Month: March 2018

Grizzlies sign Marquis Teague to 10-day contract

The Memphis Grizzlies signed guard Marquis Teague to a 10-day contract today. The move is a “Call-Up” from the NBA G League’s Memphis Hustle.

Teague (6-2, 180) started in all 47 of his games with the Hustle this season and averaged 17.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 6.1 assists in 32.5 minutes while shooting 45.5 percent from the field, 42.7 percent from three-point range and 78.2 percent from the free throw line. He has led the Hustle in total points, total assists and free throws made and attempted during the team’s inaugural season in the G League. In the month of March, Teague averaged 22.7 points, 3.0 rebounds and 7.8 assists in 34.7 minutes for the Hustle.

Selected in the first round (29th overall) of the 2012 NBA Draft following his freshman year at the University of Kentucky, Teague has appeared in 88 regular season games (three starts) during his two-year NBA career and has averaged 2.3 points, 1.0 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 9.5 minutes for the Chicago Bulls and Brooklyn Nets. The 25-year-old has appeared in 161 G League games (125 starts) and has averaged 15.6 points, 2.7 rebounds and 5.7 assists in 30.8 minutes for the Iowa Energy, Oklahoma City Blue, Fort Wayne Mad Ants and Memphis Hustle.

The Indianapolis, Indiana native also has played internationally for Ironi Nahariya in Israel (2016) and BC Avtodor Saratov in Russia (2016-17).

Bulls sign Jaylen Johnson

The NBA season is winding down, but teams are still adding to their benches. Even teams that won’t be in the playoffs.

Today, the Chicago Bulls signed forward Jaylen Johnson.

Johnson (6-9, 230) has played in 49 games (37 starts) this season for the Windy City Bulls. He holds G League averages of 11.7 points, 7.6 boards and 2.9 assists in 29.0 minutes per game.

Kyrie Irving out 3-6 weeks after knee procedure

Here’s what the Boston Celtics say about Kyrie Irving’s knee procedure:

Celtics guard Kyrie Irving today underwent a minimally-invasive procedure to remove a tension wire in his left knee. The wire was originally placed as part of the surgical repair of a fractured patella sustained during the 2015 NBA Finals. While removal of the wire should relieve irritation it was causing in Irving’s patellar tendon, the fractured patella has fully healed and Irving’s knee has been found to be completely structurally sound. Irving is expected to return to basketball activities in 3-6 weeks.

Lakers sign Travis Wear for rest of season

The Lakers signed forward Travis Wear for the remainder of the season today.

Wear has averaged 4.8 points, 2.2 rebounds and 12.1 minutes in 10 games since signing the first of two 10-day contracts with the Lakers on March 2. Initially called up from the South Bay Lakers, the Huntington Beach native is shooting 40.0 percent from three-point range.

The Lakers roster stands at 16, including two two-way players.

Bulls guard Antonio Blakeney will miss remainder of season

Bulls guard Antonio Blakeney underwent an MRI today on his left wrist, followed by an examination by the team’s hand specialist, Dr. John Fernandez. Initially diagnosed with a left wrist sprain, the MRI confirmed that he sustained a non-displaced scaphoid fracture in his left wrist. As a result of the injury, Blakeney will miss the remainder of the season.

Blakeney incurred the injury in Chicago’s game at New York on Monday night. A two-way player who split time this season between the Bulls and the Windy City Bulls, Blakeney saw action in 19 games with Chicago and averaged 7.9 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 16.5 minutes.

Mavericks sign Aaron Harrison to 10-day contract

The Dallas Mavericks have signed guard Aaron Harrison to a 10-day contract.

Harrison (6-6, 210) went undrafted in the 2015 NBA Draft and joined the Charlotte Hornets at the Orlando Pro Summer League. The Hornets signed him to a mulit-year contract on July 14, 2015. In two seasons with Charlotte, Harrison saw action in 26 games and averaged 0.7 points and 0.7 rebounds in 4.2 minutes per contest. He was waived by the Hornets on January 3, 2017.

This season, Harrison is averaging 18.7 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 26.9 minutes in 41 games while shooting .437 from the floor, .425 from behind-the- arc and .839 from the foul line with the Reno Bighorns of the NBA G-League. On Saturday, the shooting guard registered a 45-point effort in the Bighorns loss to the Oklahoma City Blue. In that game, Harrison knocked down 8 three-pointers while also collecting 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals.

The Richmond, Texas native was a two-year player at Kentucky and helped lead the Wildcats to back-to- back Final Four appearances. He played 79 games (78 starts) as a Wildcat and had career collegiate averages of 12.4 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 29.2 minutes per contest. As a senior at Fort Bend Travis High School, Harrison and his twin brother, Andrew, were both named McDonald’s All-Americans. Andrew currently plays for the Memphis Grizzlies.

Harrison will wear number 9 for the Mavericks.

Dwight Howard suspended due to techs

Charlotte Hornets center Dwight Howard has been suspended one game without pay for receiving his 16th technical foul of the 2017-18 season, it was announced today by Kiki VanDeWeghe, Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations.

Under NBA rules, a player or coach is automatically suspended without pay for one game once he receives his 16th technical foul during a regular season. For every two additional technical fouls received during that regular season, the player or coach will be automatically suspended without pay for an additional game.

Howard received his most recent technical foul with 10:48 remaining in the third quarter of the Hornets’ 111-105 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on March 21 at Barclays Center. Howard will serve his suspension March 22 when the Hornets play host to the Memphis Grizzlies at Spectrum Center.

Hawks sign Jaylen Morris to multi-year contract

The Atlanta Hawks have signed rookie guard Jaylen Morris to a multi-year contract. He was previously signed to consecutive 10-day contracts on February 28 and March 11.

Morris is averaging 4.7 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 16.4 minutes in six games with Atlanta after posting 12.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.2 steals in 31.4 minutes in 39 appearances (all starts) earlier this season with Erie, the Hawks’ NBA G League affiliate.

Derrick Favors out with knee soreness

The Jazz (40-30) have been one of the hottest teams in the league of late, and are on a 9-game winning streak. Starting power forward Derrick Favors is contributing 12.0 points and 7.2 rebounds per game this season. The Jazz should be fine without his services against the lowly Hawks. Still, better that he be healthy, of course. Here’s the Deseret News reporting:

Atlanta’s own Derrick Favors won’t be facing his hometown Hawks on Tuesday night.

The Utah Jazz forward will miss the game with left knee soreness.

Favors isn’t the only one on Utah’s injury list: Backup point guard Raul Neto won’t be playing for the fourth consecutive game with a left wrist fracture and rookie center Tony Bradley is still in the concussion protocol.

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Russell Westbrook having another monster season

Russell Westbrook has some big-name players alongside him in OKC this season, but he’s still been a one-man wrecking crew, and again flirting with a triple-double as a season average, after accomplishing that incredible task last season. For more on his 2017-18 campaign, here’s the Oklahoman reporting:

But even as Oklahoma City seeks to extend its six-game winning streak in Boston on Tuesday after an attention-grabbing triumph at Toronto on Sunday, Westbrook is a forgotten man in the MVP conversation. There’s talk about Anthony Davis and LeBron James and DeMar DeRozan and Kyrie Irving and Damian Lillard belonging on the ballot with Harden. Those guys deserve a spot in the MVP discourse. All of them are having great seasons.

But so is Westbrook.

He could average a triple double again this season.

Yes, the seemingly unattainable height that he scaled last season is reachable once again. Only Oscar Robertson and Westbrook have ever averaged a triple double for a season, and no one has ever done it twice much less in back-to-back seasons.

But with less than a month left in the regular season, the possibility grows by the day.

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