Category: NBA News Blog

NBA news blog

LeBron James informs Kevin Love that he will start at center

Everything LeBron James or the Cleveland Cavaliers do these days is news. As for lineup changes, it’s surely the head coach’s decision, right? Of course it is. But LeBron James is probably in the conversation about those sort of things, even though he isn’t the coach. Or something like that. Jumble those sentence around until they satisfy you. Anyway, here’s ESPN.com reporting:

Kevin Love said he learned he would be moving from starting power forward to starting center in the Cavaliers’ lineup during a casual conversation with LeBron James, before head coach Tyronn Lue formally introduced the change to him and the team…

“But a funny thing happened the third day of practice,” Love explained. “I had asked about a certain play on the defensive end and whether it was the different coverages on the 4 or 5 man, and ‘Bron kind of stopped me and goes, ‘You know you’re gonna be starting at the 5, right?’

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Utah Jazz sign Torian Graham

The Utah Jazz have signed free agent guard Torian Graham (pronounced TORE-ee-in).

Graham (6-5,195, Arizona State) appeared in 33 games (23 starts), averaging 18.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.2 assists for the Sun Devils during the 2016-17 season. He ranked first in the Pac-12 in three-point field goals made per contest (3.3), second in scoring average, seventh in minutes per game (34.8) and his 108 threes on the year were tied for the 14th most in NCAA Division I. Tallying 13 games with 20-or-more points and two games with 30-plus points, Graham garnered a 2017 Pac-12 Honorable Mention following the 2016-17 campaign. Prior to his lone season at Arizona State, he played for two seasons at Chipola Junior College (Fla.), helping the squad to a 26-6 record as a sophomore.

The Durham, N.C. native competed with the Dallas Mavericks entry at the 2017 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, seeing action in three contests.

The roster now stands at 20 players.

Magic sign Rodney Purvis

The Orlando Magic have signed free agent guard Rodney Purvis, President of Basketball Operations Jeff Weltman announced today.

Purvis (6’4”, 205, 2/14/94) played in 137 career games (100 starts) during four years at both North Carolina State (2012-13) and the University of Connecticut (2014-17), averaging 11.6 ppg., 3.0 rpg. and 1.8 apg. in 29.1 minpg. Last season, he appeared in 33 games (32 starts), averaging 13.8 ppg., 4.2 rpg., 2.5 apg. and 1.03 stlpg. in 36.9 minpg. As a sophomore (2014-15), Purvis led the Huskies in scoring during the postseason, averaging 17.8 ppg., and was named to the 2015 American Athletic Conference’s All-Tournament Team.

Purvis will wear #15 for the Magic.

Orlando’s roster now stands at 20 players.

Preseason: Nets beat Knicks by 34

Preseason is just a warmup, but there’s also less of it this year. And the regular season is around one week away. And even in preseason, it’s fun for NYC-area fans to see what happens when the Knicks and Nets play each other. Here’s the New York Post reporting:

With Floyd Mayweather seated in the front row, the Nets put a beating on the Knicks that the boxing champion would have been proud of.

Yes, it was just preseason. No, it won’t count in the standings. But after rolling 117-83 on Sunday — and hammering their cross-river rivals twice in the span of three days — early returns say the Nets are the best basketball team in the city.

The Nets’ long-armed, versatile switching defense held the Knicks to 38.7 percent shooting, and 4-of-15 from beyond the 3-point arc. They had 13 steals and turned 25 turnovers into 35 points. And they turned that defense to offense, swing and moving the ball for 29 assists…

D’Angelo Russell had 16 points, seven assists and three steals, all team-highs.

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Raptors sign Norman Powell to contract extension

Raptors sign Norman Powell to contract extension

The Toronto Raptors have signed guard Norman Powell to a multi-year contract extension.

“Norm is a young, athletic and versatile player who has worked extremely hard to improve each season,” said Raptors President Masai Ujiri. “We view Norm as a significant part of our team going forward.”

According to ESPN.com, the deal is a four-year, $42 million contract with a player option on the fourth year.

In two seasons with the Raptors, Powell is averaging 7.3 points, 2.2 rebounds and 16.7 minutes in 125 career games (42 starts). He has shot .351 (92-262) from three-point range. In 27 career playoff contests, Powell owns averages of 6.4 points, 2.0 rebounds and 16.0 minutes.

Powell, 6-4, 215 pounds, was selected by Milwaukee with the 46th overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft. The Raptors acquired him on draft night from the Bucks along with a protected future first-round pick in exchange for guard Greivis Vasquez.

Powell posted averages of 8.4 points, 2.2 rebounds and 18.0 minutes in 76 appearances last season. He scored in double figures 31 times, including six games with 20-or-more points. Powell led the bench in scoring 13 times (second most on the team). In 18 starts, he averaged 15.6 points, 3.7 rebounds and 31.9 minutes; and reached double digits in scoring 17 times.

During his rookie season, Powell averaged 5.6 points, 2.3 rebounds and 14.8 minutes in 49 outings (24 starts). He was named Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month for April, leading all Eastern Conference rookies averaging 15.3 points in eight games. Powell set career highs with 30 points and nine rebounds, along with a career high-tying five assists April 13 at Brooklyn.

Powell played for seasons (2011-15) at UCLA, averaging 9.8 points, 3.0 rebounds and 25.2 minutes in 141 career games. He played in three consecutive NCAA Tournaments (2013-15) and made back-to-back Sweet 16 appearances (2014-15). Powell was named first-team All-Pac 12 and was an Honourable Mention selection on the All-Pac 12 Defensive Team as a senior.

Frank Ntilikina out with lingering knee bruise

There are lots of minor injuries suffered in each NBA preseason. But it’s not a great sign when an injury is the same thing that hit a player during summer league. Still seems like no big deal for now, but here’s the NY Post reporting:

Frank Ntilikina will sit out his second straight preseason game — Sunday against the Nets — and is still considered day-to-day with a knee bruise, but the 19-year-old said he could return to action Monday night against the Rockets.

Ntilikina, who missed all of summer league because of the same injury, said he isn’t concerned the issue will linger much longer.

“It’s going to be all right,” Ntilikina said. “I’m feeling better, better than [Friday]. I did a lot of treatment on my knee. … This is a very long season, 82 games, so doing stupid things, trying to play even if my knee is not all right is not smart. So, it would be best for me be to be healthy and to be ready for the whole season.”

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T.J. Warren does not have concussion, remains day-to-day

Last night, Phoenix Suns forward T.J. Warren received sutures for a laceration on his head. By NBA policy, he was evaluated for a concussion and was not placed into the concussion protocol.

This afternoon, he was re-evaluated by Team Physician Dr. Tom Fiel in Phoenix and it was confirmed he will not be placed in the concussion protocol.

His status is day-to-day.