When I was growing up, my uncle Hassan was like a second father figure to me. He was always around, a huge part of my childhood. Last night it was my turn to become an uncle. My little sister Nadine gave birth to her first child, Ali. I'm so excited to be an uncle!

Something that's been concerning for a month or so about KAT is that he seems to have lost some burst when he drives. I think that's a big reason why he keeps getting called for offensive fouls. Feels like he has to make a sort of style pivot and embrace this new reality for him.

Something I noticed towards the end of the game tonight was that Jeremy Sochan absolutely annoyed the fuck out of Cade. Just in a pest perspective, Cade was still hitting shots. Might be something to bookmark if these teams meet in the postseason.

Cade Cunningham was magnificent tonight. Got everything look he wanted and got bucket after bucket. Was orchestrating the pick and roll masterfully and showed you why he is a very real MVP candidate.

Very discouraging loss for the Knicks. Shot was nowhere to be seen most of the night. But the bigger issue was defensively. Repeatedly they lost track of players on the baseline and gave up easy looks at the rim. OG and Bridges completely absent tonight. Terrible look coming out of All Star break.

Phil Jackson's 40-20 rule has long been a gold standard for contending teams. But in today's era of load management, top-level parity, and three-point variance it is not as foolproof of a metric as it once was. Wrote more about how we gauge title contention in my latest on Medium below!

Has the dominance of Fanatic created a bit of a fast fashion model in sports apparel? Lauren Teague of FanWagn joined me to discuss the way the market leader in apparel has shifted the calculus of the industry with their various aquisitons of other memorabilia and apparel entities.

Today is the first day of Ramadan, and I'm reminded of my first Ramadan after I moved to Jordan. 🧵

Sports apparel is often a reflection of our identity and a representation of who we are. Lauren Teague of FanWagn joined me to discuss this and why we love our apparel so much on the latest episode of Deep Cover.

I just finished watching the "Soul Power" doc about the ABA. And I had a thought. I wonder why the four teams that made it as part of the merger (Nets, Spurs, Nuggets, Pacers) don't have a few "ABA Nights" every season.

Only I would draw a comparison in a piece between early marriages declining in the Millennial generation with the decline of the mid-range jump shot in basketball. I'm a lunatic.

One of my favorite movies is "Thank You For Smoking", it just hits so many notes and I come back to it often. One of the best supporting roles in that movie comes from Robert Duvall". He's so good and is one of the reasons I come back to it. An absolute Hollywood legend and icon, RIP.

When it comes to creating a new marketplace for sports apparel, it can be difficult attracting both sellers and buyers. Lauren Teague of FanWagn discussed how she and her company approach tackling that problem on the latest episode of the Deep Cover Podcast.

As a Palestinian, I took LeBron James' comment at the All-Star Game to be a further indication of the NBA's general inclination to stay silent and largely ignore the pain of Palestinians. Wrote more about what it feels like when a sport you love has indicated that it doesn't care about you. 👇

We all love our fan gear, but how does sustainability fit into that picture? I talked with Lauren Teague, founder of FanWagn, to discuss how her company approaches making sustainability a core goal in an industry filled with fast fashion and textile waste.

Kevin Durant recently said that he wants to be indicted into the Hall of Fame wearing a Team USA jersey. At first it sounds like a joke, but it is also an incredibly honest one. Wrote more about Durant, the wandering superstar that has never truly found an NBA home in my latest on Medium 👇

I love when people make comments like this because the jokes on them because I already know my podcast isn't going to blow up 😂

This is a really interesting video. I have done the leave the phone in the other room trick and it is amazing to notice how conditioned we are to reach for them at all times of the day. I think a controlled occasional detox is a great idea. youtu.be/SBnSoDzkQ4A?...

Who wins and loses the most with the increase in players being drafted and going back to school? Francis Carlotta joined me on the podcast to discuss.

Just finished a piece about Kevin Durant that clocked in at about 3900 words. I might be insane.

My partner and I usually get each other some.snall gifts for Valentine's Day. This year she got me this beauty. A pen that is made with wood sourced from the floor of Madison Square Garden. I cannot tell you all how excited I am about this!

New podcast episode! I'm joined by Lauren Teague from @fanwagn.bsky.social to talk about sports apparel, re-commerce, sustainability, and changing the norm in a massive industry. It was such a fun conversation, check it out below! open.spotify.com/episode/5AjP...

Has NIL shifted the calculus for a lot of potential draft picks deciding on when to enter the draft? Francis Carlota joins me on the podcast this week to discuss.

Decided to have some steak tonight. Mushroom and garlic white wine reduction on top 🥩

Feel like the Knicks have been very clear with their intention and what they value at this deadline. They move off of Yabusele who had clear defensive limitations. They bring in Jose Alvarado who is a known defensive specialist that has always ranked in the top 10 percentile of steal rate.

How bad is the trend of pro players coming back to college basketball? Francis Carlota joins me this week on the podcast to discuss the ever changing landscape of college hoops in the current era.

New podcast episode! I'm joined by Francis Carlota to talk about the trend of basketball players that have been drafted and even played in the NBA going back to college. We talk about the changing landscape and what it means for college hoops. Check it out below! open.spotify.com/episode/4qGZ...

I've been publishing articles online for 6 years now. And there are few things that make me feel more alive than when I hit publish on a new story.

Hard foul on Mitchell Robinson and Jose Alvarado is right in there getting in the defenders face sticking up for his teammate. Beyond what he gives you on the floor, that's a culture setting thing that this Knicks team has needed. Love to see him sticking up for his guys like that.

This Wizards Cavs game has to be the most black and gold saturated uniform matchup I've seen

I HATE losing to the Pacers. But even I have to admit, that was incredibly entertaining. 39 lead changes, a season high across the NBA. The end of both the fourth quarter and OT were theater. And I swear every time these two teams regardless of standings it feels like a playoff game. Tough loss.

A concerning thing for the Knicks tonight was Indiana's general proficiency from three. But the biggest issue was how good they were in the corners. 6/14 and a few of those misses were wide open. A more glaring issue without Deuce and OG, but they have to be better at closing out on shooters.

In Mohamed Diawara the Knicks have a road that could lead to many paths. The second round pick has shown a lot of flashes, enough to make us wonder if there is a higher ceiling to unlock. Wrote more about Diawara and his potential in my latest for KFTV knicksfantv.beehiiv.com/p/the-intrig...

Moussa Diabate looked like he actually wanted to throw his whole season away to land a punch on Jalen Duren. I now want these teams to meet in the first round. That sort of animosity is pure playoff basketball lore stuff.

Has the media in the week leading up to the Super Bowl become lackluster in today's climate. Matt Lombardo joined me on the latest episode of Deep Cover to talk about this and more concerning the modern state of sports journalism.

What a redemption story for Sam Darnold. Draft bust to forgotten journeyman to Super Bowl champion. Incredible stuff, and a huge reason why we watch sports.

What a kicking night by the Seahawks btw. Jason Myers 5/5 on his field goal attempts. Punter Michael Dixson with three punts inside the 10. Just a special teams master class.

Watching Drake Maye in this game I can't help but think of the Super Bowl between the Pats and Rams where Jared Goff just couldn't do anything against Belichick's defense. This Seahawks defense has just been suffocating. Unreal levels of dominance.

They're already letting off fireworks here in the PNW in case anyone was wondering

In case anyone was wondering how that TP USA halftime show did

Seeing a lot of people noting how they enjoyed the Bad Bunny halftime show even though they didn't understand the lyrics makes me chuckle a little bit. I've always been into international music, music shows you it's a universal language. You don't have to understand the lyrics to connect to it!

Through three quarters, Drake Maye having one of those Willie Beaman rain games IYKYK

Bad Bunny halftime show was incredible. It felt like a true ode and love letter to Latin America. I loved every second!

Knicks absolutely needed this bounce back win today. Awesome debut from Alvarado. I am so excited to see this guy more as a Knick. Once again, I couldn't keep my eyes away from Diawara though. This guy is going to be so good in a few years. And you see the flashes more and more when he gets minutes

I'm in the middle.of reading "Game of Edges" which me and Drew Davis will be doing a podcast episode on soon. There are a couple of chapters in this book about Liverpool FC. And I'm reminded of a story about them that tells us a lot of what makes sports special. If you'll indulge me 👇

Fuck all of this man. As a writer I find the idea of doing this so offensive

There were no Black head coaches hired in this NFL this off-season. Matt Lombardo and I discussed why that is and why it's a problem for the NFL on the latest episode of Deep Cover.

Has today's political climate impacted the way that sports journalists tell their stories? Matt Lombardo joined me on the pod this week to discuss.

The Harlem Globetrotters are celebrating their 100th year. The modern view of them is as a comedic act. This ignores that the Globetrotters were integral to what the NBA would become. That legacy is largely forgotten today, wrote more about why that is below omarzahran.medium.com/the-erased-l...

I go for walks around my neighborhood a few nights a week. Usually this is pretty nondescript, except for a few houses that go hard in the paint with holiday decorations.