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Kyrie Irving out with shoulder strain

Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving experienced a left shoulder injury during Thursday night’s game at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland vs. the Golden State Warriors. He did not travel with the team on the current two game road trip to Indianapolis and Houston and received additional examination, including an MRI, Friday morning at Cleveland Clinic Sports Health, the results of which confirmed a left shoulder strain.

Irving was Out for the game against the Pacers last night, is receiving additional treatment today and tomorrow at Cleveland Clinic Courts and will be Out for the game in Houston against the Rockets Sunday afternoon.

His status will next be updated Tuesday morning at the team’s shoot around in advance of Tuesday’s home game vs. the Boston Celtics.

NBA to release last-two-minute reports

NBA to release last-two-minute reports

The National Basketball Association today announced a new transparency initiative relating to its officiating program. Beginning March 2 and continuing throughout the 2015 playoffs, the league will provide play-by-play reports regarding all calls and material non-calls that occur in the last two minutes of close games and during entire overtime periods. This new initiative creates a more specific protocol for commenting on the most scrutinized calls in NBA games.

“Our fans are passionate and have an intense interest in understanding how the rules are applied,” said Mike Bantom, Executive Vice President of Referee Operations. “NBA referees have the most difficult officiating job in sports, with so many split-second decisions in real time. We trust this consistent disclosure will give fans a greater appreciation of the difficulty of the job and a deeper sense of the correct interpretations of the rules of our game.”

The league will release assessments of officiated events in the last two minutes of games decided in regulation that were within five points at the two-minute mark. Also, the reports will include plays from the last two minutes and overtime of OT games. Each play will be reviewed by a senior referee manager or basketball operations manager who will provide the assessments.

Earl Lloyd, the first black player to play in the NBA, has died

Earl Lloyd, the first black player to play in the NBA, has died

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver released the following statement regarding the passing of Earl Lloyd:

“The NBA family has lost one of its patriarchs. Earl Lloyd, the first African-American to play in an NBA game, was as inspirational as he was understated. He was known as a modest gentleman who played the game with skill, class, and pride. His legacy survives in the league he helped integrate, and the entire NBA family will strive to always honor his memory. Our deepest condolences to the Lloyd family.”

According to Sekou Smith of the NBA.com blog, “Floyd suited up with the Washington Capitols on October 31, 1950. Charles Cooper and Nat Clifton would join him in the 1950-51 season, an arduous journey during those tumultuous times, but one that Lloyd, a former West Virginia State star, survived all of the drama and won a championship in 1955 with the Syracuse Nationals. Lloyd finished his 10-year playing career with the Detroit Pistons and when he retired he was 43rd on the NBA career scoring list with 4,682 points.”

According to the Detroit Free Press, “The 6-foot-5 forward averaged 8.4 points and 6.4 rebounds in 560 regular-season games in nine seasons with Washington, Syracuse and the Detroit Pistons. He missed the 1951-52 season while serving in the U.S. Army. Lloyd played for the Pistons in 1958-60, averaging 8.6 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists. He also was 22-55 as Detroit’s coach in 1971-72 and the first nine games of the 1972-73 season.”

According to the Washington Post, “a native of Alexandria, Lloyd was one of three black players drafted by the league in 1950; the others were Chuck Cooper and Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton. Lloyd was a ninth-round pick by the Washington Capitols, and in a 2007 interview with The Washington Post, he recalled being surprised to learn of his selection by that team, as he thought of the D.C. area as a “cradle of segregation.” Lloyd came to break the NBA’s color barrier by a quirk of the schedule, as the Capitols began their season before the teams for which Cooper and Clifton played. On Oct. 31, 1950, the 6-foot-6 forward entered a game against the Rochester Royals, paving the way for thousands of black basketball players to come.”

Another serious knee injury for Derrick Rose

Another serious knee injury for Derrick Rose

Derrick Rose suffers another serious knee injury

It’s happened yet again. Another serious injury to Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose.

Rose reported to the team today with right knee pain. An exam and subsequent MRI revealed that he has suffered a medial meniscus tear of the right knee.

Surgery will be scheduled, after which a timeline for his return will be determined.

At this point, Bulls veterans have unfortunately already gathered lots of experience playing without Rose, whose NBA career features a league MVP award but also numerous major injuries.

According to Rick Morrissey of the Chicago Sun-Times, “it’s looking more and more as if Derrick Rose’s body wasn’t built for the NBA, or maybe more to the point, that his knees weren’t built for the torque his explosive style of basketball puts on them. His spirit is most definitely willing, but that flesh of his is weak. The Bulls announced Tuesday night that their star guard would undergo surgery for a torn meniscus in his right knee. It will be his third knee surgery in almost 34 months, and his entire career is now in question. If you’re someone who relies on your knees for a living, you don’t go under the knife that many times and not feel the effects of it long-term.”

Cavs sign Kendrick Perkins

Cavs sign Kendrick Perkins

The Cleveland Cavaliers have signed center Kendrick Perkins, Cavaliers General Manager David Griffin announced today.

Perkins (6-10, 270, Clifton J. Ozen High School (TX)) is a 12-year veteran who holds career averages of 5.6 points on .530 shooting from the field, 6.0 rebounds and 1.2 blocks in 22.6 minutes over 727 games (560 starts) with the Oklahoma City Thunder and Boston Celtics. Originally selected in the first round (27th overall) of the 2003 NBA Draft by Memphis, Perkins has appeared in 51 games (three starts) for the Thunder this season, averaging 4.0 points and 5.5 rebounds in 19.2 minutes.

A member of the 2008 NBA Champion Boston Celtics, Perkins has appeared in the postseason eight times, seeing action in 135 games (129 starts) and averaging 5.4 points, 6.2 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 24.7 minutes. Perkins will be available for tonight’s game against the Detroit Pistons and will wear jersey number 3 for the Cavaliers.

Ronnie Price will have elbow surgery

Ronnie Price elbow surgery info

Lakers guard Ronnie Price is scheduled to have surgery tomorrow morning to remove a bone spur from his right elbow. The surgery will be performed by Dr. Neal ElAttrache of the Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic. A timetable for his return will be given at the conclusion of his surgery.

Price, who signed with the Lakers as a free agent on September 24, has appeared in 43 games (20 starts) this season, averaging 5.1 points, 1.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 1.56 steals in 22.8 minutes per game.

Kings hire Vance Walberg as assistant coach

The Sacramento Kings today hired Vance Walberg as an assistant coach, according to General Manager Pete D’Alessandro.

A veteran of the coaching ranks with more than three decades of experience at the prep, collegiate and professional levels, Walberg joins George Karl’s staff after spending the last two seasons in a similar capacity with the Philadelphia 76ers. Prior to his tenure with the 76ers, he was an assistant for Karl on Denver’s bench.

Walberg is known for his innovative offensive ideas and credited with developing the dribble drive motion offense—implemented by John Calipari at the University of Memphis and later Kentucky. His coaching resume includes three seasons at UMass as an assistant coach (2008-2011) after serving two seasons as the head coach at Pepperdine University (2006-2008).

Prior to joining Karl in Denver for the 2011-12 campaign, Walberg led Fresno City College to a 133-11 (.924) record in his four seasons at the helm, including a perfect 34-0 mark culminating in a California state community college championship in 2005. His extensive head coaching background at the prep level includes stints at Clovis West, Newark Memorial, Los Altos and Mountain View High Schools. In 13 years at Clovis West (Fresno), Walberg guided his teams to a 343-68 record with nine league titles, 10 CIF Central Section Championship appearances, and three trips to the Southern State Championship Game.

An alumnus of Cal State Bakersfield, the College of Belmont and Saint Mary’s College, Walberg and his wife, Rose have four children: Jason, Heather, Jaimie-Rose and Ian.

Shawn Marion bothered by hip injury since early January

Shawn Marion bothered by hip injury since early January

Here’s the Akron Beacon Journal blog reporting on Shawn Marion of the Cleveland Cavaliers, who has been playing hurt for most of 2015:

Shawn Marion said Saturday he has been fighting a left hip injury for the last couple months, which helps explain his sporadic playing time recently.

As the Cavs prepare to face the New York Knicks this afternoon at Madison Square Garden (1 p.m., Fox Sports Ohio), they may have to do it yet again without Marion, who has fallen from starter to completely out of David Blatt’s rotation in recent weeks. Part of it is because of the hip.

“My hip is bothering me right now. I’ve been trying to fight through it as much as I can, but it’s causing me a lot of discomfort,” he said. “ I just want to get back to 100 percent healthy.”

Bucks waive Larry Sanders

The Milwaukee Bucks have requested waivers on center Larry Sanders, General Manager John Hammond announced today.

“We believe this decision is in the best interest of our team,” said Hammond. “We wish Larry well and remain excited about the future of the Bucks organization.”

This season, Sanders appeared in 27 games for Milwaukee (26 starts) and averaged 7.3 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 21.7 minutes per game. His best statistical season came in 2012-13 when he averaged 9.8 points, 9.5 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 2.8 blocks over 71 games (55 starts).

Sixers sign Tim Frazier to second 10-day contract

The Philadelphia 76ers today announced they have signed guard Tim Frazier to a second 10-day contract. Frazier is the 34th “Call-Up” of the 2014-15 NBA Development League season.

Frazier signed his first 10-day contract with the Sixers on Feb. 5 and appeared in three games with two starts, averaging five points, five rebounds and nine assists. Through the first three games of his NBA career, Frazier tallied 26 assists, the seventh-most by any player dating back to 1985-86.

This past Sunday, Frazier played in the D-League All-Star Game and posted 11 points and a game-high 10 assists in leading the Eastern Conference to a 129-94 win over the Western Conference.

In his lone D-League game since his original 10-day contract with the Sixers expired, Frazier recorded his third triple-double of the season with 10 points, 13 rebounds and 13 assists in Maine’s 87-86 win over Fort Wayne on Feb. 17.

In 28 games with 27 starts for the Red Claws in the D-League, Frazier is averaging 16 points, nine assists, seven rebounds and two steals. At the time of his second call-up, Frazier ranked third in the league in assists and tied for fifth in steals.