September 2014 – Page 5 – NBA Blog

Brooklyn Nets sign Willie Reed

The Brooklyn Nets have signed free agent forward/center Willie Reed, Nets General Manager Billy King announced today.

Reed averaged 14.7 points, 9.9 rebounds and 1.7 blocks in the NBA Development League last season in 49 games with the Springfield Armor and Reno Bighorns. The Sacramento Kings signed Reed for the remainder of the 2013-14 season on March 28, before assigning the 6’10” forward/center to the D-League’s Bighorns and then recalling him on two separate occasions.

Undrafted in the 2011 NBA Draft out of St. Louis University, Reed was selected in the second round (30th overall) of the 2012 NBA Development League Draft by the Springfield Armor. He earned All-NBA D-League Honorable Mention recognition after averaging 14.8 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks in 48 games (30 starts) with Springfield during the 2012-13 season before signing with the Memphis Grizzlies.

In stints with Memphis and Sacramento, Reed has yet to appear in a regular season NBA game.

Wolves hire Mike Penberthy as shooting coach

The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced the hiring of Mike Penberthy as the team’s shooting coach and Jason Hervey as scout. In addition, Derek Pierce is being promoted from general scout to advance scout.

Penberthy will work on player development, specializing in shooting. Penberthy played collegiate basketball for The Master’s College in Santa Clarita, Calif., from 1993-97 where he was a two-time NAIA All-American and set the school record for most career points. Penberthy held the NAIA record for consecutive games with at least one three-pointer made, with 111, until it was broken in December of 2005. Penberthy played in 53 games with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2000-01, averaging 5.0 points, 1.2 rebounds, 1.3 assists and shooting 39.6 percent (55-for-139) from three-point range as the Lakers won the NBA Championship. He also played in three games for the Lakers in 2001-02 before being waived. Penberthy’ professional playing career spanned from 1997–2008, including numerous stints overseas and in the NBA and ABA.

Hervey will serve as a college and NBA personnel scout for the Wolves. He comes to Minnesota from the Detroit Pistons where he held the title of director of basketball operations for the past two seasons. Prior to that, Hervey held positions of advance scout and video coordinator for the Washington Wizards from 2009-2012. He began his NBA career with the Detroit Pistons where he was the team’s assistant video coordinator from 2005-09.

Pierce will scout Wolves upcoming opponents to assist the coaching staff with game preparation. He served as both a college and NBA personnel scout for the Wolves over the previous five seasons. Before joining Minnesota, Pierce spent three seasons as advance scout with the Washington Wizards and two seasons as advance scout with the Golden State Warriors. Pierce also spent five seasons with the Indiana Pacers as video coordinator.

Lakers sign Ronnie Price

The Los Angeles Lakers have signed guard Ronnie Price, it was announced today by General Manager Mitch Kupchak.

The nine-year NBA veteran holds career averages of 3.4 points, 1.5 assists, and 1.1 rebounds over 425 games (35 starts). The 31-year-old Price spent his first two NBA seasons with the Sacramento Kings (2005-07), followed by stints with the Utah Jazz (2007-11), Phoenix Suns (2011-12), Portland Trailblazers (2012-13) and most recently with the Orlando Magic last season.

The 6’2’’ Price averaged a career-high 2.1 assists per game in 2013-14 with Orlando, in addition to 2.4 points, 1.4 rebounds, and 0.8 steals in 12.2 minutes over 31 games (two starts). The Friendswood, TX native has appeared in the postseason four times (2006, ’08, ’09, and ’10) in his career.

Kings waive Scotty Hopson

The Sacramento Kings today waived guard Scotty Hopson, according to Kings General Manager Pete D’Alessandro.

Hopson was recently acquired from the Houston Rockets along with Alonzo Gee and a pair of second-round draft picks in exchange for guard Jason Terry and a trade exception.

Undrafted out of the University of Tennessee, Hopson appeared in two contests for the Cleveland Cavaliers last season before being traded to Houston during the offseason.

OKC D-League team name revealed: The Oklahoma City Blue

The Oklahoma City Thunder announced today that its NBA Development League team will be called the Blue. The team will play the majority of its home games at the Cox Convention Center in downtown Oklahoma City, with four games to be held inside Chesapeake Energy Arena. The season begins on Friday, Nov. 14, when the Blue hosts the Maine Red Claws.

“Blue is one of our primary Thunder colors, but it has become more than just a color for us. It has come to represent the passion, loyalty and unity of our fans and our community in their support for our team. Our players wear it proudly on their uniforms, our fans sport Thunder blue shirts, Thunder blue flags fly across Oklahoma and our statewide Blue Alliance fan groups show their connection to our team and what it stands for,” said Brian Byrnes, Thunder senior vice president of Sales and Marketing.

“It is only fitting that our development team, which is such an integral part of our organization, be called the Blue to represent the cohesion it has with the Thunder. We think this new name accurately reflects the enhanced unity between the two teams, which are now geographically and philosophically aligned in Oklahoma City and focused on development.”

Brook Lopez now playing 5-on-5

Here’s ESPN New York with a Nets update:

Brooklyn Nets center Brook Lopez said Tuesday he participated in his first few games of five-on-five over the past two days and felt just fine afterward. It’s yet another encouraging step for Lopez, who is coming back from offseason foot and ankle surgeries.

“It was great,” Lopez said Tuesday at a community event in Harlem. “I got my second day of five-on-five in today. It’s been going well. It feels good to be back out there with the guys. Everyone’s been out there, and everyone looks good. It’s been good seeing Mase [Mason Plumlee] out there being vocal, doing his thing and seeing how much he learned over the summer [playing with Team USA].”

As Lopez eases his way back into playing form, patience is going to be important. Nets GM Billy King told reporters Monday that the 26-year-old All-Star would likely not be participating in both sessions of two-a-day practices at the start of training camp (Day 1 is Saturday).

Mavericks sign Charlie Villanueva

The Dallas Mavericks announced today that they have signed free agent forward Charlie Villanueva. It is likely a non-guaranteed contract, giving Villanueva a chance to show that he’s worth holding on to.

Villanueva (6-11, 232) signs with the Mavericks after spending the last five seasons with the Detroit Pistons. He had a breakout year in 2008-09 when he averaged 16.2 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.8 assists in his final season with the Milwaukee Bucks. Villanueva holds career averages of 11.5 points, 5.1 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 23.1 minutes in 530 career games (158 starts) with Toronto, Milwaukee and Detroit.

The former University of Connecticut standout was originally drafted by the Toronto Raptors with the 7th overall pick in the 2005 NBA Draft. After two seasons in Storrs, Conn., Villanueva declared for the NBA Draft. He earned Big East All-Rookie Team honors and a NCAA National Championship as a freshman and was the team’s MVP as a sophomore averaging a team-high 13.6 points per game.

Lakers add four players to training camp roster

The Los Angeles Lakers have signed Keith Appling, Jabari Brown, Roscoe Smith, and Jeremy Tyler to their training camp roster, it was announced today by General Manager Mitch Kupchak.

Appling played four collegiate seasons at Michigan State (2010-14), averaged 10.6 points, 3.3 assists, and 3.0 rebounds in 142 games as a Spartan. He went undrafted in 2014 despite ranking in the top-10 in the Big Ten in assists per game each of his final three seasons.

Brown, a teammate of Lakers guard Jordan Clarkson as a junior last season at Missouri, averaged 19.9 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 2013-14 before declaring himself eligible for the NBA Draft.

Smith was a member of the Lakers 2014 Summer League team, appearing in all five games after a three-year college career at UConn (2010-12) and ultimately UNLV (2013-14), where he averaged 11.1 points and 10.9 rebounds while shooting 53.1% from the field.

Tyler is a three-year NBA veteran who has played in 104 games (23 starts) with the Golden State Warriors, Atlanta Hawks and New York Knicks, averaging 3.6 points and 2.6 rebounds in 9.9 minutes per contest.

Atlanta Hawks re-sign Elton Brand

The Atlanta Hawks have re-signed forward/center Elton Brand, it was announced today by Head Coach Mike Budenholzer.

“We are happy to retain Elton,” Budenholzer said. “In addition to the production he gives us on the court, he is the ultimate professional and a terrific leader. Elton’s presence is felt by all of us, but especially his teammates.”

In 73 games (15 starts) last season with the Hawks, Brand averaged 5.7 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.0 assists and a team-best 1.2 blocks in 19.4 minutes (.539 FG%, .649 FT%). He ranked 23rd in the NBA in blocks per game and 12th in blocks per 48 minutes (3.0), recording 25 multi-block contests. Brand scored in double-figures 10 times and had five double-digit rebounding efforts.

The 15-year veteran has appeared in 1,005 games (863 starting assignments) with Chicago, the Los Angeles Clippers, Philadelphia, Dallas and the Hawks, putting up 16.6 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.8 blocks in 34.0 minutes (.501 FG%, .737 FT%). The two-time NBA All-Star (2002 and 2006) was named to the All-NBA Second Team in 2005-06, won the NBA Sportsmanship Award in 2006 and shared NBA Rookie of the Year honors in 1999-2000.

He ranks 16th among all active players in scoring (16,661), sixth in rebounds (8,877), second in offensive rebounds (3,267) and fourth in blocks (1,795).

Through 37 postseason games (30 starts), Brand has averaged 13.6 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.7 blocks in 30.8 minutes (.518 FG%, .722 FT%).

Hawks sign Kent Bazemore

The Atlanta Hawks have signed free agent guard Kent Bazemore, it was announced today by Head Coach Mike Budenholzer.

“Kent’s competitiveness and versatility make him a great addition to our group,” Budenholzer said. “He can impact the game in a lot of ways, especially defensively guarding multiple positions. Kent’s work ethic and enthusiasm for the game make him a great teammate and great fit with the Hawks.”

Bazemore split time last season between the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers averaging 6.0 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 13.6 minutes in 67 combined games (15 starting assignments).

After being acquired by the Lakers on Feb. 19, he recorded 13.1 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.3 steals in 28.0 minutes (.451 FG%, .371 3FG%) in 23 contests (15 starts).

The 6’5 Bazemore has played in seven NBA Development League games with Santa Cruz over the last two years, averaging 20.9 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.7 steals, 3.0 assists and 1.0 blocks in 33.6 minutes (.432 FG%, .811 FT%).

Undrafted after a four-year career at Old Dominion University (2008-12), Bazemore signed with Golden State as a free agent on July 26, 2012. The Warriors traded him, along with MarShon Brooks, to the Lakers in exchange for Steve Blake on Feb. 19, 2014. Bazemore appeared in an Old Dominion record 140 career games as a collegian, averaging 10.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.8 steals in 26.3 minutes, and is the Colonial Athletic Association all-time steals leader (250). He won the Lefty Driesell Award as the nation’s top defender in 2010-11 and was the Colonial Athletic Association Defensive Player of the Year as both a junior and senior (2011-12).