Tristan Thompson now Cavs starting center

Here’s ESPN.com with a big roster rotation update on the Cavs, who will be making a move many people had been expecting them to make:

Tristan Thompson now Cavs starting center

Cleveland Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue said he is making Tristan Thompson the Cavs’ starting center for the foreseeable future — including to start the playoffs — before his team’s game against the Atlanta Hawks on Monday.

Lue previously swapped Thompson in for Timofey Mozgov in the starting lineup in the Cavs’ 105-102 loss to the Chicago Bulls on Saturday.

When asked for his motivation behind the move, Lue said: “I just wanted to.”

Thompson is averaging 8.4 points on 59.9 percent shooting and 10 rebounds in 32 starts this season and 7.6 points on 58.7 percent shooting and 8.5 rebounds in 48 games coming off the bench.

Quinn Cook wins D-League Rookie of Year award

Canton Charge point guard Quinn Cook today was named the 2015-16 NBA Development League Rookie of the Year. The award, voted on by the league’s 19 head coaches, recognizes the first-year professional who most significantly contributed to his team’s success during the season.

Cook (6-2, 179, Duke) led the Charge to a 31-19 season by averaging team highs of 19.6 points and 5.4 assists to go with 3.9 rebounds in 43 games (37 starts). He shot 47 percent from the field and connected on a team-high 86 three-pointers.

A 2016 NBA D-League All-Star, Cook led Canton in scoring 19 times and assists 21 times. He scored in double figures 40 times, including four games with at least 30 points, and helped the Charge secure the Eastern Conference’s third seed in the 2016 NBA D-League Playoffs.

Undrafted in 2015 after a four-year career at Duke, Cook was a member of the Blue Devils’ NCAA Championship team during his senior season in 2014-15.

DeMarre Carroll feels he is ready for more minutes

Here’s the Toronto Sun reporting on Raptors small forward DeMarre Carroll, who missed much of this season due to injury but is back in action and feels he’s ready for an increased role on the playoff-bound squad:

DeMarre Carroll feels he is ready for more minutes

He made his return in Atlanta last Thursday, was sat the next night at home against Indiana to avoid playing on back to back nights, will likely play Tuesday in the regular season home finale against Philadelphia and then likely sit again with another back-to-back to finish the season on Wednesday in Brooklyn.

Carroll likes where he is at having played 15 minutes in Atlanta and 17 in New York. He believes he is moving well and believes he is ready to ramp up the action even more, although that is not his call.

“It’s up to the medical staff and coach and Masai (Ujiri), so we’ll see,” Carroll said Monday following practice. “I’m just playing my role and whenever they give me the OK …”

As for his own review of his play, Carroll has been pretty happy.

Jrue Holiday has surgery for orbital wall fracture

Jrue Holiday undergoes surgery for orbital wall fracture

The New Orleans Pelicans today announced that guard Jrue Holiday underwent successful surgery to repair an orbital wall fracture on his right eye. The timetable for his return is 6-8 weeks. Holiday is expected to make a full recovery prior to the 2016-17 season.

Holiday (6-4, 205) appeared in 65 games (23 starts) this season while averaging 16.8 points, 3.0 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 1.4 steals. The UCLA product has appeared in 437 games (370 starts) and holds career averages of 14.1 points, 3.5 rebounds, 6.1 assists and 1.5 steals.

NBA records set by the Warriors so far

NBA records set by the Warriors so far

The Golden State Warriors (now 72-9, with one game left to play) achieved several league milestones with Sunday’s road win against the Spurs, most notably matching the 1995-96 Bulls (72-10) for the most victories in an NBA regular season.

In addition, the Warriors set an NBA record for most road wins in a season (34). It is now guaranteed that they will become the first team in league history to go a full season without losing to the same team twice, and also guaranteed that they will become the first team to go through a season without losing two games in a row.

The stage is now set for Wednesday, when the Warriors will try for an NBA-record 73rd victory in their regular-season finale against the Grizzlies at Oracle Arena. ESPN will televise the game at 10:30 p.m. ET, while Kobe Bryant’s final game in the league will air on ESPN2.

— NBA News

Big night in NBA West Playoff race

Big night in NBA West Playoff race

The Eastern Conference’s eight playoff teams are now known. In the Western Conference, two postseason spots remain up for grabs. The Mavericks can clinch one of those spots if they defeat the Jazz tonight in Utah (9 p.m. ET, NBA LEAGUE PASS) or if the Rockets lose to the Timberwolves in Minnesota (8 p.m., NBA LP). Utah can clinch a postseason spot if it beats the Mavericks and Houston loses to Minnesota. If the Jazz wins and the Rockets lose, Houston would be eliminated from playoff contention. Also tonight, the Cavaliers can clinch the best record in the East with a victory over the Hawks in Cleveland (7 p.m., NBA TV).

— NBA News

Boston Celtics sign guard John Holland

Celtics sign John Holland

The Boston Celtics signed guard John Holland today.

The 6’5” guard has appeared in 37 regular season contests for the NBA Development League Canton Charge this year and has averaged 16.0 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.2 steals in 30.2 minutes per game. He shot 52.0 percent from the floor, 36.9 percent from beyond the arc and 85.2 percent from the free-throw line during the regular season. During the 2015-16 D-League Playoffs, Holland has averaged 28.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists and shot 62.5 percent from the field and 58.8 percent from the three-point line.

Holland, the 40th Gatorade D-League call-up this season, was named the America East Conference Player of the Year as a Boston University senior when he led the Terriers to the 2011 NCAA Tournament. He finished his collegiate career as just the second player in America East history with at least 2,000 points, 700 rebounds and 200 steals.

A native of the Bronx, New York, Holland has played professionally in France, Spain and Turkey, and was in training camp with the San Antonio Spurs in 2014.

Paul Millsap, Karl-Anthony Towns named NBA Players of Week

Paul Millsap, NBA Players of Week

Atlanta Hawks forward Paul Millsap and Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns today were named NBA Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week, respectively, for games played Monday, April 4 through Sunday, April 10.

Millsap helped the Hawks to a 3-0 week, which included wins over the Toronto Raptors and Boston Celtics. He averaged 19.0 points, led the league in both rebounds (15.7 rpg) and blocks (4.33 bpg), and posted point-rebound double-doubles in all three contests. On April 9, Millsap’s 31-point, 16-rebound, five-block performance lifted Atlanta to a 118-107 win over Boston and moved the Hawks one game ahead of the Celtics for the third seed in the Eastern Conference playoff race.

Karl-Anthony Towns wins nba player of week

Towns led the Timberwolves to a 3-0 week, which included wins over the Golden State Warriors and Portland Trail Blazers. He averaged 21.3 points (seventh in the Western Conference), 10.3 rebounds (tied-sixth) and 1.67 blocks (tied-sixth). On April 9, Towns made the game-winning shot with 1.8 seconds remaining during the Timberwolves’ 106-105 win over the Trail Blazers.

Other nominees for the NBA Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week were Atlanta’s Jeff Teague, Detroit’s Reggie Jackson, Golden State’s Stephen Curry and the Los Angeles Clippers’ Jamal Crawford.

Warriors now have 72 wins

The 2015 NBA Champion Golden State Warriors earned their 72nd win of the 2015-16 season with Sunday’s 92-86 road victory over the San Antonio Spurs, matching the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls’ NBA record for most wins in a single season.

With Sunday’s win, the Warriors finished the season with a 34-7 (.829) record on the road, establishing an NBA record for most road wins in a single season. At 72-9 (.889) on the season, Golden State has become the first team in NBA history to reach 63 games above the .500 mark. The Warriors snapped a 33-game regular-season road losing streak against the Spurs, earning their first regular-season win at San Antonio since Feb. 14, 1997. Golden State improved to 16-1 (.941) this season against teams with a winning percentage of .600 or better.

Warriors Head Coach Steve Kerr, who is in his second year at the helm, was a key reserve on the record-setting Bulls team.