March 2014 – Page 28 – NBA Blog

Mavericks re-assign Jae Crowder and Shane Larkin to D-League

The Dallas Mavericks announced today that they have reassigned Jae Crowder and Shane Larkin to the Texas Legends of the NBA Development League.

Crowder (6-6, 235) and Larkin (5-11, 176) were both a part of Thursday night’s Legends’ victory. Crowder finished with 23 points, 18 rebounds and 10 assists to record the Legends’ first triple-double of the season. Larkin chipped in 9 points, 9 assists and 5 rebounds.

Both Mavericks will join the Legends and be available for tonight’s game when they take on the Los Angeles D-Fenders at 7:00 pm CT at the Dr. Pepper Arena in Frisco.

Stephen Curry gets triple-double in Warriors win vs Knicks

Stephen Curry’s last Madison Square Garden performance was breathtaking, the most dazzling display of outside shooting ever at the famed arena.

It resulted in a loss, so Curry tried a different tactic Friday night — and ended up making more MSG history.

Curry had 27 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists in three quarters, Klay Thompson added 25 points, and the Golden State Warriors sent the frustrated New York Knicks to a fifth straight loss with a 126-103 victory.

Returning to the site of his sensational shooting performance of a year ago, when he scored a career-high 54 points on 11-of-13 shooting from 3-point range, Curry showed off his entire skill set in this one.

— Associated Press

Goran Dragic scores 40 in Suns win vs Pelicans

Goran Dragic almost didn’t play Friday night.

On a bad ankle, with his Phoenix team needing to end a three-game skid, he decided to give it a try.

The result was a career-high 40-point performance in 42 minutes, leading the Suns past the New Orleans Pelicans 116-104.

“I think everybody knows about Goran Dragic now,” Suns coach Jeff Hornacek said, “or they should.”

A game-time decision because of a sore right ankle that had kept him out of Wednesday’s loss at Utah, Dragic played all but the last 10 seconds of the second half in the first 40-point game for a Phoenix player since Amar’e Stoudemire’s 44 on March 19, 2010.

— Associated Press

Kevin Garnett not playing Saturday

Brooklyn Nets center Kevin Garnett will not play Saturday night against the Milwaukee Bucks due to back spasms.

Mason Plumlee will start in Garnett’s place.

Garnett, 37, has appeared in 49 of the team’s first 56 games, though he’s missed just one game due to injury, resting the other six.

— ESPN New York

Sixers sign Jarvis Varnado to 10-day contract

The Philadelphia 76ers today announced that they have signed forward Jarvis Varnado to a 10-day contract. He is the 26th “Call-Up” of the 2013-14 NBA Development League season.

Varnado was originally the 41st overall pick by Miami in the 2010 NBA Draft. He began his professional career overseas and joined Boston briefly during the 2012-13 season before eventually signing with the Heat during its championship run.

This season, Varnado was named a D-League All-Star for the Iowa Energy and is averaging 14.1 points along with a league-high 4.7 blocks while also ranking second in rebounding with 11.0 rpg. He signed a 10-day contract with Chicago on February 18, 2014 and appeared in one game.

Varnado played collegiately at Mississippi State and joined David Robinson as the only players in NCAA history to record at least 1,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and 500 blocks. He finished his career as the NCAA’s all-time leading shot blocker with 564.

Suns sign Shavlik Randolph, waive Slava Kravtsov

The Phoenix Suns have signed forward Shavlik Randolph for the remainder of the season and waived center Slava Kravtsov, the team announced today.

The 6-10, 240-pound Randolph is a six-year NBA veteran who has appeared in 111 career games (seven starts) with Philadelphia, Portland, Miami and Boston. Randolph, who competed collegiately at Duke, played with Philadelphia for three seasons from 2005-08, with Portland in the 2008-09 and 2009-10 seasons and with Miami in 2009-10, as well. Most recently in the NBA, Randolph appeared in 16 games for Boston last season, in addition to seeing action in one playoff contest. Earlier this season, Randolph spent time with the Foshan Long Lions of the Chinese Basketball Association. Between his NBA appearances with the Heat and the Celtics, Randolph played professionally in China and Puerto Rico.

He will be available for tomorrow night’s game vs. Atlanta.

Kravtsov, in his second NBA season, appeared in 20 games for the Suns this season, averaging 1.0 points and 0.9 rebounds in 3.0 minutes.

The Suns continue a four-game home stand on Sunday night as they host the Hawks with tip-off scheduled for 6:00 p.m. (Phoenix time). The game will be televised on FOX Sports Arizona, and carried on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM.

The Suns’ roster still stands at 15.