NBA Blog – NBA Basketball Blog
NBA Blog: The NBA basketball news blog section of Inside Hoops
|
Lakers forward Jordan Hill was examined today in Nashville by Dr. Thomas Byrd, and has scheduled surgery for tomorrow morning on his left hip.
Hill, who suffered the injury on January 6th in a game against the Denver Nuggets, has appeared in 29 games this season, averaging 6.7 points and 5.7 rebounds in 15.8 minutes.
An update, including an estimate for Hill’s recovery time, will be issued following the surgery.
The Brooklyn Nets have assigned forward Tornike Shengelia and guard Tyshawn Taylor to the Springfield Armor of the NBA Development League, it was announced today by General Manager Billy King.
This will be the second time this season that both Shengelia and Taylor have been assigned to the Armor. The first came on December 21 where in one game with the Armor, Taylor scored a game-high 32 points and Shengelia recorded a triple-double with 22 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds against the Erie Bayhawks.
Shengelia, acquired from the Philadelphia 76ers after being drafted 54th overall in the 2012 NBA Draft, has appeared in 13 games for the Nets this season, averaging 1.4 points, 0.8 steals and 0.7 rebounds per game.
Taylor, a rookie out of Kansas, has made 21 appearances for the Nets on the year, averaging 1.6 points, 0.2 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game.
Both players will be in uniform when the Armor take on the Main Red Claws on Thursday January 24 at the MassMutual Center in Springfield.
The Memphis Grizzlies acquired forward Jon Leuer (LOO-er) and a trade exception from the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for forward/center Marreese Speights, guards Wayne Ellington and Josh Selby and a protected future first round draft pick, Grizzlies General Manager and Vice President of Basketball Operations Chris Wallace announced today.
“Marreese will strengthen our front court, while Wayne and Josh will add depth to our back court. At the same time, we are adding a valuable asset with another future first round pick, while also maintaining our future flexibility,” said Cavaliers General Manager Chris Grant. “We wish Jon and Jeremy the best as they move on with their careers and thank them for their time with us here in Cleveland.”
The Cavs will receive Memphis’s first round draft pick in the first available year (which is two years after Memphis has satisfied its current pick obligation to Minnesota). Starting in 2015 the pick could be conveyed to the Cavaliers. The pick is protected one-five and 15-30 in 2015 and 2016 (meaning the Cavaliers would acquire a 6-14 pick) and the pick is protected one-five in 2017 and 2018. If the pick has not been conveyed by 2018, it becomes unprotected in 2019.
Currently in his second professional season, Leuer (6-10, 228) recorded 19.5 points, 12.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists on .512 shooting (.467 3FG) in 36.5 minutes in eight games (seven starts) for Cleveland’s exclusively-owned NBA Development League team, the Canton Charge. The 23-year-old also has made nine appearances for the Cavaliers this season, averaging 2.4 points in 10.1 minutes.
Leuer holds NBA career averages of 4.4 points and 2.4 rebounds on .489 shooting in 11.7 minutes in 55 games (12 starts) with the Cavaliers and Milwaukee Bucks. The Long Lake, Minn. native was drafted by Milwaukee in the second round (40th overall) of the 2011 NBA Draft after a four-year career at the University of Wisconsin.
Speights (6-10, 255) averaged 6.6 points and 4.7 rebounds on .429 shooting in 14.5 minutes in 40 games (two starts) in his second season in Memphis. Drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round (16th overall) of the 2008 NBA Draft, the 25-year-old owns career averages of 7.4 points, 4.3 rebounds and 0.5 assists on .474 shooting in 16.2 minutes in 305 games (60 starts) over five seasons with the Grizzlies and 76ers.
Ellington (6-4, 200) posted 5.5 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.1 assists on .407 shooting in 16.9 minutes in 40 games (four starts) in his first season with the Grizzlies. Drafted by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round (28th overall) of the 2009 NBA Draft, the 25-year-old holds career averages of 6.3 points, 1.5 rebounds and 1.8 assists on .411 shooting in 18.4 minutes in 229 games (17 starts) over four seasons with the Grizzlies and Timberwolves.
Selby (6-2, 183) made 10 appearances with the Grizzlies this season, averaging 2.0 points in 5.9 minutes. Drafted by Memphis in the second round (49th overall) of the 2011 NBA Draft, the 21-year-old owns career averages of 2.2 points and 0.9 assists on .330 shooting in 7.8 minutes in 38 games over two seasons with the Grizzlies.
|
At least one person is excited about his future with the Lakers.
Metta World Peace could become a free agent in July by declining a player option for $7.7 million next season. He doesn’t plan on it.
“I want to stay here the rest of my career,” he said, and “get past this adversity. I want to finish as a Laker.”
The adversity would be the team’s 17-24 record after a 95-83 loss Monday against Chicago.
It makes sense that World Peace, 33, wants to stay. He’s almost surely not going to get more than that as a free agent next season.
But whether he finishes his career with the Lakers might not be up to him.
— Reported by Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times
Suns Ring of Honor member Dan Majerle will not resume his role as assistant coach for the second half of the season.
Majerle was in his fifth season as a Suns assistant coach but had stopped working with the team Sunday when Lindsey Hunter was selected as the interim head coach in place of Alvin Gentry. Hunter was selected Sunday over lead assistant coach Elston Turner, assistant coach Igor Kokoskov and Majerle, who had been the suggestion of many Suns players to General Manager Lance Blanks during interviews Friday and Saturday.
When Blanks called Majerle to inform him of the decision Sunday morning before practice, Majerle left US Airways Center and did not participate in Sunday’s and Monday’s practices. Majerle had been willing to return to the staff if Turner was selected.
Majerle will receive his full salary for the season.
— Reported by Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic
|
Andrew Bynum continues to report progress with his injured knees, but a significant hurdle awaits.
“I still haven’t done lateral movement, and that will be the biggest test,” the 76ers center said before Monday’s game against the San Antonio Spurs at the Wells Fargo Center. “Cutting is the last thing to do, and I think I am building up to that slowly but surely.”
Bynum said he still hopes to make his first appearance this season after the all-star break. He said the most positive development is that he is not feeling pain in his knees.
Bynum, whose only running has come on a treadmill, has been working on shooting and post moves.
— Reported by Marc Narducci of the Philadelphia Inquirer
Speculation that the proposed new owners of the Kings franchise will seek to pry R.C. Buford away from the Spurs when, and if, the purchase is approved and the team moves to Seattle has been met with bemusement within the Spurs’ organization.
A source within the organization said that the Spurs’ general manager “is not going anywhere.
“He loves living in San Antonio and loves what we have built here,” the source said. “You could probably find about 25 of the other 29 franchises that would like to have R.C., so the speculation is understandable, but he’s staying with the Spurs.”
A group led by Seattle hedge fund manager Christopher Hansen and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer reached an agreement for the transfer of controlling interest in the Kings from the Maloof family.
— Reported by Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News
The Oklahoma City Thunder has assigned guard Jeremy Lamb and center Daniel Orton to the Tulsa 66ers of the NBA Development League, it was announced today by Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti.
Lamb has appeared in 16 games this season with the Thunder averaging 1.7 points in 4.0 minutes per game.
Orton has seen action in one game for the Thunder, scoring two points in two minutes versus Cleveland on Nov. 11th.
Both players are expected to be in uniform tomorrow when the 66ers take on the Energy at the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, IA.
Demetris Nichols of the Sioux Falls Skyforce was today named NBA Development League Performer of the Week for games played Jan. 14-20.
A 6-6, 211-pound forward out of Syracuse, Nichols led the Skyforce to a 3-0 week, including back-to-back victories over the Texas Legends on Jan. 18 and 19. He averaged 25.7 points while shooting 74 percent from the floor to go with 6.3 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 37.7 minutes. He scored a season-high 26 points in a 99-83 win over the Santa Cruz Warriors on Jan. 15, matching that total in a 102-93 victory over the Legends on Jan. 19.
Other top performers considered include Austin’s Tyler Wilkerson, Bakersfield’s Renaldo Major, Canton’s Jorge Gutierrez, Erie’s D.J. Kennedy, Fort Wayne’s Justin Holiday, Iowa’s Morris Almond, Los Angeles’ Elijah Millsap, Maine’s Fab Melo on assignment from the Boston Celtics, Reno’s Antoine Wright, Rio Grande Valley’s Terrence Jones on assignment from the Houston Rockets, Santa Cruz’s Cameron Jones, Springfield’s James Mays, Texas’ Darius Rice and Tulsa’s Dominique Sutton.
The Cleveland Cavaliers have assigned forward Kevin Jones to the Canton Charge, the Cavaliers exclusively owned and operated NBA Development League team, Cavaliers General Manager Chris Grant announced today.
Jones has played in 15 games for the Cavs this season and is averaging 1.9 points and 1.5 re bounds in 9.0 minutes per game. He has appeared in five games for the Charge this season, averaging 23.6 points, 12.6 rebounds and 1.4 steals in 41.0 minutes. He has four double-doubles on the season for the Charge.