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Arnett Moultrie – whose draft rights were acquired by the Philadelphia 76ers in a trade with Miami on draft night – suffered a left ankle sprain on Monday, June 25 during a pre-draft workout.
Due to the injury, Moultrie will not play in the Orlando Pro Summer League, but will travel with the Sixers in order to receive treatment on his left ankle and work with the coaching staff on learning the team’s system.
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Semih Erden is returning to Turkey to play with Anadolu Efes of the Euroleague, the team’s website reported Tuesday. The Cavs did not confirm the report.
Erden, 25, signed a two-year deal with a team option for a third year. He spent two injury-plagued seasons in Cleveland, averaging 3.5 points and 2.6 rebounds in 28 games (nine starts) last season. Coach Byron Scott had high hopes for Erden, but they went relatively unmet.
Scott criticized Erden multiple times last season for not playing hard enough and not giving a strong enough effort. When he was traded from the Boston Celtics to the Cavs two years ago, Erden emphatically denied rumors that he was homesick and wanted to return to Turkey.
— Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal
Detroit Pistons President of Basketball Operations Joe Dumars announced today that the club has promoted George David to the position of Assistant General Manager.
“We are pleased to announce the promotion of George David to Assistant General Manager,” said Joe Dumars, President of Basketball Operations. “George has played a significant role for our basketball operations team in coordinating our draft preparation, scouting, free agent analysis and administration. He will do a great job in his new position.”
The Orlando Magic have signed rookie forward Andrew Nicholson, General Manager Rob Hennigan announced today.
All players drafted in the first round are guaranteed to receive a contract. This signing is standard.
Nicholson was selected in the first round (19th overall) of the 2012 NBA Draft. He will participate in the upcoming 2012 AirTran Airways Orlando Pro Summer League, taking place at Amway Center from July 9-13.
Nicholson (#44, 6’9”, 250, 12/8/89) appeared in 123 career games at St. Bonaventure University, averaging 17.1 ppg., 7.2 rpg. and 1.98 blkpg. in 29.9 minpg. and shot .575 (809-1,407) from the field during his collegiate career. He earned All-Atlantic 10 Conference honors all four seasons and was named the Atlantic 10 Player of the Year as a senior in 2011-12. Nicholson also earned All-American honors by The Associated Press in 2011-12. Nicholson led the Bonnies in scoring, rebounding and blocked shots for three straight seasons (2009-12).
Nicholson ranks second all-time in school history in scoring (2,103 points), second in blocked shots (244), second in field goal percentage and fourth in rebounds (887).
As a senior (2011-12), Nicholson played in 32 games, averaging 18.5 ppg., 8.4 rpg., 1.0 apg. and 2.0 blkpg. in 30.1 minpg. He scored in double figures 29 times. Nicholson grabbed a career-best 23 rebounds (along with 21 points) against Duquesne, and led the Bonnies to the NCAA Tournament.
During his junior year (2010-11), Nicholson appeared in 31 games, averaging 20.8 ppg., 7.3 rpg. and 1.5 blkpg. in 33.8 minpg. He scored in double figures 30 times, including a career-high 44 points against Ohio University.
As a sophomore (2009-10), Nicholson appeared in 30 games, averaging 16.4 ppg., 7.1 rpg. and 1.8 blkpg. in 30.2 minpg. During his freshman season (2008-09), he averaged 12.5 ppg., 6.0 rpg. and a team-high 2.7 blkpg. in 25.1 minpg.
Nicholson, son of Fabian and Colmaleen, graduated with a degree in physics from St. Bonaventure.
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The Indiana Pacers and point guard George Hill have agreed to a new deal.
Hill’s co-agent, Michael Whitaker, wrote in a text message Tuesday that Hill, a 26-year-old restricted free agent, will sign once the NBA’s moratorium period ends on July 11. He did not disclose terms.
Hill joined the Pacers after a draft-day deal in 2011 that sent Indiana draft pick Kawhi Leonard to San Antonio, and he averaged 9.6 points and 2.9 assists per game last season.
— Reported by the Associated Press
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The Boston Celtics announced today that they have signed their 2012 draft picks, forwards Jared Sullinger and Kris Joseph along with center Fab Melo.
Players drafted in the first round are guaranteed to receive a contract, but the team gets to decide whether to sign players they drafted in the second round.
Sullinger, a 6’9” forward, was taken with the 21st pick in the first round. The native of Columbus, OH was a consensus First Team All-American, Wooden Award finalist and First Team All-Big 10 Selection in each of his two seasons at Ohio State. He also was named the 2011 Big Ten Freshman of the Year. Sullinger posted the third-most points (1,282) over his first two seasons at Ohio State behind Jerry Lucas (1,381) and Michael Redd (1,361). Sullinger also earned National Freshman of the Year honors from the Sporting News and the Wayman Tisdale Award from the USBWA. He averaged 17.5 points and 9.2 rebounds this past season in helping the Buckeyes get to the Final Four.
Melo, a 7’0” center, was taken with the 22nd pick in the first round. The native of Juiz de Forz, Brazil was the Big East Defensive Player of the Year as a sophomore. He is the Syracuse record holder for most blocks in a single game with 10 against Seton Hall this past season. He also was named Preseason Big East Rookie of the Year as a freshman. This past season he ranked first for Syracuse in rebounds (5.8 rpg) and blocks (2.9 bpg).
Joseph, a 6’7” forward, was taken with the 51st pick in the second round. The native of Montreal, Quebec, earned First Team All-Big East during his senior season and is one of 55 players in Syracuse University history to record 1,000 points in his career. During his senior season he ranked first on the Orange in points (13.4 ppg) and third in rebounds (4.7 rpg). During his junior season, he also was ranked first on the Orange in points (14.3 ppg) and second in rebounds (5.2 rpg).
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In their quest to find a veteran point guard, the Chicago Bulls have been in contact with Derek Fisher, and they’ve also contacted shooting guard Brandon Roy, according to sources with knowledge of the situation.
It was widely assumed that Fisher would quietly re-sign with the Oklahoma City Thunder after essentially choosing them over several contenders following a midseason trade from the Los Angeles Lakers and buyout from the Houston Rockets.
Fisher, 37, is also on the radar for the Miami Heat, Dallas Mavericks and Thunder. All three teams pursued him in March after he negotiated a buyout from the Rockets. Fisher gave up the final year and $3.4 million of his previous contract as part of his buyout from Houston. He signed for the remainder of the Thunder’s $2.3 million midlevel exception, essentially a pro-rated $1.9 million.
— Reported by Ramona Shelburne and Nick Friedell of ESPN.com
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Things had been pretty quiet in terms of free agency until today when the Kings hosted restricted free agent forward Ryan Anderson.
Kings basketball president Geoff Petrie, as promised, began free agency last Saturday by reaching out Jason Thompson’s agent, Leon Rose.
“Our first phone call was to Leon about Jason,” Petrie said. “We talked …and put a proposal in front of him and we’ve made a number of calls on different players. And today we had lunch with Ryan Anderson. We’re continuing to monitor things. Restricted free agency on both sides is a little bit different.”
Anderson and Thompson are both restricted.
— Reported by Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee (Blog)
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New York Knicks guard Jeremy Lin and Boston Celtics center Greg Stiemsma have withdrawn from the 2012 USA Men’s Select Team that will train July 6-11 against the 2012 USA Basketball Men’s National Team during training camp in Las Vegas, Nev.
Lin informed USA Basketball this afternoon that because of his current contract status (a restricted free agent) he was withdrawing. Stiemsma was forced to withdraw after undergoing a non-surgical process for Plantar Fasciitis.
“Unfortunately, I am not going to be able to participate in the 2012 USA Men’s Select Team this summer,” said Lin. “It was such an incredible honor to be selected, but I have withdrawn my name from the team because of my status as a free agent. I hope to have the opportunity to participate with USA Basketball at some point in the future.”
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The Oklahoma City Thunder signed Head Coach Scott Brooks to a multi-year contract, it was announced today by Executive Vice President and General Manager, Sam Presti. We’ll post details of the contract in this spot on this page later today.
This past season, Brooks guided the Thunder to a second consecutive Northwest Division title and a trip to the NBA Finals. Under Brooks, the Thunder has claimed the second most victories (152) in the NBA during the past three seasons.
“Continuing with Scott as our head coach is extremely significant for the future of our organization,” said Presti. “As we have continually communicated, he has been integral to our success and we have a deep appreciation for his tireless dedication to our players’ development. His experiences and core values are invaluable to our players as they continue to grow and improve and we are thrilled to continue our partnership.”
Oklahoma City has qualified for the postseason in each of the last three seasons and since taking over as Thunder Head Coach on November 22, 2009, Oklahoma City registered a mark of 174-125 (.582).
“I would like to thank Clay Bennett and Sam Presti for the opportunity to continue with the Thunder,” said Brooks. “Oklahoma City is a special place and I’m eager to build upon the foundation and culture of this franchise for years to come.”
After guiding the Thunder to the best record in the Western Conference at the midway point of this past season, Brooks and his staff represented the Thunder by coaching the Western Conference All-Stars in Orlando. Led by Brooks, the Western Conference All-Stars captured a 152-149 victory over the Eastern Conference.
Brooks, the 16th head coach in franchise history, received the 2009-10 Red Auerbach NBA Coach of the Year award after his second season on the Thunder sideline. During his first full year at the helm of the Thunder, Brooks oversaw one of the biggest turnarounds in NBA history. A year after winning 23 games, the Thunder concluded the 2009-10 season with a record of 50-32 (.610). The 27-win improvement was tied for the eighth largest in NBA history.
Brooks enjoyed an 11-year (1988-99) playing career in the NBA, appearing in 680 regular season games with Philadelphia, Minnesota, Houston, Dallas, New York, Cleveland and the Los Angeles Clippers. Brooks’ teams advanced to the postseason six of his 11 NBA seasons, and in 1994, he was a member of the NBA Champion Houston Rockets. Brooks holds career averages of 4.9 points and 2.4 assists per game.
A native of Lathrop, California, Brooks began his collegiate career at Texas Christian University, where he played one season. He then transferred to San Joaquin Delta College for his sophomore season, before spending his final two years at UC Irvine, where he averaged 23.8 points per game as a senior.