March 2012 – Page 10 – NBA Blog

76ers waive forward Andres Nocioni

The Philadelphia 76ers announced today that the team has waived forward Andres Nocioni.

“We want to sincerely thank Andres for his contributions to our team and maintaining a true level of professionalism throughout his time here,” Sixers President of Basketball Operations Rod Thorn said. “We wish him the best of luck as he pursues future opportunities.”

Nocioni (6-7, 225) is in his eighth NBA season and his second with the Sixers. He was acquired via trade from Sacramento, along with Spencer Hawes, in exchange for Samuel Dalembert on June 17, 2010.

In 11 games with one start this season, Nocioni averaged 1.5 points and 1.3 rebounds in 5.1 minutes per game.

The Sixers roster now stands at 13.

Memphis Grizzlies sign Gilbert Arenas

Once a beloved star in the NBA, free agent guard Gilbert Arenas has a new chance to prove to the basketball masses that he can help a team win.

The Memphis Grizzlies signed Arenas today, Grizzlies General Manager and Vice President of Basketball Operations Chris Wallace announced. According to the Memphis Commercial Appeal, “Arenas, who was in Memphis the past two days, passed a physical and signed a one-year contract for the veteran’s minimum. Memphis will pay him a prorated salary worth about $300,000.”

A three-time All-Star (2004-07), Arenas holds career averages of 21.2 points, 4.0 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 1.63 steals on .421 shooting in 35.8 minutes in 535 career games (455 starts) over 10 seasons (2001-11) with the Golden State Warriors, Washington Wizards and Orlando Magic. Selected by Golden State in the second round (30th overall) of the 2001 NBA Draft, Arenas’ career scoring average ranks ninth among active players (34th in NBA history).

During his time with the Wizards, the Los Angeles native developed into one of the league’s most dynamic guards, averaging 27.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and 5.7 assists over a three-year stretch (2004-07) in which he was named to the All-NBA Second Team in 2007 and the All-NBA Third Team in 2005 and 2006. The 2002-03 NBA Most Improved Player ranked third in the league in points per game during the 2006-07 season (28.4), fourth in 2005-06 (29.3) and seventh in 2004-05 (25.5).

Most recently, the 30-year-old former University of Arizona standout split the 2010-11 season with Washington and Orlando, averaging 10.8 points, 2.7 rebounds and 3.9 assists in 25.7 minutes in 70 games (16 starts).

The Grizzlies’ roster currently stands at 14 players. Memphis begins a four-game West Coast road trip tonight at 9 p.m. CT against the Sacramento Kings at the Power Balance Pavilion.

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Cavaliers waive center Ryan Hollins

The Cleveland Cavaliers have decided they no longer require the services of center Ryan Hollins.

The team waived Hollins today, Cavaliers General Manager Chris Grant announced.

Hollins, 27, has averages of 3.7 points on .500 shooting and 2.3 rebounds in 15.1 minutes per game in 24 games (seven starts) this season. He has career averages of 4.2 points on .554 shooting and 2.3 rebounds in 13.2 minutes per game in 299 games (54 starts).

The Cavaliers roster now stands at 14.

Brad Miller to retire at end of season

If anybody was really wondering … Wolves veteran center Brad Miller said before Monday’s game at Golden State that he will retire at the end of the season.

Miller has played just 43 minutes in seven games this season on a knee surgically repaired last May after the Wolves acquired him in a draft-night trade last summer.

The Wolves could have bought out his $5 million contract next season for a fraction of that, which made his return unlikely anyway.

Wolves boss David Kahn said he would like to keep Miller with the organization in some capacity if he’s interested.

— Reported by Jerry Zgoda of the Minneapolis Star Tribune

Spurs assign Cory Joseph to D-League

The San Antonio Spurs today announced that they have assigned rookie Cory Joseph to the Austin Toros of the NBA Development League.

Joseph, a 6-3 guard, has seen action in 27 games for the Spurs this season, averaging 1.7 points and 1.1 assists in 7.6 minutes.

Joseph has had two stints with the Toros this season. He has seen action in six games, averaging 10.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.67 steals in 30.7 minutes.

The Spurs selected Joseph out of the University of Texas with the 29th overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft. In his lone season with the Longhorns, he was named to the Big 12 All-Rookie Team and earned All-Big 12 Honorable Mention.

Hornets sign Chris Johnson off waivers

The New Orleans Hornets announced today that they have claimed former LSU Tiger Chris Johnson off of waivers. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not announced. The 26-year old center was waived by the Portland Trail Blazers on Mar. 15.

Born in Washington D.C., Johnson was a member of the NBA Development League’s Dakota Wizards during the 2010-11 season. He appeared in 35 games (34 starts) for the Wizards, averaging 16.2 points, 9.2 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game en route to being named a 2011 NBA Development League All-Star and the 2010-11 Defensive Player of the Year for the league. He also placed second in the NBA D-League Showcase Dunk Contest during All-Star weekend.

Johnson appeared in 20 games for the Trail Blazers this season. He appeared in 10 games for Portland in 2010-11 after being signed on Mar. 14, 2011. He began his NBA career with the Boston Celtics in 2010-11, appearing in four games for the Celtics.

Johnson (6-11, 210) played four seasons for LSU, averaging 7.2 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.00 blocks in 88 games. He posted collegiate bests of 7.2 rebounds and 2.71 blocks during his senior season in Baton Rouge in 2008-09. Following his time at LSU, Johnson played overseas in Turkey and Poland before his time in Dakota.

Bulls hold Magic to 59 points

In basketball, defense matters just as much as offense. Which is why the Chicago Bulls are still really good even when Derrick Rose is out.

The AP reports:

Carlos Boozer scored 24 points and had 13 rebounds, John Lucas scored 20 points off the bench and the Chicago Bulls beat the Orlando Magic 85-59 on Monday night.

Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau also became the fastest coach in NBA history to earn 100 career victories. The Bulls won for the fifth time in six games.

They also improved to 3-1 over the past four games playing without guard Derrick Rose , who continued to nurse a sore groin.

Dwight Howard had 18 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Magic, who had 19 turnovers.

The Magic have lost three of their last four since posting a three-game win streak. They’ve also now gone six straight quarters without scoring at least 20 points.

Celtics edge Hawks in grinding brickfest

No matter how ugly and brick-filled a game is, somebody still has to win the thing.

The AP reports:

Ray Allen hit two 3-pointers in Boston’s 13-0 run in the fourth quarter and protected the lead with two free throws in the final seconds as the Boston Celtics held on to beat the Atlanta Hawks 79-76 on Monday night.

The Celtics led 73-58 at the end of the run. Joe Johnson , who had 25 points, had three late 3-pointers as the Hawks rallied. Johnson’s 3 with 11.8 seconds remaining cut the lead to 77-76.

Allen, who had 19 points, made two free throws with 10.9 seconds remaining.

Jeff Teague launched an air ball on Atlanta’s final possession.

Kevin Garnett had 16 points and Rajon Rondo had 10 points, 13 assists and six steals for Boston, which took charge with a 17-2 run, including 13 unanswered points, after a 56-56 tie in the final period.

Zaza Pachulia had 16 points and 13 rebounds for Atlanta, which now leads Boston by 1 1/2 games in the race for the sixth spot in the Eastern Conference.

Paul Pierce had 13 points for Boston.

Tristan Thompson steps up for Cavs, drops 27 on Nets

It’s always fun taking note of the biggest games that NBA rookies put up. Which is why tonight’s performance is notable.

The AP reports:

Tristan Thompson scored a career-high 27 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and gave Cleveland the lead with a tip-in with 1:11 to play Monday night, leading the Cavaliers to a 105-100 victory over the New Jersey Nets.

Fellow rookie Kyrie Irving added 26 points, seven assists and five rebounds as the Cavaliers snapped a three-game losing streak and sent the Nets to their third straight loss.

Newcomer Gerald Wallace had 27 points and 12 rebounds to lead New Jersey.

Deron Williams added 28 points, but threw the ball away with roughly 16 seconds to play when he passed up a 3-point attempt to make a pass underneath with New Jersey down 103-100.

Celtics center Jermaine O’Neal out for season

The Boston Celtics announced today that center Jermaine O’Neal will undergo surgery on his left wrist and will miss the remainder of the 2011-12 season.

O’Neal has a chronic degenerative wrist condition that was exacerbated after a fall during the Celtics’ game against the Dallas Mavericks on February 20th. The wrist has not responded to immobilization and physical therapy, and the decision was made to proceed with surgery.

“Jermaine worked hard to get himself in condition to play this season despite his ongoing wrist issues,” said Celtics President of Basketball Operations Danny Ainge. “He played through pain the entire year and gave us all he could, but unfortunately after the fall against Dallas there simply wasn’t anything else he could do. We appreciate his contributions to our team over the last two years.”