Category: NBA News Blog

NBA news blog

Thunder hire Adrian Griffin, promote Vin Bhavnani and Royal Ivey

The Oklahoma City Thunder has named Adrian Griffin as assistant coach and promoted Vin Bhavnani and Royal Ivey to assistant coaches, it was announced today by Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti.

“We’re pleased to welcome Adrian to Oklahoma City,” said Head Coach Billy Donovan. “In addition to his wealth of experience as a player and coach that will add value to our program, I also feel that he will be a terrific fit on our coaching staff, and I’m excited for him to join the Thunder organization.”

Griffin joins Donovan’s staff after spending the 2015-16 season as an assistant coach with the Orlando Magic. Prior to last year, Griffin spent the five previous seasons (2010-15) as an assistant coach with the Chicago Bulls.

His coaching experience dates back to 2008 where he served as assistant coach/player development for two seasons (2008-10) with the Milwaukee Bucks. During the summer of 2014, Griffin worked with the USA Basketball Men’s National Team that captured the gold medal at the FIBA Basketball World Cup.

As a player, Griffin appeared in 477 career NBA games (179 starts) during nine seasons with Boston, Dallas, Houston, Chicago and Seattle, averaging 4.0 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 16.8 minutes. Griffin also played one season in Italy and three seasons in the CBA with Connecticut.

A native of Wichita, Kan., Griffin was a three-year starter at Seton Hall and as a senior won All-Big East Second Team honors after averaging 16.2 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game.

Bhavnani, an eight-year veteran of the club, has spent the past six seasons as its Manager of Advanced Scouting/Player Development after starting his career as the team’s Video Coordinator. Prior to joining the Thunder he spent two seasons as a video coordinator with the San Antonio Spurs. Bhavnani started his NBA career as a video intern with the Los Angeles Clippers.

The Los Angeles, Calif., native spent one season as an assistant coach for the women’s basketball team at Santa Monica Junior College after graduating from the University of Southern California in 2003.

Ivey is being elevated to assistant coach after serving last season as a player development assistant with the Thunder.

After a four-year collegiate career at the University of Texas, Ivey enjoyed a 10-year NBA playing career in which he appeared in 492 games (114 starts) and averaged 3.3 points, 1.1 rebounds and 1.1 assists. Ivey’s coaching career began during the 2014-15 season where he served as an assistant coach with the Oklahoma City Blue, the Thunder’s D-League affiliate.

Mark Daigneault, who joined the Thunder staff earlier this year, will return to his role as head coach of the Oklahoma City Blue. Additionally, Daigneault will lead the Thunder entry in the 2016 Orlando Summer League.

O.J. Mayo banned from NBA for two years

O.J. Mayo banned from NBA for two years

The NBA announced today that free agent O.J. Mayo has been dismissed and disqualified from the league for violating the terms of the NBA/NBPA Anti-Drug Program.

Under the Anti-Drug Program, Mayo is eligible to apply for reinstatement in two years.

The NBA, NBA teams, and the Players Association are prohibited from publicly disclosing information regarding the testing or treatment of any NBA player under the Anti-Drug Program, other than to announce a player’s suspension or dismissal from the league.

Hassan Whiteside will re-sign with Heat

Center Hassan Whiteside played just 29.1 minutes per game for the Heat last season, yet averaged an extremely impressive 14.2 points, 11.8 rebounds and 3.7 blocks per outing, with 60.6% shooting. His free throw shooting is a struggle, but Whiteside was clearly in line for a big payday this summer. And he’s receiving it and will stick with Miami. Here’s the Palm Beach Post blog reporting:

Hassan Whiteside will re-sign with Heat

Free-agent center Hassan Whiteside is re-signing with the Heat. The 27-year-old posted this message early Friday morning on The Players’ Tribune website.

There was considerable speculation that the 7-footer might be interested in leaving Miami to join the Dallas Mavericks or Los Angeles Lakers, and he met with both teams early Friday morning. But a source told the Associated Press that Whiteside will sign a four-year maximum deal worth approximately $98 million to remain with the Heat.

Jeremy Lin to sign with Nets

It’s going to take multiple seasons to make real progress, but the Nets are trying to rebuild. They recently traded Thaddeus Young, waived Jarrett Jack, and now are built around center Brook Lopez and a team of backups. Point guard Jeremy Lin is good enough to start for some teams but would come off the bench for most others. But, he’s a player. And he has super-fun history in NYC — Linsanity, ya’ll. Here’s the New York Post reporting:

Jeremy Lin to sign with Nets

Jeremy Lin is back in New York, and the Nets have found their point guard.

Lin announced the move Friday morning on his Twitter account: “The journey continues…thankful for the next chapter!!”

Yahoo reported that the deal is for three years and $36 million, and includes a player option on the third year.

Lin had made a name for himself on the other side of the river with the Knicks midway through the 2011-12 season when Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson was an assistant in the Garden. Lin averaged 18.7 points and 7.7 assists in 25 starts for the Knicks, giving rise to the phenomenon known as Linsanity.

Ish Smith to sign with Pistons

Ish Smith did some fun things on the Sixers last season, averaging 14.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and 7.0 assists in 50 games for Philly. But he’ll be bringing his talents to Detroit. Here’s the Philadelphia Inquirer reporting:

Ish Smith to sign with Pistons

Ish Smith wanted to resign with the 76ers, but knew it wasn’t a guarantee. And he wasn’t going to sit around and wait.

So the point guard has agreed to a three-year, $18 million deal with the Detroit Pistons, according to a source. The Detroit News first reported that Smith reached an agreement. A contract may not be signed until July 7.

“He wanted to come back to Philly, but they never called him,” the source said.

Lakers extend qualifying offers to Jordan Clarkson, Tarik Black and Marcelo Huertas

The Los Angeles Lakers have extended qualifying offers to Tarik Black, Jordan Clarkson, and Marcelo Huertas.

By extending qualifying offers, the players become restricted free agents.

Black was awarded to the Lakers on a waiver claim on December 28, 2014 and has averaged 5.3 points and 5.2 rebounds on 57.5% shooting in 77 games (27 starts) over the past two seasons.

Clarkson, acquired from the Washington Wizards on the night of the 2014 NBA Draft, was an NBA All-Rookie First Team selection in 2015 and was selected to participate in the Rising Stars Challenge at NBA All-Star 2016. In two seasons with the Lakers, Clarkson has averaged 14.0 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 1.0 steals over 138 games (117 starts).

Huertas was signed as a free agent last July, coming to the NBA after a distinguished international playing career, and led the Lakers in assists per game (3.4), in addition to 4.5 points and 1.7 rebounds in his 53 appearances.

Nets waive Jarrett Jack

Nets waive Jarrett Jack

The Brooklyn Nets have requested waivers on guard Jarrett Jack.

According to the New York Post, “Jack had a salary of $6.3 million for next season, but the Nets had until Thursday night to waive him and owe him only $500,000. The team will stretch that sum over three years to save every possible penny of cap room.”

Jack saw action in 112 games over two seasons with Brooklyn, posting averages of 12.2 points, 3.4 rebounds and 5.4 assists in 29.2 minutes per game. This past season, Jack appeared in and started 32 games, averaging 12.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 7.4 assists in 32.1 minutes per game before suffering a season-ending right knee injury on January 2. An 11-year NBA veteran, Jack has played in 803 career games with Portland, Indiana, Toronto, New Orleans, Golden State, Cleveland and Brooklyn, recording averages of 11.1 points, 2.9 rebounds and 4.5 assists in 28.1 minutes per game.

Timberwolves waive Greg Smith

Timberwolves waive Greg Smith

The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced the team has waived forward/center Greg Smith.

Smith was originally signed to 10-day contracts on March 2 and March 12 before being signed through the end of the season on March 22. He averaged 2.4 points and 2.3 rebounds over 18 games last season with the Timberwolves. In his career, Smith has appeared in 149 games with three teams (Houston, Dallas, Minnesota) and holds career averages of 4.0 points and 3.3 rebounds per game.