Breaking Down The Ben Simmons Drama

by

With training camp a few weeks away, the only persistent newsworthy story is Ben Simmons' demand to be traded and his threat to holdout if he isn’t traded.  While this story has been well-covered, I thought we could break it down FAQ style and see if we can break any new ground or, at the very least, come to our own conclusions.  Let’s start with the facts as we know them: -Simmons is turning 25 years old and has four years and $160 million left on his deal. -There was no evidence, before … [Read more...] about Breaking Down The Ben Simmons Drama

Examining Noel v. Klutch

by

The most interesting NBA story of the week was business related.  Actually, it was a court filing. Nerlens Noel sued his former agents Rich Paul and Klutch Sports Group, LLC, accusing them of bungling the negotiation of Noel’s contracts over the last few years and costing Noel millions ($58 million actually).  In short, Noel was eligible for a big extension and he fired his agent at the urging of Paul, who allegedly promised that he could do better.  There has been some insightful … [Read more...] about Examining Noel v. Klutch

Revisiting the Kidd-Marbury Trade

by

Today, the Nets are at the center of the NBA universe.  They are laden with megastars and the odds-on favorite to win an NBA title.  As we are deep in the off-season, I thought it would be a good time to revisit the recent 20th anniversary of one of the Nets’ most famous trades: the dealing of Stephon Marbury to Phoenix for Jason Kidd.  The basic story is well-remembered: Kidd turned around a terrible Nets team and brought them to back-to-back Finals in 2001-02 and 2002-03 and … [Read more...] about Revisiting the Kidd-Marbury Trade

Quick Thoughts Russ/Duarte Edition

by

1. Westbrook Traded Again:  The biggest trade of draft day was the Lakers flipping Kyle Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell, Kentavious Caldwelll-Pope, their 22nd pick (who ended up being Isaiah Jackson, who was, in turn, traded to the Pacers for Aaron Holiday) for Russell Westbrook (and two future second-rounders).  My initial reaction was to wonder how a ball dominant point guard who is a shaky shooter would mesh with LeBron James and Anthony Davis. I also questioned why the Lakers would … [Read more...] about Quick Thoughts Russ/Duarte Edition

Revisiting Pippen’s Bad Days

by

Thanks to Scottie Pippen’s recent statements, we now to get to revisit the 1990s yet again.  Pippen, who apparently has a book and some other stuff to promo, told Dan Patrick and GQ that Phil Jackson’s decision to choose Toni Kukoc to take the final shot of Game 3 against the Knicks in the 1994 playoffs was “a racial move to give [Kukoc] a rise.”  At the time, Pippen refused to go back into the game and Kukoc did hit the shot for the win. Pippen and Kevin Durant also had an extended … [Read more...] about Revisiting Pippen’s Bad Days

NBA Finals Preview: Suns v. Bucks

by

The 2020-21 NBA playoffs have been a battle of attrition.  Getting a Bucks/Suns Finals would’ve been considered a reasonable prediction outcome at the start of the playoffs.  How we actually got here was not anticipated.  Milwaukee dodged a few bullets against the Nets due to some untimely injuries (but, yes, Milwaukee played well when it had to).  Phoenix has been consistently pretty good but each team they have faced so far has had to deal with major injuries to key players … [Read more...] about NBA Finals Preview: Suns v. Bucks

©2025 Hoops Analyst // Website by Webstuff