might appea
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Rookie of the Year Watch – March 19

With the trade deadline just a week away and the end of the season fast approaching, fans are getting closer to seeing which rookies will cement themselves on the All-Rookie teams. Players like LaMelo Ball, Tyrese Haliburton and Anthony Edwards are surefire contenders, but who else is in contention for the Rookie of the Year award? With teams gearing up for the playoffs, let’s take a look at how the rookie race is shaking out following the All-Star break.

Another week means another slew of domi
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Most Valuable Player Watch — March 16

With only a handful of games being played since Basketball Insiders’ last MVP ladder, one might think that there would be a lack of shake-ups in the rankings over the All-Star break. That couldn’t be further from the case, as several players are making legitimate cases while others near the top are stagnating.

Furthermore, MVP-frontrunner Joel Embiid suffered a scary injury that will keep him out for an extended period of time, meaning that this race is wide open. Let’s take a look at how the l
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Daily: What Bold Move Can the Hornets Make?

With the trade deadline approaching, the Charlotte Hornets are 18-18 and sixth in the Eastern Conference. It might seem appealing to some fans for the Hornets to go all in and chase a higher seed and first playoff appearance since the 2015-16 season.

However, in the first edition of Basketball Insiders’ “Bold Move” series, let’s take a look at the Hornets and how the best moves can often be the ones that aren’t made.

The boldest move the Hornets can make at the deadline is standing pat — and t
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Daily: Post All-Star Breakouts

With the first half of the NBA season under wraps, some teams have taken longer to come out of their shells than others. The trade deadline is rapidly approaching, currently set for Thursday, March 25, and is sure to define the course of action for several teams. Let’s take a look at which teams are poised for big second-half runs as the regular season ramps up then winds down.

Miami’s bad luck to begin the season is a combination of several factors, headlined by the shortest offseason in leagu
Basketball Insiders | NBA Rumors And Basketball Ne •

NBA Rookie of the Year Watch – March 5

The All-Star break is nearly upon the NBA, and the Rising Stars rosters were just announced with several rookies leading the charge. Two players have pulled away by a significant margin in recent weeks, with several first-year players making impacts on winning teams. Let’s take a look at how the rookie ladder has changed over the last two weeks.

February was kind to the Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month, who’s ascended to another level of stardom in the NBA in just his first season. The ro
Load More

Let's get social