Month: January 2016

Joel Embiid is still not playing this season

The Philadelphia 76ers are 4-37 this season and are still all about the future. Here’s The Intelligencer with an update on center Joel Embiid, whose NBA career so far has been spent on the injured list:

Joel Embiid is still not playing this season

Injured center Joel Embiid playing this season has “never been a consideration,” according to Jerry Colangelo.

During an oncourt interview prior to Thursday’s game against the Bulls, the 76ers’ chairman of basketball operations said that despite Embiid being ahead of schedule, the organization is targeting the outset of the 2016-17 season for him.

“No one’s rushing him back — there’s no reason to,” Colangelo said. “The goal and objective at the start of next season is to do everything we can do to get him in the best position to be successful. Because if he can hold up and he’s OK, he’s a game changer.”

Trevor Booker suffers concussion

Trevor Booker suffers concussion

The following is a medical update on Utah Jazz forward Trevor Booker:

Booker has been diagnosed with a concussion by the Jazz medical staff after being hit in the face at the 5:03 mark of the third quarter during tonight’s game vs. Sacramento.

Per the NBA’s Concussion Policy, Booker will now begin the NBA-mandated protocol for return-to-participation following a diagnosed concussion and his status moving forward is day-to-day.

Raptors beat Magic in London

Thursday in London, the Toronto Raptors beat the Orlando Magic 106-103 in overtime. In the win, Kyle Lowry scored 24 (on just 5-20 shooting), and had eight rebounds and seven assists. Cory Joseph was great off the bench, shooting 9-of-11 for 19 points. In the loss, Victor Oladipo scored 27, and Evan Fournier had 21. Here’s the Toronto Sun reporting:

A visit to the O2 just wouldn’t be right without overtime.

For the second time in three games here, the Raps found themselves providing a deserving English fan base a little more than they were actually entitled.

The last time it took triple overtime and it resulted in a loss to the then New Jersey Nets.

But this is a different Raptors team, a “relevant” team as Masai Ujiri likes to call them, and they proved their GM right with a professional overtime period that included timely shooting, some patient offence and some determined defence to pull out a 106-103 win over the Magic on Thursday.

The Magic had a match for the Kyle Lowry/DeMar DeRozan backcourt but they didn’t have the bench support or the defence the Raptors brought with them across the Atlantic.

And by the slimmest of margins, the Raptors will head back across that ocean with a well-deserved win.

Jarrett Jack undergoes ACL reconstruction surgery

Jarrett Jack undergoes ACL reconstruction surgery

Brooklyn Nets guard Jarrett Jack underwent anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction surgery this morning at the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan. The surgery was performed by Nets’ Medical Director, Dr. Riley J. Williams and Dr. David Altchek.

A full recovery is expected, and it’s anticipated that he will be ready to participate in full basketball activities for the 2016-17 season.

Jack, who sustained the injury during the second half of the Nets’ game at Boston on Saturday, January 2, played and started in 32 games for Brooklyn this season, and posted averages of 12.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and a team-high 7.4 assists per game.

Cavs continue to lead the East

With a 27-9 record, the Cleveland Cavaliers have the third best winning-percentage in the league. They are 4.5 games ahead of the Toronto Raptors in the Eastern conference standings. Last night in Dallas they hung on in overtime to beat the Mavericks. Here’s ESPN Cleveland with more:

The Cavs like their chances against anyone these days as they’ve now won 14 of their past 16 games to surge to the top record in the Eastern Conference by a 4.5-game lead over Toronto. As they entered into their toughest portion of the schedule all season on Tuesday — over a six-day stretch their schedule reads at Dallas, at San Antonio, at Houston (on a back-to-back) and home against the defending champion Golden State Warriors — the manner in which they beat the Mavs makes you think they’re ready for whatever comes next.

That’s not to say they’ll sweep the next three games of this murderer’s row to extend their streak to double digits while handing the Spurs their first home loss of the season in the process. It’s just that the way they approached the Dallas game seems like a solid formula for success along the way.

No, not the way they fell down 23-7 in the game’s first seven minutes. And not the way they settled for 44 3-pointers out of their 97 shots. But the way it was a true top-to-bottom type of effort. Seven of the nine players to see the court scored in double figures. Everyone took care of the ball, amassing only nine turnovers as a team in 53 minutes. Everyone shared the ball, too, notching 28 assists on their 40 made field goals.

Celtics lose 4th straight game

The Boston Celtics lost 120-114 in New York to the Knicks last night. Here’s the Boston Herald reporting:

The Celtics weren’t able to win last night, despite the fact the Knicks were without Carmelo Anthony for virtually the entire second half and rookie star Kristaps Porzingis fouled out with the Celts ahead by one and 2:44 left in the game.

Anthony sprained his right ankle late in the first half when he stepped on referee Rodney Mott. He tried to start the second half, but the Knicks had to call a timeout to remove him 19 futile seconds in.

The Celts also weren’t able to win with Isaiah Thomas scoring 34 points. That gives him a combined 69 in the past two games.

“He’s playing awfully well,” Stevens said. “My concern is we’ve lost them both.

Pistons unable to upset Spurs

As is usually the case in this era of the NBA, the San Antonio Spurs are one of the league’s best teams this season. On Tuesday they won their 9th game in a row. Here’s Michigan Live reporting:

Stan Van Gundy could only shake his head.

Tony Parker had just scored a season-high 31 points, newcomer LaMarcus Aldridge 25, and the aging San Antonio Spurs, playing some of the best basketball in the NBA today, handed the Detroit Pistons a 109-99 defeat Tuesday night in front of 14,273 at The Palace of Auburn Hills.

His team had only played to their potential half the time, Van Gundy said, making it a game down the stretch before the Spurs used their multiple scoring threats to bludgeon Detroit for good.

“Look. They’re very, very good,” Van Gundy said. “But we came out, started the game … we played hard with good energy, defended. Then they went to their bench and their bench destroyed us in the first half. Then our starters came with nothing to start the second half defensively. Absolutely nothing.”

Raphiael Putney is D-League Performer of Week

Raphiael Putney of the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, was today named NBA Development League Performer of the Week for games played Monday, Jan. 4 through Sunday, Jan. 10. The honor is the first of Putney’s career.

Putney (6-10, 255, Massachusetts) led Rio Grande Valley to a 2-1 week averaging 28.3 points (third in the league) on 47 percent shooting (29-of-62) to go with a league-leading 15.7 rebounds and 3.7 blocks (third).

For the season, Putney is averaging 20.3 points (tied for ninth in the league), 10.0 rebounds (fifth), 3.1 blocks (second) and 1.8 assists.

Other top performers considered include Bakersfield’s Xavier Munford, Delaware’s Sean Kilpatrick and Jordan McRae, Erie’s Keith Appling, Idaho’s Bryce Dejean-Jones, Iowa’s Alex Stepheson, Maine’s Terry Rozier (on assignment from the Boston Celtics), Oklahoma City’s Marquis Teague, Sioux Falls’ Josh Richardson (on assignment from the Miami Heat and Texas’ Brandon Ashley.

Cavs trade Joe Harris to Magic

Cavs trade Joe Harris

The Cleveland Cavaliers have acquired the Portland Trail Blazers’ protected 2020 second round pick from the Orlando Magic in exchange for guard Joe Harris, the Sacramento Kings’ 2017 protected second round pick, owned by the Cavaliers, and cash, Cavaliers General Manager David Griffin announced today.

This season, Harris appeared in five games for the Cavs and 10 games for the Canton Charge.

He was originally selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the second round (33rd overall pick) of the 2014 NBA Draft.

Today, Harris underwent successful surgery in Indianapolis on his right foot for excision of 5th metatarsal apophysis.

The Cavs roster now stands at 14.