How will the NBA’s rebooted season shake out the standings during its final eight regular-season games, and which first-round matchups should we be especially excited for once the NBA Playoffs begin? TBW staff writer Bob Bajek joins hosts Arky Shea and Joel C. Cordes to break down each of the most fun scenarios for the opening round, including…
Tagged Rudy Gobert
NBA Podcast: Top Offseason Questions for Jazz, Nuggets, Thunder, Timberwolves & Trail Blazers
In this episode of The NBA Podcast, Morten Jensen and Bryan Toporek discuss the top offseason questions for every team in the Northwest Division. Should the Utah Jazz try to trade Mike Conley this offseason? Did the Denver Nuggets miss their window for a consolidation trade? Should the Oklahoma City Thunder try to sell high…
NBA Players, Teams Stepping Up During Coronavirus Pandemic
COVID-19 unexpectedly forced the NBA season to a screeching halt. Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive, and the league and other sports leagues immediately shut down to protect players, coaches, employees and their fans’ health. The coronavirus’ specter continues its spread nationally and abroad, stressing hospitals, economies and communities to the brink. Without basketball,…
NBA PODCAST: Sifting Through Fallout, Go-Forward Plans After Season’s Suspension
In this episode of The NBA Podcast, Morten Jensen (@msjnba) and Bryan Toporek (@btoporek) discuss the NBA’s decision to suspend the 2019-20 season in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Why did the NBA have to shut down? Did the league act quickly enough? How much blame does Rudy Gobert deserve? If the NBA is able…
NBA Did the Right Thing by Suspending its Season
On Wednesday night, the dominos of the global coronavirus pandemic began to rapidly fall within the sports world. Utah Jazz big man Rudy Gobert tested positive for coronavirus. A few minutes later, the NBA announced a suspension of its season indefinitely. NBA owners and executives have slammed league office with a myriad of procedural and…
How Utah Jazz Can Maximize Mike Conley
When the referees missed an easy goaltending call on Rudy Gobert against the Portland Trail Blazers on February, it helped the home team break a five-game losing streak. It wasn’t a convincing 117-114 win for the Utah Jazz, but it was a win. The next night against the Houston Rockets, the Jazz needed a doubly…
PODCAST: NBA Midseason Awards Edition
In this episode of The NBA Podcast, Morten Jensen (@msjnba) and Bryan Toporek (@btoporek) make their midseason picks for every major award. Who is the front-runner for MVP: James Harden, Luka Doncic or Giannis Antetokounmpo? Can anyone catch Ja Morant for Rookie of the Year? Who’s leading the wide-open Defensive Player of the Year and…
Utah Jazz Absolutely Lighting it Up From Three-Point Range
The NBA’s hottest team is also suddenly its most accurate from three-point range. Quin Snyder’s Utah Jazz are winners of seven straight and 12 of their last 13, and they’re leading the NBA at 39.0 percent from beyond the arc. During the seven-game conquest, the Jazz have run a long-range clinic, hitting 100-of-243 (41.2 percent)…
Is This the Moment Where World Basketball Caught Up with U.S.?
For years, we’ve been hearing how the basketball world is catching up with the USA. But is it time to stop couching that in “future-tense” logic and ponder whether it’s happened, even at the highest levels? In 1992, the USA sent hoops pros to the Olympics for the first time, as the “Dream Team” captured…
These Rudy Gobert, Mitchell Robinson Comparisons Are Starting to Stick
Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz is a transformative, world-beating defensive talent with two consecutive Defensive Player of the Year awards. Mitchell Robinson of the New York Knicks is coming off one of the most impressive rookie campaigns in recent memory as a two-way force on a rebuilding team. These two might be at different…