August 2018 – Page 5 – NBA Blog

On Devin Harris rejoining the Mavericks

Devin Harris recently rejoined the Mavericks. As the team rebuilds, Harris will likely play a backup role, to younger players who may be a part of the team’s future. Here’s the Dallas Morning News reporting on his return:

It’s doubtful Harris would have returned to the roster had Yogi Ferrell not changed his mind after orally agreeing to a two-year, $5.3 million deal. He will back up both guard positions and serve as mentor in a crowded backcourt that includes starters Dennis Smith Jr. and Luka Doncic, J.J. Barea, Wesley Matthews and Jalen Brunson.

As of opening night, Harris will have played 10 of his 15 seasons in Dallas.

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Heat sign forward Marcus Lee

The Miami Heat signed forward Marcus Lee today.

It’s likely a non-guaranteed deal that merely brings Lee to Heat training camp.

According to the South Florida Sun Sentinel, “the agreement with Lee follows an agreement with undrafted Kansas guard Malik Newman last week and two-way contracts for undrafted forwards Duncan Robinson and Yante Maten, giving the team four players from the most recent draft class.”

Lee began his collegiate career at the University of Kentucky before transferring to the University of California, Berkeley for his senior season where he appeared in 32 games (all starts) with the Golden Bears last season and averaged 11.4 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.63 blocks, 1.3 assists and 27.8 minutes while shooting 56.3 percent from the field. He finished eighth among the school’s all-time single-season blocks list with 52 and was the only player to start all 32 games. As a junior at Kentucky, Lee shot a single-season school record 68 percent from the field while helping the Wildcats to the SEC Championship. Additionally, he recently appeared in seven Summer League games (five starts) with the Cleveland Cavaliers in Las Vegas and averaged 6.1 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.57 blocks in 15.9 minutes of action while shooting 70 percent (21-of-30) from the field.

More from the Sun Sentinel: “addition of Lee gives the Heat 17 players under contract, three shy of the NBA offseason maximum.”

Bulls sign Derrick Walton Jr

The Chicago Bulls have signed guard Derrick Walton Jr., presumably just to their training camp roster.

According to the Chicago Tribune, “the Bulls have 14 guaranteed contracts, including two point guards in starter Kris Dunn and backup Cameron Payne. Ryan Arcidiacono, who split time between the Bulls and the G League on a two-way contract last season, also signed to battle for a roster spot in training camp.”

According to the Detroit News, “Walton, 23, faces long odds and could be left battling for a two-way contract with guard Antonius Cleveland and Arcidiacono, with Chicago’s other two-way deal already taken by guard Rawle Alkins.

Walton (6-1, 189) was undrafted in 2017, but signed with the Miami Heat on a Two-Way contract on July 24, 2017. In the 2017-18 season, he played in 16 games for the Heat and averaged 1.8 points, 1.0 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 9.2 minutes per game. Walton posted a season-high seven points and five assists in a win against the Dallas Mavericks on Dec. 22, 2017. During his time in the NBA G League with the Sioux Falls Skyforce, Walton started in all 27 games in which he played, and he posted 16.1 points, 7.1 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 1.48 steals in 32.4 minutes per game.

The Detroit native played four seasons at the University of Michigan, where he holds career averages of 11.6 points, 4.4 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.15 steals in 31.9 minutes per game. Walton is the only player in Wolverine history to record 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 400 assists in his career. As a senior in 2016-17, he was named to the All-Big Ten Second Team and the Big Ten Tournament Most Valuable Player.

Raptors sign center Greg Monroe

The Toronto Raptors’ signing of center Greg Monroe became official today.

Per multiple reports, it’s just a one-year deal.

“Greg is a proven big man in this league,” said Raptors General Manager Bobby Webster. “We believe Greg’s experience will be a great addition to not only our frontcourt, but to our team culture as we continue to build towards our goal of an NBA championship.”

Monroe is capable of delivering some instant offense, but isn’t known for his defense. He will likely play backup to starting center Jonas Valanciunas, and perhaps play some limited minutes as a backup to power forward Serge Ibaka.

Standing 6-foot-11, 265 pounds, Monroe averaged 10.3 points, 6.9 rebounds and 20.4 minutes in 51 games (14 starts) with Milwaukee, Phoenix and Boston last season. He shot .565 (218-386) from the field and recorded nine double-doubles. Monroe appeared in 11 postseason games with the Celtics, averaging 4.8 points, 3.2 rebounds and 9.5 minutes.

A native of New Orleans, Louisiana, Monroe owns career averages of 13.7 points, 8.6 rebounds and 28.9 minutes in 589 NBA games (415 starts) with Detroit, Milwaukee, Phoenix and Boston. He has averaged at least 10.0 points in each of the last seven seasons.

Monroe was originally selected by the Pistons with the seventh overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft. He played collegiately at Georgetown, posting averages of 14.5 points, 8.2 rebounds and 32.6 minutes in 65 career games (2008-10). Monroe was named First Team All-Big East as a sophomore and selected Big East Rookie of the Year his freshman season.

The big Raptors story of the summer was their trade of DeMar DeRozan to the Spurs for Kawhi Leonard. And one of the biggest stories entering the season will be if Leonard is healthy and if he’s as effective as he was prior to injury.

Thunder sign Tyler Davis to two-way contract

The Oklahoma City Thunder yesterday signed center Tyler Davis to a Two-Way Contract.

In three seasons at Texas A&M, Davis (6-10, 266) appeared in 102 games (100 starts) and averaged 13.4 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 26.0 minutes. At the end of the 2017-18 season, Davis was named to the All-SEC First Team after leading the conference in field goal shooting (58.5 percent) for a third consecutive season.

Davis led the Aggies in scoring this past season (14.9 points per game) as he helped lead Texas A&M to the Sweet 16 for a second time in three seasons. He is one of five players in school history to amass 1,000-plus points, 500-plus rebounds and 100-plus blocks. Davis was formerly named Mr. Basketball in the state of Texas following his senior season at Plano West High School.

Each team is allowed to have two players signed to Two-Way Contracts. This is in addition to the standard league maximum of up to 15 players on the roster. Players on Two-Way Contracts spend most of the season in the NBA G League, but can be called up to their NBA team for a maximum of 45 days.

Ty Ellis named head coach of G League team Stockton Kings

The Sacramento Kings today named Ty Ellis as Head Coach of the team’s NBA G League affiliate Stockton Kings.

Ellis arrives in Stockton having spent the previous 20 years involved in basketball as a collegiate and professional player and coach at the NBA G League, USA Basketball and NBA levels. He takes the helm ahead of the Kings 2018-19 debut season in California’s central valley after relocating from Reno, NV where the club played for 10 seasons.

The opportunity marks Ellis’ second instance as a head coach for an inaugural NBA G League campaign after being tapped to lead the Northern Arizona Suns (Prescott Valley, AZ) in 2016. Under his direction, Johnny O’Bryant and Elijah Millsap earned Gatorade Call-Ups and subsequent multiyear contracts with NBA teams.

Most recently, the Dallas native served as an assistant coach for the Phoenix Suns (2017-18) after spending the summer working under Jeff Van Gundy as an assistant during the 2017 USA AmeriCup Team—helping guide the American squad to a 5-0 record and the FIBA Americas Gold Medal. Additionally, Ellis was among only four NBA G League coaches invited to participate in the 2017 NBA Draft Combine tasked with aiding prospects through scrimmages and drills.

Ellis entered the coaching ranks in 2012 after an 11-year playing career domestically and abroad. In 2001, Ellis was drafted by the Huntsville Flight to play in the inaugural season for the NBA D-League. He spent the following decade playing overseas in the top European leagues, including stops in Germany (Frankfurt Skyliners), Turkey (Besiktas Cola Turka), Basket Napoli (Italy), and six years in Spain’s first league (Liga ACB). His international resume also features four years as a member of the Georgian National Team (2006-09), highlighted by 16.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists during the 2009 Division B Eurobasket tournament.

Following his retirement from the court in 2012, Ellis accepted his first coaching position with the Tulsa 66ers (NBA D-League), where he served as an assistant for one year before taking similar roles with the Reno Bighorns (2013-14), Grand Rapids Drive (2014-15) and Bakersfield Jam (2015-16).

Ellis enjoyed a four-year collegiate career at Southern Nazarene University (1997-2001), ranking fourth all-time in Crimson Storm history with 1,822 career points and second with 248 3-pointers made.

Darrun Hilliard signs with team in Spain

Here’s Euroleague.net with news that a former NBA player has signed to play in Spain:

Hoping to return to the Final Four that will be hosted next spring in its own city for the first time, KIROLBET Baskonia Vitoria Gasteiz found some perimeter talent right before training camp starts, announcing on Monday the addition of swingman Darrun Hilliard to its roster for the 2018-19 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season. Hilliard (1.98 meters, 25 years old) has played his entire three-year pro career to date in the NBA, including 14 games last season with San Antonio.

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If Dwyane Wade continues his playing career, it will be with Heat

NBA and Miami Heat legend Dwyane Wade could retire any season now. Nobody can say for sure. He could call it quits tomorrow, or go for another few seasons. The guess right now is he’ll probably keep going, at least through 2018-19. So a logical thought is to wonder if he’d hop on board with a championship contender. Apparently not. It’s Miami Heat or nobody according to Wade, as reported by the South Florida Sun Sentinel:

Dwyane Wade said during a Saturday appearance at the Jr. NBA World Championships in Lake Buena Vista that he remains undecided about his playing future, but that if he does return to the court in 2018-19 it will be with the Miami Heat.

Wade’s comments came in the wake of speculation of possibly continuing his career in China, where his signature sneaker line is based, or even rejoining former Heat teammate LeBron James with the Los Angeles Lakers.

“Heat only. If I play the game of basketball this year, it’ll be in a Miami uniform,” he told media at the event at Disney’s Wide World of Sports, with audio of that session provided by the NBA. “If I don’t, I’ll be living in Miami and somewhere else probably.”

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Myles Turner changes diet, takes up yoga

Young Pacers center Myles Turner put up modest stats last season — 12.7 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game — but that was in just 28.2 minutes per outing. He’ll be worth watching this season, both in terms of his level of play as well as how many minutes the team gives him. Those things are related, of course. Here’s the Fort Worth Star-Telegram with more on Turner:

He’s changed his diet. He’s picked up yoga. Oh, and the NBA’s Eastern Conference doesn’t have LeBron James in it anymore.

“The East is open,” Turner said. “It’s going to be competitive. We’ve got a lot of good acquisitions in the off-season — our bench got stronger and we have high hopes for ourselves.”

The Pacers fell to James and the Cavaliers in seven games in the opening round of the playoffs last season, but have bolstered their roster by signing players such as Tyreke Evans, Doug McDermott and Kyle O’Quinn and drafting Aaron Holiday.

“Guys see an opportunity and everybody is going to try and seize it,” Turner said.

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Zhaire Smith undergoes foot surgery

Almost every prized Sixers rookie in recent years has suffered a foot, knee or leg injury prior to the start of their NBA career. Zhaire Smith is honoring the tradition.

Smith yesterday evening underwent surgery to repair an acute Jones fracture of the fifth metatarsal in his left foot. He suffered the injury during Tim Grgurich’s development camp in Las Vegas on Monday, Aug. 6.

The surgery was performed by Dr. Martin O’Malley, Associate Attending Orthopedic Surgeon at Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City.

Additional information regarding Smith’s recovery and return-to-play timetable will be provided as available and when appropriate.