NBA News Blog – Page 1148 – NBA Blog

Nets waive Travis Outlaw, via amnesty clause

The New Jersey Nets have waived forward Travis Outlaw and designated him as the team’s amnesty player, Nets General Manager Billy King announced today.

Outlaw, (6’9”, 207) played in all 82 games, 55 starts, with the Nets last season, averaging 9.2 points and 4.0 rebounds in 29 minutes per game. The eight-year veteran was acquired by New Jersey as a free agent on July 14, 2010.

Outlaw has appeared in 482 career NBA regular season games with Portland, LA Clippers and New Jersey, averaging 9.5 points and 3.5 rebounds in 22.9 minutes per game.

Milwaukee Bucks sign second round rookie forward Jon Leuer

The Milwaukee Bucks have signed rookie forward Jon Leuer (6-10, 228) to a contract, General Manager John Hammond announced today. Leuer was the 40th overall selection in the 2011 NBA Draft.

Prior to signing with Milwaukee, Leuer appeared in 10 games for the Fraport Skyliners Frankfurt team in the German Bundesliga where he averaged 14.8 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists, while shooting 49.5 percent from the field. He also played in three EuroCup games where he tallied 12.0 points and 4.3 rebounds per contest.

Leuer played four seasons at the University of Wisconsin – Madison with career averages of 11.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.1 assists while shooting 48.2 percent from the field. As a senior, Leuer had career-highs in points (18.3 ppg) and rebounds (7.2 rpg) while shooting 47.0 percent from the field. He finished his Badger career ranked 12th in school history in career points (1,376) and was a First-Team All-Big Ten selection as a senior.

Timberwolves sign Bonzi Wells and rookie Malcolm Lee

The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced the team has signed rookie Malcolm Lee and free agent Bonzi Wells. We assume the Wells signing is just a training camp contract that doesn’t mean he’s making the regular season roster just yet.

Wells, a 6-5 guard-forward, is a 10-year NBA veteran (1998-2008) with career averages of 12.1 ppg, 4.6 rpg and 2.6 apg. He spent five-plus seasons with Portland, and also saw action with Memphis, Sacramento, Houston and New Orleans. His best season was 2001-02 when he averaged 17.0 points and 6.0 rebounds in 74 games for the Trail Blazers. His most recent NBA action was during the 2007-08 season when he played in 51 games for the Rockets and 22 games for the Hornets. He spent the 2008-09 season playing in China and the 2009-10 season in the Puerto Rican League.

Lee, a 6-5 guard from UCLA, was drafted 43rd overall in the 2011 NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls and acquired by the Wolves in a draft-day trade. He averaged 9.7 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists over his three-year collegiate career. Lee earned both First Team All-Pac-10 and Pac-10 All-Defensive Team honors in 2011 after averaging a career-best 13.1 points per game.

Dallas Mavericks waive guard Andy Rautins

The Dallas Mavericks announced today they have waived guard Andy Rautins.

Rautins was acquired on Dec. 10, 2011 from New York along with a protected 2012 second round draft pick from Washington. In exchange, New York received center Tyson Chandler, the draft rights to Ahmad Nivins and Giorgos Printezis from Dallas while Washington recieved forward Ronny Turiaf, a 2013 second round pick and cash considerations from New York and a 2012 second round pick from Dallas.

Knicks sign center Jerome Jordan

New York Knickerbockers Senior Vice President, Basketball Operations and Interim General Manager Glen Grunwald announced today that the team has signed center Jerome Jordan to a contract. Per team policy, terms of the deal will not disclosed. We’ll post deails this afternoon.

Jordan, 7-0, 240-pounds, had his draft rights acquired from Milwaukee in exchange for cash considerations on Jul. 8, 2010 after being selected by the Bucks in the second round (44th overall) of the 2010 NBA Draft. He spent parts of each of the last two seasons playing overseas for KK Hemofarm in Serbia after four seasons at the University of Tulsa. He averaged 11.3 points, on .567 shooting from the field, 7.4 rebounds and 2.50 blocks in 133 games (119 starts) for the Golden Hurricane. He was selected to the Conference USA All-Defensive Team each of his last three seasons and earned Second Team All-Conference USA honors as a senior after averaging 15.4 points, 9.1 rebounds and 2.34 blocks in 35 games (all starts). He is the only player in Conference USA history to record at least 800 rebounds and 300 blocks, and is the all-time Conference USA and Tulsa leader in blocked shots.

Nets sign forward Ime Udoka

The New Jersey Nets have signed free agent forward Ime Udoka, Nets General Manager Billy King announced today. According to the New York Post, it’s a non-guaranteed contract.

Udoka (6’6”/215), a seven-year veteran who has played for five teams, holds career averages of 5.2 points and 2.9 rebounds in 316 games. The undrafted Portland State product began his career with the Lakers in 2003-04, appearing in four contests. He then appeared in eight games with the Knicks during the 2005-06 campaign. In 2006-07 he played in 75 games with the Trail Blazers. After a full season in Portland, Udoka signed with the Spurs where he spent two seasons, 2007-08 and 2008-09. For the 2009-10 campaign he signed with Sacramento and appeared in 69 games. Last season, Udoka played in 20 games with the Spurs, totaling 14 points and 19 rebounds in 130 minutes.

Lakers unhappy that Clippers got Chris Paul

The Lakers were hit with a two-by-four of bad news Wednesday, Chris Paul heading to the Clippers and Dwight Howard heading nowhere.

The Lakers were privately fuming Wednesday, according to a person with knowledge of their front office, when Paul, the New Orleans point guard, ended up in Los Angeles six days after the NBA vetoed the Lakers’ trade for him.

Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak declined to comment through a spokesman but earlier this week said the NBA’s blockade was “completely unexpected.”

“We did the best we can to express our displeasure,” Kupchak said Monday.

— Reported by Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times

Chicago Bulls sign guard Richard Hamilton

The Chicago Bulls announced this evening the team has signed free agent guard Richard Hamilton. According to the Chicago Tribune, “As reported since Sunday, the deal is guaranteed for two years and $10 million. According to sources, the Bulls hold a team option of $5.15 million for a third season. If the option is not exercised, Hamilton receives an unknown buyout.”

“We are excited to welcome a player, and person, with the credentials of Richard Hamilton to our organization,” said Chicago Bulls General Manager Gar Forman. “Rip has been a winner at every level. His resume speaks for itself, and we are confident that he will be an excellent fit with our team, both on and off the floor.”

Hamilton (6-7, 193) is a 12-year veteran of the NBA who comes to Chicago after spending the previous nine seasons with the Detroit Pistons. For his career, he has appeared in 843 regular season contests (710 starts), and has posted averages of 17.7 ppg, 3.5 apg and 3.2 rpg in 33.0 mpg. He also owns career shooting averages of .450 from the field, .347 from behind the arc and .852 from the line. Last season with the Pistons, he played in 55 games (39 starts) and averaged 14.1 ppg, 3.1 apg and 2.3 rpg in 27.2 mpg. He also shot .429 from the field, .382 from downtown and .849 from the free throw line.

A three-time All-Star selection (2006-08) while in Detroit, Hamilton helped lead the Pistons to the Eastern Conference Finals six straight times (2003-08), including two trips to the NBA Finals (2004, 2005), which culminated with Detroit winning its third NBA Championship in 2004. During his nine years with the Pistons (2002-11), he led the team in scoring eight times.

Hamilton’s teams have advanced to the playoffs seven times, where he has appeared in 120 playoff games (all starts). He owns career playoff averages of 20.6 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 3.7 apg, 1.00 spg, 40.0 mpg, .441 shooting from the floor, .337 three-point shooting and .862 shooting from the stripe.

The 33-year old native of Coatesville, Pa., was originally selected by the Washington Wizards in the first round (seventh overall) of the 1999 NBA Draft. Prior to his time in the NBA, he was named the Most Outstanding Player in the 1999 NCAA Final Four, when he led UConn to the 1999 NCAA Championship.

Read NBA fan opinion or share your views in this basketball forum topic.

Hornets trade Chris Paul to Clippers for Eric Gordon, Chris Kaman and more

The Los Angeles Clippers today acquired four-time NBA All-Star Chris Paul from the New Orleans Hornets in exchange for Eric Gordon, Chris Kaman, Al-Farouq Aminu and the 2012 first round draft selection the Clippers acquired from the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2005. The Clippers will also receive two future second round draft picks to complete the trade.

The 2006 NBA Rookie of the Year brings career averages of 18.7 points, 9.9 assists, 4.6 rebounds, 2.4 steals in 37.1 minutes over his six-year NBA career. A career 47.1 percent shooter from the field, Paul, 26, is also a 35.9 percent 3-point shooter and has made 85.3 percent of his free throws.

The North Carolina native appeared in 80 games for New Orleans during the 2010-11 season, averaging 15.9 points, 9.8 assists, 4.1 rebounds and a league-high 2.4 steals per game. It was the fourth time in his NBA career that Paul has led the league in steals.

A member of the All-NBA Third Team in 2011, Paul was selected to the All-NBA Second Team in 2009 and the First Team in 2008 and appeared in the NBA All-Star Game in 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011. The 6-foot, 175 pound point guard enjoyed his best NBA season during the 2008-09 season when he averaged 22.8 points, 11.0 assists, 5.5 rebounds and 2.8 steals. Paul led the NBA in assists two times from 2007-09 and was selected as a member of the NBA’s All-Defensive First Team in 2009 and All-Defensive Second Team in 2008 and 2011.

In his career, Paul has appeared in 23 total playoff games, averaging 21.9 points, 11.1 assists and 5.3 rebounds in the post-season.

A stand-out at Wake Forest University that saw him earn NCAA First Team All-American honors as a sophomore, Paul was drafted by the Hornets with the fourth overall pick of the 2005 NBA Draft.

“We wanted to make sure that we got the best possible deal for a player of Chris’ caliber, and we feel great about the outcome,” Hornets Chairman and Governor Jac Sperling said. “We feel our future looks very bright and we look forward to continue to create an organization that New Orleans will be proud of. We want to thank Chris Paul, an extraordinary person who contributed so greatly to our basketball team and our community. We wish him the best of luck.”

“With this trade, we now have three additional players who were among the top eight draft picks in their respective drafts as well as our own first round pick and Minnesota’s first round pick,” said Hornets General Manager Dell Demps. “Aminu is a young talent with a bright future, Gordon is a big time scorer and one of the best two guards in the league and Kaman is a proven center and former All-Star. Combined with our other players, we will field a competitive team and our future looks great.”

Gordon (6-3, 220), was drafted with the 7th overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft by the Clippers, averaged career-highs of 22.3 points, 4.4 assists, 2.9 rebounds and 1.3 steals in 56 games last season (all starts). He scored 30+ points eight times last season, put together a streak of 20 or more points in 12 consecutive games and had 36 20+ point games overall. The Indianapolis native holds career averages of 18.1 points, 3.3 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game over 196 games (181 starts). Gordon was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team in 2009 and was named the Western Conference Rookie of the Month in January of his rookie season. He went to Indiana University for one season before declaring for the draft, where he averaged 20.9 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 32 games. Gordon played for Team USA in the 2010 FIBA World Championships in Istanbul, Turkey helping team to a perfect 9-0 record en route to winning the gold medal averaging 8.6 points.

Kaman (7-0, 265), who was the 6TH overall of the 2003 NBA Draft by the Clippers, averaged 12.4 points and 7.0 rebounds in 32 games (15 starts) last season. He holds career averages of 11.8 points and 8.3 rebounds in 493 games (425 starts). Since the 2003-04 season, Kaman is one of 31 players with 4,000+ rebounds and is just one of six players who grabbed all of those rebounds with just one team – joining Dwight Howard (Orlando), Tim Duncan (San Antonio), Dirk Nowitzki (Dallas), Udonis Haslem (Miami) and Josh Smith (Atlanta). Kaman had his best season of his NBA career en route to being named an NBA All-Star for first time during the 2009-10 season, averaging a team-high 18.5 points, 9.3 rebounds, 1.6 assists in 34.3 minutes. The Central Michigan University product participated in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing as a member of the German National Team due to his great- grandparents German heritage, averaging 10.4 points and 6.0 rebounds in 19.8 minutes.

Aminu (6-9, 215), who was drafted 8th overall by the Los Angeles Clippers in the 2010 NBA Draft, averaged 5.6 points and 3.3 rebounds in 17.9 minutes per game over 81 games (14 starts) last season for the Clippers. The 22-year old averaged 8.1 points and 3.6 rebounds in 22.1 minutes over his 14 starts last season with the team. The former Wake Forest standout averaged 15.8 points, 10.7 rebounds and accumulated 44 blocks in 31 games while shooting 44.7 percent from the field during his sophomore season for the Demon Deacons before declaring early for the NBA Draft. Aminu descends from a line of Nigerian kings.

Read NBA fan reaction to the trade in this basketball forum topic.

Cleveland Cavaliers waive Baron Davis, via NBA amnesty clause

The Cleveland Cavaliers have waived guard Baron Davis and designated him as the team’s amnesty player, Cavaliers General Manager Chris Grant announced today from Cleveland Clinic Courts.

“We would like to thank Baron for his contributions to the team during his time in Cleveland,” said General Manager Chris Grant. “He has been an absolute professional since the day he joined the Cavs and we now wish him the best in the future.”

Davis, 32, was acquired from the Los Angeles Clippers on Feb. 24th along with a first round pick in exchange for guard Mo Williams and forward Jamario Moon.