The Hall of Famer sees similarities between the current Lakers roster and the team from the 2003-2004 season which had accomplished veterans such as Karl Malone, Gary Payton next to Kobe Bryant. That team went all the way to the Finals where they lost 1-4 against the Detroit Pistons. “This team is really giving me that Karl Malone, Gary Payton when they were with Kobe, that kind of feel,” Pierce said on What’s Burnin’ with Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes.
Seattle SuperSonics Rumors
To promote the NBA’s 75th anniversary, the NBA made a short film called NBA Lane, which is a metaphorical neighborhood fitted with the league’s personalities and top moments to help the fans reminisce about the league’s history. Throughout the trip down NBA Lane, you will encounter some of the greats of the past, current superstars and future stars. During filming at Leimert Park, such current NBA players as Carmelo Anthony, LaMelo Ball, Devin Booker, Anthony Davis, Kawhi Leonard and Jayson Tatum took part. Former NBA greats Gary Payton, Isiah Thomas and Jerry West also were involved in the three-day shoot last month.
In a recent Instagram story, Nets forward Kevin Durant commented on how Lakers legend Kobe Bryant defended him during their matchups. In the picture, Kobe Bryant was playing defense on Durant back in the 33-year-old’s Seattle SuperSonics’ days. The two-time NBA champion reposted the photo and added the caption “Bean always hackin man.” We can go on and on about the epic duels the Mamba had with the Slim Reaper. However, for Durant it seems Bryant’s defense was annoying. The former Laker was known for his harassing defense, and his nine first-team All-Defensive selections show it. By the numbers, the Mamba racked up 1,944 steals and 640 blocks. It’s no wonder Durant felt this way when preparing for these duels.
Larry Coon: I think it’s pretty inevitable that there’s going to be expansion at some point, and we could see a 32-team league. There are certainly cities like Seattle ready to host an NBA franchise again. I was thinking expansion might’ve even been on the table this past year because of Covid. If you collected a couple of expansion fees, you put a lot of money into the league in a year when revenues were so far down… Eventually, you’re increasing the revenue that comes in with ticket sales, local cable revenue, everything around the game… The flipside of that coin is that you’re now splitting the profits more ways and your revenue sharing differently.
Devin Booker, Khris Middleton, Jrue Holiday available for Team USA opener
The trio of players making the unprecedented jump from the NBA Finals to the Olympics are all scheduled to be in Japan by Saturday. The hope is for Devin Booker, Khris Middleton and Jrue Holiday to be available when Team USA opens play Sunday against France, according to coach Gregg Popovich. After attending the Milwaukee Bucks’ championship parade Thursday, Middleton and Holiday are scheduled to fly to Seattle on Friday. There, they will join Booker, whose Phoenix Suns they helped eliminate on Tuesday, and take a private plane to Tokyo.
But with an expected tough test against the French, Popovich is planning on using his reinforcements immediately, even if he’s not sure how it will play out. “I have no idea [how to use them]. I’m not trying to be glib. I’m trying to be transparent,” Popovich said. “Maybe they’ll be OK for the game [Sunday] and it’ll hit them two days later. Maybe we should play them in the first half and see what they’re like.”
First organized in 1995 by Doug Christie, the Rainier Beach High alum and 15-year NBA veteran, the Crawsover was handed over to Crawford in 2004. Since then, the Pro-Am has become one of the most popular summer leagues in the country. NBA superstars like Kevin Durant, Blake Griffin, Chris Paul and Kyrie Irving have all flocked to Seattle to play in past iterations of the event. Professionals aren’t the only ones who play in the Pro-Am though. Young Seattle basketball players are given the chance to train and play with seasoned NBA vets. Local talents like Dejounte Murray, Kevin Porter Jr., Michael Porter Jr., Matisse Thybulle, Jalen and Jaden McDaniels, and Paolo Banchero, the Duke commit who is ranked as 247.com’s No. 2 prospect in the country, have all played at the Crawsover as high schoolers.
