Category: NBA News Blog

NBA news blog

Cavs re-sign Matthew Dellavedova

The Cleveland Cavaliers have re-signed guard Matthew Dellavedova.

Dellavedova (6-3, 204) played in 57 games (four starts) for Cleveland this past season, averaging 3.1 points and 3.2 assists in 14.4 minutes. He shot .865 from the foul line and scored in double figures on three occasions. Dellavedova, who led the Cavs in assists 12 times and recorded a team-high 3.05 assist-to-turnover ratio in 2019-20, averaged 9.2 assists over the final five games of the season (March 2-10), including a 14-point, 11-assist performance in a win over San Antonio on March 8. He also became the first Cavalier since Feb. 5, 1993 (Terrell Brandon) to have a game of at least nine assists in under 20 minutes of play after accomplishing that feat on Jan. 7 versus Detroit.

Over his seven-year NBA career, Dellavedova has appeared in 434 regular season games (92 starts) with Cleveland and Milwaukee. He owns career averages of 5.6 points and 3.7 assists in 20.4 minutes while shooting .368 from three-point range and .838 from the free throw line. Undrafted out of Saint Mary’s (CA) College in 2013, the Australian native played his first three NBA seasons with Cleveland (2013-2016) and was a member of the Cavaliers’ 2016 NBA Championship team. After a two-year stint with the Bucks, Dellavedova returned to the Cavaliers as part of a three-team trade with Milwaukee and Washington on Dec. 7, 2018.

Nuggets convert two-way contract of Bol Bol to standard NBA contract

The Denver Nuggets have converted the two-way contract of Bol Bol to a standard multi-year NBA contract, President of Basketball Operations Tim Connelly announced today.

Bol Bol, who will remain a rookie for the 2020-21 season as he did not appear in an NBA game prior to the hiatus on March 11th, appeared in seven games for the Nuggets during the seeding games in the Orlando Bubble and averaged 5.7 points and 2.7 rebounds per game while shooting .500 from the field and .444 from beyond the arc.

The 21-year-old impressed in the Nuggets three scrimmage games prior to the Seeding Games in Orlando, posting averages of 13.7 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.0 blocks in 29.3 minutes per game. He also appeared in eight games for the Windy City Bulls of the G League in 2019-20, averaging 12.0 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.1 blocks in 19.3 minutes.

Bol, 7-2, 220, was selected with the 44th overall pick by the Miami Heat in the 2019 NBA draft and was acquired by the Nuggets in a draft night trade. He appeared in nine games as a freshman for Oregon in 2018-19, averaging 21.0 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.7 blocks in 29.8 minutes before a season-ending foot injury. Bol reached double figure scoring in every game and tallied four double-doubles.

The 19-year-old native of Khartoum, Sudan, is the son of former NBA great Manute Bol who played 10 seasons for the Washington Bullets, Golden State Warriors, Philadelphia 76ers and Miami Heat.

Thunder sign-and-trade Danilo Gallinari to Hawks

The Atlanta Hawks have acquired forward Danilo Gallinari (da-KNEE-lo gal-in-ARE-ee) and cash considerations in a trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder for a conditional 2025 second-round pick in a sign-and-trade transaction.

“Danilo checks a lot of boxes for what we have prioritized. We wanted to add productive veterans and high-level shooting to our group and he provides both. At his size, he is one of the league’s most versatile and efficient scorers and he has proven to be the type of veteran you want in your locker room,” said Hawks President of Basketball Operations and General Manager Travis Schlenk.

Last season in 62 games with Oklahoma City, the 6-foot-10 native of Sant’Angelo Lodigiano, Italy averaged 18.7 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 29.6 minutes (.438 FG%, .405 3FG%, .893 FT%), ranking 16th in the league in three-pointers made (178), tied for 19th in three-point percentage and sixth in free-throw percentage. Over the last two seasons, Gallinari has averaged 19.3 points while shooting .418 3FGs (on 6.2 3FGA per game).

Through 11 NBA seasons, in 611 games (541 starts) with New York, Denver, the LA Clippers and Oklahoma City, Gallinari has averaged 16.2 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 30.9 minutes (.427 FG%, .380 3FG%, .873 FT%). He’s also seen action in 25 career postseason contests (all starts) with the Nuggets and Thunder, averaging 15.1 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 31.3 minutes.

Gallinari was the sixth overall pick by the Knicks in the 2008 NBA Draft following an Italian League MVP season with Olimpia Milano.

Born on August 8, 1988 (8/8/88), he will wear jersey No. 8.

Spurs re-sign Quinndary Weatherspoon to a two-way contract

You may not know who Quinndary Weatherspoon is, but the San Antonio Spurs do, and they like having him around. The team re-signed Weatherspoon, a guard, to a two-way contract.

Weatherspoon spent last season as a two-way player for the Spurs, playing in 11 games for San Antonio, plus 36 games in the G League for Austin. Averaging 1.1 points and 1.0 assists in 7.1 minutes with San Antonio, the first-year player posted 14.8 points, 4.0 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 1.19 steals in 29.3 minutes for Austin.

Selected by the Spurs in the second round of the 2019 NBA Draft (49th overall), Weatherspoon played four seasons of college basketball at Mississippi State and is one of just three players in school history to accumulate over 2,000 career points.

Lakers waive Jordan Bell

The Los Angeles Lakers waived center Jordan Bell today.

The Lakers had just recently acquired Bell, along with Alfonzo McKinnie, in their trade with the Cavs for JaVale McGee and a future second round draft pick.

Last season, Bell played in 29 games for the Timberwolves and Grizzlies, averaging 3.2 points and 2.8 rebounds in 8.8 minutes per game.

He has played in 154 career games (16 starts) for Golden State, Minnesota and Memphis, averaging 3.8 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 12.0 minutes per game.

Timberwolves trade Jacob Evans, Omari Spellman and a draft pick to Knicks for Ed Davis

The Minnesota Timberwolves have acquired Ed Davis in a trade with the New York Knicks for Jacob Evans III, Omari Spellman and the Timberwolves’ 2026 Second Round Pick.

Davis, 31, has appeared in 668 regular season games (96 starts) in 10 NBA seasons with Toronto, Memphis, Los Angeles Lakers, Portland, Brooklyn and Utah averaging 6.3 points and 6.6 rebounds. The 6-9 forward played in 28 games with the Utah Jazz last season, averaging 1.8 points and 3.8 rebounds. He saw his best season come with the Brooklyn Nets during the 2018-19 season, in which he saw action in 81 games while averaging 5.8 points on a career-best 61.6% shooting and a career-high 8.6 rebounds per game. The North Carolina product was drafted by the Toronto Raptors in the first round (13th overall) of the 2010 NBA Draft.

Evans, 6-4, 210-pounds, averaged 4.4 points and 1.4 rebounds over 14.4 minutes in 29 games (one start) for Golden State and Minnesota last season. Originally selected with the 28th overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft out of the University of Cincinnati, Evans holds career averages of 2.8 points and 1.1 rebounds over 10.5 minutes in 59 games (two starts).

Spellman, 6-8, 245-pounds, averaged 7.6 points and 4.5 rebounds over 18.1 minutes in 49 games (three starts) last season with the Golden State Warriors. The Cleveland, OH-native was traded by Golden State to Minnesota on Feb. 6, 2020 where he spent the remainder of the season with the Iowa Wolves, the NBA G League affiliate of the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Originally selected with the 30th overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft out of Villanova University, Spellman holds career averages of 6.8 points and 4.3 rebounds over 17.8 minutes in 95 games (14 starts). The 2017-18 Big East Rookie of the Year, he helped lead the Wildcats to the 2018 NCAA Championship in his only season averaging 10.9 points, 8.0 rebounds and 1.48 blocks over 40 games (39 starts).

Hawks sign rookies Onyeka Okongwu, Skylar Mays and Nathan Knight

The Atlanta Hawks have signed rookie forward/center Onyeka Okongwu, rookie guard Skylar Mays and rookie forward/center Nathan Knight, the team announced today. Mays and Knight have been signed to two-way contracts.

Drafted sixth overall by the Hawks in the 2020 NBA Draft, the 6’9 Okongwu led the USC Trojans in points per game, rebounds per game and blocks per game in his only collegiate season, averaging 16.2 points, 8.6 boards and 2.7 blocks in 28 appearances (all starts) in 2019-20. He earned All-Pac-12 First Team honors and was a member of the Pac-12 All-Freshman team after leading the conference in FG% (.616), ranking second in blocks and second in total offensive rebounds (92).

The Chino, Calif. native scored in double figures on 25 occasions and recorded 11 double-doubles, including five contests with at least 20 points and 10 rebounds. He set a USC freshman record with 76 blocked shots, including a school-record tying eight rejections in his first collegiate game on 11/5/19 against Florida A&M.

Mays, selected in the second round (50th overall) by the Hawks in the 2020 NBA Draft, averaged 16.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.8 steals in 31 games (all starts) en route to an All-SEC First Team selection as a senior in 2019-20. A native of Baton Rouge, LA, the 6’4 Mays became the first player in LSU history to record at least 1,600 points, 400 rebounds, 300 assists and 200 steals.

A summa cum laude graduate with a degree in kinesiology, Mays was the 2019-20 COSIDA Academic All-American Player of the Year, a three-time Academic All-American and a two-time SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

Knight finished the 2019-20 season averaging 20.7 points, 10.5 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.5 blocks in 29.6 minutes (.524 FG%, .773 FT%) starting all 32 games, finishing second nationally in double-doubles (23). He earned the 2020 Lou Henson National Mid-Major Player of the Year as well as the Colonial Athletic Association’s Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year awards.

The 6’10 Knight earned his degree in business analytics from William & Mary’s Raymond A. Mason School of Business. The Syracuse, NY native attended Nottingham High School in his hometown before finishing at Kimball Union Academy in New Hampshire.

Celtics sign first round draft picks Aaron Nesmith and Payton Pritchard

The Boston Celtics have signed 2020 first round draft picks Aaron Nesmith and Payton Pritchard.

Selected 14th overall in the 2020 NBA Draft, Nesmith, a 6-6, 213-pound forward, produced career averages of 14.7 points (44.2% FG, 41.0% 3-PT, 82.5% FT), 5.3 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 0.9 steals, and 31.0 minutes played in 46 collegiate games over two seasons at Vanderbilt University. The 21-year old thrived in limited action as a sophomore in 2019-20, averaging 23.0 points on 51.2% shooting – including a school-record 52.2% shooting mark from beyond the arc – to go along with 4.9 rebounds, 1.4 steals, 0.9 blocked shots, and 35.7 minutes in 14 games.

Nesmith knocked down at least seven three-point field goals in four of his 14 contests this past season, including a career-best eight threes against Southern Methodist University on Jan. 4. His 60 three-point field goals made (of 115) led the Commodores and ranked 10th in the Southeastern Conference.

Pritchard, a 6-2, 190-pound guard, was drafted 26th overall by Boston out of the University of Oregon, where he averaged 20.5 points (46.8% FG, 41.5% 3-PT, 82.1% FT), 4.3 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 1.5 steals, and 36.6 minutes played across 31 games (all starts) as a senior in 2019-20. Named the Pacific 12 Conference Player of the Year and Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year award recipient this past season, Pritchard produced career highs in points, rebounds, and assists en route to being the University’s first consensus All-American since 1940.

A native Oregonian, Pritchard, 22, averaged 13.5 points on 43.7% shooting (37.9% 3-PT, 80.0% FT), 3.8 rebounds, 4.6 assists, 1.5 steals, and 33.7 minutes in 144 collegiate games (140 starts) across four seasons with the Ducks. He finished his collegiate career as the only player in Pac 12 conference history to tally at least 1,900 points, 500 rebounds, and 600 assists.

Nesmith will wear number 26 with the Celtics, and Pritchard will wear number 11.

Spurs re-sign center Jakob Poeltl

The San Antonio Spurs have re-signed center Jakob Poeltl.

Poeltl’s contract is reportedly a three-year, $27 million deal.

Poeltl played in 66 games for the Spurs last season, including 18 starts, averaging 5.6 points, a career-high 5.7 rebounds, 1.8 assists and a career-best 1.44 blocks while shooting 62.4 percent from the field in 17.7 minutes. After the NBA restart in July, Poeltl contested the second-most shots in the league (114) while starting all eight contests and averaging 8.3 points, 8.1 rebounds and 1.38 blocks in 25.8 minutes. He had a block in 14 straight games from January to February, the longest streak by a Spur last season.

Selected with the ninth overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft by the Toronto Raptors, the 7-0, 230-pound center has appeared in 279 games in four seasons, averaging 5.5 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.01 blocks in 16.5 minutes.

San Antonio’s all-time leader in highest field goal percentage in a single season (.645 in 2018-19), Poeltl is both the first Austrian to be selected in the NBA Draft and to appear in an NBA game.

Nuggets sign Greg Whittington to two-way contract

The Denver Nuggets have signed forward Greg Whittington to a two-way contract.

Whittington, 6-8, 212, spent the 2019-20 season playing in Istanbul, Turkey for Galatasaray of the Turkish BSL. He appeared in 25 games (10 starts), averaging 12.4 points, 5.5 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.12 steals while shooting 56.6% from the field and 50.7% from three in 25.8 minutes per game.

The 27-year-old went undrafted in the 2015 NBA Draft and spent the 2015-16 season playing for the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA G League. In two seasons for the Skyforce, Whittington appeared in 36 games (32 starts) averaging 13.8 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.81 steals while shooting 44.2% from the field in 34.3 minutes. Whittington has spent the previous four seasons playing overseas in multiple countries, including Australia (Sydney Kings, 2016-17), Japan (Levanga Hokkaido, 2017-18), Israel (Hapoel Gilboa Galil, 2018-19) and Turkey (Galatasaray, 2019-20).

Whittington, a native of Columbia, Maryland spent two seasons at Georgetown University, where he averaged 6.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 46 career games.