April 2017 – Page 4 – NBA Blog

Cavs sign Dahntay Jones and Edy Tavares

The Cleveland Cavaliers have signed guard Dahntay Jones and center Edy Tavares, Cavaliers General Manager David Griffin announced today from Cleveland Clinic Courts.

Jones (6-6, 225) last played for the Cavaliers in 2015-16, appearing in one regular season game and 15 playoff games during the team’s title run. Over his 12-year NBA career, he holds averages of 5.4 points and 1.7 rebounds in 15.7 minutes over 623 contests (157 starts) with Memphis, Sacramento, Denver, Indiana, Dallas, Atlanta, L.A. Clippers and Cleveland.

Tavares (7-3, 265) has spent most of this season playing for Raptors 905 where he averaged 10.6 points, 7.7 rebounds and a league-best 2.7 blocks in 23.7 minutes over 48 contests and was a 2017 D-League All-Star selection. He also played in one game for Atlanta earlier this season. Tavares was originally drafted by the Hawks as the 43rd overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft and saw action in 11 games in 2015-16 with averages of 2.3 points and 1.9 rebounds in 6.6 minutes.

Gerald Henderson, Paul George fined by NBA

Paul George and Gerald Henderson fined by NBA

Indiana Pacers forward Paul George and Philadelphia 76ers guard Gerald Henderson have each been fined $25,000, it was announced today by Kiki VanDeWeghe, Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations.

George has been fined for public criticism of the officiating following the Pacers’ 120-111 win over the 76ers on Monday, April 10 at Wells Fargo Center.

Henderson has been fined for his Flagrant Foul 2, for throwing an elbow to the head of George with 2:59 remaining in the fourth quarter of the same game.

To view the on-court incident, click on this link.

Cavs waive Larry Sanders

The Cleveland Cavaliers have waived center Larry Sanders, Cavaliers General Manager David Griffin announced today.

Sanders played in five games for the Cavs this season and four games for the Canton Charge this season.

This was his big NBA comeback attempt. It was not a success, though at least it got Sanders back on the league radar.

The Cavaliers roster now stands at 13.

New Timberwolves logo revealed

The Timberwolves unveiled a new team logo tonight at halftime of their final home game of the season against Oklahoma City. The new logo will be implemented beginning with the 2017-18 season.

“I can’t think of a better way to celebrate this new era of Timberwolves basketball than with the unveiling of our new logo, in front of our dedicated fans, on Fan Appreciation Night,” said Timberwolves CEO Ethan Casson. “This new logo embodies the emerging culture of our franchise, a solid mark that grounds us in our heritage while adding bold new hues that light an exciting path forward. This mark will bind our fans as a pack and together we will focus on growing and building something special at this turning point in Timberwolves history.”

The logo was created over the past 12 months as part of a collaborative effort between the Timberwolves ownership, team executives, the NBA and Mississippi-based design expert Rodney Richardson of RARE Design, whose resume includes recent identity designs for NBA’s Charlotte Hornets, New Orleans Pelicans, Atlanta Hawks, Sacramento Kings and various brands across the world of sports and entertainment.

“It was an honor to work with the Timberwolves on creating this new identity and I’m glad to finally share a piece of our work with the public,” said Richardson. “I learned so much about this great state through the process and my team worked hard to create a logo that Minnesotans could be proud of, one that reflects the hard working, progressive and innovative people of this state.”

The colors include midnight blue, aurora green, lake blue, moonlight grey and frost white.

“From the motion and vibrant hues of the Northern Lights, to the depths and reflections of a midnight forest, to the rich contrasts of this great frozen city of the north, the palette is the perfect representation of modern sport colors inspired by the story of Minnesota’s landscape,” said Richardson. “It’s color with a sense of place.”

Malik Rose name GM of Erie BayHawks

The Atlanta Hawks have announced the promotion of Malik Rose to General Manager of the Erie BayHawks, Atlanta’s NBA Development League affiliate beginning next season. In addition to his general manager responsibilities, he will maintain his current role within the Hawks basketball operations team.

“We are pleased to announce Malik as the first general manager of our development league franchise. We have been consistent in expressing our belief in the importance of the NBA Development League as we have benefitted greatly from its player and staff development,” President of Basketball Operations/Head Coach Mike Budenholzer said. “Malik will do an excellent job setting the foundation of our basketball operations culture and system in Erie.”

The Hawks and the D-League had previously announced that Atlanta’s new team will play in Erie the next two seasons before permanently relocating to a newly-constructed arena in College Park, GA prior to the 2019-20 season.

“Malik continues to play an invaluable role in our front office and the added responsibility of managing the day-to-day operations of our D-League expansion is a natural progression for both Malik and the Hawks,” Hawks General Manager Wes Wilcox said. “We look forward to a successful 2017-18 season in the NBA Gatorade League and to our upcoming relocation to College Park in 2019.”

Eight current Hawks have NBA D-League experience, including starters Kent Bazemore and Dennis Schröder, while assistant coaches Darvin Ham and Taylor Jenkins both began their coaching careers on NBA D-League benches. Additionally, Hawks GM Wes Wilcox served as the inaugural general manager of the NBA D-League’s Canton Charge while Hawks’ Director of Player Personnel John Treloar served as the first head coach in franchise history for the Erie BayHawks.

“I’m thankful to Tony Ressler, our ownership team, Coach Bud and Wes for trusting me with this great opportunity. We have utilized the Development League extensively over the past two seasons, and in that time, we have seen the incredible value in the D-League,” Rose said. “I look forward to helping to establish our D-League operation and cannot wait to get started.”

A 13-year NBA veteran as a player, Rose appeared in 813 regular season games with the Charlotte Hornets, San Antonio Spurs, New York Knicks and Oklahoma City Thunder, where he averaged 6.2 points and 4.1 rebounds in 16.5 minutes. Rose was drafted by Charlotte in the second round (44th overall) of the 1996 NBA Draft. He also appeared in 82 playoff games. Rose won NBA championships with the Spurs in 1999 and 2003.

After retiring from playing in the NBA, Rose worked as a color commentator, including for his hometown Philadelphia 76ers. He also worked in broadcasting for the Thunder, Spurs, Knicks, Austin of the NBA D-League, NBA TV and NBA Radio from 2005-10.

A Philadelphia, PA native, Rose played collegiately at Drexel University from 1992-96, where he earned degrees in Computer Information Systems and Education with a Mathematics Certification. He also has a Master’s in Sports Management.

Mavericks add DeAndre Liggins

The Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday were awarded guard DeAndre Liggins via a waiver claim.

Liggins (6-6, 209) was originally drafted by the Orlando Magic with the 53rd overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft. He holds career averages of 2.0 points, 1.4 rebounds, 0.6 assists and 9.8 minutes in 118 career games (20 starts) with Orlando, Oklahoma City, Miami and Cleveland.

Liggins most recently spent the majority of the year with the Cavaliers. This season in Cleveland, he saw action in 61 games (19 starts) and averaged 2.4 points, 1.7 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 12.3 minutes per contest. The Cavaliers requested waivers on Liggins this past Sunday.

The Chicago native played three seasons at the University of Kentucky. As a junior, Liggins averaged 8.6 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 31.6 minutes as a starter while helping lead the Wildcats to the NCCA Final Four in Houston.

Liggins will wear number 14 for the Mavericks.

Pelicans sign Axel Toupane for rest of season

The New Orleans Pelicans today signed guard/forward Axel Toupane (pronounced too-PON) for the remainder of the 2016-17 season, which ends Wednesday.

Toupane, 6-7, 210, most recently played for Raptors 905 of the NBA Development League. In 36 games, Toupane has averaged 16.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.1 steals in 27.6 minutes per contest for the 905. Undrafted in 2014, the French native has appeared in 23 career regular season games with Milwaukee and Denver, averaging 3.3 points and 1.3 rebounds in 13.5 minutes per game.

Toupane will wear #10. New Orleans’ roster now stands at 15.

Lakers winning, but when losing would help Draft Lottery odds

Here’s ESPN LA reporting on the Lakers, whose young squad is finally putting together some wins, but at a questionable time when taking the future of the franchise into consideration:

As the 3-pointer left D’Angelo Russell’s fingertips and lofted through the air, the game, as well as the Los Angeles Lakers’ draft odds, hung in the balance.

When the ball bounced on the lip of the rim and fell through, Staples Center erupted, which is the appropriate reaction when the home team wins.

But with the 110-109 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Lakers’ fourth in a row, Los Angeles (25-55) missed an opportunity to make ground on the Phoenix Suns (24-57), who had defeated the Dallas Mavericks earlier in the night, as the Lakers battle to keep their top-three protected 2017 lottery pick.

For the first time since the 2012-13 season, when they won their final five games of the season, the Lakers have won four games in a row. This should be a cause for celebration — but these wins are coming at the worst possible time. With two games remaining on the Lakers’ schedule, and one for the Suns, their respective fates are likely set, which means the Lakers will head to New York on May 16 for the 2017 draft lottery with the third-best odds at the No. 1 overall pick and a 48.6 percent chance of keeping their lottery pick.

Suns sign Elijah Millsap

The Phoenix Suns have signed guard Elijah Millsap to a multiyear contract. The two-year NBA veteran played with the Northern Arizona Suns this season and was the Suns’ NBA Development League affiliate’s leading scorer in the team’s inaugural campaign.

A 6-6, 215-pound guard, Millsap averaged 4.2 points and 2.8 rebounds in 16.4 minutes over 67 games in two seasons with the Utah Jazz from 2014-16. Millsap has six double-digit scoring performances in his NBA career with a high of 17 points versus the L.A. Lakers on Feb. 25, 2015.

The 49th GATORADE Call-Up in the NBA this season, Millsap averaged a team-high 19.7 points in addition to 7.9 rebounds and 4.0 assists in 50 games (all starts) with the NAZ Suns this season. The 29-year-old led the NAZ Suns with 13 double-doubles and had the highest-scoring game in team history with a career-high 38 points in the season finale at Reno on April 1. This marked Millsap’s sixth NBA D-League season as he also played with Tulsa in 2010-11, Los Angeles from 2011-14 and Bakersfield in 2014-15. A 2012 NBA D-League All-Star, Millsap has averaged 18.1 points, 6.6 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 205 total D-League appearances.

A native of Grambling, Louisiana, Millsap began his college career at Louisiana-Lafayette before playing his final season at UAB where he earned All-Conference USA first-team honors after averaging 16.1 points and 9.5 rebounds in 2009-10. In addition to his time in the NBA and D-League, Millsap has played professionally for clubs in Israel and the Philippines. He is the younger brother of Atlanta Hawks forward and four-time NBA All-Star Paul Millsap.

Millsap will wear number 22. The Suns’ roster now stands at 15

Tony Romo joining Dallas Mavericks for a day

The Dallas Mavericks had a rough season and face an uncertain future, but for one day they’re going to have fun and let Tony Romo, a football player, suit up and presumably amuse the fans. Here’s the Dallas Morning News reporting:

Tony Romo’s football career appears to be over, but he’ll be a professional athlete for at least one more game.

Sources have confirmed an ESPN report that Romo will be a Dallas Maverick for a day.

Romo will be in full uniform for the Mavericks’ final home game of the season Tuesday night against the Denver Nuggets. The former Cowboys franchise quarterback has frequently attended Mavericks games throughout his NFL career.