Inside Hoops – Page 733 – NBA Blog

Celtics sign Al Horford

The Boston Celtics signed free agent forward/center and four-time NBA All-Star Al Horford today.

“I am extremely excited to be joining the Boston Celtics family,” said Horford. “I look forward to working with Coach Stevens and the rest of our team towards our goal of bringing a championship back to Boston.”

Horford’s deal is reportedly a $113 million dollar contract over four years.

“We are very glad to welcome Al Horford and his family to the Celtics,” said Celtics Co-Owner and Managing Partner Wyc Grousbeck. “His burning desire to play basketball the right way reminds me of the great Celtics of the past. He is a four-time All-Star, a gifted shooter, playmaker and defender, and an outstanding person. He believes in Celtic Pride and we believe in him.”

In years to come, I feel like this will open the doors for many other big free agents,” Horford said Friday, according to Boston.com.

The 6’10” Horford appeared in a career-high 82 games (all starts) for the Atlanta Hawks last season where he averaged 15.2 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.5 blocks (17th in NBA) while shooting 50.5 percent from the floor and 34.4 percent from beyond the arc. Horford was one of three players in the NBA last season to record at least 1,200 points, 575 rebounds, 200 assists and 100 blocks. He is also one of 13 active players to record at least 8,000 points, 5,000 rebounds, 1,500 assists and 675 blocks in their career.

“Al is a significant addition to our team and will make an immediate impact on both ends of the floor,” said President of Basketball Operations Danny Ainge. “He is a proven veteran and leader, on and off the court, and we look forward to welcoming Al and his family to Boston and the Celtics organization.”

Selected with the third overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft by Atlanta, Horford has career averages of 14.3 points, 8.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.2 blocks per game. The nine year NBA veteran has been an All-Star four times (2015-16, 2014-15, 2010-11 and 2009-10). He was named to the 2007-08 NBA All-Rookie First Team and also was named to the 2010-11 All-NBA Third Team when he averaged 15.3 points, 9.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.0 block per game. Born in Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic, Horford led the Hawks to nine consecutive playoff appearances to start his career.

Warriors re-sign Ian Clark

The Golden State Warriors have re-signed free agent guard Ian Clark.

Clark, 25, appeared in 66 regular-season games with the Warriors last season (one start), averaging 3.6 points, 1.0 rebound and 1.0 assist in 8.8 minutes per contest. In 16 postseason games, the 6-3 guard averaged 4.1 points, 1.1 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 9.6 minutes.

A three-year NBA veteran, Clark owns career averages of 3.0 points and 7.9 minutes in 119 regular-season games with the Utah Jazz, Denver Nuggets and Golden State Warriors.

Nets sign rookie Isaiah Whitehead

The Brooklyn Nets have signed guard Isaiah Whitehead to a multi-year contract.

Selected with the 42nd pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, Whitehead’s rights were acquired by Brooklyn in a draft-night trade with the Utah Jazz in exchange for the draft rights to guard Marcus Paige, the 55th overall selection, and cash considerations.

Whitehead (6’4”, 210) played two years at Seton Hall, most recently leading the Pirates to their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2006. The Brooklyn native averaged 18.2 points, 3.6 rebounds and 5.1 assists in 32.3 minutes per game in 34 games (33 starts) as a sophomore, earning unanimous All-Big East first-team honors and an Associated Press All-America honorable mention. He was also named the 2016 Big East Tournament Most Outstanding Player after averaging 23.3 points and 5.7 assists in the Big East Tournament, where the Pirates claimed their first conference tournament title since 1993. As a freshman, Whitehead averaged 12.0 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 27.8 minutes per game in 22 games (19 starts) en route to Big East All-Rookie Team honors. A product of Abraham Lincoln High School and Coney Island, Whitehead was a McDonald’s All American and named Mr. New York Basketball by the state’s Basketball Coaches Association in 2014.

Clippers re-sign Jamal Crawford, Wesley Johnson, Luc Mbah A Moute and Austin Rivers

The L.A. Clippers have re-signed free agents Jamal Crawford, Wesley Johnson, Luc Mbah A Moute and Austin Rivers.

Crawford’s deal is reportedly a $42 million dollar contract over three years.

Johnson’s deal is reportedly an $18 million dollar contract over three years.

Crawford, the reigning NBA Sixth Man of the Year, averaged 14.2 points and 2.3 assists last season for the Clippers in 79 games (five starts). In his fourth season with the Clippers, he ranked second in the NBA in free throw shooting (.904) and scored in double figures 58 times. One of the most explosive bench scorers in NBA history and the only three-time winner of the Sixth Man of the Year award, Crawford ranks 89th on the NBA’s all-time scoring list (17,076 points) and is 7th on the NBA’s all-time three-pointers list (1,933 three-pointers). Crawford, 36, has averaged 15.5 points and 3.6 assists in 1,100 career games (432 starts) with Chicago, New York, Golden State, Atlanta, Portland and the Clippers.

Nets sign Trevor Booker

The Brooklyn Nets have signed free agent forward Trevor Booker to a multi-year contract. Booker’s deal is reportedly an 18$ million dollar contract over two years.

Booker (6’8”, 228) has appeared in 393 games (112 starts) in six NBA seasons with Washington (2010-14) and Utah (2014-16), recording averages of 6.5 points on .515 from the field, 5.2 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 20.3 minutes per game.

“Trevor is a seasoned big with a defensive mindset who will bring toughness, rebounding and a competitive edge to our team,” said Nets’ General Manager Sean Marks.

He also made a playoff appearance in 2014 with the Wizards, registering averages of 3.3 points and 4.3 rebounds in 16.2 minutes per game in nine contests. This past season, the 28-year-old saw action in 79 games with the Jazz, averaging 5.9 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 20.7 minutes per game while setting single-season career-highs in minutes played (1,632), rebounds (452), assists (84) and steals (59). The Newberry, S.C. native was originally selected with the 23rd pick in the first round of the 2010 NBA Draft by Minnesota before his rights were traded to Washington on draft night. Prior to beginning his NBA career, Booker played four years at Clemson (2006-10), earning All-ACC second-team honors as a junior, All-ACC first-team recognition as a senior and All-ACC defensive team honors in each of his final two seasons. He helped lead the Tigers to three straight NCAA Tournament appearances and a school-record 93 victories during his four-year tenure.

Mavericks re-sign Deron Williams

The Dallas Mavericks have re-signed free agent guard Deron Williams.

D-Will’s deal is reportedly a $10 million dollar contract for one year.

Years ago, Williams was considered one of the top point guards in the league, right up there with the likes of Chris Paul. Then came injuries. Lots of injuries. And since then — when healthy — Williams has been solid, sometimes good or very good.

Last season with Dallas, Williams averaged 14.1 points, a team-high 5.8 assists, 2.9 rebounds and 32.4 minutes in 65 games (63 starts). He shot .414 from the field (321-775 FGs), .344 (97-282 3FGs) from three-point range and a career-high .869 (179-206 FTs) from the free throw line. Among league leaders, he ranked 19th in assists and 15th in free throw percentage.

Williams (6-3, 200) is a 11-year NBA veteran with career averages of 16.8 points, 8.3 assists, 3.2 rebounds, 1.1 steals and 34.8 minutes in 781 games (727 starts) for three teams (Utah, New Jersey/Brooklyn and Dallas). Overall, he has shot .445 (4,611-10,364 FGs) from the field, .357 (1,093-3,062 3FGs) from three-point range and .822 (2,788-3,393 FTs) from the free throw line.

Mavericks waive JaVale McGee

The Dallas Mavericks have waived center JaVale McGee.

Throughout his NBA career, McGee has shown flashes of big-time talent, but lots of other flashes of silly mistakes, some of which brought him some unwanted attention.

McGee (7-0, 270) averaged 5.1 points, 3.9 rebounds, 0.8 blocks and 10.9 minutes in 34 games after signing with Dallas on August 13, 2015.

Mavericks sign A.J. Hammons

The Dallas Mavericks today signed second round draft pick center A.J. Hammons.

The Mavericks selected Hammons with the 46th overall selection of the 2016 NBA Draft.

Hammons (7-0, 250) played four seasons with the Purdue Boilermakers and earned Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, First Team All-Big Ten and honorable mention All-America as a senior at Purdue. In his final season, he averaged 15.0 points, 8.2 rebounds, 2.5 blocks and 1.1 assists while shooting .592 from the floor.

The skilled center finished his four years at Purdue ranked on many of its all-time lists including rebounds (3rd), blocks (2nd) and scoring (17th). Hammons garnered Second Team All-Big Ten and Big Ten All-Defensive Team honors as a junior and was named Big Ten All-Freshman Team in his first collegiate season.

The Gary, Ind., native attended high school at basketball-power Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) where he was named a McDonald’s All-American.

Mavericks sign Dorian Finney-Smith

The Dallas Mavericks have signed undrafted free agent forward Dorian Finney-Smith.

Finney-Smith (6-8, 220) signs with Dallas after going undrafted in the 2016 NBA Draft. He played his final three collegiate seasons at Florida after transferring from Virginia Tech following his freshman year. In 134 career collegiate games, he averaged 10.7 points and 7.1 rebounds in 28.6 minutes per game.

Finney-Smith led the Gators in rebounding in all three of his seasons at Florida (2013-16) and he led the team in scoring in each of his final two (2014-16). His 1,220 points at Florida rank 36th in school history. What’s more, he became the first Florida player to join the 1,000-point club after transferring to the school.

As a senior in 2015-16, Finney-Smith averaged 14.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 31.8 minutes in 36 games en route to being named Second Team All-SEC by the coaches and Third Team All-SEC by the Associated Press.

Mavericks re-sign Dwight Powell

The Dallas Mavericks announced today that they have re-signed forward-center Dwight Powell.

Powell’s deal is reportedly a $37 million dollar contract over four years.

Powell (6-11, 240) holds career averages of 5.0 points, 3.3 rebounds and 12.5 minutes per game in 98 games (two starts) with Boston and Dallas. He averaged 5.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 14.4 minutes per game in 69 games (two starts) with the Mavericks last season.

Powell was acquired by Dallas along with Rajon Rondo on Dec. 18, 2014, in a deal that sent Jae Crowder, Brandan Wright, Jameer Nelson, a 2015 first-round pick and a 2016 second-round pick to Boston.

The 6-11 Canadian was selected to play for the World Team at the 2016 BBVA Compass Rising Stars Challenge at All-Star Weekend.

A former standout at Stanford, Powell was originally drafted by Charlotte with the 45th overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, before having his draft rights traded along with Brendan Haywood to Cleveland in exchange for Scotty Hopson and cash considerations. On Sept. 25, 2014, Powell was dealt to Boston along with Malcolm Thomas, Erik Murphy, John Lucas III, two future second-round picks and a trade exception in exchange for Keith Bogans and two future second-round picks.

As a senior at Stanford, Powell was named All-Pac-12 First Team while averaging 14.0 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. He was also named Pac-12 Scholar Athlete of the Year.