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Denver Nuggets sign General Manager Calvin Booth to contract extension

The Denver Nuggets have signed General Manager Calvin Booth to a multi-year contract extension, KSE Vice Chairman Josh Kroenke announced today.

“Calvin has been a huge part of what we’ve done here over the last five seasons and I have the utmost confidence in him as our General Manager,” said Kroenke. “Cal has seen the game from every angle and has an extremely bright basketball mind. I look forward to continuing alongside Calvin and the rest of the organization with the goal of bringing an NBA championship to the city of Denver.”

Per the Denver Post, the deal “will keep him in Denver through at least the 2024-25 season, league sources said. In addition, the majority of the staff received extensions through the 2024-25 season, sources said, adding stability to Denver’s front office moving forward. Booth took over this past summer as GM following the abrupt departure of former president of basketball operations Tim Connelly to Minnesota.”

Booth, 46, enters his sixth season with the Nuggets after being hired as Assistant General Manager in the summer of 2017 and promoted to General Manager in 2020. Since arriving in Denver, Booth has played an integral part in the scouting and drafting process as well as the free agent and trade markets. His first off-season as lead decision maker saw him bring in veteran NBA champion Kentavius Caldwell-Pope, veterans Ish Smith and DeAndre Jordan and versatile wing Bruce Brown along with rookie draft picks Christian Braun, Peyton Watson and Ismael Kamagate.

Prior to arriving in Denver, Booth spent four seasons (2013 – 2017) in the Minnesota Timberwolves’ front office, initially as a scout before rising through the ranks to Director of Player Personnel. Booth also served as a scout for the New Orleans Pelicans during the 2012-13 season before transitioning to Minnesota.

Before beginning his front office career, Booth played for seven different teams over a 10-year career in the NBA. He appeared in 366 games (83 starts), averaging 3.3 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.00 blocks per game. The Reynoldsburg, OH native was drafted by the Washington Wizards in the second round (35th overall) of the 1999 NBA Draft after playing four years at Penn State University where he was named Big 10 Defensive Player of the Year in 1998.

Grizzlies sign Steven Adams to contract extension

The Memphis Grizzlies have signed center Steven Adams to a multi-year contract extension.

The extension is reportedly for two years, $25.2 million.

Per ESPN.com, “Adams, 29, was entering the final year of his deal, and now is under contract for three years and $43.1 million for a Grizzlies franchise trying to take the next step to championship contention.”

Adams (6-11, 265) averaged 6.9 points and set career highs with averages of 10.0 rebounds and 3.4 assists over 76 games (75 starts) last season, his first with the Grizzlies following a trade from the New Orleans Pelicans. Memphis posted the second-best record in the NBA during the 2021-22 regular season at 56-26, which tied the franchise record and earned the Grizzlies the Southwest Division championship, the first division title in franchise history.

Per the Memphis Commercial Appeal, “retaining Adams likely temporarily ends the discussion of Jaren Jackson Jr. moving to center. The Grizzlies view Adams as a key component to the team’s championship goals. His rebounding and screen-setting were big parts of the Grizzlies’ identity last season. Many players in the NBA also call him one of the league’s strongest players.”

The 29-year-old led the NBA last season with 349 total offensive rebounds and 4.6 offensive rebounds per game, breaking the single-season franchise records previously set by Zach Randolph during the 2009-10 season. He helped Memphis top the league with 18.6 second chance points per game, the highest mark by any NBA team since the league began tracking the stat in the 1996-97 season.

A native of New Zealand who played collegiately at the University of Pittsburgh, Adams was selected by the Oklahoma City Thunder with the 12th overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft and has played 664 career games (599 starts) over a nine-year career with Oklahoma City, New Orleans and Memphis. He owns NBA career averages of 9.3 points, 8.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 26.8 minutes and holds the eighth-highest field goal percentage (.587) in NBA history.

Mikal Bridges’ Suns role may change a bit this season

The Phoenix Suns had a great 2021-22 regular season, before crashing hard in the playoffs. There’s plenty of reason to expect a quality next regular season as well. Here’s the Arizona Republic one Suns change we may see:

Suns fans will see more of Mikal Bridges running the point this season.

He won’t just be on the wing sticking threes, slashing to the paint to finish plays, blocking shots or on the island defending against their opponent’s top scorers.

After Bridges was last season’s Defensive Player of the Year runner-up to Celtics’ Marcus Smart, Suns coach Monty Williams wants to add more responsibilities to Bridges and his so-called “twin,” Cam Johnson, who’s also starting at the four spot to replace Jae Crowder, to occasionally initiate the offense.

Williams wants to them to manage that duty with primary ball handler Chris Paul to take the load off him bringing the ball up the floor.

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Thunder and Rockets complete eight-player trade

The Oklahoma City Thunder have acquired guard Sterling Brown, guard Trey Burke, forward Marquese Chriss and forward David Nwaba, and generated two trade exceptions, in a trade with the Houston Rockets for center Derrick Favors, forward Maurice Harkless, guard Ty Jerome, guard Théo Maledon, a 2026 second-round pick and cash considerations.

Brown (6-5, 219) has played in 264 career games (29 starts) with Milwaukee, Houston and Dallas, and owns averages of 5.4 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.0 assist in 16.8 minutes per game. The SMU product averaged 3.3 points and 3.0 rebounds in 12.8 minutes per game last season with the Mavericks.

Burke (6-0, 185) has appeared in 498 career games (130 starts) spanning nine seasons with Utah, Washington, New York, Dallas, and Philadelphia, and averaged 9.6 points, 1.8 rebounds and 3.1 assists while shooting 41.0 percent from the field in 20.9 minutes per game. Selected with the ninth overall pick in the 2013 NBA draft, the Columbus, Ohio native was named to the 2014 All-Rookie First Team.

Chriss (6-9, 240) has appeared in 292 career games (147 starts) since being selected with the eighth overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft and has seen action with Phoenix, Houston, Cleveland, Golden State and Dallas. The Sacramento, Calif. native owns career averages of 7.6 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.0 assist while shooting 45.6 percent from the field in 18.3 minutes per game.

Nwaba (6-5, 219) has appeared in 237 career games (50 starts) with the L.A. Lakers, Chicago, Cleveland, Brooklyn and Houston, and registered averages of 6.8 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.0 assist in 19.3 minutes per game. Last season, the six-year veteran saw action in 46 games (four starts) and averaged 5.1 points and 3.3 rebounds while shooting 48.3 percent from the field in 13.2 minutes per game with the Houston Rockets.

In one season with the Thunder, Favors appeared in 39 games (18 starts) and averaged 5.3 points on 51.6 percent shooting from the field and 4.7 rebounds in 16.7 minutes per game last year.

Harkless was previously acquired by the Thunder on Sept. 27, 2022, from the Atlanta Hawks.

Jerome appeared in 81 games (five starts) with the Thunder over the last two seasons, and averaged 8.6 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 2.8 assists in 19.6 minutes per game.

Maledon appeared in 116 career games (56 starts) and averaged 8.8 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 23.2 minutes per game with the Thunder from 2020-22.

Oklahoma City will have one year from today to exercise the trade exceptions. The 2026 second-round pick owed to Houston will be the second-least favorable of Oklahoma City, Dallas and Philadelphia.

2022 NBA preseason begins with big game from Warriors center James Wiseman

The 2022-23 NBA preseason game slate has begun, starting off overseas, with the Warriors facing the Wizards in Japan. Via the Bay Area News Group:

James Wiseman had butterflies when he checked into Friday’s preseason opener in the first quarter and for good reason.

Not only did Wiseman have to wait 1 1/2 years to suit back up for the Warriors, but Friday night also was the first time he’s ever played an NBA game in front of a full arena.

And boy, did Wiseman give the crowd of more than 20,000 engaged fans a lot to cheer about.

Wiseman made his 7-foot presence known in the Warriors’ 96-87 win over the Washington Wizards, throwing down five dunks, including an alley-oop in the second quarter off an assist from Steph Curry.

Wiseman finished with a game-high 20 points on 8-for-11 shooting. He also grabbed nine rebounds playing just under 24 minutes off the bench.

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In G League, Cleveland Charge add Omar Cook to coaching staff

The Cleveland Charge of the NBA G League have announced the staff that will serve in support of Head Coach Mike Gerrity for the 2022-23 season. Chris Darnell returns as Associate Head Coach and Kendall Chones returns as an Assistant Coach. New additions for 2022-23 include Omar Cook & D.J. Ham as Assistant Coaches, Daniel Gibson as Assistant Coach Program Apprentice/Scout, Willie Williams as Video Coordinator, and Jamie Pasquin as Strength & Conditioning Coach.

Omar Cook joins the Charge on the heels of a successful 22-year professional basketball career that included stints in the NBA and NBA G League as well as playing professionally in over half a dozen countries internationally. Cook has led five different leagues in assists in a season and has been part of two FIBA Champions League winning teams. The Bronx, NY native was a McDonalds All-American and First-Team Parade All-American at Christ the King HS and starred at St. John’s University before being drafted by the Orlando Magic in 2001.

D.J. Ham comes to the Charge after spending the past four seasons as an Assistant Coach at his alma mater, Northwood University, where he primarily focused on the program’s offensive schemes and player development with the guards. After completing his four-year career with the Timberwolves, Ham played professionally for a year in Germany before beginning coaching experiences at the high school and collegiate level. He is the son of Los Angeles Lakers Head Coach and 10-year NBA veteran Darvin Ham.

Daniel Gibson returns to Cleveland as part of the NBA Assistant Coaches Program, where the league places an aspiring coach/front office member with a NBA G League team in an opportunity to continue their growth. “Boobie” starred for the Cavaliers in nearly 400 games over seven seasons, memorably providing a spark with 31 points in the closeout victory of the 2007 Eastern Conference Finals. Gibson played two years collegiately at Texas, where he was Big 12 Freshman of the Year in 2005 and Honorable Mention All-America his sophomore year.

Wille Williams will serve the Charge as Video Coordinator after spending the previous nine seasons with the Cavaliers working in basketball operations. Williams started out as a game night team attendant and worked his way up to assistant equipment manager, supporting the Cavs team with travel and logistics.

Jamie Pasquin has been added to the Charge staff as the new Strength and Conditioning Coach after most recently serving as the athletic performance coach at Creo Health and Performance for the last two years. Pasquin also brings four years of collegiate experience in the field, leading 21 different Division I sports.

Celtics add Noah Vonleh, Justin Jackson, Jake Layman, Denzel Valentine, Luka Samanic and Brodric Thomas to training camp

The Boston Celtics have finalized their training camp roster for the 2022-23 season by adding Justin Jackson, Jake Layman, Luka Samanic, Brodric Thomas, Denzel Valentine and Noah Vonleh to the roster.

Jackson (6-8, 220), 27, has averaged 6.5 points (42.6% FG, 32.1% 3-PT, 79.9% FT), 2.5 rebounds and 18.7 minutes in 255 career games (61 starts) over five NBA seasons. He spent the 2021-22 season with two NBA call-ups to Boston and to Phoenix while playing for the Texas Legends of the NBA G-League where he averaged 17.8 points, 6.2 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.33 steals while shooting 37.7 percent from three in 38 games.

Layman (6-8, 209), 28, has played in six NBA seasons split between Portland and Minnesota where he has appeared in 243 career games with averages of 4.8 points (46.0% FG, 30.0% 3-PT, 71.9% FT) and 1.7 rebounds in 12.8 minutes per game. The Norwood, MA native was originally selected by the Orlando Magic with the 47th overall pick in the second round of the 2016 NBA draft.

Samanic (6-10, 215), 22, spent last season playing for the Westchester Knicks in the NBA G-League where he averaged 27.9 points (54.8% FG, 36.7% 3-PT, 87.0% FT), 10.4 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 32.3 minutes per game. The 19th overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft by San Antonio has appeared in 36 career games in the NBA in San Antonio with career averages of 3.8 points and 2.2 rebounds.

Thomas (6-5, 185), 25, spent last season as one of the Celtics’ two-way players where he averaged 15.7 points (45.7% FG, 38.7% 3-PT, 5.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.72 steals in 30.6 minutes per game for the Maine Celtics. Thomas also appeared in 12 games for the Celtics last season.

Valentine (6-4, 220), 28, has appeared in 256 career games in the NBA averaging 7.0 points (39.4% FG, 36.0% 3-PT, 78.7% FT), 3.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 18.8 minutes per game. The former 14th overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft by Chicago spent last season split between Cleveland and Utah in the NBA while also spending time with the Maine Celtics in the NBA G-League. While in Maine, Valentine averaged 14.6 points (44.0% FG, 35.2% 3-PT, 78.6% FT), 10.3 rebounds and 7.0 assists in 12 games.

Vonleh (6-10, 257), 27, played last season for the Shanghai Dongfang Sharks of the Chinese Basketball Association where he averaged 14.4 points (45.1% FG, 38.8% 3-PT, 71.6% FT), 9.2 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.75 steals and 1.32 blocks per game in 28 appearances. The former ninth overall pick by Charlotte in 2014 was born in Salem, MA and has appeared in 339 career NBA games split between Charlotte, Portland, New York, Minnesota, Chicago, Denver and Brooklyn.

Boston opens preseason action against the Hornets at TD Garden on Oct. 2, its first of four preseason contests.

Lakers hire Chris Jent, Jordan Ott, J.D. DuBois, Schuyler Rimmer and Zach Peterson as assistant coaches

The Los Angeles Lakers have named Chris Jent, Jordan Ott, J.D. DuBois, Schuyler Rimmer and Zach Peterson as assistant coaches on Head Coach Darvin Ham’s staff, joining Phil Handy, Dru Anthrop and Jon Pastorek, it was announced today.

Jent most recently served as an assistant coach with the Atlanta Hawks from 2017-22. Jent spent time as an assistant with Sacramento (2013-15), Cleveland (2006-11), Orlando (2004-05) and Philadelphia (2003-04). He also had two stints as an assistant at Ohio State (2011-13, 2016-17) and was the head coach of the NBA G League’s Bakersfield Jam during the 2015-16 season. Jent was a member of the 1994 NBA Champion Houston Rockets and played for the New York Knicks during the 1996-97 season.

Ott most recently served as an assistant coach with the Brooklyn Nets from 2016-22 after spending three seasons as the video coordinator with the Atlanta Hawks from 2013-16. Prior to joining the Hawks, Ott was the video coordinator at Michigan State for five seasons from 2008-13. He also served as an assistant coach with the Dominican Republic national team in the 2015 FIBA Americas Championship in Mexico City.

DuBois joins the Lakers from the Detroit Pistons, where he recently served as an assistant coach from 2018-22 after working with the Toronto Raptors in player development during the 2017-18 season. DuBois played collegiately at the University of Utah during the 2012-13 season after transferring from Loyola Marymount University where he played from 2008-12.

Rimmer joins the Lakers after spending the last four seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks, serving as the team’s assistant video coordinator after working with the Atlanta Hawks during the 2017-18 season. Rimmer played collegiately at Florida from 2015-17 after transferring from Stanford where he played for two seasons from 2013-15.

Peterson most recently served as a player development coach with the Oklahoma City Thunder, a role he occupied since joining the club prior to the 2019-20 season. Previously, he served as the head video coordinator for the Milwaukee Bucks during the 2018-19 season. Prior to his time in Milwaukee, Peterson spent four years with the Atlanta Hawks, working in the video room and serving as head video coordinator in 2017-18.

Jazz trade Bojan Bogdanovic to Pistons for Kelly Olynyk and Saben Lee

The Utah Jazz have acquired center/forward Kelly Olynyk, guard Saben Lee and cash considerations in a trade with the Detroit Pistons for forward Bojan Bogdanović.

Bogdanović, 6-7, 226, averaged 18.1 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 30.9 minutes per game with the Jazz last season. He’s averaged 18.4 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.9 assists over the last three seasons in Utah while shooting 45% from the field and 40% from beyond the arc. Bogdanović has also made 150-plus 3-pointers in each of his last five seasons.

Drafted 31st overall in the 2011 NBA Draft, Bogdanović played professionally overseas before coming to the NBA in 2014. In 603 career NBA games, he’s averaged 15.0 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists with Brooklyn, Washington, Indiana and Utah.

Born in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bogdanović began his professional career in Europe, most notably, with Real Madrid in Spain and Fenerbahce in Turkey. He helped lead Fenerbahce to a Turkish Cup win in 2013 and a Turkish Supercup and Turkish League championship in 2014.

Olynyk (6-11, 240, Gonzaga) is entering his 10th NBA season, having appeared in 610 games (166 starts) with Boston (2013-17), Miami (2017-21), Houston (2020-21), and Detroit (2021-22), owning career averages of 10.1 points on 47.6 percent from the field, 5.1 rebounds, and 2.0 assists in 22.0 minutes per contest. A native of Kamloops, British Columbia, spent last season with the Pistons, playing in 40 games (one start), averaging 9.1 points, 4.4 boards, and 2.8 assists in 19.1 minutes. Following his first professional season in 2013-14, Olynyk was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team.

The 31-year-old was a three-year collegiate player at Gonzaga (2009-13), where during his senior season, he averaged 17.8 points on 62.9 percent shooting, 7.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 1.1 blocks in 26.4 minutes per contest, garnering 2012-13 Consensus All-America First Team, All-WCC First Team, and WCC Player of the Year honors. He has represented the Canadian Men’s National Team in multiple events since 2010.

Lee (6-2, 183, Vanderbilt) is entering his third NBA season, having spent two seasons with Detroit, owning career averages of 5.6 points, 3.3 assists and 2.2 rebounds in 85 games (seven starts). Originally drafted with the 38th overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft by the Jazz, he was traded to Detroit on Draft Night. In 2021-22 he appeared in 19 games with the Motor City Cruise of the NBA G League, averaging 24.0 points, 7.2 assists, 4.8 boards, and 2.3 steals in 36.8 minutes per game, earning 2021-22 All-NBA G League Second Team honors.

Lakers sign Dwayne Bacon and Matt Ryan

The Los Angeles Lakers have signed guard Dwayne Bacon and forward Matt Ryan.

The deals are likely non-guaranteed contracts, for training camp.

During the 2020-21 season, Bacon (6’6”, 221) appeared in all 72 games (50 starts) for the Orlando Magic, averaging 10.9 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 25.7 minutes per game. Across four seasons with Orlando (2020-21) and Charlotte (2017-20), Bacon has averaged 7.3 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 19.4 minutes.

Ryan (6’7”, 215) appeared in 30 regular season G League games (20 starts) last season for Grand Rapids and Maine, recording 19.4 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists while shooting 41.5 percent from 3-point range. Ryan appeared in one game for the Boston Celtics last season, tallying three points and one steal in five minutes.