Category: General NBA insight

Derek Fisher may be about 85 years old but he can still provide quality depth at the point guard position for any team with championship aspirations.

The Oklahoman reports:

Derek Fisher is in negotiations to sign with the Oklahoma City Thunder after clearing waivers, ESPN.com reports.

Fisher will clear waivers on Wednesday at 5 p.m., and one source told ESPN.com that Fisher is “very close” to committing to sign with the Thunder.

The Miami Heat also made a strong push to sign the veteran point guard, but the report says the Thunder has more financial flexibility and more of a role to offer with Eric Maynor out for the season with a knee injury.

The following is a medical update on Utah Jazz forward Josh Howard:

Because of some recent swelling of Howard’s left knee, he underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) tests on the knee on Monday. The MRI test results were examined by Jazz team orthopedist Dr. Lyle Mason, and revealed a chip in the lateral femoral cartilage within Howard’s left knee. This injury will require surgery in order to prevent further damage to the knee. As a result, Howard is expected to miss the remainder of the season.

An update on Howard’s status and timeframe for his recovery will be provided following the surgery.

Howard (6-7, 210, Wake Forest), in his ninth NBA season and first with Utah, appeared in 41 games (18 starts) with the Jazz this season and averaged 8.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 23.4 minutes per game. A 2007 NBA All-Star, Howard holds career averages of 14.5 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 494 games (399 starts) with Dallas, Washington and Utah. He was signed by the Jazz as a free agent on December 15, 2011. A native of Winston-Salem, N.C., Howard was originally selected by the Mavericks in the first round (29th pick) of the 2003 NBA Draft.

In basketball, defense matters just as much as offense. Which is why the Chicago Bulls are still really good even when Derrick Rose is out.

The AP reports:

Carlos Boozer scored 24 points and had 13 rebounds, John Lucas scored 20 points off the bench and the Chicago Bulls beat the Orlando Magic 85-59 on Monday night.

Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau also became the fastest coach in NBA history to earn 100 career victories. The Bulls won for the fifth time in six games.

They also improved to 3-1 over the past four games playing without guard Derrick Rose , who continued to nurse a sore groin.

Dwight Howard had 18 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Magic, who had 19 turnovers.

The Magic have lost three of their last four since posting a three-game win streak. They’ve also now gone six straight quarters without scoring at least 20 points.

No matter how ugly and brick-filled a game is, somebody still has to win the thing.

The AP reports:

Ray Allen hit two 3-pointers in Boston’s 13-0 run in the fourth quarter and protected the lead with two free throws in the final seconds as the Boston Celtics held on to beat the Atlanta Hawks 79-76 on Monday night.

The Celtics led 73-58 at the end of the run. Joe Johnson , who had 25 points, had three late 3-pointers as the Hawks rallied. Johnson’s 3 with 11.8 seconds remaining cut the lead to 77-76.

Allen, who had 19 points, made two free throws with 10.9 seconds remaining.

Jeff Teague launched an air ball on Atlanta’s final possession.

Kevin Garnett had 16 points and Rajon Rondo had 10 points, 13 assists and six steals for Boston, which took charge with a 17-2 run, including 13 unanswered points, after a 56-56 tie in the final period.

Zaza Pachulia had 16 points and 13 rebounds for Atlanta, which now leads Boston by 1 1/2 games in the race for the sixth spot in the Eastern Conference.

Paul Pierce had 13 points for Boston.

It’s always fun taking note of the biggest games that NBA rookies put up. Which is why tonight’s performance is notable.

The AP reports:

Tristan Thompson scored a career-high 27 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and gave Cleveland the lead with a tip-in with 1:11 to play Monday night, leading the Cavaliers to a 105-100 victory over the New Jersey Nets.

Fellow rookie Kyrie Irving added 26 points, seven assists and five rebounds as the Cavaliers snapped a three-game losing streak and sent the Nets to their third straight loss.

Newcomer Gerald Wallace had 27 points and 12 rebounds to lead New Jersey.

Deron Williams added 28 points, but threw the ball away with roughly 16 seconds to play when he passed up a 3-point attempt to make a pass underneath with New Jersey down 103-100.

Houston Rockets forward Patrick Patterson has been fined $25,000 for public criticism of NBA officiating, it was announced today by Stu Jackson, NBA Executive Vice President Basketball Operations.

Patterson was fined for comments made on his Twitter account.

The Oklahoma City Thunder has assigned forward Lazar Hayward to the Tulsa 66ers of the NBA Development League, it was announced today by Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti.

During the 2011-12 season, Hayward has appeared in 16 games with the Thunder averaging 1.4 points in 5.7 minutes. On March 2, Oklahoma City assigned him to Tulsa. He appeared in two games (both starts) averaging 28.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 1.0 assist in 36.0 minutes prior to his recall on March 4.

He will be in uniform tonight as the Tulsa 66ers host the Springfield Armor at the Tulsa Convention Center.

The AP reports:

Tyson Chandler scored 16 points, Jeremy Lin had 13, and the New York Knicks rolled to their second straight dominant victory under Mike Woodson, beating the Indiana Pacers 115-100 on Friday night.

Reserves JR Smith (16 points) and Steve Novak (12) had big games again for the Knicks in the opener of a home-and-home series. Two nights after beating Portland by 42 on the day Mike D’Antoni resigned, New York led this one by as much as 32 and shut down Pacers star Danny Granger , who had angered them by saying Friday and Saturday were two “very winnable games.”

Instead, the Pacers never led and had their two-game winning streak snapped. Granger shot 4 of 15 for nine points, while All-Star Roy Hibbert was 2 of 8 and scored four. Darren Collison led Indiana with 15 points.

Carmelo Anthony , expected to have a bigger role in Woodson’s offense, shot as poorly as he was under D’Antoni and finished with 12 points on 4-for-12 shooting. Amare Stoudemire was only 3 of 9 for eight points, but neither played more than 28 minutes in the blowout.

The AP reports:

Memphis forwards Zach Randolph and Rudy Gay were both in uniform for Friday night’s game against the Toronto Raptors, putting the Grizzlies at full strength for the first time since Jan. 1.

Randolph, an All-Star last season, has been out since tearing the MCL in his right knee on New Year’s Day in Chicago. He was averaging 14.8 points and 7.5 rebounds in the four games before the injury. Last season, Randolph led the team with 20.1 points and 12.2 rebounds per game.

Memphis coach Lionel Hollins said Randolph will not start. Marreese Speights , who the Grizzlies picked up Jan. 4 in a trade with Philadelphia, has filled in for Randolph at power forward, averaging 9.3 points and 6.4 rebounds.

Washington Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld announced today that the team has acquired Nene (neh-NAY), forward Brian Cook and a 2015 second-round pick (from the Los Angeles Clippers via the New Orleans Hornets) in a three-team trade with the Denver Nuggets and the Los Angeles Clippers. The Wizards traded centers JaVale McGee and Ronny Turiaf to the Nuggets and guard Nick Young to the Clippers.

In his 10th NBA season, Nene has averaged 12.4 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.2 steals in 555 career games (451 starts) with Denver. The 29-year-old Brazilian is averaging 13.4 points,7.4 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.3 steals this season. His best season came in 2008-2009 after returning from a bout with testicular cancer. During that year, he averaged career highs of 14.6 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.31 blocks.

The 6-11, 250-pound forward/center has posted 79 double-doubles in his career. He holds the second-highest career field goal percentage (.560) in Nuggets’ history and led the NBA in field goal percentage shooting (.615) in 2010-2011. Nene has appeared in the postseason with the Nuggets six times, averaging 10.8 points and 6.6 rebounds in 44 games (36 starts). In 2009, Nene helped lead Denver to the Western Conference Finals while averaging 11.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.6 assists in 16 postseason games.

“Nene is a versatile player who will bring experience and a physical presence to our frontcourt,” said Grunfeld. “He is a strong rebounder, tough defender and a fierce competitor. His veteran leadership and postseason experience will be a positive influence in our locker room.”

Nene originally entered the NBA in 2002 as a first round draft pick (7 th overall) of the New York Knicks and was traded on draft night to the Denver Nuggets. In his first year,Nene earned NBA All-Rookie First Team honors while averaging 10.5 points and 6.1 rebounds per game. In addition, Nene played for the Brazilian National Team in the 2007 FIBA Olympic qualifying tournament and helped Brazil secure a Bronze medal in the 2001 Goodwill Games.

In his ninth NBA season, Cook has averaged 5.6 points and 2.7 rebounds in 405 career games (74 starts). Cook has played with five NBA teams, including the Los Angeles Lakers (2003-08), Orlando (2007-09), Houston (2009-10) and the Los Angeles Clippers (2010-2012). He was originally selected by the Lakers in the first round (24 th overall) of the 2003 NBA Draft.

McGee, 7-0, 252, has appeared in 41 games (40 starts) this season, averaging career-highs with 11.9 ppg, 8.8 rpg and 2.46 bpg in 27.4 minutes. The big man’s 2.46 blocks ranks 2nd in the NBA, while his .535 field goal percentage ranks 9th in the league.

The 24-year-old McGee has appeared in 255 career games (148 starts) over four seasons with Washington, averaging 8.5 ppg, 6.0 rpg and 1.84 bpg. The University of Nevada-Reno product was drafted by the Washington Wizards with the 18th overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft.

Young has tallied 16.6 points, 2.4 rebounds and 30.3 minutes in 40 games played so far this season, connecting on 41% of his field goal attempts, 37% of his three-point field goal attempts and 86% of his attempts from the free throw line.

In his 5th NBA season, Young returns to Los Angeles where he starred for the University of Southern California from 2004-2007. He carries career averages of 11.6 points, 1.9 rebounds and 22.9 minutes per game.

The Wizards made Young the 16th overall selection in the first round of the 2007 NBA Draft after he led USC to the Sweet Sixteen of the 2007 NCAA Tournament and was named First Team All-Pac Ten in both 2006 and 2007.

Turiaf, acquired by Washington via trade from the New York Knicks on December 10,2011, appeared in just four games before fracturing his hand against Boston on January 1, 2012. He has averaged 5.2 points and 3.8 rebounds per game in 362 career games (90 starts).

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