Articles by Phil Watson (170)
Phil Jackson has long been nicknamed the Zen Master. But actors Matt Damon and Mark Wahlberg saw a more fiery side of the longtime NBA coach during the 2008 NBA Finals.
Michael Jordan famously avoided politics while playing in the NBA, but since George Floyd’s murder in 2020 he has pledged $100 million to help advance the Black community.
Cotton Fitzsimmons is among the inductees in the 2021 Basketball Hall of Fame class. But his first two Phoenix Suns teams were two of the unluckiest good clubs in NBA history.
When the NCAA banned dunking in 1967, UCLA star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (then Lew Alcindor) responded with something he learned as a child. Final score: Kareem 1, NCAA 0.
The Golden State Warriors will shatter an NBA record in 2021-22. It’s a calculated gamble, but one that comes at an extremely steep cost.
Klay Thompson’s 19-point fourth quarter to keep the Golden State Warriors alive in the 2016 Western Conference Finals and inspired Charles Barkley to throw out an awful nickname.
Dikembe Mutombo was one of the best shot blockers in NBA history. His favorite opponent was superstar Michael Jordan, in part because Mutombo thought MJ’s trash-talking antics were funny.
The Philadelphia 76ers find themselves in a position they’ve seen before. An unhappy star wants a trade. This time it’s 2017-18 Rookie of the Year Ben Simmons, under the microscope all offseason because of his shooting problems. Giving Simmons what he wants while not giving away the star point forward will be the challenge for […]
The Milwaukee Bucks won’t have a second-round pick in the 2022 NBA Draft because of tampering. But some NBA executives want picks given to other teams rather than being removed, allegedly to prevent players from being punished by having fewer draft slots available.
Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant reportedly feuded for much of their eight years together with the Los Angeles Lakers. But O’Neal says now it was more marketing ploy than legitimate beef.