NBA

Hope he’s able to play again, felt like he was just finding a good niche with the bulls.

Ball has been out since January 2021 with a left knee injury and has since had three knee procedures, per K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago.

He had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee in January 2022 before having an arthroscopic debridement of his left knee in September 2022. Cartilage transplant surgery followed in March 2023.

But there's certainly optimism for hope that Ball can return in 2024-25. Namely, he provided it with these comments to TMZ Sports.

Oct. 22: Start of the regular season

Nov. 12: Emirates NBA Cup begins

Dec. 14: NBA Cup semifinals

Dec. 17: NBA Cup championship

Feb. 6: NBA trade deadline (3 p.m. ET)

Feb. 14-16: All-Star Weekend

April 13: Final day of regular season

April 15-18: NBA Play-In Tournament

April 19: NBA Playoffs begin

Gold: USA

Silver: France

Bronze: Serbia

Some of these are a bit of a reach but thought it was an interesting article.

The lineup for the holiday during the 2024-25 season, according to league sources, is as follows:

*San Antonio Spurs at New York Knicks

*Minnesota Timberwolves at Dallas Mavericks

*Philadelphia 76ers at Boston Celtics

*Los Angeles Lakers at Golden State Warriors

*Denver Nuggets at Phoenix Suns

Alright guys this sub is a little dead and to bring a little discussion here I thought it would be fun to make some predications for next season!

MVP : Shai

DPOY : AD

MIP : Victor Wembayama

COTY : Redick

6MOY : Reid repeats

Champion : Thunder

I also predict the Nuggets will have a troubling season if no trades are made. Losing KCP and replacing him with Westbrook is going to be disastrous unless Braun really steps it up.

What’s some of your fun, realistic or even wild takes?

The Jazz can't trade Markkanen for six months after re-signing him thanks to the collective bargaining agreement. If he had signed on Tuesday, Utah could've moved him on the day of the 2025 trade deadline (Feb. 6 at 3 p.m. ET). Doing so from Wednesday means he's locked in for the entire 2024-25 season.

Sounds like they’ll follow through with his contract so he’ll stay.

If they don’t end up successful in suing the NBA for the Amazon package he’ll be on covering other things.

The deal will come via a renegotiation-and-extend, using the Jazz’s $33 million of open salary-cap space. League sources said Markkanen’s deal is projected to be worth upwards of $200 million over five years.

For Markkanen and Utah, this is a landscape-altering deal, keeping him off the trade market for a full season and out of 2025 free agency where he currently would have been the No. 1 available player.

The Jazz held Markkanen trade conversations with several serious suitors over the last month, including the San Antonio Spurs, Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors. The Warriors made the most aggressive offer, centered around Moses Moody, multiple first-round picks, pick swaps and second-rounders, team sources from both sides said. Utah wanted Brandin Podziemski in any theoretical deal. The Warriors were protective of Podziemski in the Markkanen conversation and a few other leaguewide trade proposals this summer, league sources said.

The NBA has had discussions about starting its own basketball league in Europe. Commissioner Adam Silver told the Associated Press on Friday that the NBA is considering its next move on the continent and is weighing whether to start an annual tournament or league.

It is not yet clear how far along the NBA is in its planning. Silver said that the NBA is not in a place where it will “transform a league structure in the short term.” But talks about a league have gone far enough that it has recently been a topic of discussion in European basketball circles. The league has been working with financial firm, The Raine Group, to explore its opportunities in Europe.

Hibs has a YouTube channel. It’s not too bad!

Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reported the news Friday, noting the deal has a player option for the second season.

Charles Barkley will either remain with TNT Sports on his 10-year, $210 million contract or he will listen to offers from ESPN, NBC and Amazon Prime Video as he reconsiders retirement, he told *The Athletic *on Friday.

“My deal is 10 years, $210 million,” Barkley said in a phone interview. “Turner has to come to me ASAP and they have to guarantee my whole thing or they can offer me a pay cut, which there is no chance of that happening and I’ll be (a) free agent.

“My thing was, ‘Wait, y’all f— up, I didn’t f— up, why do I have to take a pay cut?”

Barkley said Johnson won’t go to a new network, while he has not checked in on O’Neal’s or Smith’s plans. The Athletic was told from sources briefed on the other networks’ plans that they could offer to let Barkley and the full crew, including Johnson, the chance to remain in Atlanta and do the same show.

The NBA announced new 11-year TV deals with incumbent ESPN and newcomers NBC and Amazon Prime Video, rejecting TNT Sports’ right to match, which could lead to a legal battle between the network and the league, according to sources briefed on the deal.

The forthcoming agreements with ESPN, NBC and Amazon are not set to begin until the 2025-26 season, meaning TNT could go into this season, its final under its current contract, with the specter of suing the league it is covering.

The agreements, announced Wednesday, also include the WNBA, which is expected to receive a total of $2.2 billion over 11 years.

TNT Sports, according to sources briefed on the matter, has honed its sights on Amazon’s streaming-only agreement, which includes the playoffs, six conference finals, the In-Season Tournament and regular season action. Amazon’s deal is for around $1.93 billion per year, according to sources briefed on the precise numbers. Amazon will also continue to air the WNBA.

“Warner Bros. Discovery’s most recent proposal did not match the terms of Amazon Prime Video’s offer and, therefore, we have entered into a long-term arrangement with Amazon,” the NBA said in a statement.

TNT Sports has informed the NBA it plans to use its matching rights to continue broadcasting the league games. The network is targeting the 11-year package signed by Amazon Prime Video, sources briefed on the move said.

While TNT has the contractual right to match an offer, per its current contract, the NBA is expected to decline the network’s right to take the agreed-upon Amazon package, sources briefed on the NBA’s plans said. The league’s preference is to honor the $1.8 billion per year contract it agreed to with Amazon.