September 2015 – Page 3 – NBA Blog

Magic hope for big things from Aaron Gordon

Magic hope for big things from Aaron Gordon

Here’s the Orlando Sentinel reporting on a key member of the Magic youth movement:

Almost two and a half months have passed since Gordon underwent surgery July 14 to repair his fractured jaw, and the bone now is almost fully healed. Although he has participated in the first four practices of Orlando Magic training camp, he has been forced to sit out full-contact drills and team scrimmages….

The Magic are counting on Gordon, a combo forward, to play a major role in the year ahead. At 6 feet 9 and 220 pounds, and blessed with smarts, elite jumping ability and superb quickness, Gordon arguably has more potential on the defensive end of the court than anyone else on the roster. Skiles envisions Gordon as someone who can guard opponents at four different positions, even point guards.

The team expects Gordon to be cleared for full contact at some point in mid-October — perhaps before the team’s Oct. 17 exhibition in Rio de Janeiro against the Brazilian team Flamengo. Still, even if Gordon plays against Flamengo, there would be little time left before Orlando’s regular-season opener on Oct. 28. Therein lies the concern.

None of this would be a worry if Gordon, now 20, hadn’t been goofing off after the Orlando Pro Summer League with his 25-year-old brother, Drew, who played a bit last season for the Philadelphia 76ers.

Warriors championship core returns

Warriors championship core returns

Here’s the San Francisco Chronicle with a mention of the Spurs before reviewing Golden State Warriors roster changes this offseason, which were relatively minor:

The Spurs made a lot of offseason noise, adding Aldridge and David West while retaining Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green, and the Warriors stood pretty much pat. They’ll report to the team’s downtown Oakland facility Monday for physicals and media day with 12 of the 15 players from last season’s championship-winning roster.

“Once the season starts, nobody cares about all of the hype and all of the talk,” Kerr said Friday. “You just go out and play. We’re the defending champs. That’s a feather in our cap, and it should give us confidence, but all of the talk means nothing.”

Gone are David Lee, Justin Holiday and Ognjen Kuzmic. Arriving are Jason Thompson, Kevon Looney and a 15th roster spot that could go to any one of five training-camp invitees.

Lee was traded to Boston for Gerald Wallace and Chris Babb, and Wallace later was swapped to Philadelphia for Thompson. He’s expected to take over Lee’s role, splitting backup minutes at center with Festus Ezeli and at forward with Marreese Speights.
Kuzmic, a developmental center, signed to play in Greece, and the Warriors have a new project in Looney.

Sunset-colored Thunder alternate jerseys

The Oklahoma City Thunder today revealed a third alternate uniform for 2015-16. The team will first wear its new sunset-colored alternates on Sunday, Nov. 1, at Chesapeake Energy Arena against the Denver Nuggets.

The new uniform’s bold color pairs with “OKC” in navy block lettering on the front to showcase the team’s hometown pride and reflect the saturated, blended colors of the Oklahoma skies at sunset.

On the back of the jersey, player names sit below the numbers. The shorts display a sunset base with navy panels down the side showcasing the Thunder logo on each leg.

“This new uniform not only features another of our primary team colors, it also reinforces the strong connection our team has to our hometown and home state,” said Brian Byrnes, Thunder senior vice president of Sales and Marketing. “The ‘OKC’ on the front of the jersey echoes the chant that rings through Chesapeake Energy Arena during Thunder home games. This sunset-colored uniform adds a fresh perspective on the identity our team has built over the past seven seasons.”

The Thunder will wear the sunset alternates for 18 games this season, including all 13 of its Sunday matchups. This marks the fifth Thunder uniform in regular rotation. The home white and road Thunder blue uniforms will remain the team’s primary options, while fans will also see the team in the navy alternates and the sleeved white uniform for select games.

Sixers waive Gerald Wallace

In conjunction with the announcement of the Philadelphia 76ers 2015-16 training camp roster, the team has signed J.P. Tokoto, T.J. McConnell, Jordan McRae and Christian Wood.

In conjunction with these signings, the Sixers have waived forward Gerald Wallace.

Tokoto was selected by the Sixers with the 58th overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft. An ACC All-Defensive team selection, Tokoto played three seasons at North Carolina and during his junior season, he was one of four players in the ACC ranked in the top 10 in both assists and steals. Over his final two seasons with the Tar Heels, Tokoto averaged nine points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals per game.

McConnell posted averages of 10 points, five assists and two steals over his four-year NCAA career. During his senior season at the University of Arizona, McConnell led the Pac-12 in assists per game (6) and total assists (238) and was also named to the NCAA West Regional All-Tournament Team.

McRae was originally acquired by the Sixers during the 2014 NBA Draft after being selected with the 58th overall pick by San Antonio. He played in 27 games for Melbourne United of the Australian National Basketball League in 2014-15, where he averaged 20 points, five rebounds and three assists per game. McRae then joined the Delaware 87ers of the NBA Development League, where he averaged 18 points, four rebounds and four assists in 13 games.

Wood was an early entry candidate for the 2015 NBA Draft after playing two seasons at UNLV. Wood averaged 16 points and 10 rebounds and blocked 90 total shots in his final season with the Runnin’ Rebels.

Free agency 2016 crucial for Nets

Here’s the New York Post with insight on the Brooklyn Nets, who face an uphill battle this season and like many teams in the league are very well aware how crucial 2016 free agency may be for their future:

The Nets have become a team known for slogans and catchphrases since moving to Brooklyn three years ago.

And though the team already has adopted a new one for this season, here is a helpful suggestion — one already associated with the borough — if they would like to change their minds: Wait ’til next year.

There are 82 games to play until July 1, 2016, but that’s the date the Nets are clearly focused on. That’s when — for the first time since moving to Brooklyn — they will have the ability to shop at the top of the market, thanks to what could be close to $40 million in cap space.

The problem? The Nets still have to get through the 2015-16 season, which begins with training camp Monday, before they can try to strike it rich in free agency. Though many teams in this position, like the Knicks a year ago, could afford to have a rough year and get a high draft pick, the Nets can’t, since their unprotected first-round pick next June is headed to the Celtics as part of the trade that brought Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce to Brooklyn two years ago.

Anthony Bennett makes sense for Raptors

Anthony Bennett makes sense for Raptors

Here’s the Toronto Sun on the addition of Anthony Bennett to the Raptors:

Signing Anthony Bennett to a league minimum contract — something that will happen any time now, according to sources in the know — was nearly a no-brainer for the Raptors. For Bennett himself, it was less of a slam dunk, though likely still a pretty easy call. Other than possibly having to drown out some outside noise from the fanbase, Masai Ujiri and the Raptors don’t have much to lose on this low-cost gambit. Power forward is the team’s weakest position, with Patrick Patterson the presumptive starter and veteran Luis Scola slated to back him up. James Johnson and DeMarre Carroll also could see some time there, but Bennett provides another option for Dwane Casey — an above-the-rim, open court threat who starred at UNLV and this past summer for Canada. Bennett will never live up to the expectations of being drafted No. 1 overall, but he definitely has the talent and athleticism to be an NBA contributor, provided he is healthy and engaged, which granted, are not certainties based on past history.

A prove-it year for Rajon Rondo

A prove-it year for Rajon Rondo

Here’s the Boston Herald discussing former Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo, who now finds himself on the the Sacramento Kings, and lower on the league-wide point guard hierarchy than in the past:

Rajon Rondo fully had expected to be the object of a free agent bidding war and come out of this offseason with a maximum contract from a marquee team of his choosing.

Instead, the former Celtics point guard has a one-year, $9.5 million deal — a paycut of nearly $3.5 million — from Sacramento and the burden of proof squarely on his slender shoulders.

And maybe that’s the best possible outcome for Rondo under the circumstances.

Things didn’t work out in a colossal crash-and-burn manner in Dallas after he was dealt there last December. And while we’ve reported that a number of league sources lay a portion of blame for that with coach Rick Carlisle, it is incumbent upon Rondo to find a way to make this work with the Kings. That there already have been issues between George Karl and DeMarcus Cousins may not make it easy, but those who decide how to spend their team’s money when the salary cap rises next summer will very much want to know how Rondo navigates these waters.

Emmanuel Mudiay has big goals for Nuggets

Here’s the Denver Post reporting on talented Nuggets rookie guard Emmanuel Mudiay, who appears to have big potential and will be one of the rookies InsideHoops.com pays consistent attention to as the new season begins:

Mudiay’s not just talking about having nice seasons. He’s talking titles.

“For sure,” he said. “If you ask that to anybody, anybody is going to say ‘Yeah.’ But I actually really mean it. I’ve always kind of been the first to do certain things, so that wouldn’t be nothing new to me.

“I think if I’m blessed enough to get one here, it’s just going to be addictive. I’m just going to want more championships.”

A busy Nuggets summer, which included trading point guard Ty Lawson, ensured Mudiay will be able to start his — and the team’s — growth toward that goal immediately.

At a fresh-out-of-the-wrapper 19 years old, Mudiay has been handed the keys to the team.

When the season opens Oct. 28 in Houston, Mudiay will be just the second rookie to start at point guard in Nuggets history. Bobby Jackson, in 1997, was the first.

The L.A. Clippers announced today the team has signed free agent forward Luc Mbah a Moute and forward/center Nikoloz Tskitishvili.

A seven-year NBA veteran, Mbah a Moute has appeared in 466 career regular season games (301 starts) with Milwaukee, Sacramento, Minnesota and Philadelphia averaging 6.8 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 24.3 minutes. Born in Yaounde, Cameroon, the 29-year-old spent last season with the 76ers, averaging 9.9 points and 4.9 rebounds in 28.6 minutes of play over 67 games (61 starts). Mbah a Moute played three seasons at UCLA, where he helped the Bruins reach three straight Final Fours. He was the 37th overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft by the Bucks.

The former fifth overall pick in the 2002 NBA Draft by the Denver Nuggets, Tskitishvili has appeared in 172 career games (16 starts) for Denver, Golden State, Minnesota and Phoenix averaging 2.9 points and 1.7 rebounds in 11.3 minutes of play. The Tbilisi, Georgian native has played in Spain, Italy, Iran, Lebanon and the United Arab Emirates post-NBA. The 32-year old played for Champville of the Lebanese Basketball League last season.

Mike Dunleavy undergoes back surgery

Bulls forward Mike Dunleavy successfully underwent a low back microdiscectomy procedure earlier today at Rush University Medical Center. Dunleavy had experienced some occasional back discomfort over the summer which had recently worsened. Conservative measures failed to satisfactorily resolve his symptoms, therefore, the decision was made to perform the surgery. The timing is unfortunate, but it was imperative that all conservative measures were exhausted prior to making this decision. He is expected to be out 8-10 weeks.