data-mm-id=”_xlgmaxdad”>The 2020 NBA Playoffs are approaching and it's become clear who the legitimate contenders are who will will most certainly come up short in the postseason. Only one team can win the title, but how many teams have a legitimate shot? Below are three real championship contenders and four pretenders who are going to learn that it just isn't their year.NBA CONTENDERSLos Angeles LakersThe last eight seasons that LeBron James was healthy, he took his team to the NBA Finals. His team won three of those titles. He usually has a second superstar with him and that role is played by Anthony Davis who has a whopping 13 games worth of playoff experience. Luckily guys like Danny Green and… Dwight Howard… fill out the roster. At 35-years old, LeBron is still near the top of his powers and that could be enough.Los Angeles ClippersThe Clippers, for all their issues with health and fit and otherwise, will end up one of the top seeds in the Western Conference. If Paul George and Kawhi Leonard were able to load manage themselves properly during the regular season, they have a shot. History generally says that you need to be together for a few seasons to win a title, but Kawhi proved that you can just show up, win, and leave. Talent could win again.Milwaukee BucksThe Milwaukee Bucks are finally ready to win a title. This is the dream of how the league works. They drafted Giannis Antetonkounmpo and built a team around him as he became a superstar. They got playoff experience and advanced to the conference finals last year and lost to the eventual champions. This year they're the best team in the league and ready to blow through the Eastern Conference and win a championship. NBA PRETENDERS Miami HeatMiami has won just one playoff series since LeBron James left in 2014. They're a another tough, deep team that should be a difficult out in the playoffs, but this current Heat roster has more questions than answers. Will Jimmy Butler finally be the best player on a team that wins multiple playoff series? Will Pat Riley's inability to land Danilo Gallinari come back to bite the Heat in the playoffs? How effective will Bam Adebayo be in the playoffs? Does Andre Iguodala have anything left in the tank for a deep playoff run? The answers to most of these questions will probably upset people in Miami. Boston CelticsThe Celtics have three 20-point per game scorers in Jason Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Kemba Walker. They have Olympians. They have a good coach in Brad Stevens. They have balance and a deep rotation and they have playoff experience. Boston, a superstar short and a seed or two too low, will fall short. This time with a new point guard at the helm.Toronto RaptorsThe defending champions are the feel-good story of the season. With Kawhi Leonard gone, they haven't missed a beat and will enter the playoffs with one of the top seeds in the Eastern Conference and maybe the best record in team history. Eventually, they will miss Leonard. Pascal Siakam has been great and replaced Kawhi's production, but at some point, they will miss Kawhi and that's when they will come up short. Denver NuggetsDenver has won just one playoff series with Mike Malone and Nikola Jokic. They're going to have the toughest road to the Finals with the Lakers and Clippers and a really pesky lower seed in the first round. The Nuggets are still a year and another player away from serious contention.
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Arsenal and Newcastle United are favourites for Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips, according to . The Italian news outlet has noted that Juventus and West Ham United are also keen on Phillips, adding that the England international midfielder would prefer to stay in the Premier League.
Phillips has failed to make an impact at City after joining from Leeds United in the summer of 2022. The midfielder is a peripheral figure in Pep Guardiola’s squad and could be offloaded on a loan deal. Things are looking bleak for the midfielder at the Etihad Stadium.
Arsenal are third in the Premier League table at the moment with 27 points from 12 matches, level on points with Arsenal in third and a point behind leaders and defending champions Manchester City.
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Atletico Madrid were eliminated from Europe in midweek after a 2-1 loss at Porto and are looking to bolster their squad.
One player who could be sold is Joao Felix, who Atleti signed for €126million from Benfica on a seven-year deal in 2019.
The Portuguese forward has underwhelmed this season, with only two goals, and has been unsettled at times.
TOP STORY – ATLETICO WILLING TO LISTEN TO JOAO FELIX OFFERS
Cadena SER claims Atletico Madrid have put Joao Felix on the market and are open to offers for him.
Bayern Munich were rumoured to have made a €100m off-season move for Felix, while Manchester United reportedly had a €130m bid turned down in August.
Fichajes reported last month that the 22-year-old had handed in a transfer reques…
Tottenham are reportedly interested in Sporting right-back Pedro Porro, and could launch a move as soon as January for the Spain international.
Porro, 23, was identified by Manchester City back in 2019, when they purchased him for £11million from LaLiga s Girona.
He never played a game for the Premier League champions, spending a season on loan with Real Valladolid before two further campaigns on loan to Sporting, with the Portuguese club eventually agreeing to make his move permanent earlier this year for £7m.
That has proven to be a masterstroke, as he has contributed four assists in 10 Primeira Liga games, and apparently caught the eye of Antonio Conte when starting in a 2-0 home Champions League victory over Spurs.
TOP STORY – SPURS PREPARE JANUAR…
AC Milan head Gennaro Gattuso has been in conversation with opposite number Carlo Ancelotti in the build-up to Saturday s trip to Napoli.
Milan face a daunting opening to their Serie A campaign at Stadio San Paolo after last week s scheduled meeting with Genoa was postponed.
Gattuso played under Ancelotti during the latter s celebrated eight-year spell in charge of the Rossoneri between 2001 and 2009, twice winning the Champions League.
It will be a very tough game, Gattuso told a pre-match news conference. I spoke yesterday with Carlo Ancelotti.
Carlo and I have a great relationship. He was more than a coach to me, I would call him during my hardest times. I can only learn from him.
The press says we have different characters but Carlo as a pl…
According to Fabrizio Romano, Donny van de Beek is set to leave Manchester United and join Eintracht Frankfurt on loan for the rest of the season as soon as the transfer window opens on Monday, January 1st. The two clubs have already signed all the necessary paperwork, and the Bundesliga side will have an option not an obligation to turn the loan into a permanent move at the end of the season.
Van de Beek was an important player for Ajax during Erik ten Hag s tenure there, but since the player and the manager reunited at Old Trafford, things have gone completely differently between them. This season, the Dutch midfielder has only made one appearance in the Premier League and one in the Carabao Cup, both from the bench, amounting to 21 minutes combined. There s hardly any need t…
Real Madrid are interested in signing Milan Skriniar from Inter Milan in the summer transfer window, according to . It has been reported that Spanish and European giants Madrid have already approached Milan for the 27-year-old central defender, but the asking price of €55 million is high for Los Blancos.
Skriniar is one of the best central defenders in the world, and at the age of 27, he is at the top of his game at the moment. The Slovakia international centre-back has been on the books of Inter since 2017 and won the Serie A title last season.
Madrid are at the top of the La Liga table at the moment with 57 points from 25 matches, six points ahead of second-placed Sevilla. Inter, who are the defending Italian champions, are second in Serie A with 54 points from 25 m…
Matthijs de Ligt has dismissed suggestions that Erik ten Hag was the deciding factor in his transfer to Manchester United.
The Dutchman, along with Noussair Mazraoui, joined the Red Devils in a double signing worth up to £60million from Bayern Munich in August.
De Ligt s breakthrough, however, came at Ajax under Ten Hag, with the manager making him the youngest-ever captain in the club s history during that time.
The following season, Ajax reached their first Champions League semi-final since 1997 and won the Eredivisie and KNVB Cup double before De Ligt left the club to join Juventus.
Ten Hag has often been criticised for targeting his former players during the transfer windows while at United, with De Ligt falling into that category.
However, t…
Aberdeen manager Neil Warnock has renewed his acquaintance with Junior Hoilett after signing the winger in a deal until the end of the season.
The 33-year-old Canada international joins following a spell with Vancouver Whitecaps.
The left-sided player has spent most of his career in the English league with the likes of Blackburn, QPR, Cardiff and Reading.
“Junior is a player I know well – he’s played for me three times so I know him inside out,” said Warnock.
— Aberdeen FC (@AberdeenFC)
“He’s an international player and I think he’ll benefit the squad between now and the end of the season.”
“I’ve worked with the gaffer before so it was a no-brainer to come up here and join him,” said Hoilett, who played …
Daley Blind has made a shock move to Bayern Munich after being released by Ajax.
The Netherlands defender had been heavily linked with Royal Antwerp, but he jumped at the chance to join Bundesliga leaders Bayern.
Blind has committed to a six-month contract, with the 32-year-old adding the Bavarian giants to his illustrious list of clubs, having also had a four-year stint at Manchester United that ended in 2018.
We re delighted that Daley is joining our team. Daley is a versatile defender, capable of playing on the left or in the centre. He has great international experience and leadership qualities. I m sure he ll help us, sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic said.
Blind travelled to Germany on Thursday before undergoing a medical with Bayern. He has an …
Spain coach Robert Moreno expects Real Madrid and La Roja captain Sergio Ramos to play until he is 40.
Ramos, 33, has already enjoyed remarkable consistency and longevity at the top, having made his LaLiga debut with Sevilla as a 17-year-old.
He moved to Madrid in 2005 and has established himself as a club great, winning every competition possible since, while he has also been instrumented at international level.
Ramos was a key part of the Spain squads that emerged victorious at the Euros in 2008 and 2012, as well as the 2010 World Cup.
While Gerard Pique – his partner at the back for many years with Spain – has called time on his international career, Ramos could keep going for another seven years, according to Moreno.
Robert Moreno: Ramos…