January 2014 – Page 14 – NBA Blog

Center Dexter Pittman now on Austin Toros in D-League

The Austin Toros today announced that they have acquired center Dexter Pittman from the Springfield Armor in exchange for the Toros third round pick in the 2014 NBA D-League Draft. Kyle Hunt was waived as a result.

Pittman was selected by the Miami Heat in the second round (32nd overall) of the 2010 NBA Draft. He played three seasons with the Heat before being traded to the Memphis Grizzlies. In 48 NBA games, Pittman averaged 2.4 points and 1.8 rebounds in 7.2 minutes of play. While on the Heat roster, Pittman was assigned to the D-League Sioux Falls Skyforce (10-11, 12-13) where he averaged 13.6 points and 8.4 rebounds in 37 games played (34 starts). He participated in the 2013 NBA Summer League with the San Antonio Spurs followed by a training camp invite from the Chicago Bulls.

The 6-11, 285 pound center played four seasons at the University of Texas. He appeared in 134 games (59 starts) averaging 6.6 points and 4.0 rebounds in 12.2 minutes.

Knicks race past lackluster Mavericks

Here’s the Fort Worth Star-Telegram on the Mavericks not playing well at home Sunday and dropping a game they probably expected to win:

Before anyone and started pointing fingers, coach Rick Carlisle stepped forward and pointed a finger at himself for the Dallas Mavericks’ lackluster performance Sunday night against the New York Knicks.

In another ho-hum outing that’s becoming more mysterious by the game, the Mavs allowed the Knicks to bang them around on the backboards and get out of American Airlines Center with a 92-80 victory before a sellout crowd of 19,892.

It was the Mavs’ fourth straight home loss and dropped them to 19-15 overall and 0-2 on this three-game homestand that concludes Tuesday against the Los Angeles Lakers.

And if the Mavs don’t put up a better fight against the Lakers than they did against the Knicks, they’re facing the prospect of being swept on the homestand.

“I didn’t have them ready,” Carlisle said after the loss to the Knicks. “I will take the blame for that.

“It’s pretty clear. It starts at the top.”

Chris Paul health update: CP3 is out up to six weeks

The Los Angeles Clippers announced that point guard Chris Paul underwent an MRI today and was reevaluated by team doctors.

Paul has been diagnosed with a Grade 3 AC joint separation and will be out up to six weeks. No surgery is required for Paul, who suffered the injury in the third quarter of the Clippers win over Dallas on Jan. 3.

The six-time NBA All-Star has appeared in 34 games this season, averaging 19.6 points, a league-high 11.2 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 2.4 steals per game.

Memphis Grizzlies waive guard Seth Curry

The Memphis Grizzlies waived guard Seth Curry, the team announced today.

Curry (6-1, 180) was signed by Memphis on Dec. 24 after averaging 21.3 points, 3.5 rebounds, 7.8 assists and 1.58 steals on .439 shooting in 37.3 minutes in 12 games (11 starts) for the Santa Cruz Warriors of the NBA Development League.

The 23-year-old made one appearance for the Grizzlies, logging four minutes in his NBA debut on Jan. 5 at Detroit.

Timberwolves assign Shabazz Muhammad to D-League

The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced the club has assigned rookie guard/forward Shabazz Muhammad to the Iowa Energy of the NBA Development League. Muhammad has appeared in 11 games with the Wolves this season, averaging 1.1 points and 0.7 rebounds per game.

Muhammad, originally selected with the 14th overall pick, was acquired by the Wolves in a draft-day trade with the Utah Jazz. He averaged 17.9 points and 5.2 rebounds per game last season at UCLA, leading the Bruins to the Pac-12 regular season championship.

Iowa, the D-League affiliate for Minnesota as well as Chicago, Denver, New Orleans and Washington, is 10-5 this season, third place in the Central Division. Led by Othyus Jeffers’ 23.5 points and 8.7 rebounds per game, the Energy has a pair of games in the NBA D-League Showcase in Reno, Nev. on Tuesday, Jan. 7 and Thursday, Jan. 9 before traveling to Fort Wayne, Ind. on Saturday, Jan. 11.

Sixers assign guard Elliot Williams to D-League

The Philadelphia 76ers today announced that they have assigned guard Elliot Williams to the Delaware 87ers of the NBA Development League.

Williams signed as a free agent with the Sixers on Nov. 20 and has appeared in 18 games with one start.

Through Saturday’s games, the Sixers have a 12-21 record, good for third place in the struggling Atlantic division. They are 11th in the NBA in points per game (103.3 ppg), but giving up more points per game than any team in the league (110.6 ppg).

Clippers waive guard Maalik Wayns

The Los Angeles Clippers announced today that they have waived guard Maalik Wayns.

Wayns, 22, did not appear in a game for the Clippers in 2013-14 after missing the first 33 games of the season due to a torn left meniscus.

The former Villanova stand-out appeared in six games with the Clippers last season and averaged 3.3 points and 1.2 assists. Overall, Wayns has played in 27 career NBA games with the Clippers and Philadelphia 76ers.

Orlando Magic waive Solomon Jones

The Orlando Magic have waived forward-center Solomon Jones, General Manager Rob Hennigan announced tonight. Orlando’s roster now stands at 13 players.

Jones has appeared in 11 games this season with Orlando, averaging 1.3 ppg. and 1.5 rpg. in 7.7 minpg. He was signed by the Magic as a free agent prior to training camp on Sep. 27.

Originally selected in the second round (33rd overall) of the 2006 NBA Draft by Atlanta, Jones has played in 281 regular season games with Atlanta, Indiana, New Orleans, the L.A. Clippers, New York and Orlando, averaging 3.0 ppg. and 2.3 rpg. in 11.0 minpg.

Paul Pierce passes Allen Iverson on NBA all-time scoring list

By Jeff Lenchiner

Paul Pierce and the 11-21 Brooklyn Nets have not yet enjoyed the success this season that they hoped for, but Pierce did set an impressive personal milestone tonight in Brooklyn as the team hosts the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Pierce tonight passed Allen Iverson to become the 19th leading scorer in NBA history. Iverson scored 24,368 points in his illustrious career. Pierce passed that during tonight’s game, which is ongoing.

Patrick Ewing is 18th on the NBA all-time scoring list with 24,815 total points. Jerry West is 17th with 25,192 points. Reggie Miller is 16th with 25,279.

Atop the list, with more points than anyone in NBA history is the master of the sky-hook, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, with 38,387 total points.

Utah Jazz re-assign Ian Clark and Rudy Gobert to D-League

The Utah Jazz announced today that the team has assigned rookie guard Ian Clark and rookie center Rudy Gobert to its NBA Development League (D-League) affiliate, the Bakersfield Jam. Both are expected to be in uniform for the Jam’s game Saturday at the Los Angeles D-Fenders.

This will be the second assignment this season for both Clark and Gobert, who were previously assigned to Bakersfield from December 14-21. In three games (all starts) with the Jam, Clark averaged 12.3 points, 3.0 rebounds and 4.3 assists in 35.1 minutes. Gobert also appeared in three games (all starts) and averaged 14.0 points, 13.0 rebounds and 4.3 blocks while shooting .750 (15-20) from the field in 30.8 minutes.

A 6-3, 173-pound guard out of Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn., Clark was named 2013 NBA Summer League Championship Game Most Valuable Player and was signed by the Jazz as an undrafted rookie free agent on July 29. The 22-year-old has appeared in eight games as a reserve for the Jazz, averaging 2.8 points in 8.8 minutes.

Gobert, a 7-1, 245-pound center, was a 2013 first-round draft pick (27th overall) whose rights the Jazz acquired in a draft-night trade with Denver that sent the Nuggets the rights to the 46th overall pick and cash considerations. The 21-year-old native of Saint Quentin, France, has made 17 appearances for the Jazz in a reserve role, averaging 2.2 points, 4.6 rebounds and 0.82 blocks in 10.7 minutes.

Clark and Gobert were the seventh and eighth different players in Jazz history to be assigned to the D-League. Other players on the current Jazz roster with D-League experience include Jeremy Evans, Diante Garrett, Mike Harris and John Lucas III.