The new NBA game ball for the 2014-15 season includes a mention of the @NBA Twitter account. Photo:

The Milwaukee Bucks have signed free agent guard Jerryd Bayless, General Manager John Hammond announced today.

According to the Associated Press, “Bayless signed for two years at $3 million per season.”

Bayless, 25, split the 2013-14 season between the Memphis Grizzlies and Boston Celtics, and averaged 9.3 points, 2.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 72 games (19 starts). He was acquired by the Celtics in exchange for Courtney Lee on Jan. 6, and while with Boston, set season highs of 29 points – including a career-high 12 field goals made – on Feb. 26 vs. Atlanta and nine assists vs. San Antonio on Feb. 12.

Originally selected by the Indiana Pacers with the 11th pick in the 2008 NBA Draft, Bayless was traded to the Trail Blazers prior to his rookie season. Over his six-year career, Bayless has spent time with Portland, New Orleans, Toronto, Memphis and Boston, and has recorded career averages of 8.5 points, 1.9 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 381 games (59 starts). He has been to the playoffs three times with Portland (2009, 2010) and Memphis (2013), averaging 9.8 points, 2.0 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 23 games (two starts).

Bayless played one season at Arizona in 2007-08 where he became the first freshman in school history to lead the team in both scoring (19.7 points) and assists (4.0). In 2007, he was named a McDonald’s All-American as a high school senior at St. Mary’s (Phoenix).

Here’s the Philadelphia Daily News reporting on the 76ers and possible league changes to the draft lottery:

The league is looking into changing how the draft works, so that the bottom feeders of the league aren’t assured a top pick. A source told the Daily News that the NBA “has a strong incentive to get this done this year” on changing how the draft works. The source also said that the move is directly related to what the Sixers did last season and what they are forecasted to do this season, with top pick Joel Embiid most likely sidelined for the season after foot surgery and 10th pick Dario Saric contractually bound for two more seasons of play in Turkey.

An ESPN.com report said the Sixers have objected to the possible overhauling of the lottery for 2015, as they possibly could be hurt the most by the proposed changes.

That will probably all be sorted out in October, when the NBA’s Board of Governors meets. In the meantime, it will be another year of some bad basketball, a lot of players hitting the floor that maybe shouldn’t even be in the NBA and a whole lot of losses for the Sixers.

Here’s the South Florida Sun Sentinel reporting on Heat free agent forward Michael Beasley:

The Michael Beasley reunion tour is looking more and more like a limited engagement with the Miami Heat.

ESPN reported that the offensive-minded forward had a free-agent workout Wednesday with the Los Angeles Lakers at the team’s practice facility in El Segundo, Calif. Beasley has been in Los Angeles working out with childhood friend Kevin Durant, the Oklahoma City Thunder forward who now is working in Las Vegas with the U.S. national team.

Selected at No. 2 in the 2008 NBA Draft by the Heat and then dealt in the 2010 offseason makeover after the signings of LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade, Beasley was brought back in a limited role this past season, unable to crack the rotation. He appeared in just four of the Heat’s 20 playoff games.

Here’s the Detroit Free Press with an update on Team USA, which is currently training in Las Vegas and preparing to trim their roster:

Reports out of Las Vegas say Pistons third-year center Andre Drummond should make the USA FIBA World Cup team as a second-team backup to starters Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins.

Davis (New Orleans) is projected as the starter at power forward, Cousins (Sacramento) the starter at center.

Other projected starters are Stephen Curry (Golden State), James Harden (Houston) and Kevin Durant (Oklahoma City).

With decisions not to play from Kevin Love, Blake Griffin and Dwight Howard, the U.S. team is short on big men, which makes Drummond almost a lock to make team.

Here’s the Miami Herald with an interesting update on the Heat backcourt:

Heat president Pat Riley said Wednesday that he sees an evolving role for starting point guard Mario Chalmers, while insisting LeBron James’ praise of Shabazz Napier had no influence on Miami trading up to draft him.

On the decision to give Chalmers a two-year, $8.3 million contract after a poor NBA Finals performance, Riley said: “Mario is a big-game player. He learned more than ever in this [Finals] that you can never take anything for granted at this level of play.

“We’re looking at Mario differently in this roster. He’s a point guard, but we’re also looking at him as a [shooting guard]. Mario can be very effective as a long-armed [shooting guard] who can shoot the three.”

The Brooklyn Nets have named Paul Westphal, John Welch, Tony Brown, Joe Wolf and Jay Humphries as assistant coaches and Jim Sann as an assistant coach/advance scout on new head coach Lionel Hollins’ staff, General Manager Billy King announced today.

Westphal brings over 20 years of coaching experience to Brooklyn, including three stops as a head coach in Phoenix, Seattle and Sacramento. After beginning his NBA coaching career as an assistant in Phoenix in 1988, Westphal was named head coach of the Suns in 1992, where he led the Suns to three of their most successful seasons, reaching the NBA Finals in 1993, and advancing twice to the conference semifinals. Westphal was twice selected to serve as head coach of the Western Conference All-Star team in 1993 and 1995. In his three and a half seasons as head coach of the Suns, Westphal compiled a 191-88 (.685) record. Westphal returned to the coaching ranks in 1998, when he led the Seattle SuperSonics for parts of three seasons, and was named head coach of the Sacramento Kings in 2009, where he served until early in the 2011-12 season. Overall, Westphal holds a career NBA coaching record of 318-279 (.532). A five-time NBA All-Star, Westphal played 12 seasons in the NBA, was named to the All-NBA First Team three times, All-NBA Second Team once and was a member of the 1974 NBA Champion Boston Celtics. The number 10 pick in the 1972 NBA draft out of USC, Westphal averaged 15.6 points and 4.4 assists in 823 NBA games with Boston, Phoenix, Seattle and New York.

Welch returns for his second season as an assistant coach with the Brooklyn Nets. Welch came to Brooklyn in 2013, following eight seasons as an assistant coach for the Denver Nuggets under George Karl. Before joining the Nuggets, Welch spent two seasons as an assistant coach/workout coach for the Memphis Grizzlies. Prior to his arrival in Memphis, he spent seven seasons as an assistant coach at Fresno State, serving under head coach Jerry Tarkanian. Welch joined Fresno State in 1995 and helped the Bulldogs to two consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, six consecutive 20-win seasons and seven straight postseason appearances. Welch began his coaching career with a three-year stint as a graduate assistant at UNLV, including when they advanced to the NCAA Final Four in 1986-87. When the Rebels’ season ended, Welch also served as a player and coach in the New Zealand Professional Basketball League from 1986-89. Welch then served as an assistant coach under Seth Greenberg at Long Beach State from 1993-95. As a player, Welch spent three seasons at the University of Nevada, Reno and transferred to UNLV for his senior year. Welch played under Tarkanian for one year when the Rebels compiled a 33-5 record and advanced to the third round of the NCAA Tournament.

Brown joins the Nets after spending the previous three seasons as an assistant coach with the Dallas Mavericks under Rick Carlisle. Brown also served as an assistant coach with the Los Angeles Clippers (2009-10), Milwaukee Bucks (2007-08), Boston Celtics (2004-07), Toronto Raptors (2003-04), Detroit Pistons (2001-03) and Portland Trail Blazers (1997-2001). Prior to beginning his coaching career, he was an advance scout for the Bucks (1994-97). Brown spent seven seasons as an NBA player with nine teams after being selected with the 82nd pick in the fourth round of the 1982 NBA Draft by the New Jersey Nets. His best professional season came in 1986-87 with the Nets, where he recorded career-bests for points, assists, steals, minutes and games started. In 360 career NBA games, Brown averaged 6.0 points and 2.1 rebounds per game. In addition to his seven seasons in the NBA, Brown also spent time in the Continental Basketball Association and Italy. The Chicago native played four years at the University of Arkansas under head coach Eddie Sutton.

Wolf enters his sixth season coaching in the NBA after spending five seasons as an assistant coach with the Milwaukee Bucks under Scott Skiles (2008-13). Wolf’s coaching career also includes stints as head coach and general manager of the Colorado 14ers of the NBA Development League (2006-08) and head coach of the Idaho Stampede of the Continental Basketball Association (2004-06), as well as one season as an assistant coach at the College of William & Mary (2003-04). Most recently, Wolf has been serving as an assistant coach for the Ukrainian national team. Wolf spent 11 seasons as an NBA player after being selected with the 13th pick of the first round of the 1987 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Clippers. In 592 career games with Los Angeles, Denver, Boston, Portland, Charlotte, Orlando and Milwaukee, Wolf averaged 4.2 points and 3.3 rebounds per game. The Kohler, WI native spent four years at the University of North Carolina under Hall of Fame head coach, Dean Smith.

Humphries joins the Nets after spending 13 years as a coach in the NBA, NBA D-League and overseas. Humphries began his coaching career in 2001 as the associate head coach for the Jilin Northeastern Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association and spent the next five years in the Korean Basketball League. He served three years as the associate head coach for the Wonju TG Xers and two years as the head coach of the Inchon ET Land Black Slamer. Humphries then returned stateside, joining the Phoenix Suns as an assistant coach on Mike D’Antoni’s staff for one season (2007-08) before taking over as the first head coach for the Reno Bighorns of the D-League (2008-10). He then spent one season as the head coach of the Foshan Long Lions in China. Humphries played 11 seasons in the NBA after being selected with the 13th pick of the first round in the 1984 NBA Draft by the Phoenix Suns. Humphries holds career NBA averages of 11.1 points, 5.5 assists and 1.50 steals in 29.3 minutes per game in 788 games (557 starts) split between Phoenix (1984-88), Milwaukee (1988-92), Utah (1992-95) and Boston (1995). The Los Angeles native played four years at the University of Colorado under former Nets assistant and interim head coach, Bill Blair, and long-time college basketball head coach, Tom Apke.

Sann is currently in his second stint with the Nets organization after working as a Nets assistant coach/coaching associate for five seasons (2005-10). From 2010-12, Sann spent two seasons as a member of the Chicago Bulls staff, serving as an assistant coach/video coordinator. Sann was the advance scout for the Houston Rockets during the 2004-05 season and served as an assistant coach with the Toronto Raptors in 2003-04. He began his professional basketball career with the New York Knicks organization, holding various positions over 11 seasons, eventually rising to director of basketball administration. The Larchmont, NY native graduated from the University of Colorado in 1991.

The Sacramento Kings have signed Eric Moreland to a contract, according to Kings General Manager Pete D’Alessandro.

The 6-10, 218-pound forward-center averaged 3.5 points (.444 FG%, .500 FT%), 8.8 rebounds, 0.7 assists, a team-high 2.7 blocks and 19.2 minutes per game in six games off the bench for the Kings Samsung NBA Summer League 2014 Championship squad. Moreland led all players in Las Vegas with 16 blocks and his blocks per game average was the highest among all players seeing action in at least four games.

According to the Sacramento Bee, “the Kings have been fans of Moreland’s game for a while. He was a part of the first pre-draft workout in June and a player the Kings wanted to monitor after the draft process. The Kings are looking for more athleticism along the frontline to help improve their defense and rim protection. If Moreland sticks and makes the regular-season roster, he could eventually help in that area.”

A two-time Pac-12 All-Defensive Honorable Mention, Moreland finished his career at Oregon State in 2013-14 as the Beavers’ all-time leader in blocked shots (184) and blocks per game (2.07 bpg).

The Golden State Warriors have waived center Hilton Armstrong, the team announced today.

Armstrong, 29, appeared in 15 regular-season games (one start) for the Warriors in 2013-14, posting averages of 1.7 points and 3.1 rebounds in 6.5 minutes per contest. He appeared in all seven of the team’s playoff games, averaging 1.1 points in 2.4 minutes. Armstrong originally signed with the Warriors on December 11 and signed a pair of 10-day contracts on February 22 and March 30 before signing for the remainder of the season on April 8.

Armstrong also appeared in 32 games (23 starts) with the Santa Cruz Warriors of the NBA Development League in 2013-14, averaging 12.0 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.75 blocks in 30.3 minutes per contest.

The Miami HEAT announced today that they have re-signed forward Chris Bosh. The agreement has been known for a while now, but actually became official today.

According to multiple reports, it’s a five-year contract worth a bit over $118 million.

“Chris Bosh is a two-time NBA champion and one of the most versatile big men in the league,” said HEAT President Pat Riley. “His unique skillset makes him one of the best players in the game today. I’ve always felt he was committed to this organization, this staff and this city. I think he’s going to have the opportunity of a lifetime leading this team next season and having the nine-time NBA All-Star back in the fold was a big key for us. We are very blessed to have him.”

Bosh, a two-time NBA champion, has appeared in 796 games (784 starts) during his 11-year NBA career, averaging 19.2 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.10 blocks and 35.9 minutes, while shooting 49.8 percent from the floor and 80 percent from the foul line. The nine-time NBA All-Star has appeared in 287 games (all starts) for the HEAT over the last four seasons, averaging 17.3 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 34.1 minutes while shooting 50.9 percent from the field and 81.3 percent from the foul line. Among the HEAT’s all-time leaders, he ranks third in free throw percentage, fourth in field goal percentage, seventh in blocks (273), ninth in free throws made (1,077) and defensive rebounds (1,652), 10th in points (4,976), field goals made (1,894), total rebounds (2,116), and double-figure scoring efforts (260), 11th in double-doubles (60), 12th in starts, 13th in offensive rebounds (464), and minutes (9,787), 16th in games played and 18th in steals (256).

Last season, Bosh started all 79 games in which he appeared and averaged 16.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 1.01 steals and 32.0 minutes while shooting 51.6 percent from the field and 82 percent from the foul line. He totaled a career-high 80 steals and connected on a career-high 74 three-point field goals. He has now totaled 111 treys during his HEAT career, the most by a player 6’11” or taller in franchise history. Bosh scored his 15,000th career point on March 12 vs. Brooklyn, recorded his 1,500th career assist on December 8 at Detroit and went a perfect 9-of-9 from the field on January 4 at Orlando, tying for the most makes without a miss during a single game in HEAT history. He earned Player of the Week honors on December 29 and improved Miami’s record to a perfect 12-0 when scoring at least 30 points as a member of the HEAT, including a 37-point effort on December 28 at Portland, a game in which he hit the game-winning three-point attempt with five-tenths of a second remaining to give Miami a, 108-107, victory.

Bosh has appeared in 78 postseason games (74 starts) with the HEAT and averaged 14.9 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.14 blocks, 1.1 assists and 34.7 minutes while shooting 48.1 percent from the field, 40.6 percent from three-point range and 79 percent from the foul line. Last postseason, he shot 69.2 percent (9-of-13) from three-point range in Round One against Charlotte, the highest three-point field goal percentage during a four-game series in HEAT postseason history. He has now appeared in the NBA Finals in each of his four seasons in Miami, helping the HEAT become just the third NBA franchise to make four-straight NBA Finals appearances.

The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced the team has signed guard Mo Williams.

“We are excited to bring Mo into the fold this season,” said Timberwolves head coach Flip Saunders. “His veteran leadership and excellent three-point shooting ability will be a valuable addition to our team.”

According to Yahoo Sports, it’s a one-year deal for $3.75 million.

Williams, 31, appeared in 74 games for Portland last season, averaging 9.7 points and 4.3 assists in 24.8 minutes per game. He shot 36.9 percent from three-point range, including a 42.2 percent clip over a two-month stretch from January through February. Williams appeared in eight games during the postseason with the Blazers, averaging 7.4 points per game before missing the final three games of the playoffs due to a groin strain.

The 11-year veteran was originally selected by the Utah Jazz in the second round (47th overall pick) of the 2003 NBA Draft. Minnesota is Williams’ sixth NBA stop, previously spending stints in Utah (2003-04, 2012-13), Milwaukee (2004-08), Cleveland (2008-2011, L.A. Clippers (2011-12) and Portland (2013-14). He has averaged 13.3 points and 4.9 assists per game while connecting on 38.5 percent from three-point range over his 709-game career. His best season came with the Cavaliers in 2008-09, when he averaged 17.8 points per game on 46.7 percent shooting (43.6 percent from three-point range) to earn an All-Star appearance.

The Milwaukee Bucks have signed second round draft pick Johnny O’Bryant, General Manager John Hammond announced today.

The 36th overall selection in the draft, O’Bryant (6-9, 256) appeared in all five games for the Bucks’ entry in the 2014 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas and averaged 8.2 points and 5.4 rebounds in 18.2 minutes per contest. In the summer league finale vs. Golden State on July 18, O’Bryant posted a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

A native of Cleveland, Miss., O’Bryant played three collegiate seasons at Louisiana State University, averaging 12.7 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists over his career. He was named to the All-SEC First Team by the coaches in 2013 and 2014, and earned All-SEC Second Team honors from the AP in 2014. O’Bryant is one of 14 LSU players to record at least 1,000 career points (1,157) and 700 career rebounds (702). He recorded 25 career double-doubles as a Tiger and scored 10+ points in 28 games his junior season. He also led the team in scoring his sophomore season, averaging 13.6 points per game.

Here’s ESPN.com reporting Kevin Durant’s reaction to news from earlier in July that LeBron James was taking his talented back to the Cleveland Cavaliers:

Kevin Durant made a point not to ask his friend LeBron James any questions. He gets enough of those already. And besides, James answered just about every question of him with the letter he penned in Sports Illustrated which explained his decision to leave the Miami Heat and come home to play for the Cleveland Cavaliers.

But Durant did reach out to congratulate James soon after he announced his decision.

“I thought it was well-thought-out. It was classy. It was a great move to do it as a letter,” Durant said Tuesday, after a training camp session with USA Basketball. “That was pretty cool. It’s funny seeing guys think about more than just basketball for once. He thought about the city where he comes from, about Northeast Ohio and how he can affect so many of the kids just being there playing basketball. I love that. So many guys get criticized for making the decision that’s best for them instead of what’s best for everybody else. He’s a guy that did that. You gotta respect that. I applauded him, I texted him and told him congratulations on the decision and told him I was happy for him. As a fan of the game, it’s going to be pretty cool to see him back in Cleveland.”

Here’s the New York Daily News with a fascinating report:

Los Angeles Clippers’ small forward Matt Barnes used his social media following to help track down the alleged murderer of his aunt and it may have led to his arrest.

“Michael Williams, suspect in the 24th street homicide, is in police custody thanks to a citizen tip. He was located in the Sacramento area,” the Sacramento police announced via Twitter on Tuesday.
L.A. Clippers forward Matt Barnes helps keep his aunt’s murder investigation in the public eye. Jae C. Hong/AP L.A. Clippers forward Matt Barnes helps keep his aunt’s murder investigation in the public eye.

Following the announcement from the police that Williams had been taken into custody, Barnes tweeted out a thank you to his supporters.

“We are very grateful and humbled by all the help we received from the media and most importantly you guys,” he said.

Here’s the Sacramento Bee reporting on the Kings’ young, super-talented big dude DeMarcus Cousins:

On this warm, wet afternoon in the desert, DeMarcus Cousins sprinted toward the most significant few weeks of his professional career and, perhaps, of his young life.

The choice is his. The global stage awaits. The question hovers.

Is he ready to take his show on the road – to accompany the 2014 U.S. men’s national team to the FIBA World Cup next month in Spain – or will he let this gold medal opportunity slip through his undeniably capable fingers?

Cousins, who turns 24 on Aug. 13, has been here before. Sort of. This is his third appearance at the Team USA training camp, but his first as a contender for a roster spot. In previous summers, he was invited to scrimmage his NBA elders and prep the big boys for the upcoming world tournament and Olympics. Now, he has a chance to prove he’s all grown up, that his 6-foot-11, 270-pound frame can anchor a squad depleted the previous 48 hours by the withdrawals of power forwards Kevin Love and Blake Griffin.

“We have to have active bigs,” Team USA coach Mike Krzyzewski said after the opening practice. “Our main guy is Anthony Davis. Then we have to see who else fits in, but also how they fit in with the other guys. (Cousins) has continued to get into better shape. We love the fact he’s committed. He’s trying like crazy. He’s come (to the training session) multiple times. That level of commitment is not just to be admired, it needs to be talked about.”

The National Basketball Players Association has elected Michele Roberts as executive director, making her the first woman to lead a North American pro sports union.

Roberts received 32 of 36 votes in a process that was completed in the early morning hours of Tuesday. The Washington trial lawyer defeated tech industry CEO Dean Garfield and Dallas Mavericks CEO Terdema Ussery in the final vote.

“After all the hours and time (invested by) our executive committee, along with an amazing search committee that helped throughout this process, it’s an unbelievable feeling to have the wonderful Michele Roberts now as a part of our team,” NBPA president and Los Angeles Clippers star guard Chris Paul told reporters in Las Vegas.

The vote capped a long and arduous process to replace Billy Hunter, who was ousted in February of 2013. Roberts was one of the finalists initially offered to the rank-and-file during All-Star weekend in February, but the process was re-opened to broaden the search at the urging of some players and agents.

– Associated Press

Here’s stuff.co.nz via the Oklahoman reporting on young Thunder big-man Steven Adams:

New Zealand native and Oklahoma City Thunder center Steven Adams takes being a role model seriously.

Along with some of New Zealand’s other famous athletes, Adams spoke to a group of elite young athetes in Auckland, New Zealand, on Tuesday at the Powerade Breakthrough Academy. Adams isn’t one to mince words, and wasn’t shy about the responsibility he has to represent his home country.

“For me once I go out there to America I’m pretty much representing all of New Zealand because most people haven’t met New Zealand people, so I have to take that into consideration. If I’m like a d—, then they’re like New Zealand guys are d—-,” Adams said. “If you’ve just got a normal Kiwi attitude then they’re fine with it. That’s one of the key things.”

The Dallas Mavericks announced today that they have signed free agent forward Al-Farouq Aminu.

Aminu (6-9, 215) was the 8th overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Clippers. After one season in Los Angeles he was traded, along with Eric Gordon, Chris Kaman and a first round pick, to New Orleans in the deal that landed Chris Paul with the Clippers. He averages 6.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 23.2 minutes in 303 career games (171 starts) with Los Angeles and New Orleans.

In 2013-14, Aminu played in 80 games (65 starts) for the Pelicans and averaged 7.2 points and 6.2 rebounds in 25.6 minutes. The highlight of his season came on Dec. 4 when he registered 16 points and 20 rebounds against the Mavericks in a 100-97 Dallas victory.

Aminu’s parents, Aboubakar and Anjiflic, hail from Nigeria and he competed for the Nigerian National Team in the 2012 Summer Olympics.

The Atlanta native was a McDonald’s All-American and one of the nation’s top recruits in 2008. He played collegiately at Wake Forrest where he was named to the All-ACC Freshman Team in 2009. Aminu declared for the NBA Draft after his sophomore season where he averaged 15.8 points and 10.7 rebounds for the Demon Deacons.

Memphis Grizzlies General Manager Chris Wallace announced today that the team has named Ed Stefanski as executive vice president of player personnel.

“We are pleased to welcome Ed Stefanski to the Grizzlies and the city of Memphis,” Wallace said. “Ed is an established NBA executive and excellent talent evaluator who has had success with multiple organizations. Together, with our ownership, front office and coaching staff, we will continue to work to realize our collective vision of hosting a championship parade down Beale Street.”

Stefanski comes to Memphis following upper management positions with the New Jersey Nets (1999-2007), Philadelphia 76ers (2007-11) and, most recently, Toronto Raptors (2011-13), where he served as executive vice president of basketball operations.

Prior to that, Stefanski spent four seasons as president and general manager of the Philadelphia 76ers, where he guided the team back to the playoffs three times after it had not qualified for the postseason in the two seasons before his hiring. Stefanski helped rebuild the 76ers by re-signing key players such as Andre Iguodala and using mid-first round draft picks on young talent such as Marreese Speights (16th overall in 2008), Jrue Holiday (17th in 2009) and Nikola Vucevic (16th in 2011).

Before joining Philadelphia, Stefanski spent nine seasons with the Nets where he oversaw the team’s basketball operations and was heavily involved in player personnel matters. He was promoted to general manager in 2004 after serving one season as senior vice president of basketball operations and four seasons as director of scouting.

Stefanski was instrumental in helping build the Nets’ back-to-back Eastern Conference championship teams (2002 and 2003). He had a significant part in drafting Kenyon Martin with the first overall pick in the 2000 NBA Draft, as well as a draft night deal in which the Nets acquired Richard Jefferson, Jason Collins and Brandon Armstrong from Houston. Martin, Jefferson and Collins would develop into starters for the Nets’ 2002-03 Eastern Conference championship squad.

In 2004, Stefanski played a major role in the trade that moved All-Star and current Grizzlies wing Vince Carter from Toronto to New Jersey in 2004. Carter and Jefferson rank second and third, respectively, in Nets franchise history in points scored.

A 1976 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania (Wharton School of Business), Stefanski played three seasons for Penn, where he was coached by Hall-of-Famer Chuck Daly. He was a member of two Ivy League Champions (1974 and 1975) and helped the Quakers reach the NCAA Tournament in both of those seasons. Stefanski was drafted by Philadelphia in the 10th round of the 1976 NBA Draft.

While in college, Stefanski founded and secured funding for the Philadelphia Housing Authority’s Inner City Basketball League, which provided a structured basketball environment for hundreds of boys and girls living under the Housing Authority. The Housing Authority later celebrated his efforts with a special recognition award, commending his contributions to the youth of Philadelphia.

Stefanksi also enjoyed a 20-year run as a color analyst for Big Five basketball and ESPN’s Atlantic 10 basketball coverage.

Memphis Grizzlies Controlling Owner Robert Pera announced today that Chris Wallace has been named General Manager of the Memphis Grizzlies and has signed a multi-year contract extension to remain with the organization. Wallace had acted as interim general manager since May 19, 2014.

“We are very pleased to announce Chris Wallace as our general manager,” Pera said. “Chris has been at the forefront and a stable presence throughout some of the Grizzlies’ greatest successes. His strong bonds and experience, not only within the organization and NBA but also within the Memphis and Mid-South communities, make him the ideal fit to lead our basketball operations. We believe Chris’ skills and expertise to be vital in our continued success of our franchise.”

Wallace joined the Grizzlies as general manager and vice president of basketball operations on June 18, 2007 and assembled much of the talent that has helped guide the franchise to a club-record four consecutive playoff appearances. Notably, Wallace drafted the franchise career leader in assists, steals and games played Mike Conley, he acquired two-time NBA All-Star (2009, 2012) Zach Randolph and 2012-13 NBA Defensive Player of the Year Marc Gasol through trades and signed three-time NBA All-Defense member (2010-13) Tony Allen in free agency.

Through Wallace’s acquisitions, the Grizzlies have experienced unprecedented success, earning their first seven postseason wins and first postseason series victory against the top-seeded San Antonio Spurs in 2011, hosting a postseason series for the first time in 2012, and setting a club record for wins (56) and advancing to the Western Conference Finals in 2013.

As interim general manager this offseason, Wallace helped sign former All-Star Vince Carter in free agency and acquired rookies Jordan Adams and Jarnell Stokes in the 2014 NBA Draft.

“I am honored to remain in Memphis. I love the city and the community,” Wallace said. “Robert Pera is strongly committed to the success of the Grizzlies, and I am excited to continue working in tandem with Robert, our front office and our coaching staff in helping realize his vision for the franchise.”

Wallace has served seven NBA franchises in his career and has worked with five former NBA Executive of the Year winners, including Red Auerbach, Danny Ainge, Bucky Buckwalter, Geoff Petrie and Jerry West. In addition, he has worked alongside Basketball Hall of Fame members Billy Cunningham and Pat Riley.

Prior to joining the Grizzlies, Wallace spent 10 seasons as general manager of the Boston Celtics (1997-2007) and four seasons as a scout with the Miami Heat (1993-97), where he was promoted to director of player personnel in his final season. Wallace worked in various scouting capacities for the New York Knicks (1991-92), Los Angeles Clippers (1990-91), Denver Nuggets (1989-90) and Portland Trail Blazers (1986-89).

An avid basketball fan before being hired into the NBA, Wallace founded the award-winning Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook in 1981. He was named by Sports Illustrated as one of the most influential members of the college basketball media in 1991. He is a member of the Board of Directors at the Touchdown Club of Memphis.