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Q&A With Pete Croatto on From Hang Time to Prime Time, David Stern, the Wild 1980s, and More

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On December 1, 2020, Pete Croatto released, “From Hang Time to Prime Time: Business, Entertainment, and the Birth of the Modern-Day NBA.”   The book is a fascinating behind the scene looks about how the NBA went from a business teetering on the brink of bankruptcy in 1970s to a billion-dollar industry that dominates entertainment.  Pete dug deep into the ascendancy and spoke with scores of players, coaches, executives, and people who happened to be around to witness the stages of … [Read more...] about Q&A With Pete Croatto on From Hang Time to Prime Time, David Stern, the Wild 1980s, and More

Swapping Toxic Contracts: Russ for Wall

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Three years ago, trading John Wall for Russell Westbrook would be a fantastically interesting challenge trade.  Now it feels like….well not quite so fantastic but still a challenge trade of a sort.  Let’s break it down by bullet points: -Their contracts are virtually the same (three years and $133 million left).  Both players have $47+ million player options in 2022-23.  We have a hunch they will both exercise those options.  We have a further hunch that they may have … [Read more...] about Swapping Toxic Contracts: Russ for Wall

Revisiting Philly’s Roy Hinson/Brad Daugherty Trade

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What do you do when you are a GM and are underwhelmed by the options for the top pick?  For an object lesson on what not to do, let’s turn back time to the 1986 draft and talk about the dilemma faced by the 76ers.  This draft is best remembered for the tragic death of second pick Len Bias of a drug overdose the night after the draft.  That sad story has been well told but, before the draft, the big story was what Philly would do with the top overall pick.  Let’s review this … [Read more...] about Revisiting Philly’s Roy Hinson/Brad Daugherty Trade

A Closer Look at the 1990s Knicks

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I’ve been reading Paul Knepper’s great new book on the 1990s Knicks.  Paul was kind enough to give us a an extensive interview a few months ago and we examined the compelling story lines.  Reading his book got me to wondering about looking back at some of the details of that run.  How do the advanced stats of those teams compare with the prevailing narrative of the 1990s Knicks?  I thought we could take a look.  (By the way, you should definitely buy the book!) The … [Read more...] about A Closer Look at the 1990s Knicks

Playoff Droughts: A Review

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It’s odd to say in November but we are actually in the depths of the sorta off-season for the NBA.   In reviewing off-season priorities, I noticed that the Suns currently have a ten-year playoff drought.  That blew my mind because: (a) ten years is a long time for any team to miss the playoffs and (b) I can’t believe we are a decade removed from the Nash/Amare Suns.  In any event, this all got me wondering what each franchise’s worse playoff drought has been.  It seems that random chance would … [Read more...] about Playoff Droughts: A Review

Revisiting Magic’s Comeback

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I’ve been reading Jeff Pearlman’s great new book “Three Ring Circus,” which examines the Kobe-Shaq Era in Los Angeles from 1996-2004.  The book is fascinating in its subject but also touches on the pre-Kobe-Shaq times.  There is a short prologue on the 1995-96 Lakers, who were a decent team that happened to feature the return of a 36-year old Magic Johnson.  Magic’s comeback is a fascinating blip in NBA history.  The return is viewed as mostly forgettable because Magic did not get along with … [Read more...] about Revisiting Magic’s Comeback

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