NBA News Blog – Page 1111 – NBA Blog

Mark Cuban rips league over Chris Paul trade

Chris Paul

Was almost Kobe’s teammate

Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, who was vocal in his opposition to the proposed trade that would have sent Chris Paul to the Los Angeles Lakers, still doesn’t think the NBA-owned New Orleans Hornets ended up with a decent deal.

The right deal, in Cuban’s opinion, would have been none at all, even if that meant losing Paul for nothing at the end of the season.

“You’re better off just taking the cap room, or whatever,” Cuban said.

Paul ended up being traded to the Los Angeles Clippers, who visited the Mavericks at the American Airlines Center on Monday night.

“I don’t think it was about the Lakers, per se,” Cuban said before the game. “I think it was just the way they did the deal, which was ridiculous. I don’t think it was about which team. I think it was the fact that, even with the Clippers, we just went through this whole (collective bargaining agreement) and said the incumbent team still has the advantage and then the team the league owns (wimps) out. And look how it’s worked out for them.

“Bad management gets you bad results.”

— Reported by Tim MacMahon of ESPN Dallas

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Nets sign Andre Emmett to 10-day contract, waive Keith Bogans

Andre Emmett

Plays basketball

The 8-21 New Jersey Nets saw no reason to keep guard Keith Bogans on the roster anymore, considering he’s out for the season. So they’ve wished him well and said goodbye while also adding some temporary help to their frontcourt.

The team today signed free agent forward Andre Emmett from the NBA D-League’s Reno Bighorns to a 10-day contract, Nets General Manager Billy King announced today. To make room on the roster, the Nets have requested waivers on Bogans.

Emmett is currently ranked 2nd in the D-League in scoring, averaging 23.7 ppg, while appearing in 24 games for Reno. The 6-5 forward is shooting .531 from the field this season and .459 from three-point range, while averaging 6.0 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 36.8 minutes per game. In four D-League seasons, Emmett posts career numbers of 15.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 105 games played. The Texas Tech product was drafted by Seattle in the second round (35th overall) of the 2004 NBA Draft. He played in eight games for the Memphis Grizzlies in 2004-5, scoring seven points in a total of 27 minutes of action.

Bogans, who signed with the Nets as a free agent on February 1, 2012, played in five games this season, averaging, 4.2 points and 2.2 rebounds in 18.8 minutes per game. He had surgery to repair a torn deltoid ligament and a fractured left ankle on February 13, 2012.

Eric Gordon having knee surgery, out six more weeks

Eric Gordon

Needs his knees

Anyone remember guard Eric Gordon playing basketball? If so, it was probably last season when he was on the Los Angeles Clippers. He’s only managed to play in two games since becoming a member of the Hornets.

The New Orleans Hornets announced today that Gordon will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his right knee tomorrow. The surgery is needed to fully resolve an injury that was sustained earlier in the season during a Hornets game. After that point it did not fully heal with treatment and rest. The doctors expect that Eric will be fully recovered and able to return to playing in up to six weeks.

“After consulting with our medical staff, we concluded that surgery was the best route and in the best interest of Eric for the long term. We had hoped with rest and rehab, Eric’s knee would have healed.” General Manager Dell Demps said. “Eric is eager to return to the court and we are confident Hornet Fans will get to see him soon.”

With Chris Paul and David West gone, the Hornets have been a disaster this season. They’ve been led in the scoring department by guard Jarrett Jack and forwards Carl Landry and Trevor Ariza. Emeka Okafor provides some rebounding. Chris Kaman has been disappointing. And there’s not much else going on, other than lots of losing.

He sustained the injury to his knee in the first quarter of the team’s opening game in Phoenix on 12/26. In two games this season, Gordon averaged a team-best 21.0 points per game, including hitting the game-winning 20-foot jumper with 4.2 seconds remaining against the Suns on 12/26.

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Derrick Rose’s back has no structural damage

Derrick Rose

Quicker than the light emitting from your laptop

Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose saw a back specialist on Monday who confirmed MRI results that there is no structural damage to Rose’s back, according to general manager Gar Forman.

“Derrick saw a specialist this morning,” Forman said. “And it reconfirmed what we had thought previously and what the MRI had shown in that there is nothing structurally wrong with his back. It’s muscular.

“So at this point, we will continue with what we’re doing, which is we’ll continue with his therapy, continue to get rest, and it will be day to day. Seeing how he responds to the therapy. And when we feel, he feels, that he’s well enough to go back on the floor [he’ll return].”

Rose, who underwent the MRI last week, has missed the past two games with back spasms. The Bulls have home games coming up Tuesday against the Sacramento Kings, Thursday against the Boston Celtics and Saturday against the New Jersey Nets.

— Reported by Nick Friedell of ESPN Chicago

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Grizzlies assign guard Josh Selby to D-League

Josh Selby

Can dominate summer games during lockouts

The Memphis Grizzlies assigned guard Josh Selby to the Reno Bighorns, the team’s NBA Development League affiliate, Grizzlies General Manager and Vice President of Basketball Operations Chris Wallace announced today.

Selby (6-2, 183) has averaged 2.9 points and 1.4 assists on .389 shooting in 10.3 minutes in 18 games during his rookie season with the Grizzlies. The 20-year-old was selected by Memphis in the second round (49th overall) of the 2011 NBA Draft.

The Baltimore native posted 7.9 points, 2.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 26 appearances last year as a freshman at Kansas.

The Grizzlies will complete their season-long five-game home stand tomorrow night when the team hosts the Houston Rockets at 7 p.m. at FedExForum.

Jeremy Lin and Russell Westbrook named NBA Players of Week

Jeremy Lin

He really exists.

Linsanity is running wild, and the NBA league office has taken notice.

About six games ago, Knicks guard Jeremy Lin was considered a 15th man, and a player on the fringe, having to fight to stick around in the league.

Things change quickly, sometimes.

Lin and the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Russell Westbrook today were named the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week, respectively, for games played Monday, Feb. 6, through Sunday, Feb. 12.

Lin led the Knicks to a 4-0 week, averaging 27.3 points, 8.3 assists and 2.0 steals. His 109 points over his first four career starts are the most by any player since 1976-77, and he became the first player in NBA history to tally at least 20 points and seven assists in each of his first four starts. Lin scored a career-high 38 points on Feb. 10, in a 92-85 win over the Lakers.

Westbrook helped the Thunder to a 3-1 week, averaging 30.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 2.5 steals. Westbrook scored 28 or more points in all four of Oklahoma City’s games, and posted one double-double (28 points, 11 rebounds) on Feb. 6, in a 111-107 win over the Portland Trail Blazers. Westbrook connected on a career-high 15 field goals on Feb. 9, during a 106-101 loss to the Sacramento Kings.

Here is a recap of the week for Lin and Westbrook:

Jeremy Lin, New York Knicks

Feb. 6 vs. Utah: Posted 28 points, eight assists and two steals in a 99-88 win over the Jazz.

Feb. 8 @ Washington: Tallied 23 points, 10 assists and four rebounds in a 107-93 win over the Wizards.

Feb. 10 vs. L.A. Lakers: Scored a career-high 38 points and added seven assists, four rebounds and two steals in a 92-85 win over the Lakers.

Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City Thunder

Feb. 6 @ Portland: Tallied 28 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists during a 111-107 overtime win over the Trail Blazers.

Feb. 7 at Golden State: Posted 31 points and added seven assists and two steals in a 119-116 win over the Warriors.

Feb. 10 at Utah: Collected 28 points and added six rebounds and three assists during a 101-87 win over the Jazz.

Other nominees for the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week were Dallas’ Dirk Nowitzki, Detroit’s Greg Monroe, Golden State’s Monta Ellis, Miami’s LeBron James and Dwyane Wade and Oklahoma City’s Kevin Durant.

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Clippers hope to sign J.R. Smith

J.R. Smith

Not afraid to shoot while double-teamed

The Los Angeles Clippers are one of a handful of teams vying for free-agent guard J.R. Smith, who will be eligible to return to the NBA on Wednesday after his Chinese team’s season concludes, according to a source with knowledge of the team’s thinking.

The Clippers were interested in Smith even before the season-ending injury to Chauncey Billups last week, believing they could use more offensive firepower off the bench. That was going to be a harder sell to Smith, who is looking for a larger role. Now, they can offer Smith the opportunity to start.

Like Billups did with recently-signed Kenyon Martin, point guard Chris Paul has taken a lead role in recruiting Smith, according to the source. The two are close from their two seasons as teammates with the Hornets.

— Reported by Ramona Shelburne of ESPN Los Angeles

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Celtics forward Brandon Bass out 10-14 days

Forward Brandon Bass, the Boston Celtics’ top reserve, will miss 10 to 14 days with inflammation in his right knee, coach Doc Rivers said before Sunday’s 95-91 win against the Chicago Bulls.

Bass felt some discomfort in the knee during a win over the New York Knicks on Feb. 3. He sat out the following game against the Memphis Grizzlies, but played in three games last week. Rivers said the news came as a bit of a surprise to him, as he was informed by team trainer Eddie Lacerte on Sunday morning that Bass almost certainly will be out through the All-Star break, which begins Feb. 23.

— Reported by Chris Forsberg of ESPN Boston

Nets guard Keith Bogans undergoes surgery, out for rest of season

New Jersey Nets guard Keith Bogans will not play again this season.

Bogans today underwent successful surgery to repair a torn deltoid ligament as well as a fractured left ankle, Nets General Manager Billy King announced.

The injury occurred during the Nets’ February 8 contest versus the Detroit Pistons.

The procedure was performed at the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan by foot specialist Dr. Martin O’Malley and Nets team orthopedist Dr. Riley Williams III.

Bogans, who signed with the Nets as a free agent on February 1, 2012, played in five games this season, averaging, 4.2 points and 2.2 rebounds in 18.8 minutes per game.

He is expected to make a full recovery and be ready for the 2012-13 training camp.

Heat sign Mickell Gladness to 10-day contract

Mickell Gladness

Has a confusing name

The Miami Heat announced today that they have signed center Mickell Gladness to a 10-day contract. Per club policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Gladness appeared in six games with the Heat this season, after previously being signed by Miami on December 10, 2011, totaling two points, eight rebounds, two assists, a steal and a block in 21 minutes of action while connecting on his only shot from the field before being waived on February 7, 2012. Prior to that stint, Gladness was signed by the Heat on September 27, 2010, playing in two games on the Heat’s 2010 summer league squad, totaling eight points, five rebounds, two steals and a block in 28:53 minutes of action while shooting 2-of-4 from the field and 4-of-5 from the foul line before being waived on October 11, 2010.

Gladness, a member of the 2010 NBA Development League Champion Rio Grande Valley Vipers, has appeared in 81 career NBA D-League games (20 starts) and averaged 4.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, 1.41 blocks and 13.9 minutes while shooting 57 percent from the field and 60.7 percent from the foul line.

During his collegiate career, Gladness appeared in 85 games (83 starts) at Alabama A&M and averaged 7.3 points, 7.0 rebounds, 4.66 blocks and 26.8 minutes. He was named as the SWAC Defensive Player of the Year while also earning All-SWAC First Team honors in both his junior and senior seasons. He finished his junior season with 188 total blocks, the third most in NCAA history, including a game in which he set a new NCAA single-game record after blocking 16 shots vs. Texas Southern on Feb. 24, 2007.