Much has been made of what type of partnership LeBron James and Lonzo Ball can forge amidst the specter of LaVar Ball, but James may have shown that he can separate the two and learn to trust Lonzo as early as last season.
The first time LeBron James tests Lonzo Ball won’t be when he whips him his first no-look, cross-court pass when the Los Angeles Lakers begin their training camp this fall.
By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
THE defending champions San Miguel Beermen are once again back in the Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner’s Cup finals after closing out the Alaska Aces in Game Four of their best-of-five semifinal series, 104-99, on Sunday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Deprived of a chance for a sweep in their previous game, the Beermen made sure not to fall for a second straight time and forced to a sudden death by outlasting the Aces in a tightly fought match.
All they needed to do was welcome Gordon Hayward back and watch the uncertainty around them in their conference. Mission accomplished.
No one in the Eastern Conference had a better summer than Celtics president Danny Ainge, and all he did was retain a couple of his own free agents, draft a project late in the first round, and bring a veteran expat back from overseas. There were some rumors, as there always are with the Celtics, but they weren’t as breathless as past summers.
The Lakers continue their offseason of acquiring misfit toys to pair next to LeBron James. According to Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports, Los Angeles has reached an agreement with NBA veteran Michael Beasley. The Lakers have also signed Javale McGee, Rajon Rondo, and Lance Stephenson so far this offseason.
Forget about 2019. There’s a whole season to play, and Leonard makes Toronto really tough to beat.
Much of the attention surrounding Kawhi Leonard has been on his looming free agency, and rightfully so. The Raptors just traded one of the best players in team history for someone who can leave for nothing next summer.
Now that Marcus Smart and the Celtics have agreed to a new deal, there are just a few big names left unsigned. Restricted free agent Clint Capela leads that list by a wide margin, but there's also solid players like Dwyane Wade, Greg Monroe and Rodney Hood still out there. And Carmelo Anthony will join the list as well once he's bought out by the Hawks.
Half a Banana Boat Crew is better than nothing.
Thursday’s reported trade of Carmelo Anthony from the Oklahoma City Thunder to the Atlanta Hawks as part of a three-team deal also involving the Philadelphia 76ers -- and which will be followed by the Hawks waiving Anthony -- obviously clears the way for Anthony to join Chris Paul in Houston. This move has been rumored for weeks once it became clear OKC had to get rid of Anthonyto lower what would have been a lethal luxury tax bill next year.
Could Dwyane Wade be heading to China? That's one of the big questions still left unanswered as we move past three weeks of NBA free agency. Aside from Wade, there's still a number of quality names left unsigned, including Clint Capela, Rodney Hood and Greg Monroe. Plus, Carmelo Anthony will soon be an unrestricted free agent as well.
The Raptors bet big on their culture when they traded DeMar DeRozan for Kawhi Leonard.
Two years ago, the kid from Compton didn’t bother to meet with any other teams — including his hometown Lakers — before he inked a five-year extension, hopped onto a podium and healed the Raptors fanbase, announcing into the microphone, “I am Toronto.”
