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Marcin Gortat fined by NBA for flopping
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Washington Wizards center Marcin Gortat has been fined $5,000 by the NBA for violating the league’s anti-flopping rules for the second time this season.
The incident occurred with 4:31 remaining in the fourth quarter of Washington’s 88-84 victory over the Utah Jazz on Wednesday, March 18, at EnergySolutions Arena.
To view the play, click on this link.
Knicks team physician Dr. Lisa Callahan named 2014 Physician of the Year
New York Knicks Team Physician Dr. Lisa Callahan has been named the 2014 Physician of the Year, as voted by members of the National Basketball Athletic Trainers Association (NBATA).
The NBATA Physician of the Year Award is an annual honor recognizing an NBA team physician for exceptional service to their respective team, NBA, and NBATA.
“Dr. Callahan has always provided guidance and had an extraordinary rapport with the members of the NBATA,” said Gregg Farnam, NBATA Chairman and Athletic Trainer of the Minnesota Timberwolves. “When our team’s players are in need of medical attention, she has always gone above and beyond what she needs to do to care for them. There is a comfort level in knowing that she is willing and able to assist at anytime.”
Dr. Callahan is currently in her 11th season overseeing the medical staffs of both the Knicks and the WNBA’s Liberty, and in the summer of 2014, was promoted to chief medical officer and senior vice president of player care for MSG Sports, adding the NHL’s New York Rangers, the NBA D-League’s Westchester Knicks and the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack. She was elected secretary/treasurer of the NBA Team Physicians Society in 2013 and is the team physician for the 2014-16 USA Basketball Men’s National Team.
She is the co-founder and medical director of the Women’s Sports Medicine Center at the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan, rated the Northeast’s top orthopedic facility for the last 24 consecutive years (and best in the nation for five straight years) by U.S. News and World Report, and in addition, she is the founding director of the Primary Care Sports Medicine Fellowship Program at HSS.
The award will be presented to Dr. Callahan pregame tonight at center court of Madison Square Garden by Farnam and Knicks Head Athletic Trainer Roger Hinds.
Knicks sign Ricky Ledo to 10-day contract
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New York Knicks President Phil Jackson announced today that the team has signed guard Ricky Ledo of the NBA Development League’s Texas Legends to a 10-day contract, marking the 50th overall NBA Development League “Call-Up” this season.
Ledo, 6-7, 195-pounds, averaged 15.1 points, 4.6 rebounds and 4.2 assists over 32.8 minutes in 26 games (23 starts) for Texas this season. Over the past two seasons with the Dallas Mavericks, he recorded 20 total points over 44 minutes in 16 games. He was originally selected by Milwaukee in the second round (43rd overall) of the 2013 NBA Draft, following his freshman year at Providence College.
Thabo Sefolosha should return soon for Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks are 53-14 through Tuesday’s games, enjoying an incredible season, and should get deeper any game now. Here’s the Atlanta Journal Constitution reporting:
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Thabo Sefolosha competed in three-on-three work following Hawks shootaround Wednesday, a sign the guard/forward is close to a return from a calf injury.
Sefolosha has missed the past 20 games due to a Grade 3 strain of his right calf suffered against the Trail Blazers on Jan. 30. The original diagnosis called for Sefolosha to miss 6 to 8 weeks.
Last week Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said Sefolosha is “making the progress that we expect.”
Heat sign Michael Beasley for remainder of season
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The Miami HEAT announced today that they have signed forward Michael Beasley for the remainder of the season.
Beasley has appeared in 10 games with the HEAT this season averaging 9.5 points, 3.9 rebounds and 22.9 minutes while shooting 42.4 percent from the field. He has scored in double-figures five times, including a season-high 18 points vs. Sacramento on March 7, and grabbed a season-high nine rebounds at Toronto on March 13.
Beasley, who was signed to a 10-day contract by the HEAT on February 26 and then re-signed to a second 10-day contract on March 8, was originally drafted by Miami in the first round (second overall) in the 2008 NBA Draft. The six-year NBA veteran has appeared in 419 career NBA games (199 starts) averaging 13.2 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 24.8 minutes while shooting 45 percent from the field.
Former NBA player Jack Haley dead at 51
Here’s the Orange County Register reporting sad news about a former NBA role player:
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Former NBA player Jack Haley, who grew up in Orange County and took up basketball relatively late before playing at UCLA and with the Lakers, died Monday, according to the Orange County Coroner Divison on the Orange County Sheriff’s website. He was 51.
The coroner’s site said Haley died at Los Alamitos Medical Center on Monday afternoon and that there were no signs of foul play.
His family said in a statement released by the Lakers that an autopsy was performed and found heart disease as the cause of death.
Haley grew up in Seal Beach and attended Huntington Beach High before taking up basketball at Golden West College and moving on to UCLA. He then managed to stick around the NBA from 1988 through 1998, even though he played in only 341 games and started only 54.
Road to playoffs about to get tougher for Pacers
Here’s the Indianapolis Star reporting on the Pacers, who have played excellent basketball for a long stretch of time and have their eye on the postseason:
The Indiana Hoosiers aren’t hearing Brad Stevens’ footsteps. The Indiana Pacers are.
It is not only Stevens’ Boston Celtics creeping up on the Pacers, though. Indiana, Boston and Miami are tied for seventh in the Eastern Conference at 30-36. Charlotte, which was to play the Los Angeles Clippers late Tuesday night, was a half-game behind at 29-36.
No more than two of those four — Indiana, Miami, Boston, Charlotte — will make the NBA playoffs.
The once-moderate schedule confronting the Pacers? That’s over…
The combined winning percentage of the Pacers’ remaining opponents is .512. Of the six teams with a realistic shot at the No. 7 and 8 playoff spots, only the Brooklyn Nets (.523) have it tougher. But Brooklyn, which visits the Pacers on Saturday, has 11 home games out of 17 remaining; the Pacers have seven at home, nine on the road.
Serge Ibaka out 4-6 weeks after knee surgery
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Oklahoma City Thunder forward Serge Ibaka underwent successful arthroscopic surgery today to address right knee soreness, Thunder Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti announced.
“After monitoring the soreness in Serge’s knee and having taken several intermediate steps to assess and manage the discomfort, it was determined that the necessary next step in the evaluation was to see a specialist to discuss options to help alleviate the soreness and swelling he had been experiencing,” said Presti. “During the consultation with Dr. David Altchek, his recommendation, in agreement with Thunder medical personnel, Serge and his representatives, was for Serge to have arthroscopic surgery to remedy the problematic area.”
Ibaka will be out approximately four to six weeks.
According to the Oklahoman, “the team initially treated Ibaka’s discomfort with medication and a modified practice schedule to allow him more time to rest. Ibaka then had his knee drained earlier this month to address what Presti called “roughening underneath his kneecap,” but that process resulted in swelling, stiffness and limited mobility.”
This season, Ibaka has recorded 17 double-doubles, while averaging 14.3 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.42 blocks and 33.1 minutes in 64 games (all starts).
Greg Monroe out tonight with knee strain
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The Detroit Pistons announced this morning that forward/center Greg Monroe will miss tonight’s game vs. Memphis with a right knee strain. The injury occurred during Monday’s practice and was confirmed following an MRI exam.
Monroe will be re-evaluated on Wednesday to determine his status for Detroit’s game at Philadelphia.
Clippers find Nate Robinson fun to have around
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The Los Angeles Clippers announced today they have signed guard Nate Robinson to a second 10-day contract.
Robinson has appeared in five games for the Clippers, averaging 4.0 points, 1.4 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 14.6 minutes.
A nine-year NBA veteran, the Seattle native has played in 612 career games (106 starts) with averages of 11.1 points, 3.0 assists and 2.4 rebounds in 22.6 minutes with New York, Boston, Oklahoma City, Golden State, Chicago, Denver and Los Angeles.
Originally drafted with the 21st overall pick in the 2005 NBA Draft by the Phoenix Suns before being traded to New York on draft day, Robinson is a three-time NBA Slam Dunk Champion (2006, 2009, 2010) and was a key contributor in helping Boston reach the 2010 NBA Finals. He spent three years at the University of Washington where he was a two-time first-team All-Pac-10 performer.