Miami Heat guard Josh Richardson has been fined $25,000 by the NBA for throwing his shoe into the stands, according to Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations Kiki VanDeWeghe
The incident resulted in Richardson receiving a technical foul and an ejection from the game. It happened with 6:31 remaining in the fourth quarter during Miami’s game against Los Angeles Lakers on November 18 at AmericanAirlines Arena.
The Heat lost the game, 113-97.
According to ESPN.com, Richardson had this to say after the game: “I don’t want to talk about it. It was a series of events… I got caught up.”
Chicago Bulls guard Denzel Valentine has been diagnosed with ongoing ankle instability. After being evaluated by Dr. Bob Anderson, a foot and ankle specialist in Green Bay, Wisconsin, Valentine will undergo a surgical reconstruction by Dr. Anderson the week of Nov. 26 with an anticipated recovery time of four-to-six months.
The team says that Valentine is expected to make a full recovery and have a normal summer of offseason training leading into training camp for the 2019-20 season.
According to the Chicago Tribune, “it’s the second ankle surgery in three seasons for Valentine, a critical reserve floor spacer, and playmaker and leader.”
Every player wants to step up during a contract year (a year when they will or at least might be a free agent after the season). But it’s hard to do that while receiving limited minutes. Such is the situation for many veterans on rebuilding teams that are more focused on the development of rookies and other young players than they are about the immediate dividends that may come from giving veterans more minutes.
Speaking of which, here’s New York Newsday discussing the Knicks and veteran center Enes Kanter, who received 26 minutes of court time three games ago, 22 minutes two games ago, and just 15 minutes on Friday:
When Knicks coach David Fizdale put all three of his rookies in the starting lineup Friday he made a statement. And then a stronger one when, with the game on the line, he inserted all three with the game on the line, admitting he wanted to test the trio under fire.
But the bigger test might be how Fizdale can manage the veterans on the roster. Enes Kanter, left on the bench as the New Orleans Pelicans dominated the Knicks’ young frontcourt that night to turn the game, left the locker room quickly with no comment night, then went, as he often does to social media. He tweeted out just a line of periods and asked about it Sunday morning, he didn’t reveal the meaning but said with a smile, “It’s only going to grow bigger.”
Kanter may be the most pressing case, a player who has established himself as much of a star as there is on this lottery-bound development project. He is a free agent at season’s end after opting in to the final season of his contract over the summer, and while his minutes and numbers have for the most part remained steady, he was pulled from the starting lineup after five games in favor of Mitchell Robinson. And on nights like Friday when he played just 15 minutes, there was clear frustration.
It would not be surprising to see Kanter receive more minutes again, but the reality is his future may very well be elsewhere so unless they market him in order to trade him, the team’s focus may likely remain on their youth.
Several Warriors stars as well as head coach Steve Kerr had big praise for Mavs rookie Luka Doncic, as reported by the Dallas Morning News:
The Warriors had beaten Dallas 10 straight times and 17 of the previous 18 meetings. They were impressed with their first live look at Mavericks rookie Luka Doncic, who scored a team-high 24 points and pulled down nine rebounds.
“He’s great; a great player,” said Kerr, who before the game compared 6-7 Doncic to a five-tool baseball player. “He’s got a lot of skill and a lot of guts. I thought he played a great game.” …
“You could tell he’s been playing pro for a long time,” said Warriors guard Klay Thompson, who scored 22 points but missed 15 of 24 shots, including a 16-footer that would have tied the score at 110.
“He’s got great poise. He gets to his spots, and he’s going to be a cornerstone of this franchise for a long time.” …
“I like him a lot,” Durant said. “He’s polished. He’s skilled, and you can tell he’s played professional basketball already. They got a great guy in him to lead this franchise in the future. Luka and Dennis [Smith Jr.] play well together.”
It’s still early in the season but so far, Doncic has been the league’s best rookie.
The Dallas Mavericks are on a 4-game winning streak and now boast a respectable 7-8 season record. They’re being led in scoring by Luka Doncic at 19.5 ppg, followed by Harrison Barnes at 16.5 ppg, Wesley Matthews at 16.2 ppg, Dennis Smith Jr. at 14.5 ppg and DeAndre Jordan at 10.8 ppg plus 13.2 rpg. Doncic, also contributing 6.6 rpg and 4.2 apg, is having an absolutely fantastic rookie season. Here’s the Dallas Morning News with more:
If you’re looking for a validation of the Mavericks’ defense, remember that Kevin Durant missed seven of his last eight shots (and 15 of 24 overall). And Durant and Klay Thompson both missed midrange shots in the final minute that could have changed the outcome. “Those are shots they can make but our guys worked awful hard wearing on them during the game to make those shots a little more difficult,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “When you work that hard, you get a little luck once in a while like that.” Harrison Barnes has been a good defender and Dorian Finney-Smith always gives his best effort at that end of the court. The Mavericks have limited the four opponents in the winning streak to under 93 points per game. That includes the 68 points that Utah scored on Wednesday, which obviously skews the numbers. But holding three of four teams under 100 and Golden State to 109 rates as a defensive vice-grip these days in the score-fest that is the NBA.
Next up for the Mavs is a road game against the Grizzlies on Monday, followed by a pair of home games against the Nets Wednesday and the Celtics Saturday.
The Cleveland Cavaliers are an NBA-worst 2-12 through Thursday’s games. Regardless of whether they planned to rebuild after LeBron James’ departure or thought they could partially weather the storm and stay competitive, the losses have piled up, and the team must clearly focus on the future, not the present. But a bright spot as emerged. Here’s Cleveland.com reporting on rookie guard Collin Sexton:
George Hill worked alongside Andrew Harrison on ball-handling drills while rookie Collin Sexton launched jumper after jumper at the opposite hoop.
Hill is getting closer to a return from a sprained right shoulder, which has sidelined him since suffering the injury late in the game against Orlando on Nov. 5. But his old starting point guard spot may be gone when he gets back, pried away by the rising youngster who has started to blossom since stepping into the lead role…
In four games as starter, Sexton is averaging 18.0 points on 48.4 percent from the field and 70 percent from 3-point range to go with 3.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists.
With him on the floor, the Cavs have an offensive rating of 102.3, which ranks fourth-best of any player averaging double-digit minutes in those games. The team’s defensive rating, a point of weakness for Sexton early on, is 102.0. That equals a positive net rating, one of three players capable of making that claim.
With Kevin Love out injured and a team that is racking up losses, Sexton, at least in four games as a starter so far, is worth keeping an eye on.
The Denver Nuggets have added current WNBA Champion Sue Bird to their front office staff as a Basketball Operations Associate.
“We are very excited to have Sue join our organization,” said Nuggets President of Basketball Operations Tim Connelly. “Her resume certainly speaks for itself and as a still active player she will offer an extremely unique perspective.”
Bird recently wrapped up her 16th season in the WNBA which saw her earn her 11th All-Star bid and third WNBA Championship, all with the Seattle Storm. The New York native attended the University of Connecticut where she won two National Championships before being selected first overall by Seattle in the 2002 WNBA Draft. Bird was named to the WNBA All-Decade team in 2006, has been All-WNBA First Team five times and All-WNBA Second Team three times and currently ranks first in the WNBA in career games (508), first in career minutes played (16,173), first in assists (2,831), third in points (6,154), third in made three-pointers (855) and fifth in steals (652).
“I’m really excited to join the Denver Nuggets organization. I’m thankful for the opportunity and look forward to learning from some of the best,” said Bird.
The Knicks have a solid, fun flock of rookies who aren’t big-time NBA players yet but have talent and have been enjoyable to watch this season. Here’s the latest update on several of them, and the starting lineup, from the New York Post:
The Knicks’ rookie power trio will start together for the first time this season.
David Fizdale has made one more starting lineup tweak, adding undrafted rookie guard Allonzo Trier in a small-ball shuffle that sends power forward Noah Vonleh to the bench and 2018 lottery pick Kevin Knox from small to power forward.
Amid a lousy start record-wise at 4-11, the lone upside is Fizdale buying in completely to a youth movement and showcasing the three promising rookies.
Center Mitchell Robinson has started over Enes Kanter since the season’s sixth game and will make his New Orleans homecoming Friday vs. the Pelicans.
Each rookie has shown flashes. They may not be winning much so far this first month of NBA action but they’re providing entertainment and the potential for legitimate growth as pros.
Former Nets GM Billy King, an experienced basketball executive who also traded years and years of Nets first round draft picks away in a deal that never should have happened, reportedly seeks a return to an NBA front office. Here’s the New York Post with details:
Billy King knows he’ll always have to answer for The Trade, but the ex-Nets general manager would to answer for it if another NBA franchise will give him the chance.
King, now president of a startup television network, occasionally appears as a guest on NBATV but remains infamous for mortgaging the Nets’ future in what is considered the worst trade in NBA history. By some measures, it is the worst trade in sports history…
King was the GM who spearheaded the disastrous 2013 deal that brought Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Jason Terry to Brooklyn. In return, the Celtics received everything but the lighting fixtures.
Gerald Wallace, MarShon Brooks, Kris Humphries, Keith Bogans and Kris Joseph were sent to Boston, along with, most damagingly, first-round draft picks in 2014, 2016 and 2018, as well as swap rights in 2017.
King will have to work hard to overcome this, presumably by pointing to his other work spanning many years, and perhaps by sharing more about the mindset behind that big Nets deal, which even as it happened was obviously a very risky, massive gamble that came up craps. He certainly has the personality to win people over if given a shot.
He is a good guy. And has been fun to listen to as an analyst on TV.
Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey today issued a statement on forward Carmelo Anthony’s future with the team.
“After much internal discussion, the Rockets will be parting ways with Carmelo Anthony and we are working toward a resolution,” said Morey. “Carmelo had a tremendous approach during his time with the Rockets and accepted every role head coach Mike D’Antoni gave him. The fit we envisioned when Carmelo chose to sign with the Rockets has not materialized, therefore we thought it was best to move on as any other outcome would have been unfair to him.”
Anthony was originally the third overall pick by Denver in the 2003 NBA Draft and is a 10-time All-Star. He is one of 11 players in NBA history with career averages of at least 24.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 3.0 assists. Anthony is also a three-time Olympic gold medalist and is USA Basketball’s all-time leading Olympic scorer and rebounder.
