Month: February 2020

Grizzlies forward Jaren Jackson Jr. out with knee injury

The Memphis Grizzlies will be without starting forward Jaren Jackson Jr. for the near future.

In Friday’s game vs. the Los Angeles Lakers, Jackson Jr. sustained an injury while challenging a shot late in the second quarter, and did not return for the second half. Subsequent imaging revealed that the injury is a sprained left knee.

The Memphis Commercial Appeal adds:

It’s a blow to the Grizzlies, who remain 3.5 games ahead of the Portland Trail Blazers for the No. 8 seed in the West. Rookie Brandon Clarke started the second half on Friday and could start on Monday. Clarke started on Nov. 4 when Jackson missed a game because of injury.

Jackson Jr. will be re-evaluated in two weeks.

Ben Simmons dealing with back issue

Sixers point guard Ben Simmons has a back issue. It’s unclear whether it’s a minor injury that will quickly disappear, or something more. Here’s NBC Sports Philly reporting:

Ben Simmons, who missed the first game after the All-Star break Thursday with lower back soreness, left Saturday’s game not even five minutes in and did not return. Simmons will undergo further testing in Philadelphia Sunday, per NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Serena Winters…

The All-Star point guard appeared to reaggravate the injury on a drive against Brook Lopez. After a foul was called on Lopez, Simmons could be seen attempting to stretch his back out. After Simmons made 1 of 2 from the line, Matisse Thybulle fouled Khris Middleton to get a stoppage so Simmons could go back to the locker room.

Here’s hoping it’s a minor issue.

Will Ray Allen be at Kevin Garnett’s Celtics jersey retirement?

Will Ray Allen be at Kevin Garnett’s Celtics jersey retirement ceremony next season?

Doc Rivers hopes so.

Here’s Boston.com reporting:

Doc Rivers isn’t a fan of the lingering beef between Ray Allen and some of his former Celtics teammates.

“I just think we won a title with Ray and we need to get over it,” said Rivers, who coached the team to a championship in 2008.

Rivers, who currently coaches the Los Angeles Clippers and spoke to members of the media Saturday, said he hopes “everyone is there” when Kevin Garnett gets his jersey retired next year. That includes Allen, and Rivers told reporters he’ll “make the right calls” to try to get that to happen, though he doesn’t have any guarantees.

It would be fitting for Allen to be there. We hope Doc gets his wish.

Kendrick Nunn has a unique memory of the 2018 NBA draft

Here’s the Miami Herald reporting on Heat guard Kendrick Nunn’s unique memory of the 2018 draft:

Kendrick Nunn doesn’t have a physical, written-out list of all the guards taken in the 2018 NBA draft. He does feel confident, however, he can name everyone who was picked in the draft last year.

He remembers seeing names called while he waited at home to see if someone would take a flier on him. No one did, so Nunn spent almost all of his first season as a professional playing in the NBA G League before the Miami Heat signed him on the final day of the regular season last year. It’s easy for him to remember Collin Sexton was in the draft, taken No. 8 overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers. All he could do was laugh — then cackle — when asked whether he likes to go up against the guard.

“Yeah, I do — most definitely,” Nunn admitted. “I don’t have to say much about that. When I get a chance to go up against those guys, I’m going to show up and give it all I got.

“I don’t have a written list, but I remember because I was watching that and I just remembered from the top of my head.”

The Heat are 36-20 this season, and Nunn has started in all 53 games he’s played in this season, averaging an impressive 15.5 points and 3.5 assists per game.

Nunn is a cool success story. And a player we enjoy watching.

Kings hand Clippers another loss

Saturday afternoon in Los Angeles, the Kings came to town and beat the Clippers, 112-103. In the win, Sacramento got 20 or more points from starting guards De’Aaron Fox and Bogdan Bogdanovic as well as backup forward Kent Bazemore. The Clippers were still without starters Patrick Beverley and Paul George. Here’s the Sacramento Bee:

The Kings went nearly two years without beating the Los Angeles Clippers. Now they’ve done it twice in three weeks…

Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 20 points for the Kings (23-33), who have won eight of their last 12 games. De’Aaron Fox finished with 19 points and eight assists. Harry Giles III recorded his first career double-double, posting 14 points and 11 rebounds.

Kawhi Leonard had 31 points, eight rebounds and five assists for the Clippers (37-19). Lou Williams came off the bench to score 24 points.

The Kings made a franchise-record 21 3-point goals in a 124-103 victory over the Clippers on Jan. 30 in Los Angeles. The Kings snapped a 10-game losing streak against the Clippers with the win, beating them for the first time since March 26, 2017.

And the LA Times:

Kawhi Leonard led all scorers with 31 points and was even serenaded with “MVP” chants less than a week after the Clippers’ star was named the most valuable player of the NBA All-Star game. His dunk with 57 seconds remaining trimmed the Clippers’ deficit from eight to six, but Kings guard De’Aaron Fox answered with a layup of his own with 39 seconds remaining to effectively shutter the Clippers’ comeback and continue his torture of the Los Angeles defense.

The Clippers added a lot of depth recently, but a clear picture of the team as a whole won’t be visible until Pat and PG13 are back in action.

Pistons sign Donta Hall, from G League, to 10-day contract

The Detroit Pistons signed forward/center Donta Hall to a 10-day contract today.

Hall, 6-9, 229, appeared in 36 games (35 starts) this season with the Grand Rapids Drive, the NBA’s G League affiliate of the Pistons. He’s averaged 15.4 points (66% FG), 10.5 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 1.4 blocks and 1.0 steals in 28.6 minutes per game.

Collegiately, Hall played four seasons at the University of Alabama where he averaged 7.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.7 blocks in 135 games and was named to the SEC All-Defensive as a junior.

The Luverne, AL native was a member of the Pistons 2019 Summer League team and was also in training camp with Detroit this season.

Rudy Gobert calls for Utah Jazz to step up

The Jazz lost 113-104 to the Spurs Friday. And despite playing at home, they started slowly, trailing by six points after one quarter, and were outscored by 13 in the second. Center Rudy Gobert wasn’t pleased after the game. Here’s the Deseret News reporting:

“It’s on us to be more physical and come out with an edge that we used to have,” Gobert said after the 113-104 loss. “If you want to be a champion, if you want to be one of the best teams in the league it’s got to be who we are and we’ve got to come out every night with that chip on our shoulder. No matter who we play we’ve got to come out with something to prove. That’s what teams are doing to us and they’re having fun.

“They don’t really respect us, They come out, push us around, deny us, we don’t react, take us out of what we want to do, and then offensively they’re just playing free. Dejounte Murray, all these guys they’re playing like they get out of the cage and they can do whatever they want because it’s easy.”

Gobert did his part last night, putting up 18 points and 14 rebounds on nearly-perfect 7-of-8 shooting. But the four other Jazz starters each shot below 36% from the field. And Jazz perimeter defenders allowed 10-of-20 three-point shooting from San Antonio.

Still, the Jazz are 36-19 for the season. A very solid record.

Grizzlies sign Dusty Hannahs to 10-day contract

The Memphis Grizzlies signed guard Dusty Hannahs to a 10-day contract today. This as a “Call-Up” from their NBA G Leagues affiliate team, the Memphis Hustle.

Hannahs (6-4, 195) has appeared in 33 games (20 starts) for the Hustle this season and has averaged a team-high 21.3 points, 2.1 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 30.4 minutes, guiding the team to the current top spot in the NBA G League Western Conference standings. Hannahs also has shot 47.5 percent from the field, 46.4 percent from three-point range and 91.4 percent from the free throw line (his third consecutive season to shoot at least 90 percent from the foul line) during his third season with the Hustle. In addition, he is tied for fourth in the NBA G League in three-pointers made (109).

The Hustle’s all-time leading scorer (1,848 points), Hannahs was selected to the Western Conference Midseason All-NBA G League Team on Feb. 10 and was named the NBA G League Player of the Week for games played from Nov. 25-Dec. 1. The second player in club history to receive a weekly honor, Hannahs averaged 30.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.00 steals without any turnovers while shooting 60.6 percent from the field and 63.6 percent from three-point range in a pair of wins.

A native of Little Rock, Arkansas, Hannahs competed in two games as a reserve for the Grizzlies last season and totaled eight points, one rebound, five assists and one steal in 26 minutes. The 26-year-old went undrafted in the 2017 NBA Draft after finishing his collegiate career at the University of Arkansas.

Hannahs will wear jersey #5 for the Grizzlies.

Pistons waive Markieff Morris, as two sides reach buyout agreement

The Detroit Pistons and Markieff Morris have reached an agreement to buy out the veteran forward’s contract. The Pistons have requested waivers on Morris.

Morris signed as a free agent with the Pistons on July 6, 2019. He averaged 11.0 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.6 assists while shooting .450 from the field and a career-best .397 from three-point range in 44 games (16 starts) during his time with Detroit.

On this move, ESPN.com today reported the following: “Morris had signed a two-year contract with Detroit in July that was to have paid him $3.2 million this season and included a $3.36 million player option for next season. Morris had a total of $4.3 million remaining over the length of the deal. In order to secure a buyout, Morris relinquished the rights to the full amount he was owed, sources told ESPN’s Bobby Marks.”

Pistons sign Derrick Walton Jr. to 10-day contract

The Detroit Pistons signed guard Derrick Walton Jr. to a 10-day contract today.

Walton Jr., 6-0, 189, last played for the Los Angeles Clippers this season. In 23 games (one start), he averaged 2.2 points, 0.7 rebounds and 1.0 assists before being traded to the Atlanta Hawks on February 6. He was then waived by the Hawks. In 39 career NBA games with Miami and the Clippers, Walton Jr. has averaged 2.0 points, 0.8 rebounds and 1.0 assists.

A native of Detroit, MI, Walton Jr. starred collegiately at the University of Michigan where he guided the Wolverines to back-to-back NCAA tournaments in 2016 and 2017. He also led Michigan to the 2017 Big Ten Championship and was named the tournament’s MVP.

Walton Jr. played high school basketball at Chandler Park Academy in Harper Woods, MI, where he was coached by his father, Derrick Walton Sr.