Category: NBA News Blog

NBA news blog

Atlanta Hawks re-sign John Collins

The Atlanta Hawks yesterday announced the team has re-signed forward John Collins to a long-term contract.

“We have a great appreciation for John and all he provides for our team; he is an incredible team player who brings the type of positive energy and passion that is contagious and impacts winning. John is beloved by his teammates, our coaches and our fans and we are happy that he will continue to grow along with our young core,” said Hawks President of Basketball Operations/General Manager Travis Schlenk.

Per AJC.com, it’s a five-year, $125 million deal.”

“It’s a blessing to stay where I started my career and continue to give my all for the fans and for the city of Atlanta. Last season was just a start for us and I know even better things are ahead,” Collins said. “I want to thank the Hawks for their belief in me and I can’t wait to get started again.”

In 63 starts last season, Collins averaged 17.6 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.0 blocks in 29.3 minutes (.556 FG%, .399 3FG%, .833 FT%). He finished 18th in the NBA in FG%, tied for 23rd in rpg and 26th in bpg. He scored 10-19 points 35 times, 20-29 points 14 times and 30-39 seven times, and pulled down double-digit rebounds on 16 occasions. He led the Hawks in scoring 11 times, rebounding nine times, steals seven times and blocks 21 times. During the Hawks’ recent run to the Eastern Conference Finals, Collins put in 13.9 points and 8.7 rebounds in 32.0 minutes (.549 FG%, .357 3FG%, .833 FT%), starting all 18 contests.

His 44 career 20-point/10-rebound games since being drafted are the most by any player in the 2017 NBA Draft class. Collins is Atlanta’s career leader in FG% (minimum 1000 FGM) at .567 FG%.

Collins played in 41 games during the 2019-20 season (all starts) and averaged career-highs of 21.6 points, 10.1 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in 33.2 minutes (.583 FG%, .401 3FG%, .800 FT%), ranking eighth in the NBA in FG%. He scored in double figures 38 times, including 24 games with 20-or-more points and seven of 30-or-more, recording 22 double-doubles. In February, 2020, Collins became the first player in NBA history to average at least 25.0 ppg and 10.0 rpg while making .600 FG%, .500 3FG% and .800 FT% (minimum two games).

In 2018-19, Collins led the Hawks in ppg and rpg, averaging 19.5 points, 9.8 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 30.0 minutes (.560 FG%, .348 3FG%, .763 FT%) in 61 games (59 starts). He ranked 15th in the league in ppg, t14th in rpg, 16th in FG%, and was one of only seven players to play at least 60 games and post at least 19.5 ppg and 9.8 rpg. At All-Star Weekend, Collins participated in the Rising Stars game and Slam Dunk competition.

As a rookie in 2017-18, Collins was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team after averaging 10.5 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.1 blocks in 24.1 minutes (.576 FG%, .340 3FG%, .715 FT%) in 74 contests (26 starts), ranking seventh in the NBA in FG%, t25th in bpg and 33rd in rpg. He led all rookies in offensive rebounds (176), ranked second in FG% and bpg, third in rpg, fifth in double-doubles (11) and 11th in ppg. During All-Star Weekend, he participated in the Rising Stars game.

Lakers sign Kendrick Nunn

The Los Angeles Lakers yesterday signed guard Kendrick Nunn.

Nunn appeared in 56 games (44 starts) for Miami last season, averaging 14.6 points (.381 3P%), 3.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists in 29.5 minutes. He played in four playoff games (two starts) last season, where he averaged 10.3 points, 1.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 23.3 minutes per game.

In two seasons with Miami, Nunn appeared in 123 games (111 starts) with career averages of 15.0 points, 2.9 rebounds and 3.0 assists, while shooting 36.4 percent (259-711 3FG) from three-point range. Nunn was a 2019-20 All-Rookie First Team selection and finished second in Rookie of the Year voting in 2020.

Hornets sign rookie JT Thor

The Charlotte Hornets have signed second-round draft pick JT Thor.

Thor was originally acquired from the Detroit Pistons in exchange for the draft rights of Balsa Koprivica and center Mason Plumlee.

Thor, the 37th pick out of Auburn in the 2021 NBA Draft, averaged 9.4 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in minutes per game, making 27 appearances during his lone season with the Tigers. Thor recorded 37 blocks during the 2020-21 season, which ranked eighth in the SEC and second among all SEC freshmen as he averaged 9.9 points and 6.1 rebounds in 24.4 minutes per game in 18 conference games.

Born in Omaha, Nebraska, the 6-10 forward grew up in Anchorage, Alaska and attended Norcross High School in Georgia for his final high school season.

Sixers sign forward Georges Niang

Philadelphia 76ers President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey announced yesterday that the team has signed forward Georges Niang.

“Georges is a talented player who can stretch the floor and he immediately bolsters our frontcourt depth,” Morey said. “He has shot over 40-percent from three for his career and has steadily improved his overall game each season he’s been in the NBA. We’re excited to welcome him to Philadelphia.”

Niang spent the last four seasons with Utah after spending his rookie year with Indiana, which selected him in the 2016 NBA Draft with the No. 50 overall pick out of Iowa State. For his career, he has appeared in 229 games, with averages of 5.1 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.6 assists per contest.

During each year of his professional career, Niang has increased his averages in points, rebounds and assists, including last season when he posted career highs of 6.9 points, 2.4 rebounds and 0.8 assists. He also was the only player last season to appear in at least 70 games while shooting at least 40-percent from both the field and three-point range, while knocking down at least 95-percent of his attempts from the foul line.

For his career, he is a .404 three-point shooter, a mark that ranks 13th among active NBA players with 600-or-more attempts. This past season, Niang shot nearly 43-percent from three on a career-high 4.1 attempts per game.

Over his four collegiate seasons at Iowa State, Niang earned multiple accolades, including selections to the Associated Press All-America Third Team in 2014-15 and the Consensus All-America Second Team in 2015-16. As a Cyclone, he was also named to the All-Big 12 First Team as a senior, when he earned the Karl Malone Award as the nation’s top collegiate power forward. The 2015-16 season, Niang’s last in college, saw him average 20.5 points per game (second in the Big 12) as he led the conference in field-goal percentage at .546. The fourth-seeded Cyclones reached the Sweet 16 of the 2016 NCAA Tournament.

Niang will wear No. 20 for the 76ers.

Lakers sign Dwight Howard

The Los Angeles Lakers yesterday signed center Dwight Howard.

Entering his 18th NBA season, Howard owns career averages of 16.2 points, 12.1 rebounds and 1.9 blocks through 1,182 games (1,051 starts) with Orlando, Houston, Atlanta, Charlotte, Washington, Philadelphia and the Lakers. He currently ranks eighth in all-time field goal percentage, converting 58.6 percent of his shots from the field (minimum 2,000 FGM).

An eight-time NBA All-Star and the 2004 first overall draft pick, Howard appeared in 69 games (six starts) with the 76ers last season, where he averaged 7.0 points and 8.4 rebounds in 17.3 minutes. He returns to Los Angeles after averaging 7.5 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 2019-20, helping the team win the 2020 NBA Championship.

Howard is a three-time Defensive Player of the Year – winning the award in consecutive seasons from 2009-11 – and has led the league in rebounds five times (2007-10, ’11-13), blocks twice (2008-10) and field goal percentage once (2009-10). He enters the season ranking first among active players in career rebounds (14, 271) and blocks (2,192).

Miami Heat re-sign Gabe Vincent

The Miami Heat yesterday re-signed guard Gabe Vincent.

“Gabe has proven to us that he is more than just a point guard,” said HEAT President Pat Riley. “He’s a two-way guard that can run the offense, make threes and pretty much defend any guard in this league. It’s good to have him as part of our young core of players that we feel blend perfectly with our veterans.”

Vincent appeared in 50 games (seven starts) for the HEAT last season and averaged 4.8 points, 1.3 assists and 1.1 rebounds in 13.1 minutes per game. He ranked second on the team in charges drawn (12) and topped the HEAT in steals six times, plus/minus four times and assists twice. He was Miami’s leading scorer off the bench three times and also led the HEAT reserves in steals and plus/minus six times each, assists four times, minutes three times and blocks once. He scored in double figures six times, including a pair of 20-point games, handed out double-figure assists once and recorded one double-double.

Originally signed by the HEAT to a two-way contract on January 8, 2020, Vincent has appeared in 59 NBA regular season games (seven starts) during his two-year NBA career in Miami and has averaged 4.5 points, 1.2 assists, 1.0 rebounds and 12.5 minutes. He has appeared as a reserve in four playoff games and averaged 1.3 points in 4.8 minutes. Additionally, he recently competed in the Tokyo Olympics as a member of the Nigerian National Team and averaged 6.0 points, 2.0 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.33 steals and 24.7 minutes.

Lakers sign Carmelo Anthony

The Los Angeles Lakers yesterday signed forward Carmelo Anthony.

Entering his 19th NBA season, Anthony owns career averages of 23.0 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.0 steal through 1,191 games (1,117 starts) with Denver, New York, Oklahoma City, Houston and Portland. He currently ranks 10th on the NBA’s all-time scoring list with 27,370 career points.

A 10-time NBA All-Star and the inaugural Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion in 2021, Anthony appeared in 69 games (three starts), with the Trail Blazers last season, where he averaged 13.4 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.5 assists while shooting 40.9 percent (133-235 3FG) from three-point range in 24.5 minutes per game.

He has appeared in 83 career playoff games (77 starts) for the Nuggets, Knicks, Thunder and Trail Blazers, averaging 23.1 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.2 steals in 37.3 minutes.

Anthony is a six-time All-NBA selection, including two Second Team selections (2009-10 & 2012-13) and four Third Team selections (2005-07, 2008-09, 2011-12) and led the league in scoring during the 2012-13 season. He is a four-time Olympian and a three-time Olympic gold medalist, helping the United States capture gold in 2016, 2012 and 2008.

Nets sign rookie Day’Ron Sharpe

The Brooklyn Nets have signed center Day’Ron Sharpe, the 29th overall pick in the first round of the 2021 NBA Draft, to a multi-year contract.

Sharpe (6’11”, 265) spent one year at the University of North Carolina, appearing in 29 games (four starts), while averaging 9.5 points on 51.9 percent shooting from the field, 7.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 19.1 minutes per game en route to ACC All-Freshman team honors. The ACC’s leading offensive rebounder (3.4 per game) and the nation’s leader in offensive rebound percentage (18.3 percent), Sharpe finished second in voting for both ACC Freshman of the Year and Sixth Man of the Year. He registered six double-doubles, scored in double figures 12 times and grabbed double digit rebounds in eight games. The 19-year-old native of Greenville, N.C., tied for the team lead in blocked shots (26), ranked second on the Tar Heels in rebounds per game and finished third in steals (23).

Charlotte Hornets waive Caleb Martin

The Charlotte Hornets have waived forward Caleb Martin.

In his second season with the Hornets, Martin averaged 5.0 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 15.4 minutes per game, appearing in 53 games. Over his two seasons with Charlotte from 2019-21, Martin posted averages of 5.3 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 16.0 minutes per game in 71 career games.

Undrafted out of Nevada in the 2019 NBA Draft, Martin originally signed with the Hornets on July 31, 2019.

Washington Wizards re-sign Raul Neto

The Washington Wizards have re-signed free agent guard Raul Neto.

Neto averaged a career-high 8.7 points, to go along with a career-high 2.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists and a career-high 1.1 steals per game while shooting .468 from the field in 64 games (22 starts) during the 2020-21 season. As a starter last season, he averaged 11.4 points, 3.0 assists and 2.8 rebounds per game while shooting .495 from the field and .403 from three-point range. He scored a season-high 25 points (7-of-11 from the field, 5-of-7 from three-point range) in the Wizards’ 131-129 win over the Raptors in Tampa on May 6.

“We are very pleased to bring Raul back after the career year he had for us last season,” said Wizards General Manager Tommy Sheppard. “He was one of our most consistent players with a toughness and tenacity on both ends of the floor that allowed him to lead our second unit and step in when called upon as a starter.”

Neto was originally signed as a free agent by the Wizards on November 21, 2020. During the 2019-20 season, he averaged 5.1 points and 1.9 assists per game in 54 games (three starts) with Philadelphia. Before signing with the 76ers, Neto spent his first four seasons in the NBA with the Utah Jazz (2015-19). Neto averaged 4.8 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 14.2 minutes per game with Utah. As a rookie in 2015, he appeared in 81 games (53 starts) and averaged a career-high 5.9 points and 2.1 assists per game.

Neto was selected by the Atlanta Hawks in the second round (47th overall pick) of the 2013 NBA Draft, and his rights were traded by the Hawks to the Jazz in a draft-night trade in exchange for a 2015 second round pick (from Brooklyn) on June 27, 2013. Prior to coming to the NBA, he played professionally in Brazil and Spain from 2008-15. During the 2014-15 season, he appeared in 34 games (23 starts) for Universidad Catolica De Murcia (UCAM) of the Liga ACP in Spain, averaging 8.9 points, 3.9 assists, 2.1 rebounds and 1.2 steals in 22.4 mpg.

A native of Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil, Neto competed in the 2012 and 2016 Olympic Games as a member of the Brazilian National Team.