NBA News Blog – Page 601 – NBA Blog

Pacers sign Kevin Seraphin and Nick Zeisloft

The Pacers signed veteran free agent forward/center Kevin Seraphin and rookie guard Nick Zeisloft today.

The 26-year-old Seraphin, 6-10, 278, was a first-round pick (17th overall) of the Chicago Bulls in the 2010 NBA Draft. Born in Cayenne, French Guiana, France, Seraphin was traded to Washington in July, 2010, and played with the Wizards for five seasons before playing with the New York Knicks last season. He has career averages of 6.1 points and 3.5 rebounds per game.

Zeisloft, 6-4, 185, played last season at Indiana where he averaged 6.5 points and 1.6 rebounds per game.

Raptors sign forward E.J. Singler

The Raptors signed forward E.J. Singler today. He is the younger brother of Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kyle Singler.

Until we hear otherwise, we will assume this is a non-guaranteed deal that merely brings E.J. to Raptors training camp.

E.J., who is 6-foot-6 and 215 pounds, played with the Raptors’ entry in Summer League 2016 in Las Vegas, where he averaged 6.4 points, 2.0 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 19.3 minutes in five games (four starts). He shot .480 (12-for-25) from the field and .412 (7-for-17) from three-point range.

Singler split last season between Raptors 905 and the Idaho Stampede of the NBA D-League. He was acquired from the Stampede on March 4 and averaged 14.7 points, 7.5 rebounds and 30.9 minutes in 10 games with Raptors 905.

Singler owns career D-league averages of 10.6 points, 4.3 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 25.4 minutes in 68 games (12 starts) with Idaho (2013-14, 2015-16) and Raptors 905. He won the 2014 Boost Mobile NBA D-League Three-Point Competition.

Singler played four seasons at Oregon (2009-13), averaging 10.9 points, 5.1 rebounds and 29.3 minutes. He became just the eighth player in school history to total 1,500 career points and 500 career rebounds. Singler finished his collegiate career as the winningest player in school history with 89 victories.

Jazz sign Quincy Ford

The Jazz today signed forward/guard Quincy Ford.

According to the Salt Lake Tribune, “on a deal that comes with a partial guarantee of $75,000, Ford, a 6-foot-8 small forward out of Northeastern, will attend training camp, which starts on September 27th, and is expected to be on the Salt Lake City Stars roster, Utah’s D-League affiliate.”

The 6-8, 225 Ford played in 130 games over five seasons at Northeastern University from 2011-16, and averaged 12.4 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.4 steals in 31.9 minutes per game. As a senior at Northeastern, Ford averaged 16.4 points, a team-high 7.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.5 steals in 34.8 minutes in 29 contests.

The 23-year-old was a member of the Jazz summer league squad at the 2016 Utah Jazz Summer League (July 4-7) and Vegas Summer League (July 8-15), averaging 5.1 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 19.0 minutes of action in eight games (five starts).

Born in St. Petersburg, Fla., Ford played high school basketball at Gibbs High School.

He will wear jersey #17 for the Jazz.

Free Grizzlies scrimmage on October 1

On October 1, 2016 from 6-8 p.m., the Grizzlies will host a “Blue White Scrimmage” in place of the annual Open Practice at FedExForum. This full-team scrimmage will be Grizz Nation’s first-look at newcomers Chandler Parsons, 2016 draftees Wade Baldwin IV and Deyonta Davis, plus fan favorites Marc Gasol, Mike Conley, Zach Randolph and Tony Allen.

Led by new Head Coach David Fizdale, the Blue White Scrimmage will also include entertainment teams like the Grizz Girls, Claw Crew and more, plus fan giveaways.

The scrimmage is free to the public and parking is available in the Toyota Parking Garage. Fans in attendance will receive a voucher for two complimentary tickets to a Grizzlies 2016-17 preseason matchup.

In addition, the Grizzlies Foundation will make a donation on behalf of Scrimmage attendees to the Police Athletic League in support of their community based youth programming.

Hornets sign Andrew Andrews and Rasheed Sulaimon

The Hornets today signed guards Andrew Andrews and Rasheed Sulaimon. The Hornets roster now stands at 18 players.

Until we hear otherwise, we will assume these are non-guaranteed contracts that merely bring these two players to training camp, which opens in a few weeks.

As a senior at the University of Washington last season, the 6-2 Andrews averaged career highs of 20.9 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.9 assists in 33.8 minutes per game. During his final collegiate campaign, he ranked first in the Pac-12 in scoring per contest and fourth in assists per game, earning 2015-16 All-Pac-12 First Team honors. The Portland, Ore., native appeared in 128 career games during his four-year career, owning averages of 14.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.2 steals in 30.7 minutes per game. He left Washington as the school’s all-time leader in free throws made (578) and ranked third all-time in points (1,812).

The 6-4 Sulaimon finished his collegiate career at Maryland in 2015-16, appearing in 36 games with averages of 11.3 points on .425 shooting from three-point range, 3.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 32.9 minutes per game, garnering a 2015-16 All-Big Ten honorable mention. Prior to his senior season, the Houston native spent three years at Duke (2012-15), playing in 90 total games with averages of 10.0 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 25.6 minutes per contest. He was named to the ACC All-Freshman Team following the 2012-13 season.

Andrews will wear No. 1 and Sulaimon will wear No. 6 for Charlotte.

Sixers sign Elton Brand

The 76ers have brought back veteran power forward Elton Brand.

Brand averaged 7.2 points per game for the Mavericks in 2012-13, 5.7 ppg for the Hawks in 2013-14, 2.7 ppg still with the Hawks in 2014-15, and 4.1 ppg last season in 17 games for the Sixers.

He’s being brought back mostly to mentor all the talented young big-men on the Sixers roster, though he was signed as a player. Perhaps a coaching job is in his future.

Over 17 NBA seasons, Brand has appeared in 1,058 career games with 868 starts, posting averages of 16 points, nine rebounds, two assists and two blocks per game. He has played 34,910 career minutes, which ranks him 67th all-time. Brand was also the recipient of the 2005-06 Joe Dumars Trophy, presented each season to the player who exemplifies the ideals of sportsmanship on the court.

Brand signed with the Sixers on January 4, 2016 after originally spending four seasons in Philadelphia from 2008-2012, when he posted averages of 13 points and seven rebounds per game. Brand averaged 16 points and eight rebounds for the Sixers in the 2011 NBA Playoffs and averaged 11 points across 18 total playoff games during his first stint in Philadelphia.

A two-time NBA All-Star, Brand was the first overall pick in the 1999 NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls and was named Rookie of the Year.

Kings sign rookie guard Isaiah Cousins

The Kings have signed rookie guard Isaiah Cousins.

Drafted in the second round (59th overall) in the 2016 Draft by Sacramento out of Oklahoma, the 6-5 guard averaged 9.7 points (.408 FG%, .407 3pt%, .711 FT%), 3.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.1 steals and 27.7 minutes per game over 137 career contests in four seasons with the Sooners (2012-13 – 2015-16).

Stat-wise, Cousins was at his best as a senior, averaging career-bests in points (12.6 ppg), assists (4.5 apg), steals (1.4 spg) and minutes (33.3 mpg) while grabbing 4.5 rebounds a game, shooting 40.6 percent from the field and 41.1 percent from three-point range.

Raptors sign team president Masai Ujiri to contract extension

The Raptors on Friday signed President Masai Ujiri to a multi-year contract extension and promoted Jeff Weltman to general manager and Bobby Webster to assistant general manager/vice-president basketball strategy. Ujiri will continue to oversee basketball operations as president of the club.

“I am grateful to the Board and Mr. Tanenbaum for the opportunity to continue our progress to build the Raptors into one of the top franchises in the NBA,” said Ujiri. “I’m also excited that Jeff and Bobby are being rewarded for their hard work and valuable contributions to our program.

“My family thanks the NBA, Raptors players and coaches, staff, Raptors fans, the city of Toronto and Canada for this opportunity. Toronto is home for us.”

In their three seasons with the Raptors, Ujiri, Weltman and Webster have helped to build a team that has won three consecutive Atlantic Division titles, advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals, posted three straight seasons with franchise-high victories, including 56 wins this past season, and compiled a 153-93 (.622) mark – the best record in the Eastern Conference in that span.

“The gratitude and respect we hold for Masai and our Raptors senior management team are reflected in our Board’s action to extend Masai’s contract,” said Larry Tanenbaum, Chairman of the Board. “We are excited to build on our team’s success and to give Masai our full support in delivering to our fans and to our country the Toronto Raptors’ first NBA championship.”

Ujiri was named president and general manager May 31, 2013. In addition to his role with the Raptors, Ujiri has been tireless in his efforts to promote and develop the game of basketball throughout Africa. He is the founder of the Giants of Africa Foundation, which launched the Top 50 and Big Man camps in his homeland. He has also served as the director of the NBA’s Basketball Without Borders program since 2002.

Sixers waive Carl Landry and Tibor Pleiss, sign Anthony Barber

The 76ers on Wednesday waived forward Carl Landry and center Tibor Pleiss, and signed guard Anthony ‘Cat’ Barber.

Barber played three seasons at North Carolina State University prior to declaring for the 2016 NBA Draft. This past season, he was named First Team All-ACC and led the conference with averages of 24 points and 39 minutes played per game. Over the course of his three seasons with the Wolfpack, the 2013 McDonald’s All-American appeared in 104 games and posted averages of 15 points, four assists and three rebounds in 31 minutes per game.

This past season, Landry appeared in 36 games (12 starts) and averaged 10 points and four rebounds in 16 minutes per game. A veteran of nine NBA seasons, Landry has played for five NBA teams since being selected by the Seattle SuperSonics with the 31st overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft. In 513 games (93 starts), Landry holds career averages of 11 points and five rebounds in 23 minutes per game.

Pleiss, acquired from Utah on August 26, was originally selected with the 31st overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft by the Brooklyn Nets and acquired by the Jazz as part of a three-team trade in February, 2015. In 12 career games with Utah, he posted averages of two points and one rebound in seven minutes per game.

Noah Vonleh out 3-4 weeks after surgery

Trail Blazers forward Noah Vonleh underwent a procedure today to remove a bone fragment from his right thigh musculature.

Dr. Evan Ellis performed the procedure at Rebound in Vancouver, Washington.

The expected recovery time is 3-4 weeks.

Vonheh played 15.1 minutes per game in the 2015-16 season for the Blazers, averaging 3.6 points and 3.9 rebounds. That is backup-level court time, though he started in 56 of 78 games played.