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🏀 Beginning of the End

🏀 Beginning of the End

March 01, 2023

Good morning BTP family! We have finally made it to March which means March Madness is right around the corner! The best time of the year is nearly among us. In NBA news the new look Western Conference is off to a rough start post All-Star break. Luka & Kyrie are just 1-4 since teaming up while the Clippers are 0-3 since signing Russell Westbrook. Getting into crunch time in the NBA so these teams need to figure it out fast before it’s too late!

In today’s BTP we break down LeBron’s brutal ankle injury and what it means for the Lakers this season, new findings in the Dan Snyder investigation, and the backstory of two young twins that joined the Overtime Elite who are headed to the NBA Draft.

Happy Humpday!

BEGINNING OF THE END

LeBron is Out Indefinitely and the Lakers Season is Doomed…

The 2023 Lakers’ season got off to about as bad of a start as it could have, and yet, after a very successful trade deadline, they were firmly back in the mix. The Lakers won three straight games with their new and improved roster, including an epic 27-point comeback against Luka Doncic and the Mavs, and then disaster struck. Here’s why LeBron’s foot injury essentially ends their season.

To be clear, the Lakers were far from a guarantee to make the playoffs with a healthy LeBron, let alone make any serious noise, but statistically, his absence is a death blow. With the help of some well-timed losing streaks from the Pelicans and Timberwolves, the Ringer NBA Odds Machine gave LA a 23% chance to make the postseason, but after James’ injury, their odds plummeted to 18%, which is lower than every team in the West not named Portland, Houston, and San Antonio.

It’s an unprecedented drop, but it speaks to LeBron’s impact on the court and the lack of depth on the roster. Not only was 38-year-old LeBron James eighth in NBA in scoring with 29.5 points per game, but he was also the Lakers’ leader in assists. Without him, this places a greater responsibility on Anthony Davis, who showed flashes of his All-NBA form earlier this season but is generally inconsistent and prone to injuries.

And just in case you still didn’t recognize the gravity of the situation, even LeBron knew how important the final stretch of games was and how little margin for error they had. While speaking during All-Star Weekend, James said the remaining games were “23 of the most important games of my career for a regular season,” before adding that he hoped to be “available on the floor every single night for these 23 games to give us a chance.”

The Lakers lost their first game post-LeBron injury Tuesday night against the Grizzlies, and while AD played pretty well and was a monster on the glass, it wasn’t nearly enough, as the new-look Lakers' winning streak came to an unsatisfying end.

INVESTIGATION

Dan Snyder Continues to Sink Lower

Washington Commanders owner Dan Snyder is universally considered one of worst owners in the NFL, and his latest actions are further proof of why. The Commanders are expected to sell for a record-breaking price to a very high-profile buyer, including one of Jeffery Bezos, Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta, and 76ers/Devils owner Josh Harris, but Snyder is once again behaving poorly.

What’s the latest?

According to the Washington Post, Snyder and his legal team are reportedly trying to arrange a deal that if he sells the team, the other NFL owners and league will "indemnify him against future legal liability and costs." In addition to harrowing allegations of workplace misconduct, Snyder has also recently been accused by his minority owners of financial fraud, and this feels like a hail-mary kind of play to protect whatever is left of Snyder’s image and a way of sweeping all his numerous misdeeds under the rug.

What’s next?

So far, these requests have not been granted, but that doesn’t mean this is going away. The next course of action would be for the league to vote Snyder out of the ownership ranks, provided three-fourths of the owners would vote yes. Such a vote has never occurred before, but there is some degree of precedent for forcing an owner out for bad behavior, dating back to the 2018 sale of the Panthers by then-owner Jerry Richardson. As you would expect, the Commanders have denied the Washington Post's report, but make no mistake, this sale is going to happen someday, whether Snyder likes it or not.

TWIN TAKEOVER

Amen & Ausar Thompson are Future NBA Stars

Amen and Ausar Thompson have had an incredible journey in the last two years. In April of 2021, the Thompson twins were playing for the unsponsored AAU team Florida Pro HSA, and now they’re months away from becoming lottery picks. What happened in between is they joined the then-brand-new Overtime Elite program.

What is Overtime Elite?

Overtime Elite is the latest in a growing number of programs designed to provide youth basketball players with a different path to the NBA. OTE provides its talent with around-the-clock access to a gym, trainers, videos, high-tech training systems, professional players and coaches, a personalized academic regimen, media training, and perhaps most importantly, players are paid a minimum of $100,000. Overtime Elite can also potentially classify its athlete payment as a “scholarship,” in the event the players want to maintain their college eligibility.

Who are the Thompson Twins?

The Thompson twins are a pair of hard-working 6’7 future lottery picks known for their tenacious defense, epic dunks, and being the first major prospects to join Overtime Elite. OTE was still in its infancy when the twins came on board, and so far, their risk appears to have benefitted their draft stock and the program itself. Their success and professional improvement have further legitimized OTE and have drawn other big names into the program, including the No. 1-ranked player from the 2024 class, Naasir Cunningham.

What happens next?

Depending on where the Thompsons are drafted and how well they perform in the NBA, the future of Overtime Elite and other alternate professional paths stands to benefit greatly. Ultimately, more competition like OTE, and the G League Ignite, benefit the players and the league as a whole, and as fans, we should be rooting for it to succeed.