Category: NBA News Blog

NBA news blog

Kings forward Marvin Bagley remains out at least three more weeks

Although Kings forward Marvin Bagley III (left midfoot sprain) continues to progress through the reconditioning process, under the supervision of the team’s physicians and in coordination with foot specialist Dr. Martin O’Malley at the Hospital for Special Surgery, he is not yet ready to return.

Bagley recently incorporated stationary shooting and partial-weight bearing conditioning activities into his regimen, in addition to ongoing strength work.

An update regarding Bagley’s status will be provided in three weeks.

Al Horford coming off the bench for Sixers

For the time being, it appears the Sixers will be bringing veteran power forward Al Horford off the bench. Here’s Philly Voice reporting:

Al Horford will remain in a bench role with the Sixers moving forward, which he revealed to reporters himself during media availability on Wednesday afternoon.

“It’s what the team needs right now, and that’s what we’re doing,” Horford said. “I didn’t really give it much thought to be honest, I’m just refreshed being back and ready for the second half of the season…I’m playing similar to how I was playing before.” …

Exactly who will start in Horford’s place was left purposefully unclear, though if we’re looking at the Clippers game as a guideline, Furkan Korkmaz and Glenn Robinson III were the first two players to get a crack at starters minutes.

As has been said pretty much all season, the chemistry experiment between Ben Simmons, Horford and Joel Embiid remains ongoing.

We’re way past the halfway point of the season, but the Sixers are still mixing and matching.

Wendell Carter Jr. set to return for Bulls

The Bulls should have young center Wendell Carter Jr. back in action soon. Possibly tomorrow. Here’s the Chicago Sun-Times:

Bulls center Wendell Carter Jr. watched Friday night as other first- and second-year NBA players ran up and down the United Center court during the Rising Stars game. He wanted to join them but couldn’t because of the high ankle sprain he suffered Jan. 6 in a loss to the Mavericks…

Carter participated in most of practice at the Advocate Center and hinted he could return to the lineup Thursday night against the Hornets.

In other good news, forward Otto Porter Jr., who has been out with a foot injury since November, was a full participant in practice, though his return timeline is still uncertain.

The Bulls are in a state of rebuild. The squad is all about the future. As for the present, winning would be nice, but the team’s main goal should be to develop young talent, like Carter.

More minutes coming for Pacers guard Victor Oladipo

You’re about to start seeing more of Victor Oladipo.

Well, that’s assuming you watch Pacers games. Which you should, because they’re good.

Okay, lately they haven’t been good, winning just three of their last 10 games. Still, overall this season, they’re a solid squad.

Here’s the Indianapolis Star:

Indiana Pacers coach Nate McMillan said Wednesday that Victor Oladipo is no longer on a minutes restriction. The guard will continue to skip the second game of back-to-backs, however, as he continues his recovery from the knee injury that caused him to miss the first 47 games this season.

“The doctors have cleared him,” McMillan said. “No restrictions as far as minutes, but we’re going to be smart about it. I can play him as many minutes as I want, but we’ll look at how he comes out of those games with increased minutes and adjust accordingly.

The Pacers are 32-23 this seaso, good for 6th in the Eastern conference.

Bulls guard Kris Dunn out 4-6 more weeks

Chicago Bulls guard Kris Dunn underwent an MRI and re-examination on Friday, Feb. 14 by Dr. Brian Cole at Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush. He will continue his current rehabilitation program of his medial collateral ligament sprain for the next 4-6 weeks before progressing to functional training. A determination will be made at that time if additional treatment is required.

According to ESPN.com, “Dunn has started in 32 of Chicago’s games this season and is six starts from reaching starter criteria and seeing his $4.6 million qualifying offer this offseason increase to $7.1 million, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks.”

And the Chicago Tribune reports the following:

Before his injury, Dunn was having a resurgence of sorts. Originally billed as a fast-paced scoring guard when he was picked fifth by the Timberwolves in 2015, he had become a major cog in the Bulls defense and provided one of the rare bright spots on a team with few positives.

Rockets sign Jeff Green to 10-day contract

The Houston Rockets yesterday signed veteran free agent forward Jeff Green to a 10-day contract.

The team will reportedly also soon add small forward DeMarre Carroll, once he clears waivers.

The 6-foot-8, 237-pound Green, now in his 12th NBA season, has played in 890 games with 543 starts, averaging 13.0 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in 29.6 minutes per game.

This season, he played limited minutes for the Utah Jazz.

Last season, in 77 games with 44 starts for the Wizards, Green averaged 12.3 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.4 3-pointers made in 27.2 minutes per game.

Per the Houston Chronicle:

Green, 33, also fits in the Rockets’ recent history of late-season veteran additions, moves that have brought in Michael Beasley and Joe Johnson and generated mixed results. On Thursday, they are expected to sign veteran forward DeMarre Carroll when he clears waivers, according to two individuals with knowledge of the team’s plans.

Even if Green replaces Sefolosha as the backup center, that would still give the Rockets 10 players in the rotation, assuming coach Mike D’Antoni looks at Carroll down the stretch, too. That would seem to be more than he would play in the postseason, making the final eight weeks of the season valuable to experiment.

The Rockets are 34-20 this season, which is the 5th best record in the Western conference.

The team recently traded the only center who played real minutes, Clint Capela, and didn’t replace him with a similar player. Smallball or bust, apparently.

Pistons waive Reggie Jackson, as part of buyout agreement

The Detroit Pistons and Reggie Jackson have agreed to part ways, completing a buyout agreement today. The Pistons therefore waive Jackson.

The Pistons originally acquired Jackson in a February, 2015 trade with the Thunder. As a Pistons, Jackson averaged 16.2 points, 2.9 rebounds and 5.6 assists per game, shooting .425 from the field and .354 from three-point range in 299 games (293 starts).

According to the Detroit Free Press, Jackson “was in the final year of a five-year, $80 million deal signed in 2015, and making $18 million this season.”

Jackson has spent much of this season limited due to injury, and has already missed 43 games in 2019-20.

Jackson’s career high in scoring with Detroit was 40 points, in a November, 2015 game against the Trail Blazers.

The Detroit News had this to say: “After Drummond was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers, Jackson was one of the last vestiges of the Van Gundy era; the only remaining players from that group are Luke Kennard — who becomes the longest-tenured Pistons player — Blake Griffin and Langston Galloway. Galloway is in the final year of his contract and Kennard was rumored to be in trade talks before the deadline.”

Assuming he clears waivers, the veteran guard, per multiple reports, is expected to sign with the Clippers.

Spurs waive veteran forward DeMarre Carroll

The San Antonio Spurs waived forward DeMarre Carroll today, as the two sides came together in a buyout agreement.

In his one season with the Spurs, Carroll barely played, averaging 2.2 points and 2.1 rebounds and 9.0 minutes in 15 games played.

Here’s the San Antonio Express News:

Signed by the Spurs in free agency last summer to a three-year deal worth almost $21 million, Carroll has played in just 15 of the team’s 54 games and not at all since logging two minutes in a Jan. 8 win at Boston. He has been inactive for the last 15 straight contests and was not with the team Feb. 2 when it embarked on the first portion of the eight-game rodeo trip.

“I don’t know what went wrong, what happened,” Carroll said. “I felt like San Antonio was going to be a great place for me, for my talents, but it didn’t work out.”

And in another Express News report:

Under the contract Carroll signed with the Spurs in July, he was due a guaranteed $8 million after this season.

It is a rare step for a team to buy out a player with that much guaranteed money remaining on his deal. Most buyout deals — like Pau Gasol’s last year with the Spurs — tend to happen in the final year of a player’s contract.

Per multiple reports, Carroll is expected to sign with the Rockets.

The Spurs roster now stands at 16.

Celtics will retire Kevin Garnett’s jersey

The Boston Celtics announced tonight that Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Nominee and 2007-08 NBA Champion Kevin Garnett’s number 5 will be retired, joining other Celtics legends to receive the team’s ultimate honor. Garnett’s number will be elevated to the TD Garden rafters during the 2020-21 season.

“I’m honored and thankful to have my number retired with the Celtics,” said Garnett. “I will always have immense respect and appreciation for ownership, Danny Ainge, Doc Rivers, my past teammates and Celtic Nation!”

“From the moment he arrived in the summer of 2007, Kevin changed everything for us,” said Wyc Grousbeck, Celtics Co-Owner. “His complete commitment to winning was a decisive factor in our 2008 championship. He will always be one of my very favorite Celtics.”

“KG arrived in Boston as a quintessential Celtic who embraced the ‘team first’ ethic and brought a competitive fire,” said Steve Pagliuca, Celtics Co-Owner. “We will be forever grateful for his extraordinary contribution to bringing the 17th championship banner to Boston, and we will always remember him as a leader on and off the court. He was the true embodiment of Celtics pride.”

“Kevin gave everything he had to the Celtics in every practice, in every game, and his unique blend of energy, intelligence, and talent brought out the best in his teammates and coaches,” said Danny Ainge, Celtics President of Basketball Operations.

Dame D.O.L.L.A. still expected to perform at 2020 NBA All-Star

Damian Lillard won’t be playing in the 2020 NBA All-Star game or firing threes in the three-point contest, due to injury. Suns guard Devin Booker has replaced him in both events.

But his alter ego, Dame D.O.L.L.A., is still likely snatching the mic and spitting lyrics. Here’s NBC Sports Northwest reporting:

For the past three summers, Dame D.O.L.L.A. has released an album each offseason: The Letter O, Confirmed, and BIG D.O.L.L.A. He has also released three singles: “Bigger than Us,” “Run It Up” feat. Lil Wayne and “Shot Clock.”

It won’t be his first time performing live since Dame D.O.L.L.A. put on a concert in 2016 for Rip City.   

It’ll be fun to see what Dame can do live on a big stage with a mic instead of a basketball.