NBA

From courtside of the virtual hardwood, it’s Episode #581 of the NLSC Podcast!

What are some of the most memorable plays that we’ve seen in all of our years watching basketball? This week, we join the community in reminiscing about a few of our all-time favourite highlights. Considering our favourite teams, players, and eras to watch, some of our choices might just surprise you! Of course, a couple of others certainly won’t be particularly shocking. We also discuss which game should be featured in the next NLSC Tournament that will be played over Parsec, hopefully in the near future. The community also has some suggestions in that regard, and suffice it to say, there are some very popular picks when it comes to sim and arcade titles alike.

Download or play on your mobile device/tablet: CLICK HERE (Running time: 46:15 — 32.1MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify

To get involved with the mailbag or to provide any feedback on the show, hit us up in the comments, reach out on social media, or post here in the NLSC Forum! For more information on the NLSC Podcast including episode guides, check out this page in our Wiki. You can also find the show on our YouTube channel, along with the rest of our video content. As always, thanks for tuning in, and go get buckets!

From courtside of the virtual hardwood, it’s Episode #580 of the NLSC Podcast!

Which teams have we most enjoyed watching, and indeed putting on the virtual hardwood, throughout all of our years of basketball fandom? This week, we join the community in naming our favourite teams from our favourite franchises, our favourite teams from franchises that aren’t our chosen clubs, and our favourite bad teams; bad of course being a relative term in some cases! This leads us to reminisce about a wide variety of teams, from NBA Champions and perennial contenders to flash-in-the-pan squads, basement dwellers, and memorable underdogs, as well as the lineups that made them such fun teams to use in basketball video games for one reason or another.

Download or play on your mobile device/tablet: CLICK HERE (Running time: 58:58 — 40.9MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify

To get involved with the mailbag or to provide any feedback on the show, hit us up in the comments, reach out on social media, or post here in the NLSC Forum! For more information on the NLSC Podcast including episode guides, check out this page in our Wiki. You can also find the show on our YouTube channel, along with the rest of our video content. As always, thanks for tuning in, and go get buckets!

Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five players whose NBA careers ended abruptly.

Not all NBA players get to ride off into the sunset with the fanfare of a grand farewell tour. In fact, there have been perennial All-Stars and all-time greats who ended their NBA careers in rather unceremonious fashion. Of course, in many cases, age and injuries were still a factor. As such, while they may have deserved a better, more respectful send-off, they’d still enjoyed fairly long careers, and were now at a point where they couldn’t quite go anymore. At the very least, it’s not as puzzling as when a younger, healthier player is seemingly pushed out of the league well before their time.

Obviously, controversy is sometimes a factor. Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf – an outstanding shooter who would thrive in today’s NBA – was effectively blackballed for his socio-political beliefs and demonstrations. Michael Ray Richardson declined to return to the NBA after his lifetime ban for substance abuse was lifted, maintaining that he’d been treated unfairly considering the leniency shown to players such as Chris Mullin. The five players I’m covering in this article may not have seen their NBA careers ended abruptly by controversies such as those, but they nevertheless went from mainstays in the league to outsiders in a blink; even as they remained both healthy and capable.

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This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! From retrospectives of basketball games and their interesting features, to republished articles and looking at NBA history through the lens of the virtual hardwood, Wednesdays at the NLSC are for going back in time. This week, I’m paying tribute to Doug’s Stats, an essential modding resource in the early days of our community.

I’ll admit that sometimes I yearn for the World Wide Web of yesteryear, when fansites were king and before social media became everything. Selfishly, it’s because we didn’t have to compete with platforms backed by billionaires, but beyond that, I miss seeing other websites that have the same passion that we do. At this point, we’ve outlasted a number of our contemporaries, from fellow NBA Live fansites to our former host, GameSpy. Some of those sites have been preserved by archive.org, but many others are sadly gone forever.

Occasionally, someone will drop by the Forum or one of our social media pages to reminisce and express joy that we’re still around. Obviously it’s always nice to receive flattering compliments and read people’s positive memories of the NLSC, but I also relate to it because I too am heartened to discover a site I once used to visit is still around decades later. One of those sites is Doug’s Stats, which as I mentioned, was once an essential roster modding resource in our community. Doug’s work definitely deserves recognition – even to this day – so let’s take a look back…way back…

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is another list of five brief stints that were captured for posterity in video games.

Yes, it’s time for another Five that underscores once again that basketball video games end up being interactive almanacs! Last June, I recalled five brief stints that made it into the official rosters of basketball video games, from Rasheed Wallace’s unlikely appearance as an Atlanta Hawk in NBA Ballers to Anfernee Hardaway’s frequently forgotten comeback with the Miami Heat, as seen in NBA 2K7. A combination of late releases, revised editions, and official roster updates have preserved a number of these odd stints for players that we generally picture in a different uniform.

To that point, if we’ve spent a considerable amount of time with a game – especially in the days before official roster updates – we may come to think of these brief stints as lasting much longer than they actually did. That’s definitely the case for me when it comes to at least one of the examples that I’m covering here today. As for the other brief stints, while I do remember them and that they didn’t last long, it’s still thanks to unusual and fortuitous circumstances that they were preserved in the official rosters of video games. Long-time readers will know how much I love trivia like this, so let’s not delay any further; here are five more brief stints that were captured in games!

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five changes that NBA teams have made to their branding that I’ve found quite baffling.

Look, I’ll put my hand up and admit to being a creature of habit that sometimes needs to be pushed – or indeed, dragged kicking and screaming – through the proverbial door of change. With that being said, I do still believe that change for change’s sake opens the door to bad ideas. To quote a classic pearl of colloquial wisdom, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”. That certainly applies to a number of branding changes that NBA teams have made over the years. As a Chicago Bulls fan, I’m rather lucky that they’ve kept their iconic look decades beyond the championship years!

Although I’m not as personally affected by changes that other NBA teams make to their branding, I still have my likes and dislikes when it comes to what I see when they’re on the court. It’s understandable that teams want to freshen up their look, and admittedly, there have been many times when I’ve really liked the new designs that a franchise has introduced. Other times however, an NBA team will make changes to their branding that are simply baffling, either because it feels like such a step down, or the team didn’t seem that committed to the design because they change it again soon afterwards. With that being said, here are five baffling NBA team branding changes!

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From courtside of the virtual hardwood, it’s Episode #574 of the NLSC Podcast!

The community has some questions, and fortunately, we’ve got some answers! At the suggestion of listener Rene, this week we’re holding a Q&A with questions taken from our social media. The Q&A covers a little bit of everything: favourite foods, favourite video games of other genres, our preferred strategies on the virtual hardwood, Tom Chambers’ Hall of Fame credentials, experiences meeting NBA players in real life, our top basketball movies, and more. We hope that you enjoy hearing our thoughts on this array of fun topics – and maybe learning a thing or two about us as well – as we definitely enjoyed answering all of your questions!

Download or play on your mobile device/tablet: CLICK HERE (Running time: 58:45 — 40.7MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify

To get involved with the mailbag or to provide any feedback on the show, hit us up in the comments, reach out on social media, or post here in the NLSC Forum! For more information on the NLSC Podcast including episode guides, check out this page in our Wiki. You can also find the show on our YouTube channel, along with the rest of our video content. As always, thanks for tuning in, and go get buckets!

This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! From retrospectives of basketball games and their interesting features, to republished articles and looking at NBA history through the lens of the virtual hardwood, Wednesdays at the NLSC are for going back in time. This week, I’m pondering another historical What If; that being, what if Michael Jordan didn’t retire in 1993?

Yesterday marks thirty years since Michael Jordan announced his return to the NBA following his retirement to play baseball in 1993. If you know your NBA history, you’re well aware of what happened next. After falling to the Orlando Magic in the second round, the Chicago Bulls bolstered their roster with Dennis Rodman, and His Airness led the team to a second threepeat before retiring for the second (but as it turned out, not final) time. Even with the interruption – even with the controversial Wizards stint – Michael Jordan had a tremendous career to put it mildly.

Of course, even with all of his accomplishments that still lead many pundits and fans alike to declare him the Greatest of All-Time – and I’m among them – MJ’s career does invite a couple of What Ifs. The most obvious one that would’ve changed the course of the mid 90s, and further added to his legacy, is if Michael Jordan didn’t retire in 1993. Now, as I acknowledged when I discussed the What If regarding Karl Malone becoming the all-time leading scorer, hypothetical scenarios don’t prove anything. They’re fun to consider though, so let’s take a look back…way back…

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From courtside of the virtual hardwood, it’s Episode #571 of the NLSC Podcast!

What are some of the biggest What Ifs in the history of the NBA? This week, we join the community in reflecting on what might have been, from the tragedy of Len Bias to the various injuries, trades, and Draft picks that shaped the fortunes of teams and players alike. This includes some of the NBA Finals matchups and results that could’ve come to pass if not for a couple of plays going another way, or indeed, a certain all-time great retiring in 1993! We also discuss a couple of other interesting notes about the 1986 Draft, and some of the international players who could’ve had a better run in the NBA if the opportunity was there for them when they were in their prime.

To get involved with the mailbag or to provide any feedback on the show, hit us up in the comments, reach out on social media, or post here in the NLSC Forum! For more information on the NLSC Podcast including episode guides, check out this page in our Wiki. You can also find the show on our YouTube channel, along with the rest of our video content. As always, thanks for tuning in, and go get buckets!

Download or play on your mobile device/tablet: CLICK HERE (Running time: 59:57 — 41.5MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify

From courtside of the virtual hardwood, it’s Episode #570 of the NLSC Podcast!

Is nostalgia actively ruining the NBA? Channing Frye and other talking heads certainly seem to think so, but frankly, we have a very different take on the matter! This week, we join the community in providing an impassioned rebuttal to yet another asinine talking point that’s blatantly intended to disrespectfully dump on the league’s history, and the many great players of the past. We also reflect on why so many fans are yearning for a return to the NBA of yesteryear or simply not enjoying the current product, and respond to the notion that today’s players are unfairly criticised compared to their predecessors; a ridiculous suggestion to those of us who were actually watching basketball back then!

Download or play on your mobile device/tablet: CLICK HERE (Running time: 55:30 — 38.5MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify

To get involved with the mailbag or to provide any feedback on the show, hit us up in the comments, reach out on social media, or post here in the NLSC Forum! For more information on the NLSC Podcast including episode guides, check out this page in our Wiki. You can also find the show on our YouTube channel, along with the rest of our video content. As always, thanks for tuning in, and go get buckets!

Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five pet peeves I have when it comes to NBA branding.

If there’s one thing that I’ve learned from changing up the design and layout of the NLSC from time to time in the twenty three years that I’ve been running the site, it’s that you can’t please everyone. No matter what improvements there might be, there’ll always be a couple of comments demanding that we change it back. As frustrating as that is to read, I get it. After all, aversion to change is common, and I’m as guilty of it as anyone else! New aesthetics can be jarring and may take time to get used to, no matter how nice they are, or how much a fresh look was needed.

This is something to keep in mind whenever NBA teams introduce new branding. Of course, sometimes those new designs leave us wondering what the people responsible were thinking! We also tend to get attached to certain logos and jerseys – especially the ones that were in use when we first got into the NBA – so personal preference will lead us to balk at certain branding. It doesn’t necessarily mean we’re right or wrong, but we are all entitled to our opinions on the looks that teams sport. To that point, I definitely have some pet peeves when it comes to NBA branding past and present. These are the five that spring to mind as the ones that I find the most irritating.

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From courtside of the virtual hardwood, it’s Episode #569 of the NLSC Podcast!

In the wake of yet another dismal and disappointing All-Star Weekend – one that saw more advertising and extracurricular events than actual basketball – this week we join the community in discussing ways that the NBA can possibly fix their midseason classic. From potential format changes, to methods of incentivising players to try harder, to paying tribute to the history of the Weekend, we brainstorm different ideas to make All-Star Friday, Saturday, and Sunday all worth watching once again. We also touch on the notion that the league should just scrap the All-Star Weekend entirely; a suggestion that’s been made by a number of fans who are fed up with what the event has become.

Download or play on your mobile device/tablet: CLICK HERE (Running time: 1:09:46 — 48.3MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify

To get involved with the mailbag or to provide any feedback on the show, hit us up in the comments, reach out on social media, or post here in the NLSC Forum! For more information on the NLSC Podcast including episode guides, check out this page in our Wiki. You can also find the show on our YouTube channel, along with the rest of our video content. As always, thanks for tuning in, and go get buckets!

We’re at midcourt, and the ball is about to go up…it’s Monday Tip-Off! Join me as I begin the week here at the NLSC with my opinions and commentary on basketball gaming topics, as well as tales of the fun I’ve been having on the virtual hardwood. This week, I’m tipping things off with some reflections on how the NBA 2K12 intro makes me wistful nowadays.

To celebrate World Basketball Day – which has indeed been declared an official day of observance – I’ve taken to posting the intro from NBA 2K12 on the NLSC’s socials every December 21st. It tends to get some traction with shares, likes, and comments, because it’s one of the very best intros that we’ve seen in a basketball video game. Accompanied by Kurtis Blow’s iconic hit “Basketball” and re-creating some of the best moments in the history of the sport in a way that blends past and present, it truly is a love letter to hoops.

Thanks to the way that Facebook’s algorithms work, the post on our page is the one that achieved the furthest reach out of all our socials, and it’s still being watched and getting regular reactions as of writing. Many of the comments are praising it for being such an incredible intro to a basketball video game, and also calling NBA 2K12 the best game in the series. I’m more inclined to agree with the former sentiment rather than the latter, but nevertheless, I’m glad that I’m not alone in my enjoyment of the NBA 2K12 intro. At the same time, seeing those comments and watching the intro again has left me feeling wistful about changes in basketball and gaming since then.

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From courtside of the virtual hardwood, it’s Episode #568 of the NLSC Podcast!

This week, we’re reacting to the 2025 Slam Dunk Contest, and the suggestion that threepeat champion Mac McClung has established himself as the greatest dunker of all-time. We’re inclined to disagree, and are bewildered by the lack of acknowledgement of the boosts that he gets on most of his dunk attempts! Additionally, we’ve got a few thoughts on the use of props and gimmicks in the contest in general. We also join the community in discussing the most frustrating types of players to play with and against in organised leagues and pick-up alike, and recap a couple of fantastic sessions with NBA Live 16 and NBA Live 10; two games that continue to surprise and delight us, years later.

Download or play on your mobile device/tablet: CLICK HERE (Running time: 59:57 — 41.5MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify

To get involved with the mailbag or to provide any feedback on the show, hit us up in the comments, reach out on social media, or post here in the NLSC Forum! For more information on the NLSC Podcast including episode guides, check out this page in our Wiki. You can also find the show on our YouTube channel, along with the rest of our video content. As always, thanks for tuning in, and go get buckets!

This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! From retrospectives of basketball games and their interesting features, to republished articles and looking at NBA history through the lens of the virtual hardwood, Wednesdays at the NLSC are for going back in time. This week, I’m pondering a historical What If; namely, what if Karl Malone broke the all-time scoring record?

Welcome to what I hope will be a recurring Wayback Wednesday feature, in which I explore some intriguing NBA What Ifs, illustrated by basketball video games! For a hardcore basketball and history buff, diving into the league’s biggest What Ifs can be just as interesting as reflecting on real events, results, and records. What small change would have a huge impact on NBA history? Which important events that defined the legacies of teams and players are dependent on a particular decision or twist of fate? For want of a nail, what possible butterfly effects can we imagine?

Considering that I remain a huge fan of Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls, you might think that I’d be inclined to explore a hypothetical involving them. After all, for all of their success during the 90s, there are a couple of What Ifs there! I will get to them at some point as I do have my own opinions to share, but they’re popular NBA What Ifs that have been discussed many times before. As such, for my first What If, I’m imagining a timeline where Karl Malone breaks the all-time scoring record. It’s a once-feasible event that’s hardly discussed now, so let’s take a look back…way back…

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