Miles Wray
Portland
As seen in:
Medium,
VICE,
FOX Sports,
FanSided,
Rivals,
FanGraphs,
Baseball Prospectus,
McSweeney's,
Pounding the Rock,
Ploughshares
and
Sportswritin' fella
Is this you? As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.
Claim your profile
Articles by Miles Wray
The Ploughshares Blog in 2014
It’s the time of year when I always seem to find myself saying: we’ve got big things in store. Last year it was our announcement that the Ploughshares blog was “becoming its own, separate creature.” This year, if you’ll permit a slightly hokey extension of that metaphor, that creature is shedding its first skin.
Let’s say the Mystics have lost Delle Donne — what now?
After missing the 2018 WNBA Finals, Emma Meesseman may be the most pivotal player in the 2019 WNBA Finals. Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Rich Kessler/NBAE via Getty Images) The Washington Mystics may not have Elena Delle Donne for the rest of the WNBA Finals. But their uncommon depth means they’d still have a shot. Coach Mike Thibault and the rest of the Washington Mystics must now deal with a stroke of miserable luck.
Let’s say the Mystics have lost Delle Donne — what now?
After missing the 2018 WNBA Finals, Emma Meesseman may be the most pivotal player in the 2019 WNBA Finals. Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Rich Kessler/NBAE via Getty Images) The Washington Mystics may not have Elena Delle Donne for the rest of the WNBA Finals. But their uncommon depth means they’d still have a shot. Coach Mike Thibault and the rest of the Washington Mystics must now deal with a stroke of miserable luck.
StorrsCentral - Sue Bird Just Keeps Getting Better With Age
If Seattle Storm point guard Sue Bird retired today, her career would be immortalized for its incomparable stretch of sustained victories -- two decades of winning in basketball’s most competitive moments.
Storm’s Sue Bird to miss rest of season
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JULY 03: Sue Bird #10 of the Seattle Storm watches from the sidelines due to a knee injury while the Seattle Storm take on the New York Liberty during their game at Alaska Airlines Arena on July 03, 2019 in Seattle, Washington. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement.
Seattle Storm regain footing in win over Atlanta
SEATTLE, WA - SEPTEMBER 1: Jordin Canada #21 of the Seattle Storm talks with media after the game against the Atlanta Dream on September 1, 2019 at the Alaska Airlines Arena Arena, in Seattle, Washington. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement.
Takeaways: Sun roll past slumping Storm
EVERETT, WA- AUGUST 27: Alyssa Thomas #25 of the Connecticut Sun reacts to a play during the game against the Seattle Storm on August 27, 2019 at the Angel of the Winds Arena, in Everett, Washington. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement.
The Las Vegas Aces have been resting for the key moments
The Las Vegas Aces' star players can be found here more often than you'd think. (Photo by David Becker/NBAE via Getty Images) The Las Vegas Aces’ hard-nosed head coach Bill Laimbeer has been giving his team the most rest of any team in the WNBA, helping the team win in the clutch. When Las Vegas Aces coach Bill Laimbeer played in the NBA, the issue of getting players rest was not a concern.
How the Washington Mystics built the WNBA’s best-ever offense
Every level of the Washington Mystics franchise is contributing to the best offense in WNBA history. Last year, after Game 2 of the WNBA Finals, Kristi Tolliver and Ellena Delle Donne stood in a dark corner underneath the stands of Seattle’s Key Arena.
Napheesa Collier is the analytically savvy choice for Rookie Of The Year
Napheesa Collier, picked 6th overall this April, would be the lowest-selected player to be Rookie of the Year since 2005. (Brad Horrigan/Hartford Courant/TNS via Getty Images) A deeper dive into the stats yields more arguments for Napheesa Collier There is rarely cause for controversy when it comes to voting for the WNBA’s Rookie of the Year.
For Seattle Storm, a ‘team of fighters’ has them in contention
Minneapolis, MN-July 17: Minnesota Lynx center Temi Fagbenle (14) and Seattle Storm forward Alysha Clark (32) battle for a rebound during the first half at Target Center. (Photo by Leila Navidi/Star Tribune via Getty Images) The 2019 Storm have made the best of a bad situation. But it’s still a bad situation. SEATTLE — All things considered, the bottom could have absolutely fallen out for the 2019 Seattle Storm.
An unsettled identity could keep the Sparks from a deep playoff run
The Sparks' lineup could feature just about anybody on a given night. (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images) The Los Angeles Sparks are loaded with talent but have yet to truly hit their stride while the lineup changes from night to night.
The Chicago Sky’s transformed defense has their rebuild ahead of schedule
The Chicago Sky do some group levitation. (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images) After one of the worst defensive seasons in history, the Chicago Sky are exceeding expectations in 2019 thanks to rapid improvement at that end. Before the start of this WNBA season, I speculated that a best-case scenario for the Chicago Sky in 2019 looked like: having a defense that gave up points per possession at a league-average rate.
The Four Techniques Sean Marks Has Used To Begin Rebuilding Nets
Even since the initial cursory phone call between first-year general manager Sean Marks and the Brooklyn Nets, the only possible topic of conversation has been the several-years rebuilding process that the team inevitably faces. In recent years, Sam Hinkie was undoubtedly the face of modern rebuilding with his non-stop series of envelope-pushing, future-focused moves. We’re about half a year into Marks’ tenure, now, and none of his moves have been shocking, disruptive, or urgent.
WNBA Season Preview news, photos, and more
Download our mobile apps Your favorite teams, topics, and players all on your favorite mobile devices.
WNBA Season Preview 2019: Where do the Lynx go from here?
Make new friends, or keep the old? (Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images) The 2019 Minnesota Lynx are faced with a good problem, but it’s still a problem. Even worse, Minnesota’s problem can’t be solved with more of their league-leading rigorous analytical knowledge, and it can’t be ironed out with an insightful tactical tweak on the floor. The problem is: what is the best way for a franchise to write a new chapter after an all-powerful dynasty has aged into retirement?
WNBA Season Preview 2019: For the Liberty, development today, wins tomorrow
6'9" teenager Han Xu is representative of the large ambitions of new Liberty ownership. (Photo by Ned Dishman/NBAE via Getty Images) The 2018 New York Liberty season just might have, by accident, been the most convincing case study in sports history about the importance of a home court advantage.
WNBA Season Preview 2019: The Sparks are going to be awesome, unless they aren’t
Everybody here could be even happier come September. Or, also, not. (Photo by Leon Bennett/Getty Images) There’s a possibility that any sort of preseason concerns about the Los Angeles Sparks look silly in just a few months. There’s a possibility that the team rips off a 27-7 season and then marches through the playoffs, knowing they’re unlikely to be bothered by each of the last two champions, the Lynx and the Storm.
WNBA Season Preview 2019: Every team’s biggest question
Use your ← → (arrows) to browse As the 2019 WNBA season gets set to tip off, here’s the biggest question facing every team. Unlike the 82-game NBA season, there is little to no time to sort out an issue with team fit or chemistry during the 34-game WNBA season. The margin between success and failure is perilously thin: in 2017, the 27-7 Lynx and 26-8 Sparks had their second consecutive titanic clash in the WNBA Finals.
WNBA Season Preview 2019: Every team’s best case scenario
Use your ← → (arrows) to browse Keeping with an attitude of optimism, here is the best-case scenario for each of the WNBA’s 12 teams in the 2019 season. It’s tempting to be pessimistic about things here at the start of the 2019 WNBA year. What did the long, cold offseason bring us — other than the depressing news that some of the league’s biggest stars will be missing out on most or all of the season?
Fun Fact Friday: Who is the best shooter in the Curry family?
From Seth Curry to Trae Young the fun statistical facts just kept on rolling this week. 1. Seth Curry builds his own case for greatness Since his days at Duke ended, it’s been a long road for Seth Curry. Across just 132 career games, he’s already suited up for six different teams, plus he lost an entire season (last year) due to injury. Unlike many basketball younger brothers — such as Michael Jordan or Blake Griffin — Seth has remained the definitive li’l bro to Steph.
Fun Fact Friday: Nerlens Noel just takes the ball from you
Playing against the Spurs on Wednesday, Hassan Whiteside dropped an absolute monster of a line: 29 points, 20 rebounds, nine blocked shots. Obviously, Whiteside’s coach, Erik Spoelstra, missed out on a huge opportunity to get his center the tremendously rare 20/20/10-block triple-double. That stat line has come together only seven times in league history, with the most recent coming from now-unemployed Joakim Noah in February 2013.
Fun Fact Friday: Klay en fuego
CHICAGO, IL - OCTOBER 29: Klay Thompson #11 of the Golden State Warriors shoots a three pointer during the game against the Chicago Bulls on October 29, 2018 at United Center in Chicago, Illinois. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement.
Fun Fact Friday: Nikola Jokic’s perfect game
In a Nuggets blowout over the Phoenix Suns, Nikola Jokic put together one of the more imaginative box score lines you’ll ever see. Playing a relatively small 31 minutes, Jokic went 11-for-11 from the field for 35 points, grabbed 11 rebounds, and dished out 11 assists without conceding a single turnover.
Fun Fact Friday: Damian Jones is on the brink of history
Can you feel the historical significance?! (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images) Welcome to Fun Fact Friday, your new weekly take-free reading oasis. I’ve panned the mighty rivers of NBA stats to bring you the straight golden nuggets of trivia: 1. Ramon Sessions is still chasing Wilt Chamberlain. Last year, I discovered that Ramon Sessions is the active NBA player who was closest to breaking one of Wilt Chamberlain’s all-time records.
The WNBA’s history and future meet at the Storm’s third championship
Somehow, despite being the pinnacle of the WNBA season, the Finals felt like round one of a newer, much longer fight. The Seattle Storm, winners of a convincing 3-0 sweep, are led in scoring by two players — Jewell Loyd and MVP Breanna Stewart — who are 24 years old. The sudden linchpin of their starting lineup, stretch-5 Natasha Howard, turned 27 during Seattle’s semifinal series against the Phoenix Mercury.
Queens on the chessboard: Breanna Stewart vs Elena Delle Donne
Probably not an accident that two historically productive, versatile stretch-fours have gotten their teams to the ol' Finals. (Photo by Joshua Huston/NBAE via Getty Images) Basketball is high-speed chess. We’ve heard this. Unlike chess, though, no two basketball teams show up at the court with anything close to the same set of pieces.
Storm 3, Mercury 2: The margin could not be smaller
For about 48 hours last week, it looked like the rest of the WNBA was at the complete mercy of the Seattle Storm. The team had just gone up, 2-0, in their best-of-five series against the Phoenix Mercury and, on the other side of the playoff bracket, Elena Delle Donne went down with a knee injury.
Storm vs. Mercury is the WNBA’s past and future
The WNBA came up with a dramatic new playoff format in 2016, and, honestly, it rules. The league eliminated the West and East Conferences, plus also gave a dramatic two-round bye to the league’s top two seeds. These new-look playoffs ensure that, conservatively, about 75 percent of the WNBA’s regular season contests have a significant impact on the postseason. This, by itself, is a revelation.
The Seattle Storm could be building the WNBA’s new dynasty
In the same way that the job of every other NBA team is to somehow beat the Golden State Warriors, the job of every other WNBA team is to somehow find a way to beat the Minnesota Lynx. The Lynx dynasty began at the 2011 draft lottery, when the ping-pong balls bounced in their favor and they were able to grab that year’s transcendent UConn prospect, Maya Moore, with the No. 1 overall pick.
Courtney Paris is a WNBA No-Stats All-Star
SEATTLE, WA - JUNE 10: Jessica Breland #51 of the Atlanta Dream handles the ball against Courtney Paris #3 of the Seattle Storm during the game on June 10, 2018 at KeyArena in Seattle, Washington. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of Getty Images License Agreement.
Introducing a Vital New Football Statistic: The FARTBLAN
Even if you are the grumpiest of baseball old-timers — insisting on counting up ribbies to your dying day, convulsing with rage in your recliner at each new acronym that your home team’s broadcaster gently attempts to introduce — you do have to admit that there is one newfangled baseball statistic that is very good. The TOOTBLAN.
Optimists’ Prime – The Cauldron
Oh, NFL, you never cease to amaze me. No other league so consistently confronts its viewers with such a thorny multitude of ethical and philosophical conundrums. No other league drops such incredible moral burdens on its customers. No other league feels like it’s one salacious misstep away from extinction. No other league feels like its planetary orbit is always about to be catastrophically altered by some massive, scandal-laden asteroid.
The Lakers' free agency myth
In 67 seasons of Lakers basketball—going back to 1948–49, when George Mikan led the Minneapolis Lakers to the Basketball Association of America title—the team has never produced a worse winning percentage than it did this season. The team stumbled to a 21–61 finish (that’s a 25.6 percent winning percentage), paying a league-high salary to Kobe Bryant (35 games played) while watching a motley crew of 10-day-contract guys finish out the season.
Let’s make the 2018-19 Orlando Magic a truly brutal defensive team
The phrase is not: “A five-out offensive attack wins championships.” The phrase is also not: “A versatile pick-and-roll duo wins championships.” Even though the phrase became cliché oh so long ago, let us proceed as if it still holds significant, timeless truth: “Defense wins championships.” Never mind a championship — a team that could really use an above-.500 season right now is the Orlando Magic.
The Philadelphia 76ers have reinforcements on the way
Alright, so it’s been a sloppy couple of weeks for the Sixers, boinking their head on their roster’s ceiling against the auto-replenishing Celtics. As Embiid and company are sentenced to go fishing, many are relishing the opportunity to drop a spicy take on The Process. Do not listen. Recall that 25 percent of the Sixers’ eight-man playoff rotation was shuffling around pointlessly for the Atlanta Hawks about ten weeks ago.
Can the Warriors put together the best decade in NBA history?
If you want to find an astonishing statistic illustrating just how dominant the Golden State Warriors are, there are plenty of options. Here’s one: in league history, only 32 teams have won over 76 percent of their games, meaning it happens just about once every other year. This year’s edition of the Warriors is on pace to join that club — and it will be by far the worst record the squad has achieved with Steve Kerr.
The Lakers’ Free Agency Myth » The Sports Post
In 67 seasons of Lakers basketball—going back to 1948–49, when George Mikan led the Minneapolis Lakers to the Basketball Association of America title—the team has never produced a worse winning percentage than it did this season. The team stumbled to a 21–61 finish (that’s a 25.6 percent winning percentage), paying a league-high salary to Kobe Bryant (35 games played) while watching a motley crew of 10-day-contract guys finish out the season.
Georgios Papagiannis’ no-good, very-bad Sacramento Kings debut
I want to start by acknowledging that none of this is Georgios Papagiannis’ fault. If he approached a tarot reader before this year’s draft, the psychic would have broken down into tears. Papagiannis could have, say, been caught lovingly by a franchise who cares about player development — a franchise who would have nurtured him along slowly until he re-surfaced as a basketball-internet phenomenon in 2018 or 2019.
Modern Moves: Stephen Curry’s step back 3-pointer
Here’s an uncontroversial statement: Stephen Curry is the greatest 3-point shooter of all-time. The answer to why he is the greatest 3-point shooter of all-time is surprisingly hard to pin down. Curry is not the most accurate 3-point shooter of all-time. He is close, but he is still about two full percentage points behind the leader — his head coach, Steve Kerr. And what could be more meaningful in determining the best shooter of all-time other than winning these razor-sharp contests of accuracy?
The Nets have unearthed a star-level point guard
It is a genuine achievement for any player to crack the front page leaderboard of ESPN’s Real Plus-Minus rankings, the top 40 players of the season. One cannot simply coast onto the list thanks to a strong reputation alone, as Carmelo Anthony (No. 110), Devin Booker (No. 156) or Andre Iguodala (No. 210) can attest. The top 40 shows where the absolute nexus of power is in the league at any given moment. You’ll see a few types of players on this list.
Dear Pistons: Please free Boban
I think we can all agree: this should happen more often. (Photo by Brian Sevald/NBAE via Getty Images) For most of time, the NBA bench was full of goofy scrubs who were simply not as good as starting lineup. No longer: in today’s increasingly optimized league, the NBA bench is filled with specialists who find a way to impose their single-facet superiority in 10-15 super-efficient minutes a night. Maybe it’s the vise-like post defense of David West, Ekpe Udoh, or Lucas Nogueira.
What if the NBA schedule looked like the Formula 1 schedule?
It’s easy to forget that the NBA schedule is completely insane. For somewhere between six to eight months a year, every NBA player and coach is being pushed to the absolute limit, taking on an absolute maximum workload. Overnight cross-country flight? That’s a chance to get in some more film study. A day off? There’s one or two available per month. Maybe. Anybody who can be called an NBA lifer, no matter how thin the résumé, is impressive.
New countries in the NBA: The definitive 2017 report
If you’re like me, then you already know that maybe the very most important web page in an Internet stuffed with compelling basketball research is the Basketball-Reference Birth Places page. The only thing that’s wrong with this enchanting walk down NBA history is it has been filed under the Frivolities category on the same website. There’s nothing frivolous about it.
Is the NBA’s 3-point revolution actually a 2-point revolution in disguise?
Very few general managers, even very skilled ones, leave a concrete legacy behind once they exit the front office — but the game will remember Daryl Morey’s Houston Rockets for a long time. Even if the Rockets never win a championship, Morey has the distinction of altering the NBA game for good.
The most fun thing the Sixers can do with all those picks
Even though we’re about a month into a totally unpredictable, completely riveting regular season, there’s something about the Summer League from four months ago that I just can’t stop thinking about. It’s Jonah Bolden. Selected 36th overall in this June’s draft by the Philadelphia 76ers, Bolden is a native Australian who had an undistinguished freshman year at UCLA in 2015-16 before leaving for Serbia in 2016-17.
The Kings are suddenly a fun, anarchic experiment
It is true that the Kings have not gotten a sweet, sweet taste of the playoffs since the days of Ron Artest, Peja Stojakovic and Rick Adelman. And it is true, as you might have heard, that in the lost, wandering decade since, the Kings have ended up on the wrong side of way too many of the most lopsided trades in the game. And, yes, it is true that the same executive guilty of signing off on some of those transactions is still calling the shots. But listen, things have changed in Sacramento.
Welcome to the Golden Age of rookie triple-doubles
Remember last year, how insane it was that Russell Westbrook actually averaged a triple-double for the entire season? The insanity of Westbrook’s accomplishment nicely sets up the complete insanity of the original triple-double king, Oscar Robertson. When Big O became the first player to average a triple-double, in 1961-62, that was just his second season in the league. The year before, as a 22-year-old rookie, Robertson dropped an astounding 26 triple-doubles.
The Flaw In The Pistons' Mega-Scouting Approach - RealGM Analysis
On the eve of the 15-16 season, Sports Illustrated reported that Stan Van Gundy was going to run the Detroit Pistons like no other NBA team had ever been run. A massive, 18-person front office was going to diligently scout all 1,230 NBA games each season to uncover the hidden gems buried deep across the league’s benches. Sure enough, the Pistons have been nabbing all sorts of players who are only recognized by true League Pass-heads.
Who has won the most NBA games?
LOS ANGELES, CA - NOVEMBER 16: Jerry West and Pat Riley speak at the statue unveiling ceremony of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar at Staples Center on November 16, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2012 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D.
Show More
loading
Actions
Is this you?
As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.Get in touch with Miles
Contact Miles, search articles and posts on X, monitor coverage, and track replies from one place.
Learn more about Muck Rack