Category: NBA News Blog

NBA news blog

Nets sign Alize Johnson to standard NBA contract

The Brooklyn Nets have signed forward Alize Johnson to a multi-year contract.

Johnson (6’7”, 212) originally signed a 10-day contract with Brooklyn on March 22 before signing a second 10-day on April 1. In six games with the Nets, Johnson has averaged 7.8 points on 65.7 percent shooting from the field to go along with 5.8 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 13.4 minutes per game. In his first game suiting up for Brooklyn on March 24 at Utah, Johnson registered team highs with 23 points and 15 rebounds to go with three assists and two steals in 33 minutes of action off the bench.

Prior to joining the Nets, Johnson played for the Raptors 905 of the NBA G League during the 2021 season. In 15 games (all starts) for the 905, the 24-year-old averaged a double-double with 16.6 points and 13.3 rebounds to go along with 4.2 assists and 1.3 steals in 32.1 minutes per game. Johnson, who ranked second overall in the NBA G League in rebounds per game, helped lead the Raptors 905 to the top seed in the 2021 NBA G League Playoffs with a 12-3 regular season record. Johnson was originally selected with the 50th overall pick in the second round of the 2018 NBA Draft by the Indiana Pacers. In 31 career games over two seasons (2018-20) with the Pacers, Johnson averaged 1.5 points and 2.2 rebounds in 5.9 minutes per contest. He also spent time with Indiana’s NBA G League affiliate, the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, over the two seasons and averaged 19.5 points, 13.3 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.1 steals in 36.7 minutes in 50 total games (all starts).

The Pennsylvania native spent his junior and senior seasons (2016-18) playing collegiately at Missouri State, appearing in 66 games (all starts) and averaging 14.9 points, 11.1 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 30.7 minutes per game. Johnson was named All-Missouri Valley Conference First Team after both campaigns. He began his collegiate career at Frank Phillips College in Texas before transferring to MSU.

Heat still determining scope of Victor Oladipo’s injury

The Heat are still trying to determine how bad the injury is to their new shooting guard, Victor Oladipo. Via the Sun Sentinel:

Coach Erik Spoelstra offered a limited update upon the Miami Heat’s Saturday arrival in Portland, Ore., on where the team stands with sidelined guard Victor Oladipo.

Oladipo was the lone Heat player not to make the trip for four-game trip that opens Sunday night against the Trail Blazers, after injuring his right knee in Thursday night’s victory over the Los Angeles Lakers at AmericanAirlines Arena.

“We’re still in information-gathering stage right now, so I don’t have a new update for you,” Spoelstra said. “But he’s not with us on this trip, and he won’t be here [Sunday], and that is what we were focused on today, who’s available in the gym today.”

Raptors sign center Khem Birch

The Toronto Raptors have signed center Khem Birch.

Birch, 6-foot-9, 230 pounds, averaged career highs of 5.3 points, 5.1 rebounds and 19.8 minutes in 48 games (five starts) with the Orlando Magic this season. He shot .450 (94-209) from the floor and scored in double figures five times, which included three double-doubles.

A native of Montreal, Quebec, Birch is averaging 4.7 points, 4.4 rebounds and 16.5 minutes in 188 career games (30 starts) during four seasons in Orlando (2017-21). After going undrafted in 2014, Birch played with Sioux Falls of the NBA G League (2014-15) and overseas in Turkey (2015-16) and Greece (2016-17) prior to signing with the Magic as a free agent in the summer of 2017.

Birch played collegiately at the University of Pittsburgh (2011-12) and UNLV (2012-14) where he was named Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year back-to-back seasons. On the international stage, Birch represented Canada at the 2019 FIBA World Cup in China. He was also a member of Canada’s U-18 National Team that captured a bronze medal at the 2010 FIBA Americas Under-18 Championship.

Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore reportedly finalizing deal to buy Timberwolves

The Minnesota Timberwolves are reportedly being sold.

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski via Twitter, “former Major Leaguer Alex Rodriguez and billionaire Marc Lore are finalizing a deal to purchase the Minnesota Timberwolves from majority owner Glen Taylor, sources tell ESPN. Taylor will continue full control of team for two years before Rodriguez and Lore take over in 2023.”

Magic reportedly plan to add forward Robert Franks

The Magic will make a roster move soon. Via the Orlando Sentinel:

The Orlando Magic plan to sign free-agent forward Robert Franks to a 10-day contract, NBA sources confirmed Saturday to the Orlando Sentinel.

The Magic have one open roster spot after waiving center Khem Birch last week, but the team also is set to sign forward/center Donta Hall to a 10-day contract. NBA teams get 15 roster spots for players on regular NBA contracts, while players on two-way deals do not count toward that number. So to make room for both Franks and Hall, the Magic will have to release a player on a regular contract.

The Magic are 17-35 this season, which is the second worst record in the Eastern conference. They recently traded their most high-profile players, and are clearly now rebuilding.

Hawks guard Tony Snell out with ankle injury

Atlanta Hawks guard Tony Snell left during the third quarter of last night’s game against Chicago with a right ankle injury and did not return. An MRI taken this morning at the Emory Sports Medicine Complex confirmed a right ankle sprain and bone bruise. He will stay in Atlanta for rehabilitation, missing the Hawks’ two-game road trip to Charlotte and Tampa, and will be re-evaluated upon the team’s return.

Cavaliers sign Mfiondu Kabengele to 10-day contract

The Cleveland Cavaliers have signed forward/center Mfiondu Kabengele to a 10-day contract, Cavaliers General Manager Koby Altman announced today from Cleveland Clinic Courts.

Kabengele (6-9, 250) appeared in 23 games for the Los Angeles Clippers this season before being traded to the Sacramento Kings on March 22. Kabengele, who was waived by the Kings on March 25, owns career averages of 2.0 points in 4.5 minutes over 35 games during his two NBA seasons with the Clippers. The 23-year-old also played in 27 contests (all starts) for the Agua Caliente Clippers of the NBA G League in 2019-20, averaging 18.7 points, 9.3 rebounds, 1.1 steals and 1.9 blocks in 31.2 minutes.

Selected with the 27th pick in the 2019 NBA Draft by Brooklyn, Kabengele played two collegiate seasons at Florida State, earning the 2018-19 ACC Sixth Man of the Year award and 2019 All-ACC Tournament First Team honors. He is the nephew of NBA legend and Basketball Hall of Famer Dikembe Mutombo.

Kabengele will wear jersey #27 for the Cavaliers.

Nuggets sign Shaquille Harrison, waive Gary Clark and Greg Whittington

The Denver Nuggets have signed guard Shaquille Harrison to a two-way contract while subsequently waiving guard Gary Clark and two-way forward Greg Whittington, President of Basketball Operations Tim Connelly announced today.

Harrison, 6-4, 190, played in 17 games for the Utah Jazz this season, averaging 1.0 points, 0.5 rebounds and 0.5 assists in 3.3 minutes per game. In four seasons, with Phoenix, Chicago, and Utah he holds career averages of 5.5 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 15.1 minutes. Harrison’s best season of his young career came in 2018-19 with Chicago where he played in 73 games (11 starts), averaging 6.5 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.9 assists, shooting 43.2% from the field in 19.6 minutes.

The 27-year-old went undrafted in the 2016 NBA draft and signed a contract with the Phoenix Suns in September 2016. He appeared in 133 games (all starts) in four years at The University of Tulsa, posting averages of 11.1 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.80 steals while shooting 44.4% from the field. He ranks second all-time at Tulsa with 461 career assists and third all time with 244 career steals.

Whittington, 6-8, 210, signed a two-way contract with the Nuggets on November 24th and appeared in four games totaling 12 minutes.

Clark, 6-6, 225, was acquired via trade by Denver from Orlando on March 25th, he appeared in a total of two games for the Nuggets.

Clippers sign forward Malik Fitts to 10-day contract

The LA Clippers have signed forward Malik Fitts to a 10-day contract.

Fitts, 23, appeared in 14 games for the Agua Caliente Clippers this season, averaging 11.1 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.4 assists. A training camp invitee this season, Fitts appeared in two preseason games for the Clippers.

Fitts played two collegiate seasons at Saint Mary’s, where he appeared in 68 games and averaged 15.9 points and 7.3 rebounds while shooting 47.3 percent from the field. Prior to transferring to Saint Mary’s, the 6-foot-8 forward played his first college season at South Florida, where he appeared in 27 games and averaged 7.4 points and 4.6 rebounds. A native of Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., Fitts was named to the 2019-20 All-WCC First Team and the 2018-19 All-WCC Second Team.

Raptors waive Patrick McCaw

The Toronto Raptors have waived forward Patrick McCaw.

In five games this season, McCaw totaled five points, three rebounds and four assists in 33 minutes.

McCaw signed as a free agent Jan. 10, 2019 and re-signed with Raptors the following offseason. In 68 games with Toronto, he averaged 3.6 points, 2.0 rebounds and 18.9 minutes and helped the Raptors capture their first NBA championship in 2019.