Month: June 2014

Rod Higgins steps down as Hornets president of basketball operations

charlotte hornets

The Charlotte Hornets today announced that Rod Higgins has stepped down as the team’s President of Basketball Operations, effective immediately.

“I would like to thank Rod for his seven years of dedication to this organization,” said Charlotte Hornets Chairman Michael Jordan. “Rod has been a consummate professional throughout his time with the team. Thanks to his hard work and commitment, we have an improved roster and we are poised for success in the future. Rod was of great help to me as I navigated my first four years as majority owner of this franchise. I wish him all the best.”

Rich Cho will remain in his capacity as General Manager and assume responsibility for the team’s basketball operations. He will report to Jordan and Vice Chairman Curtis Polk.

Jeff Potter wins 2013-14 D-League Team Executive of Year award

Jeff Potter, president of the 2014 NBA Development League champion Fort Wayne Mad Ants, was today named the 2014 NBA Development League Team Executive of the Year, NBA D-League President Dan Reed announced. The NBA Development League Team Executive of the Year is determined by peer voting and teams are not allowed to vote for themselves.

“We are very pleased to honor Jeff with the Team Executive of the Year Award in recognition of the Mad Ants’ milestone year both on and off the floor,” said Reed. “Under Jeff’s leadership, the team has become an integral part of the Fort Wayne community and established itself as part of the rich tradition of Indiana basketball.”

As president of the Mad Ants, Potter oversees all business and basketball operations for the team. Through his leadership, the Mad Ants captured their first NBA D-League title after a benchmark season in which the team had the best regular season record (34-16) for the league and won its first Eastern Division crown. Potter’s squad, which set a team regular season record for wins and swept their opponents in the postseason (6-0), also featured the league’s Co-Most Valuable Player and Sportsmanship Award recipient Ron Howard and Coach of the Year Conner Henry. In addition, five Mad Ants earned postseason honors including All-NBA D-League selections Howard (First Team), Tony Mitchell (third team), and Tim Ohlbrecht (honorable mention); All-Rookie selection Trey McKinney-Jones (third team); and All-Defensive Team Sadiel Rojas (second team).

A member of the Board of Directors for the Indiana Chamber of Commerce, Potter’s impact stretched beyond the court as he forged a longtime partnership with Lutheran Health Network, the first presenting sponsorship in the team’s history, and enhanced the team’s social responsibility initiative, which included over 160 community service projects in the area. In recognition of the team’s commitment, Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry proclaimed Wednesday, April 30, 2014 as Fort Wayne Mad Ants Day following their triumph in the NBA D-League Finals.

“I am deeply honored, humbled, and thankful that my peers voted to give me this wonderful award,” said Potter. “It has been a banner year for the Mad Ants both in our business and on the court, and it does not happen without my fantastic staff, which helps make this job the best in the world. I share this award with them and our entire Mad Ants family.”

Previous winners of the award include Bill Boyce (Texas Legends, 2013), David Higdon (Bakersfield Jam, 2012), Bert Garcia (Rio Grande Valley Vipers, 2011) and Jon Jennings (Maine Red Claws, 2010).

Charlotte Hornets to play 2014 preseason game in Greenville, South Carolina

Hornets Sports & Entertainment President & COO Fred Whitfield today announced that the Charlotte Hornets will play a regional home contest in Greenville, SC, for the first time as part of the team’s 2014 preseason schedule. The Hornets will take on the Washington Wizards on Friday, October 10, at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena. The game will tip off at 7:00 p.m.

“As we transition to the Charlotte Hornets, we continue to look for opportunities to bring NBA basketball to cities across the Carolinas,” said Whitfield. “We are pleased to be playing in Greenville for the first time and are excited to showcase our games to new locations throughout the region.”

Rajon Rondo healthy for next Celtics season

Here’s the Boston.com blog reporting on Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo, who spent most of last season injured:

Rajon Rondo healthy for next Celtics season

At long last though, Rondo looks healthy and has been a regular visitor to the team’s practice facility and draft workouts all summer. His constant presence has been welcome sight for Stevens and the rest of the team’s coaching staff.

“He’s been great,” [Celtics head coach Brad] Stevens said. ““Physically, he looks fantastic. That really sets a tone having him come in. That really is helpful.”

Stevens continued: “I think Rajon is anxious to get back out there playing. You can tell that from his work ethic. He’s been with our small groups a lot in the last 8-10 days. That’s not always the case with a guy as seasoned and accomplished as him.”

Trial will determine if Donald Sterling was properly removed from Sterling Family Trust

Here’s ESPN.com reporting on the latest Donald Sterling news:

A Los Angeles County probate judge has scheduled a four-day trial for July 7-10 to determine whether Los Angeles Clippers co-owner Donald Sterling was properly removed as a trustee from the Sterling Family Trust, which agreed to sell the franchise to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer on May 29 for a record $2 billion.

The lawyers for Shelly Sterling, who assumed the role of sole trustee and negotiated the sale with Ballmer after two neurologists determined Donald Sterling was mentally incapacitated and no longer able to conduct his own legal and business affairs, requested an expedited hearing so that the sale could be approved by the NBA Board of Governors by July 15 and closed by September 15, as outlined in the purchase agreement. Both Ballmer and Shelly Sterling have agreed to a grace period that allows for board approval by September 15.

Should the sale not be closed by September 15, Ballmer theoretically could pull out of the deal and the NBA would be forced to begin termination proceedings against Sterling again, then sell the team itself. However, sources say there is no indication Ballmer would do that.

Ballmer has not yet funded the $2 billion sale, except for the $300 million he put in escrow during the bid process.

The court denied Shelly Sterling’s request for relief. However, according to the ruling obtained by ESPN, “… given the upcoming deadlines regarding the proposed acquisition of the Los Angeles Clippers, the Court, on its own motion, sets the matter on shortened notice for a contested evidentiary hearing” before Judge Michael Levanas. A trial conference, where a list of witnesses will be submitted, is set for June 23.

Jazz put free agent hopefuls through paces

Here’s the Salt Lake Tribune reporting on the Utah Jazz:

Jazz put free agent hopefuls through paces

Utah on Wednesday opened a agent mini-camp at their practice facility that runs through Thursday. Of the 26 players invited, some will emerge as candidates for Utah’s summer league team next month, or even for Jazz’s new D-League affiliate in Boise.

“Last year, when we held this camp for the first time, five guys who came to the camp made the NBA,” Jazz Director of pro player personnel Dave Fredman said. “So we told the agents and the players that there is a ton of opportunity here. Some of the guys have played in the NBA last year, some played overseas. But we’re looking for a guy like Green and Andersen, guys who are currently playing in the finals.”

The camp features three players with local ties: Jason Washburn and Carlon Brown both played at Utah, with Brown later transferring to Colorado and leading the Buffaloes to a Pac-12 tournament title. Point guard Nick Covington played at Weber State and was in Turkey last season.

Spurs play amazing first half in NBA Finals Game 3

The Spurs beat the Heat 111-92 Tuesday in Miami to take a 2-1 lead in the 2014 NBA Finals. San Antonio got off to an incredible start, and were able to keep the Heat at bay to secure the victory. Here’s the New York Daily News:

After starting the game by making 19 of their first 21 shots, the Spurs finished the half shooting 25-of-33 (76%), setting a Finals first-half record. Their 41 points in the first quarter were the most in a Finals game since 1967, while their 13-of-15 shooting in the first quarter (87%) also set a Finals record.

The Heat did cut the lead to seven points in the third period and was down only 10 with 8:54 to go in the game. But the Spurs, who are still smarting from their epic Game 6 collapse last June, didn’t come close to buckling this time.

Remember how Gregg Popovich complained after Game 2 on Sunday that the ball stuck to his team’s hands way too much in the critical fourth quarter, when it scored only six points in the final 4:40? For the first 19 minutes of this game, once the ball left the Spurs’ shooters hands, the only thing it stuck to was the nylon nets.

“I don’t think we’ll ever shoot 76% . . . ever . . . in a half . . . again,” Popovich said, looking amazed.

If you watched the Spurs score only 18 points in the fourth quarter of Game 2, you wouldn’t have thought that it was the same team. At the height of their blitz, they led 55-30.

Quiet Kawhi Leonard lets Game 3 play speak for itself

Here’s the South Florida Sun Sentinel reporting on NBA Finals Game 3:

Quiet Kawhi Leonard lets Game 3 play speak for itself

On the night he put together the best playoff performance of his career, Kawhi Leonard opted to pass up the spotlight and the post-game press conference that typically comes on a night like his.

Instead, the soft-spoken Spurs forward stood in San Antonio’s locker room, still in his uniform, and answered questions from a media contingent the likes of which he hasn’t seen all NBA Finals.

“I was just in attack mode trying to be aggressive early and knocking down a couple shots got me going and my teammates found me,” he said simply when describing his career high 29 point-performance that helped the Spurs take a 2-1 series lead with their 111-92 win over the Miami Heat in Tuesday’s Game 3. “We were just running the same offense. I was able to play tonight. I didn’t get in foul trouble early, I got in a rhythm and my teammates got me involved.”

Things didn’t exactly go so well for Leonard through the first two games of the NBA Finals.

The third-year player had a combined 18 points and four rebounds in the first two games of the series and fouled out for the first time in 243 NBA games on Sunday during Miami’s Game 2 win.