How Basketball Briefly Saved Me From Politics
In the last month, I watched every Timberwolves game in an attempt to tune out something larger.
Basketball
PS Picks: Steve Francis Takes Control
PS Picks is a selection of the best things that the magazine's staff and contributors are reading, watching, or otherwise paying attention to in the worlds of art, politics, and culture.
What's the Greatest Record in Sports History?
A new study says it belongs to Barry Bonds, but probably not for the reason you think.
Why the Return of the Starbury Is a Very Good Thing
What do the iconic shoes mean to low-income basketball players?
Root, Root, Root for the Home Team
New research finds playing before supportive fans increases the likelihood of a sports team winning.
Going Pro
Hopeful athletes fight for roster spots in Canada’s budding basketball league.
Growing Up and Burning Out
It takes more than basketball skills to make it to the NCAA tournament.
March Madness Gets the Academic Treatment
From NBA prospects to bracketology, researchers have touched on all aspects of March Madness.
Does Education Have Any Place in College Sports Programs?
The Big Ten Conference's Year of Readiness proposal, which would push freshman athletes to the sidelines, is supposedly about giving students time to explore educational opportunities, but the financial benefits to colleges and universities are hard to ignore.
Jason Collins, Revisited
A new study explores how newspapers and social media framed a historic first.
The First Death of an Athlete
By choice or by circumstance, exiting sport is inevitable. What happens after is less certain.
Not About LeBron: Economic Restructuring in Cleveland
The basketball star isn't the only one moving back to Ohio. Even with manufacturing on the decline, Cleveland is drawing talented migrants from other areas.
The Worst Basketball Team
Even bad basketball programs make the NCAA tournament once a decade just due to sheer randomness and dumb luck. So why have the Northwestern Wildcats never qualified?
The Worst Free-Throw Shooter
Why do some of the greatest basketball players ever struggle with an uncontested shot from just 15 feet away?
Selfishness Pays: Every Assist Costs an NBA Player $6,000
Teamwork wins games, but a taste for “hero ball” means players are much less cooperative during playoffs. That kind of selfish play is often rewarded with boatloads of money.
March Madness: A Reminder That Stats Can't Tell Us Everything
Also: a reminder that they don't try to.
In the Picture: Basketball, Teen Dreams, and Health Benefits of Green
In every issue, we fix our gaze on an everyday photograph and chase down facts about details in the frame.
Stop Denying the Hot Hand: Basketball Streaks Do Exist
New data and statistical theory are overturning 30-year-old research that failed to find evidence of streaky shooting on the basketball court. The hot hand, it turns out, really does exist—and it may apply to a lot more than just sports.
How We Set Up Our Professional Athletes to Fail
For every Michael Jordan, there's at least one Keon Clark. Or an Allen Iverson. Or a Junior Seau. The machinery of professional sports churns through its athletes and spits them out on the other side.
If You Want to Be in the NBA It Helps to Grow Up Rich
LeBron James was right, then, when he said: "I'm LeBron James. From Akron, Ohio. From the inner city. I am not even supposed to be here."
Remember When Jews Dominated Professional Basketball?
There are only so many sports you can grow up playing in the inner city.
My Name Isn't My Name: Aaron Gordon
Aaron Gordon is a basketball phenom. Aaron Gordon is a Pacific Standard contributor. Aaron Gordon works for a public relations firm.
In Defense of Diving, Flopping, and Cheating at Sports
When people are paid to win a game with a set of arbitrary rules, people will break the rules. We're almost always OK with that—except for one thing.
LeBron James, Michael Jordan, and the Meaninglessness of Best
LeBron James, Michael Jordan, and the meaninglessness of being the best.