When the Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers faced off in the 2020 NBA Finals in an unlikely matchup of two vastly different teams, there was no shortage of dominant performances and high-level play.

The two teams outlasted the rest of the league in the NBA Bubble in a grueling, taxing journey.

While the Heat’s culture and LeBron James’ leadership abilities can appear to be more fabled than anything else, there was no coincidence that the Heat, who are known for a militaristic culture, and the Lakers, led by a leader in James who is known to “keep the main…

AS UNCERTAINTY REIGNED in L.A. following a year of uncertainty, the team quietly looked for a replacement the departed Luke Walton. The team, which had been as high as fourth in the Western Conference, was now out of the playoffs, with a dilemma: they had a 34 year-old LeBron James who showed his age on defense throughout the season, and they had a collection of young, talented prospects.

Things were made only more complicated by the Lakers’ failed attempt to trade for Anthony Davis at the 2019 Trade Deadline, which alienated many players on the roster and only added to…

THE DATE WAS January 21, 2001. Allen Iverson, one of the greatest scorers in NBA history, and a cultural icon of the early 2000s, changed the NBA’s sportswear scene forever.

The Sixers guard was struggling with injuries, particularly with bursitis in his right elbow. He and the team were looking for solutions. The key question the team had to ask was this: how were they to treat Iverson’s elbow issues without compromising on his performance on the court?

As Scoop Jackson of ESPN put it, “Allen was always a great scorer, but he wasn’t a great shooter. There wasn’t room…

On March 25th, Zensah, a sports compression brand, announced a new partnership with Justin Holiday, a swingman with the Indiana Pacers.

In doing so, Holiday became the first ever NBA professional partner of Zensah, which has been around for over 15 years and has a client base that features many professional athletes.

For as competitive as the NBA is on the court, with teams investing millions of dollars annually to win the championship, the business scene of the league may be just as competitive. Just at the surface level, companies compete for branding rights, product placement, and advertising spots on…

IN LATE 2012, the foundation of the greatest modern dynasty in NBA history was laid out: Steph Curry, a young, talented point guard, was in the midst of contract negotiations with the Golden State Warriors.

Golden State was beginning to commit to him, having traded away fan-favorite guard Monta Ellis in the season prior, but, at this point, Curry’s career was defined by ankle injuries and the looming possibility that he would never fulfill his potential.

By league rules, the maximum amount the Warriors could offer Curry was four years, $61 million or five years, $78.9 million. …

AS LeBRON JAMES stepped to the free-throw line, preparing to shoot a technical free throw, his former teammate and Brooklyn Nets star guard Kyrie Irving said what many around the NBA question: why is LeBron James shooting this free-throw?

The date was February 18, 2021, and as James stepped to the line and missed, a giddish Irving was seen saying, “That’s your best free-throw shooter?” in a mocking tone, a moment that quickly went viral.

But perhaps, Irving should know better than most about James’ free-throw shooting struggles, having seen first-hand the metamorphosis of LeBron’s free-throw struggles in Cleveland.

Things…

AT AGE THIRTY-SIX, having captured an elusive fourth championship title and dealing with the shortest offseason in NBA history, it was only natural to expect LeBron James to ease his way into the 2020–2021 season.

We’ve seen this story before: Brian Windhorst infamously reported that James came into training camp in 2014, fresh off of back-to-back titles, in perhaps the worst condition he had been in for a decade.

Likewise, after grueling playoff runs in 2015–2019, James lowered his defensive workload each season in his second tenure in Cleveland, to the point where many metrics painted him as one of…

IN THE AFTERMATH of a disappointing season, James Harden and the Houston Rockets seemingly had no direction.

Throughout 2016, Harden and Dwight Howard clashed in the locker room, while the team’s new acquisitions, particularly mercurial guard Ty Lawson, struggled. Subsequently, Kevin McHale was fired mid-season, Howard’s play never recovered to even close to All-Star level form, and it took a career season from Harden to even make the postseason.

Interestingly, just one year after Harden and the Rockets made it to the Conference Finals in 2015, they now found themselves further from contention than they had ever been.

With the…