標籤: Marks

When it was revealed that the NBA was set to vote on allowing expansion in Las Vegas and Seattle through the 2028-2029 season, many were thrilled.

Adding more teams has long been a hot topic in the NBA, and now, it may finally become a reality. The last time the league added a new member was in 2004 when the Charlotte Bobcats franchise was granted.

However, ESPN’s Bobby Marks expressed his misgivings about expansion, using the Brooklyn Nets to emphasize his argument.

“After seeing some of these numbers over the past few nights we might want to reconsider the expansion,” Marx wrote on X.

“In the last two games, Brooklyn has trailed by a combined 60 points at halftime.”

He posted it after the Nets scored just 24 points in the first half against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Barclays Center on Wednesday. This is the team’s lowest performance since the 1997–1998 season.

For perspective, the Thunder had 28 points in the first quarter.

The Thunder are dominating the nets 👀

The 24 points in the first half matched Brooklyn’s fewest points since 1997–98. pic.twitter.com/tkdwEqkuNF

– ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) 19 March 2026

Some have argued against expansion because it could dilute talent. Having new teams means having specific players spread out more across rosters, which will further dilute the competitive balance.

This season, the Nets, Washington Wizards, Indiana Pacers and Sacramento Kings have all separated the top-tier teams from the bottom-tier teams, all with less than 20 wins.

Additionally, with the NBA already dealing with the polarizing issue of load management, expansion would lead to heavier schedules, more travel and less rest. There is also the matter of rearranging conferences.

At the time of writing, the Nets are trailing the Thunder 99-67 in the fourth quarter.

The Atlanta Hawks have a chance to get back fully healthy for the first time in a long time, as Jonathan Kuminga’s status has been upgraded ahead of their matchup against the Washington Wizards. Kuminga has been dealing with a hamstring injury since his time with the Golden State Warriors and then joining the Atlanta Hawks and has yet to make his debut with his new team.

With Kuminga now being listed as questionable against the Wizards, it’s a good sign that he’s close to returning to the court.

Last week, the Hawks noted that Kuminga was making good progress from his bone bruise and would be re-evaluated in a week, with an update on his condition.

Kuminga was seen hitting some shots during the Hawks’ practice, which was a good indication of where he can be when he gets on the floor.

Adding Kuminga to the Hawks’ rotation could help improve their wing rotation, and his skill set could open things up for the rest of the team as well. His ability to drive and get into the lane will be key for the Hawks, whether he’s making shots or finding opposing teammates on kick-outs.

The Hawks recently made a lineup change, inserting C.J. McCollum into the starting lineup and moving Zachary Risacher off the bench. Head coach Quin Snyder said after their win against the Brooklyn Nets that the Hawks are better statistically when McCollum is on the floor with Dyson Daniels, Nickell Alexander-Walker, Jalen Johnson and Onyeka Okongwu, which proves why they made the move.

With Risacher being a wing, it will be interesting to see how those minutes off the bench are allocated when Kuminga is healthy, and if he can be on the floor at the same time.

In just a few days, the NBA will begin the second half of the season, and it is expected that most teams will try to strengthen their positions to earn the much-coveted ticket to the playoffs.

As far as other squads are concerned, let the tanking begin.

Tanking has been a persistent issue for the NBA, affecting the integrity of the league. Whenever teams don’t play to win, it’s the fans who lose.

Although there are fines that punish tanking, ESPN’s Bobby Marks said they are not necessarily a deterrent, because team owners have very deep pockets.

“When you’re a billionaire, you would rather write a blank check for the ability to be drafted in the top three or top four because those players are game-changers and everything,” Marks said on “The Hoop Collective.”

“A team texted me and said, ‘Listen, what is this? Seven million? Eight million? How much will it cost? We’ll pay the fine.’ Now, listen, when you come out and say we’re going to start taking away draft picks and we’re going to start taking away resources, now it becomes something else.

Wisely, Steve Ballmer, who owns the Los Angeles Clippers, is one of the richest people in the world with a net worth of $140 billion.

Most of his fellow team owners are multi-billionaires, including Miriam Adelson and Patrick Dumont of the Dallas Mavericks ($40 billion), Robert Pera of the Memphis Grizzlies ($30 billion), and Dan Gilbert of the Cleveland Cavaliers ($26 billion).

Recently, the NBA fined the Utah Jazz $500,000 and the Indiana Pacers $100,000 for sitting out healthy players, deeming it “conduct detrimental to the league.”

The Jazz have the third-worst record in the Western Conference, while the Pacers have the second-worst record in the Eastern Conference.

週一晚上，休斯頓德州人隊在 Acrisure 體育場以 30-6 擊敗匹茲堡鋼人隊，以一場聲明式的勝利開啟了他們的季后賽之旅。這是球隊歷史上第一次客場季后賽勝利。新秀跑衛伍迪·馬克斯帶頭衝鋒，而德州人隊的防守則在全能表現中貢獻了兩次達陣。

馬克斯以 19 次沖球推進 112 碼和一次達陣為休斯頓隊的進攻提供動力，控制著德州人隊進攻線的比賽節奏，並在進攻點始終獲勝。這位新秀的突破性表現幫助休斯頓隊在下半場反超比分，並讓鋼人隊整晚緊追不捨。

賽后，NFL Network 的 Jane Slater 在場上採訪了馬克斯，隨後在 X（以前稱為 Twitter）上分享了這次交流，重點關注了這位新秀的活力和對隊友的讚賞。

跑動比賽在這一場比賽中被忽視了，但在多次突破和得分中出現了。賽后與德州人 RB 伍迪·馬克斯 pic.twitter.com/juSTA8rdf9

— 簡·斯萊特 (@SlaterNFL) 2026 年 1 月 13 日

“我的O線。他們做得很好。然後查布就在場邊不斷地猛擊我。繼續讀下去，繼續讀下去。我想說，這週我們在跑動比賽中看起來棒極了。”

馬克斯稱讚進攻鋒線開闢了道路，並讚揚了老將尼克·查佈在邊線的鼓勵。他在上半場短暫退場接受腦震盪評估，但復出後取得一記 13 碼衝球達陣，有效地在第四節鎖定了比賽。

事實證明，休斯頓的地面比賽至關重要，讓進攻保持平衡並保持控制，同時防守也表現得令人窒息。德州人隊將鋼人隊的總碼數限制在 175 碼，並且從未讓匹茲堡隊建立節奏。

憑藉這場大勝，休斯敦隊晉級亞足聯分區賽，對陣新英格蘭愛國者隊。馬克斯的表現可能鞏固了他作為德州人隊首席後衛的地位，因為球隊希望繼續季后賽。