NBA News Blog – Page 1333 – NBA Blog

Andre Miller and Brian Cook suspended

Brian Cook of the Los Angeles Clippers has been suspended two games without pay for his Flagrant Foul, Penalty Two against Joel Przybilla of the Portland Trail Blazers, and Andre Miller of the Trail Blazers has been suspended one game without pay for making excessive and unnecessary contact with Blake Griffin of the Clippers, it was announced today by Stu Jackson, NBA Executive Vice President Basketball Operations. Upon postgame video review by the league office, Miller was assessed a Flagrant Foul, Penalty Two for his actions.

The incident involving Cook occurred with 4.5 seconds remaining in the third quarter of Portland’s 100-91 win over the Clippers on Sunday, December 5 at Rose Garden. The incident involving Miller occurred with 7:06 remaining in the fourth quarter of the same game.

Cook will begin serving his suspension tonight when the Clippers host the Sacramento Kings at Staples Center. Miller will serve his suspension tomorrow when the Trail Blazers host the Phoenix Suns at Rose Garden.

Thunder recall Cole Aldrich from D-League

Oklahoma City Thunder Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti announced today that the team has recalled center Cole Aldrich from the Tulsa 66ers of the NBA Development League.

Aldrich appeared in five games (five starts) for the 66ers and averaged 7.8 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.6 blocked shots in 27.4 minutes.

Aldrich has joined the Thunder in Chicago for tonight’s 7:00 PM game against the Bulls at the United Center.

Magic recall Daniel Orton from D-League

The New Mexico Thunderbirds announced today that the Orlando Magic have recalled power forward, Daniel Orton (6-10, 255) from the T-Birds.

Orton played in two games with the Thunderbirds over the weekend and averaged 10.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists. He did not play in the second half of his second game with the Thunderbirds on Saturday night.

Orton was the Magic’s first round selection (29th overall) in the 2010 draft out of the University of Kentucky. He played one season for Kentucky averaging 3.4 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 13.2 minutes per game for a team that went to the Elite Eight in the 2010 NCAA Tournament.

Orton played in five summer league games for the Orlando Magic and averaged 3.2 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game. He has yet to play a regular season game for the Magic.

Pistons sale not likely to be done until February

Gregg Krupa of the Detroit News reports:

March 28 2010: Detroit Pistons' Richard Hamilton (32) during the NBA basketball game between the Chicago Bulls and Detroit Piston at the Palace in Auburn Hills, Michigan.

The Pistons are unlikely to be sold until at least February, the firm handling the sale for Karen Davidson has informed potential buyers.

Citibank, which was hired by the widow of the late owner of the Pistons, Bill Davidson, to represent the franchise for the sale, informed potential buyers last week that the deal is unlikely to be completed until the NBA All-Star Game. The advisory to the potential buyers was confirmed by sources close to the deal.

Among the potential buyers are Mike, Marian and Christopher Ilitch and their company, Ilitch Holdings Co.; the Beverly Hills financier Tom Gores; and a group headed by George Postolos, a former executive of the NBA and the Houston Rockets.

A report out of the Middle East that investors from Dubai and Qatar were among the potential buyers was denied by the NBA.

What’s your opinion? Share it on the Detroit Pistons forum.

Anthony Tolliver out 6-8 weeks with knee injury

Ray Richardson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports (via blog):

Tough break for Timberwolves backup forward Anthony Tolliver. He will miss the next 6-8 weeks to recover from a sprained medial collateral in his right knee. Tolliver, signed by the Wolves as a free agent in August, was hurt in Friday night’s game at San Antonio. An MRI exam Sunday revealed the extent of Tolliver’s injury.

The good thing for the 25 year-old Tolliver is that he won’t require surgery. This is the first significant injury in Tolliver’s scattered NBA career. It happens the first time he was able to earn a guaranteed contract after four years of bouncing around the league trying to find a home. The Wolves signed Tolliver to a two-year deal worth $4.6 million.

The Wolves will miss Tolliver’s energy. He has become the team’s best front-line defender off the bench. He’s averaging 6.5 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.3 assists and shooting a respectable 43.8 percent from three-point range (14 of 32).

What’s your opinion? Share it in the Minnesota Timberwolves forum.

AP Source: NBA has a deal to buy Hornets

January 20, 2010: Chris Paul and David West of the New Orleans Hornets in action against the Memphis Grizzlies during an NBA game in the New Orleans Arena in New Orleans, LA. Tyler Kaufman/CSM.

The AP reports:

New Orleans Hornets owner George Shinn has agreed to sell the club to the NBA and the transaction could be completed within a couple days, according to a person familiar with the decision.

The league has lined up New Orleans-born sports attorney Jac Sperling, vice chairman of the NHL’s Minnesota Wild, to be the NBA’s administrator of the team and oversee its sale to a more permanent owner, the person told The Associated Press on Sunday on condition of anonymity because the move hasn’t been publicly announced.

Current Hornets President Hugh Weber will continue overseeing day-to-day operations of what will be the first NBA team to be owned by the league, the person said…

Attendance for Hornets games has been lower than the club hoped, despite a 13-7 record. Through 10 home games, average attendance has been 13,865.

If it doesn’t pick up, the Hornets could have the right to break their lease at the New Orleans Arena after this season. The lease runs through 2014, but the team is allowed to break it if average attendance falls below 14,735 during a two-year period.

Byron Scott considering Cavs lineup changes

May 13, 2010 - Boston, MASSACHUSETTS, UNITED STATES - epa02156290 Cleveland Cavaliers guard Mo Williams reacts after being called for a foul in the second quarter of their Eastern Conference Semifinal round playoff game at the TD Bank Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, 13 May 2010. The Celtics lead the best-of-seven series 3-2 and the winner will go on to face the Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports:

Byron Scott admitted he was considering lineup changes from top to bottom in the wake of the Cavaliers’ struggles.

“I’m at a point of a lot of things right now,” he said. “Yeah, I’ve considered [changes], but I think I’m going to wait a few more games to see what happens.

“I’ve been thinking about a lot of things, and the one thing about me is that when I do think about these things I don’t take them lightly. I don’t rush at them because of a loss like [at Minnesota] or the last three games. I try to think about it and consider everything before I make a move like that because I want to feel extremely comfortable when I do it.

“I don’t want to do it because of a reaction. So I’m going to take some days before I do anything.”

What’s your take? Share it on the Cleveland Cavaliers forum.

Grizzlies waive Acie Law

The Memphis Grizzlies waived guard Acie Law, Grizzlies General Manager and Vice President of Basketball Operations Chris Wallace announced today.

The 6-3, 202-pound guard averaged 1.1 points, 1.0 rebounds and 1.3 assists on .158 shooting in 8.5 minutes in 11 games this season for the Grizzlies after signing with the team as a free agent on Aug. 5, 2010.

The four-year pro holds career averages of 3.5 points, 1.0 rebounds and 1.6 assists on .394 shooting in 11.8 minutes in 148 games (11 starts) with the Grizzlies, Atlanta Hawks, Golden State Warriors, Charlotte Bobcats and Chicago Bulls. The 25-year-old was drafted 11th overall by Atlanta in the first round of the 2007 NBA Draft after a four-year career at Texas A&M University.

Timberwolves recall Jonny Flynn from D-League

The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced the club has recalled second-year guard Jonny Flynn from the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA Development League. Flynn appeared in one game for the Skyforce, tallying eight points, nine assists and two steals is 25 minutes of action.

Flynn, the sixth overall pick by Minnesota in last year’s draft, started each of the 81 games he appeared in as a rookie last season. He averaged 13.5 points, 2.4 rebounds and 4.4 assists as a rookie before missing the season finale with the hip injury that ultimately required offseason surgery. He finished his first NBA season ranked fifth among the league’s rookies in scoring (13.5 ppg), fourth in free-throw accuracy (82.6%), fifth in assists (4.4 apg) and seventh in steals (1.01 spg).

Per NBA rules, a first- or second-year player can be assigned to the team’s D-League affiliate a maximum of three times in a season.

Phil Jasner, Sixers beat writer, dies at 68

The NBA basketball world has lost a terrific writer and a really nice guy.

Rich Hofmann of the Philadelphia Daily News reports:

Philadelphia basketball is less a sport than it is a community: past and present, college and pro, the people and their stories woven together. Phil Jasner, the premier chronicler of that community, as well as one of its most cherished members, died Friday at age 68.

A Daily News staff reporter since 1972 and the paper’s 76ers beat writer since 1981, Jasner distinguished himself by his generosity and his even-handedness and his persistence most of all. He was an old-fashioned reporter who grew to be the most important basketball voice in a basketball city, known for both his fairness and his decency.

“I could tell at the age of 5,” said his son, Andy. “He took me to a game with him and people started coming up to him to talk – security guards, everyone. It would go on for years like that, at the old Spectrum, whether it was an usher or Joe Fan in the third row. He was approachable that way. People liked him, and he treated everyone the same. He had time for everybody.”

His personal life was both painful and joyous. He supported his wife Susie, who died in 2006, through a decades-long battle with lupus. But late in his life, before his cancer diagnosis, he met Marcia Levinson, whom he grew to love and described as his life partner. Throughout, though, there was Andy and later, Andy’s family: wife Taryn and granddaughters Jordana and Shira.

I ran into Phil dozens of times over the years. Almost all our chats were brief, because they usually took place after a Sixers game vs the Knicks or Nets, when I’m usually doing player interviews and he’s doing the same, plus filing on deadline. But he was friendly and as interesting as someone can be in 30-60 seconds, each time we said hello. He was just a great friggin’ dude and will be missed.

— Jeff

The rest of that article contains much more about Phil’s life and work.