NBA News Blog – Page 604 – NBA Blog

Trail Blazers sign Grant Jerrett

The Trail Blazers have signed forward Grant Jerrett to a training camp contract, team president of basketball operations Neil Olshey announced today.

Jerrett, 23, last played in the NBA as a rookie in 2014-15, averaging 2.0 points (26.9% FG), 1.1 rebounds, 0.4 assists and 6.4 minutes in eight games with the Oklahoma City Thunder and Utah Jazz.

An early entry draft candidate out of the University of Arizona, Jerrett (6-10, 235) averaged 14.5 points (44.5% FG, 37.6% 3-PT, 76.3% FT), 6.4 rebounds, 1.0 assist and 28.9 minutes over two seasons (2013-14, 2014-15) with the Idaho Stampede and Oklahoma City Blue of the NBA Development League.

Jerrett was acquired by Oklahoma City in a draft day trade after originally being selected by the Trail Blazers in the second round (40th overall) of the 2013 NBA Draft.

Bucks hire Craig Robinson as VP of Player and Organizational Development

The Bucks have hired Craig Robinson as the team’s new Vice President of Player and Organizational Development. He will serve as a mentor and advisor to the Bucks roster – the youngest in the NBA.

“Player development is instrumental to the success of our players on the court and their valuable impact in the community,” said Bucks co-owner Wes Edens. “We strive to equip every member of our organization with the tools they need to find personal success beyond basketball. As we continue to build a world-class franchise, we’re thrilled to have someone with Craig’s experience and character join our team and help our players reach their full potential on and off the court.”

Robinson will oversee the development and implementation of programs that support the professional and personal growth of players through education, mentorship, business and community efforts that align with the mission and goals of the Bucks organization.

“It’s so important to surround our young players with talented and experienced people that can help mentor and guide them through the different stages of their careers,” said General Manager John Hammond. “Craig has an impressive set of qualifications that we feel will be beneficial to our players and our entire organization. We couldn’t be more excited to welcome him to the Bucks family.”

A Chicago native, Robinson was a two-time Ivy League Player of the Year at Princeton University where he graduated with a degree in sociology. After a brief professional basketball career overseas, Robinson returned to his hometown to get his first experience as an assistant coach at the Illinois Institute of Technology. He left the sidelines to pursue a graduate degree in finance (M.B.A.) from the University of Chicago and went on to a career in finance and banking.

Robinson returned to the hardwood in 1999, joining Northwestern University as an assistant coach until he was named head coach at Brown University in 2006. After a two-year stint at Brown, he was named head coach at Oregon State University (2008-14) where his 93 wins made him the fourth-winningest coach in program history.

Robinson and his wife, Kelly, were married in 2006. He is the father of four children: sons Austin, Aaron and Avery, and daughter Leslie. Robinson is also the older brother of First Lady Michelle Obama.

NBA: Thunder sign Ronnie Price

The Thunder today signed guard Ronnie Price.

He’ll serve as a backup to guard Russell Westbrook, who will have an even bigger role on the team this season than usual now that Kevin Durant left to sign with the Warriors.

Offensively, the Thunder will be a more guard-heavy team than ever next season since they traded power forward Serge Ibaka and landed SG Victor Oladipo.

According to the Oklahoman, “Price and rookie Domantas Sabonis had their contracts finalized in a span of three days, setting the Thunder roster at 15 players – the maximum a team can have on its active roster at any time – but, more importantly, 15 guaranteed contracts for 2016-17. The reported signing of bouncy 6-foot-8 forward Chris Wright to a partially-guaranteed deal will likely place him on the D-League Oklahoma City Blue.”

Price (6-2, 190), spent last season with Phoenix appearing in 62 games (18 starts), averaging career-bests in points (5.3), assists (2.4), rebounds (1.6), steals (1.19) and minutes played (19.5). An 11-year NBA veteran, undrafted out Utah Valley State College (now Utah Valley University), Price has appeared in 530 games (73 starts) with Sacramento, Utah, Phoenix, Portland, Orlando and L.A. Lakers, averaging 3.8 points, 1.8 assists 1.2 rebounds in 13.5 minutes per game.

Thunder sign rookie Domantas Sabonis

The Thunder have signed rookie forward Domantas Sabonis.

Sabonis (6-11, 240), was selected with the 11th overall pick of the 2016 NBA Draft following his sophomore year at Gonzaga. The forward earned All-WCC First Team honors as a sophomore after averaging 17.6 points on .611 shooting from the field (239-of-391), 11.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 31.8 minutes in 36 games with the Bulldogs. The forward was named to the All-WCC Second Team, All-WCC Freshman Team, NIT All-Tournament Team and NCAA South Regional All-Tournament Team as a freshman. He played in 35 games in 2013-14 for Unicaja Malaga in the Spanish ACB league.

He was acquired by Oklahoma City on the night of the 2016 NBA Draft along with guard Victor Oladipo and forward Ersan Ilyasova from the Orlando Magic in exchange for forward Serge Ibaka.

The 20-year old is currently competing in the 2016 Summer Olympics with the Lithuania men’s national basketball team.

Cavs will receive NBA championship rings on October 25

The regular season schedule came out today. Here’s the Akron Beacon Journal reporting on the NBA champion Cavaliers:

The NBA figured 52 years was long enough. Cleveland fans won’t have to wait longer than they have to for their championship banner to be raised.

The Cavaliers will receive their championship rings on opening night against the New York Knicks on Oct. 25. They’ll also host Kevin Durant and the Golden State Warriors in a highly anticipated rematch on Christmas Day — this time at home. It will be their first home game on Christmas since 2008.

The Cavs will face Carmelo Anthony and the revamped Knicks at home to start a season for the second time in three years — the two teams also met on opening night when James first returned to Cleveland two years ago. More details regarding the special opening night ceremonies and championship celebration will be released later.

Enes Kanter disowned by parents for political disagreement

We don’t talk politics, but we’re happy to make observations about the world of political discussion. And that world seems to just… be pulling everyone to one extreme or the other. The result appears to be… more and more division. And, it’s sad. On that front, here’s the Norman Transcript reporting:

Enes Kanter has always been outspoken about his opinions opposing the Turkish government. Now, after a recent coup in Turkey, his parents are making their disapproval official.

The father of the Thunder power forward, Mehmet Kanter, published a letter in multiple Turkish publications Monday saying that he and his family have disowned their son.

“I apologize to the Turkish people and the president for having such a son,” he wrote, according to Daily Sabah, a pro-government, anti-Gulen, English-speaking Turkish publication.

Warriors add Willie Green to coaching staff

The Warriors have added Willie Green to Steve Kerr’s coaching staff as an assistant coach/player development.

Green, 35, played 12 seasons in the NBA, posting averages of 8.3 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 731 regular-season games with the Philadelphia 76ers, New Orleans Hornets, Atlanta Hawks, Los Angeles Clippers and Orlando Magic. Originally selected by the Seattle SuperSonics in the second round (41st overall) of the 2003 NBA Draft, Green was acquired by the 76ers in a draft night trade and spent his first seven seasons in Philadelphia—including six seasons as a teammate of Warriors forward Andre Iguodala. Green, who last played with Orlando in 2014-15, qualified for the postseason seven times over his 12-year career, averaging 5.2 points over 36 playoff games.

A native of Detroit, Mich., Green attended the University of Detroit Mercy, where he was named Horizon League Player of the Year as a senior in 2002-03.

Nuggets sign Jamal Murray, Juancho Hernangomez, Malik Beasley

The Nuggets have signed guard Jamal Murray, forward Juancho Hernangomez and guard Malik Beasley to multi-year contracts, it was announced today by General Manager and Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Tim Connelly.

Murray, 6-4, 207, was selected by the Denver Nuggets with the 7th overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft.

The 19-year-old appeared in five games (all starts) for the Nuggets at the 2016 Samsung Summer League in Las Vegas, averaging 19.6 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 29.5 minutes per game. Among players that played at least five games, Murray ranked fourth in scoring while also tallying three straight games of 20+ points.

Murray played one season for the Kentucky Wildcats in 2015-16, appearing in 36 games and averaging 20.0 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists while shooting 40.8% from three-point range.

Hernangomez, 6-9, 230, a native of Madrid, Spain, was selected with the 15th pick in the 2016 NBA draft. He appeared in five games (all starts) for the Nuggets at the 2016 Samsung Summer League, holding averages of 10.2 points, 8.2 rebounds and 1.8 assists while shooting 55% from the field. Hernangomez ranked fifth in rebounds among players that appeared in at least five games, while posting a double-double in two contests.

Hernangomez, played for Movistar Estudiantes of the Spanish ACB league in 2015-16. Appearing in 24 games, he averaged 9.8 points and 3.7 rebounds in 23.5 minutes.

Beasley, 6-5, 196, was drafted with the 19th overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft. He did not participate in the 2016 Samsung NBA Summer League after recovering from a pre-existing injury. He appeared in 34 contests during the 2015-16 season with the Florida State Seminoles, averaging 15.6 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 29.8 minutes.

Murray will wear jersey #27, Hernangomez will wear jersey #41 and Beasley will wear jersey #25.

Ricky Rubio does little in Spain loss to Brazil

Here’s the Minneapolis Star Tribune reporting on Team Spain, who aren’t getting much production from point guard Ricky Rubio:

Ricky Rubio walked off at halftime looking dejected, staring at the floor, the last of Spain’s players to get to the locker room. By the end of the game, he was standing on the sideline, waving a towel, urging on his teammates.

Rubio contributed another unproductive game to Spain’s waning Olympic hopes on Tuesday, producing three points before fouling out of Spain’s 66-65 loss to Brazil at the Rio Games. In 16 minutes, Rubio produced four rebounds, two turnovers, three points, zero steals or blocks and zero assists. He finished minus-6 for a team that lost in the last seconds to a less-heralded team.

Steve Kerr says Kevin Durant is no villain

The Warriors won 73 games last season, reached the NBA Finals, and then this offseason added superstar Kevin Durant as a free agent. Durant joined the team that beat his Thunder squad in the Western Conference Finals. Here’s ESPN.com reporting Warriors coach Steve Kerr’s words:

Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr says it’s “absurd” to cast Kevin Durant as a villain because he left the Oklahoma City Thunder as a free agent and joined the Warriors this summer.

“To think of Kevin Durant or Steph Curry or any of our guys as villains, it’s kind of absurd. Especially Kevin,” Kerr said Sunday in an interview on ESPN Radio’s TMI with Michelle Beadle and Ramona Shelburne. “This is one of the most likeable people in this league. He’s just an awesome human being. What he did in Oklahoma City was just amazing for that community.

Kerr added: “Circumstances kind of dictate, I guess, that some people are going to see him as a villain. But it’s only because he decided to go elsewhere to play. He wanted to change his scenery, he wanted a new challenge. More than anything he wanted to play with our guys. He loves Draymond [Green] and Steph and Klay [Thompson] and Andre [Iguodala]. Seeing those guys in New York, he loved seeing the chemistry that exists and he wanted to be a part of it.”