NBA News Blog – Page 161 – NBA Blog

Washington Wizards hire James Posey as an assistant coach

The Washington Wizards have hired James Posey as an assistant coach.

“We are excited to add James to our staff, as he brings championship experience both as a player and coach,” said Wizards head coach Wes Unseld Jr. “As one of the toughest defenders in the league and a clutch shooter during his NBA tenure, we will be able to lean on his playing and coaching experiences to help the development of our players.”

Posey comes to Washington after spending the 2021-22 season as an assistant coach for the University of Virginia Women’s Basketball team under Hall of Famer Tina Thompson. Prior to his time at Virginia, Posey spent five seasons as an assistant coach with the Cleveland Cavaliers where he was apart of the staff that captured the 2016 NBA title while becoming the first team in NBA history to erase a 3-1 deficit in the Finals. During his tenure with the Cavaliers, the team made four consecutive Finals appearances from 2015-18.

A two-time NBA Champion as a player, Posey appeared in 864 games (479 starts) and averaged 8.6 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game with Nuggets, the New Orleans Hornets, Heat, Grizzlies, Celtics, Rockets and Pacers. Posey was a key contributor for the 2006 Heat and 2008 Celtics championship teams. He averaged a career-high 13.7 points per game during the 03-04 season with the Grizzlies.

A native of Cleveland, OH, Posey played collegiately at Xavier University where he was named 1998 Atlantic-10 Championship’s Most Outstanding Player and 1999 A-10 Defensive Player of the Year.

Atlanta Hawks waive Sharife Cooper

The Atlanta Hawks have requested waivers on guard Sharife Cooper.

He appeared in 13 games for the Hawks last season after signing a two-way contract on August 5, 2021. In 34 games (31 starts) with the College Park Skyhawks of the NBA G League, he averaged 17.4 points, 6.4 assists, 3.6 rebounds and 1.0 steals in 29.9 minutes (.436 FG%, .353 3FG%, .852 FT%).

Per the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, “the Powder Springs native had a tough time during this month’s Summer League, opening the tournament 1-of-14 from the floor and 0-of-5 from long range. By the Hawks’ fourth game, though, Cooper found his rhythm. He had 15 points, two rebounds and four assists in the Hawks’ 87-86 win over the Spurs.”

Cooper was selected by the Hawks in the second round (48th overall) of the 2021 NBA Draft.

Timberwolves re-sign Nathan Knight

The Minnesota Timberwolves have re-signed forward Nathan Knight.

Knight, 24, wrapped up his second NBA season, where he saw action in 37 games for the Timberwolves (two starts) and averaged 3.7 points on 51.1% shooting, 2.3 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game during the 2021-22 season. In his first career start on Dec. 27 vs Boston, he notched a career-high 20 points and a career-high 11 rebounds, accounting for his second career double-double. On Mar. 4 after scoring a game-high 33 points along with 12 rebounds earlier in the day with the Iowa Wolves, Knight was transferred to the Timberwolves and grabbed three rebounds in 5:04 minutes of action against the Oklahoma City Thunder later in the evening. Per Elias Sports, it marked the first time since the inception of a Timberwolves NBA G League team, that a player played in a G League game and an NBA game in the same day.

He is the third NBA player from William & Mary, where in four years, he averaged 17.1 points on 56.0% shooting and 7.7 rebounds. Knight became just the second player in league history to be named both the CAA Player and Defensive Player of the Year in the same season in 2020.

The 6-10 forward holds career averages of 3.7 points on 43.6% shooting and 2.2 rebounds in 7.8 minutes per game with the Atlanta Hawks and the Wolves.

Per the Minneapolis Star Tribune, “the Wolves’ 15-man roster includes a likely starting lineup of Karl-Anthony Towns, Rudy Gobert, Anthony Edwards, D’Angelo Russell and Jaden McDaniels. The bench includes returning players from last season like Jaylen Nowell, Naz Reid, Jordan McLaughlin, Taurean Prince and Knight. Newcomers on the bench include Kyle Anderson, Bryn Forbes, Austin Rivers, Lawson and two of the Wolves’ draft picks, first-rounder Wendell Moore Jr. and second-rounder Josh Minott, who signed an NBA deal last week after a strong showing at Summer League in Las Vegas.”

Orlando Magic sign Kevon Harris to a two-way contract

The Orlando Magic have signed free agent guard Kevon Harris to a two-way contract, President of Basketball Operations Jeff Weltman announced today.

Per the Orlando Sentinel, “Harris will occupy the Magic’s second two-way roster spot, along with [Admiral] Schofield, and will also be eligible to play for the Lakeland Magic, Orlando’s G League affiliate.”

Harris (6’6”, 216, 6/24/97) played in 24 games (23 starts) last season with Raptors 905 of the NBA G League, averaging 15.1 ppg., 5.7 rpg., 3.6 apg. and 1.17 stlpg. in 30.2 minpg. Most recently, he played and started in all five games with Minnesota during the NBA 2K23 Summer League 2022, averaging 15.8 ppg., 2.8 rpg., 2.0 apg. and 1.00 stlpg. in 27.1 minpg.

Not drafted by an NBA franchise, Harris has played in 31 career NBA G League regular season games (23 starts), all with Raptors 905, averaging 12.4 ppg., 4.7 rpg. and 2.9 apg. in 25.5 minpg.

Harris played in 127 career games (104 starts) during four seasons at Stephen F. Austin (2016-20), averaging 14.4 ppg., 5.3 rpg., 1.6 apg. and 1.05 stlpg. in 28.0 minpg., while shooting .397 (188-474) from three-point range. As a senior (2019-20), he played and started in 31 games, averaging 17.5 ppg., 5.7 rpg., 2.1 apg. and 1.52 stlpg. in 29.3 minpg., while shooting .413 (59-143) from three-point range. Harris was named First Team All-Southland Conference and the 2019-20 Southland Conference Player of the Year. He also earned Second Team All-Southland Conference twice (2017-18, 2018-19).

Harris will wear #7 with the Orlando Magic.

Per NBA rules, teams are permitted to have a maximum of two players under two-way contracts in addition to the players under standard NBA contracts. A two-way player is also eligible to provide services to Orlando’s G League affiliate, the Lakeland Magic.

Timberwolves sign rookie Josh Minott

The Minnesota Timberwolves have signed rookie forward Josh Minott.

Minott, 6-8, was acquired by the Wolves during the 2022 NBA Draft, and recently appeared in all five games (four starts) for Minnesota during the 2022 NBA Summer League where he averaged 12.2 points and a team-high 8.6 rebounds. He appeared in all 33 games (five starts) for the University of Memphis as a freshman last season where he averaged 6.6 points on 52.2% shooting, 3.8 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game last season. The 20-year-old recorded two double-doubles last season on his way to earning 2021-22 AAC All-Freshman Team honors and was named AAC Freshman of the Week twice throughout the season.

Lakers sign Javante McCoy and Fabian White Jr.

The Los Angeles Lakers have signed Javante McCoy and Fabian White Jr.

McCoy appeared in five games for the Lakers at 2022 Summer League in Las Vegas, averaging 10.2 points, 2.2 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 20.4 minutes per game. The 2021-22 All-Patriot First Team selection appeared in 147 career games (138 starts) across five seasons at Boston University, where he averaged 13.1 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.6 assists while shooting 37.7 percent from three-point range.

White Jr. played three games for Los Angeles at Summer League, averaging 2.3 points and 2.7 rebounds in 10.1 minutes. In five seasons at Houston, White Jr. appeared in 149 games (90 starts), averaging 8.3 points (.364 3P%) and 4.7 rebounds and was named to the 2021-22 All-ACC First Team.

Mavericks sign Tyler Dorsey to a two-way contract

The Dallas Mavericks have signed guard Tyler Dorsey to a two-way contract.

Per the Dallas Morning News, “Dorsey joins Christian Wood, JaVale McGee and second-round draft pick Jaden Hardy as Mavericks’ 2022 offseason roster additions.”

Dorsey (6-5, 183) joins Dallas after spending last season with the Greek club Olympiacos Piraeus. In 32 Greek League games for Olympiacos in 2021-22, he averaged 10.7 points (.477 FG%, .404 3FG%, .833 FT%), 2.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game while helping the club to the Greek League title and garnering Greek Cup MVP honors. In EuroLeague action, Dorsey averaged 12.8 points (.517 FG%, .374 3FG%, .781 FT%), 2.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 38 games for an Olympiacos team that reached the EuroLeague Final Four.

The Pasadena, California, native was selected by Atlanta in the second round (41st overall pick) of the 2017 NBA Draft. After spending his rookie season with the Hawks, Dorsey was traded to Memphis in exchange for Shelvin Mack on Feb. 7, 2019. In 104 career NBA games (16 starts) with the Hawks and Grizzlies, he has averaged 6.7 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 16.1 minutes.

Following his stints with Atlanta and Memphis, Dorsey joined Israel’s Maccabi Tel Aviv in 2019-20 and won two Israeli League championships with the club (2020, 2021).

Dorsey spent two seasons at the University of Oregon, where he was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team in 2016 and helped the school reach the NCAA Final Four in 2017. He totaled 1,055 points in his two seasons for the Ducks, joining Dillon Brooks as the only players in school history to reach 1,000 career points as a sophomore.

The former Gatorade California Player of the Year holds dual citizenship and has represented the Greek national team in international competition.

Orlando Magic re-sign Admiral Schofield to a two-way contract

The Orlando Magic have re-signed free agent forward Admiral Schofield to a two-way contract, President of Basketball Operations Jeff Weltman announced yesterday.

Schofield (6’5”, 240, 3/30/97) played in 38 games (one start) last season with Orlando, averaging 3.8 ppg. and 2.3 rpg. in 12.3 minpg. He also played and started in six games with Lakeland of the NBA G League, averaging 19.2 ppg., 7.5 rpg. and 3.0 apg. in 29.4 minpg. Schofield originally signed a 10-day contract with Orlando via hardship exception by the NBA on December 17, then to a second 10-day contract on December 27, before signing a two-way contract on January 6.

Originally selected in the second round (42nd overall) of the 2019 NBA Draft by Philadelphia, Schofield has played in 71 career NBA regular season games (three starts) with Washington and Orlando, averaging 2.8 ppg. and 1.9 rpg. in 11.8 minpg. He has also appeared in 53 career NBA G League regular season games (50 starts) with Capital City, Greensboro and Lakeland, averaging 14.8 ppg., 5.8 rpg. and 2.3 apg. in 29.5 minpg.

Schofield played in 132 career games (94 starts) during four seasons at the University of Tennessee (2015-19), averaging 11.9 ppg., 5.3 rpg. and 1.3 apg. in 24.9 minpg., while shooting .387 (184-476) from three-point range. As a senior (2018-19), he played and started in 37 games, averaging 16.5 ppg., 6.1 rpg. and 2.0 apg. in 31.7 minpg., while shooting .418 (74-177) from three-point range. He was named to the All-SEC First Team by the conference coaches, earned All-SEC Tournament Team honors and was also an honorable mention All-American by Associated Press. As a junior (2017-18), Schofield was named to the All-SEC Second Team by the conference coaches and earned All-SEC Tournament Team honors.

Schofield wears #25 for the Orlando Magic.

Indiana Pacers sign rookie Andrew Nembhard

The Indiana Pacers have signed rookie guard Andrew Nembhard.

The Pacers selected Nembhard with the 31st overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft.

“I’m excited to get my career and rookie season started with the Pacers,” said Nembhard. “I’m thankful for the opportunity to be a part of such a first-class organization and I can’t wait to play in front of the league’s best fans at Gainbridge Fieldhouse this year.”

Per the Indianapolis Star, Nembhard “signed a four-year deal worth $8.6 million, league sources told IndyStar on Wednesday.”

NBA website and app to stream select Drew League games

Starting Saturday, July 23, select 2022 Drew League games will be streamed globally on the NBA App and NBA.com.

This marks the first time NBA platforms will feature a pro-am league, building upon the NBA’s goal to engage with fans throughout the offseason and widen its scope of basketball content.

The Drew League made its debut on NBA digital platforms on July 16 with an exciting matchup featuring LeBron James and DeMar DeRozan.

As part of the collaboration, premier Drew League summer games will stream on NBA platforms on select weekends from Saturday, July 23 through the championship game on Sunday, August 21, with priority for games featuring NBA players and top competition.

“This is an extremely exciting year for the Drew League, and we are thrilled to collaborate with the NBA to bring the league to more fans across the globe,” said Chaniel Smiley, Drew League Commissioner. “I’m very proud of the work we have done this year for The Drew and look forward to all the new fans experiencing first-hand the talent of the players in the Drew League as well as its cultural impact.”

Through the years, dozens of NBA players have participated in Drew League including Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, DeMar DeRozan, James Harden, Baron Davis, Kevin Durant, Paul Pierce and many more.