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Sportando reports:
Hapoel Holon announced a triple signing for the coming season: Bryant Dunston, Tasmin Mitchell and Patrick Sullivan. Dunston started last season in Greece with Aris Thessaloniki and then moved to Israel where he averaged 7.7 ppg and 5 rpg with Bnei Hasharon. Patrick Sullivan had his first season as pro in NBDL with Rio Grande Valley Vipers scoring 9.6 ppg, grabbing 5.3 rpg and dishing 1.1 apg in 58 games.
The Canadian Press reports:
The Canadian men’s national basketball team got an infusion of talent Wednesday.
Cory Joseph, a first-round pick at this year’s NBA draft, has announced he will join the squad ahead of 2011 FIBA Americas men’s championship in Argentina.
“It’s an honour to play for your country and I’m excited to get on the floor and represent Canada as best as I can,” said Joseph, who was taken 29th overall by the San Antonio Spurs in June. “I know we have a young, great group, with Joel (Anthony), (Carl) English and (Andy) Rautins coming in.
“Hopefully we come back with the gold, but if not, qualify for the Olympics.”
The New Jersey Nets have named Milton Lee as the team’s general manager of minor league operations, Nets General Manager Billy King announced today.
Lee, who had been the team’s director of basketball operations, will now oversee the basketball operations of the Nets’ D League affiliate, the Springfield Armor. Lee’s duties will include selection of the team’s head coach and coaching staff as well as assembling the Armor roster for the upcoming 2011-12 season.
“Milt is a natural fit for this position,” said King. “He has a strong history with young players and his experience with the Nets basketball operations department will allow for a seamless integration of philosophies between the two teams.”
Prior to joining the Nets, Lee started his own basketball services company where he worked in various capacities with the NBA, teams and players. Lee personally worked as a skills coach with several NBA players currently in the league. Previously, Lee served as an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Clippers summer league team in 2008 and 2009, and has been a consultant to the NBA at the past six Pre-Draft Combines.
Earlier in his career, Lee worked as a proprietary trader on Wall Street for ING Barings and SAC Capital. Lee interned for the NBA at three consecutive Olympic Games, including 1992, for the original “Dream Team.”
A native of Bergen County, New Jersey, Lee is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, where he was a member of the junior varsity basketball team.
The Nets, as reported by InsideHoops.com, entered into a hybrid agreement with the Armor on May 1. The hybrid affiliation is a structure similar to other minor leagues, allowing for the Nets to secure control over and cover the expenses related to the basketball operations of the Armor, while partnering with existing local ownership, which maintains responsibility for the team’s off-the-court business operations.
Tim Reymonds of the AP reports:
Though he remains cautiously hopeful that a deal between owners and players can be struck to end the lockout and ultimately save the 2011-12 NBA season, Wade told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he will be playing somewhere this winter — whether that’s with the Miami Heat, as he’d obviously prefer, or an international club.
“I’m going to play basketball this year,” Wade said from New York, where he’s taking some business meetings. “I don’t know where, but I love the game so much that I will play it. And we will figure that out.”
Wade denied receiving any international offers yet, including a widely circulated report of a $2 million-per-month proposal from a Chinese team. He has said throughout the summer that he would review any offers that come his way, a stance he reiterated Tuesday, while noting that he was overwhelmed at times by the support he received from Chinese fans during a nine-day trip to their nation that ended last week.
On Monday, Wade’s Heat teammate LeBron James told The AP he’s “very optimistic” the season will take place, possibly even on time. Wade and James agree on plenty, but on that point, they differ a bit. Wade has started his offseason workout regimen, just in case, though hardly sounds convinced that the league will get its planned slate of 82 games in starting this fall.
InsideHoops.com editor says: As with Deron Williams, if D-Wade or any other really good player was to sign overseas, there’s a 99.9 percent chance it would be with an opt-out clause, allowing him to return to the NBA as soon as the lockout ends.
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Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo reports:
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Orlando Magic free agent Earl Clark has reached an agreement on a one-year contract with Zhejiang of the Chinese Basketball Association, league sources told Yahoo! Sports.
The deal will pay Clark in the “high six figures,” one source said.
Clark, a 6-foot-10 forward, has played 93 games for the Magic and Phoenix Suns in parts of two NBA seasons. He will stay the full season in China without an out clause to return to the NBA should the league-imposed lockout end.
Marc Stein of ESPN reports:
Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant is in the early stages of contract negotiations with the same Turkish team that has signed Deron Williams and has been pursuing Kobe Bryant, according to Durant’s agent.
Agent Aaron Goodwin told ESPN.com on Tuesday night that he has met with officials from Turkish club Besiktas and has likewise begun exploring opportunities for Durant in Spain and Russia. Goodwin added that playing in China is not something Durant is considering at this time.
“The Turkish option is very intriguing,” Goodwin said. “We’re looking at other countries as well. Kevin hasn’t agreed to play anywhere yet, but we’re looking for the best fit.”
InsideHoops.com editor says: I’ll keep repeating that if any good or great NBA player signs overseas, there is a 99.9 percent chance that they’ll have an out-clause that allows them to return to the NBA when the lockout ends. But as for this, man, imagine if one overseas team did have both Deron Williams and Kevin Durant! With smart teammates who move and cut like good international team players are supposed to. That would be worth watching no matter what flavor of basketball you’re into.
Read fan opinion and discuss your views in this basketball forum topic.
Greg Newman of ESPN New York reports:
Patrick Ewing joined “The Mike Lupica Show” on Tuesday and talked about his old teammates, his coaching career and a possible return to the Big Apple.
“I can’t speak bad about my teammates. I think my teammates were great guys, they were great teammates, I had fun playing with them. When I look at (Amare) Stoudemire and Carmelo (Anthony), I’ve said it before, I never played with that kind of caliber,” Ewing said.
“It is what it is. Like I said before, I love my teammates, we did the best that we could for the city of New York, but it just wasn’t in the cards for us,” Ewing told Lupica…
Could we see Patrick back in the Garden … on the Knicks’ bench? “I hope that one day I get to come back home because I do live in this area, I still consider this my area, I still consider myself a Knick. Hopefully one day I’ll be brought back here,” Ewing said.
The Boston Globe reports:
Rivers, who previously rented at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, has purchased a penthouse at the Four Seasons Hotel. The well-compensated coach just closed on his new pad, paying $2.2 million for the 2-bed, 2.5-bath spread. Located on the 16th floor of the Boylston Street hotel, the penthouse has 1,801 square feet of living space, including enormous picture windows that look out over the Public Garden and Beacon Hill. It also offers 24-hour valet and concierge service. “He did his homework,’’ said realtor Beth Dickerson, who handled the sale. “He wanted to clearly understand the market, and at the end of the day, he liked the service and privacy of this property.’’
The AP reports:
Los Angeles County prosecutors have dropped the case against seven gang members accused of kidnapping a music producer who claimed to have a sex tape of Shaquille O’Neal.
At the prosecution’s request, a judge Tuesday dismissed kidnapping, assault and robbery charges.
District attorney’s spokeswoman Jane Robison says prosecutors believed Robert Ross was attacked but his credibility as a witness was undermined by some of his own testimony and behaviour outside court. No details were provided.
Jessica Camerato of CSNNE reports:
It began like a routine play. Marquis Daniels caught the ball near the baseline and attempted to drive to the basket against Gilbert Arenas. The two players collided and . . . in an instant, everything changed.
His right arm crashed into the parquet first, followed by his face. Daniels lay flat on the court, unable to feel his body but still conscious. He thought about his two young children – “Man, I can’t raise my kids like this. This can’t be it.” – as the crowd of 18,624 at the TD Garden came to a deafening hush, waiting – and hoping – to see any sign of movement.
Daniels heard a voice. In that moment, the most intense player on the court was suddenly the calming assurance he needed.
“I just remember I kept hearing Kevin [Garnett] telling me, ‘You’re gonna be alright. You’re gonna be alright,’” Daniels told CSNNE.com in a telephone interview. “I was like, ‘I can‘t move.’ He said, ’What do you mean?’ He kept telling me I was gonna be alright. I think that helped me out a lot, just hearing his voice telling me I was going to be alright. I stayed calm, I didn’t panic.
“It was a trying time for me. I didn’t take anything for granted. I was going to take everything seriously from now on.”