March 2018 – Page 3 – NBA Blog

Lakers fall to Pacers, 110-100

The Lakers aren’t going to make the playoffs, but they’ve been a very solid team since the All-Star break, especially for a team built for the future. Here’s the Daily Breeze reporting on last night’s loss to the Pacers:

The injury bump has given way to the injury slump.

When first the Lakers had to respond to injuries to Brandon Ingram and Josh Hart, they did so admirably. They won games against the Miami Heat – the night Ingram went down – and San Antonio and Denver, all likely playoff teams. But gradually, the strain on the few healthy, remaining players has taken a toll too great to overcome, a fact forcefully punctuated by Monday’s 110-100 loss to the Indiana Pacers.

Luke Walton has seen it before. Lived it.

“Looking back to when I played,” Walton said, “If Kobe (Bryant) or someone like that, Lamar (Odom), was out, we’d all pick it up. But after three or four games, all those things that really good players make look easy, start to get a lot more difficult.”

Against the Pacers, the mundane was maddening. Passes sailed out of bounds and uncontested jumpers missed. The three starters in the Lakers’ frontcourt combined for 71 points, but their guards struggled.

Cavs sign Okaro White to 10-day contract

The Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday signed forward Okaro White to a 10-day contract.

White (6-8, 204) has played in six games (four starts) with the Miami Heat this season, averaging 3.3 points and 1.8 rebounds in 13.3 minutes per game. The second-year forward from Florida State has appeared in 41 career games (four starts) with the Heat with averages of 2.9 points and 2.3 rebounds in 13.4 minutes.

Prior to his stint with Miami, White was a NBA G League All-Star in 2016-17 after averaging 18.4 points and 8.7 rebounds in 33.0 minutes over his 23 appearances with the Sioux Falls Skyforce. He also played professionally with Aris B.C. of the Greek Basketball League where he was the Greek Basketball Player of the Year in 2015-16 and was a member of Virtus Pallacanestro Bologna in Italy in 2014-15.

Trail Blazers sign Georgios Papagiannis through next season

The Portland Trail Blazers have signed center Georgios Papagiannis to a contract through the 2018-19 season.

Originally signed to a 10-day contract on March 8, Papagiannis holds career averages of 4.2 points (51.0% FG, 85.7% FT), 3.2 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 12.4 minutes in 38 games over two seasons with the Sacramento Kings.

Selected by Phoenix with the 13th overall pick in the first round of the 2016 NBA Draft out of Greece, Papagiannis, 20, was dealt to Sacramento in a draft day trade.

In 33 games over two seasons with the NBA G League’s Reno Bighorns, Papagiannis (7-2, 240) posted averages of 13.7 points (51.3% FG, 77.2% FT), 8.6 rebounds, 0.7 assists, 2.24 blocked shots and 30.6 minutes.

Magic sign Rodney Purvis to second 10-day contract

The Orlando Magic signed guard Rodney Purvis to a second 10-day contract today.

Purvis (6’4”, 205, 2/14/94) has played in five games with Orlando, averaging 3.8 ppg. in 11.5 minpg. He appeared and started in 37 games this season for the Lakeland Magic, Orlando’s NBA G League affiliate, averaging 20.5 ppg., 4.0 rpg., 3.5 apg. and 1.35 stlpg. in 38.5 minpg. Purvis led the team in scoring 17 times and in assists 10 times. He scored in double figures 34 times and had 30+ points four times, including a season-high 40 points on Dec. 21 @ Westchester.

Purvis was selected to participate in the USA World Cup Qualifying Team training camp Feb. 15-20 and the G League International Challenge on Feb 18. After camp, Purvis was then selected to the 12-man team for the USA’s World Cup Qualifying first round, second-window games, including Cuba on Feb. 23 and Puerto Rico on Feb. 26 in Santa Cruz, Calif., where he averaged 13 ppg. in 23.0 minpg., while shooting 50 percent from the field. The FIBA World Cup Qualifying games are being used to qualify 31 of the 32 nations that will compete in the 2019 FIBA World Cup.

Purvis played in 137 career games (100 starts) during four years at both North Carolina State (2012-13) and the University of Connecticut (2014-17), averaging 11.6 ppg., 3.0 rpg. and 1.8 apg. in 29.1 minpg. Last season, he appeared in 33 games (32 starts), averaging 13.8 ppg., 4.2 rpg., 2.5 apg. and 1.03 stlpg. in 36.9 minpg. As a sophomore (2014-15), Purvis led the Huskies in scoring during the postseason, averaging 17.8 ppg., and was named to the 2015 American Athletic Conference’s All-Tournament Team.

Omri Casspi out with ankle sprain

Warriors forward Omri Casspi is expected to miss roughly a week with a sprained right ankle, according to a Yahoo Sports report.

After draining a seven-foot hook shot early in the second quarter of Friday night’s loss to Sacramento, Casspi came down awkwardly, rolling his right ankle. He was tended to by a team trainer before leaving the floor on his own power, ending his night with six points in six minutes.

— SF Chronicle

Pelicans rookie Frank Jackson will not play at all this season

Frank Jackson, the New Orleans Pelicans rookie guard whose draft rights were acquired from the Charlotte Hornets in the 2017 NBA Draft, will miss the entirety of his rookie season, coach Alvin Gentry said Saturday.

Jackson underwent surgery on his right foot Sept. 1 and was originally expected to return around January, a 3-4 month recovery. However, complications with his rehab delayed his return months beyond predicted.

The 19-year-old Duke product also underwent a procedure last May to correct a stress reaction in the same location. Jackson has missed all 68 games this season.

— The Advocate

Jazz sign David Stockton to 10-day contract

The Utah Jazz signed guard David Stockton to a 10-day contract today.

Stockton (5-11, 165, Gonzaga) joins the Jazz most recently from the NBA G League’s Reno Bighorns, where he has appeared in 39 games (15 starts), averaging 16.3 points, 5.2 assists, 3.2 rebounds and 1.8 steals in 28.2 minutes per game this season. He was also selected to the official 12-member 2017 USA Men’s World Qualifying Team, coached by Jeff Van Gundy, where he saw action in two wins against Cuba and Puerto Rico, owning averages of 8.5 points, 3.5 assists, 2.5 rebounds and 1.5 steals in 18.4 minutes per game.

The Spokane, Wash., native has additional NBA experience, signing a 10-day with the Kings on Feb. 20, 2015 and then to a multi-year contract by Sacramento on April 12, 2015. During his stint with the team, he saw action in three contests with averages of 2.7 points and 3.0 assists in 11.0 minutes.

Stockton has played in the NBA G League the past four seasons with the Reno Bighorns (2014-18), having averaged 18.0 points, 7.1 assists, 3.6 rebounds and 1.7 steals in 142 career games (106 starts). He was named to the 2015 All NBA D-League Rookie Second Team following his first professional season.

He has also competed internationally, having played with the New Zealand Breakers of Australia’s National Basketball League (2016-17), appearing in 10 games (six starts), averaging 8.3 points, 5.2 assists and 2.7 rebounds and Cedevita Zagreb of the Croatian ABA League (2016), where he averaged 13.8 points, 6.0 assists, 2.8 boards and 2.3 steals in league play.

Stockton was a four-year collegiate player at Gonzaga, appearing in 138 career games (39 starts), posting averages of 4.8 points, 3.1 assists, 1.6 rebounds and 1.2 steals in 19.9 minutes per game. In his senior season, he averaged 7.4 points, 4.2 assists, 2.4 rebounds and 1.5 steals in 27.8 minutes per game. He helped Gonzaga to four-straight NCAA Tournaments and earned 2014 All-WCC Tournament Team honors, helping the squad to a 2014 WCC Tournament Championship.

Stockton will wear No. 5 for the Jazz.

Raptors sign Nigel Hayes to second 10-day contract

The Toronto Raptors have signed forward Nigel Hayes to a second 10-day contract.

Hayes, 6-foot-8, 254 pounds, has appeared in two games for Toronto, scoring six points (2-2 FG, 2-2 3PT) in six minutes of action. Prior to joining the Raptors, Hayes split the season between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Westchester Knicks of the NBA G League.

Hayes signed a 10-day contract with the Lakers on Jan. 19, recording three points and two assists in 11 minutes in two games. He averaged 16.1 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 35.6 minutes in 38 games with the Knicks. Hayes shot .450 (227-for-505) from the field, .441 (94-for-213) from three-point range and .744 (64-for-86) at the free throw line. He scored 20-or-more points 10 times, including a season-high 37 points Nov. 7 at Delaware.

A native of Toledo, Ohio, Hayes played four seasons at Wisconsin (2013-17), averaging 12.4 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 29.6 minutes in 150 games. He finished his career ranked third on the school’s all-time scoring list (1,857) and is the only Badger in the top-10 in points, rebounds and assists. Hayes was selected All-Big Ten Third Team as a senior.

Rockets face competitive stretch of games

The Rockets’ game against the Clippers on Thursday began a stretch of games against teams that could be potential first-round matchups with the Rockets facing the Pelicans and Timberwolves Saturday and Sunday. They play the third-place Trail Blazers in Portland to complete the road trip.

Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni, however, said he not only does not experiment in any way with postseason matchups in mind – which was not surprising because he often said teams match up with the Rockets rather than the other way around – but also does not consider regular-season games particularly useful for gathering information.

— Houston Chronicle

Pelicans sign Larry Drew II to 10-day contract

The New Orleans Pelicans have signed free agent guard Larry Drew II to a 10-day contract.

Drew, 6-2, 180, has appeared in 35 games this season for the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA G League, posting averages of 11.8 points while shooting .401 from three-point range, 7.4 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.3 steals. Drew was also a member of the United States National Team that took home the gold medal at the 2017 FIBA AmeriCup.

Undrafted in 2013 out of UCLA, Drew has appeared in 15 career NBA games for Philadelphia, holding averages of 3.2 points, 3.1 assists and 1.1 rebounds in 15.6 minutes per contest. Additionally, Drew was a member of the Pelicans’ 2015 NBA Summer League Team in Las Vegas, where he earned All-NBA Summer League Second Team honors.

Drew will wear #1 for the Pelicans and be available for their game tonight in San Antonio. New Orleans’ roster currently stands at 16, including on two-way player (Charles Cooke).