September 2015 – Page 6 – NBA Blog

Anthony Bennett must prove NBA value soon

Anthony Bennett has gone from the first overall pick in the NBA Draft to an afterthought. It’s too early to totally write him off as an NBA player, but there’s no reason for optimism yet. He needs to emerge, and soon. Here’s the National Post reporting:

Anthony Bennett needs to prove NBA value soon

Anthony Bennett has been a disappointment thus far in his NBA career. It goes beyond the stigma of him being the first-overall pick in 2013, although that certainly is the biggest factor when it comes to public perception.

Bennett has been an unproductive NBA player, full stop. In his rookie season, he was out of shape thanks to off-season shoulder surgery, emerging as a lost player who endured an embarrassing scoreless streak. His second season, in Minnesota, was a bit better. Still, he missed 25 games, including a stretch due to an ankle injury, and fell out of favour with coach Flip Saunders. It was understandable, as Bennett remained totally unreliable on both ends of the floor.

Still, Monday’s news that Bennett might be on his way out of Minnesota in return for nothing still qualifies as a surprise.

Knicks sign guard Travis Trice

New York Knicks President Phil Jackson announced today that the team has signed guard Travis Trice.

Trice, 6-0, 170-pounds, averaged 15.3 points, 5.1 assists and 3.2 rebounds over 33.6 minutes in 39 games as a senior at Michigan State University. He averaged 19.0 points and 4.2 assists in leading the seventh-seeded Spartans to the Final Four of the 2015 NCAA Tournament and finished his career with 202 three-pointers, fifth best in school history. The Huber Heights, OH-native. appeared in seven 2015 Summer League games for Miami’s entry at Orlando and Las Vegas, averaging 4.4 points and 1.3 assists over 10.6 minutes.

Knicks sign DaJuan Summers

New York Knicks President Phil Jackson announced today that the team has signed forward DaJuan Summers.

Summers, 6-8, 240-pounds, holds career averages of 3.3 points and 1.0 rebounds over 9.9 minutes in 83 games (seven starts) over four seasons with Detroit, New Orleans and Los Angeles Clippers. He last played in the NBA for L.A. Clippers appearing in two games in 2012-13.

The Baltimore, MD-native, was originally selected by Detroit in the second round (35th overall) of the 2009 NBA Draft following three seasons at Georgetown University. He played overseas in each of the last two seasons for Gran Canaria in Spain (2014-15) and Budivelnyk Kyiv in Ukraine (2013-14). He has also played for Maine of the NBA Developmental League (2012-13) and in Italy for Siena (2011-12).

Pistons guard Darrun Hilliard had surgery to repair broken nose

The Detroit Pistons announced today that guard Darrun Hilliard underwent surgery to repair a broken nose suffered while playing pick-up basketball last week. The surgery was performed by Dr. Mike Rontal of Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, MI Campus. Hilliard will be fitted with a mask for the next three weeks and will continue all basketball-related activities.

Hilliard, 6-6, 205, was drafted 38th overall by the Pistons in the 2015 NBA Draft from Villanova University.

Timberwolves hosting free open scrimmage October 5

The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced the team is hosting a free open scrimmage at Target Center on Monday, Oct. 5 at 7 p.m. Due to the overwhelming popularity of the Wolves’ previous open scrimmage this summer, fans will need to reserve their seats in advance exclusively at www.timberwolves.com starting at 10 a.m. on Sept. 23. A maximum of six free tickets are available per order.

The scrimmage tips off the 2015 Timberwolves Training Camp and features the team’s full roster. Target Center doors open at 6 p.m., and concessions and merchandise stands will be open. Season members will have access to a VIP seating area.

Spurs hire Jacque Vaughn as pro scout

The San Antonio Spurs today announced that Jacque Vaughn has been added to the front office. The former Spurs player and assistant coach will return to San Antonio as a pro scout.

Vaughn spent the last three seasons as head coach of the Orlando Magic (2012-15) and was the second-youngest head coach in the league when he was hired in 2012. Prior to leading Orlando, he spent two seasons (2010-12) as an assistant coach under Gregg Popovich for the Silver and Black.

In his 12-year NBA playing career, Vaughn appeared in a total of 776 games and averaged 4.5 points and 2.5 assists. The former Kansas Jayhawk was drafted by the Utah Jazz in the first round of the 1997 NBA Draft (27th overall) and played his first four seasons in Salt Lake City. He then made stops with the Hawks, Magic and Nets before signing with the Spurs on July 12, 2006. Vaughn played his final three seasons in San Antonio and was part of the Spurs 2007 NBA Championship team before retiring after the 2008-09 season.

Blazers promote Jim Moran to assistant coach

The Portland Trail Blazers have promoted Jim Moran to assistant coach on Head Coach Terry Stotts’ staff, it was announced today by President of Basketball Operations Neil Olshey.

“I am excited to add Jim to our coaching staff,” said Stotts. “He is a young coach with a bright future. He has a terrific work ethic coupled with a refreshing personality. He has already demonstrated a unique ability to work with our players and he will add a new perspective for us.”

Moran joins a staff that includes fellow assistant coaches Jay Triano, David Vanterpool, Nate Tibbetts and Dale Osbourne.

Moran begins his first year on the Trail Blazers bench in 2015-16 after spending last season in Portland as an associate video coordinator. A player development coach for the Maine Red Claws of the NBA Development League in 2013, Moran played his entire professional career for CB Gran Canaria in the Spanish ACB League from 2001-11.

He is the only player in team history to have his number retired by Gran Canaria, finishing his career with 2,060 points, 802 rebounds and 321 assists. Moran played collegiately at William & Mary, where he was twice named to the All-Colonial Athletic Association Team his junior and senior seasons. A native of Syosset, New York, Moran played for the Irish Men’s National Team from 2001-06.

Dan Craig to coach Sioux Falls Skyforce

Here’s the South Florida Sun Sentinel reporting some Heat-related coaching developments:

The Miami Heat coaching staff again will be reshuffled this season, with assistant coach Dan Craig taking over as coach of the team’s NBA Development League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce, an NBA source confirmed Sunday to the Sun Sentinel.

Craig, who has guided the Heat’s summer-league teams in recent seasons, takes over for Phil Weber, who guided the Skyforce to the NBDL playoffs last season before joining the New Orleans Pelicans staff of former Heat coach Alvin Gentry.

With the move, Chris Quinn, who served as an assistant coach last season with the Skyforce will move to a permanent role on Erik Spoelstra’s Heat staff.

Raptors 905 holds open tryouts

Here’s the Toronto Star reporting on the Raptors 905 D-League team, which recently gave anybody and everybody a chance to show they’re worthy of being on the squad:

At the open tryout for the Raptors 905 NBA D-League team, class shows quickly.

There’s Tut Ruach, a Mississauga high school hoops legend, stripping the ball from an overmatched guard and making the pass that leads to a basket. On an adjacent court at the University of Toronto Mississauga, former Dalhousie standout Robert Nortmann throws down a thunderous dunk over an opponent’s outstretched arms.

Other players’ lack of pedigree is revealed in seconds. A skinny guard with a bushy moustache spends nearly an entire scrimmage lingering beneath the goal, leaving his team shorthanded on defence and waiting on a pass he can flip into the goal. When he finally gets his shot, an opponent swats it away.

Seventy-five men answered the Raptors 905’s open casting call, with nearly as many skill levels on display Saturday. Coaches will winnow that pack to a more select group for further evaluation Sunday, and up to five players can leave this weekend with an invite to the Raptors farm team’s training camp in early November.

Warriors offer Harrison Barnes extension

Harrison Barnes is good, but how good? Here’s Yahoo Sports reporting on the Warriors, who are offering a sizable contract extension to the 6-8, 225-pound small forward. Barnes has talent but is a role player on this team, so it’ll be interesting to see if the two sides can come to an eventual agreement.

The Golden State Warriors delivered forward Harrison Barnes an initial four-year, $64 million contract extension proposal, league sources told Yahoo Sports.

The $16 million annual offer wasn’t accepted, but appears to be a starting point in talks that could last until the Oct. 31 deadline for rookie extensions.

The Warriors are trying to prevent Barnes from reaching restricted free agency in July 2016, when a rising salary cap and scores of teams with financial flexibility will couple with Barnes’ burgeoning talent and potential to make him a significant target on the market.