16 seasons in the NBA after being picked 57th overall in 1999, Argentina’s greatest ever basketballer waiting three more years before his NBA debut. He would play 1057 games, 26,859 minutes, scoring 14,043 points.
You’re seventeen years old, a basketballer. Just earned Rookie of the Year honours in the kiwi NBL and had a great time away with the Junior Tall Blacks at the U-18 Asian champs, already trained with the senior national team in an extended squad.
The 2017/18 NBA season was a great one for rookies. Not only was it one of the strongest classes in years but we get a whole swathe of new characters to root for and against.
And there you go, an even eleven players. All locked and loaded for the upcoming NBL season.
His new book, co-authored with Madeleine Chapman, begins at that draft table. It begins at the intersection of his life, the culmination of his every bit of dedication that had come before it and his ritualistic initiation into exclusive world of NBA basketball which was to follow.
When one door closes, another opens. When the NBA Summer League thing didn’t provide the preferred opportunities, well, a strong season in Germany still has its advantages.
Carmelo Anthony in 2018 and Carmelo Anthony’s perception of Carmelo Anthony in 2018 are very different things. He could have done some useful stuff coming off the bench for the Oklahoma City Thunder but, nah, he ain’t sacrificing no bench role.
Gotta be honest, it’s been lonely without the weekly Kiwi Steve columns. It’s been lonely without Steven Adams fullstop.
It was a trade that few people saw coming and that neither star player even wanted. Toronto and San Antonio had been speaking about trade packages for Kawhi Leonard for two weeks but then plenty of teams had been making offers for Kawhi…
Webster was always a good shot at getting back into the Summer League stuff after a fine season in Germany, his first as a pro since finishing up with Nebraska after four years. Playing for Fraport Skyliners he averaged 14.9 points, 3.9 assists and 3.7 rebounds per game while shooting 39.8% from deep and 48.0% from the field.
Look it was bad enough when they had four all stars in their starting lineup but adding DeMarcus Cousins on top of that? There’s never been a more talented starting five in the history of the league than Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green and Boogie Cousins.
LeBron James is a Laker… nope, not gonna believe it until they actually call his name on opening day and he strolls out there under the spotlight wearing the purple and gold and shakes Jack Nicholson’s hand on the way out.
The Tall Blacks are one step closer to partaking in the 2019 FIBA World Cup after taking care of business in their two home qualifiers over the last few days.
Not only did Paul George opt to stay in OKC but he laid it all down with a four-year $137m deal. Exactly a year after he was traded to the Thunder, he dropped the ol’ hancock on the dotted line and offered to stay.
The NBA leftovers, the wee gems you find tucked away in a $2 bin down the back of some dodgy suburban Salvation Army.
Remember the Los Angeles Lakers? You probably do, it’s rather hard to forget about them these days. For a team that hasn’t made the playoffs since the 2012-13 season they sure do make a lot of noise.
Of course, Marksy being Marksy, he still managed to make a few moves both in terms of taking on chunky salary and picking up draftees. And it all began with a call from the Charlotte Hornets…
Heaps of great talent there and something to fit every need. But the story of the draft was the Dallas Mavericks trading up with the Atlanta Hawks to get their mitts on Luka Doncic.
Following on from the Corey Webster deal a few weeks back – Corey who is dropping 40+ in China these days – Kevin Braswell’s team has added their first two imports. Armani Moore is the first and Patrick Richard the second.
Please, please, please don’t be one of those silly people who thinks that Steven Adams has some kind of obligation to play for the Tall Blacks and that refusing to do so is some kind of national scandal.