The 10-man rotation, starring Allen Iverson’s story and the challenge of telling it
A look around the league and the Web that covers it. It’s also important to note that the rotation order and starting nods aren’t always listed in order of importance. That’s for you, dear reader, to figure out.
C: Eye on Basketball and espnW. Zach Harper and Sarah Spain on “Iverson,” a new documentary on the iconic former MVP point guard directed by Zatella Beaty, which premieres on Showtime on Saturday, May 16, at 9 p.m. ET.
This is the second major documentary project aimed at telling Iverson’s story. I reviewed the first, “No Crossover: The Trial of Allen Iverson,” back in 2010.
PF: Sports Illustrated. Rob Mahoney’s in-depth look at what Mike Conley’s life was like on the night after he suffered multiple face fractures against the Portland Trail Blazers is really, truly nightmarish. To wit: “That night, I was throwing up. And every time I threw up — because when you do it, you can’t really control this — I’d have to open my mouth. It would just kill me because I couldn’t really open my mouth. Then, all of a sudden, blood would come out of my nose and I was like: I think I’m dying.”
SF: The Triangle. Zach Lowe on the (likely) end of the Chicago Bulls as we know them.
SG: ESPN Insider ($). Amin Elhassan on the pros and cons of how the Washington Wizards have developed Bradley Beal and Otto Porter to this point, and how important their continued evolution is to the team’s future contending prospects.
PG: The Triangle. Brian Phillips on Blake Griffin: “It suits him, I think, that the best stretch of basketball he’s ever played is also the moment when you’d reflect on how tenuous his hold on greatness is, how easily his game dissociates.”
6th: Memphis Commercial Appeal and The New York Times. Kyle Veazey and Scott Cacciola on the unique ways that Memphis’ love of its Grizzlies find official and bootleg textile-based expression.
7th: espnW. Michelle Voepel raises yet another concern about James Dolan bringing in Isiah Thomas as not only the new president of the WNBA’s New York Liberty, but also a part-owner, pending league approval of his ownership stake: “If that doesn’t happen, what if Dolan threatens to pull the plug on the Liberty? Sources I spoke to around the league have expressed concern about that. This could turn into a kind of extortion.”
8th: Upside and Motor. Chris Reichert on the Rockets’ deliberate development of rookie center Clint Capela, which has already begun paying dividends in these playoffs.
9th: SI Longform. Chris Ballard looks back, 30 years later, at the 1985 NBA draft lottery, which was totally rigged so that Patrick Ewing would land in New York, unless it totally wasn’t.
10th: ESPN.com. Kevin Arnovitz on how, in the final minute of a closeout game with history on the line, the Atlanta Hawks put away the Washington Wizards by simply, and at long last, just being themselves.
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Dan Devine is an editor for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
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