NBA Blog – NBA Basketball Blog
NBA Blog: The NBA basketball news blog section of Inside Hoops
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The Oklahoma City Thunder announced that rookie forward Mitch McGary underwent an evaluation today that confirmed he suffered a fracture in his left second metatarsal (foot) during last night’s preseason game at Denver. He is expected to miss approximately six weeks.
McGary, the 21st overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, finished the game with 14 points on 7-of-14 shooting from the floor, to go along with four rebounds, two assists and two steals in 36 minutes of action.
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The Memphis Grizzlies waived forward Michael Beasley, the team announced today.
A Yahoo Sports report says Beasley will sign with a team in China.
Memphis signed Beasley (6-9, 235) as a free agent to a non-guaranteed contract on Sept. 25.
The 25-year-old owns career averages of 13.2 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 24.9 minutes in 409 games (199 starts) for Miami, Minnesota and Phoenix after being drafted by Miami at No. 2 overall in the 2008 NBA Draft.
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The Indiana Pacers announced Thursday they have picked up the 2015-16 option on forward Solomon Hill’s contract.
Hill, entering his second season with the Pacers, averaged 1.7 points and 1.5 rebounds per game last season. He’s a 6-7, 225-pound small forward, born in Los Angeles, attended Arizona, and was drafted 23rd overall by the Pacers.
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The Memphis Grizzlies have added Elliot Perry to its Basketball Operations department as Director of Player Support, the team announced today.
Now entering his 10th season with the organization, Perry’s responsibilities in this role will include working with Grizzlies players on facets of life outside of basketball and preparing them, personally and professionally, for long-term success on and off the court. Among other duties, Perry also will act as an advisor with respect to efforts in the community and Grizzlies Foundation.
“Elliot has deep ties to this franchise and a lifelong bond with city of Memphis. In addition, he is a wonderful example of someone who has achieved sustained success both personally and professionally,” Grizzlies General Manager Chris Wallace said. “We are excited for him to take on this role in mentoring our players in both their current careers and their post-basketball endeavors. We hope as an organization to continue building a long-term connection between the city and our players well beyond their playing days.”
A member of the Grizzlies ownership group since 2005, Perry will also step into a new role as Chairman of the Board for the Memphis Grizzlies Foundation after previously holding the title of Vice Chairman. In addition, he will continue in a limited capacity as an analyst for the team’s radio broadcast, a position he has held for the last seven seasons.
A Memphis native, Perry played for seven different teams over a 10-year NBA career (1991-92, 1994-2002), including a two-game stint with the Grizzlies in his final season in the league. Nicknamed “Socks” after his trademark knee-highs, he finished as runner-up for the 1995 NBA Most Improved Player Award after averaging 9.7 points, 4.8 assists and 1.9 steals per game for the Phoenix Suns.
The Treadwell High School graduate started every game of his four-year collegiate career (1987-91) with the Memphis State Tigers, leading the program to two NCAA Tournament appearances and a second-round berth in 1987. After graduating with a degree in marketing, Perry was drafted in the second round (37th overall) of the 1991 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Clippers.
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Construction of a new arena and entertainment complex for the Detroit Red Wings hockey team has ramped up that criticism but the Pistons own The Palace of Auburn Hills and have invested heavily in upgrades.
Van Gundy said “we want these people and need these people,” even though many surely were among the vocal group hoping the Pistons return to Detroit someday.
“I understand,” Van Gundy said, “but again, we’re playing in a state-of-the-art facility up there that Tom (Gores, Pistons owner) has put a lot of money into, as you guys know, and a lot of effort to make sure it stays one of the absolute elite facilities in the league. Fans coming up there have a great, great experience, so that arena has served us well and will serve us well.”
— Michigan Live
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Washington Wizards players DeJuan Blair, Nene, Daniel Orton and Xavier Silas were suspended one game for leaving the bench area during an altercation between Chicago Bulls’ center Joakim Noah and Washington Wizards’ forward Paul Pierce.
Additionally, Noah has been fined $15,000 for initiating an altercation with Pierce by pushing him in the chest and Pierce has been fined $15,000 for hitting Noah in the forehead with his left index finger, it was announced today by Rod Thorn, President, Basketball Operations.
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The incident occurred with 8:57 remaining in the first quarter of the Wizards’ 85-81 win over the Bulls on Monday, October 6, at United Center.
The suspensions will be served during the first regular season game for which each player is eligible and physically able to play.
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New York Knicks President Phil Jackson announced today that the team has signed center Didier Mbenga.
Mbenga, 7-0, 240-pounds, holds career averages of 1.8 points and 1.5 rebounds over 6.7 minutes in 234 games (four starts) over seven seasons with Dallas, Golden State, L.A. Lakers and New Orleans. The Democratic Republic of Congo-native, who won two NBA titles with the Lakers (2009 & 2010) and last played in the NBA for New Orleans in 2010-11. He spent the last two seasons playing overseas in China (2012) and the Philippines (2013) after beginning his professional career in Belgium (2001-04).
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The Indiana Pacers announced Wednesday that Head Coach Frank Vogel has signed a multi-year contract extension.
The 41-year-old Vogel is entering his fourth full season as coach after taking over on an interim basis in January, 2011. The Pacers finished that season 20-18 and reached the NBA Playoffs for the first time in four seasons. In July, 2011, the interim tag was removed and in the three seasons since, the Pacers have reached the Eastern Conference Finals twice and Eastern Conference Semifinals once with a record of 147-82 (.641 winning percentage). Last season, the Pacers earned the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference. Vogel and his coaching staff also earned Eastern Conference All-Star coaching honors. He has been named Eastern Conference Coach of the Month twice.
“We’re very happy to extend Frank’s contract,” said Pacers President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird. “I believe he has done a great job and I look forward to continuing our relationship and working together to achieve all of our goals.”
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Today, the Milwaukee Bucks announced the hiring of Peter Feigin as the team’s new president. Feigin brings decades of sports, corporate management and marketing experience to the Bucks organization. As president, Feigin will spearhead the growth of the Bucks’ business operations and lead the organization’s talented executive team.
Since purchasing the team in May, new owners Wes Edens and Marc Lasry have worked to put together a personnel team they hope will do great things for the team.
Feigin comes to the Bucks with a depth of experience in both in the NBA and the corporate world. As the chief marketing and revenue officer of Deluxe Entertainment Services Group, he managed global business units and handled branding across the international entertainment company. Prior to working at Deluxe, Feigin was president and COO of Marquis Jet Partners and helped lead its acquisition by NetJets. From 1998 to 2004, he worked for the New York Knicks and rose to become vice president of marketing – increasing profits, season subscriptions and suite revenue during his tenure. Additionally, Feigin has served as a senior advisor to the Milwaukee Bucks since the ownership change, helping reorganize and refocus its business operations. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Franklin and Marshall College and completed the University of Chicago Booth School of Business’ Financial Executive Program.
“I’ve known Peter for many years and can’t think of a more capable person to drive growth for the Bucks organization,” said Marc Lasry. “Peter’s been an invaluable advisor and will be a terrific leader for a talented group of people working to build a world-class franchise. He brings a tremendous amount of NBA expertise and management experience to Milwaukee.”
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The Philadelphia 76ers today announced they have signed free agents Drew Gordon and Malcolm Lee.
In conjunction with these signings, the Sixers have waived Keith Bogans and Jarvis Varnado.
Gordon (6-9, 245) spent the past two seasons playing overseas after finishing his collegiate career at New Mexico in 2011-12. He averaged a team-high six rebounds per game for the Sixers in the 2014 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas.
Lee (6-5, 200) was originally the 43rd overall pick by Chicago in the 2011 NBA Draft following his junior season at UCLA. He spent the 2011-12 and 2012-13 seasons with Minnesota.