September 2012 – Page 14 – NBA Blog

Lakers sign second round pick Robert Sacre

The Los Angeles Lakers have signed rookie forward/center Robert Sacre, it was announced today.

Sacre, a 7-0 forward/center out of Gonzaga, was selected by the Lakers in the second round (60th overall pick) in the 2012 NBA draft. Sacre finished his career with the Bulldogs ranked second all-time in school history in career blocks (186) while averaging 9.4 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 135 games. As a senior, Sacre was named the 2012 WCC Defensive Player of the Year as well as an All-WCC First-Team honoree while averaging 11.6 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.4 blocks.

Most recently, Sacre started all five games for the Lakers 2012 Summer League team in Las Vegas, averaging 9.0 points, 6.2 rebounds and 1.0 blocks in 30.0 minutes.

Lakers hire Eddie Jordan, Steve Clifford and Bernie Bickerstaff as assistant coaches

The Los Angeles Lakers have hired Eddie Jordan, Steve Clifford and Bernie Bickerstaff as assistant coaches, it was announced today by Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak.

Jordan, a former NBA player (1977-84) and member of the Lakers 1982 Championship team, most recently spent one season (2009-10) as head coach of the Philadelphia 76ers. Prior to his time in Philadelphia, Jordan, a native of Washington D.C. served as head coach of the Wizards. During his six years (2003- 2009) in Washington, Jordan posted a 197-224 record and in just his second season at the helm, guided the Wizards to their highest win total (45) in 25 years and the team’s first postseason appearance since 1996-97. Prior to joining the Wizards, Jordan served as the lead assistant coach for the New Jersey Nets. During his four-year stint with the Nets, the team made the Finals in back-to-back years (2002 and 2003). Additionally, Jordan spent seven years with the Sacramento Kings both as an assistant coach (1992-97) and head coach (1997-98).

Clifford joins the Lakers after spending the last five seasons as an assistant coach in Orlando. While with the Magic, Clifford helped guide the team to a 259-135 (.657) record, as well as five post season appearances. Prior to his stint in Orlando, Clifford spent four seasons (2003-07) as an assistant coach with the Houston Rockets, and three seasons (2000-03) with the New York Knicks.

The University of Maine at Farmington alum began his coaching career as an assistant at St. Anselm’s College in New Hampshire. After four years at St. Anselm’s, Clifford spent one season as an assistant coach at Fairfield University before joining the coaching staff at Boston University for four seasons. Clifford coached one year at Siena College before being named head coach at Adelphia University. During his four years at Adelphia, the team compiled an 86-36 record and made four NCAA Division II tournament appearances. Following his stint at Adelphia, Clifford served as an assistant coach for one season at East Carolina University before joining the NBA.

Bickerstaff, who brings over 39 years of coaching experience to the team, joins the Lakers after spending the last two seasons working as an assistant coach for the Portland Trailblazers. Prior to joining the Blazers, Bickerstaff worked with the Chicago Bulls as an assistant coach for two years (2008-10). He assumed the role in Chicago after spending four years with the Charlotte Bobcats. During his four years with the Bobcats, Bickerstaff spent one season as the Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations (2007-08) and three years (2004-07) serving as Head Coach and General Manager. Prior to his stint with the Bobcats, Bickerstaff served as an NBA head coach for three different teams (Seattle, Denver, Washington). In addition, Bickerstaff was President and General Manager of the Denver Nuggets for seven seasons (1990-97). Bickerstaff began his NBA coaching career the Washington Bullets in 1973 as the league’s youngest assistant coach. Over the next twelve seasons he helped guide the Bullets to the 1978 NBA Championship, three NBA Finals appearances, 10 playoff berths and a franchise record 60 wins in 1974-75. In 1985 Bickerstaff received his first head coaching opportunity with Seattle. In five seasons (1985-90) with Seattle, he posted a 202-208 record and in 1987 was named Coach of the Year by Sporting News Magazine. As a head coach, Bickerstaff has posted a career record of 414–512 which ranks 33 rd all-time among head coaches.

The new Lakers coaches will be replacing Ettore Messina and Quin Snyder, who left the team earlier this summer to join CSKA Moscow, and John Kuester, who has been reassigned to the position of Advanced NBA Scout and will be based on the East Coast.

Miami Heat sign Jarvis Varnado and Mickell Gladness

The Miami Heat announced today that they have signed forward Jarvis Varnado and free agent center Mickell Gladness.

Varnado was a second-round draft choice (41st overall) by the Heat in the 2010 NBA Draft after concluding his collegiate career at Mississippi State as the NCAA’s all-time leading shot-blocker. He has spent the past two seasons playing overseas in Italy and Israel. Last year he began the season appearing in 12 games with Hapoel Migdal Jerusalem of the Israeli Super League where he averaged 9.3 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.00 blocks and 23.6 minutes while shooting 58.8 percent from the floor. On Jan. 31, 2012, he signed with Acea Virtus Roma of the Italian Lega A and averaged 10.4 points, 6.5 rebounds, 2.00 blocks and 23.6 minutes while shooting 53.3 percent from the floor in 14 games.

Gladness, who went undrafted out of Alabama A&M in 2008, made his NBA debut with the Heat on Dec. 25, 2011 and split last season between Miami and Golden State. He appeared in 26 games (seven starts) during the 2011-12 season and averaged 2.2 points, 2.2 rebounds, 0.77 blocks and 9.7 minutes while shooting 42.4 percent from the floor. Gladness appeared in eight games with Miami, averaging 0.3 points, 1.4 rebounds and 3.5 minutes before being released on Feb. 7. He returned to the Heat on a pair of 10-day contracts (Feb. 12 and Feb. 28) and then was signed to a 10-day contract by the Golden State Warriors on Mar. 22. Gladness signed for the remainder of the season with the Warriors on Apr. 1. This will mark the third straight season Gladness has participated in training camp for the Heat. He was originally signed by Miami as a free agent on Sept. 27, 2010 and waived on Oct. 11, 2010. He was re-signed by Miami on Dec. 10, 2011 and made the team last year before his subsequent release on Feb. 7, 2012. He has also seen action with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers (2009-11) and Dakota Wizards (2011) of the NBA’s Development League and with Matrixx Magix Nijmegen in Holland (2008-09).

Both Varnado and Gladness played for the Heat’s 2012 Summer League team which competed in Las Vegas in July. Varnado appeared in two games (one start) and averaged 2.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 15.0 minutes. Gladness appeared in four games and averaged 5.0 points, 2.5 rebounds, 1.50 blocks and 12.0 minutes while shooting 53.8 percent from the field.

The Heat’s roster now stands at 15.

Andray Blatche is low-risk, high-reward for Nets

Blatche’s next destination will be in Brooklyn with the Nets, as he’s expected to sign with the team sometime in the next few days. The move has been met with plenty of derision on the Internet, thanks in large part to many of the interesting twists and turns of Blatche’s career in Washington.

But if you set aside the noise surrounding Blatche and look at the player the Nets are signing, it’s hard to see this as anything other than a win-win for the Nets.

Before his disastrous final season in Washington, where he spent much of the second half of the season away from the team, Blatche posted at least a 15.00 PER in four straight seasons, with an average rebound rate, surprisingly good assist numbers – given his reputation – and good steal rates for a big man. He’s also a good jump shooter, though his percentages have been terrible he’s taken far too many of them over the past few years while often being the focal point of Washington’s offense.

But that’s the key difference between Blatche in Washington and in Brooklyn: his role on the team. Think about everything that’s happened in Washington the last few years. The Wizards have been far from a picture of stability. Instead, they’ve been a colossal train wreck the past few years, especially since Gilbert Arenas brought guns into the locker room in late 2009.

— Reported by Tim Bontemps of the New York Post (Blog)

Ronnie Brewer out six weeks after knee surgery

Knicks veteran guard Ronnie Brewer began rehab Friday after undergoing surgery to repair a meniscal injury to his knee, according to his Twitter account.

“If y’all haven’t already heard I had successful meniscus surgery,” he wrote on his verified Twitter account @RonnieBrewerJr. “Started rehab this morning. Minor setback for a major comeback.”

The Knicks said Brewer tore the meniscus in his left knee in the last two weeks and is expected to miss six weeks.

— Reported by Bobby Bonett of New York Newsday

Justin Timberlake set to join Memphis Grizzlies ownership group

Pop star Justin Timberlake, who has Memphis roots, has agreed to become a limited partner in Robert Pera’s bid to buy the Memphis Grizzlies, a source close to Pera confirmed Thursday night.

Pera, a 34-year-old Silicon Valley entrepreneur, agreed in June to buy the Grizzlies from Michael Heisley. His bid continues to undergo vetting by the NBA and is pending approval from the league’s owners.

— Reported by Kyle Veazey of the Memphis Commercial Appeal

Houston Rockets promote Gersson Rosas to Executive VP of Basketball Operations

Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey announced today that the team has elevated Gersson Rosas to the title of Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations. Rosas will also continue his duties as General Manager for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, which is Houston’s single-affiliation NBA Development League partner.

“Gersson is one of the best basketball evaluators and executives in the NBA,” said Morey. “He has been key to the success we have had in the draft and all personnel moves during his tenure. He is one of the fastest rising executives in the industry. We are thrilled with this move.”

Rosas enters his ninth season with the Houston Rockets and his first as Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations. He moves into his current role after working the last three seasons (2009-12) as Vice President of Player Personnel. In 2008-09, Rosas served as Houston’s Director of Player Personnel after working one campaign as the team’s Director of Scouting and three seasons as the team’s Personnel Scout/Video Coordinator.

In his new position, Rosas will assists Morey in all basketball operations of the franchise and will be responsible for the team’s player personnel matters, including the evaluation of draft prospects, free agents and potential trade targets. In addition, he will continue overseeing domestic and international scouting, while also assisting in the coordination of the team’s Player Development program.

In his three seasons as Rio Grande Valley’s GM, the Vipers took home the 2009-10 D-League championship, reached back-to-back D-League Finals, compiled a 91-59 (.607) regular season record and have had nine players earn All-NBA D-League honors. In 2011-12, Rio Grande Valley center Greg Smith was named to the 2011-12 All-NBA D-League First Team and the 2011-12 D-League All-Rookie First Team. Center Jeff Adrien was also named the 2010-11 D-League Impact Player of the Year as voted on by the league’s head coaches. Vipers forward Mike Harris was named the 2009-10 NBA D-League’s Most Valuable Player, while then-Head Coach Chris Finch took home the 2009-10 Dennis Johnson Coach of the Year Award. In addition, Rio Grande Valley broke the NBA D-League single-season record for Call-Ups to the NBA in 2009-10 with 10, including Mike Harris, Garrett Temple and Will Conroy signing with the Rockets.

Indiana Pacers sign Sam Young, Sundiata Gaines and Blake Ahearn

The Indiana Pacers announced Thursday they have signed free agents Sam Young, Sundiata Gaines and Blake Ahearn to contracts. Until reported otherwise, we assume these are training camp signings, and these players must still fight to earn a regular season contract. We will update this page when new info arrives.

Young is a 6-6 small forward/shooting guard who has played three NBA seasons with the Memphis Grizzlies and Philadelphia 76ers. He has career averages of 6.6 points per game and 1.8 rebounds per game. He was a second-round pick (36 th overall) of the Grizzlies in the 2009 NBA Draft.

Gaines is a 6-1 point guard who was undrafted out of Georgia in 2008. He has played with Utah, Minnesota, Toronto and New Jersey with career averages of 5.1 ppg and 2.2 assists per game. He has played 113 games in the NBA. Ahearn was undrafted in 2007 after playing at Missouri State. A 6-2 guard, Ahearn has 19 games NBA experience with Miami, San Antonio and Utah with a career average of 2.5 ppg. He has also played in Europe and the NBA D-League where in 2011-12 he was the league’s leading scorer at 23.8 ppg. He is also the D-League’s all-time leader in points.

Denver Nuggets sign 2nd round pick Quincy Miller

The Denver Nuggets have signed second-round draft pick Quincy Miller to a multiyear contract, executive vice president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri announced today.

Miller, 6-9, 210, was the 38th overall selection in the 2012 NBA Draft after being named the 2011-12 Big 12 Co-Freshman of the Year at Baylor University. He averaged 10.6 points and 4.9 rebounds in 37 games while helping the Bears reach the Elite Eight at the 2012 NCAA Tournament.

Miller, 19, played for Denver at the 2012 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, averaging 6.8 points and 5.2 rebounds in five games.

With Miller’s addition, the Nuggets now have 15 players on their roster.

Utah Jazz promote Michael Sanders to assistant coach

The Utah Jazz announced today that Michael Sanders has been promoted to an assistant coach on Tyrone Corbin’s staff, after having spent the 2011-12 season as assistant coach/player development. In a related move, the Jazz has also agreed in principle with veteran NBA Development League coach, and former Jazz scout, Brad Jones to assume Sanders’ previous position as assistant coach/player development.

“Moving Mike from player development to the bench is a promotion that he has earned. His strong work ethic and skillset, coupled with his experience as a former player and coach in the NBA and D-League, has proven to be valuable to our franchise and I look forward to working with him closer in his enhanced role,” said Utah Jazz Head Coach Tyrone Corbin. “Brad is a well-respected and recognized young coaching talent with a proven track-record of player development. We are very happy to be bringing him back to the Jazz family.”

A veteran of the coaching ranks, Sanders recently completed his first season with the Jazz and has previously served as an assistant coach in the NBA for Detroit, Milwaukee and Charlotte. He originally began his coaching career in 1998 as an assistant coach with the Wisconsin Blast of the International Basketball Association (IBA) before becoming head coach of the IBA’s Black Hills Gold for the 1999-2000 season. In 2000-01 he then became head coach of the United States Basketball League (USBL)’s Washington Congressionals. In 2000-01 Sanders joined the Detroit Pistons an assistant coach.

The following season he joined the D-League’s Asheville Altitude, where he would spend four years as an assistant coach and director of player personnel, helping to lead the franchise to D-League championships in 2004 and 2005. During his time with the Altitude, Sanders also spent three offseasons with the USBL’s Adirondack Wildcats as the team’s head coach (2002-2004). In 2005, Sanders returned to the NBA, joining the Milwaukee Bucks staff as an assistant coach for two seasons. He then served as an assistant coach and advance scout with the Charlotte Bobcats for the 2007-08 campaign.

Prior to his coaching career, Sanders played 11 seasons in the NBA for four teams – San Antonio (1982-83), Phoenix (1983-88), Cleveland (1987-89, ’91-93) and Indiana (1989-92). Originally selected in the fourth round (74th overall) of the 1982 NBA Draft by the Kansas City Kings, Sanders appeared in 648 career games (209 starts) and averaged 8.0 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 19.1 minutes.

Jones returns to the Jazz after spending the previous two seasons as head coach of the San Antonio Spurs-owned Austin Toros of the D-League. Jones led the Toros to a D-League Championship this past season, defeating the L.A. D-Fenders two games to one in the D-League Finals.

Prior to his time with the Toros, Jones previously spent three seasons as the original head coach of the D-League’s Utah Flash (2007-10). As a D-League expansion team, the Flash enjoyed a successful inaugural campaign under Jones finishing the 2007-08 season with a 24-26 mark. A year later the Jones guided the Flash to a 32-18 record and advanced them to the 2009 D-League Finals. The Flash posted a 28-22 record in 2009-10, making a second straight playoff appearance.

During his five-year D-League coaching career, Jones had eight different players under his tutelage called-up up to the NBA a total of 13 times, and also had 12 different NBA players assigned by their respective teams to work with him on a total of 14 D-League assignments.

Prior to joining the Flash, Jones served as a regional scout for the Utah Jazz for six years (2001-2007). Jones also served as the head coach at Lambuth University in Jackson, Tenn., from 1995-2001. During his tenure at the helm of the Eagles he was twice named the Mid-South Conference Coach of the Year and led the school to a pair of conference championships.