February 2010 – Page 7 – NBA Blog

Bulls trade Tyrus Thomas to Bobcats for Flip Murray, Acie Law

The Chicago Bulls traded Tyrus Thomas to the Charlotte Bobcats in exchange for Ronald “Flip” Murray and Acie Law. Chicago also received a future first round draft pick from Charlotte.

In a related move, the Bulls have released forward Chris Richard. Richard, signed to a second 10-day contact on Feb. 15, appeared in five games with Chicago and averaged 2.2 rpg, 4.6 rpg and 1.0 apg in 14.4 mpg.

The 6-10 Thomas is in his fourth NBA season after being selected by Portland with the fourth overall pick in the 2006 NBA Draft and traded to Chicago on draft night. In 254 career games with the Bulls, Thomas averaged 7.8 points, 5.1 rebounds, 1.4 blocks, 0.9 assists and 0.9 steals in 23.4 minutes. Thomas posted career highs of 10.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, 1.9 blocks, 1.2 steals and 27.5 minutes in 79 games played last season.

This season, Thomas is averaging 8.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 1.7 blocks, 1.4 steals and 1.1 assists in 23.4 minutes in 29 games played. He missed 22 games from November 7-December 22 with a left radius fracture.

Thomas has also played in 17 career playoff games, averaging 6.9 points, 4.6 rebounds, 1.5 blocks, 1.0 steal and 0.7 assists. He started all seven postseason games for the Bulls last season, averaging 9.6 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.9 blocks, 1.0 steal and 0.9 assists against Boston.

Murray (6-3, 200) is currently in his eighth season out of Shaw University. He appeared in 46 games (one start) for the Bobcats this season, and averaged 9.9 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 1.8 apg and 21.6 mpg. Originally drafted by Milwaukee in the second round (42nd overall) in 2002, he has also played for Seattle, Cleveland, Detroit, Indiana and Atlanta. In 458 NBA games (91 starts), he has posted 9.9 ppg, 2.3 apg and 2.0 rpg in 22.7 mpg. The 30-year old Murray has been to the postseason four times, where he has averaged 6.9 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 1.7 apg and 23.4 mpg in 40 playoff games (five starts).

Law (6-3, 202), selected by the Atlanta Hawks with the 11th overall pick in 2007, is in his third season by way of Texas A&M. In 14 games this year, he has averaged 3.4 ppg in 7.0 mpg. For his career, he has played in 125 games (seven starts) and averaged 3.6 ppg, 1.7 apg and 0.9 rpg in 13.2 mpg. He has also appeared in 13 career playoff games, and averaged 2.2 ppg and 1.1 apg in 6.8 mpg. Law, 25, began this season with Golden State before he was traded to Charlotte in a four-player deal on Nov. 16.

Chicago’s roster now stands at 15.

Jazz trade Ronnie Brewer to Grizzlies

Ross Siler of the Salt Lake Tribune reports (via blog):

In a deal completed five minutes before the NBA’s 1 p.m. MDT trade deadline, the Jazz sent Ronnie Brewer to Memphis for a protected future first-round draft pick, general manager Kevin O’Connor said.

The Jazz’s starting shooting guard for the past three seasons, Brewer first was linked to Memphis in trade talk last month. The pick the Jazz will receive belongs to the Grizzlies and first can be conveyed beginning in 2011.

By trading Brewer, the Jazz will ease their logjam of wing players, freeing minutes for Wesley Matthews, C.J. Miles and Kyle Korver. The Jazz also will ease their luxury-tax burden, with the Grizzlies having the cap space to absorb Brewer’s $2.7 million salary.

Ross Siler of the Salt Lake Tribune reports (via blog):

The primary reason for the trade, of course, is that Brewer plays the same position as Kyle Korver, C.J. Miles, Wesley Matthews and — to a lesser extent — Andrei Kirilenko.

Coach Jerry Sloan was having a difficult time finding minutes for everyone, so somebody had to either be traded or buried on the bench alongside young “bigs” Kosta Koufos and Kyrylo Fesenko.

New Jersey Nets will temporarily move to Prudential Center in Newark

The New Jersey Nets have needed a new home, whether in Newark or Brooklyn or your backyard, and good news that’s been expected for a while is finally materializing: The team will, temporarily at least, play in what InsideHoops.com considers a terrific basketball arena in Newark, New Jersey.

The Newark Star-Ledger reports:

The Nets are making a fast break to Newark.

After months of speculation over whether the struggling NBA team would leave Izod Center in the Meadowlands for a two-year stay at the new Prudential Center in Newark, a deal was struck today to allow the Nets to break their lease for $4 million and move to Newark, according to officials involved in the negotiations.

The early termination fees could be offset in part by advertising, suite revenue and other credits.

The agreement came after the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority voted in secret to approve the deal at a special meeting this morning. A formal announcement is expected later today by Gov. Chris Christie.

The plan will have the Nets and Devils playing together in the state’s largest city. The move is temporary, with the Nets still planning to move to a new arena in Brooklyn by the start of the 2012 basketball season.

We consider this fantastic news, for the Nets and all basketball fans around the area. Both New Yorkers and New Jersey residents will find it easier to get to the arena. InsideHoops.com attended a Nets preseason game in the Prudential Center, and we loved the building. It’s clean, a great basketball arena, and very easy to get to by public transportation.

UPDATE: NETS CONFIRM TEAM WILL MOVE TO NEWARK

Brett Yormark, the Nets President and CEO, released the following statement regarding the Nets’ upcoming interim relocation to Newark’s Prudential Center, which will begin with the upcoming 2010-11 NBA season. This precedes the team’s permanent move to Brooklyn, planned for 2012.

“Our planned interim relocation to the Prudential Center in Newark represents one of the many positive steps to take place for Nets Basketball during the next few months. This temporary move not only gives our fans a state-of-the-art arena with the first-class amenities common in most NBA buildings, but also provides our players with a great atmosphere in which to play.

“Additionally, before we make our permanent move to Brooklyn, this interim relocation to Newark enables us to continue our goal to further regionalize the team, not only in Essex and Union Counties, but also in New York City due to the direct mass transit access available between Manhattan and the Prudential Center. We are confident that the NBA family will see this as a positive move, as we do. We look forward to being part of the community in Newark and will continue our extensive community outreach in the area.

“I would like to sincerely thank Governor Christie for his support and leadership in making our interim relocation to the Prudential Center a reality. I would also like to express my appreciation to Mayor Booker and Jeff Vanderbeek for their steadfast efforts throughout this process.”

Heat tried to trade for Carlos Boozer

Marc Stein and Chad Ford of ESPN report:

The Miami Heat spent the final hour-plus before the NBA’s Thursday afternoon trading deadline trying to convince the Utah Jazz to surrender Carlos Boozer, according to NBA front-office sources.

The Jazz, though, would not relent before the trade buzzer sounded, one source close to the process told ESPN The Magazine’s Ric Bucher.

One source with knowledge of Utah’s thinking told ESPN.com from the start of Thursday’s discussions that a trade was “unlikely,” but the teams were still talking entering the last half-hour before the deadline hit.

ESPN.com reported earlier Thursday that the Heat and Jazz had opened discussions on a Boozer deal. Yahoo! Sports reported that the Wizards were recruited as a third team to try to help facilitate the deal, but one source told ESPN.com that the Wizards were no longer involved in the talks.

DeSagana Diop out 1-2 weeks

The Charlotte Bobcats announced today that center DeSagana Diop will miss approximately 1-2 weeks due to a sprained medial collateral ligament in his right knee. Diop suffered the injury, which was initially diagnosed as a right knee bruise, in the third quarter of Tuesday’s game against New Jersey. Diop was re-examined on Wednesday by team physician Dr. Glenn Perry, who diagnosed the injury as an MCL sprain and ordered an MRI to confirm the diagnosis.

The Charlotte Bobcats, who became the NBA’s 30th franchise when they joined the league in 2004-05, return to action Friday when they host the Cleveland Cavaliers at 7:00 pm ET. The game can be seen on SportSouth and heard on WFNZ 610 AM.

76ers trade Royal Ivey, Primoz Brezec to Bucks for Jodie Meeks, Francisco Elson

The Milwaukee Bucks have acquired center Primoz Brezec and guard Royal Ivey (6-4, 215) from the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for center Francisco Elson and guard Jodie Meeks, General Manager John Hammond announced today. Additionally, the Bucks obtained Philadelphia’s second round draft pick in the 2010 NBA Draft.

Brezec (7-1, 255) is currently in his eighth NBA season and sports career averages of 7.4 points and 4.0 rebounds in 328 regular season games (214 starts). Last season, Brezec played for Lottomatica Virtus Roma in the Italian League where he teamed with current Bucks rookie guard Brandon Jennings. In 29 games in the Italian League, Brezec averaged 8.2 points and 3.6 rebounds while shooting 63.2 percent from the field. In 14 Euroleague games, he tallied 9.4 points and 4.4 rebounds while shooting 55.4 percent from the field.

A native of Postojna, Slovenia, Brezec, 30, began his professional career in the Slovenian League with Kraski (1996-98) and Olimpija Ljubljana (1998-2001). He was selected by Indiana in the first round (27th overall) of the 2000 NBA Draft and played three seasons (2001-2004) for the Pacers before being selected by Charlotte in the 2004 NBA Expansion Draft. Brezec played three-plus seasons in Charlotte before finishing out the 2007-08 campaign with Detroit and Toronto. He signed with Philadelphia prior to the start of the 2009-10 season and appeared in seven games for the 76ers.

Ivey, 28, is in his sixth NBA season and second stint with the Bucks. The Harlem, NY, native spent the 2007-08 campaign in Milwaukee and played in a career-high 75 games (20 starts) and averaged 5.6 points, 2.1 assists and 1.6 rebounds – all career-high totals. Originally drafted by the Atlanta Hawks with the 37th selection out of Texas in the 2004 NBA Draft, Ivey played three seasons in Atlanta before signing with the Bucks. He signed with Philadelphia prior to the 2008-09 season and has played 97 games for the 76ers over the last season-plus. In 360 career NBA regular season games (109 starts), Ivey has averaged 3.7 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game.

Elson, 33, signed a free agent contract with Milwaukee prior to the 2008-09 season. Currently in his seventh NBA season, Elson began his NBA career in Denver in 2003 and has also played with San Antonio (2006-2008) and Seattle (2008). In 404 career NBA regular season games (148 starts), Elson has averaged 3.9 points and 3.8 rebounds. Elson is the first Dutch national to win an NBA Championship (Spurs – 2007).

Meeks, 22, was selected by Milwaukee after his junior year at the University of Kentucky with the 41st pick in the second round of the 2009 NBA Draft. He played in 41 games for the Bucks this season and averaged 4.1 points and 1.8 rebounds in 11.9 minutes per game. As a junior for the Wildcats, Meeks set a school single-game scoring record with 54 points, including 10 three-point field goals and 14-of-14 from the line. He set Kentucky’s all-time single-season record for three-pointers made (117) in his junior year.

Rafer Alston happy Nets let him go

Howard Kussoy of the New York Post reports:

A member of the Heat since being signed on Jan. 7, after clearing waivers, Alston suffered with the Nets as they opened the season with an NBA-record 18 straight losses. Less than a year removed from playing in the NBA Finals for the Orlando Magic, Alston remained with the Nets as their record hit 3-30.

The indignity would soon end, as Alston escaped NBA’s Shawshank, crawling through a river of losses and coming out clean on the other side, finding serenity on the beach.

“The one common question I always get [from other players] is ‘How tough was it? or ‘It must’ve been tough.’ It was,” Alston said. “I don’t think any player in this league wants to go through setting the record for the most consecutive losses and then being where they’re at now. You played as hard as you can and you did everything to stay in the game and then you’d still lose the game. That was the hard part.”

CJ Watson scores 40

Marcus Thompson II of the Bay Area News Group reports:

The victory, only No. 15 in a lost season, was comfortably in hand. Yet just before the Warriors had completed a 130-98 rout of the Sacramento Kings, every player on the bench — including all of the injured players — was on his feet.

And when guard C.J. Watson’s left-handed layup rolled in, giving him a career-high 40 points, the players erupted in delight. It was a moment that showed why these players are happy that the team is unlikely to make a trade by today’s noon deadline.

“Things are feeling good,” rookie guard Stephen Curry said. “You can tell. Everybody’s smiling, having fun. “… Hopefully this whole unit’s going to be back next year.”

Kings to trade Kevin Martin to Rockets

Adrian Wojnarowski and Marc J. Spears of Yahoo report:

The Houston Rockets have reached an agreement in principle to acquire Kevin Martin from the Sacramento Kings, league sources told Yahoo! Sports.

The proposed deal has the Rockets sending Tracy McGrady, Carl Landry and Joey Dorsey to the Kings for Martin, Sergio Rodriguez, Hilton Armstrong and Kenny Thomas.

Two league sources tell Y! Sports the Kings are unsure whether they will keep McGrady or expand the trade to three teams and send him to the New York Knicks.

McGrady’s agent, Arn Tellem, had worked diligently with the Rockets to broker a trade for T-Mac to the Knicks, and sources say he’s now determined to get him out of Sacramento. Tellem also represents the Kings’ prized rookie, Tyreke Evans.

Wizards trade Antawn Jamison to Cavaliers in 3-team deal

The Washington Wizards had a “big three” of Gilbert Arenas, Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison. Though only Jamison is considered an actual big-man in today’s NBA — and he’s undersized and more of a tweener forward than a true power forward — they were called that because those guys were the nucleus of the team. The foundation. Here to stay.

But Arenas was suspended and his future may be elsewhere. Butler was traded in a better-than-expected deal that brought Josh Howard to D.C. And now, Jamison is gone.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have acquired forward Antawn Jamison from the Washington Wizards and guard Sebastian Telfair from the Los Angeles Clippers, Cavaliers General Manager Danny Ferry announced today. In exchange, the Cavaliers sent center Zydrunas Ilgauskas, their first round pick in the 2010 NBA Draft and the draft rights to forward Emir Preldzic, the 57th overall pick of the 2009 NBA Draft, to the Wizards. The additional components of the three-team trade included the Clippers acquiring forward/center Drew Gooden from Washington and Washington acquiring forward Al Thornton.

“Z has been a cornerstone part of this franchise and his jersey will hang in the rafters here some day, not only because of his play, but because of the tremendous person he is and what he has meant to the franchise and the community,” Ferry said. “He has represented the Cavaliers, Cleveland and the NBA at a consistently high level for many years. We wish Z and his family the best.”

Jamison, 33, has averages of 20.5 points on .450 shooting, including shooting .345 from three-point range, 8.8 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.0 block in 39.0 minutes per game in 41 games played (all starts) this season with Washington. He is the only player in the NBA this season with averages of at least 20.0 points and 8.0 rebounds while making 50 or more three-pointers. The 11-year veteran has been named an all-star on two occasions (2004-05, 2007-08) and won the NBA’s Sixth Man Award following the 2003-04 season. In all but two of his 11 seasons, he has averaged at least 19.6 points and has posted rebounding averages of 7.0 or better in eight of his 11 seasons. He has career averages of 19.9 points on .456 shooting, 8.1 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 36.9 minutes per game in 839 games (732 starts) and is one of just five active players with over 16,000 points and 6,000 rebounds.

The forward from North Carolina has reached the postseason in five seasons and has averages of 19.2 points on .443 shooting and 7.8 rebounds in 37.1 minutes per game in 31 career postseason games (26 starts).

“Antawn is a great pro. We are very excited to have an experienced all-star player of Antawn’s caliber and character join us,” Ferry said. “He has the ability to add a special, unique dimension to our team with a strong inside presence and the ability to stretch teams defensively, while impacting the entire court. We think he matches the culture we have built, and continue to build, and will fit well with our group on the court and off.”

Telfair, 24, is averaging 4.3 points on .404 shooting and 2.9 assists in 14.9 minutes per game in 39 games played (one start) this season. The five-year veteran has career averages of 7.8 points on .390 shooting and 3.9 assists in 23.6 minutes per game in 388 games (181 starts).

Ilgauskas, a two-time all-star, has averages of 7.5 points on .452 shooting, 5.3 rebounds and 0.8 blocks in 20.5 minutes per game in 53 games played (six starts) this season. He departs the Cavaliers as the franchise’s all-time leader in regular season games played (760), postseason games played (64), rebounds (5,841) and blocked shots (1,259).

Drafted by the Cavaliers with the 20th overall pick of the 1996 NBA Draft, the 7-foot-3 Lithuanian played all 11 seasons with the Cavaliers and has career averages of 13.9 points on .475 shooting, 7.7 rebounds and 1.7 blocks in 28.4 minutes per game in 760 games (673 starts).