Wednesday Bolts – 6.25.14
Ethan Strauss of ESPN.com parsing through LeBron’s angles: “NBA history may have turned on Ibaka’s calf, as the injury
compromised the Thunder’s effort against the Spurs. The Heat matched up much better against Oklahoma City than against the San Antonio team that ended up throttling Miami. It’s hard to envision the possibility of James leaving had the Heat just won a third title –- as opposed to the current reality of James making this choice in the aftermath of the Heat losing three consecutive games in embarrassing fashion.”
Jay Bilas: “The best shooter in the draft, Stauskas can hit from deep, put the ball on the deck and pull up and get to the basket and finish. He proved to be far more than a standstill shooter playing off of Trey Burke, and he has a confidence bordering on cockiness that I love.”
SI.com has the biggest draft busts ever.
This thing about the Kings crowdsourcing for the draft is pretty interesting, but also pretty weird. Maybe they’re holding back some of the more interesting, unique analysis, but some guy spouting per 40 assist statistics isn’t exactly groundbreaking information.
The Cavs are shopping the first pick, again.
Westbrook and Durant have been nominated for ESPYs: “Oklahoma City Thunder stars Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook have been nominated for the 2014 ESPY awards, according to the list of nominations released today. Durant has been nominated in two categories, best male athlete and best NBA player. Westbrook has been nominated for best comeback athlete.”
Anthony Slater on draft prospects: “Anderson’s listed as a small forward and will likely play one of the two forward positions in the NBA. But even at 6-foot-9, he plays more like a point guard. And because of the show Boris Diaw (who has a similar game) just put on in the Finals, his stock is reportedly rising. Although he lacks high-level speed and strength, Anderson is ripe with skill. Great vision, good ballhandler, adept passer. He averaged 14.6 points, 8.8 rebounds and 6.5 assists for a good UCLA team last season. Doesn’t fit a huge need on the Thunder, but seems like a skill set that could mesh with talent around him.”