Category: NBA News Blog

NBA news blog

Phoenix Suns will increase fan capacity for home games to 3,000

The Phoenix Suns are increasing capacity for fans at the transformed Phoenix Suns Arena beginning with the team’s matchup against the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday, Feb. 16.

After hosting 1,500 fans during games this week in two-person and four-person, socially distanced pods, the organization has decided to increase capacity to 3,000 fans, adding more two-person and four-person pods in the upper level of the arena, along with a limited number of floor seat pods.

In addition, the Suns are offering Party Pods for groups of four to six fans. Located in the private luxury suites at Phoenix Suns Arena, the Party Pods offer a choice of food and beverage packages, one parking pass for the group, a dedicated restroom within the suite, and a private shopping experience exclusively for Party Pod fans. Party Pods within suites represent 25 percent of normal capacity.

Pistons trade Derrick Rose to Knicks for Dennis Smith Jr. and draft pick

The New York Knicks have acquired guard Derrick Rose in a trade with the Detroit Pistons for guard Dennis Smith Jr. and a 2021 second round draft pick (via Charlotte).

Rose, 6-3, 200-pounds, has appeared in 611 NBA games (504 starts) recording 18.7 points, 5.6 assists and 3.4 rebounds over 12 seasons with Chicago, New York, Cleveland, Minnesota and Detroit. In 15 games with Detroit this season, he is averaging 14.2 points, 4.2 assists and 1.9 rebounds over 22.8 minutes.

The Chicago-native returns to New York, where he previously spent one season with the Knicks, after being acquired from Chicago via trade on Jun. 22, 2016. He averaged 18.0 points, 4.4 assists and 3.8 rebounds over 32.5 minutes in 64 games (all starts) as a Knick.

Career highlights for the first-overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft include: 2011 NBA MVP; 2009 NBA Rookie of the Year; three consecutive NBA All-Star selections (2010, 2011, 2012); 2009 NBA All-Rookie Team; two-time Eastern Conference Player of the Month; five-time Eastern Conference Player of the Week and three-time Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month.

Smith Jr., 6-2, 205, was the ninth overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft by the Dallas Mavericks and went to New York as part of the Kristaps Porzingis trade on January 31, 2019. In 159 career games (122 starts), the 23-year-old has averaged 12.4 points, 3.1 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.1 steals with Dallas and New York. In his rookie season, he averaged a career-high 15.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 1.0 steals and was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team in 2017-18. He was also selected to play in the 2018 Rising Stars Challenge at All-Star Weekend in Los Angeles, CA.

“We welcome Dennis Smith Jr. to the Pistons family. Adding another young player who was a high draft pick alongside a draft asset advances our goals in building for the future,” said Troy Weaver, Detroit Pistons General Manager. “We thank Derrick Rose for his contributions on and off the court during his time as a Piston and wish him and his family well as they move forward.”

A native of Fayetteville, NC, Smith Jr. played one collegiate season at North Carolina State University where he was named ACC Freshman of the Year after averaging a school-freshman record 18.1 points and 6.2 assists per game. He also garnered All -ACC Second Team honors.

Cavs forward Larry Nance Jr. undergoes finger surgery

Cavaliers forward Larry Nance Jr. underwent successful surgery today to address a fracture in his left fourth metacarpal that occurred during Saturday night’s home game against Milwaukee at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

The surgery was performed by Cleveland Clinic Orthopedic Specialist Dr. Steven Maschke and assisted by Cavaliers Team Physician Dr. James Rosneck at Cleveland Clinic Sports Health.

Nance is expected to remain out approximately six weeks and will undergo a period of rest and rehabilitation.

Pacers assistant coach Bill Bayno resigns, for personal and health reasons

Indiana Pacers assistant coach Bill Bayno is resigning for personal and health reasons, the team announced Monday.

“I appreciate the impact Coach Bayno has had on our players and the Pacers organization over the last five years,” said Pacers Head Coach Nate Bjorkgren. “All of us at the Pacers wish him the very best as he transitions to his next chapter.”

According to ESPN.com, “Bayno has privately described a need to step away from the pressures and workload of the NBA grind amid the pandemic, especially in the aftermath of several personal losses, including the loss of both his parents.”

Atlanta Hawks to name their press room in honor of Sekou Smith

The Atlanta Hawks today announced plans to permanently honor the memory of former Atlanta Journal-Constitution Hawks beat writer Sekou Smith, who passed away on January 26 at the age of 48.

In respect to his dedication to journalism, building relationships and mentoring young journalists, the Hawks will honor the legacy of Smith with three lasting and meaningful tributes:

The Hawks will name the media workroom at State Farm Arena after Smith, redesigning the space to honor his memory. The Sekou Smith Press Room will formally open to media for the 2021-22 NBA season.

Beginning at the end of this season, the Sekou Smith Award will annually honor the player on the team’s roster who best represents themselves and the franchise with professionalism and integrity in their interactions with the media. A plaque in the media workroom will display the name of each season’s honoree, and an on-court trophy presentation will be held including the winner and members of Smith’s family.

The team will launch an annual Hawks-NBA Summer League internship in Smith’s name. Each summer, a journalism or multi-media student from a Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) school will be selected to serve as the Hawks’ beat writer for NBA Summer League, and their work will appear on the team’s digital team properties, providing valuable experience and clips. In addition to covering associated travel costs, the Hawks will provide a stipend to the intern. The SWAC is comprised of historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) including Jackson State University, Smith’s alma mater.

Smith served as the AJC’s Hawks beat writer from 2005-09 before joining NBA Digital as a multimedia reporter and analyst. He also spent time at The Clarion-Ledger in Jackson, MS and the Indianapolis Star, where he covered the Indiana Pacers as the team’s beat writer.

Nets sign Noah Vonleh

The Brooklyn Nets have signed free agent forward Noah Vonleh.

Vonleh (6’10”, 257) has played in 335 career games (171 starts) across six NBA seasons with Charlotte (2014-15), Portland (2015-18), Chicago (2018), New York (2018-19), Minnesota (2019-20) and Denver (2020), recording averages of 5.0 points and 5.2 rebounds in 16.9 minutes per game. Vonleh’s most productive season was the 2018-19 campaign with the Knicks, as he registered career-best averages of 8.4 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 25.3 minutes per contest.

Most recently, Vonleh signed with the Bulls on Nov. 27, but was waived on Dec. 14.

The 25-year-old has also made three postseason appearances with the Trail Blazers (2016 and 2017) and Nuggets (2020).

Vonleh was originally selected with the ninth overall pick in the first round of the 2014 NBA Draft by Charlotte after spending one season at Indiana. In his lone collegiate season, the Haverhill, Mass., native was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year, while also garnering All-Big Ten Third Team honors.

Thunder forward-center Mike Muscala sustains concussion

Oklahoma City Thunder forward/center Mike Muscala sustained a concussion during last night’s 120-118 victory vs. the Minnesota Timberwolves and he has been placed in the NBA’s concussion protocol.

Per the NBA’s Concussion Policy, Muscala will now begin the NBA-mandated Return-to-Participation Protocol. This process includes a series of steps designed to ensure an athlete exhibits symptom-free behavior before resuming basketball activities.

There is no predetermined timetable to complete the protocol, as each injury and player is different and recovery time can vary in each case.

In 21 games this season, Muscala is averaging 9.7 points and 3.5 rebounds in 18.2 minutes per contest.

Cavaliers forward Larry Nance Jr. out six weeks with broken finger

Cavaliers forward Larry Nance Jr. will miss time after suffering a fracture in his left fourth metacarpal (finger/hand) during Saturday night’s home game against Milwaukee at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

Nance is expected to miss approximately six weeks due to the injury.

He will now undergo a series of treatment and rehabilitation activities.

The Cavs are 10-14 this season, which is the 10th best record in the Eastern conference. The team is being led in scoring this season by Collin Sexton at 23.6 points per game, Andre Drummond at 18.6 PPG, Darius Garland at 16.0 ppg, and Cedi Osman at 12.2 ppg. Nance has started 18 of the 19 games he’s played, but as a role player puts up modest stats: 9.3 ppg, 6.8 rpg and 3.2 apg in 33.4 minutes per outing.

Hawks forward De’Andre Hunter to undergo knee surgery

Atlanta Hawks forward De’Andre Hunter, who has missed the last four games due to right knee discomfort caused by wear and tear, will undergo a lateral meniscus arthroscopic debridement procedure (knee surgery) on Monday at the Emory Orthopaedics & Spine Center in Atlanta.

The surgery will be performed by Dr. Kyle Hammond, the Hawks’ team orthopaedist.

An update on Hunter’s recovery plan will be provided approximately two weeks following the surgery.

Last season as a rookie, Hunter averaged 12.3 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game.

This season, in roughly the same amount of playing time, is putting up 17.2 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.2 assists per outing.

The Hawks are 11-12 so far this season, which is the 6th best record in the Eastern conference. They’re being led in scoring by Trae Young at 26.7 points per game, John Collins at 17.8 PPG, Hunter at 17.2 PPG, Clint Capela at 13.7 PPG, and Kevin Huerter at 12.3 PPG.

Kevin Durant removed from Raptors vs. Nets game due to COVID-19 contact tracing concerns

It was an unusual situation in Brooklyn tonight, centered around Nets star forward Kevin Durant.

Via the Toronto Star:

Brooklyn’s Kevin Durant was going to play, then wasn’t allowed to play, then got clearance to play and finally had to stop playing in the third quarter of a truly odd Nets-Raptors game in Brooklyn.

The Durant saga underscores the oddities in a testing/contact tracing world the NBA is trying to navigate through this regular season.

It put a damper on, and added considerable confusion to, a delightful offensive display by both teams but highlights the inherent difficulty with pulling off games and seasons with daily testing, contact tracing and other aspects of dealing with a raging pandemic.

The game itself was delightful as Kyle Lowry simply willed the Raptors to a 123-117 win with typical fourth-quarter brilliance.

Lowry finished with a season-high 30 points, seven assists and five rebounds, and Pascal Siakam added 33 points as the Raptors played one of their best games of the season.

And the New York Post:

Kevin Durant was a last-minute scratch from the Nets’ starting lineup Friday night, then was inserted into the game late and finally pulled for good, all due to COVID-19 contact tracing.

Durant will not travel with the team to Philadelphia on Saturday, according to ESPN.

The NBA said in a statement that Durant was pulled from the game “out of an abundance of caution” after someone he interacted with tested positive for coronavirus after their initial test was inconclusive. The league also said Durant tested negative three times in the past 24 hours.

The entire world is learning to navigate through the the coronavirus pandemic. And it’s certainly a learning process for any event-based organizations, especially sports leagues. The NBA certainly has to examine exactly what happened today, and what to take away from this going forward.