Month: March 2018

Bucks sign Brandon Jennings to 10-day contract

The Milwaukee Bucks have signed guard Brandon Jennings to a 10-day contract.

Jennings, 28, most recently played for the Wisconsin Herd, the NBA G League affiliate of the Milwaukee Bucks. In seven games with the Herd, Jennings averaged 21.4 points, 7.6 assists, 4.7 rebounds and 1.6 steals in 37.0 minutes per contest. He was acquired by the Herd on Feb. 13.

Prior to his stint in the G League, Jennings played with Shanxi Zhongyu in the Chinese CBA. He appeared in 13 games, averaging 27.9 points, 6.8 assists, 5.1 rebounds and 2.7 steals per game.

The Bucks selected Jennings with the 10th overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft. The 6-1, 170-pound guard appeared in 291 games with Milwaukee over four seasons and averaged 17.0 points, 3.4 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.5 steals per game. Jennings recorded a franchise-rookie-record 55-point game with the Bucks on Nov. 14, 2009 vs. Golden State.

An eight-year NBA veteran, Jennings has played in 541 career games (429 starts) with Milwaukee, Detroit, Orlando, New York and Washington. He holds career averages of 14.3 points, 5.7 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game.

Mavericks sign Jameel Warney to 10-day contract

The Dallas Mavericks have signed forward Jameel Warney to a 10-day contract.

Warney (6-8, 260) joins Dallas after spending the past two seasons (2016-18) with the Mavericks’ G-League affiliate, the Texas Legends. He owns career G-League averages of 18.5 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.1 steals, 1.2 blocks and 32.1 minutes per game in 84 games (69 starts).

In 40 games (35 starts) for Texas in 2017-18, Warney averaged 19.8 points, 9.5 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.2 blocks in 35.3 minutes per game. He was one of two Legends named to the Midseason All-NBA G League team (along with Mavericks two-way forward Johnathan Motley).

The 6-8 power forward played for the U.S. national team at the 2017 FIBA AmeriCup, where he took home MVP honors after leading Team USA to a gold medal finish. He also helped Team USA to two FIBA World Cup Qualifying wins this past November. In recognition of his performances, Warney was named the 2017 USA Basketball Male Athlete of the Year.

Before joining the Legends, Warney spent the 2016 training camp with Dallas. He averaged 4.0 points, 2.7 rebounds and 9.2 minutes per game in three preseason games. Warney also played for Dallas’ 2016 Vegas summer league team and the Mavericks’ 2017 Orlando summer league squad.

The New Brunswick, N.J., native went undrafted in the 2016 NBA Draft after four seasons at Stony Brook, where he finished as the winningest player in program history. He also finished as the school’s all-time leader in points (2,132), rebounds (1,275), blocks (275) and games played (135). Warney was named the America East Conference Player of the Year in each of his final three seasons at Stony Brook (2014-16).

As a senior in 2015-16, he averaged 19.8 points (.628 FG), 10.8 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 3.0 blocks and 32.9 minutes per game in 33 games for the Seawolves. He led the America East Conference in scoring (19.0 ppg), rebounding (10.7 rpg), blocks (3.0 bpg) and field goal percentage (.627) that year. Warney also led Stony Brook to its first ever NCAA Tournament appearance in 2016 by scoring a school-record 43 points in the America East Tournament championship game.

Warney will wear No. 32 for the Mavericks.

Lakers sign Derrick Williams to 10-day contract

Derrick Williams’ NBA career isn’t over just yet. Not for the next week and a half, at least.

The Los Angeles Lakers signed Williams to a 10-day contract today.

Williams, a forward, most recently appeared in 15 games (six starts) for the Tianjin Gold Lions of the Chinese Basketball Association, averaging 20.0 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. Formerly the second overall selection in the 2011 NBA Draft, Williams holds career averages of 8.9 points and 4.0 rebounds in 426 games (112 starts) with Minnesota, Sacramento, New York, Miami and Cleveland.

The Lakers roster stands at 17, including two two-way players.

Michael Carter-Williams suffers season-ending shoulder injury

Michael Carter-Williams suffers season-ending shoulder injury

Hornets guard Michael Carter-Williams has suffered a posterior labral tear in his left shoulder. The injury was confirmed after Carter-Williams underwent an MRI and was examined by Hornets team orthopedist Dr. Marc Cook of Novant Health. The injury occurred with 4:05 left in the second quarter of Charlotte’s game at Toronto on March 4.

Carter-Williams will undergo surgery to address the injury and will miss the remainder of the season.

In his first season with the Hornets, Carter-Williams has appeared in 52 games and is averaging 4.6 points and 2.7 rebounds in 16.1 minutes per game. In 287 career games, he has averaged 11.5 points and 4.7 rebounds per game.

Blazers sign Georgios Papagiannis to 10-day contract

The Portland Trail Blazers on Thursday signed center Georgios Papagiannis to a 10-day contract.

Papagiannis, 20, 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.

Originally selected by Phoenix with the 13th overall pick in the first round of the 2016 NBA Draft out of Greece, Papagiannis 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.

He will wear No. 19 for the Trail Blazers.

Timberwolves lose 3rd straight game

The Timberwolves, playing without Jimmy Butler, are struggling lately. Here’s the St Paul Pioneer Press reporting on what went down Thursday:

With five off days to prepare for a pivotal March contest played in front of their home crowd at Target Center and in front of the country on national television, the Timberwolves managed to come out flat.

The Wolves fell 117-109 to Boston on Thursday, marking their first three-game losing streak of the season — which unsurprisingly has come without Jimmy Butler. That streak is in serious danger of running to four with the Warriors coming to town Sunday.

Something needs to change between now and then. And that change is going to have to revolve around the Wolves’ effort. They were outclassed in that department on Thursday by Boston. Boston had 18 second chance points to Minnesota’s nine. The Celtics (46-20) had 14 fast break points to Minnesota’s two.

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Jaylen Brown seems mostly okay after scary fall

Like a ton of NBA players who can defy gravity, Jaylen Brown is extremely athletic. Sometimes, the ability to fly high in the air can result in a scary crash landing. His fall Thursday was frightening. Fortunately, hours later, Brown mostly seems alright, though an official diagnosis from the team will likely come tomorrow. Here’s WEEI reporting:

Celtics guard Jaylen Brown left the floor under his own power and waved to the fans after suffering a brutal fall onto his head and neck following a breakaway dunk in Thursday’s victory over the Timberwolves.

Brown remained on the floor as a hush fell over the arena after throwing down a dunk with 1:31 left in the third quarter while being fouled. He attempted to hang onto the rim to catch himself, but lost his grip and fell with his body parallel to the floor. Celtics teammates prayed nearby as Brown’s body seized up and he appeared dazed virtually to the point of unconsciousness.

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And here’s the Boston Herald:

Brown went down hard after the jam with 1:31 left in the period. He was fouled on the play by Andrew Wiggins and appeared to grasp the rim for an extra beat. His momentum carried his lower body forward, and he came down on his back, neck and head.

Al Horford immediately rushed over and made sure Brown stayed down until help arrived. Marcus Smart kneeled in seeming prayer on the sideline by the C’s bench. A stretcher was wheeled out while the crowd remained quiet. Brown eventually stood and was able to walk to the Celts dressing room as the crowd erupted in applause.

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Timberwolves sign Derrick Rose

Derrick Rose isn’t done with basketball just yet.

The Minnesota Timberwolves signed Rose, a former league MVP, on Thursday.

Rose, a 6-3 guard, appeared in 16 games (seven starts) with Cleveland this season, averaging 9.8 points, 1.8 rebounds in 19.3 minutes per game. He was traded to Utah in a three-team deal on Feb. 8 before being waived by the Jazz on Feb. 10. A three-time All-Star, Rose has averaged 19.2 points on 45.1% shooting and 5.8 assists in 486 games over nine seasons. His best season came in 2010-11, when under Tom Thibodeau he became the youngest player to win the NBA’s Most Valuable Player Award after averaging 25.0 points and 7.7 assists, while leading the Chicago Bulls to the best record in the NBA and the Eastern Conference Finals.

Magic sign Rodney Purvis to 10-day contract

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

Purvis (6’4”, 205, 2/14/94) has played 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. As of March 7, he ranks eighth in the NBA G League in points per game and second in minutes per game. He has led the team in scoring 17 times and in assists 10 times. The first-year player out of Connecticut has reached double figures in 34 games and has scored 30 points four times, including a season-high 40 points on Dec. 21, 2017 at Westchester.

Purvis was recently 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 training 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.

Purvis will wear No. 15 with Orlando.

The Magic roster now stands at 17 players.

Another injury for Jordan Bell

Things are pretty awesome for the Warriors. They’re behind the Rockets in league standings, but only by a little. That aside, things can always be even more awesome. One such way is if injuries would stop striking supporting cast member Jordan Bell. Here’s the latest from the San Jose Mercury News:

Jordan Bell stood on his knees and pounded his fist on the floor. A certain four-letter word that can’t be written here ran through his mind over and over again.

“That’s all I was thinking,” Bell said. “I was just mad.”

Bell had just sustained a sprained right ankle after blocking a shot by Brooklyn Nets’ forward Rondae Hollis-Jefferson with 13.7 seconds left in the third quarter. He landed awkwardly on Hollis-Jefferson’s foot, then collapsed to the ground in pain. He eventually limped off of the court and did not return in the Warriors’ 114-101 win over the Nets on Tuesday.

The X-Rays were negative and the Warriors called the injury a “mild sprain.”

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