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The Emirates NBA Cup semifinal bracket took shape Wednesday night, and this weekend, the quest for in-season championship gold continues. Although critics of the Emirates NBA Cup concept have their thoughts, fans were treated to a pair of great games en route to Las Vegas for the title game.
The Atlanta Hawks took on the New York Knicks in a game that looked to be going the way of Jalen Bruson and the Bodega Boys until “Ice Cold” Trae Young stepped up to deliver a double-double, pouring in 22 points and 11 assists in a second-half comeback win. The Hawks took the game 108 to 100 at the famed Madison Square Garden, cementing Young’s growing legend as a star in this league. Karl Anthony Towns showed up big for his team with a 19-point, 19 rebounds double-double, but the Hawks’ bench production and efficiency wore down the Knickerbockers.
The surging Houston Rockets faced off against the Golden State Warriors and this game was decided by one point with a last-second miracle shot from Stephen Curry not going his way. The Rockets, a young team full of explosive athletes, relied on their big man Alperen Sengun, who led the Rockets with 26 points and 11 rebounds. The Rockets have lost 15 games straight to the Warriors, snapping it with their 91-90 win in a thriller of a game in Houston.
If the action on the court is any indication, the players are certainly taking things seriously when it comes to the Emirates NBA Cup, which comes with a $500,000 payday for each player and in-season bragging rights.
The bracket and game times are as follows from NBA.com:
Saturday’s Semifinals
East: (1) Bucks vs. (3) Hawks (4:30pm ET, TNT)
West: (1) Thunder vs. (2) Rockets (8:30pm ET, ABC)
Tuesday’s Championship
East Winner vs. West Winner (8:30 ET, ABC)
From our side, we’re liking the top-seeded East team Bucks over the Hawks in the early game this Saturday (Dec. 14). For the West, it’s hard to imagine anyone getting past the stacked and top-seeded Thunder team, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander commanding the point. Don’t take any advice from us, we’re just sharing our opinions! It all goes down this weekend. We can’t wait.
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Charles Barkley shocked the sports media world after announcing that he would retire from broadcasting at the conclusion of the 2024-25 NBA season much to the dismay of many. The Hall of Fame hooper has since walked back those comments, saying that he intends to stick around in the booth for the foreseeable future.
Charles Barkley, 61, shocked viewers during this year’s NBA Finals between the Boston Celtics and Dallas Mavericks, citing the current shakeup in the media landscape regarding the NBA rights going to other networks and reportedly ending the deal with TNT and Warner Bros. Discovery.
“There’s been a lot of noise around our network the last few months and I just want to say I’ve talked to all the other networks, but I ain’t going nowhere other than TNT,” Barkley said during a postgame chat during the Finals.
The comments from “The Chuckster” were fueled by the NBA’s expiring deals with ABC/ESPN and Turner Sports, the latter of which Inside The NBA airs on its TNT network. As has been widely reported, the NBA reached agreements with NBC, ESPN, and Amazon, effectively ending the Turner Sports connection although the company says it will continue to try and retain some rights beyond next season.
Via a statement, Barkley stated his intentions to work beyond the following season while giving praise to his current network:
“I love my TNT Sports family. My (number one) 1 priority has been and always will be our people and keeping everyone together for as long as possible. We have the most amazing people, and they are the best at what they do. I’m looking forward to continuing to work with them both on the shows we currently have and new ones we develop together in the future. This is the only place for me, Barkley said. “I have to say — I’ve been impressed by the leadership team who is fighting hard and have been aggressive in adding new properties to TNT Sports, which I am very excited about. I appreciate them and all of my colleagues for their continued support, and most importantly our fans. I’m going to give my all as we keep them entertained for years to come.”
Warner Bros. Discovery, which owns TNT Sports, has filed a lawsuit against the NBA, as reported by the Sports Business Journal. In the suit, Warner says that the league neglected the company’s matching offer, which Warner belives forcibly denied them the opportunity to obtain a package from the NBA.
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Ime Udoka, currently the coach for the Houston Rockets, found his name trending on X this morning (June 18) after his former team, the Boston Celtics, captured their 18th NBA championship on Monday. Because the game is the game, Ime Udoka is getting cooked on the social media network for fumbling the bag and other choice digs as expected.
The Boston Celtics put on a masterclass in basketball efficiency last night, taking out the Dallas Mavericks with ease after getting walloped last Friday on the Mavs’ home court. The team the Celtics put on the floor last night was comprised of players Udoka coached, during his years with the franchise.
As most know, Udoka was suspended by the Celtics organization for the entire 2022-23 season for engaging in an inappropriate relationship with a woman who also worked for the team. Assistant coach Joe Mazzula assumed head coaching duties, leading the team to victory in the 2024 NBA Finals with Jaylen Brown earning the Finals MVP trophy.
Udoka was a beloved coach for the Celtics and got the team to the 2022 NBA Finals, but bumped into a still feisty Golden State Warriors team despite going up 2-1 in the series. It was assumed that the Celtics would eventually reach this level again under his leadership but the controversy proved to be too meddlesome.
Further, Udoka’s relationship with actress Nia Long also suffered an end due to the issues stemming from the relationship with the Celtics employee. If there is one bright spot, Udoka, despite the stain on his name, managed to secure another head coaching gig with Houston, although the team didn’t perform up to the standards befitting of its young and talented core.
On X, formerly Twitter, fans are frying up Ime Udoka as his former team basks in glory. Check out the replies below.
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Charles Barkley is one of the most vital media figures of the global basketball community as evidenced by his long stint on the popular Inside The NBA program. Amid the NBA looking to enter broadcasting deals with other networks, Charles Barkley announced that the 2024-25 NBA season will be his last as a member of the Inside The NBA panel.
Charles Barkley, 61, appeared on NBA TV after Game 4 of the NBA Finals series between the Boston Celtics and the Dallas Mavericks, with the Mavs handling business. Barkley, speaking in his usual straight-talk fashion, has said previously that he was trying to find ways to keep Inside The NBA going but shocked viewers with his retirement announcement during the broadcast.
“I ain’t going nowhere other than TNT,” Barkley said. “But I have made the decision that, no matter what happens, next year is going to be my last year on television. And I just want to say thank you to my NBA family. You guys have been great to me. My heart is full with joy and gratitude.”
Barkley was referencing the ongoing negotiations between the NBA and Disney/ABC/ESPN, Amazon, NBC, and Warner Bros. Discovery for the league’s media rights. From early reports, it appears that Warner Bros. Discovery was the only group out as NBC seemingly emerged as a frontrunner although Adam Silver and the NBA have yet to share details of the potential deals. As it stands, Warner Bros. Discovery owns TNT and Inside The NBA and if a deal doesn’t materialize, the show would likely end anyway.
“I hope the NBA stays with TNT, but for me personally, I wanted you guys to hear it from me. I wanted to tell my NBATV and TNT family that I’m not going to another network, but I’m going to pass the baton to either Jamal Crawford or Vince Carter or you Steve [Smith],” Barkley added.
Charles Barkley added a no-nonsense air of authority on the show and his spirited and sometimes chippy banter with co-host Shaquille O’Neal and good-natured ribbing with Kenny “The Jet” Smith and Ernie “EJ” Johnson Jr.
Barkley has been with the network since 2000.
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Chance Comanche, a former player for the NBA G League‘s Stockton Kings, was recently arrested by the FBI as a person of interest involving the murder of a woman in Las Vegas. Now, it has come out that Chance Comanche allegedly confessed to the strangling death of the woman along with the help of a former girlfriend according to documents.
The Associated Press reports that Chance Comanche, 27, allegedly confessed to strangling a woman in Las Vegas after the remains of a woman were found in the nearby town of Henderson, Nev. Earlier this week, Comanche was taken into custody in Sacramento, Calif., and shared details of the alleged murder of Marayna Rodgers, 23, this coming from a Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department affidavit.
“I cannot comment on the substance of any statements made to law enforcement,” Comanche attorney Michael Goldstein said Wednesday. “We made our initial appearance yesterday, and the allegations will be addressed in court.”
Comanche is currently being held without bond and appeared in court on Tuesday (December 19) and agreed with the transfer of his custody to Nevada to face murder and conspiracy to commit murder charges.
Along with Comanche, the player’s former girlfriend, Sakari Harnden, 19, is also facing charges and is being held in a Las Vegas jail without bond.
Reports say that Rodgers, who worked as a medical assistant in Washington state, was first reported missing on December 7 after visiting Las Vegas with friends. According to police, Rodgers moonlit as a sex worker and argued over a watch with Harnden, also reportedly a sex worker. Police reports say that Comanche and Harnden choked Rodgers to death on December 6 and disposed of her body in Henderson.
While it isn’t clear who was the mastermind of the scheme, the affidavit adds that Comanche was posing as a potential customer of Rodgers and would tie her hands behind her back. Then, using a cord to keep Rodgers in place, Harnden choked Rodgers with her bare hands. The pair then dumped the body in a roadside ditch.
Chance Comanche, a 6-foot-10 power forward and center, played at the University of Arizona from 2015 to 2017 before forgoing his final two years of eligibility for the NBA draft. He went undrafted and signed with the Portland Trail Blazers. The Stockton Kings, an affiliate NBA G League team of the Sacramento Kings, took on Comanche after the Kings signed and waived him in October.
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The Washington Wizards and the Washington Capitals have called Capital One Arena home but it appears that a change of location is on the horizon. The owner of the team and Virginia’s governor announced a plan that would bring the teams eight miles south of the city to Alexandria, Va. in 2028.
CNBC reports that Monumental Sports & Entertainment, which owns the Wizards and Capitals, CEO Ted Leonis and Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced a plan that will bring a new 20,000-seat area, and practice facilities along with a mixed-used development to the Northern Virginia city, which rests in the shadow of the Nation’s Capitol.
Below is a statement from Governor Youngkin:
“This is the most visionary sports and entertainment development in the world, bringing together entertainment, sports, and technology in the most advanced innovation corridor in the United States: a once-in-a-generation and historic development for the Commonwealth, sports fans, and all Virginians. The Commonwealth will now be home to two professional sports teams, a new corporate headquarters, and over 30,000 new jobs – this is monumental. This was only made possible through consistent collaboration between Virginia’s economic development team, the Monumental Sports & Entertainment team, the City of Alexandria, our administration and the Virginia General Assembly’s Major Employment and Investment Project Approval Commission, and JGB SMITH. Virginia is undoubtedly the best place to live, work, raise a family, and now watch basketball or hockey.”
Leonis added a statement as well:
“We are committed to providing world-class fan experiences while continuously evolving our teams, deepening community ties, and solidifying our role as leaders at the forefront of sports and technology. The opportunity to expand to this 70-acre site in Virginia, neighboring industry-leading innovators, and a great academic partner, would enable us to further our creativity and achieve next-generation, leading work – all while keeping our fans and the community at the forefront of everything we do.”
The move faces legislative approval from lawmakers during the next Virginia General Assembly, where Democrats control the upper chamber while Republicans, which is Youngkin’s party, control the lower chamber.
If Monumental does indeed move its business holdings and operations to Alexandria, it would leave downtown Washington, D.C., which some experts say is in decline, without the economic boosts of games and other events.
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The Washington Wizards and the Washington Capitals have called Capital One Arena home but it appears that a change of location is on the horizon. The owner of the team and Virginia’s governor announced a plan that would bring the teams eight miles south of the city to Alexandria, Va. in 2028.
CNBC reports that Monumental Sports & Entertainment, which owns the Wizards and Capitals, CEO Ted Leonis and Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced a plan that will bring a new 20,000-seat area, and practice facilities along with a mixed-used development to the Northern Virginia city, which rests in the shadow of the Nation’s Capitol.
Below is a statement from Governor Youngkin:
“This is the most visionary sports and entertainment development in the world, bringing together entertainment, sports, and technology in the most advanced innovation corridor in the United States: a once-in-a-generation and historic development for the Commonwealth, sports fans, and all Virginians. The Commonwealth will now be home to two professional sports teams, a new corporate headquarters, and over 30,000 new jobs – this is monumental. This was only made possible through consistent collaboration between Virginia’s economic development team, the Monumental Sports & Entertainment team, the City of Alexandria, our administration and the Virginia General Assembly’s Major Employment and Investment Project Approval Commission, and JGB SMITH. Virginia is undoubtedly the best place to live, work, raise a family, and now watch basketball or hockey.”
Leonis added a statement as well:
“We are committed to providing world-class fan experiences while continuously evolving our teams, deepening community ties, and solidifying our role as leaders at the forefront of sports and technology. The opportunity to expand to this 70-acre site in Virginia, neighboring industry-leading innovators, and a great academic partner, would enable us to further our creativity and achieve next-generation, leading work – all while keeping our fans and the community at the forefront of everything we do.”
The move faces legislative approval from lawmakers during the next Virginia General Assembly, where Democrats control the upper chamber while Republicans, which is Youngkin’s party, control the lower chamber.
If Monumental does indeed move its business holdings and operations to Alexandria, it would leave downtown Washington, D.C., which some experts say is in decline, without the economic boosts of games and other events.
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Draymond Green is undoubtedly one of the most passionate players the NBA has ever seen, but sometimes that passion has led to being ejected from games. In the heat of battle once more, Draymond Green was ejected from his third game of the season after wildly swinging and punching Jusuf Nurkic.
Golden State Warriors were visitors to the Footprint Center, the home court of the Phoenix Suns in a Western Conference showdown. Draymond Green and Jusuf Nurkic were mixing it up down low in a battle for position when Green swiftly swung with his arms wide and socked Nurkic on the side of the head. Nurkic, significantly larger than Green, was crumpled to the floor.
Officials on the floor reviewed the physical exchange, ruling it a flagrant 2 foul and leading to Green’s ejection. While it wasn’t the most direct apology, at least on its surface, Green did offer in a postgame comment that he was trying to sell a foul and didn’t intend to hit Nurkic.
Coach Steve Kerr addressed Green’s ejection, stating that the team always needs him on the floor. Green is an integral part of the Warriors’ offense, especially in his point-forward role and defensive prowess.
Green caught wind of Coach Kerr’s comments and doubled down on his point that if he never meant to hit Nurkic and stated that he isn’t one to apologize for something he intended to do, hence why he apologized to Jusuf Nurkic.
With this event being the third suspension of the year for Green, he has tied his previous ejection count in this early going of the season. Green recently served a suspension for putting Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert in a chokehold. It isn’t known what the NBA will decide for Green after this latest ejection.
We’ve got reactions below from NBA Twitter regarding the Draymond Green and Jusuf Nurkic dustup. We also have the video of the incident courtesy of ESPN.
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Basketball fans may have scoffed at the NBA In-Season Tournament initially but ended up being treated to some of the best games so far early in the season. The Los Angeles Lakers and Indiana Pacers locked horns for the inaugural tournament final with the Lake Show taking the whole thing on the back of Anthony Davis and LeBron James.
The NBA In-Season Tournament had its share of critics who didn’t quite understand the necessity or purpose of it unless, of course, their teams were in contention. Early favorites like the Boston Celtics were bounced by the Indiana Pacers and Tyrese Haliburton, who is now becoming one of the league’s brightest stars.
The Lakers and Pacers may not have been the marquee matchup some fans wanted but it was a pure clinic put on by AD and King James, who seized the moment with the help of great play from fellow starters D’Angelo Russell, Cam Reddish, and Taurean Prince. Austin Reaves also provided a big lift off the bench with 28 points, leading the entire second unit.
The Pacers gave it their all with Haliburton and Bennedict Mathurin, who came off the bench, both scoring 20 points. The Pacers also saw significant contributions from Obi Toppin and Aaron Nesmith.
The Lakers rode the wave of Davis, who led all scorers with 41 points, hauling in 20 rebounds, 5 assists, and 4 blocks. James added 24 points, 11 rebounds, and 4 assists, eventually winning the MVP trophy for the tournament. While Davis did show out for the final game, James has been consistently dominant even at age 38 and displayed an uncanny level of strength, speed, and basketball IQ.
It may not be the top trophy of the league but the NBA In-Season Tournament proved that fans don’t have to wait until May to see amazing professional basketball. Commissioner Adam Silver can go back to the lab with his team and figure out how to improve the tournament and said that he’s open to suggestions.
On X, formerly Twitter, NBA fans are discussing the game and much more. Check out the reactions below.
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The Golden State Warriors and the Sacramento Kings locked horns for a thrilling NBA In-Season Tournament contest that appeared to be all but handled by the visiting Bay Area squad. However, the Kings took care of business on their home court and won the game while eliminating the Warriors from tournament play and advancing.
The first half of the contest on Tuesday (November 28) saw the Warriors, led by Andrew Wiggins and Klay Thompson’s scoring, go up big on the Kings and looked to be cruising to an easy win and advancing to the knockout round of the tournament. However, the second half saw an offensive explosion from Malik Monk and Kevin Huerter, who the Warriors couldn’t seem to stop.
There were also a number of careless turnovers due to errant passing by the Warriors. that led to fast-break opportunities for the Kings. The game was also the return of Draymond Green after a five-game suspension for slapping a rear-naked choke onto Rudy Gobert during an on-court altercation.
De’Aaron Fox led all Kings scorers with 29 and was equally unstoppable down the stretch. Fox and Huerter’s burst in the second half was timely as Kings big man Domantas Sabonis only contributed 9 points.
The story of the game and the topic of discussion online was the play of Stephen Curry, who also scored 29 points but made just 4 of 12 three-point attempts, including some way outside the arc while heavily guarded. This has led to some calling the Warriors’ loss a choke job online. We’ve got some of those reactions to the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings game below.
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