Sak Sports Blog

The 2018-19 NBA season brings some much desired intrigue to the regular season. Without LeBron James, the East will send a new team to the Finals for the first time in eight years. In the West, the Rockets try to close the gap on the Warriors with the addition of Carmelo Anthony. And of course the biggest story: how will LeBron James fare with the Los Angeles Lakers? A new Finals matchup, an exciting MVP race, fresh rookies, and stars on new teams give plenty of reasons to watch the NBA regular season. Here are my predictions for the 16 playoff teams, major awards, and NBA Finals outcome. Eastern Conference Playoff Teams Boston Celtics Philadelphia 76ers Toronto Raptors Indiana Pacers Miami Heat Milwaukee Bucks Detroit Pistons Washington Wizards Outside Looking In: Cleveland Cavaliers, Charlotte Hornets, New York Knicks, Atlanta Hawks LeBron James is finally out of the Eastern Conference after 15 years. The teams must be rejoicing, and the East is totally up...

LeBron James is a expected to make a major free agency decision for just the second time in his career this summer. While the de facto favorites so far have been the Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Lakers, Philadelphia 76ers, and Houston Rockets, other teams could still compete for LeBron's services before he make his second "Decision." While Joel Embiid has already publicly recruited LeBron, Philadelphia was already a rumored landing spot. But now, recently-crowned Most Impoved Player Victor Oladipo has thrown the Indiana Pacers name in the ring. Oladipo told TMZ Sports that James is his most highly coveted free agent acquisition for the 2018-2019 season. "If you want to win, come to Indy" the guard said, publicly addressing LeBron. While the big buzz has been around the prospects of building superteams, teaming up with Kawhi Leonard and/or Paul George, or completing the process in Philadelphia, there are other suitors that could make sense in the...

For the past four years, we've been treated to a historic rivalry: four straight NBA Finals matchups between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors. But many are growing weary and fans of the other 28 teams are often left to wonder: what's the point of watching if the same two teams are left in June every year? In 2018, it seemed like the streak would end, as the Cavaliers barely got out of the first round, and the Warriors weren't fully powered. Even a week before the Finals, both teams were down 3-2 in their conference finals matchups. There was a taste of a fantasy where the young Boston Celtics took on the Houston Rockets, with almost every player making their NBA Finals debut. Instead, we had Cavaliers-Warriors, Round 4. That should change next season, and definitely will if one thing happens: LeBron James looks set to leave Cleveland. The Cavaliers would instantly fall out of contention and guarantee we don't get a 5th straight matchup between th...

The Golden State Warriors are heavy favorites to win the NBA Finals, with home-court advantage and a more talented roster on their side. Before the season began, I ranked the Warriors biggest competitors that stood between them and back-to-back championships. You can read the full list here.  In ascending order, I ranked the Celtics, Thunder, Rockets, Spurs and Cavaliers are the teams with the best chances to dethrone Golden State in the playoffs. There's been some major shakeups to each of these teams, which certainly affects how I view them today. Courtesy of ABC Sports 5. New Orleans Pelicans (formerly: Boston Celtics) 4. Cleveland Cavaliers (formerly: Oklahoma City Thunder) 3. Oklahoma City Thunder (formerly: Houston Rockets) 2. Boston Celtics (formerly: San Antonio Spurs) 1. Houston Rockets (formerly: Cleveland Cavaliers) The Celtics and Rockets were the biggest upward movers since October: even though Boston lost Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward for ...

The 2017-2018 NBA playoffs are underway and are already thrilling. The Boston Celtics defeated the Milwaukee Bucks in an instant classic, and the Indiana Pacers stunned the Cleveland Cavaliers to take a 1-0 series lead. As exciting as the present landscape is, let's fast forward to June. The weather will finally be warmer (still snowing sporadically here in the Northeast) and the NBA Finals will be upon us. Here are five potential NBA Finals matchups to look out for in 2018. 5. Toronto Raptors Vs. Portland Trailblazers This might seem like an odd matchup because it doesn't feature any of the heavy hitters from either conference, but it's 100% a realistic possibility. The Toronto Raptors boast the East's top seed and home-court advantage throughout the playoffs, and the West seems more wide open than ever, which could benefit the 3rd-seeded Portland Trailblazers. Many NBA fans want a change of pace from the annual Cavaliers-Warriors matchup, but th...

The Cleveland Cavaliers are 31-22 sitting in 3rd place in the Eastern Conference. To some teams, it's an enviable position, but for LeBron James and the Cavaliers, it's a massive disappointment. After three straight trips to the NBA Finals, anything less will be considered a failure in 2018. The Cavaliers began to gear up for the 2018 NBA Finals last summer, when they made an NBA landscape-shifting move, shipping star point guard Kyrie Irving to the Boston Celtics for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, and Brooklyn's 2018 1st-round pick. Fast forward to February's trade deadline and both those players are gone. The Cavaliers flipped their roster on Thursday in an unprecedented fashion, trading away six players in an effort to raise the team's playing standards. Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Derrick Rose, Iman Shumpert, Channing Frye and Dwyane Wade are all gone. In their place, the Cavaliers received Jordan Clarkson, Larry Nance, Rodney Hood and Geor...

The Greatest of All Time. One of the hottest, most opinionated topics in all of sports. Experts and fans alike attempt to compare players across generations in hopes of crowning the best the sport has ever seen. Two of the greatest American professional sports athletes of all-time are playing right in front of our eyes: Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James and New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. James has been in the conversation with Michael Jordan for greatest basketball player of all-time, and with his 8th Super Bowl appearance, it's hard to put Brady anywhere but the top of the greatest quarterbacks ever. But wait, don't these two players have a history of choking in championship appearances? Doesn't this tarnish their legacies? The answer to both questions is a resounding "No." Many purists argue that Joe Montana, with a perfect 4-0 Super Bowl record, and Michael Jordan, 6-0 in the NBA Finals, are the greatest because of th...

The Detroit Pistons surged out of the gate this season, sitting 2nd in the Eastern Conference at an impressive 14-6. But point guard Reggie Jackson was lost for the season, and the wheels started to fall off.  An 8-20 stretch, and a current eight-game losing streak, has plunged the Pistons to 9th in the East. While there's still months to play, the team has lost realistic hope of making the playoffs and is trending towards the bottom of the conference. With hope dwindling, Detroit will reportedly shop guard Avery Bradley ahead of the February trade deadline. Bradley was acquired from the Boston Celtics last summer, but will be a free agent in the summer of 2018. The Pistons are looking to move, to avoid having him walk for nothing in July. Contenders would be wise to look at adding Bradley for a playoff run. While the guard's production offensively isn't as good as it was the previous two seasons, his defense is still elite and he can knock down an open thr...