Month: January 2018

Nets sign James Webb III to two-way contract, waive Jacob Wiley.

The Brooklyn Nets have signed forward James Webb III to a two-way contract. In a related move, the Nets have requested waivers on forward Jacob Wiley.

Webb (6’9”, 202) joins Brooklyn from the NBA G League’s Delaware 87ers. In 21 games (13 starts) with the 87ers this season, Webb has recorded averages of 11.6 points, 6.7 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.3 steals in 27.3 minutes per contest. He also appeared in 39 games (all starts) for Delaware last season and holds career NBA G League averages of 12.6 points, 8.4 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.3 steals in 32.2 minutes per game across 60 career games (52 starts).

Prior to his time in the NBA G League, Webb played two collegiate seasons at Boise State (2014-16), where he earned All-Mountain West First Team honors as a redshirt junior (2015-16) and Mountain West Newcomer of the Year, All-Mountain West Second Team, and All-Mountain West Defensive Team honors as a redshirt sophomore (2014-15). In 63 career games (57 starts) with the Broncos, Webb averaged 13.5 points, 8.6 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 1.3 steals in 29.1 minutes per contest. The Augusta, Ga., native also played one season (2012-13) at North Idaho College prior to playing at Boise State.

Wiley originally signed a two-way contract with Brooklyn on August 14. In five games with Brooklyn this season, Wiley recorded averages of 0.8 points, 2.2 rebounds and 0.4 assists in 6.7 minutes per game. He also appeared in 16 games with Brooklyn’s NBA G League affiliate, the Long Island Nets, averaging 7.8 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 20.6 minutes per contest.

Goran Dragic and Lou Williams named NBA Players of Week

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goran_dragic

The NBA announced today that Miami HEAT guard Goran Dragić was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week for week 13 (games played Monday, January 8 through Sunday, January 14). It is the fourth time Dragić has been named Player of the Week in his career, including the second time this season after also earning the honor on November 27. He has now become just the fourth player in the Eastern Conference to earn the award on multiple occasions this season and the first HEAT player to do so since LeBron James during the 2013-14 campaign. It also marks the 57th time in franchise history a HEAT player has earned the honor.

Dragić led the HEAT to a perfect 3-0 record for the week, helping to extend their current seven-game winning streak and their NBA-best 14 consecutive victories in January dating back to last season, after averaging 23.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.00 steals while shooting 50 percent from the field, including 46.2 percent from three-point range. He led the team in points in all three games, in assists and steals twice and minutes once. He scored at least 20 points in each contest, matching his season high for consecutive 20-point games. Additionally, he has led the team in assists 19 times and in scoring on 15 occasions this season, both team highs.

Dragić led off the week with a 24-point, 12-rebound double-double at Toronto on January 9, helping Miami to a 90-89 win, handing the Raptors just their second loss at home this season. He also dished out a team-high four assists in the contest while his 12 boards tied his career high. On the second night of a back-to-back set on the road, he scored a team-high 20 points while dishing out a game-high nine assists in a, 114-106, victory at Indiana, helping Miami snap a 10-game road losing streak to the Pacers. Dragić capped off the week scoring a game-high 25 points, including 11 in the fourth quarter in a, 97-79, win vs. Milwaukee on January 14.

lou williams

And, the league announced that L.A. Clippers guard Lou Williams has been named Western Conference Player of the Week for Week 13 (games played Monday, Jan. 8, through Sunday, Jan. 14). Goran Dragic of the Miami Heat was the Eastern Conference winner. This is Williams’ second Player of the Week award this season (Week 11) and the third of his career.

Williams helped the Clippers to a 4-0 week behind averages of 35.0 points, 4.8 assists and 1.50 steals, while shooting 45.7% from three-point range and 96.7% from the free-throw line in 36.5 minutes. He tallied an NBA best 140 points and scored at least 30 points in three of the team’s four games last week, highlighted by a 50-point performance at Golden State on Wednesday, Jan. 10. It was the highest scoring effort by any Clipper in a single game since Charles Smith tied a franchise record with 52 points on Dec. 1, 1990.

Now in his 13th NBA season, Williams is averaging career-highs in points (23.1), assists (4.9), three-point percentage (41.4%) and minutes (31.7) this season. He is currently the NBA’s leading bench scorer, averaging 21.8 points per game as a reserve, the highest scoring average of any bench player since Ricky Pierce averaged 23.0 points per game as a reserve in 1989-90.

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Hawks sign Andrew White III to two-way contract

The Atlanta Hawks have signed forward Andrew White III to a two-way contract. He will immediately join the team’s G League squad, the Erie BayHawks.

White III has played in 24 games (21 starts) this season for the Maine Red Claws of the NBA G League, averaging 16.0 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 34.0 minutes (.435 FG%, .400 3FG%, .855).

The rookie played five games at the MGM Resorts NBA Summer League with the Cleveland Cavaliers and spent training camp with the Boston Celtics, appearing in one preseason contest.

As a graduate student at Syracuse last season, White III put up a team-best 18.5 points, 4.6 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 1.1 assists in 37.2 minutes (.440 FG%, .401 3FG%, .837 FT%), starting all 34 games. He set a Syracuse single-season record with 109 three-pointers. White III was an All-ACC third team selection, and a member of the All-ACC Academic team.

In his senior season at Nebraska in 2015-16, he averaged 16.6 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 29.7 minutes (.481 FG%, .412 3FG%, .775 FT%) in 34 starts. He sat out his junior season after transferring from Kansas, where he played two years, appearing in 25 contests as a freshman and 19 games as a sophomore.

His father, Andrew Jr., played basketball at Morehouse College, while his younger brother, Andrien, plays collegiately at Charlotte. The Richmond, VA native will wear No. 4 with the Hawks.

The 2017-18 season marks the first year of two-way contracts in the NBA. Only players with three-or-fewer years of NBA experience are permitted to sign two-way contracts. Per league rules, teams are allowed to have up to two two-way players on their roster at any given time, in addition to their 15-man regular season roster. A two-way player for the Hawks will primarily play for the BayHawks but can spend up to 45 days with Atlanta (prorated based on when the player signs), not including any time prior to the start of Erie’s training camp and at the conclusion of their season.

Rockets sign R.J. Hunter to two-way contract

The Rockets yesterday (Sunday, January 14) signed free agent guard R.J. Hunter to a two-way contract.

Hunter (6-5, 185) was originally the 28th overall pick by Boston in the 2015 NBA Draft. Over the past two seasons, he appeared in 39 games for the Boston and Chicago, while also spending time in the NBA Development League.

This season, Hunter has been playing for the Rockets single-affiliation NBA G League partner Rio Grande Valley, averaging a team-high 19.2 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 1.7 steals. He is averaging the third-most 3-pointers made (3.7) of any G League player with at least 20 games played.

Hunter finished his collegiate career as Georgia State’s all-time leading scorer with 1,819 points in just three seasons. He was Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year in both 2013-14 and 2014-15.

Lakers sign Gary Payton II to two-way contract

 

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The Lakers signed guard Gary Payton II to a two-way contract today.

Payton II appeared in 12 games (six starts) for the Milwaukee Bucks this season while averaging 2.5 points and 1.4 rebounds in 8.8 minutes. Signed to a two-way contract with the Bucks, Payton II appeared in three NBA G League games for the Wisconsin Herd, averaging 18.3 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists.

Per NBA rules, teams are permitted to have up to two players under two-way contracts on their roster at any given time, in addition to their 15-man regular season roster. The Lakers roster stands at 16, with Payton II and guard Alex Caruso as two-way players.

Myles Turner out with elbow injuries

Myles Turner out with elbow injuries

Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner has been diagnosed with a ligament sprain and muscle strain in his right elbow. The injury occurred in the January 8 game against the Bucks.

Turner is currently outfitted with a brace for the elbow. The Pacers say he will miss the four remaining games of the current west coast trip and depending on how quickly the injury heals, he will be listed as week to week.

No surgery is required.

The Pacers are 23-20 so far this season, which puts them as the No. 6 seed in the Eastern conference. The team is led in scoring by shooting guard Victor Oladipo at 24.2 ppg. Turner is second, at 13.9 ppg, along with 6.5 rpg. Other Pacers averaging double-digit scoring are Bojan Bogdanovic, Darren Collison, Domantas Sabonis and Thaddeus Young.

Pistons sign Kay Felder and Reggie Hearn, waive Luis Montero

The Detroit Pistons today signed guards Kay Felder and Reggie Hearn to two-way contracts.

And in a related move, the club requested waivers on guard Luis Montero.

Felder, 5-9, 176, played 14 games with the Chicago Bulls this season and averaged 3.9 points, 1.4 assists and 1.0 rebounds in 9.6 minutes per game. In 56 career NBA games with the Bulls and Cleveland Cavaliers, Felder has averaged 3.9 points, 1.0 rebounds and 1.4 assists.

A Detroit native, Felder played collegiately at Oakland University for three seasons and averaged 17.5 points, 4.3 rebounds and 7.8 assists in 101 games. The former Pershing High School product earned NCAA All-America honors from The Associated Press during his junior season at Oakland (2015-16) where he averaged 24.4 points, and NCAA-leading 9.3 assists and 4.3 rebounds in 35 games.

Hearn, 6-5, 210, has played in 14 games (10 starts) with the Reno Bighorns of the NBA G League this season and averaged 14.7 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 30.7 minutes per game. The former Northwestern University product has played in 175 NBA G League games with the Idaho Stampede, Westchester Knicks and Bighorns averaging 10.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 26.7 minutes per game.

Per NBA rules, teams are permitted to have two Two-Way players on their roster at any given time, in addition to their 15-man regular season roster. Two-Way players for the Pistons will provide services primarily for the Grand Rapids Drive, the team’s G League affiliate, but can spend up to 45 days with the Pistons, not including any time prior to the start of the Drive’s training camp and at the conclusion of their season.

Grizzlies sign Myke Henry, waive Vince Hunter

The Memphis Grizzlies have signed guard/forward Myke Henry to a two-way contract, and waived forward Vince Hunter.

Henry (6-6, 238) has played each of the last two seasons with the Oklahoma City Thunder’s NBA G League affiliate, the Oklahoma City Blue. He has appeared in 26 games (one start) for the Blue this season and averaged 15.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.88 steals while shooting 53.0 percent from the field, 36.5 percent from three-point range and 73.9 percent from the free throw line. The 25-year-old Chicago native went unselected in the 2016 NBA Draft after finishing his collegiate career at DePaul University.

Signed to a two-way contract on Sept. 11, 2017, Hunter (6-8, 208) came off the bench in all four appearances for the Grizzlies and averaged 1.5 points in 1.8 minutes. The 23-year-old Detroit native competed in 13 games (nine starts) for the NBA G League’s Memphis Hustle and recorded 16.2 points, 8.6 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.31 blocks in 28.2 minutes.