Month: April 2018

Isaiah Whitehead undergoes wrist surgery

Brooklyn Nets guard Isaiah Whitehead underwent successful surgery yesterday (Tuesday) to repair the scapholunate ligament in his right wrist. The procedure was performed by Dr. Michelle Carlson at the Hospital for Special Surgery.

A timetable for his return to basketball activity will be determined at a later date.

Whitehead appeared in 16 games for Brooklyn this season, recording averages of 6.3 points, 1.6 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 11.2 minutes per game. He also appeared in 30 games on assignment with the Long Island Nets, Brooklyn’s NBA G League affiliate, averaging a team-high 22.3 points per game along with 3.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.1 steals in 28.7 minutes per contest.

Grizzlies sign Marquis Teague for remainder of season

The Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday signed guard Marquis Teague for the remainder of the season.

Teague signed a 10-day contract with the Grizzlies on March 24 as a Call-Up from the Memphis Hustle, the team’s NBA G League affiliate.

Teague (6-2, 180) has appeared in two games as a reserve for the Grizzlies and averaged 4.0 points, 2.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.00 steals in 26.5 minutes. The 25-year-old started all 47 of his games with the Hustle and averaged 17.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 6.1 assists in 32.5 minutes, leading the team in total points, total assists and free throws made and attempted during its inaugural season in the G League.

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 90 regular season games (three starts) during his three-year NBA career and has averaged 2.4 points, 1.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 9.9 minutes for the Chicago Bulls, Brooklyn Nets and Memphis Grizzlies. The Indianapolis, Indiana native 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.

DeQuan Jones named G League Most Improved Player

Fort Wayne Mad Ants forward DeQuan Jones has been named the 2017-18 NBA G League Most Improved Player. Voted on by the league’s 26 head coaches and general managers, the award honors the player who demonstrated the most significant improvement during the 2017-18 season.

In his second NBA G League season and first with the Mad Ants, Jones (6-8, 221, Miami) averaged 18.4 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 30.6 minutes in 49 games (48 starts). He also shot 50.8 percent from the field and ranked ninth in the NBA G League in three-point field goal percentage at 43.3.

Jones began the season by averaging 12.7 points and shooting 47.2 percent from the field and 31.6 percent from three-point range over nine games in November. He produced a breakout month in February, averaging 26.5 points and shooting 58.8 percent from the field and 45.7 percent from beyond the arc in eight games to earn NBA G League Player of the Month honors.

His strong play continued in March, when he averaged 24.2 points on 50.0 percent shooting from the field and 48.1 percent from long distance in nine games. Jones helped Fort Wayne (29-21) clinch the second seed in the NBA G League’s Eastern Conference.

The 2018 NBA G League Slam Dunk winner at NBA All-Star in Los Angeles, Jones will be presented with the Most Improved Player award before the Mad Ants play host to the third-seeded Erie BayHawks tonight in the Eastern Conference Semifinals (7 p.m. ET, ESPNU).

Guard Trey Davis of the Maine Red Claws and guard Josh Gray of the Northern Arizona Suns finished second and third in the Most Improved Player voting, respectively.

Hawks sign Jeremy Evans to 10-day contract

The Atlanta Hawks today signed forward Jeremy Evans to a 10-day contract. The team was granted an injury hardship exception by the NBA to allow for the additional roster spot.

Evans was most recently with Atlanta’s NBA G League affiliate, the Erie BayHawks, where he has played in 39 games (37 starts), averaging 15.3 points, 9.7 rebounds, 1.4 blocks, 1.3 assists and 1.0 steals in 30.7 minutes (.618 FG%, .774 FT%). In yesterday’s playoff win vs. Lakeland, Evans compiled nine points, 10 rebounds, two steals and one assist in 32 minutes.

A six-year NBA veteran, Evans spent 2010-15 with the Utah Jazz, the 2015-16 season with the Dallas Mavericks and 2016-17 with Khimki (Russia). The 2012 NBA slam dunk contest champion, Evans has appeared in 249 career regular season games (nine starts), averaging 3.5 points and 2.6 rebounds in 10.5 minutes (.568 FG%). He’s also spent time with Utah and Texas in the NBA G League.

Evans was with the Hawks in training camp this season and appeared in three preseason games.

He will wear jersey No. 6.

Sixers win 10th game in a row

The Sixers overcome a second hit to the starting lineup Sunday to pull off a 119-102 victory over the Hornets, extending their winning streak to 10 games and improving to 46-30.

The Sixers have not won 10 straight since the beginning of the 2000-01 season.

“The spirit of the group has been excellent,” Brett Brown said. “We are playing good basketball, and I am sure because of all of that, it is all interconnected. Our 10 wins have those types of qualities.”

Daric Saric joined Joel Embiid on the injury list after being sidelined by a sore right elbow (see story). He actually suffered the injury Wednesday, the same game in which Embiid was hurt (orbital fracture, concussion), but played Friday.

— NBC Sports Philly

Mavericks sign Aaron Harrison for remainder of season

The Dallas Mavericks have signed guard Aaron Harrison for the remainder of the season.

Harrison (6-6, 210) has appeared in four games (one start) for Dallas this season and is averaging 4.5 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.0 assist in 20.3 minutes per game. He originally signed a 10-day contract with the Mavericks on March 22.

Before signing with the Mavericks, Harrison was competing for the Reno Bighorns of the NBA G League. In 41 games (17 starts) for Reno in 2017-18, he averaged 18.7 points (.437 FG, .425 3FG, .839 FT), 4.4 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.0 steal in 26.9 minutes per game. He had had a 45-point effort against the Oklahoma City Blue on March 17.

After going undrafted in the 2015 NBA Draft, Harrison signed with the Charlotte Hornets as a rookie free agent. He appeared in 26 games for Charlotte over the span of two seasons from 2015-17. Harrison also competed for five different G-League teams (Oklahoma City Blue, Erie BayHawks, Greensboro Swarm, Delaware 87ers, Reno Bighorns) over a span of three years from 2015-18.

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.

Bucks sign Brandon Jennings

The Milwaukee Bucks have signed guard Brandon Jennings to a multi-year contract.

According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “Jennings’ new deal keeps him with the Bucks on a guaranteed contract for the remainder of this season, including being eligible for the playoffs. His contract for next season is unguaranteed, though that allows him to stick with the team during the summer, into training camp and potentially into next season. “I think it’s just all the hard work that I put in when I was in China, getting myself back healthy and getting my (mentality) right,” Jennings said of being in this situation after starting the season in China. “Just to be back in a Bucks uniform and going to the playoffs in a Bucks uniform is definitely special.”

In 10 games for the Bucks this season, Jennings is averaging 5.5 points, 3.3 assists and 2.1 rebounds in 15.3 minutes per contest. He signed his first 10-day contract on March 11 and a second 10-day contract on March 21.

Sacramento Kings sign Nigel Hayes

The Sacramento Kings on Saturday signed forward Nigel Hayes.

The 6-foot-8 Hayes averaged 15.0 points (.442 FG%, .423 3pt%, .722 FT%), 6.0 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.3 steals and 34.0 minutes per outing in 43 games (35 starts) this season in the G League, playing for the Westchester Knicks and Raptors 905. He also appeared in two NBA games, for both the L.A. Lakers and Raptors, totaling nine points (3-5 FG, 2-4 3pt, 1-1 FT) and two assists.

The Wisconsin standout finished his collegiate career ranked third on the school’s all-time scoring list (1,857) and remains the only Badger in program annals with top-10 statistics in points, rebounds (802) and assists (309). His tenure included Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year accolades as a freshman (2014), First-Team All-Big Ten honors as junior (2016) and Third Team All-Big Ten nods following his sophomore and senior campaigns (2015 & 2017) while averaging 12.4 points (.446 FG%, .332 3pt%, .666 FT%), 5.3 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 29.6 minutes per contest in 150 games (112 starts). A durable player, Hayes did not miss a game in his college career, a streak that featured 113 straight starts from 2014-17 (including 35 during Wisconsin’s 2014-15 run to the national championship game).