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Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan are future NBA Hall Of Fame players. Both have retired and both are properly being lauded for their accomplishments. But they are different kinds of people. Bryant embraced his last of 20 Laker seasons by agreeing to an elaborate tour where he willingly met with the media in his final game in every city. Duncan retired Monday after 19 seasons with the San Antonio Spurs. He treated his final season like the other 18. He played unselfishly, said goodbye and didn’t e...
San Antonio Spurs General Manager R.C. Buford has been named the 2015-16 NBA Basketball Executive of the Year. Buford, in his 14th season as the team’s general manager, previously won the award in 2013-14. Buford totaled 77 points and received nine of 29 first-place votes from a panel of fellow team basketball executives throughout the NBA. The Portland Trail Blazers’ Neil Olshey finished second with 63 points (10 first-place votes), and 2014-15 winner Bob Myers of the Golden State Warriors was third with 38 points (five first-place votes). Exe...
It’s Unanimous: Curry Named NBA MVP The Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry, who led the team to the best regular-season record in NBA history, has won the Kia NBA Most Valuable Player Award for the second year in a row. He’s the first unanimous winner in the award’s 61-season history. Curry, the 11th player to win back-to-back MVP awards, joins Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan and Steve Nash as the only guards to earn the honor in consecutive seasons. Curry swept all 131 first-place votes (1,310 points), including 130 from a panel of sportsw...
The National Basketball Association announces that 162 players -- 117 from colleges/post-graduate institutions and 45 international players - have filed as early entry candidates for the 2016 NBA Draft presented by State Farm. Players wishing to enter the 2016 NBA Draft were required to submit a letter to the NBA to be received no later than Sunday, April 24. Players who have applied for early entry have the right to withdraw their names from consideration for the Draft by notifying the NBA of their decision in writing no later than 5 p.m. ET...
The National Basketball Association announces that 162 players -- 117 from colleges/post-graduate institutions and 45 international players - have filed as early entry candidates for the 2016 NBA Draft presented by State Farm. Players wishing to enter the 2016 NBA Draft were required to submit a letter to the NBA to be received no later than Sunday, April 24. Players who have applied for early entry have the right to withdraw their names from consideration for the Draft by notifying the NBA of their decision in writing no later than 5 p.m. ET...
• 48,527: Minutes played through April 7, 2016, the sixth most in NBA history • 33,521: Career points, third on the NBA’s all-time scoring list behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (38,387) and Karl Malone (36,928) • 5,640: Points scored in the NBA Playoffs, third most in NBA history behind Michael Jordan (5,987) and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (5,762) • 81: Points in a 122-104 victory against the Toronto Raptors on Jan. 22, 2006, the second-highest total in NBA history behind Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point game in 1962 • 50: Twenty-four career 50-point game...
The NBA has announced that Los Angeles has been selected to host NBA All-Star 2018. The 67th annual game will take place at Staples Centeron Sunday, Feb. 18. This will mark the record sixth NBA All-Star in Los Angeles, which hosted in 2011, 2004, 1983, 1972 and 1963, and the third All-Star at Staples Center (2011 and 2004). NBA Commissioner Adam Silver made the announcement during a press conference at Staples Center, where he was joined by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, AEG President and CEO Dan Beckerman and Los Angeles Sports & Entertainme...
The best show in town was Sunday at Staples Center when the unbeatable Golden State Warriors lost to our Lakers, who have the worst record in the Western Division, 102-95. The Lakers led all the way and viewers on national television must have been wondering how this could happen. My answer is mind over matter. Their spirit was so strong that it overcame the gap between the teams. It was a joy to see Laker fans who have suffered through a difficult season remain loyal with their cheers. Even...
As an Israeli citizen we unfortunately face a loss of loved ones on a regular basis. In my last visit to my country I experienced it personally when my precious 19-year-old cousin was stabbed in his kidney and carotid artery and died a few hours later. The grief, darkness and rage that controls your mind and spirit is unspeakable. In time it doesn't heal. The wound is still open. Hearing the phenomenal mindful words of Coach Monte Williams about the unexpected loss of his wife in an automobile...
The following is a joint statement from L.A. Clippers owner Steve Ballmer and President of Basketball Operations and Head Coach Doc Rivers: The L.A. Clippers announced today that forward Blake Griffin has been suspended without pay for four games for striking a team employee on Jan. 23 and his wages will be withheld for one additional game for injuries he sustained. The NBA has assisted us in this process. The Clippers will donate the salary from the five games to charities focused on disadvantaged youth in Los Angeles. At his request, Blake...
The Los Angeles Sports Council has named Clippers star Blake Griffin as the 2015 Sportsman of the Year. Griffin will be honored at the 11th Annual LA Sports Awards, which will be held on Thursday, February 25 at The Beverly Hilton Hotel. Griffin is being recognized for his many outstanding achievements in 2015. He was chosen by NBA fans worldwide as a starting forward for the Western Conference in the NBA All-Star Game (though he was unable to participate due to injury). Then, in the first round of the NBA playoffs, his play led the Clippers to...
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor The Clippers have earned a reputation for being a talented team that can’t close out games. They blew a 19-point second half lead in their second round playoff series last season against the Houston Rockets, lost the game and then failed to reach the Western Conference Finals. They lost two close games to the defending champion Golden State Warriors this season after coming close to a victory both times. In a game at Staples Center they were 20 points ahead. T...
By Mitch Chortkoff It's not a pleasant subject among NBA folks. But it can't be ignored. Teams hopelessly out of playoff contention can benefit from falling even further behind because the lower they go the better odds they'll have for the annual draft lottery. The Lakers are one of those teams. So some fans cringed among those who cheered when the Lakers went on a three=game winning streak in the last week. Included was a rout of a struggling Phoenix team which was held to only 22 points in the...
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor Basketball fans admired Jerry West when he was in his 20s and 30s. First, he and Elgin Baylor were superstars who introduced the NBA to Los Angeles. Then in 1972 he and Wilt Chamberlain led Coach Bill Sharman's Lakers on a 33-game winning streak, which has never been equaled, and then the NBA championship. Finally, West became the Lakers' general manager and presided over six more championship years. He made the most spectacular front office decision in Laker...
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor It was 1996 and I was in Honolulu covering the Lakers' training camp. It was an especially important one because General Manager Jerry West had made a spectacular move which resulted in the acquisition of rookie guard Kobe Bryant and center Shaquille O'Neal. In the first few days of the camp I found O'Neal to be outgoing, easy to interview, establishing the foundation for a friendship we have to this day. Bryant, who had been a high school phenom with no college...
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver released the following statement regarding the passing of Dolph Schayes last week at 87 due to cancer. "Dolph Schayes was one of the most influential figures in NBA history. He helped the NBA grow from its earliest days, emerging as one of the game's first stars and displaying the kind of passion for competition and commitment to excellence that has come to define our league. “ Dolph was an NBA champion, a Hall of Fame player and a distinguished NBA coach and executive, as well as a proud father who relished the s...
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor Kobe Bryant and Luke Walton were teammates on the Lakers for nine years. Bryant says he's not surprised that Walton has done so well this season filling in for Steve Kerr as coach of the NBA champion Golden State Warriors. Bryant saw Walton's potential many years ago. "I often told him you're the next Phil," said Bryant, who of course was comparing his teammate to their then-Laker coach, Phil Jackson. "You were both average players with a messed-up back."...
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor It's rare that an NBA game so early in the season would attract the attention this one did. But I decided to devote my entire column to the Clippers' 112-108 loss to the defending champions on November 4 after digesting all the facts from that contest in Oakland. The Clippers have a reputation of getting close but not quite close enough. They've never won an NBA championship but I believe they're creeping up toward the possibility that they could get one while...
The Lakers announce their participation in the 127th Rose Parade®, designing a float titled Every Second is an Adventure for the annual celebration. The theme of the float represents the importance of each moment in basketball, capturing the excitement of last-second shots and dramatic finishes Lakers fans have and will experience. "The Rose Parade is a timeless tradition on New Year's Day and the Lakers are enthusiastic to celebrate the start of 2016 with the rest of the country in this...
By Bosmat Eynav Sports Columnist Lamar – mi amore On days like this with Lamar fighting for his health and the media unfortunately continues to apply its destructive forces, I wanted to show from a more constructive perspective what a special personality and delicate soul resides within Lamar Odom and to try to understand the bigger picture behind the painful life experience that Lamar is going through these days. The first interview I've ever watched with Lamar was conducted by Ralph Lawler, an...
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor We all know about the Clippers' history. They took a back seat to the Lakers for so many years. The Donald Sterling era was forgettable. But in the last few years they've become better than the Lakers. They hired Doc Rivers, a coach who has won an NBA championship. With Steve Ballmer, an energetic owner, they were a threat to go all the way last season but collapsed horribly in Game 6 of their second round series against Houston. Same old Clippers. That was the...
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor The Lakers’ annual goal used to be winning the NBA championship. They succeed 16 times to become one of the elite franchises in league history. That was then and this is now, The Lakers haven’t won a playoff game (not a championship but one game) in the last three seasons. They were swept in four games by the San Antonio Spurs, then didn’t qualify, then didn’t qualify again last season when they had a franchise low of 21 wins and 67 losses. Here we go again. The...
The NBA champion Golden State Warriors will be in Southern California soon. The Warriors will have three exhibition games, against the Lakers in San Diego on October 17, the Clippers at Staples Center Oct. 20 and the Lakers in Anaheim on Oct. 22....
By Mitch Chortkoff Sports Editor At the start of another Laker season General Manager Mitch Kupchak told the media last week this would be a season of laying a foundation. “Every season the Lakers have hopes of winning a championship,” Kupchak began. “But realistacly we’re developing DeAngelo Russell, Julius Randle and Jordan Clarkson this season. Then, hopefully we’ll add free agents next season.” The plan is to build up to being a championship contender. But when? Kupchak’s speech was ho...
By Myke Williams Sports Rporter A lot of teams look good on paper but no team in the history of sports has ever won a championship just because they look good on paper. The Clippers need to prove that talent translates into wins and eventually championships. “Right now we are talking about something on paper,” said starting shooting guard J. J. Redick last Friday at Clippers media in Playa Vista. “The regular season is 82 games and there are pre-season and playoff games. Roles change and minutes change. “The important thing is to have a good...
