Inside Hoops – Page 651 – NBA Blog

Nerlens Noel a starter as Mavs beat Clippers

As the NBA regular season begins to wrap up, it’ll be fun keeping an eye on Nerlens Noel as he learns to fit in with the Mavericks. Here’s the Fort Worth Star-Telegram with the latest:

For the second time since trading for Nerlens Noel on Feb. 23, the Dallas Mavericks used a starting lineup that included the 6-11 center.

And for the second time, the Mavs won that game with Noel starting in the middle and creating all sorts of havoc for the opponent.

With Noel starting, Dirk Nowitzki was pushed from playing center to his customary power forward spot, and Harrison Barnes shifted from power forward to his customary small forward position.

The new strategy also moved Wesley Matthews from small forward to his customary shooting guard spot, while Seth Curry shifted from shooting guard to point guard, and Yogi Ferrell was relegated to coming off the bench.

All of the moves paid off handsomely as the Mavs did what they needed to do to hang on and defeat the Los Angeles Clippers, 97-95, before a Thursday night sellout crowd of 19,703 at American Airlines Center.

Quincy Acy shooting great from outside

Here, have a fun Nets-related item from the New York Post:

Entering Thursday, what player led the NBA in 3-point shooting percentage among those with at least 50 attempts since Jan. 10? Take a guess.

Stephen Curry? Nope, guess again. Klay Thompson? Not him either. Kyle Korver? Sorry, he was No. 2. Try the Nets’ Quincy Acy.

Stop laughing, it’s true. Acy, the 6-foot-7 bundle of energy forward signed to a pair of 10-day contracts before landing a multi-year Nets deal, hit 32 of 64 triples (50 percent) before going 1-for-4 against Phoenix. True, Korver had taken a lot more and made a lot more — 77-for-160 – but his .481 mark was still second.

Nuggets assign Malik Beasley to D-League

The Denver Nuggets have assigned rookie guard Malik Beasley to the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA Development League, General Manager and Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Tim Connelly announced today.

This will be Beasley’s sixth assignment to Sioux Falls, where he has appeared in 12 games (eight starts) and averaged 17.3 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.30 steals in 30.8 minutes per game. He scored a D-League career-high 23 points to go with 10 rebounds and three steals in a win over the Oklahoma City Blue on Feb. 22.

Beasley has appeared in 19 games for the Nuggets, averaging 2.6 points in 4.7 minutes.

Serge Ibaka and Robin Lopez suspended for throwing punches

Chicago Bulls center Robin Lopez and Toronto Raptors forward Serge Ibaka have each been suspended one game without pay for throwing punches at one another during an altercation, it was announced today by Kiki VanDeWeghe, Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations.

Raptors assistant coach Jamaal Magloire has been fined $15,000 for pushing Bulls forward Nikola Mirotic and acting as other than a peacemaker as part of the same altercation.

The incident, for which Ibaka and Lopez were assessed technical fouls and ejected from the game, occurred with 3:58 remaining in the third quarter of the Raptors’ 122-120 overtime win over the Bulls at Air Canada Centre on March 21.

Lopez will serve his suspension tonight when the Bulls host the Detroit Pistons at United Center.

Ibaka will serve his suspension on Thursday when the Raptors visit the Miami Heat at AmericanAirlines Arena.

Lakers sign David Nwaba

The Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday signed guard David Nwaba to a multi-year contract.

“We have been impressed by David’s focus and determination, especially on defense,” said Pelinka. “He has a mentality about him that is infectious, and he works hard every day to improve himself. He has brought energy to both our Lakers and D-Fenders games, and has certainly earned his spot on the roster.”

Nwaba signed the first of his two 10-day contracts with the Lakers on February 28, and the second on March 11. In 10 games (two starts), Nwaba is averaging 3.6 points and 2.0 rebounds in 14.4 minutes. The L.A. native went undrafted out of Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo, and played in 39 games (30 starts) with the Lakers NBA Development League affiliate, the Los Angeles D-Fenders, before his Call-Up to the Lakers, where he tallied 14.1 points, 6.9 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 1.0 blocks in 29.0 minutes.

The Lakers roster stands at 15.

Rockets sign Troy Williams

Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey announced today that the team has signed forward Troy Williams and assigned him to their single-affiliation NBA D-League partner Rio Grande Valley. He originally signed a 10-day contract with the Rockets on March 10.

In five D-League games with the Vipers, Williams is averaging 21.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists while shooting 52.8% from the floor.

Timberwolves sign Omri Casspi

The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced the team has signed forward Omri Casspi.

Casspi, 28, joins the Wolves after playing in 23 games with Sacramento and New Orleans this season, totaling season averages of 6.1 points and 4.0 rebounds while shooting 46.0 percent from the field, including a 39.4 percent mark from the three-point line. Casspi, 6-9, appeared in 22 games with Sacramento before being acquired by New Orleans on February 20, where he played in one game before suffering an injury. He was waived by the Pelicans on February 25.

Casspi has played parts of eight seasons in the NBA with Sacramento, Cleveland, Houston and New Orleans. Originally drafted by the Kings with the 23rd overall pick of the 2009 NBA Draft, he owns career averages of 8.4 points and 4.2 rebounds in 21.6 minutes per game over 486 contests, 138 starts. Casspi is a career 44.2 percent shooter, including a 36.9 percent mark from the three-point line. His best season came in 2015-16 with Sacramento when he averaged 11.8 points, on 48.1 percent shooting and 40.9 percent shooting from the three-point line, and 5.9 rebounds while making 69 appearances, 21 starts.
Casspi will wear No. 18 with the Wolves. With the signing, Minnesota’s roster now stands at 15 players.

Pelicans sign Quinn Cook to 10-day contract

The New Orleans Pelicans have signed guard Quinn Cook to a 10-day contract.

Cook, 6-2, 179, most recently played for the Canton Charge of the NBA Development League, appearing in 37 games this season while averaging 25.9 points, 6.6 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 38.6 minutes per contest and was named the MVP of the NBA D-League All-Star Game in February. Cook also appeared in five games this season with the Dallas Mavericks, averaging 5.4 points and 2.4 assists in 15.4 minutes.
The Duke product was a member of New Orleans’ 2016 training camp roster, appearing in three preseason games for the Pelicans, averaging 8.3 points and 2.7 assists in 9.6 minutes per game.

Cook will wear #22 and is available for tonight’s game against Minnesota at the Smoothie King Center. New Orleans’ roster now stands at 14.

Greg Monroe, Nick Young and D`Angelo Russell fined by NBA

Milwaukee Bucks center Greg Monroe has been fined $35,000 for shoving Los Angeles Lakers guard/forward Nick Young above the shoulders, it was announced today by Kiki VanDeWeghe, Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations.

Young has been fined $25,000 for initiating the altercation by shoving Bucks guard Malcolm Brogdon.

Lakers guard D’Angelo Russell has been fined $15,000 for entering the altercation and pushing Monroe.

The incident, for which all three were assessed technical fouls and ejected, occurred with 36 seconds remaining in the third quarter of the Bucks’ 107-103 win over the Lakers at Staples Center on March 17.

Mavericks sign Manny Harris and Jarrod Uthoff to second 10-day contracts

The Dallas Mavericks have signed guard Manny Harris and forward Jarrod Uthoff to second 10-day contracts.

Harris (6-5, 185) has appeared in three games for Dallas this season, averaging 2.0 points and 2.7 rebounds in 6.9 minutes per game.

Uthoff (6-9, 220) has seen action in two games for the Mavericks this year and has logged a total of 5 minutes.

Harris and Uthoff signed their initial 10-day contracts with Dallas on March 9.

Both players had stints with the Mavericks’ D-League affiliate, the Texas Legends, this year. Harris averaged 26.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 2.1 steals and 38.9 minutes in 39 games (38 starts) for the Legends this season. Uthoff appeared in one game for the Legends against the Delaware 87ers on March 11 and had 16 points, nine rebounds and three assists in 31 minutes.