Inside Hoops – Page 977 – NBA Blog

Quincy Acy suspended for foul on John Wall

New York Knicks forward Quincy Acy has been suspended one game without pay for committing a Flagrant Foul Two which initiated an altercation with Washington Wizards guard John Wall. Wall has been fined $15,000 for pushing Acy and escalating the incident, it was announced today by Rod Thorn, President, Basketball Operations.

The incident, which resulted in an ejection for Acy, occurred with 5:31 remaining in the fourth quarter of the Knicks’ 102-91 loss to the Wizards at Madison Square Garden on Thursday, Dec. 25.

Acy will serve his suspension on Saturday, Dec. 27, when the Knicks travel to Sacramento to play the Kings at Sleep Train Arena.

Carmelo Anthony relates to Knicks fans

Here’s ESPN New York reporting on the Knicks, who keep on losing:

Carmelo Anthony relates to frustrated Knicks fans

There’s a New York Knicks fan out there who lives and dies with the team, a fan who’s been doing much more dying than living with this group.

Carmelo Anthony has a message for that fan.

“I feel what the fans are feeling,” Anthony said after the Knicks fell to 5-26 following a Christmas Day loss to the Wizards.

“The fans are dying, we’re dying. We’re out there, we’re not producing. We didn’t expect, I didn’t expect to be sitting at 5-26,” he said. “So as much as I feel for the fans, I feel for us going through it, too. I don’t expect nobody to feel sorry for us, I don’t expect nobody to feel sorry for me.”

Kevin Durant remains out with ankle sprain

Here’s the Oklahoman with the latest on Kevin Durant’s ankle injury:

Kevin Durant missed his fourth straight game Thursday at San Antonio due to a mild ankle sprain he sustained just before halftime at Golden State last week.

Thunder coach Scott Brooks announced before the game that Durant “could not go if he wanted to go.”

Brooks labeled Durant as day-to-day. But the mounting number of missed games due to what the team diagnosed as a mild sprain has now become a mild concern — especially since the injury is to the same foot Durant recently underwent surgery on to repair a fractured bone.

Raptors assign Bruno Caboclo to D-League

The Toronto Raptors announced Thursday they have assigned forward Bruno Caboclo (cuh-BO-clo) to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants of the NBA Development League. Caboclo will continue to be included on the Raptors’ roster and will remain on the team’s inactive list. He is expected to be in uniform for the Mad Ants on Saturday when they face the Iowa Energy in Des Moines, Iowa (8 p.m. ET).

Caboclo made his NBA debut November 21 versus Milwaukee and scored a season-high eight points in 12 minutes of action. He shot two-for-three from beyond the arc with a rebound and a block against the Bucks. He has played a total of 15 minutes in three games with Toronto this season, recording eight points and two rebounds.

A native of Osasco, Brazil, Caboclo was selected 20th overall by Toronto in the 2014 NBA Draft. He appeared in 16 Brazil League games for Pinheiros/Sky last season, averaging 4.9 points and 3.1 rebounds. Caboclo was the MVP of the 2013 Basketball Without Borders South America camp in Buenos Aires.

Anderson Varejao out for season with torn left achilles tendon

Cleveland Cavaliers center Anderson Varejao suffered a left ankle/foot injury during the third quarter of last night’s game at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Additional examination and MRI today at Cleveland Clinic Sports Health have revealed a torn left achilles tendon.

While it is anticipated that Varejao will miss the remainder of the 2014-15 season, a timetable for his return to basketball activity will be developed after he has surgery in the near future to repair the achilles and his rehabilitation process is established.

Should Pistons have waived Josh Smith?

Here’s the Washington Post with analysis of the Detroit Pistons decision to waive Josh Smith. Seems to us (InsideHoops) that it will help their chemistry. But, it’s a costly move. Here’s the Post:

Josh Smith move a questionable decision for Pistons

With the considerable problems he inherited by taking over a franchise with years of disillusionment and a roster of mismatched talents, Stan Van Gundy is not responsible for most of the hot mess in Detroit. But Van Gundy cannot escape the blame for mishandling the situation with Josh Smith to the point that the versatile but frustrating forward was stunningly waived with more than $27 million remaining on his contract over the next seasons.

The move, which one rival executive described as “reckless,” rids the Pistons of Smith’s errant jumpers – he was on pace to finish last in true shooting percentage among qualified players for the second year in a row – but keeps him on franchise’s books for $5.4 million per season through 2020 under the league’s stretch provision. The Pistons have attempted to justify annually shelling out the equivalent of the full midlevel exception for nothing by championing the $8.1 million in salary cap room that Smith’s removal will provide and how a steadily increasing salary cap will minimize that salary slot when the league’s new television begins in 2016-17.

Rockets will sign Josh Smith

Houston Rockets will sign Josh Smith

Forward Josh Smith, recently waived by the badly-struggling Detroit Pistons, is going to clear waivers and reportedly sign a contract with the Houston Rockets.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports, “Josh Smith has committed to signing with the Houston Rockets, league sources tell Yahoo Sports. He clears waivers at 5 PM today.”

The Rockets, with a 20-7 record through Tuesday’s games, are having an excellent season, and are much-improved on the defensive end this season. They’ve kept winning even while center Dwight Howard was out.

Several reports say Smith will start for the Rockets. While that may be the case, considering the Rockets already have nice chemistry, we think Smith is best used in limited fashion, at least initially, so the team can see exactly how he fits in. Giving him a huge role right away seems questionable. But still, if managed properly, this is a good move for both Smith and Houston.

Suns trade Anthony Tolliver to Pistons for Tony Mitchell

The Phoenix Suns have traded forward Anthony Tolliver to the Detroit Pistons in exchange for forward Tony Mitchell.

Mitchell, who was drafted 37th overall by the Pistons in the 2013 NBA Draft out of the University of North Texas, has averaged 8.2 points and 7.2 rebounds in six games with the Grand Rapids Drive of the NBA Development League this season. The 6-9, 235-pound forward appeared in 21 games with Detroit last season, averaging 1.0 points and 1.2 rebounds.

Tolliver, 29, has played in 24 games for the Suns this season averaging 3.3 points and 1.8 rebounds while shooting 38.7% from three-point range. The six-year NBA veteran owns career averages of 5.9 points and 3.6 rebounds in 331 games (53 starts) with San Antonio (2008-09), Portland (2009), Golden State (2010), Minnesota (2010-12), Atlanta (2012-13), Charlotte (2013-14) and Phoenix (2014). The Springfield, MO product has scored in double-figures 79 times during his career, including 10 games with 20-plus points and two games with 30-plus points. He’s also recorded 20 career games with double-digit rebounds and tallied 16 career double-doubles. A former All-Missouri Valley Conference first team member from Creighton, where he played collegiately, Tolliver has accumulated 10 games of NBA playoff experience with Atlanta (six games in 2012-13) and Charlotte (four games in 2013-14) where he averaged 3.0 points and 1.3 rebounds per game. He’s recorded NBA career highs of 34 points (4/7/10 at Minnesota), 21 rebounds (3/27/10 vs. Dallas) and four blocks (3/27/11 vs. Boston).

The Suns’ roster now stands at 15 players

Sixers sign Malcolm Thomas, waive Ronny Turiaf

The Philadelphia 76ers today announced they have signed free agent power forward Malcolm Thomas. And in a related move, the team waived forward Ronny Turiaf, who is injured and expected to miss the rest of the season.

Thomas was originally signed by the Sixers on October 27, 2014. He appeared in five regular season games and averaged four points and five rebounds in 14 minutes per game.

Last season, Thomas averaged 18 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks in 12 combined games for Los Angeles and Austin and was named an NBA Development League All-Star. In 2011-12, Thomas earned All-NBA D-League First Team and All-Defensive First Team honors.

Nets, Kings trade talks cool down

Here’s ESPN.com reporting an update on trade talks between the Brooklyn Nets and Sacramento Kings, which focused on Deron Williams but also talented athletic young big-man Mason Plumlee:

Nets, Kings trade talks for D-Will cool down

Talks between the Sacramento Kings and Brooklyn Nets about a trade involving Nets star Deron Williams have cooled, according to league sources.

Sacramento had recently initiated talks with the Nets, proposing a deal for Williams and second-year forward Mason Plumlee, who was actually the Kings’ main target, sources said.

With Plumlee struggling and clashing a bit with new Nets coach Lionel Hollins over the first month of the season, the Kings were hoping he might be available. To compel the Nets into moving Plumlee, they considered taking on Williams, whose contract and history of injuries has scared off many clubs.