Inside Hoops – Page 731 – NBA Blog

Warriors sign center Zaza Pachulia

The Golden State Warriors have signed free agent center Zaza Pachulia, the team announced today.

Pachulia’s deal is reportedly just a $2.9 million dollar contract for one year. A relative bargain by this summer’s signing standards.

With Andrew Bogut traded away to Dallas, Pachulia should get some minutes. He’s a very good rebounder, but not as good a defender as Bogut. And Pachulia rarely blocks any shots. But, the team did need center depth, and he certainly provides that. This is overall an excellent signing.

Pachulia, 32, averaged 8.6 points and a career-high 9.4 rebounds to go with 1.7 assists and 26.4 minutes in 76 regular-season games (69 starts) with the Dallas Mavericks in 2015-16. The 6-11 center ranked 14th in the league in rebounding and posted a career-high 26 double-doubles in his lone season with the Mavericks. In five playoff games (four starts), Pachulia averaged 6.6 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.2 assists in 22.4 minutes.

A 13-year NBA veteran, Pachulia owns career averages of 7.1 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 21.5 minutes in 891 regular-season games (386 starts) with the Orlando Magic, Milwaukee Bucks, Atlanta Hawks and Dallas Mavericks. Originally selected by the Magic in the second round (42nd overall) of the 2003 NBA Draft, the Georgian-born center spent a season with the Magic before being selected by the Charlotte Bobcats in the 2004 NBA Expansion Draft and subsequently traded to Milwaukee. After a year with the Bucks, Pachulia enjoyed an eight-year run with the Hawks that included four postseason appearances. Pachulia has appeared in the postseason six times in his career, tallying averages of 5.3 points, 5.0 rebounds and 18.9 minutes in 51 career playoff games (11 starts) with the Hawks, Bucks and Mavericks.

Pachulia will wear #27 for the Warriors.

Nets sign center Justin Hamilton

The Brooklyn Nets signed free agent center Justin Hamilton to a multi-year contract today.

“Justin is an energetic big with the ability to stretch the floor,” said Nets’ General Manager Sean Marks. “He is coming off a successful season in one of Europe’s most competitive leagues and will add depth to our frontcourt rotation.”

Hamilton (7’0, 260) joins the Nets after spending last season with Valencia in Liga ACB, Spain’s top division, where he earned All-ACB first-team honors after averaging 14.1 points and 5.4 rebounds in 22.5 minutes per game in 40 games with the club. Prior to heading to Spain, the 26-year-old appeared in 49 games in parts of two NBA seasons with Charlotte, Miami and Minnesota (2013-15), registering averages of 5.0 points and 2.9 rebounds in 16.0 minutes per game. In the 2014-15 season, Hamilton appeared in 41 games split between Miami and Minnesota, averaging 5.3 points and 3.3 rebounds in 17.4 minutes per game. He also saw action in 39 games with the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA D-League during the 2013-14 season, posting averages of 19.2 points, 9.3 rebounds and 2.0 blocks in 35.6 minutes per game en route to D-League All-Star, All-NBA D-League first-team and NBA D-League All-Defensive first-team recognition. Hamilton began his professional career with stints in Croatia and Latvia during the 2012-13 season. The Alpine, Utah native was originally selected with the 45th overall pick in the second round of the 2012 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers and was traded to Miami on draft night before being waived by the Heat in advance of the 2012-13 season. Prior to beginning his pro career, Hamilton spent his first two collegiate seasons at Iowa State and his third and final season at LSU, where he earned All-SEC second-team honors.

Jared Sullinger to join Raptors

The Raptors are adding some rebounding. Here’s the Toronto Star reporting:

In another low-risk, high-reward gamble, Toronto Raptors president Masai Ujiri has dipped into the NBA freeagent pool.

Jared Sullinger, an intriguing big man with conditioning and health issues but talent that makes him an interesting addition to a team needing a power forward, announced his own signing with the Raptors on Monday afternoon.

The six-foot-nine, 260-pound big man, cut adrift Sunday by the Boston Celtics, will join Toronto on a one-year deal worth slightly under $6 million, a relatively cheap contract in this summer’s NBA free agent market.

Rudy Gobert to play in Olympics for France

Rudy Gobert isn’t waiting until training camp to team up with new Jazzman Boris Diaw.

After sitting out France’s Olympic qualifying games this past week in the Philippines, Gobert announced on Twitter that he intended to play for his country next month at the Olympic games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Gobert averaged 9.1 points and 11 rebounds a game last season for the Utah Jazz. The 24-year-old is eligible to begin contract extensions with the club through Oct. 31.

— Salt Lake Tribune blog

Heat re-sign Udonis Haslem

The Miami Heat announced yesterday that they have re-signed forward Udonis Haslem.

Haslem’s career is winding down, and his role on the team at this point will likely remain very limited.

“For over a decade, Udonis has embodied what it means to wear the Miami HEAT uniform,” said HEAT President Pat Riley. “He has been the pillar and constant of this organization, and is a true champion in every sense of the word. We are thrilled that Udonis is back to help impart his leadership and instill the HEAT culture with his new teammates.”

Haslem, a three-time NBA Champion, has played his entire 13-year NBA career with the HEAT, appearing in 814 regular season games (498 starts) and has averaged 7.9 points, 7.0 rebounds and 26.1 minutes while shooting 49.2 percent from the field and 75.7 percent from the foul line. The Miami native is the franchise all-time leader in offensive, defensive and total rebounds and also ranks among the HEAT’s all-time leaders in games played (2nd), starts (2nd), minutes (2nd), double-doubles (3rd), field goals made (5th), points (6th), field goals attempted (6th), field goal percentage (6th), free throws made (8th), free throws attempted (8th), double-figure scoring efforts (8th), blocks (tied-8th), steals (10th), assists (16th) and free throw percentage (17th). Additionally, he’s the only undrafted player in NBA history to lead a franchise in total rebounds.

Trail Blazers re-sign Meyers Leonard

The Portland Trail Blazers have re-signed forward/center Meyers Leonard, it was announced yesterday by president of basketball operations Neil Olshey.

“Meyers is a core member of our organization and continues to show the promise and potential we anticipated when we drafted him,” said Olshey.

Leonard averaged career-highs with 8.4 points (44.8% FG, 37.7% 3-PT76.1% FT), 5.1 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 21.9 minutes in 61 games (10 starts) in 2015-16. He missed the final 14 games of the regular season due to an injured left shoulder.

“Today is a day which is hard to describe. I’m overcome with happiness and joy,” said Leonard. “I’m thankful for the people who have remained loyal and loving in my life. This is the product of a lot of hard work and time. I feel like I have found a new gear mentally and physically and really am excited for the next four years. The future is going to be bright with this team.”

In four NBA seasons, Leonard (7-1, 255) has averaged 5.8 points (48.9% FG, 38.5% 3-PT, 81.4% FT), 4.1 rebounds 0.8 assists and 16.6 minutes in 225 games (26 starts). The Illinois native made more three-pointers last season (86) than he did through his first three seasons combined (50).

Portland selected Leonard with the 11th overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, after the forward/center played in 65 games over two collegiate seasons at Illinois.

Tim Duncan retires from NBA

San Antonio Spurs forward Tim Duncan today announced that he will retire after 19 seasons with the organization. Since drafting Duncan, the Spurs won five championships and posted a 1,072-438 regular season record, giving the team a .710 winning percentage, which is the best 19-year stretch in NBA history and was the best in all of the NBA, NFL, NHL and MLB over the last 19 years.

Originally selected by the Spurs as the first overall pick in the 1997 NBA Draft, Duncan helped San Antonio reach the playoffs in each of his 19 seasons and became the only player in league history to start and win a title in three different decades. The Silver and Black won at least 50 games the last 17 seasons, the longest streak in league history, and posted at least a .600 winning percentage in each of Duncan’s 19 seasons, an all-time record for most consecutive seasons with a .600 win percentage in the four major U.S. sports.

The 40-year-old Duncan comes off of a season in which he led the NBA in Defensive RPM (5.41) and became just the third player in league history to reach 1,000 career wins, as well as the only player to reach 1,000 wins with one team. He helped the Spurs to a franchise-best 67-15 record and also became one of two players in NBA history to record at least 26,000 points, 15,000 rebounds and 3,000 blocks in his career (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar).

Duncan totaled 15 All-NBA Team selections (tied for most all-time) and 15 NBA All-Defensive Team honors (most all-time), garnering both honors in the same season 15 times, the most in league history. The 1998 Rookie of the Year was named NBA MVP twice (2002, 2003) and NBA Finals MVP three times (1999, 2003 and 2005).

In his NBA career, the 15-time All-Star appeared in a total of 1,392 games and averaged 19.0 points, 10.8 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.17 blocks in 34.0 minutes. He shot .506 (10,285-20,334) from the floor and .696 (5,896-8,468) from the free throw line.

The Wake Forest graduate is the Spurs all-time NBA leader in total points (26,496), rebounds (15,091), blocked shots (3,020), minutes (47,368) and games played (1,392), as well as third in assists (4,225). In NBA history, Duncan is fifth all-time in double-doubles (841) and blocks, sixth in rebounding and 14th in scoring.

As the only player in NBA history to play over 9,000 career minutes in the playoffs, Duncan ranks first all-time in postseason double-doubles (164) and blocks (568), third in rebounds (2,859) and sixth in points (5,172). For his career, Duncan appeared in 251 postseason contests (second all-time) and averaged 20.6 points, 11.4 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 37.3 minutes while shooting .501 (1,975-3,939) from the field.

Along with teammates Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili, Duncan is part of the NBA record for most wins by a trio in both the regular season (575) and postseason (126). Duncan and Gregg Popovich have the most wins by a player-coach duo in NBA history (1,001) and the Spurs forward finishes his career in San Antonio as one of just three players in NBA history, along with John Stockton and Kobe Bryant, to spend 19 seasons with one franchise.

Kings add Bob Thornton and Larry Lewis to coaching staff

The Sacramento Kings have added two members to Head Coach Dave Joerger’s staff, naming Bob Thornton an assistant coach and Larry Lewis as a player development coach.

Thornton arrives in Sacramento with more than 30 years of basketball experience as a player, coach and personnel scout, having spent the previous five seasons in Memphis alongside Joerger after four years as an advance scout for the Oklahoma City Thunder (2007-2011). His coaching resume includes two seasons as an assistant coach for the Chicago Bulls (2002-04) and Minnesota Timberwolves (2005-07) and as head coach for the Huntsville Flight of the NBA D-League (2001-02) and the Continental Basketball Association’s Quad City Thunder (2000-01).

Selected by the New York Knicks in the fourth round of the 1984 NBA Draft, the Los Angeles native played eight seasons in the league and three overseas in Italy before breaking into the coaching ranks as an assistant with Chapman University in 1997.

Lewis joins Sacramento’s bench after spending the last three seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers in a similar capacity. Prior to his elevation to the Lakers, he served two seasons as an assistant coach for the L.A. D-Fenders of the D-League. In his first year as a coach after a long international playing career, Lewis helped the franchise post the best regular season record in D-League annals (38-12) and earn eight NBA call-ups. Named an assistant on the D-League Select Team in 2012, he played a central role in the D-Fenders capturing the Development Champion Award, bestowed on the team that best embodies the D-League’s goals of developing talent via call-ups and player assignments.

In addition to his experience on the sidelines, Lewis’ eclectic international playing career spanned 19 seasons and four continents, including stops in Argentina (2011), Spain (2001-11), Japan (1996-2000), Cyprus (1996), Great Britain (1993) and the Dominican Republic (1992). He also played one season in the United States Basketball League with Sarasota (1996), in the CBA with the Harrisburg Hammerheads and Rapid City Thrillers (1994-95) and for the silver medal winning Team USA in the Pan American Games (1995).

A Morehouse College alumnus, Lewis turned professional in 1992 when he was drafted by the Albany Patroons of the CBA.

Pelicans trade Luke Babbitt to Heat

The Miami Heat announced today that they have acquired Luke Babbitt from the New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for New Orleans’ own 2018 second-round draft pick, that Miami acquired in the Feb. 18, 2016 trade involving Jarnell Stokes, and cash considerations.

Babbitt, a 6’9”, 225-pound forward, has appeared in 263 NBA regular season games (38 starts) during his six-year career and has averaged 4.7 points, 2.3 rebounds and 13.5 minutes while connecting on 40.7 percent from the floor, 40.3 percent from behind the three-point arc and 74.4 percent from the foul line. In three of his six NBA seasons, Babbitt has hit at least 40 percent of his three-point field goal attempts. He has yet to appear in an NBA postseason game.

Last season as a member of the Pelicans, Babbitt appeared in 47 games (13 starts) and averaged 7.0 points, 3.1 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 18.0 minutes while shooting 42.2 percent from the floor, 40.3 percent from three-point range and 74.4 percent from the line. The 16th overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft by the Minnesota Timberwolves, Babbitt set single-season career highs during the 2015-16 campaign in points (327), field goals made (122) and attempted (289), free throws made (39) and attempted (50), offensive rebounds (25), defensive rebounds (123), total rebounds (148) and assists (53).

In addition to playing for the Pelicans (2013-16), Babbitt played three seasons (2010-13) with the Portland Trail Blazers.

Heat sign Wayne Ellington, James Johnson, Derrick Williams

The Miami HEAT announced today the signings of free agents Wayne Ellington, James Johnson and Derrick Williams.

Ellington, a 6’4”, 200-pound shooting guard, has appeared in 453 regular season games (112 starts) during a seven-year career and has averaged 7.1 points, 2.1 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 19.6 minutes while shooting 41.1 percent from the floor, 37.6 percent from three-point range and 84.8 percent from the foul line. He has appeared in two postseason games and averaged 4.0 points, 1.0 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 7.0 minutes. Last season, as a member of the Brooklyn Nets, he appeared in 76 games and averaged 7.7 points, 2.3 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 21.3 minutes while connecting on 38.9 percent from the floor, 35.8 percent from three-point range and 85.7 percent from the line. Additionally, he set single-season career highs in three-point field goals made (96) and attempted (268), steals (48) and starts (41). He has made at least 90 treys each of the past two seasons. In addition to playing for Brooklyn last season, Ellington has also played for Minnesota (2009-12), Cleveland (2012-13), Memphis (2012-13), Dallas (2013-14) and the Los Angeles Lakers (2014-15). A former first-round draft pick of the Timberwolves in 2009 (28th overall), Ellington captured the 2015-16 J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award as selected by the Professional Basketball Writers Association (PBWA). The honor, named after the NBA’s second commissioner, is presented annually by the PBWA to the player, coach or athletic trainer who shows outstanding service and dedication to the community. Ellington was recognized for his efforts to curb gun violence.

Johnson, a 6’9”, 250-pound power forward, has appeared in 398 regular season games (140 starts) during a seven-year career and has averaged 6.5 points, 3.2 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 18.3 minutes while shooting 47.6 percent from the floor, 26.6 percent from three-point range and 68.8 percent from the foul line. In 19 career postseason games, all off the bench, he has averaged 2.8 points, 1.3 rebounds and 8.3 minutes while shooting 39.6 percent from the floor, 40 percent from three-point range and 47.4 percent from the foul line. Last season, as a member of the Toronto Raptors, Johnson appeared in 57 games (32 starts) and averaged 5.0 points, 2.2 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 16.2 minutes while shooting 47.5 percent from the field, 30.3 percent from three-point territory and 57.4 percent from the foul line. A former first-round pick of the Chicago Bulls in 2009 (16th overall), Johnson has shot a combined 54.7 percent from the floor these past two seasons, including a career-high 58.9 percent during the 2014-15 season. During his career, Johnson has played for Chicago (2009-11), Toronto (2010-12 and 2014-16), Sacramento (2012-13) and Memphis (2013-14).

Williams, a 6’8”, 240-pound power forward, has appeared in 376 regular season games (101 starts) during a five-year career and has averaged 9.3 points, 4.2 rebounds and 21.4 minutes while shooting 43.3 percent from the floor, 29.9 percent from three-point range and 71.5 percent from the foul line. The former second overall pick of the 2011 NBA Draft by the Minnesota Timberwolves has yet to appear in a postseason game. Last season as a member of the New York Knicks, Williams appeared in a career-high 80 games (nine starts) and averaged 9.3 points, 3.7 rebounds and 17.9 minutes while shooting a career-high 45 percent from the floor, 29.3 percent from three-point range and 75.8 percent from the foul line. He also set personal single-season career highs in both field goals made (194) and assists (75). During his career, Williams has played for Minnesota (2011-14), Sacramento (2013-15) and New York (2015-16).