Many believed the Heat’s loss to the Spurs in the NBA Finals was when LeBron James first began to seriously consider leaving Miami. As it turns out, the wheels may have already been put in motion. Mike Miller, who followed James this offseason to the Cleveland Cavaliers, told the Cleveland Plain-Dealer this week that James initially began questioning the Heat’s brass when they used the amnesty provision on Miller in July 2013, sparing owner Micky Arison millions in salary and luxury-tax fees
It seems unlikely that a country with a smaller population than Connecticut could challenge the United States on basketball’s international stage. But that is exactly what Lithuania plans on doing. Runner-up in the 2013 European Championship and Jerry Garcia’s favorite national team, Lithuania will be a medal contender in the inaugural 2014 Basketball World Cup and could pose as Team USA’s lone threat on the road to the championship game. “The Other Dream Team” will be playing without its leader Linas Kleiza,
Brazil entered Tuesday’s World Cup semifinal match against Germany facing extreme obstacles. Their captain, Thiago Silva was due to miss the match having accumulated two yellow cards, and star forward Neymar had suffered a fractured vertebra in their quarterfinal match against Colombia. Even with such losses, they were still expected to play well, perhaps carrying out the role of underdog to move on to the finals. The match was highly anticipated and was garnering a lot of media attention and hype.
SHOULD KOBE BRYANT COME BACK THIS SEASON? Whether this season is worth coming back to for Bryant was the topic between Bleacher Report’s Ric Bucher and Howard Beck. Beck says the guard should probably sit out the entire season because there is nothing to come back to. The Los Angeles Lakers are an injury-ridden mess and are certain to miss the playoffs, so what’s the point? The issue with sitting Bryant out even if he can come back is this: he needs
Group B Likely to advance 1. Lithuania One of the most fully loaded squads in his year’s Eurobasket, the Lithuanian squad is poised to be one of the juggernauts of this year’s competition. Veteran point guard Sarunas Jasikevicus will be sitting this one out, but the Grateful Dead’s favorite European basketball team will be a force to be reckoned with. Starting with Raptors center Jonas Valanciunas, the Lithuanians will be loaded with horses in the paint. Valanciunas had a solid rookie season, but seems
What happens in Vegas doesn’t always stay in Vegas. Take the Las Vegas Summer League, for example. Players such as Klay Thompson and Derrick Williams are trying to parlay strong performances this summer into eventual NBA stardom with their teams. The Las Vegas Summer League is a golden opportunity for players to earn an increased role in the NBA. For young players, their summer performance can earn them a rotation spot. For players hooping overseas, the summer is a chance to show NBA