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Malik Beasley: I wish I had played better with the Lakers. I was going through a lot of mental sh*t though at that time. Neon: It's like, what is the hardest part mentally while you're in the NBA? Beasley: People don't even think about that. All the outside noise, like your regular life outside of basketball. Like for me, I didn't know where to live. So, I lived in Beverly Hills, but it was like 40 minutes away from the arena and 40 minutes away from the practice facility. So, you had to pick which one either you wanted to live close to the arena or close to the practice facility. You go to Utah, it's everything right in the same gym. So, it was just like, that part and then obviously public issues with my teammates and other stuff like that. Neon: Seriously? Beasley: So that was tough and then my own issues at home with my girl, well, my ex. So it just wasn't the best mental situation.
NBA Courtside: Matt Barnes on when he fake threw the ball in Kobe Bryant face in the finals: “The Orlando sh*t I told him in our last interview like bro I was ready to fu*king like I was ready to go, like fu*k basketball. Was ready to throw that ball in your face. Because he gets like he’s already so good but then he’ll elbow you and grab you and I remember I caught a dunk tip off the rim because he was guarding me and he tried to block Dwight shot and it fell of perfect and I put that b***h down and that motherfu*kers elbowing me from like my waist to my chest to like my chin and the ref was right here and didn’t say nothing. I was ready to go. He had already elbowed me in my sternum and knocked the wind out of me that game. It was just who he was, you know what I mean? And it was after the game and be you good, it was that line of respect.” (Via @OutTheMudTL)
NBA Courtside: Matt Barnes on his relationship with Kobe Bryant: “I remember when the Drake and Rick Ross song came out Stay Schemin' and you wasn’t with me shooting in the gym. I remember when that sh*t came out and how made he was about that was crazy and I’m going kind to leave that where that was. But then I also remember another time where we just having a good time. We were in Phoenix on the bus about to get on the plane and we were joking talking sh*t because I came here off the rip just talking sh*t you know I mean I talk sh*t, I’m talking sh*t to Kobe and he’s talking it back. So it kind of changes the whole mood. But one day I was literally like bro how come you don’t show the rest of the world this side of you? And he like thought for second. He’s like, “MB, I can’t show these motherfu*kers that,” you know, I mean, because he always showed the rest of the world the Mamba. Like, I got to know Kobe, you know what I mean? And the person and the businessman and the Father, how much he loved my kids and just the man behind the mask and that’s what I treasure most about our friendship” (Via @OutTheMudTL)
Sources have recently brought up Mara’s conditioning more regularly, wondering if he’ll be more than a 25-minute-per-game guy at his peak. Michigan did an excellent job utilizing him in short stints to keep him fresh, allowing him to be at his best throughout the season. Coaches won’t be as excited about that luxury in the uptempo NBA, but don’t expect to see Mara slip out of the top 14.
San Antonio easily led all local markets for the NBA Finals on ABC/ESPN with a 25.9 local rating across five games. N.Y. was No. 2 with a 17.5 local rating for the games. That’s well above what the N.Y. market delivered for the five-game World Series with the Yankees and Dodgers in 2024 on Fox (12.2 local rating). Rounding out the top markets for the NBA Finals were Austin, Oklahoma City and Richmond-Petersburg, Va.
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The Los Angeles Police Department on Friday released body camera footage of an officer shooting and killing of a woman’s pet dog in an incident that has sparked an international outcry and raised questions about police use of force. The 2-year-old golden saint berdoodle, named Jameson, was shot dead by a police officer last Saturday outside the door of an apartment where he and another officer had arrived to investigate reports of a woman screaming, the police department said earlier this week. It was later found that the woman, Marie Marseille, was celebrating the New York Knicks winning the N.B.A. championship.
As the NBA Summer League prepares to return to Las Vegas for its 22nd year, President Warren LeGarie says the excitement surrounding the event remains as strong as ever. Speaking with Vegas Sports Today ahead of the 2026 NBA Summer League, LeGarie reflected on what continues to make the annual showcase special for basketball fans around the world. “I’m most excited that it’s almost here,” LeGarie said. “Summer League, for me, is still filled with hope, possibilities, and optimism. You get to see young players in their first NBA moments and find out if all the hype was worth it. More importantly, you get to see who they are as people.”
While stopping short of making any official announcements, LeGarie encouraged fans to continue supporting Summer League as a way of demonstrating the city’s passion for professional basketball. “I believe it’s true,” LeGarie said when asked about expansion rumors. “Buy tickets, come to the gym, and prove to the NBA that this is an NBA city.” LeGarie referenced comments previously made by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, who has described Summer League as the league’s “31st franchise” because of its importance to the basketball ecosystem.
With anticipation building for another Summer League and continued excitement surrounding a potential NBA expansion team, LeGarie believes Las Vegas remains at the center of the basketball world each summer. “This is your first way of proving to the NBA that this is what we clearly want,” LeGarie said. “Words are cheap. Action is what counts.”
NBA Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum said that NBA Europe “plans to begin naming winning bidders for 12 permanent European teams in the next 60 to 90 days,” according to Alex Sherman of CNBC.com. He added that the league remains “on track to debut in October 2027.” The 12 new teams will be located in Rome, Milan, London, Manchester, Paris, Lyon, Madrid, Barcelona, Berlin, Munich, Athens and Istanbul.
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Tatum said that the league is “looking for ‘great operators’ who will invest in new stadiums,” adding that there are “only ‘two to three world-class’ basketball arenas in all of Europe.” The NBA is “considering how to intermingle NBA Europe teams with its existing North American teams.” In the short term, Tatum said that NBA Europe teams “could play teams based in the U.S. and Canada in the preseason.” Then, over time, teams across the two leagues “could meet up in the Emirates NBA Cup.”
On Friday, June 19, the Cleveland Cavaliers, in partnership with the City of Cleveland and Downtown Cleveland Inc., hosted the grand opening of the 2016 NBA Championship commemorative outdoor basketball court at Meet Me Here Plaza. Located across from Rocket Arena on Huron Road between East 4th Street and Ontario Street, the reimagined plaza features a new outdoor basketball court, walkways and seating designed to bring people together before, during and beyond Cavaliers game nights.
Bernie Lee on Jalen Brunson’s paycut with Knicks: The idea that any player making a contractual sacrifice automatically leads to success does not align with what I have seen repeatedly. Once a player sacrifices money, he is handing a tool back to an organization to make decisions he does not control, while still carrying the results of those decisions. There is not an NBA player I have met who, while playing, has the perspective required to be a good general manager. Putting players in the position of making personnel decisions does not help anyone.
Bernie Lee: Jalen Brunson will be remembered for the rest of his natural life and beyond for taking an incredible risk and leading one of the marquee teams in the NBA to a championship. Over the years, I have had numerous clients with the opportunity to play with the Knicks. I have always said that a person can win anywhere, but winning in New York is entirely different. That has clearly proven to be true. It is an incredible story with a great ending, and every person involved deserves to enjoy it. But the idea that this should start a trend does not add up to me, because the circumstances that allowed it to work were finite and almost impossible to recreate. The family history between the Brunson family and Knicks management has been well documented for good reason, and it clearly played a major role in the trust that defined the relationship from the outset. Still, unless you own the team, everyone works for someone.