Month: October 2013

Sixers sign Daniel Orton, waive Tim Ohlbrecht

daniel orton

The Philadelphia 76ers today announced they have signed free agent center Daniel Orton. The Sixers preseason roster stands at 20 players.

Orton (6-10, 255) was originally an early entry candidate for the 2010 NBA Draft following his freshman season at Kentucky and was selected with the 29th overall pick by Orlando. The 23-year-old spent last season with Oklahoma City and also played for the Thunder’s NBA Development League affiliate, the Tulsa 66ers, averaging 12 and a half points, eight rebounds, two assists, a steal and over two blocks per game while shooting 53% from the floor.

In a related move, the Sixers have waived center Tim Ohlbrecht.

The 76ers are very likely going to struggle in dramatic fashion this season. They have a very young, inexperienced roster mostly filled with bench players. They’ll need luck in discovering some hidden gems.

Mom of Kevin Durant takes stand against over-sexualized culture

The mother of an Oklahoma City NBA star said today’s society is so over-sexualized that very young children are contemplating sexual matters.

“They should be dreaming about being an artist or a dancer. They should be dreaming of being the president or a doctor. Instead they’re thinking of sexual things. It really hurts my heart,” said Wanda Pratt, mother of Oklahoma City Thunder star forward Kevin Durant.

Pratt spoke Tuesday to about 150 people who attended the “Shine the Light” event Tuesday at Wheeler Park, 1120 S Western. The event was part of “She’s Somebody’s Daughter,” an anti-pornography campaign launched Oct. 1 in Oklahoma City.

Reported by Carla Hinton of the Oklahoman

Warriors, Andrew Bogut discuss contract extension

Warriors, Andrew Bogut discuss contract extension

The Warriors and Andrew Bogut have opened negotiations on a contract extension designed to keep him off the free-agent market in July, he told NBA.com, with Bogut willing to make major concessions to stay but also looking for payback from management for pursuing Dwight Howard last offseason.

Bogut said team officials started conversations with agent David Bauman last week, before the Warriors left Oakland for exhibition games in Beijing and Shanghai against the Lakers. Bogut expects talks to heat up once Golden State returns to the United States following the Friday night contest (7:30 a.m. ET, NBA TV). The issue will come to some resolution by early in the regular season: either he will have a new deal soon or he will become a free agent because neither side wants the discussions dragging long into 2013-14.

Bogut said the initial numbers from the Warriors, “weren’t insulting. But they weren’t what I’m looking for. Nothing concrete has been actually formally written up. We’ve just been going back and forth, but nothing too crazy.”

Not insulting is encouraging — the sides are starting in the same vicinity.

Reported by Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com

J.R. Smith wants to be a Knicks starter

J.R. Smith wants to start for Knicks

J.R. Smith took an important step toward returning to the Knicks, taking part in running drills Tuesday for the first time since undergoing left knee surgery in July.

When Smith does make it all the way back from the injury — and the five-game suspension he still must serve, once deemed healthy, for violating the NBA’s drug policy — the league’s reigning Sixth Man Award winner prefers it to be as the Knicks’ starting shooting guard.

“I’ve always wanted to start. Everybody knows that. Everybody knows how I feel about that,” Smith said after practice in Greenburgh. “I won the Sixth Man last year, so I felt as though there’s nothing left to prove at the sixth-man spot.

“But at the same time, if that’s what my team needs me to do, that’s what I’ll do. If Coach (Mike Woodson) wants me to be a sixth man, I’ll be a sixth man. If he wants me to start, I’ll start. That’s up to him.”

Reported by Peter Botte of the New York Daily News

Jon Leuer hoping to have impact on Grizzlies

Jon Leuer hoping to have impact on Grizzlies

The former University of Wisconsin star is learning from all-star power forward Zach Randolph and reigning NBA defensive player of the year Marc Gasol.

And the Bucks’ second-round pick in 2011 believes he can make an impact with a Memphis team expected to be in the hunt again after reaching the Western Conference finals last season.

“I’m really happy with where I’m at,” Leuer said while seated at his locker before the Grizzlies met the Bucks in a preseason game Tuesday night. “I’m just trying to work hard and get better every day and work my way into the rotation.

“There are a lot of good guys to learn from, especially Zach and Marc. I’m trying to learn from them as much as I can, two all-star bigs.”

Reported by Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Dwight Howard discusses leaving the Lakers

Dwight Howard discusses leaving the Lakers

“Everybody’s saying I was a ‘coward’ for leaving [the Lakers], and I knew I was going to get that,” [Dwight] Howard said Tuesday. “But I think with the situation I had to do what was best for Dwight.

“I know when I wanted to leave Orlando, and I decided to stay, I wasn’t happy on the inside. I wanted to please everybody else and ended up hurting a lot of people by doing it the way I did. So, this time it’s like I had a second chance.

“I said, ‘You know what? People are going to hate me for whatever reason, so I can’t allow that to stop me from making my decision.’ I thought that my decision took a lot of guts because everybody’s saying, ‘How could you leave the Lakers and six billion fans?’ But I don’t care about being an outcast or about being somebody that may look bad. All I’ve got to do is win now, and I’m in the right situation.”

Reported by Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel

Prosecutors drop DUI charge on wife of Alonzo Mourning

Miami-Dade prosecutors on Tuesday dropped a drunken-driving charge against Tracy Wilson-Mourning, the wife of former Miami Heat star Alonzo Mourning.

Police arrested Wilson-Mourning on a DUI charge in February after she was pulled over for speeding near Old Cutler Road and San Servano Avenue.

According to the arrest report, an officer said he saw Wilson-Mourning driving her 2010 Porsche Panamera at 48 mph in a 20 mph zone and making an improper right turn at about 3:40 a.m. Police also said Wilson-Mourning ran a flashing red light.

Reported by David Ovalle of the Miami Herald

Jarrett Jack out around 10 days for Cavs

Jarrett Jack out around 10 days for Cavs

Jarrett Jack could play through the pain if the Cavaliers were in the playoffs, coach Mike Brown said Tuesday, but Carrick Felix can take all the time he needs to heal – and he should familiarize himself with Canton while he’s down here because he’s probably coming back.

Jack is expected to miss about 10 days to let the inflammation in his left knee subside, but Brown doesn’t seem concerned about it. Jack doesn’t have much of an injury history with the knee, aside from missing six games during the 2011-12 season when he bruised it.

“It’s the preseason, take five days, six days, whatever it is. It doesn’t necessarily matter to me because it’s not anything pressing for the preseason,” Brown said. “Gives other guys an opportunity to play.”

Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal (Blog)