Inside Hoops – Page 1318 – NBA Blog

Sixers acquire draft rights to Arsalan Kazemi

The Philadelphia 76ers announced today that they acquired the draft rights to forward Arsalan Kazemi (pronounced “are-suh-lahn kah-ZEE-me”) as part of a series of trades made during the second round of the 2013 NBA Draft, which took place last night. Kazemi was selected 54th in the NBA Draft, becoming the first Iranian player drafted into the NBA.

(Hamed Haddadi, the first Iranian to play in the NBA, was not drafted, and entered the league as a free agent.)

The Sixers started by trading the 35th overall pick to Washington in exchange for the 38th overall pick and the 54th overall pick, where Kazemi was eventually selected.

The Sixers then traded the 38th overall pick to Milwaukee for the 43rd overall pick and Houston’s 2014 second round pick.

The Sixers then traded the 43rd overall pick to Dallas in exchange for Brooklyn’s 2014 second round pick.

Kazemi (6-8, 226) was the first Iranian-born player to compete in NCAA Division I men’s basketball. Phoenix’s Hamed Haddadi became the first Iranian to play in the NBA as a member of the Memphis Grizzlies in 2008.

As a senior at Oregon last season, Kazemi averaged 9.4 points, a team-high 10.0 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 2.0 steals while shooting 59.5% from the floor in 35 games played. He earned Honorable Mention All-Pac-12 and became the first Duck ever to be named to the Pac-12 All-Defensive team.

Kazemi spent his first three seasons at Rice, averaging a double-double as both a sophomore and a junior. For his entire collegiate career, Kazemi had nearly as many steals (225) as turnovers (232).

Bobcats extend qualifying offer to Gerald Henderson

One of the few bright spots of the Charlotte Bobcats last season was solid production from their backcourt. And today, the team is making a move to hold on to a key contributor at the guard spot.

Bobcats President of Basketball Operations Rod Higgins announced today that the team has extended a qualifying offer to guard Gerald Henderson, making him a restricted free agent. The qualifying offer allows the Bobcats to match any offer he receives from another team.

Henderson was initially selected by the Bobcats with the 12th overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft. He played in 68 games during the 2012-13 season, averaging a career-high 15.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, a career-high 2.6 assists and 1.0 steal in 31.4 minutes per game. In his four NBA seasons, Henderson has played in 234 career games, averaging 11.3 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 25.6 minutes.

Ray Allen exercises option to stay with Miami Heat next season

The Miami HEAT announced today that guard Ray Allen has exercised his player option for the 2013-14 season.

Allen, a 17-year NBA veteran, appeared in 79 games with the HEAT this season, averaging 10.9 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 25.8 minutes per game. He led the team in free throw percentage (.886) and both three-point field goals made (139) and attempted (332). He ranked second on the team in games played and three-point field goal percentage (.419). During the HEAT’s successful playoff run, he averaged 10.2 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 24.9 minutes over 23 games.

Allen has appeared in 1,227 games (1,140 starts) throughout his NBA career, and has averaged 19.4 points, 4.1 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.14 steals and 36.2 minutes, while shooting 45.2 percent from the floor, 40.1 percent from three-point range and 89.4 percent from the free-throw line.

Philadelphia 76ers still deciding on next head coach

Philadelphia 76ers general manager Sam Hinkie denied a New York Daily News report that the team has decided to hire San Antonio Spurs assistant Brett Brown as their new coach.

Saying “nothing of that substance happened,” Hinkie also said after the draft: “We had a lot of things going on. That was not part of what happened in the last several hours.”

Hinkie said he has yet to formally interview anyone following the departure of Doug Collins, who was not retained after three seasons as the club’s coach.

Brown has been an assistant under Spurs coach Gregg Popovich for the past seven seasons and previously served as San Antonio’s player development coach.

Reported by ESPN.com news services

Dirk Nowitzki reaches out to Dwight Howard

Houston’s James Harden and Chandler Parsons aren’t the only Texas residents in the NBA who have gotten a head start on recruiting Dwight Howard.

Dirk Nowitzki has also been in touch with Howard, although the Dallas Mavericks star indicated that he hasn’t been too aggressive with his recruiting efforts.

“I reached out to him and told him we’d love to have him,” Nowitzki said Thursday night. “That’s really about it. It’s not like we call each other every day.”

Grinning, Nowitzki added, “I haven’t written him a letter. We’ve just had a little phone contact, and that’s about it.”

Reported by Tim MacMahon of ESPN Dallas

Summary of 2013 NBA Draft trades

Summary of 2013 NBA Draft Night Trades

The following trades took place Thursday night, the day of the 2013 NBA draft. All of these trades have been publicly announced. Review of 2013 NBA draft trades:

1) Dallas traded the draft rights to Kelly Olynyk (the 13th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) to Boston for the draft rights to Lucas Nogueira (the 16th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) and two 2014 second round picks.

2) Minnesota traded the draft rights to Trey Burke (the 9th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) to Utah for the draft rights to Shabazz Muhammad (the 14th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) and the draft rights to Gorgui Dieng (the 21st player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft).

3) Dallas traded Jared Cunningham, the draft rights to Lucas Nogueira (the 16th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft), and the draft rights to Mike Muscala (the 44th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) to Atlanta for the draft rights to Shane Larkin (the 18th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft).

4) Minnesota traded Malcolm Lee and the draft rights to André Roberson (the 26th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) to Golden State for a 2014 second round pick and cash.

5) Denver traded the draft rights to Rudy Gobert (the 27th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) to Utah for the draft rights to Erick Green (the 46th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) and cash.

6) Memphis traded Darrell Arthur and the draft rights to Joffrey Lauvergne (the 55th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) to Denver for Kosta Koufos.

7) Cleveland traded the draft rights to Allen Crabbe (the 31st player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) to Portland for a 2015 and a 2016 second round pick.

8) Golden State traded the draft rights to André Roberson (the 26th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) to Oklahoma City for the draft rights to Archie Goodwin (the 29th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) and cash.

9) Phoenix traded the draft rights to Nemanja Nedovic (the 30th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) to Golden State for Malcolm Lee and the draft rights to Archie Goodwin (the 29th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft).

10) Portland traded the draft rights to Grant Jerrett (the 40th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) to Oklahoma city for cash.

11) Atlanta traded the draft rights to James Ennis (the 50th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) to Miami for a future second round pick.

12) Indiana traded the draft rights to Colton Iverson (the 53rd player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) to Boston for cash.

13) Atlanta traded the draft rights to Raul Neto (the 47th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) to Utah for a 2015 second round pick.

14) Washington traded the draft rights to Nate Wolters (the 38th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) and the draft rights to Arsalan Kazemi (the 54th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) to Philadelphia for the draft rights to Glen Rice, Jr. (the 35th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft).

The following 2013 NBA draft trades took place Friday morning, the day after the draft. Both trades were to be announced by the teams immediately.

1) Philadelphia traded the draft rights to Nate Wolters (the 38th player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) to Milwaukee for the draft rights to Ricardo Ledo (the 43rd player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) and a 2014 second round draft pick.

2) Philadelphia traded the draft rights to Ricardo Ledo (the 43rd player selected in the 2013 NBA Draft) to Dallas for a 2014 second round draft pick.

Timberwolves exercise contract option on Dante Cunningham

The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced the team has exercised the one-year option on forward Dante Cunningham’s contract for the 2013-14 NBA season.

“It was important for us to bring Dante back,” said Wolves President of Basketball Operations Flip Saunders. “We all saw last year how he fits in really well with Coach Adelman’s style and system. His versatility, energy and ability to knock down the open jumper are all reasons we feel he is an invaluable piece to our team. We are excited to have Dante back for next season.”

Cunningham, 26, enjoyed a career-best season the Wolves in 2012-13, averaging career highs in scoring (8.7 ppg), rebounds (5.1 rpg), assists (0.8 apg) and minutes (25.1 mpg) in a career-high 80 games, including nine starts. He reached double figures on 32 occasions, including 10 of his final 16 contests, and shot a perfect 9-of-9 from the floor on Feb. 2 vs. New Orleans to set a single-game for accuracy. Cunningham also swiped 84 steals (1.05 spg) and ranked fourth in the NBA in steal/turnover ratio (1.50-to-1). The Wolves originally acquired the fourth-year forward from the Memphis Grizzlies on July 24, 2012 in exchange for guard Wayne Ellington.

In 285 career games with Minnesota, Memphis, Charlotte and Portland, Cunningham owns career averages of 6.2 points and 3.8 rebounds in 19.2 minutes per contest. Cunningham was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers in the second round (33rd overall) of the 2009 NBA Draft.

Nuggets get Darrell Arthur from Grizzlies

The Denver Nuggets have acquired F Darrell Arthur and the draft rights to Joffrey Lauvergne from the Memphis Grizzlies in exchange for C Kosta Koufos, general manager/executive vice president of basketball operations Tim Connelly announced tonight.

Arthur, 6-9, 235, has averaged 6.7 points and 3.9 rebounds in four NBA seasons. He averaged 6.1 points and 2.9 rebounds in 59 games for the Grizzlies in 2012-13.

Selected 27th overall in 2008, Arthur enjoyed his best season in 2010-11, averaging a career-high 9.1 points and 4.3 rebounds. He missed the 2011-12 season while recovering from an Achilles’ injury.

Koufos, 7-0, 265, started 81 games for the Nuggets last season. He averaged a career-high 8.0 points and 6.9 rebounds while shooting .581 from the field.

Lauvergne (pronounced LA-vern-yea), 6-11, 240, was selected 55th overall out of France. He played for three top pro leagues in Europe last season – France Pro A, Spanish ABC and Serbia A.

The 21-year-old averaged 10.6 points and 6.1 rebounds in eight games with Partizan in Serbia, and 6.2 points in 14 games with Elan Chalon in France. He also was a member of the French junior national team in 2011 and will represent the national team this summer.

Atlanta Hawks 2013 NBA Draft results

The Atlanta Hawks selected point guard Dennis Schroeder from Germany with the 17th overall pick of the 2013 NBA Draft and acquired the draft rights to Brazilian center Lucas Nogueira (16th overall), forward/center Mike Muscala from Bucknell and guard Jared Cunningham from the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for the draft rights to Shane Larkin (18th overall).

Atlanta also acquired two future draft picks: a 2015 second round pick from the Utah Jazz in exchange for the draft rights to Raul Neto (47th overall pick) and a conditional 2017 second rounder from Miami for the draft rights to James Ennis.

Nogueira (new-GAY-ruh), a 7-0 center from Brazil, has played professionally for four seasons (2009-13) with Asefa Estudiantes Madrid II and Asefa Estudiantes Madrid in Spain after spending his early teenage years at Central Club in Niteroi, Brazil. He averaged 5.4 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 13.3 minutes in 32 games (.664 FG%, .674 FT%) last season with Asefa Estudiantes Madrid in the Spanish ACB league.

“Lucas has a tremendous level of talent and charisma,” said Hawks President of Basketball Operations/General Manager Danny Ferry. “He can do things with his length, athletically, protecting the rim and finishing around the rim. He has a good understanding of the game and is a good teammate.”

The 20-year-old has additional international experience as a member of Brazil’s U-18 National Team, helping the club to a second place finish at the 2011 FIBA Americas U-18 Championship in San Antonio, TX. Nogueira also played for the World Select Team, facing off against the U.S. Junior National Team at the 2011 Nike Hoop Summit.

Schroeder (Shroe-derr), a 6-foot-1 point guard from Germany, has played professionally in Germany since 2009-10. The four-year veteran most recently was a member of the New Yorker Phantoms Braunschweig in the country’s top league, the Beko League. He put up 11.9 points, 3.3 assists and 2.5 rebounds in 24.7 minutes in 31 games (.424 FG%, .402 3FG%, .838 FT%) last season.

“Dennis is tenacious and athletic,” said Ferry. “He’s a highly competitive, two-way player and I think he can have a really good future in the NBA with hard work, development and opportunity.”

The 20-year-old has represented Germany in junior national play in the 2012 U-20 Euros and the 2011 U-18 Euros, and was also a member of the World Select Team at the 2013 Nike Hoop Summit.

Portland Trail Blazers 2013 NBA Draft results

The Portland Trail Blazers selected CJ McCollum, Jeff Withey and Marko Todorovic in the 2013 NBA Draft. Portland acquired the draft rights to Allen Crabbe, the 31st overall pick, from Cleveland in exchange for a 2015 second round pick and a 2016 second round selection. The Trail Blazers also traded 40th overall pick Grant Jerrett to the Oklahoma City Thunder for cash considerations.

“It was a great night for our team,” said Trail Blazers Owner Paul Allen. “CJ McCollum was the player we wanted going into the draft, and I’m very excited to watch him thrill our fans in the Rose Garden next season.”

Portland selected McCollum, 21, with the 10th overall pick. The Canton, Ohio, native averaged 21.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.05 steals and 32.9 minutes in 111 games over four seasons at Lehigh. A two-time Patriot League Player of the Year, McCollum is the all-time scoring leader in league history with 2,361 career points. McCollum (6-4, 200) is the first player from Lehigh ever selected in the NBA Draft.

“We’re pleased with how tonight went because we were able to select the players we identified as priorities in addition to some that we didn’t think would be available given our original draft range,” said General Manager Neil Olshey. “Now we’ll get into Summer League, see what we have on the floor with our young guys and add high-caliber veterans as we work to create a more competitive team for next season.”

The Trail Blazers selected Withey, 23, out of Kansas with the 39th overall pick. The two-time Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year is the Big 12’s career leader with 312 blocks. Withey (7-0, 235) averaged 8.0 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.67 blocks and 19.8 minutes in 117 games over four seasons.

Portland drafted Todorovic, 21, with the 45th overall selection. The Podgorica, Montenegro, native made his Spanish ACB league debut with DKV Joventut Badalona at the age of 18. Todorovic (6-10, 243) spent the 2012-13 season with F.C. Barcelona, averaging 2.3 points, 1.5 rebounds and 6.0 minutes in 20 games.

Crabbe (6-6, 210) played three seasons at California, averaging 15.7 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 34.7 minutes in 98 games. He was named Pac-12 Player of the Year by coaches in 2013 when he garnered All-Pac-12 honors for the third consecutive season. Crabbe, 21, led all Pac-12 players as a junior last season with 607 points scored.