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The San Antonio Spurs today announced that a MRI had revealed that Brent Barry suffered a grade II strain of the medial head of his gastrocnemius muscle in his left calf. The injury occurred during the third quarter of the Spurs-Miami Heat game on 1/24. He is expected to miss three-to-four weeks.
Barry had previously torn the plantaris muscle in his left calf on 12/26 against Chicago. He missed nine games due to the injury.
Utah Jazz general manager Kevin O’Connor announced today that the team has re-assigned rookie guard Morris Almond to the Utah Flash of the NBA Development League (D-League). Almond joins fellow rookie Kyrylo Fesenko, who is already on assignment with the Flash.
Almond, a 6-6, 225-pound guard out of Rice was selected by the Jazz in the first round (25th overall selection) of the 2007 NBA Draft. He has appeared in six games for the Jazz, totaling three points, one assist and one steal in 25 minutes of action. He appeared in two games for the Jazz during his most recent stint with the team, averaging 1.5 points and 0.5 assists in 7.0 minutes per game.
Almond was previously assigned to the Jazz’s D-League affiliate from December 6 – January 8 and appeared in 10 games (all starts) for the Flash, averaging a league-leading 29.8 points, along with 3.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.1 steals in 37.6 minutes per game. He was named D-League Player of the Week (Dec. 17-23) after averaging 43.5 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 2.0 steals while shooting 32-of-68 (.471) from the field. During that week, Almond scored a D-League record-tying 51 points in a win over the Austin Toros on December 21.
Almond will join the Flash for its game vs. Sioux Falls tonight.
The start of the Cavaliers season was a mess due to injuries and unsigned players. Now, one of the two key guys who rejoined the team after the season had already started may be gone for a while. The AP reports:
Cavaliers guard Sasha Pavlovic could miss up to two months because of a sprained left foot, a blow to the defending Eastern Conference champions, who are playing their best ball this season. Pavlovic got hurt during the third quarter of Wednesday night’s win over Washington.
The Cavs have played great basketball over the last month. This hurts their flow.
The Charlotte Bobcats have assigned rookie forward Jermareo Davidson to their NBA Development League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce. Davidson is expected to see his first action on Friday, January 25, against the Utah Flash.
The 6-10, 230-pound forward has appeared in 16 games this season with averages of 2.7 points and 1.5 rebounds in 7.1 minutes of action. His draft rights were acquired by the Bobcats along with guard Jason Richardson from the Golden State Warriors in exchange for Brandan Wright, whom the Bobcats selected with eighth pick in the 2007 NBA Draft.
Davidson, the 36th overall selection in the June draft, played four seasons at the University of Alabama and averaged 10.2 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.7 blocks in 126 collegiate games. He was named All-Southeastern Conference Second Team in 2006-07 by the league’s coaches and Honorable Mention All-SEC by The Associated Press.
As a senior, he ranked second on the team in scoring, averaging 14.0 points, ranked first in total blocks with 70 and ranked second in rebounding (8.2). He also reached double-figure scoring 25 times and posted 11 double-doubles on the season.
Chicago Bulls team captain Luol Deng will be sidelined one to three weeks due to left Achilles tendinitis.
To date, Deng (6-9, 220) has missed a total of four games because of the injury, sitting out Jan. 5 – 11 and again on Jan. 19. He has also missed three games this season due to lower back pain (Nov. 18 – 24).
In his fourth season, Deng has appeared in 33 games, including 32 starts, and averaged 17.9 ppg, 6.6 rpg and 2.4 apg in 34.7 mpg. He has shot .478 from the floor, including .400 from three-point range, and .762 from the free throw line.
The Miami HEAT announced that center Shaquille O’Neal underwent an MRI today which revealed acute left hip and quadriceps inflammation. He will be sidelined two weeks before being re-evaluated and will continue with treatment during that span.
O’Neal, currently in his 15th NBA season, has appeared in 32 games (all starts) for the HEAT this season, and has averaged 14.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.66 blocks in 28.5 minutes per game while ranking sixth in the NBA in field goal percentage (.581).
Cavaliers guard Larry Hughes appeared in 189 games for the Wizards from 2002-05… Wizards guard Antonio Daniels and Cavs forward Ira Newble were teammates in San Antonio in 2000-01… Daniels attended high school at nearby Saint Francis DeSales in Columbus, OH… Wizards center Brendan Haywood was originally drafted by Cleveland with the 20th overall pick in the 2001 NBA Draft… Wizards assistant Phil Hubbard averaged 10.6 points per game as a player with the Cavaliers from 1981-89… Wizards Head Coach Eddie Jordan was drafted by Cleveland 33rd overall in the second round of the 1977 NBA Draft.
Results of a biopsy performed on a small testicular tumor found on Nuggets F Nenê indicate the tumor was malignant. Further test results show that the cancer was isolated and did not spread. Nenê underwent surgery to remove the tumor on Jan. 14.
The tumor was discovered in the very early stages and the recovery rate is extremely high. In addition, the odds of a recurrence are very small.
Nenê is doing well and is recovering in Denver.
There remains no timeline for his return to the court.
The Atlanta Hawks have suspended center/forward Zaza Pachulia for tomorrow night’s game at Denver for conduct detrimental to the team, according to Executive Vice President and General Manager Billy Knight.
Pachulia’s absence from the team will only pertain to Wednesday’s game against the Nuggets, and he will be available to play at Seattle on Friday, January 25.
Lakers forward Trevor Ariza suffered a fracture of the fourth metatarsal in his right foot yesterday at practice, it was announced by the team.
After an examination this morning by Dr. Ken Jung, a foot specialist with the Kerlan- Jobe Orthopaedic Group, it is estimated that Ariza will be out approximately eight weeks.
Ariza, acquired by the Lakers on November 20 in a trade with the Orlando Magic, is averaging 5.5 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 15.6 minutes.