Month: March 2021
Missing March Madness: Where has the college basketball blue blood gone?
Duke and Kentucky missed the NCAA Tournament so March Madness will take place without two of the biggest programs in the history of NCAA basketball. The NCAA Tournament is set to start this week and it will be unusual for reasons beyond the fact it is being staged in the middle of a global pandemic. […]
The Whiteboard: No one can stay in front of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
The Whiteboard is The Step Back’s daily basketball newsletter, covering the NBA, WNBA and more. Subscribe here to get it delivered to you via email each morning. The Oklahoma City Thunder have largely been overshadowed this season. Their brief offseason was highlighted by the departure of Chris Paul and additions to their absurd war chest of […]
The lovesong of LaMarcus Aldridge
It appears the LaMarcus Aldridge era has come to an end for the San Antonio Spurs. What do we make of an experiment that didn’t succeed and didn’t fail either? The idea seemed like a good one, and for a moment or two, it worked. The San Antonio Spurs added an All-Star just shy of […]
The time Frank Kaminsky was more valuable than LeBron James
On a sleepy regular-season night in January, Frank Kaminsky found himself on top of the basketball world — and on top of Jock MKT’s payout list. A 1,245 percent return on investment in one night. No, that’s not the Reddit community sending Gamestop stock to the moon (then back down, then up again). That’s what […]
How R.J. Barrett turned a corner in his second season
New York Knicks wing R.J. Barrett is a much better player in year two, thanks to some improvements in his approach and a breakthrough as a shooter. For many prospects, especially those not considered stone-cold locks for stardom, that which can tip the scales between success and disappointment is context. Roster construction, schematics, coaching, geographical […]