Paul George, Kevin Durant named NBA Players of Week

paul george

The Indiana Pacers’ Paul George and the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Kevin Durant were today named NBA Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week, respectively, for games played Monday, Nov. 23 through Sunday, Nov. 29.

George led the Pacers to a 3-0 week behind an Eastern Conference-leading 37.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.3 steals. He shot 54.7 percent from the field, 57.1 percent from three-point range and 86.7 percent from the foul line. On Nov. 24, George tallied 40 points on 14-of-19 shooting, including 7-of-8 from beyond the arc, during a 123-106 win over the Washington Wizards.

kevin durant

Durant led the Thunder to a 3-0 week behind averages of 30.3 points (second in the Western Conference), 8.3 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.3 blocks (fourth in the Western Conference). He shot 58.5 percent from the field, 52.2 percent from three-point range and 94.4 percent from the foul line. On Nov. 27, Durant recorded 34 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and three blocks during a 103-87 win over the Detroit Pistons.

Other nominees for the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week were Charlotte’s Kemba Walker, Cleveland’s Kevin Love, Golden State’s Draymond Green, Houston’s James Harden, the Los Angeles Clippers’ Blake Griffin, Orlando’s Victor Oladipo, Philadelphia’s Robert Covington, Portland’s Damian Lillard, and Toronto’s DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry.

Jazz assign Tibor Pleiss to D-League

The Utah Jazz announced today that the team has assigned center Tibor Pleiss to the Idaho Stampede, the Jazz’s exclusively owned and operated NBA D-League team. Pleiss is expected to be in uniform for the Stampede’s game on Tuesday, Dec. 1 at Oklahoma City.

Pleiss (7-3, 262, Germany) has seen action in four games for the Jazz this season, averaging 1.0 points in 3.3 minutes per game. He spent the 2014-15 season with FC Barcelona of the Liga ACB in Spain, averaging 5.7 points and 3.8 rebounds in 13.3 minutes per game.

Pleiss is the fourth player to be assigned to the D-League under the new Jazz-Stampede single affiliation. Other players on the current Jazz roster with D-League experience include Rudy Gobert, Chris Johnson and Elijah Millsap.

Wizards waive Martell Webster, sign Ryan Hollins

Wizards waive Martell Webster, sign Ryan Hollins

The Washington Wizards announced today that the team has waived forward Martell Webster and signed center Ryan Hollins.

“Martell, with his contributions on the court and ability to connect with the fans and the community off the court, has been a great example of the type of player we want to represent our organization,” said Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld. “He worked extremely hard to fight through his injuries but unfortunately was not able to make a healthy return. We appreciate everything he contributed to the team and wish him and his family nothing but the best.”

Webster appeared in 186 games (75 starts) with Washington and averaged 9.3 points and 3.0 rebounds while shooting .397 from behind the arc. His best season in a Wizards uniform came during the 2012-13 campaign, when he averaged a career-best 11.4 points and 3.9 rebounds in 76 games while shooting .442 from the field and a career-best .422 from deep. The 10-year veteran was originally signed by the Wizards as a free agent on August 29, 2012.

Hollins is a nine-year NBA veteran who has averaged 3.7 points and 2.2 rebounds in 481 career games (64 starts), with Charlotte, Dallas, Minnesota, Cleveland, Boston, the Los Angeles Clippers and Sacramento. Last season with the Kings, he appeared in 46 games (nine starts) and averaged 3.0 points and 2.2 rebounds in 9.6 minutes per contest. He was originally selected with the 50th pick in the 2006 NBA Draft by Charlotte out of the University of California.

Sixers fall to 0-18

Here’s CSN Philly reporting on the 76ers, who are 0-18 this season and being outscored by an average of 12.1 ppg:

Sixers fall to 0-18

The Sixers again made some dubious history in Sunday night’s 92-84 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies at the FedEx Forum.

In addition to extending the longest losing streak in the history of major league North American sports to 28 games, the Sixers also tied the NBA record for longest losing streak to open a season, tying the 2009-10 New Jersey Nets’ mark of 18 in a row.

The Sixers also lost for the fifth straight game in which they led midway through the fourth quarter.