Spurs news: San Antonio Spurs legend Manu Ginobili has left fans with tons of memorable highlights, from fancy layups to clutch baskets that helped the franchise win four NBA titles. The future Hall of Famer decided to call it a career in 2016, and there is no denying that his number will soon be hung in the rafters of the AT&T Center.

But did you know that Ginobili almost died in 2004? Yes, the Argentinian star revealed that he was involved in a car accident that almost ended his life that year.

“In 2004… during my honeymoon, I got a car in the front of me that passed a truck on a curve. I threw myself on the shoulder and began to skid. I could have killed someone. I could have slammed against a tree. I could fallen on a cliff or hit the driver head on. There would have been no Olympic games. There was no more career. It was a flip of the coin in the air. Luck.”

The NBA has seen several careers cut short by accidents, including Drazen Petrovic, Len Bias, and Malik Sealy. Ginobili was fortunate enough to survive and he went on to have a great career with the Spurs.

Ginobili averaged 13.3 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.8 assists in 1,057 games with the Spurs. He made the All-Star team two times and won the 2008 Sixth Man of the Year Award. He’s also widely recognized as one of the greatest non-American NBA players of all-time. We were fortunate enough to see him play, whether we liked San Antonio or not.

The Spurs built their dynasty around Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, and Ginobili. They each had a ton of contribution in the franchise’s success. Without them, who knows how good San Antonio will be?

There’s still one icon that remains with the Spurs, and that is head coach Gregg Popovich, who recently set the record for the longest tenure in coaching one franchise. Once Pop is gone, it will officially be the end of an era in San Antonio.

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Cavaliers news: It has only been two years since the Cleveland Cavaliers snapped their NBA Finals streak to four, as their superstar back then, LeBron James, chose to leave and join the Los Angeles Lakers. Still, they had a memorable title run back in 2016, and Kevin Durant was quick to recognize how great that team was.

Durant was asked to rank the worst losses of his career, and in his answer, he said that blowing a 3-1 lead against the 2016 Golden State Warriors team wasn’t part of his top five.

“It doesn’t rank in the top five. I mean, we lost Game 2 at home in 2012 to Miami — that was a tough loss. We lost Game 5 against Memphis at home. It was a 2-2 series, and they went up 3-2. Those are tough losses to me.”

However, KD did admit that he felt that the Oklahoma City Thunder had the momentum back in 2016, especially after they eliminated the 67-win San Antonio Spurs in the second round of the playoffs. The two-time Finals MVP thought that his Thunder had the chance to face the Cavs in the Finals, the team he dubbed as the best in the league that year.

“I really, really, really felt like we had an opportunity, we had some momentum. We were playing against a 73-win team in the Warriors and the Spurs, who were a 67-win team that year. And then the Cavs were the best team in the league — the most talented team. So I’m like, ‘Wow, an uphill climb. Let’s see what we can do.'”

The Warriors also blew a 3-1 series lead against the Cavaliers in the Finals, and after losing the title, Golden State signed Durant in the offseason. This allowed the Dubs to win two straight championships at Cleveland’s expense.

2016 was indeed a great year for the Cavaliers and the city of Cleveland. Although the team is rebuilding right now, what they’ve done during that year will forever be remembered as one of the greatest moments in the history of sports. Only time will tell if the Cavs can replicate that success in the near future. They have a couple of young pieces to build around in Colin Sexton and Darius Garland, and if both guys turn out to be superstars, they might be able to compete for a championship sooner than what most people expect.

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Suns news: Veteran point guard Ricky Rubio is coming off an impressive stint in the FIBA World Cup wherein he successfully led the Spanish national men’s basketball team to a gold medal finish. Now, he wants to keep the momentum going as he intends to make a positive impact with the Phoenix Suns.

Rubio signed a three-year, $51 million deal to join the Suns this summer, and he confidently declared that fans will see him play at him play the best basketball years of his career over the next couple of seasons.

“I’m fully expecting to play the best game, the best play of my career in these next two or three years. I’m going to hit my prime mentally and physically and I’ve been working super hard for that.”

Even before Rubio led Spain to the World Cup title, he’s already claiming that he’s in his prime, and given his performance in the Suns’ 124-95 win against the Sacramento Kings (he put up 11 points, six rebounds, and 11 assists), there’s no reason why Suns fans shouldn’t be excited about him.

Suns assistant coach Steve Blake is a fan of the Rubio signing, and he’s excited to see how well the Spanish star will make his teammates better.

“Ricky Rubio is an ultimate point guard, pass-first guy that’s gonna create and make guys have fun when they’re on the court.”

But Rubio didn’t join the Suns just to prove himself. He also wants to help the younger guys on the team take their game to the next level, particularly Devin Booker.

“I want to see how good a scorer he is, and how good a player he has been. And if there are some areas where I can help [Booker] become an All Star, I will try to do that too.”

Rubio has had a steady NBA career, and while it is unlikely for him to become an All-Star, he’s still one of the best pure point guards in the league. Only time will tell if he will indeed have a career season in Phoenix, but his confidence alone should already tell you that he intends to help make the Suns become a better team.

Follow ClutchPoints for the latest Phoenix Suns news and updates.

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Nuggets news: A lot of people are expecting great things from Nikola Jokic this season. After an impressive 2018-19 campaign which saw him lead the Denver Nuggets to the second-best record in the West, he’s now widely recognized as some of the league’s best players, and to some, it is only a matter of time before he starts competing for the MVP award.

But Jokic has no intentions of going after the MVP honors, as he prefers to help the Nuggets win rather than chase an individual accolade.

“It’s not something you chase personally. I just work to get wins, that’s the most important thing.”

The seven-foot All-Star added that he’s not setting any personal goals because it creates unnecessary pressure, and he doesn’t want that kind of distraction.

“I never have goals just because I think goals, they make you feel pressure, make you feel nervous, stress, whatever, like if I don’t make it I’m going to die,” the Serbian big man said. “I just go out there and try to win it, game, practice, a set, even in the weight room.”

Although he’s starting to make a name for himself in the NBA, Jokic remains one of the humbest guys in the league. Even when he received the news of people saying that he’s the face of the Nuggets, he refused to take all the credit and said that his teammates also helped bring Denver to where it is now.

“I think the media and guys outside of basketball put me in front of the team. Denver Nuggets is team basketball. There are no individuals. We are winning and losing as a team. It’s not me or anybody in front of the team.”

The Nuggets are one of the favorites to win the NBA championship this year, and Jokic is the biggest reason behind that. As the 2019-20 season progresses, we’ll see how well the team measures up to some of the NBA’s top contenders, and we’ll see if Jokic can raise his game to yet another level.

Follow ClutchPoints for the latest Denver Nuggets news and updates.

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Suns news: Veteran point guard Ricky Rubio is coming off an impressive stint in the FIBA World Cup wherein he successfully led the Spanish national men’s basketball team to a gold medal finish. Now, he wants to keep the momentum going as he intends to make a positive impact with the Phoenix Suns.

Rubio signed a three-year, $51 million deal to join the Suns this summer, and he confidently declared that fans will see him play at him play the best basketball years of his career over the next couple of seasons.

“I’m fully expecting to play the best game, the best play of my career in these next two or three years. I’m going to hit my prime mentally and physically and I’ve been working super hard for that.”

Even before Rubio led Spain to the World Cup title, he’s already claiming that he’s in his prime, and given his performance in the Suns’ 124-95 win against the Sacramento Kings (he put up 11 points, six rebounds, and 11 assists), there’s no reason why Suns fans shouldn’t be excited about him.

Suns assistant coach Steve Blake is a fan of the Rubio signing, and he’s excited to see how well the Spanish star will make his teammates better.

“Ricky Rubio is an ultimate point guard, pass-first guy that’s gonna create and make guys have fun when they’re on the court.”

But Rubio didn’t join the Suns just to prove himself. He also wants to help the younger guys on the team take their game to the next level, particularly Devin Booker.

“I want to see how good a scorer he is, and how good a player he has been. Suns news And if there are some areas where I can help [Booker] become an All Star, I will try to do that too.”

Rubio has had a steady NBA career, and while it is unlikely for him to become an All-Star, he’s still one of the best pure point guards in the league. Only time will tell if he will indeed have a career season in Phoenix, but his confidence alone should already tell you that he intends to help make the Suns become a better team.

Follow ClutchPoints for the latest Phoenix Suns news and updates.

Clippers news: The 2018-19 season has officially begun and fans were able to get a glimpse of some of the league’s top contenders. One of the biggest storylines this year is the formation of superstar duos around the league, highlighted by the Los Angeles Clippers’ acquisition of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.

And for George, super tandems are the new dynamic for this generation’s NBA..

“Everybody was looking for a Big Three. It didn’t work for a lot of teams, so now this is a new dynamic for the new generation of this league.”

George was traded by the Oklahoma City Thunder to the Clippers this summer after the All-Star forward finally decided that he wanted to come home. And while he’s still a couple of weeks away from making his much-anticipated debut with his new team, a lot has been said about the Clips being the favorites to win the championship this year.

But it wasn’t long ago when superstars recruited two other players in the same level as they are to form a superteam. The 2008 Boston Celtics and the 2010 Miami Heat were two of the pioneers of the Big Three era, and while PG acknowledges their contributions and accomplishments, he admits that he likes the idea of teams building around two stars.

“I think what Boston did was special. I think what Miami did was special. But I think it goes back to you have two guys that are the guys and then you have a group around them that supports them to the highest level, and that foundation is around a lot of guys in this league.”

It will be interesting to see if the NBA will continue with this two-superstar-per-franchise craze or not. History shows that every decade, a superteam has always dominated the league. In fact, one could argue that a blockbuster trade could turn one of these Big Twos into a Big Three. So we’ll just have to wait and see what happens moving forward.

But for someone like George, competition matters, and playing in a league where majority of the contenders have a legitimate shot at winning the title is what will keep him motivated all season long.

Follow ClutchPoints for the latest Los Angeles Clippers news and updates.

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Bucks news: Reigning NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo determined to get better as a leader for the Milwaukee Bucks this season.

After a heartbreaking loss in the 2019 Eastern Conference Finals, Giannis Antetokounmpo knows he has something to prove with the Milwaukee Bucks this season.

The Greek Freak is pretty much confident with who he is as a player. After all, he won the 2018-19 MVP award against tough competition from Houston Rockets superstar James Harden. However, he acknowledged that he has plenty of room for improvement -- especially as a leader.

“Mostly, you just gotta be more vocal. You gotta lead by example. You gotta be able to accept criticism by your coach, by your teammates, and be OK with it. That’s what a leader does,” Antetokounmpo said. “I know that my team knows who I am. They trust me. They know I’m going to put my body and everything I have on the line for this team. By doing that, everything else will take care of itself.”

Antetokounmpo added that while the Bucks’ primary goal is to win a championship, they need to focus on what they need to do right now rather than look too far in the future.

“We are going to have the same hunger, but what I want to say is: the Eastern Conference Finals, I’m not going to lie, it’s like six, seven months away from now. It’s about tomorrow. It’s about how can we get better tomorrow.”

Unlike the past five years, the NBA looks like an even playing field this season, as half of the teams in the league have a legitimate shot at winning the championship.

The Bucks are one of the top favorites to hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy, but they might find it more difficult to win games this season compared to the previous one.

Most of the contenders have significantly upgraded their rosters in preparation for this campaign. The Bucks didn’t make a big splash this summer, though in reality, they didn’t have to.

Milwaukee has one of the five best players in the world in Giannis, and they have provided him with a great supporting cast as well.

In fact, they just showed everyone just how good they are in their showdown against the revamped Houston Rockets, a team that paraded two former MVPs in Harden and Russell Westbrook. The Bucks still won 117-111 behind Antetokounmpo’s triple-double of 30 points, 13 rebounds, and 11 assists.

From this point forward, every game counts, and it’s time for the Bucks to prove that last season was no fluke. It’s time for Giannis to show the rest of the opposition why he’s the reigning MVP.

So far, they’re off to a good start.

Follow ClutchPoints for the latest Milwaukee Bucks news and updates.

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Cavaliers news: The 2019-20 season has officially started for the Cleveland Cavaliers, and despite their 94-85 loss to the Orlando Magic on opening night, there were still some positives takeaways from the game.

One of which is Kevin Love, who finished with 11 points and a whopping 18 rebounds. Over the past year, there has been talk about the potential of the 31-year-old being traded as the Cavs continue to rebuild. Love is aware of these rumors, but he made it clear that he wants to stay in Cleveland.

“I do want to be here. I always have. I say that knowing it’s the NBA and it’s a business. I think especially after seeing last year, the summer leading up to last year and this summer, the changeover is like unprecedented so you don’t know what is going to happen.”

Last season, Love signed a four-year, $120 million extension. Unfortunately, he only played in 22 games because of injuries. The former All-Star said that he’s fine if the front office will decide to trade him, but so far, there has been no discussions between his camp and team officials about his future.

“My time in Cleveland could eventually come,” Love said. “I know it’s been the talk every single year, but I’ve gotten — I’m not going to say comfortable because comfortable is the wrong word — but I feel comfortable here. I love where I live, I’ve embraced you guys, I’ve embraced the city and the fans, but at the end of the day, given a long-enough timeline, who you work for or somebody you work for will eventually change up and turn.

“If they decide to go completely young … and that could be the case, but it’s funny, my agent didn’t call me one time this summer to say, ‘Hey, you’re getting traded, there’s talks that this is happening.’ Of course, somehow it’s still out there and people are talking about, ‘Oh, Kevin would be great here or great there.’ I just keep it moving and try to do right by these guys because we have a good group.”

Love has embraced the role of being the veteran leader for the Cavaliers, who several young prospects on the team. He plans to continue taking them under his wing moving forward, and he will continue to do everything that he can for the franchise he once helped win a championship.

“I know whether it’s the next four, six or seven years here or whether it’s the next four months, I’m just going to be me and continue to give it all I can. I really do think, especially with (John Beilein), I can get a lot better.”

At this point, the Cavaliers can still get some significant assets if they ship Love somewhere else. He’s still capable of providing decent numbers, just like what he showed against the Magic. There will also be several teams who will be interested in acquiring him, so Cleveland has to make a decision soon.

Is Love a part of their long-term future or not?

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Lakers news: After trading for All-Star forward Anthony Davis back in June, the Los Angeles Lakers shifted their focus in going after Kawhi Leonard in free agency.

 They were attempting to build the NBA’s next superteam, and AD himself thought that the Purple and Gold had a really good shot at landing the reigning Finals MVP.

“I don’t really know Kawhi like that — I don’t think no one really knows Kawhi like that. But obviously we were hopeful. I definitely thought that it was a possibility that we could get him… I’m not going to be a haggling guy. Especially when he came and said he didn’t really like the media [attention] and people pressuring him.

But I think there was a time where all of us felt like we were really, really close to getting Kawhi.”

Davis added that he and his teammates were already thinking of the possibilities had the Lakers signed Leonard.

“I think it [has] always been about the Big Three, We were talking like, ‘Man, we get Kawhi, man, this is what we can do. We can do it like this, this, this, this.'”

During the first week of free agency, a lot of people, including credible members of the media, believed that the Lakers were the frontrunners to sign Leonard. But everyone was stunned when he decided to join the Los Angeles Clippers, the team that was also able to trade another All-Star in Paul George.

With Kawhi and PG joining the Clippers, there has been a lot of talk about the potential LA rivalry, as they share Staples Center with the Lakers, the more prominent and beloved team in the city. Many people believe that the Clips are the favorites to win the NBA championship this season, but the Lakers aren’t going to be pushovers compared to the past six years.

The Lakers will be parading a roster led by four-time MVP LeBron James, as well as Davis, who’s starting to become one of the best basketball players in the world. At 26 years old, he’s one of the most skilled big men in the league, and with a roster filled with veterans with high basketball IQ, the Purple and Gold will be ready to go toe-to-toe with the NBA’s best.

And Davis is confident that they can succeed, even without Kawhi.

“‘We [still] got LeBron and Anthony Davis. Let’s do it.'”

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Rockets news: A lot of people are pessimistic about the partnership of Jamaes Harden and Russell Westbrook in Houston, with most of them saying that they wouldn’t be able to co-exist because they are both ball-dominant players. However, Brodie has made it clear that he’s willing to adjust for the benefit of the team.

Westbrook was traded to the Rockets a couple of months ago after the Oklahoma City Thunder decided that it’s finally time to hit the reset button. The former NBA MVP averaged a triple-double for the past three seasons, and that streak could be broken that that he’s about to play with Harden.

But Westbrook says he’s perfectly fine with that, as he believes that he can still help the Rockets win games even without the ball in his hands.

“I don’t have to have the ball to impact the game. I don’t have to score, I don’t have to do anything. I can defend, I can rebound, I can pass, I can lead. Our main goal, main focus, is to win. I can go be scoreless, and if we win, that’s the best thing that ever happened. That’s all I cared about, and that’s all I ever cared about.”

Westbrook added that he no longer needs to prove himself to anyone anymore, and that his main focus is helping Harden and the Rockets win a championship.

“When it comes to me and James playing together, who’s going to have the ball, who’s not going to have the ball, it really doesn’t matter. I don’t have to prove I can score 30 points. I’ve done that before. I don’t have to prove to average 10 assists. I’ve done that before. I don’t have to prove to get 10, 11 rebounds. I’ve done that before. My goal is to win a championship, so whatever it takes to do that, that’s what I’m going to do.”

With Westbrook on board, the Rockets have two of the league’s most explosive guards who can both pad the stats sheet and get their teammates involved. Brodie already played with Harden back when they were in OKC, so he probably knows how to share the ball with him.

But will Westbrook be okay with the fact that Harden is the alpha male on the team? We’ll just have to wait and see to find out.

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