Month: September 2012

Philadelphia 76ers promote Tony DiLeo to general manager

The Philadelphia 76ers announced today that Senior Vice President of Basketball Operations Tony DiLeo has been promoted to General Manager.

“We are proud to announce that, effective immediately, we have promoted Tony DiLeo to the role of 76ers General Manager and at this time he will work alongside Rod Thorn, who continues his duties as President of Basketball Operations,” said Sixers Owner Josh Harris. “We are very confident that Tony has the experience and knowledge to flourish in his new role, and we will continue to provide him with the necessary tools and resources – including enhancing our capabilities in analytics – to strengthen our basketball operations department.”

“I am very excited about being named General Manager of this organization and look forward to building upon our recent success,” DiLeo said. “I would like to thank Josh Harris and the ownership group for providing me with this opportunity and I will continue to work tirelessly to ensure we put a team that our fans will be proud to support, both this season and in the future.”

DiLeo, who is entering his 23rd season with the 76ers, becomes the team’s 12th General Manager in franchise history. He was promoted to his current position after serving as the team’s senior vice president of basketball operations since September of 2003, following a four-year run as the team’s director of player personnel from 1999 to 2003.

During the 2008-09 season, DiLeo stepped in as head coach following the Sixers 9-14 start and guided the team to a 32-27 mark the rest of the way. Of the eight teams which changed coaches during that season, the Sixers were the only one to make the playoffs.

During DiLeo’s time as senior vice president of basketball operations, he was actively involved in player procurement, including the recent four-team trade that brought Andrew Bynum to Philadelphia. Additionally, his evaluation of amateur and professional talent and supervision of the team’s draft recently produced the likes of Andre Iguodala, Lou Williams, Thaddeus Young, Jrue Holiday, Evan Turner and Lavoy Allen. In addition, DiLeo was instrumental in drafting Allen Iverson and surrounding the future hall-of-famer with the talented roster which produced 56 wins in 2000-01 and captured the Eastern Conference Championship.

Prior to joining the Sixers in 1990-91, DiLeo built his extensive international experience through 10 years of playing and coaching in West Germany. He coached both men’s and women’s teams during that span, winning nine nationals titles in the country’s top division. DiLeo also served as the West German Federation National Coach from 1981 though 1985 and was named the country’s coach of the year in 1987.

In 1984, DiLeo wrote and published the European Basketball Handbook, a guide designed to help acclimate Americans playing overseas. He also has written a manual on rule differences among international basketball, the NBA and the NCAA.

Portland Trail Blazers sign Adam Morrison, Demonte Harper and Dallas Lauderdale

Portland Trail Blazers sign Adam Morrison

The Portland Trail Blazers have signed Adam Morrison, Demonte Harper and Dallas Lauderdale, it was announced today by General Manager Neil Olshey.

Morrison (Forward, 6-8, 205) was selected with the third overall pick in the 2006 NBA Draft by the Charlotte Bobcats out of Gonzaga, earning NBA All-Rookie Second Team honors in 2006-07. He has career averages of 7.5 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 161 games over four seasons with Charlotte and the L.A. Lakers. He played in Serbia and Turkey before joining the Brooklyn Nets and L.A. Clippers summer league squads in July. Morrison averaged 20.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.0 assist and 30.0 minutes in five games with the Clippers.

Harper (Guard, 6-4, 195) was a four-year standout at Morehead State, where he finished his collegiate career in 2010-11 by earning All-Ohio Valley Conference First Team and conference tournament MVP honors his senior year. He spent last season playing in Croatia before playing for the Denver Nuggets NBA Summer League squad in July.

Lauderdale (Forward, 6-8, 260) also made a 2012 NBA Summer League roster, appearing for the Golden State Warriors. He played collegiately at Ohio State from 2007-11, finishing his four-year career with the Buckeyes averaging 4.2 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.5 blocked shots per game. Lauderdale spent the 2011-12 season playing in Poland.

With today’s signings, the Trail Blazers training camp roster stands at 18 players.

Raptors sign Jerel McNeal and Chris Wright

The Toronto Raptors announced Friday they have signed guard Jerel McNeal and forward Chris Wright.

McNeal, 6-foot-3, 205 pounds, played last season in Italy with Fabi Shoes Montegranaro. He averaged 10.7 points, 2.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.6 steals in 32 outings.

McNeal signed a 10-day contract with New Orleans in March 2011 but did not see any game action. He appeared in 47 NBA D-League contests with Rio Grande Valley, averaging 19.4 points, 4.4 assists and 34.4 minutes.

A 2009 product of Marquette University, McNeal finished his collegiate career as the school’s all-time leader in points (1,985), steals (287) and games played (130). He was named to the All-Big East First Team as a senior averaging 19.8 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 2.0 steals in 35 games.

Wright, 6-foot-9, 230 pounds, participated with the 2011 Raptors’ NBA Summer League entry. He started in all four of his appearances averaging 9.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.3 steals.

Wright split last season between Golden State and the NBA D-League. He was signed by the Warriors as a free agent December 10. He appeared in 24 games with Golden State where he averaged 2.9 points and 1.9 rebounds. He posted season highs of 25 points, 11 made field goals, eight rebounds and 46 minutes in his lone start in the season finale April 26 versus San Antonio.

Wright also appeared in 13 NBA D-League games with Maine and Dakota where he averaged 17.8 points, 8.8 rebounds and 1.38 blocks.

Wright averaged 13.0 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 123 career outings at Dayton. He earned third-team All-Atlantic 10 honours as a senior, first-team as a junior and second-team as a sophomore.

Stephen Curry cleared for all basketball-related activities

Stephen Curry cleared for full basketball-related activities

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry has received full medical clearance to resume all basketball-related activities, including five-on-five scrimmages, following an examination on his surgically repaired right ankle by Dr. Richard Ferkel earlier today in Van Nuys, California, the team announced.

Curry, who missed 40 games overall last season due to a right ankle injury, originally underwent surgery on the ankle on April 25, 2012.  The exploratory procedure, performed by Dr. Ferkel, revealed a stable ankle with no structural damage and consisted of cleaning out loose debris and scar tissue.

Since the surgery, Curry has maintained a consistent rehabilitation program, which led him to begin participating in limited basketball-related activities in July.  Since then, under the guidance of Dr. Ferkel and the Warriors athletic training staff, Curry has consistently ramped up his level of on-court activity until receiving full clearance today.

Clippers exercise option on guard Eric Bledsoe

Clippers exercise option on guard Eric Bledsoe

The Los Angeles Clippers today exercised the club’s fourth-year contract option on guard Eric Bledsoe.

Bledsoe, who is entering his third NBA season, has averaged 5.6 points, 2.9 assists, 2.4 rebounds and 19.0 minutes over his career. In 40 regular season games played last year, Bledsoe tallied 3.3 points in 11.6 minutes per game.

The 6’1” guard out of Kentucky made a name for himself during the Clippers 2012 Playoff run, averaging 7.9 points overall while shooting 59 percent from the floor and 43 percent from behind the three-point line. He came into his own in the Clippers second round playoff series against the San Antonio Spurs, tallying 11.5 points while shooting 70 percent from the field and 50 percent from three-point range.

Boston Celtics waive Keyon Dooling, who will retire

Boston Celtics waive Keyon Dooling

The Boston Celtics announced today that they have waived guard Keyon Dooling.

“Keyon has decided that he has given the NBA twelve good years and that it’s time to pursue other interests and spend more time with his family,” said Dooling’s representative Kenge Stevenson. “He will never forget his time in Boston with the Celtics.”

“We’ll miss Keyon’s spirit and energy, both on and off the court,” said Celtics President of Basketball Operations Danny Ainge. “The whole Celtics family wishes him well as he enters the next phase of his life.”

Dooling, a 6’3” guard, averaged 4.0 points, 1.1 assists and 0.3 steals in 46 regular season games with the Celtics last season. During the playoffs Dooling shot 39.3% from beyond the three-point line which was tops on the team. Dooling netted a season-high 18 points at Miami on December 27 including four three-pointers.

Hornets guard Eric Gordon relishing leadership role

Hornets guard Eric Gordon relishing leadership role

“I’m not nervous at all,” Gordon said. “I’m here to help these fans, help this organization win games … I’m happy here, and I’m just looking forward to the season.”

He said the No. 1 point he’s emphasizing is being a leader on the team. He’s back after playing only nine games last season because of a bruised right knee that required surgery.

“It was very frustrating during that process, but when I got the chance to play the nine games, I felt like I had something to prove on my part,” Gordon said. “We won games, and individually it helped me out, so as long we we’re winning, everything else doesn’t matter.

— Reported by Rachel Whittaker of the New Orleans Times-Picayune