We made it! Another NBA Opening Night could not come soon enough. Last year I sniffed out a 41-41 Pistons season, Jazz push at 50 wins, and a Doncic ROY season. I also picked the Warriors over 62 wins, Celtics to be the 1st seed, the Bucks a 5th seed, and the Blazers to miss the playoffs .. so what do I really know? Time to learn from my mistakes and try to give this another shot. See all of my over-unders, standings, playoffs, awards, and x-factors below. Eastern Conference Atlantic Division Philadelphia 76ers – 54.5  – OVER – Best defense in the NBA? Boston Celtics – 48.5 – OVER – Kemba ..read more

The term X-factor is vague enough that it allows me get away with picking almost anyone for each respective team. The rules are simple though: no first or second-year players, and no touching of the hair or face. And that’s it. So without further ado, here are your Eastern Conference X-factors, the players to keep an eye on for one reason or another that will tilt their respective teams in a positive or negative direction depending on their individual development. As usual, the projected lottery clubs receive more consideration, while the projected playoff squads are limited to a couple lines ..read more

NBA NATIONAL TV GAMES CHART TEAM O/U TNT ESPN ABC NBATV TOTAL ADJUSTED LOTTO 1. LAL 50.5 12 13 6 12 43 37 NO 2. GSW 49.5 12 13 5 12 42 36 NO 3. LAC 54.5 11 10 5 12 38 32 NO 4. HOU 54.5 10 11 5 12 38 32 NO 5. PHI 55 9 9 6 12 36 30 NO 6. BOS 49.5 10 11 4 9 34 29.5 NO 7. MIL 58.5 10 10 4 10 34 29 NO 8. POR 46.5 10 9 1 11 31 25.5 NO 9. NOR 39 7 11 2 10 30 25 YES 10. DEN 52.5 8 9 0 7 24 20.5 NO 11. UTA 54.5 6 10 0 9 25 20.5 NO 12. DAL 40.5 4 9 0 7 20 16.5 YES 13. BKN 43.5 6 6 0 8 20 16 NO 14. TOR 46.5 5 6 0 8 19 15 NO 15. IND 47.5 1 5 0 6 12 9 NO 16. SAS 46.5 2 3 ..read more

This brief article takes a look at who we (the royal we) would take in the 2019 NBA Draft if we (myself and Ilia Shatashvili) were running all 30 NBA franchises, with the caveat being that there’s no trading back allowed. Let the games begin. 1. New Orleans Pelicans  G: Zion Williamson. Next question. I: Zion Williamson. CBSR would never lie. 2. Memphis Grizzlies G: Ja Morant. He scratches my Iverson itch. I: Ja Morant. Heard there was a job opening with the Grizzlies at point guard. 3. New York Knicks G: Jarrett Culver. He outplayed R.J. Barrett at MSG back in December and gets it done o ..read more

Last year we unveiled the inaugural “Final Tiers” Draft Big Board. 12 months later, I get to do this all over again. The tiers continue to serve as a measuring stick for where I have each prospect grouped relative to their draft class. Additionally this year the big board has several enhancements. The ESPN & Tankathon Big Board rankings will be available in columns labeled ‘ES’ & ‘TK’. Apologies to the Ringer – between KOC, Tjarks, and Chau I couldn’t settle on one ranking so please provide a composite for next year! Finally we have Zion Williamson to thank for inspiring the CBSR ..read more

Height: 7-2 Weight: 210 lbs. Wingspan: 7-7 Birthday/Age: 10/16/99 (19 years old) Projected NBA Role: Center Hometown: Henderson, Nevada Team: Oregon Strengths: Shooting, Rim Protection, Handles, Defensive Potential, Offensive Potential, Touch Weaknesses: Strength, Motor, Defensive Fundamentals, Focus, Energy Upper Bound: Anthony Davis, Kristaps Porzingis, Sam Perkins, Manute Bol, Karl-Anthony Towns Lower Bound: Chris Boucher, Dewayne Dedmon, Sam Bowie Thoughts and Comparisons Bol Bol is my favorite enigma. The tallest and longest player to be drafted, his presence on ..read more

Height: 6-8 Weight: 230 lbs. Wingspan: 7-2 Birthday/Age: 2/8/1998 (21 years-old) School: Gonzaga Strengths: Size/Strength, Transition, Mid-range Weaknesses: Handles, 3-Point shooting, Defensive awareness [protected-iframe id=”54ad5b618d8d2db54bc6cc4df547037f-142507471-56121583″ info=”https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/seasons/2017.html?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool” style=”overflow:auto” class=”sr_share_wrap”] Hachimura was a baseball player until a friend convinced him to play basketball at the age of 12 in Japan. He played h ..read more

Height: 6-7 Weight: 285 lbs. Wingspan: 6-10 Birthday/Age: 7/6/00 (18 years old) Projected NBA Role: Forward/Center Hometown: Spartanburg, South Carolina Team: Duke Strengths: Athleticism, IQ, Rebounding, Efficiency, Effort, Power, Defense, Transition, Playmaking Weaknesses: Shooting, Turnovers Upper Bound: Charles Barkley, Dominique Wilkins, LeBron James, Julius Erving Lower Bound: Larry Johnson, Aaron Gordon, Blake Griffin Thoughts and Comparisons Zion Williamson is the most powerful prospect we have seen in decades and grades out as the most productive college ..read more

Height: 6-3 Weight: 170 lbs. Wingspan: 6-8 Birthday/Age: 8/10/99 (19 years old) Projected NBA Role: Point Guard Hometown: Dalzell, South Carolina Team: Murray State Strengths: Playmaking, Athleticism, Scoring, Improving Shooter, Defensive Potential, Desire Weaknesses: Turnovers, Efficiency, Defensive Effort, Strength Upper Bound: De’Aaron Fox, MVP Derrick Rose, Steve Francis, Tim Hardaway, Playoff Rajon Rondo Lower Bound: Dennis Smith, Current-state John Wall, Regular Season Rajon Rondo Thoughts and Comparisons A late-bloomer, Morant was lightly recruited and ended up at mid-ma ..read more

Height: 6-7 Weight: 208 lbs. Wingspan: 6-10 Projected NBA Role: Offensive Initiator Birthday/Age: 6/14/00 (19 years old) Hometown: Toronto, Canada School: Duke Blue Devils Strengths: Size, Driving Ability, Offensive Upside Weaknesses: Inconsistent Shooting, Defense [protected-iframe id=”513e0ccaddec95aabe3e378df6382719-142507471-56121583″ info=”https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/seasons/2019.html?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=Share&utm_campaign=ShareTool” style=”overflow:auto” class=”sr_share_wrap”] Thoughts and Comparisons Barrett’s success on the internation ..read more