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But we are not here today to mourn a flawed system as much as to look to the future. Divisions — OK, they’re not technically dead, simply made irrelevant in determining playoff qualification and seeding by an NBA Board of Governors vote — were beyond their relevance years ago, as the NBA kept expanding and changing its schedule format. They became a nuisance, never more than last April, when the division seeding rules gave us an absurd first-round series between the Clippers and Spurs, two of the NBA’s five best teams....

While Ford still had Parker as the No. 1 player on his mock draft, he used a recent workout as an indicator that Parker would rather be picked at No. 2 to Milwaukee. MORE: Source: Bulls could move up to No. 8 | Parker visits Embiid after surgery | NBA Mock Draft Citing sources, Ford writes that Parker appeared to “tank” his workout for the Cavaliers. He came in overweight and without energy, according to Ford’s sources....

But Beijing—like Moscow and Tehran—has denied engaging in such activities. “China doesn’t export ideology, interfere in other countries’ domestic affairs, seek to alter others’ systems, or intend to have ideological confrontation with the United States or any other country,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian told Thursday’s daily press conference in Beijing. “We act on our words.” He then called on the U.S. to make a similar pledge. “If the United States is candid enough, it can declare its intention to the world like China did: the United States doesn’t seek to export ideology, change other countries’ political systems, or meddle in others’ internal affairs,” Zhao said....

The incident happened just hours before Washington’s game against the Pirates at PNC Park. Manager Dave Martinez said after the Nationals’ 4-1 loss that Strickland was struck in the face by a barbell. He briefly left the ballpark to have X-rays at a nearby doctor’s office, according to MASN. Strickland was still available for Tuesday’s game, but he walked out of his team’s clubhouse with a “bandage over the bridge of his nose and with discoloration and swelling on the right side of his face,” MASN notes....

My, how times have changed. This week, Sen. Barack Obama attempted to fuel his presidential run with a scalding speech to the Detroit Economic Club, castigating Motown’s big wheels for driving our dependence on foreign oil. “For years, while foreign competitors were investing in more fuel-efficient technology for their vehicles, American automakers were spending their time investing in bigger, faster cars,” Obama told an audience stunned into silence after greeting him with a standing ovation....

“Dear Fox News,” D. Earl Stephens tweeted. “Here’s what happens after an ambush (left). Here’s what happens after you’ve made a complete moron out of yourself in front of the entire world (right). Do better, dammit.” The picture on the left shows the soldiers carrying the casket off of a plane. According to The New York Times, the image was released by the Army in 2018, and shows the body of Staff Sergeant Dustin Wright, who was one of the American soldiers killed last in October 2018 during an attack in Niger....

The second pick in 2012 NBA draft injured his left hand in the fourth quarter during the Bobcats’ 82-89 loss to the Dallas Mavericks Tuesday, reports Xinhua. Kidd-Gilchrist averaged 9.1 points and 5.3 assists for the Bobcats this season. 0 votes

The matchup between the Celtics and 76ers in Philadelphia has been moved to Sunday at 7 p.m. ET, while the game between the Jazz and Wizards in Washington will be rescheduled at a later date. MORE: Memorable crazy (outdoor) winter games In the NHL, the game between the Ducks and the Capitals scheduled for Friday has also been postponed. A makeup date for that contest has yet to be announced....

The frequency of players changing teams is also likely to increase in the coming weeks, as more players will soon become eligible for a trade. Up until this point, free-agents from the 2018 off season have been unable to join a new team due to the NBA’s rule that stops free agents from joining a new team until the 15th of December. As soon as we hit the 15th, franchises will be looking to move players who have not had the desired impact....

The Veteran forward agreed to a one-year, $15 million contract with the struggling Phoenix Suns, a deal that was seen as one of the strangest of the offseason. While the Suns are predictably bottom of the Western Conference, the Rockets are surprisingly just one place ahead of them following a disastrous start. Speaking to ‘First Take’ in the aftermath of the Rockets defeat to the Dallas Mavericks, ESPN analyst Stephen A....

The Raptors are coming off a disappointing defeat against the Orlando Magic, whereas the Celtics lost to the Bulls on Saturday. Let us talk about how the things stand for both the teams coming into the game. The Boston Celtics’ perspective The Celtics have entered a slump lately as they have won just two out of their last six games. The defeat on Saturday was against the Chicago Bulls which was disappointing to watch for the Celtics’ fans....

What’s also encouraging is that nearly every rookie has turned out to have strengths as we expected them to have, but they spent the offseason brushing up on the weaker parts of their game - most of them, at least - and the difference between their Summer League and regular season performances is absolutely clear. Also read: The Favorites to win NBA Rookie of The Year 2018-19 Who’re the likeliest rookies to win the award next June, based on the first fortnight of NBA action?...

RELATED: NBA 2K20: Ranking The 10 Best Los Angeles Lakers Of The Last Decade While that is true in many parts of the popular basketball game, NBA 2K21 falls victim to many EA development tropes; the bugs when playing online and the incessant micro-transactions to name a few. The game does have its failures, and it won’t be making the best EA Sports games list anytime soon, but there are some terrific and unexpected developments too....

RELATED: NBA 2K22: How To Face Scan Since dribble moves cost stamina, using only the moves that work well is a key component of the game. Using the default selections will end up with the MyPlayer being tired at the end of a game using useless moves that didn’t make any difference. These are the moves in NBA 2K22 that pay the best dividends when they get used. Updated on May 7th, 2022 by Hodey Johns: Perhaps the biggest difference between the pros and the amateurs is their dribbling skills....

RELATED: NBA 2K23: Best Finishing Badges Despite the modern NBA shifting to a place in which the traditional center skillset is no longer desired, it’s becoming harder and harder for guys who play great defense and rebound to stay on the court if they don’t happen to have some scoring ability as well. Anyone hopping into the newest entry in the NBA 2K series will want to know which centers reign supreme....

The beauty of the NBA 2K series is that basketball fans get exposed to the league’s best players, and they get to learn about talented players they may not be able to watch on television. James is extremely popular and talented, but the NBA has more than a handful of other small forwards who hold their own against the best in the league. 8 RJ Barrett (84) It’s hard to be happier than RJ Barrett, considering the New York Knicks emerging small forward just signed an extension with the team worth $107 million....

This season should be no different from many previous ones, although it is a sure thing now that the game will be held by Giannis’ XI against the most-voted Western Conference Player. While that decision will be held behind closed doors, away from the media attention, the results of that poll are tertiary to the aims of this article. Here is a case for the best-possible starting five lineup from the Western Conference based on performance this season, availability to the team at crucial junctures, clutch play and polish of a player’s overall skill set....

Milwaukee (32-29 SU, 36-25 ATS) is certainly playing better than Washington, but let’s not make them into the ‘96 Bulls. The Bucks will host the Wizards on Saturday (8:30 p.m. ET). Line: Bucks -4, Total: 190 (check our odds page for current NBA point spreads and totals) Bradley Beal was out for eight straight games and that contributed to this slide by Washington, but there has to be a deeper issue....

Line: Toronto -1.5, Total: 207 ( current NBA spreads and totals ) The Rockets have found playing in Toronto’s Air Canada Centre to be a “house of horrors,” losing seven in a row there and going 1-10 ATS in their last 11. They won the first meeting against the Raptors this year, 98-76 as 2.5-point home favorites on February 21. Houston (50-23 SU, 43-30 ATS) has a four-game winning streak (3-1 ATS) after a 99-91 win at Washington on Sunday as 2-point favorites....

The league’s board of governors will hold a conference call with the commissioner’s office on Wednesday to discuss potential contingency plans to deal with the virus, which causes a disease known as COVID-19. According to ESPN, the plans include moving NBA games to cities that have not been affected by coronavirus yet. Should a team be forced out of its home arena for a prolonged period of time, the suggestion of moving games to the away team’s arena could be considered, provided the latter team plays in a city not affected by the virus....