Month: October 2010

Bulls exercise options on Derrick Rose, Taj Gibson and James Johnson

The Chicago Bulls announced today the team has exercised its fourth-year option for the 2011-12 season for guard Derrick Rose and its third-year options for the 2011-12 season for forwards Taj Gibson and James Johnson.  By exercising the respective player options, all three players will be under contract with the Bulls for the 2011-12 season.

In two seasons with Chicago, Rose (6-3, 190) has appeared in 159 games (158 starts) and averaged 18.7 ppg, 6.2 apg, 3.8 rpg, 0.77 spg in 36.9 mpg; he has shot .483 from field and .776 from the line.  Last season, Rose became the youngest NBA All-Star in team history and was the first Chicago Bulls player to be named to an All-Star Game (2010) since Michael Jordan in 1998.  The Chicago native was also a member of the 2010 USA Men’s Basketball Team that claimed the gold medal at the 2010 FIBA World Championships in Istanbul, Turkey this past summer.

Gibson (6-9, 225), appeared in all 82 games (70 starts) during his rookie campaign and posted averages of 8.9 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 0.9 apg and 1.27 bpg in 26.8 mpg.  He also shot .494 from the floor and .647 from the line.  Gibson, the 26th pick in the 2009 NBA Draft, was also selected to the T-Mobile NBA All-Rookie First Team.  He led all rookies in rebounds per game, field goal percentage, double-doubles and was second in blocks per game.

The 6-9, 245-pound Johnson played in 65 contests (11 starts) during his rookie season.  He averaged 3.9 ppg and 2.0 rpg in 11.6 mpg.  Johnson was selected by the Bulls in the first round (16th overall) in the 2009 NBA Draft.

Bucks waive Brian Skinner

The Milwaukee Bucks have requested waivers on forward/center Brian Skinner, General Manager John Hammond announced today.

Skinner (6-9, 255 – Baylor) signed as a free agent on September 29. He appeared in all eight of the team’s exhibition games and averaged 1.5 points and 3.6 rebounds in 11.6 minutes. A veteran of 12 NBA seasons (including 2003-04 and 2006-07 in Milwaukee), Skinner holds averages of 4.8 points and 4.7 rebounds in 605 career games.

The Bucks roster now stands at 15 players.

Blazers waive Jeff Pendergraph

The Portland Trail Blazers have waived forward Jeff Pendergraph, it was announced today by General Manager Rich Cho.

“We want to thank Jeff for his hard work and professionalism since he arrived here in Portland, and we wish him a fast and successful recovery from his injury,” said Cho. “We sometimes have to make difficult decisions in this business, and this was certainly one of them.”

Pendergraph suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in an Oct. 7 preseason game at Utah and is scheduled to undergo surgery as a result.

Pendergraph, 23, averaged 2.7 points and 2.5 rebounds in 39 games (four starts) as a rookie in 2009-10 with the Trail Blazers after being acquired from Sacramento in a draft day trade on June 25, 2009. The Arizona State product was the 31st overall pick in the second round of the 2009 NBA Draft.

With Monday’s move, Portland’s roster stands at 14 players.

Martell Webster has back surgery, may be out 4-6 weeks

Martell Webster has back surgery, may be out 4-6 weeks

The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced that guard/forward Martell Webster underwent a successful microdiscectomy this morning to alleviate his recurring back pain. The surgery was conducted at TRIA Orthopaedic Center by Dr. James Schwender of the Twin Cities Spine Center.

No timetable for Webster’s return has been established, but the typical recovery time for this procedure is 4-6 weeks.

Marc Gasol suffers ankle sprain in practice

Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal reports:

Marc Gasol suffers ankle sprain in practice

Grizzlies starting center Marc Gasol left practice Sunday afternoon with a high left ankle sprain.

The 7-foot Spaniard landed awkwardly on backup center Hasheem Thabeet’s foot. and Gasol’s ankle was quickly wrapped in ice. The severity of Gasol’s injury won’t be known until today, when the Grizzlies’ medical staff reviews X-ray and MRI results.

Bucks exercise third-year option on Brandon Jennings

Bucks exercise third-year option on Brandon Jennings

The Milwaukee Bucks have exercised their third-year option on guard Brandon Jennings, General Manager John Hammond announced today.

Jennings started all 82 games for the Bucks in 2009-10, helping them to a 46-36 record (their most wins since a 50-32 mark in 2000-01) and their first playoff appearance since 2006. The 10th overall selection in the 2009 NBA Draft finished third among rookies with 15.5 points, 5.7 assists and 1.3 steals to go with 3.4 rebounds. He hit 37.4 percent (145-388) of his three-pointers and sank 81.7 percent (223-273) of his free throws in a rookie season that saw him set franchise rookie records in assists (470) and three-pointers made (145).

In the thrilling seven game playoff series with Atlanta, Jennings averaged 18.7 points, 3.6 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 1.1 steals. In his playoff debut, Jennings tallied 34 points at Atlanta on April 17, two points shy of the rookie record for points in a playoff debut (36 – Derrick Rose in 2009; Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in 1970).

Last season, Jennings became the first Eastern Conference rookie to win the Rookie of the Month award four times in a season, earning the honor for the months of October/November, December, January and March. Jennings was also named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played from November 9 through November 15, a week that included a Bucks rookie record 55 points by Jennings in a win over Golden State.

Jennings’ 55-point performance on November 14 was the highest point total of the 2009-10 season and the most scored by a rookie since Earl Monroe had 56 in 1968. Jennings became the youngest player in NBA history to score 50-plus points in a game and the fastest to do it, accomplishing the feat in his seventh game as a pro.

In his regular season debut on October 30, Jennings tallied 17 points, nine assists and nine rebounds, narrowly missing becoming the second player in NBA history to record a triple-double in his debut (Oscar Robertson, 1960). Though he missed out on the triple-double, he became the first rookie since 1974 (John Drew, Atlanta) to lead his club in points, rebounds and assists in his debut. Jennings also appeared in the NBA Rookie Challenge as well as the Skills Challenge at the 2010 All-Star Weekend.

Knicks exercise options on Danilo Gallinari, Anthony Randolph and Toney Douglas

New York Knickerbockers President of Basketball Operations Donnie Walsh announced today that the team has exercised fourth-year options on forwards Danilo Gallinari and Anthony Randolph, as well as its third-year option on guard Toney Douglas.

Gallinari, 6-10, 224-pounds, has averaged 12.8 points and 4.2 rebounds in 109 games (76 starts) over his first two NBA seasons. Originally selected by New York with the sixth overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft, Gallinari was selected to play in the T-Mobile Rookie Challenge and compete in the Foot Locker Three-Point Contest at 2010 NBA All-Star Weekend in Dallas last season.

Randolph, 6-11, 225-pounds, has averaged 9.2 points and 6.0 rebounds in 96 games over his first two NBA seasons with the Golden State Warriors. Originally selected by the Warriors with the 14th overall selection in the 2008 NBA Draft following his freshman season at Louisiana State University, Randolph was acquired by New York, along with Kelenna Azubuike and Ronny Turiaf, from Golden State in exchange for David Lee on Jul. 9, 2010.

Douglas, 6-2, 185-pounds, averaged 8.6 points, 2.0 assists and 19.4 minutes in 56 games during his rookie campaign with New York in 2009-10. The Jonesboro, GA-native was selected by the L.A. Lakers in the first round (29th overall) in the 2009 NBA Draft and had his draft rights traded to New York in exchange for cash considerations on draft night, Jun. 25, 2009.