Washington Wizards star Bradley Beal is clearly miffed by coming up short of an All-Star selection, clearly voicing that anger after the game. He was joined by his fiancée, who complained during the postgame show after the Wizards beat the Charlotte Hornets 121-107, and so did his agent, who was as outraged as Beal. “Inside the NBA” analyst Charles Barkley shot the latter down, saying his agent has no ground to complain or feel upset: “You mean the agent who let hit him take the most money so he can get the biggest cut? He’s not in a position to complain,” said Barkley. “The Wizards are 16-31. Bradley Beal is a good player, but they basically have the same record as the Knicks and the Cavs.” “His agent is in no position to complain. He took the maximum extension, he knew they were gonna stink, so [the agent] took the most money he could get also.”
One more gem from Jokic. He said what …
One more gem from Jokic. He said what he liked most about All-Star weekend was getting to know the other stars personally, including Russell Westbrook. “Like, me and Russ, we were always on the court like a little bit chippy, whatever,” Jokic said. “And All-Star, we were talking like, he was good to me. He was not bad to me.”
According to a team source, nobody in …
According to a team source, nobody in the organization told Westbrook to stop shooting threes, and the team expects his period of adjustment to continue as we go deeper into the season. At a recent game, Westbrook described the trend with a keen self-awareness that underlies the type of individual growth Houston is desperate for, telling reporters: “I was only taking the shots I wanted. That’s me maturing in this game and figuring out my spots and shooting the ball when I’m ready to.”
He’s self-experimenting, still learning …
He’s self-experimenting, still learning how he can maximize sections of his game that remain spectacular while extinguishing those that are detrimental to the whole. This season he’s averaging more two-point shots per game than ever before, and his percentage on those shots has never been higher. That’s good, but it doesn’t make him flawless. There are still too many long twos, some coming in spots where the defense has stacked the paint to take away a drive. He can always pass more. Three-point percentage matters but much less so if the Rockets are comfortable letting Westbrook run the show as Harden (and all his gravity) hang out on the perimeter — cutting into space, warping the defense in ways that blow dust off an area of offense Houston’s coaching staff has yet to explore. Nudging someone who’s so devastating with the ball off of it sounds inane, but basketball teams are harder to stop when more than one player is a focal point of the nightly gameplan. That’s just a fact.
Jokic spun to his left, then pumped …
Jokic spun to his left, then pumped faked as he came back to his right. He faked inside once more, but Gobert, who will play in his first All-Star game next month, stayed home. With the shot clock dwindling, Jokic faded away and sent the ball on a steep skyward trajectory over Gobert’s outstretched arm. “Man, that got me up off my seat,” said Nuggets guard PJ Dozier, who watched from the bench as Jokic went to work against Gobert. “As soon as he went into that move, I was like, ‘Oh, this is it right here.’ We yelled, ‘Kobe!’ It was nice, man.”
“I don’t know if he was surfing to our …
“I don’t know if he was surfing to our house,” Thybulle laughed speaking of how Santa delivered presents in Australia, “but in his off time he would go to the beach and surf. Definitely remember that.” These are just some of Thybulle’s many memories of his time in Australia, a connection that he now shares with Sixers head coach Brett Brown and teammates Ben Simmons and Jonah Bolden. “It’s like the same way NBA players have a connection with each other that other people don’t, just because you are a part of a special group. … We all have a similar relationship with the land and the experiences we have had over there.”
“I’m definitely proud of Australia,” …
“I’m definitely proud of Australia,” Thybulle said. “Living outside of the U.S., I feel like you gain a certain perspective that you really can’t get living here, just because so much of the world is dominated by the U.S., whether it’s media or fashion or music, it’s all powered through the U.S., and because we live here, we are kind of in this filter bubble of our own world. Growing up in Australia I think gave me, as a kid, perspective.”
The Cleveland Cavaliers are aware of …
The Cleveland Cavaliers are aware of the incident involving a courtside fan and Toronto Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry late in the fourth quarter of Thursday night’s game, and are looking into it before deciding on discipline, league sources tell cleveland.com. After Raptors center Serge Ibaka swatted a rebound back toward the sideline, Lowry hustled over to save the ball, dove into a pair of spectators seated near center court and was shoved with two hands in the back by one out-of-line fan. Lowry immediately looked behind him and seemed to say something before getting back into the play.
A Cavs spokesperson wasn’t willing to …
A Cavs spokesperson wasn’t willing to discuss a potential punishment for the fan yet. The organization wants to review the video, from different angles if possible and in conjunction with the NBA, before commenting further. But an indefinite ban is possible, especially if it’s deemed malicious. The Cavs won’t tolerate that kind of behavior and will look to find the fan or account holder. One source said “it didn’t look good from the first angle” and they could view it in a similar light as a fan stepping onto the court, which is against arena policy.
Tom Brady stirs conversation about his future by sharing stadium picture on social media
Tom Brady isn’t in the Super Bowl Sunday, but he’s still a topic of conversation heading into the weekend after posting a caption-less picture on Twitter and Instagram late Thursday.
Tom Brady isn’t in the Super Bowl Sunday, but he’s still a topic of conversation heading into the weekend after posting a caption-less picture on Twitter and Instagram late Thursday.