NBA News Blog – Page 1094 – NBA Blog

Greg Oden aims to continue playing career

Greg Oden

Knees are made out of potato chips

Just because Greg Oden has had about eight thousand injuries doesn’t mean he’s ready to give up on his NBA career.

The Associated Press reports the following:

Greg Oden’s agent says his client is committed to playing basketball again despite his latest injury.

The Portland Trail Blazers waived the former No. 1 overall pick Thursday after an injury-plagued five-year run. He recently underwent his third microfracture knee surgery, the second on his left knee.

Mike Conley Sr., says his client is recovering in his hometown of Indianapolis.

Mavericks recall Sean Williams from D-League

The Dallas Mavericks announced today that they have recalled forward Sean Williams from the Texas Legends of the NBA Development League.

Williams (6-10, 235) has played seven games with the Mavericks after signing on Dec. 21. In those appearances, he averaged 4.1 points, 1.9 rebounds and 9.0 minutes while shooting .750 (12-16 FGs) from the field and .833 (5-6 FTs) from the free throw line.

On March 13, Dallas assigned Williams to the Legends, but recalled him after center Brendan Haywood suffered a right knee sprain on March 15 against the Charlotte Bobcats.

Williams has played 24 games with 23 starts for Texas and averaged 14.7 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.54 blocks and 1.0 assist in 28.5 minutes while shooting .496 (132-266 FGs) from the field and .766 (85-111 FTs) from the free throw line.

Lakers recall Darius Morris from D-League

The Los Angeles Lakers have recalled guard Darius Morris from the Los Angeles D-Fenders of the NBA Development League, it was announced today by General Manager Mitch Kupchak.

Morris was assigned to the D-Fenders on March 7th and played in one game with the team, helping defeat the Dakota Wizards 99-98 on March 10th. In 28 minutes, Morris totaled a team-high 21 points on 7-of-16 shooting, a rebound, four assists and a steal.

Morris was the third Lakers’ player assignment of the season for the D-Fenders, who at 30-11, currently own the best record in the D-League.

A rookie out of Michigan, Morris has appeared in 13 games for the Lakers this season, averaging 2.7 points and 1.1 assists in 10.3 minutes.

Houston Rockets waive Terrence Williams

The Houston Rockets have decided they no longer require the services of one of their bench reserves.

Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey announced today that the team has waived guard/forward Terrence Williams.

Williams (6-6, 220, Louisville) averaged 4.5 points, 2.3 rebounds and 0.8 assists in 12 games with the Rockets this season.

The Rockets are currently 24-20 and are 7th in the Western conference. They are led by Kevin Martin (17.1 ppg), Kyle Lowry (15.9 ppg, 7.2 apg) and Luis Scola (15.6 ppg, 6.4 rpg).

Danny Ainge says he was involved in lots of trade talk

Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge said Thursday night that he worked on deals of all varieties — big and small; for now and for the future — but ultimately couldn’t hammer out a swap that made sense for Boston and its potential trade partner(s) before the NBA’s 3 p.m. deadline passed.

“I guess what prevented any trade was making at least two teams in a deal happy, or satisfied that a deal was worthwhile,” said Ainge. “But as late as 2:57, there was still trades that were possible and being negotiated. We were close to handful of different types of trades — small to bigger — that just couldn’t be resolved. That happens often.”

Asked later if he approached the deadline as a buyer or a seller, Ainge added, “I was looking at both opportunities, to strengthen our team for the playoff run this year and/or build some chips and some assets for future. We actually had a lot of conversation on both sides, but nothing seemed good enough to do.”

— Reported by Chris Forsberg of ESPN Boston

Melo doesn’t want to be called a coach-killer

The day after receiving most of the blame for Mike D’Antoni’s resignation as Knicks coach, Carmelo Anthony tried to defend himself and his reputation.

Anthony said he did what D’Antoni asked of him and doesn’t want to be known as a coach-killer.

“That bothers me because I never want that label on me,” Anthony said Thursdayafter Mike Woodson’s first practice as Knicks interim coach. “I did everything in my power to try and communicate with coach Mike, talk with coach Mike, have a great relationship with coach Mike. Even right now, I feel we have a great relationship.”

Amar’e Stoudemire said D’Antoni left because he became “frustrated” that “everyone wasn’t buying into his system,” but Anthony denied that there was division in the locker room.

Anthony also became very defensive when a reporter said he proved not everyone can thrive in D’Antoni’s offense. The Knicks went 26-37, playoffs included, with Anthony in the lineup under D’Antoni. His defensive stance continued when he was asked to react to his ex-coach reportedly feeling he couldn’t get the best out of him.

— Reported by Al Iannazzone of New York Newsday

Lakers almost traded for Michael Beasley

The Lakers were seven minutes from acquiring Minnesota forward Michael Beasley, but Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor blocked an agreed-upon three-team trade right before the deadline that would have sent Fisher to Minnesota, not Houston, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. The trade also would have involved Portland.

“It was whisker-close,” said the person, who did not want to be identified.

The Lakers responded by quickly sending Fisher to the Rockets, barely beating the noon deadline. They are not expected to re-sign Fisher if he takes a buyout with the Rockets.

Sessions, 25, is a quick penetrator with an unremarkable outside shot. He lost playing time to rookie Kyrie Irving, the top pick in last year’s draft, and was averaging 10.5 points and 5.2 assists but shooting only 39.8%.

— Reported by Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times

Cavs sign Donald Sloan for rest of season

The Cleveland Cavaliers have signed guard Donald Sloan from the Erie BayHawks of the NBA Development League for the remainder of the 2011-12 season, Cavaliers General Manager Chris Grant announced today. The signing of Sloan marks the 34th GATORADE Call-Up of the 2011-12 season.

In eight games (all starts), Sloan has averaged 22.8 points on .496 shooting, 5.1 rebounds, 7.4 assists and 1.4 steals in 38.6 minutes per game with the BayHawks. The 6-foot-3, 205-pound guard from Texas A&M has appeared in eight NBA games this season, playing five games for the Atlanta Hawks and three games for the New Orleans Hornets. In eight NBA games, Sloan averaged 2.3 points, 1.0 rebound and 1.6 assists in 7.4 minutes per game.

The 24-year-old spent the 2010-11 season with the Reno Bighorns of the NBA Development League, playing in 49 games (33 starts) and posting averages of 10.7 points on .483 shooting, 3.4 rebounds and 4.4 assists in 27.7 minutes per game.

Spurs sign Eric Dawson to second 10-day contract

The San Antonio Spurs today announced that they have signed Eric Dawson from the Austin Toros of the NBA Development League to a second 10-day contract. Dawson signed his first 10-day contract with the Silver and Black on Feb. 20.

Dawson saw action in two games in his first stint with the Spurs, averaging 4.5 points and 3.5 rebounds in 17.0 minutes.

A 6-9 forward, Dawson has appeared in 24 games with the Toros this season, averaging 16.9 points, 10.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.71 blocks and 1.29 steals in 29.1 minutes while shooting .556 (165-297) from the field and .779 (74-95) from the foul line. Since returning to the Toros on March 1, Dawson has averaged 19.8 points and 11.3 rebounds in six games. In his most recent game he finished with 25 points (10-19 FG, 5-7 FT), a season-high 17 rebounds and 4 steals in 35 minutes vs. Rio Grande on March 14. Dawson has posted 18 double doubles (second in the D-League) and has scored 20-or-more six times.

Born and raised in San Antonio, Dawson attended Sam Houston High School and attended Midwestern State University. Dawson was named a Division II Second Team All-American in 2007 and earned Lone Star Conference First Team honors in 2006 and 2007. He is the Mustangs all-time leader in blocked shots with 170.

Jeremy Lin may have limited role under coach Mike Woodson

Jeremy Lin may be a global phenomenon, but he is no longer a Knicks phenomenon. Linsanity was the flavor of February, but he appears not to be new interim coach Mike Woodson’s favorite dish.

Woodson, calling Lin “in a learning stage,’’ said yesterday he is turning the focus of his new deliberate offense to his bread and butter: Carmelo Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire, the Knicks’ two stars who combine to make $37 million this season.

Lin is expected to remain the starting point guard for now, but Woodson indicated he’s all about veterans. That could mean backup point guard Baron Davis or even his former Hawks favorite Mike Bibby, who has been out of the rotation, could supplant Lin eventually as the starter.

In fact, the de-emphasis of Mike D’Antoni’s speedball system that relies heavily on a penetrating point guard could affect whether the Knicks want to spend all or part of their $5 million mid-level exception on keeping their cash cow, Lin, next season.

— Reported by Marc Berman of the New York Post