Basketball

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The year ahead in sports

It seemed for every hail Mary, walk-off homer, and buzzer beater in 2011, the sports pages had a story on work stoppages, performance-enhancing drugs, or mind-boggling college-conference realignments.
Looking forward to more scoring and less scandal
By SEAN KERRIGAN | December 30, 2011

The Curse of Len Bias

This article was originally published in the December 1, 1995 issue of the Boston Phoenix.
The curious decline of a team that had it all
By BILL SIMMONS | December 16, 2011

Shopping, simplified

With the holidays, and their attendant sturm und drang , upon us again, I was thinking about sports news in the context of Thanksgiving.
Balls, pucks, and monster trucks
By RICK WORMWOOD | December 02, 2011

Review: The Mighty Macs

Based on a true story, but drawing on every underdog sports movie ever made, Tim Chambers's tale of Immaculata College's 1971 championship women's basketball team had me going — up to the regional semi-finals.
A study in stereotypes
By PETER KEOUGH | October 21, 2011

The cruelest month

When T.S. Eliot wrote "April is the cruelest month," was he talking about how the last few weeks unfolded for New England's major sports teams?
Balls, pucks and monster trucks
By RICK WORMWOOD | April 22, 2011

The Celtics and the birth of the real NBA

The Providence Journal 's estimable sports columnist, Bill Reynolds, is out with a new book, Rise of a Dynasty: The '57 Celtics, the First Banner, and the Dawning of a New America .
Sports Dept.
By DAVID SCHARFENBERG | December 24, 2010

Things Celtics players shouldn't do before they die

Looking for the perfect gift for naughty Lakers fans on your Christmas list? (A swift kick to the chestnuts, alas, doesn't quite jibe with the whole holiday-spirit thing.)
Plus a quick chat with Jo Jo White
By SCOTT FAYNER | December 17, 2010

Review: NBA Jam

Maybe NBA Jam wasn't the best game of all time, but when it appeared in arcades back in 1993, it acquired a pop-culture cachet that most games couldn't dream of.
Baller status update
By MITCH KRPATA | October 22, 2010

Slammed: Lance Stephenson's comeback goes south

Just a few months ago, Lance Stephenson was looking like basketball's feel-good comeback story.
Plus, Roger Clemens gets what he deserves.
By MATT TAIBBI | August 27, 2010

Taking his shot

A story about what happens when your dreams come true . . . almost.
Mission Hill's Will Blalock has played professional basketball all over the world, from Anaheim to Israel, but he's still trying to make it big.
By PAUL FLANNERY | August 13, 2010

Food fights

At least it wasn't a home invasion.
Marshall football orders out, and Rick Pitino regrets getting table service
By MATT TAIBBI | August 13, 2010

Buzzer beaters

This is starting to get creepy.
The home-invasion trend hits Philly. Plus, Shawne Williams's spiral continues.
By MATT TAIBBI | August 06, 2010

Shack attacked

Before Shaq, there was Shack.
Overzealous cops are at it again. Plus, is UGA going for Oregon's crown?
By MATT TAIBBI | July 30, 2010

Sports Blotter: ESPN kiddie rap

Man, has any sports scandal ever gotten less coverage?
It ain't easy being Green. Plus, UGA cops play the name game, and D-West gets weird.
By MATT TAIBBI | July 23, 2010

Lost splendor

In case you haven't heard, LeBron James will play basketball in Miami next season. Yawn.
Balls, Pucks and Monster Trucks
By RICK WORMWOOD | July 16, 2010

Sports blotter: In the rough

Another day, another New York sports icon fends off a rape allegation.
Did Johan Santana go out of bounds? Plus, LT's self-abuse defense falls short.
By MATT TAIBBI | July 02, 2010

Riot squads

On the morning that the Celtics and the Lakers readied for Game 7 of the 2010 NBA Finals, framing one of the most storied and intense rivalries in pro sports, the police departments of Boston and Los Angeles geared up for the worst.
While Boston chilled, LA burned. What makes fans in some cities go wild — win or lose?
By CHRIS FARAONE | June 25, 2010

Sports Blotter: Dead Duck

The saga of the University of Oregon football team grows sadder and sadder.
Oregon's Masoli finally stalls out; plus, a World Cup ambush, and Florida strikes back
By MATT TAIBBI | June 25, 2010

Tugboats and bugboats

As I write this, the Celtics are one win away from their 18th NBA title, but that is not our focus.
Balls, Pucks & Monster Trucks
By RICK WORMWOOD | June 18, 2010

Cardinal sin

Here's one you don't hear every day. J.J. Hones, a point guard on the Stanford Cardinal women's basketball team, has been dismissed from the squad for a DUI. No big deal, right? Happens all the time in college sports.
Drunken golf-cart fun at Stanford; plus, an aspiring NHL goon takes his show off the ice
By MATT TAIBBI | June 18, 2010

Bandwagon fans gear up

Only after buying a "Beat L.A." T-shirt, methodically checking ESPN for World Cup updates, and watching every installment of the NBA Finals with a religious fanaticism, has the hard truth settled in: I am a bandwagon fan.
Benchwarmers
By ANDREW STEINBEISER | June 18, 2010

Bust busted

Bring up the topic of biggest NFL draft busts of all time and most people come up with the same short list of notorious names, all of them quarterbacks.
Keith McCants mccan't stay out of trouble; plus, another Clockwork Orange homage
By MATT TAIBBI | June 11, 2010

Phillip Merling: Oh, baby

This week's foul NFL news emanates from down South, where Miami Dolphins defensive lineman Phillip Merling was busted for assaulting his pregnant girlfriend.
A Dolphin gets flagged for illegal hands to face; plus, Zach Randolph resurfaces
By MATT TAIBBI | June 04, 2010

Parental advisory

An exceedingly bizarre sequence of events transpired this past week — the parents of two different playoff-competing NBA players were arrested in separate incidents, one on each coast.
The pros take a back seat to their misbehaving moms and dads
By MATT TAIBBI | May 28, 2010

Lost recap: Garnett explains the island to Big Baby

By Carly Carioli | May 19, 2010

Sacked

We always knew Lawrence Taylor was a good bet to get in trouble.
NFL Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor takes another hit
By MATT TAIBBI | May 14, 2010

Review: Just Wright

As glossy as you might expect, the film double-dribbles with its familiar story of the ugly duckling who wins the swan.
Bench this fairy tale
By BRETT MICHEL | May 14, 2010

Facebook fracas

Sooner or later, Facebook had to figure into the sports-crime scene. There are at least two cases now of pro football players getting arrested for assault in fights resulting from their wives looking at their Facebook friends lists.
Clinton Hart has one too many friends; plus, a pack of ’Dawgs starts chasing the Ducks
By MATT TAIBBI | May 07, 2010

Ledge Lessons

As advocates of higher education and living as long as medically possible, we were sad to read that, according to new-media-powerhouse Web site the Daily Beast, Greater Boston is home to not one but five of the most stressful colleges in the United Sta
We love you, stressed-out college kids! So relax, and remember how good you have it.
By CHRIS FARAONE | April 30, 2010

Cookie monster

The Florida International University football program was rocked recently when running back Kendall Berry was stabbed to death in front of eight witnesses — allegedly by an ex–FIU teammate.
Senseless tragedy at FIU; plus, late-night fun at Marshall and some Oregon fallout
By MATT TAIBBI | April 16, 2010

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