February 21, 2013 – Page 2 – NBA Blog

Heat trade Dexter Pittman to Grizzlies for rights to Ricky Sanchez

The Miami Heat announced today that they have traded center Dexter Pittman, a 2013 second round draft choice and cash considerations to the Memphis Grizzlies in exchange for the draft rights to forward Ricky Sanchez.

“I want to thank Dexter for his hard work and professional attitude,” said Heat President Pat Riley. “Unfortunately, in order to gain roster flexibility we had to trade someone. We wish him nothing but the best.”

Currently in his third NBA season, Pittman (6-11, 285) is averaging 12.4 points, 8.8 rebounds and 1.67 blocks on .470 shooting in 24.9 minutes in 15 games (12 starts) this year for the NBA Development League’s Sioux Falls Skyforce. The 24-year-old holds career D-League averages of 13.6 points, 8.4 rebounds and 1.70 blocks on .510 shooting in 26.5 minutes in 37 games (34 starts) for Sioux Falls.

Drafted by Miami in the second round (32nd overall) of the 2010 NBA Draft, the University of Texas product holds NBA career averages of 2.8 points and 2.0 rebounds on .471 shooting in 7.9 minutes in 41 games (six starts) with the Heat. A member of Miami’s 2012 NBA Championship squad, the Rosenberg, Tex. native has totaled six points and seven rebounds in 12 minutes in four appearances for the Heat this season.

Memphis now owns multiple second round draft picks in the 2013 NBA Draft.

Sanchez, a 6’11, 220-lb forward, was originally drafted in the second round (35th overall) in the 2005 NBA Draft by the Portland Trail Blazers. He appeared in 75 NBA Development League games (22 starts) for the Idaho Stampede from 2006-08 and averaged 10.1 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 25.1 minutes while shooting 41.4 percent from the field. The Puerto Rican native currently plays for Libertad de Sunchales (Argentina), appearing in 28 games this season and averaging 12.2 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 31.9 minutes while shooting 42.2 percent from the field.

Pittman, who was originally drafted by the Heat in the second round (32nd overall) of the 2010 NBA Draft, appeared in 41 career games (six starts) with Miami and averaged 2.8 points and 2.0 rebounds while shooting 47.1 percent from the field. He is currently on assignment with the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA Development League.

NBA names Greg Taylor Senior VP of Player Development

The National Basketball Association (NBA) announced today that Greg Taylor, who currently serves as the President & CEO of the Foundation for Newark’s Future, has been named Senior Vice President, Player Development, replacing Mike Bantom who was promoted to Executive Vice President, Referee Operations, prior to the 2012-13 season.

Taylor will manage all of the NBA’s programs that promote the personal, professional and social development of NBA players. He will be responsible for league initiatives including programs to assist rookies in their transition to the NBA; educating team directors on player development and the best way to handle player off-the-court matters; and programs that aid players throughout their NBA careers and beyond. Taylor will report to Kathy Behrens, Executive Vice President, Social Responsibility and Player Programs.

“We are thrilled to have Greg join our team as we continue the critical work of supporting our players and their on-and-off court growth,” said Behrens. “Greg’s experience in creating innovative education and leadership development programs makes him an ideal fit to lead our efforts to enhance the resources available to our players and their families.”

As President & CEO of the Foundation for Newark’s Future, Taylor has worked to forge private and public sector partnerships to support education reform policies in Newark, N.J., and helped the Foundation raise $100 million to match a donation made by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. He previously served as Vice President for Programs of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, where he led a series of ground-breaking initiatives that empowered community leaders and organizations through early childhood education, racial equity, and family economic security programs. Taylor has also been a longtime youth basketball coach and is a current board member of both Athletes for Hope and the Newark Charter School Fund.

“This is a great opportunity for me knowing that supporting players throughout their journey is a high priority for the NBA,” said Taylor. “I look forward to working closely with the league and teams to enhance our programming and resources and doing all we can do to support the varied off-court needs of NBA players.”

A native of New York City, Taylor received his BA from Hunter College, City University of New York, and his JD from the Bloomington School of Law at Indiana University.

P.J. Carlesimo says Deron Williams is playing hurt all season

Brooklyn Nets interim coach P.J. Carlesimo admitted that Deron Williams is going to be playing at less than full strength for the rest of the season.

“He’s not gonna be 100 percent,” Carlesimo said during a Thursday interview on ESPN New York 98.7 FM “The Mike Lupica Show.” “The reality is he’s not gonna be 100 percent this year, and I think that’s the thing that a lot of people are having difficult grasping.

“He’s playing dinged up. His ankles are not good at all. And that wrist has been a problem for him all year.”

Williams has been hampered by a slew of injuries in 2012-13 but has missed just three games. Prior to the season, he had a cortisone shot because of bone spurs in his left ankle and admitted that he would need offseason surgery to clean it out.

— Reported by Mike Mazzeo of ESPN New York

Josh Smith had trouble sleeping on eve of trade deadline

Smith, the subject of so much trade speculation as he will become an unrestricted free agent following the season, has been peppered with questions about his future of late. He is eager for it all to be over. The forward admitted to trouble sleeping Wednesday night on the eve of the deadline.

“Compounded with the trade rumors and the loss (to the Heat Wednesday),” Smith said. “It was a very disappointing loss. I went to sleep kind of late last night. It was definitely hard to sleep.”

Still, Smith woke up, called his agent, and with no deal near, headed to Philips Arena for Thursday’s practice. Smith said he had no conversations with team management about his future.

“I’m pretty sure it’s lingering through everybody’s head,” Smith said of the distracting nature of the deadline.

— Reported by Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal Constitution (Blog)

Magic guard Jameer Nelson has knee strain

Jameer Nelson has been diagnosed as having a strained patellar tendon in his left knee, Orlando Magic officials announced today.

The team would not specify the severity of the strain, whether the tendon was stretched or torn. But officials said Nelson’s injury will be evaluated further when he accompanies the team back to Central Florida following its road game Friday night against the Memphis Grizzlies.

Nelson hurt his knee late in the Magic’s 111-96 loss Wednesday night to the Dallas Mavericks at American Airlines Center.

Nelson suffered the injury as he drove against Darren Collison and attempted to stop quickly. Nelson crumpled to the floor, and Collison forced a jump ball.

— Reported by Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel (Blog)

Derrick Rose takes next step in rehab

Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose has “made the next step” in his rehab after participating in five-on-five drills in practice, according to Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau, but the organization still isn’t sure when the former MVP will return.

“The big thing is you have to recognize the intensity of practice is different than the intensity of a game,” Thibodeau said after Thursday’s shootaround as the Bulls prepared to face the Miami Heat. “So he’s made the next step, he’s got to do this for a while, there’s no timetable, he’s making good progress, he’s right where he should be, we just want him to continue to concentrate on the rehab and when he’s ready to go he’ll go.”

Rose spent some time after shootaround taking jumpers with his teammates. He said last week he “wouldn’t mind” missing the rest of the season if his knee still didn’t feel right.

Bulls center Nazr Mohammed said Rose doesn’t appear to be working like a player who might sit the season.

— Reported by Nick Friedell of ESPN Chicago

Eric Gordon trade rumors may continue this summer

Even if the New Orleans Hornets are unable to pull off a trade involving guard Eric Gordon before Thursday’s 2 p.m. deadline, it has been become clear the franchise likely will remain open to trading him after this season ends, according to sources.

The Hornets (19-36) have had trade discussions with the Golden State Warriors in an attempt to acquire shooting guard Kyle Thompson. But the deal appears unlikely because the Warriors are unwilling to part ways with Thompson, whom they feel is an emerging star and they have concerns about Gordon’s health, sources indicate.

The Hornets are looking for a deal that could possibly improve their overall roster for the lon -term, which means they are looking for young talent that will enhance their current rebuilding plans around No. 1 draft pick Anthony Davis.

— Reported by John Reid of the New Orleans Times Picayune

Rockets trade Marcus Morris to Suns, who waive Luke Zeller

The Phoenix Suns today acquired second-year forward Marcus Morris from the Houston Rockets in exchange for Phoenix’s 2013 second-round draft pick, the club has announced. In a related move, Phoenix has waived forward Luke Zeller.

“We have been intrigued for quite some time about the potential synergy from having both of the Morris twins on our team. So we are excited to have the opportunity to welcome Marcus to the Suns,” said Suns President of Basketball Operations Lon Babby.

Marcus is the identical twin brother of Suns forward Markieff Morris, who is the older of the two. Born just seven minutes apart, the pair was drafted approximately five minutes apart, selected with consecutive picks in the lottery of the 2011 NBA Draft by the Suns (Markieff, 13th) and Rockets (Marcus, 14th) after decorated three-year careers at the University of Kansas. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the Morris twins become just the second pair of twins in NBA history to become teammates, joining Dick and Tom Van Arsdale, who were teammates with the Phoenix Suns in 1976-77. They become the 13th pair of brothers to play together and join the Indiana Pacers’ Ben and Tyler Hansbrough as active members of that group.

A 6-9, 235-pound forward, Marcus has appeared in 71 games (17 starts) as a professional, all with the Rockets, and owns career averages of 7.1 points and 3.3 rebounds in 18.0 minutes. This season, he has seen a marked jump in production, averaging career highs of 8.6 points, 4.1 rebounds and 21.4 minutes in 54 appearances (17 starts). Morris has scored in double figures 24 times already this season, including two 20-point efforts, and a career-high 24 points on Dec. 29 against Oklahoma City. The former Jayhawk has made 38.1 percent of his three-point attempts this season, and has connected on 74 three-pointers in his sophomore campaign after making two as a rookie.

A three-year starter at the University of Kansas, Morris averaged 12.6 points and 6.2 rebounds as a collegian, including a team-best 17.2 points and 7.6 rebounds in his standout junior season in 2010-11. Morris was named Big 12 Player of the Year, Big 12 Championship Most Outstanding Player, a Wooden Award Finalist and Oscar Robertson Trophy finalist in 2010-11 before declaring for the NBA Draft.

Dwight Howard looks more like himself in Lakers win over Boston

The recent All-Star break afforded him a rare amount of rest for his sore body stemmed from 10-month-old back surgery and an aggravated labrum in his right shoulder. That four-day stretch also coincided with Howard working with the Lakers’ training staff on various conditioning drills to improve his explosiveness and timing.

“It’s been tough because of the injuries,” Howard said. “But we’re just going to try to bust it out. I’m going to try to get into the best shape I can. The better shape I’m in, the more active I can be.”

But it’s not just about effort. It’s about execution.

The Lakers spent plenty of time during Tuesday’s practice ironing out how Nash and Howard would play the pick-and-roll. Nash often lamented the lack of time together. Howard often griped about how they couldn’t read the opposing team’s defenses. The Lakers’ coaches wished Howard would show a stronger effort and will to overcome such variables.

— Reported by Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Times (Blog)

Warriors snap 6-game losing streak, beat Suns

With his team stuck in a season-high, six-game losing streak, Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson called facing the Phoenix Suns ”the biggest game of the season for us” just before tipoff against the Western Conference’s worst team.

Apparently his players got the message.

Klay Thompson had 28 points and eight rebounds, David Lee finished with 19 points and 11 boards and the Warriors held on to beat the Suns 108-98 on Wednesday night to end their longest slide of the season.

”This is a game we should have won and we did win,” Jackson said. ”And I like the fashion in which we did it.”

Jarrett Jack added 21 points off the bench and Stephen Curry scored 20, with both making some key shots late to secure Golden State’s first victory in almost three weeks. The Warriors hadn’t won since routing Phoenix 113-93 on Feb. 2, and some offered an even simpler solution to the problem…

Goran Dragic had 20 points and 10 assists and Jermaine O’Neal added 17 points and 12 rebounds for the Suns, who have lost five straight to Golden State, including all three meetings this season. Phoenix went down by 10 points in the first quarter and played from behind the rest of the way…

In another moment worth savoring for the Warriors, Andrew Bogut took his latest step forward. The 7-foot center had 11 rebounds, seven points and three blocks in a season-high 29 minutes while playing in back-to-back games for the first time since his comeback from left ankle surgery…

Earlier Wednesday, the Suns sent a future second-round draft pick to Houston in exchange for F Marcus Morris, who will join his twin older brother, Markieff, down in the desert, according to a person familiar with the decision who spoke on condition of anonymity because the trade hadn’t been finalized.

— Reported by Antonio Gonzalez of the Associated Press