Author: Inside Hoops

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Devin Booker ejected, then squeezes in a quick autograph signing

Devin Booker ejected, then squeezes in a quick autograph signing

Usually, NBA players are reprimanded for not leaving the court in a timely manner.

Suns guard Devin Booker received nationwide praise for how he did it after receiving his first career ejection Wednesday night at Denver.

Booker was caught off guard when he was ejected for receiving his second technical foul of the game – and the season. Official Eric Lewis gave Booker and Denver power forward Kenneth Faried a double technical foul with 17.8 seconds remaining in the Nuggets’ 120-104 victory at Pepsi Center.

Booker thought he was about to shoot a free throw before being told he was being ejected after also getting a technical foul late in the second quarter from official Kevin Cutler. Booker gave the official a thumbs up as he walked off the court. As security escorted him toward an exit tunnel, Booker stopped to give a boy an autograph and fist-bumped a man.

— Arizona Republic

InsideHoops.com Quick Take: We dig it.

Donald Sterling and NBA settle legal dispute

Donald Sterling and the NBA are no longer entangled in any form other than in history books.

The former owner of the Clippers and the NBA have settled all remaining legal disputes, according to Sterling’s attorney, Bobby Samini.

By settling, any funds that were held in escrow from the sale, indemnifying the NBA from legal action taken by Sterling, can be released.

— OC Register

Andrew Wiggins putting up huge stats

Andrew Wiggins a dominant offensive player lately

Andrew Wiggins is starting to become the player everyone expected him to be. Dubbed a prodigy in high school, the Timberwolves wing was always supposed to be an NBA superstar, the type of player who can carry the weight of a franchise.

Now, at the tender age of 21, yet two years into his professional career, he appears to set fulfill every expectation.

Wiggins has averaged 33 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.5 assists in his past six games, shooting 51 percent from the floor and 53 percent from three-point range. He ranks eighth in NBA scoring at 27.4 points a game, and is the league’s leader in three-point shooting at 54 percent…

Wiggins has been aggressive nearly every night, as shown by his 94 free-throw attempts, ninth-most in the NBA.

— St Paul Pioneer Press

Mavericks waive Quincy Acy, sign Jonathan Gibson

The Dallas Mavericks have signed free agent guard Jonathan Gibson. And in a related move, the Mavericks also requested waivers on forward Quincy Acy.

Gibson (6-2, 185) was a standout for the Mavericks at the Samsung NBA Summer League in Las Vegas and received an invite to Mavericks training camp in Dallas. He averaged 7.1 points, 3.0 assists, 1.6 rebounds and 14.8 minutes in seven preseason contests with the Mavericks.

The native of West Covina, Calif., spent last season with the Qingdao DoubleStar Eagles in China. He averaged 42.0 points in 36 games with the Eagles. In addition to his incredible scoring production, he registered 6.7 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 2.1 steals while shooting .509 from the field, .413 from behind-the-arc and .861 from the free throw line in Qingdao.

Gibson went undrafted in the 2010 NBA Draft after four successful seasons at New Mexico State where he averaged 11.8 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 131 career collegiate games. In his senior season with the Aggies, Gibson averaged 17.5 points, 2.9 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.4 steals in 34 games on his way to All-WAC Second Team honors.

Gibson will wear No. 3 for the Mavericks.

Acy (6-7, 240) was originally signed by Dallas on July 20, 2016 and saw action in six games this season. He averaged 2.2 points and 1.3 rebounds in 8.0 minutes per game.

Pacers having rebounding problems

Here’s the Indianapolis Star with some insight on the Pacers, whose lack of size is probably hurting their ability to rebound the ball:

Roy Hibbert, David West, Andrew Bynum. None of those Indiana Pacers’ trees of yesteryear will come striding through the Bankers Life Fieldhouse doors anytime soon — at least not in a Pacers uniform.

But the truth is any one of them could help this team in one of their biggest areas of need: rebounding.

Entering Friday, the Pacers are 23rd in the league in total rebounding — averaging 42.3 per game — and have been out-worked on the glass in 10 of 12 games. That’s led to a differential of minus-4.7 per contest, the fourth lowest ratio in the league.

It should not come as much of a surprise to the Pacers or their fans that Indiana has struggled to pull down missed shots. With team President Larry Bird’s offseason emphasis on making this team a sleeker, faster unit, the roster was hit with an almost inevitable consequence.

Players got small. According to FiveThirtyEight.com, the Pacers entered the season the third-shortest team in the league.

Lakers assign Ivica Zubac to D-League

The Los Angeles Lakers have assigned center Ivica Zubac to the Los Angeles D-Fenders, it was announced today.

Zubac was selected by the Lakers with the 32nd overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft and has appeared in three games for the team this season.

The center is expected to be in uniform when the D-Fenders host the Rio Grande Valley Vipers at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 17, at the Toyota Sports Center.

Timberwolves defense needs serious improvement

The Timberwolves are off to a 3-7 start this season. Too early to panic, especially with a new coach in charge and changes that will materialize in the weeks to come. But a few things are clear: their offense looks very good, while Wolves defense needs big improvement. Here’s the St Paul Pioneer Press reporting:

Wolves coach Tom Thibodeau has acknowledged Minnesota’s offense is further along than he thought it would be. The Timberwolves are fourth in the NBA in offensive efficiency and shooting a league-best 42 percent from three-point range.

“The issue,” he said, “is our defense — and the commitment to being consistent with it.”

Among 30 NBA teams, the Timberwolves are tied for 28th in defensive efficiency. Opponents are shooting 48.1 percent from the field, the worst mark in the NBA — and that includes a 116-80 victory over Memphis for which the Grizzlies rested its best players. Both of those numbers are worse than where Minnesota finished last season.

None of that lines up with the Tom Thibodeau way. The Wolves coach has churned out top-five defenses at every stop, from his work as an assistant in Houston and Boston to his recent head coaching tenure in Chicago. This offseason, 60 percent of NBA general managers voted Thibodeau as the coach with the best defensive schemes. Defense is his trademark.

Chris Paul had Lasik eye surgery this summer

Chris Paul and the Clippers are off to an incredible start this season. And CP3’s shot has been fantastic. Here’s the LA Times with some insight:

Chris Paul had Lasik eye surgery this summer

When it comes to Paul’s early season shooting numbers — which, even for him, are standing out — the 31-year-old point guard may have an explanation.

“My brother sent me a text the other day saying my percentage is up because of my Lasik eye surgery,” Paul said at the Clippers’ practice facility on Wednesday. “I was laughing, but my doctor did the surgery, who was amazing by the way, his other clients he said their percentages actually went up the next season.”

Paul, who had the surgery this summer, is fitting that unofficial trend through 11 games. He is shooting 47.3% from three-point range, nearly 11 percentage points higher than his career average. He has been the league’s most efficient pull-up jump shooter. In a 32-point win over the Nets on Monday, he made eight of 11 shots and canned four of six three-point attempts.

Justin Holiday a pleasant surprise for Knicks

Here’s NY Newsday reporting on a Knick who is turning some heads in NYC:

Justin Holiday a pleasant surprise for Knicks

Justin Holiday is proving to be more than just a player who was put in the Derrick Rose trade to make the salaries match up.

Holiday, who scored 16 points and helped spark the Knicks’ win over the Mavericks Monday, has become one of Jeff Hornacek’s most entrusted players on both ends of the floor.

“Guys earn opportunities,” Hornacek said. “What Justin has done is he’s doing everything right. We’re not having to tell him two, three times how to guard something. Tell him once and he does it. He’s got great, especially on the defensive end, concepts of where he should be.”