Tag: NBA

Charles Barkley and Shaq roasted Kendrick Perkins for questioning how much basketball they actually watch

Charles Barkley and Shaq quickly put Kendrick Perkins in his place.

Note to self: Never question the professionalism or acumen of two Hall of Famers on any sort of nationally syndicated program. (Especially if it just seems like you’re pandering to a major media market.)

This is an important lesson ESPN’s Kendrick Perkins apparently needs to learn.

On Monday, the former NBA big man hopped on the Michael Kay Show to discuss the New York Knicks’ upcoming playoff prospects. During his conversation, Perkins called out TNT’s Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal for only watching NBA basketball when their network is broadcasting games. As it pertains to the Knicks specifically, who, again, play in New York, Perkins isn’t convinced the TNT duo has seen much of them:

“It’s obvious (that) they don’t watch basketball,” Perkins said on the Michael Kay Show. “I’m serious. They can’t watch basketball on a consistent basis. The only time they actually probably watch the Knicks is when they’re covering the Knicks on their game nights.”

Hoo boy. That is probably not something Perkins should’ve said about his peers on a public platform. Needless to say, Barkley and O’Neal caught wind of his critique and blasted the former role-player center during TNT’s first broadcast of the 2024 NBA Play-In Tournament.

How? They used the news of Blake Griffin retiring from the league to showcase one of his more famous dunks… on Perkins. Then they quickly made reference to Perkins punching up to two all-time greats out of the blue:

If Perkins’ intent was to ruffle some feathers of fellow national NBA broadcasters, he clearly succeeded. He probably should’ve kept his thoughts to the Knicks, though.

Rockets extend front office contracts of Rafael Stone, Eli Witus

“We wanted to show them as well as the public we’re excited with the direction the Rockets were going,” owner Tilman Fertitta tells the Houston Chronicle.

The Rockets extended the contracts of general manager Rafael Stone and assistant general manager Eli Witus, longtime beat writer Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle reported Tuesday. Terms of the deal, both in terms of finances and years, were not disclosed.

The agreements were reached in January, Feigen reports.

“We wanted to show them as well as the public we’re excited with the direction the Rockets were going,” owner Tilman Fertitta told Feigen. “It became clear that the Rockets had executed our plan to draft and develop young potential cornerstones for the franchise, stabilized the team with veterans that translated to winning games and found our coach for the present and future.”

By any objective measures, 2023-24 was a successful season.

After averaging fewer than 20 wins per season over the previous three years, the Rockets (41-41) became just the 10th NBA team in history — and the fifth in the last 30 years — to immediately follow up a season with 60 or more losses with a non-losing season.

Stone played a key role. In the preceding offseason, Stone hired Ime Udoka as head coach; drafted promising rookies Amen Thompson and Cam Whitmore; and signed Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks, Jeff Green, Aaron Holiday, and Jock Landale as free agents.

Those newcomers were paired with four young and talented returnees in Alperen Sengun, Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr., and Tari Eason, and the combination had immediate benefits.

Thus, Stone and Witus were rewarded. Both were hired to their current roles in October 2020 after the exit of longtime general manager Rafael Stone, and it appears they will stay in place as the Rockets ditch the rebuilding years and move closer to contention.

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Sooners legend Blake Griffin officially announces retirement

Blake Griffin, a generational athlete and former Oklahoma Sooner announced his retirement after a 14-year NBA career.

An Oklahoma basketball legend called it a career on Tuesday. Sooners basketball legend Blake Griffin announced his retirement in a post he shared via social media on Tuesday morning.

Griffin ended his NBA career after 14 years. The bulk of his career came as a member of the Los Angeles Clippers after he was drafted in 2009 as the first overall pick. He also spent time with the Detroit Pistons, Brooklyn Nets, and Boston Celtics.

Griffin retired as a six-time NBA All-Star, three-time All-NBA Second Team, two-time All-NBA Third Team, and the NBA Rookie of the Year in 2009.

 

As a high schooler from Oklahoma City, Griffin won multiple state championships. He signed with the Sooners and went on to earn selections on the Big 12 All-Rookie Team and to the first-team All-Big 12 after posting 14.7 points and 9.1 rebounds and ranking ninth in scoring, fourth in rebounding, and third in field goal percentage in the Big 12 Conference.

Instead of bolting for the impending NBA Draft, he stayed for one more year. He cemented his status as an Oklahoma basketball legend. During his sophomore season, he became the first player in Big 12 history to record back-to-back games of at least 20 points and 20 rebounds. He dropped 40 points and 23 rebounds against Texas Tech, becoming the only player in Big 12 history and the third player in the history of the University of Oklahoma men’s basketball program to record at least 40 points and 20 rebounds in a game, joining [autotag]Wayman Tisdale[/autotag] and [autotag]Alvan Adams[/autotag].

He led Oklahoma to a regional final that saw them lose to eventual national champion UNC. That year, Griffin averaged 22.7 points, 14.4 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game during the regular season and earned All-American first team honors. He also swept every major player of the year award. He’s the only Sooner to win the Naismith Award, Oscar Robertson Trophy, Adolph Rupp Trophy, John Wooden Award, and the Associated Press Player of the Year in the same season.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Bryant on Twitter @thatmanbryant.

The Knicks found a way to make The Sopranos uncool in unearthed LeBron James recruiting video

The Sopranos, the Knicks, LeBron James; everyone looks a little dumber thanks to this video.

The year is 2010. The Sopranos has been off the air for more than two years. LeBron James is approaching one of the biggest free agent decisions in NBA history. Somehow, these two things are intertwined.

We know this because Pablo Torre, ESPN scribe and host of Pablo Torre Finds Out, found the pitch video Sopranos stars Edie Falco and James Gandolfini made in the New York Knicks’ futile effort to land James. It is both surprising and awful, an effort that makes everything, from a storied NBA franchise to an all-time great basketball player to one of the greatest television shows ever made, a little dumber from being associated with it.

The video opens with The Sopranos’ iconic logo and a title card suggesting it’s two years after the show’s (initially divisive and currently appreciated) finale. Some extremely clunky dialogue informs us that Tony and Carmela have joined witness protection. The FBI has wisely placed them in New York City, where the mafia has never operated and this high profile informant could in no way be recognized.

Well, fine, whatever, David Chase didn’t write this. And that’s wildly obvious from the script basketball conjunctivitus/nepo baby/barely formed human/Knicks owner James Dolan possibly penned but definitely signed off on.

“Life’s good here, Carm,” Gandolfini says while smiling directly into the camera. “Even if we are in the witness protection program.”

“Now we’ve just gotta find a place for your friend LeBron to live,” replies Carmela, positing a world where the New Jersey gangster who once had a panic attack when he found out his daughter was dating a mixed-race classmate and the world’s most famous basketball player are friends. She eventually pulls up a stock photo of Madison Square Garden on her Macbook as Gandolfini and Falco mug for the camera. Despite being two of the most New Jersey people in the world, they’re now fully invested in the neighboring state with which they once warred because these characters are merely props in a billionaire bidding war and everything is terrible.

Thus, two Jersey icons sell themselves out in the name of New York basketball. Like most things Knicks, this was a high profile failure. James picked the Miami Heat in a televised special nearly as awkward as the video above.

Rockets GM Rafael Stone draws second-place NBA Executive of the Year prediction

Bleacher Report predicts Rockets GM Rafael Stone to finish second in Executive of the Year voting, trailing only Boston’s Brad Stevens.

By any objective measures, 2023-24 was a very successful season for the young and rebuilding Houston Rockets.

After averaging fewer than 20 wins per season over the previous three years, the Rockets (41-41) became just the 10th NBA team in history — and the fifth in the last 30 years — to immediately follow up a season with 60 or more losses with a non-losing season.

General manager Rafael Stone played a key role. In the preceding offseason, Stone hired Ime Udoka as head coach; drafted promising rookies Amen Thompson and Cam Whitmore in the first round; and signed an impactful free agency class featuring Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks, Jeff Green, Aaron Holiday, and Jock Landale.

Given that, Bleacher Report’s Grant Hughes predicts Stone to finish second (behind Brad Stevens of the Boston Celtics, who own the league’s best record) in 2024 NBA Executive of the Year voting.

His analysis:

It’s worth wondering whether Stone deserves a demerit for making a huge offer to Brook Lopez that the veteran center walked away from. If that deal had been consummated, Alperen Şengün might not have broken out in a larger role, and much may have been different for the Rockets.

With that said, Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks were shrewd signings who brought experience and toughness, redefining the Rockets overnight. Perhaps even more critical in shedding Houston’s loose and unserious image of the last three years: new head coach Ime Udoka.

Throw in Amen Thompson at No. 4 and Cam Whitmore at No. 20 in the draft, and Stone nailed the signing, drafting, and hiring trifecta.

Hughes’ complete awards prediction piece can be read here, and it lists three other Rockets as being “worth a mention” in 2023-24 awards voting. Those are Udoka for Coach of the Year; Thompson for Rookie of the Year; and Sengun for Most Improved Player.

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As regular season ends, Rockets learn 2024 draft lottery odds

The Rockets will receive a 2024 lottery pick from the Nets, while there’s a small chance that Houston can avoid sending its own draft pick to Oklahoma City.

With the NBA’s 2023-24 regular season officially complete, the Houston Rockets now have clarity on their odds entering the May 12 lottery to determine the 2024 first-round draft order.

No matter the results, Houston will own Brooklyn’s first-round draft selection, which enters in the No. 9 odds slot thanks to their 32-50 record. Houston controls Brooklyn’s own first-round draft capital through 2027 due to the January 2021 trade involving James Harden.

The odds for that pick are as follows:

  • No. 1: 4.5%
  • No. 2: 4.8%
  • No. 3: 5.2%
  • No. 4: 5.7%
  • No. 9: 50.7%
  • No. 10: 25.9%
  • No. 11: 3.0%
  • No. 12: 0.1%
  • No. 13: 0.1%

Another way of framing it: The pick from Brooklyn has a 20.3% chance of being top four, a slightly above 50% chance of being No. 9, and a probability of just below 30% of being No. 10 or lower.

As for the Rockets (41-41), Houston likely enters the lottery with the No. 12 odds slot. Unless that pick lands in the top four, it goes to Oklahoma City as part of the Russell Westbrook trade from 2019.

However, unlike the pick headed from Brooklyn to Houston, the one slated to go from Houston to Oklahoma City does at least have a chance to not convey, depending on the lottery outcome.

Here’s a look at those percentages, should Houston stay at No. 12:

  • No. 1: 1.5%
  • No. 2: 1.7%
  • No. 3: 1.9%
  • No. 4: 2.1%
  • No. 12 or lower (pick goes to OKC): 92.9%

There is a small chance that Houston could jump to the No. 11 odds slot, if the Chicago-Atlanta winner defeat the Philadelphia-Miami loser in this week’s Eastern Conference play-in tournament. Since both the Bulls (39-43) and Hawks (36-46) had worse records than the Rockets, they currently own higher odds slots. However, that would change if one unexpectedly makes the playoffs.

In that remote No. 11 odds slot scenario, the odds would be:

  • No. 1: 2.0%
  • No. 2: 2.2%
  • No. 3: 2.4%
  • No. 4: 2.8%
  • No. 11 or lower (pick to OKC): 90.6%

Whether Houston enters at No. 11 or No. 12 in the order, the odds are greater than 90% that the pick will go to the Thunder.

That said, it’s worth noting that the incoming selection from Brooklyn is already guaranteed to be higher than the outgoing pick to Oklahoma City, since the only way Houston’s pick could be ahead of Brooklyn’s selection is if Houston wins one of the four lottery selections. In that scenario, the Rockets would own both picks.

Houston also gets a 2024 second-round draft pick from Golden State (46-36), which will be at No. 43, 44, or 45 in the overall order. That will be decided by a random draw tiebreaker at a latest date.

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Report: NBA execs expect Rockets to extend Rafael Stone’s contract as general manager

Many around the NBA are expecting the Rockets to soon extend Rafael Stone’s contract as general manager, Marc Stein reports.

After three rebuilding seasons in the Western Conference basement, the young and improving Houston Rockets have climbed the standings in 2023-24 as they work to secure a winning record.

The fingerprints of general manager Rafael Stone are all over the current roster, both with young prospects showing improvement (starting with Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr., Alperen Sengun, and Amen Thompson) and 2023 offseason acquisitions such as head coach Ime Udoka and veteran leaders Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks.

With that in mind, it shouldn’t come as a surprise if Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta looks to keep Stone around beyond his current deal. From the latest newsletter of veteran NBA scribe Marc Stein:

The Houston Rockets’ strong play in the season’s second half has likewise generated an expectation in some league corners that an extension is forthcoming for general manager Rafael Stone.

This is the fourth season in the lead chair for Stone, who took over as GM when Daryl Morey moved on after the 2019-20 season. Prior to that, Stone was Morey’s No. 2 executive in basketball operations.

Most executive contracts last for four or five years, so the Rockets will likely need to make a decision on Stone either this offseason or next.

Given the improvement, it likely won’t be a difficult one.

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Here’s Victor Wembanyama’s case for Defensive Player of the Year folded up into one play against the Grizzlies

Nobody else in the NBA can do this. Nobody.

It feels like every single night Victor Wembanyama does something on the basketball court that we’ve never seen before. A 7-foot-5 dude doing a Shammgod into a spin into a layup just doesn’t make sense.

But what if I told you that might not even be the most impressive thing he did in that game alone? Because it legitimately might not be.

There’s been a debate about who should win the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year award this year. Rudy Gobert is the front-runner at this point in the year, and rightfully so, considering how impressive the Timberwolves’ defense has been this year.

But listen, man. Say what you want. Rudy Gobert isn’t blowing up a 3-on-1 fastbreak without lifting a finger like Victor Wembanyama did against the Grizzlies.

RELATED: Victor Wembanyama’s shot at Rudy Gobert shows how competitive he is

Look at this.

Dude. This is unreal. There’s no world where this is not supposed to be a bucket for the team with the ball.

The Grizzlies are just all so terrified of Wembanyama at the rim that they completely fumble this. It’s wild.

Rudy Gobert is probably going to win DPOY this year. And, again, if he does it’s well deserved. But if you want to make a case for Victor Wembanyama? This play should be at the front of the PowerPoint presentation.

As Rockets adjust tactics, Jabari Smith Jr. thrives offensively at center

Since moving to center after Alperen Sengun’s injury, Jabari Smith Jr. is scoring 16.4 points per game while shooting over 40% on 3-pointers.

When the Rockets watched Alperen Sengun get injured late in their game at Sacramento on March 10, they knew that some adjustments to the starting lineup would be coming. After all, Houston’s third-year center was having a phenomenal season.

Head coach Ime Udoka did have one advantage, though. He had a player already in his starting lineup who could fill those shoes, and he welcomed the challenge of playing a position that he had played only sparingly over the first two seasons of his NBA career.

Jabari Smith Jr., 20, moved to Sengun’s position, while rookie Amen Thompson played power forward for the first time in his career. The result was an eight-game winning streak and a coming-out party for Smith, who was a fourth option in the offense to start the season behind Jalen Green, Fred VanVleet, and Sengun.

In the 14 games since the lineup change, Smith has shown clear improvement on offense while averaging 16.4 points (48.8% FG, 40.5% on 3-pointers) and 6.7 rebounds per game. His play became a crucial part of keeping Houston’s postseason hopes alive into early April.

“I love it,” Smith said when asked about being a scoring threat when Green gets double-teamed by opponents. “That is helping me. When they double him [Green], when they double Fred [VanVleet] in the pick-and-roll, it opens up my game and it opens up a lot of opportunities for me, Dillon [Brooks], people off the ball. It is good.”

When opposing defenses are not sending multiple defenders to Green or VanVleet, they often resort to zone defense to keep Houston’s athletic guards and wings from getting to the rim. This tactic gave the Rockets some problems earlier this season, which Houston adjusted to by making Sengun a facilitating hub from the mid-post.

But once Sengun left, Houston turned to a different offensive scheme to beat the zone. They put Smith at the free-throw-line extended area, where he can burn defenses with mid-range jump shots.

“It is a luxury,” Udoka said after Tuesday’s win over Orlando. “His mid-range is obviously pretty good, and he has a size advantage.”

After recording 23 points (52.9% FG, 60.0% on 3-pointers, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists versus the Magic, Smith was similarly optimistic.

“Coach really trusts me there,” Smith said of his placement. “Just getting in there, making the right play, and being aggressive. I have shooters around me, Fred around me, Dillon around me, Jalen around me. So, I have shooters around me, and that kind of opens up everything for me. It is fun when they go zone, because it shows that they can’t guard us in man [defense]. We take that as a compliment.”

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On final road trip, Rockets see value in pursuing .500 or better season

“We just want to finish above .500 and prepare for next season,” third-year guard Jalen Green says of the final road trip for the Rockets (39-40).

Though they’re eliminated from 2024 postseason contention in the Western Conference, the Houston Rockets aren’t without motivation as the NBA’s 2023-24 regular season enters its final days.

After finishing at the bottom of the West in three straight years, the Rockets (39-40) can finish with a .500 record if they win two of their final three games. Those matchups come in Utah on Thursday; Portland on Friday; and Los Angeles versus the Clippers on Sunday.

If they win all, Houston would finish with a winning record. The Rockets have had nothing but losing seasons ever since the forced departure of longtime superstar James Harden in January 2021.

“It’s real important,” Jalen Green said of the finish. “The goal now — since the playoffs [goal] is pretty much over, or play-in — is just to finish above .500. I think we showed a lot of growth this year. I think we have grown all together as a team from the first game to now. We just want to finish above .500 and prepare for next season.”

In a macro sense, what held the Rockets back in the 2023-24 season was their play away from Toyota Center. Only four West teams currently have more home wins than the Rockets (27-14), yet only three West teams are worse than Houston’s 12-26 record on the road.

In recent weeks, however, there have been signs of that dynamic shifting. The Rockets enter this closing road trip having won seven of their last nine on the road, including a seven-game road winning streak during their 13-2 March. Thus, if they can finish the season strong, it should build confidence heading into the 2024-25 season that they’ve finally put the home-road discrepancy behind them.

“I think they’re pretty important,” head coach Ime Udoka said of the finish. “Finishing off on the right note, having carryover in these last games and just finishing on a different vibe than the last few years for the guys that have been here. We want to continue to build.”

“As sour a taste as we have from [Sunday’s heartbreaking overtime loss in Dallas], there are a lot of positives from that game,” Udoka surmised. “We were playing well against a team that is probably one of the best in the league, and kind of gave that away. We want to move past that, and finish on a good step.”

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