NBA News Blog – Page 657 – NBA Blog

Heat trade Jarnell Stokes to Pelicans

The New Orleans Pelicans have acquired forward Jarnell Stokes and cash considerations from the Miami HEAT in exchange for a future second round draft pick.

Stokes, 6-9, 255, has appeared in 26 career NBA games with Miami and Memphis, holding career averages on 2.5 points and 1.5 rebounds in 5.5 minutes per game. Stokes has appeared in 16 games this season for Miami’s D-League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce, averaging 20.6 points on .673 shooting from the floor to go along with 10.2 points, 1.1 assists, 1.1 steals and 0.9 blocks in 30.9 minutes per game while earning a selection to the 2016 D-League All-Star Game in Toronto.

The Memphis native was selected with the 35th overall pick by Utah in the 2014 NBA Draft after a three-year career at the University of Tennessee.

Nets hire Sean Marks as General Manager

The Brooklyn Nets announced today that the team has named Sean Marks as General Manager.

“After an exhaustive vetting process, we are delighted to have Sean as our General Manager,” Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov said. “His experience on the court, in coaching and management gives him a 360 degree view of the job at hand. His background helping to build one of the greatest teams in the NBA gives him an unparalleled frame of reference. And he impressed us all with his vision, his values, his personality and his enthusiasm for the club. The vote to select him from an incredible list of talent was unanimous. We welcome Sean into our Nets family and look forward to his strong leadership and independent thinking as we build our own success story.”

“I am very excited to be named the General Manager of the Brooklyn Nets, and to become a member of the vibrant and dynamic organization that represents Brooklyn,” Marks said. “I would like to thank Nets’ ownership for giving me this opportunity, and I look forward to the challenge of creating a unified culture and building a winning team.”

Marks joins the Nets after spending the past five years with the San Antonio Spurs, including the last two seasons as the team’s assistant general manager. Prior to serving as assistant general manager, Marks spent one season as an assistant coach on the Spurs’ 2014 NBA Championship team, one season as the team’s director of basketball operations and general manager of the Spurs’ NBA Development League affiliate, the Austin Spurs, and one season as a basketball operations assistant.

A veteran of 12 NBA seasons, Marks was originally selected with the 44th pick in the second round of the 1998 NBA draft by the New York Knicks. Over the course of his playing career, he suited up for six different franchises, including the Toronto Raptors (1998-00), Miami Heat (2001-03), Phoenix Suns (2006-08), New Orleans Hornets (2008-10) and Portland Trail Blazers (2010-11). He also spent two seasons with the Spurs (2004-06) and was a member of the 2005 NBA Championship team.

Prior to embarking on his NBA career, Marks spent played four seasons at the University of California, Berkeley, where he served as a captain during his senior season (1997-98). He earned his degree in political science from the school in 1998.

Marks is a native of Auckland, New Zealand, representing the country in the 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games. He was also a part of the team that finished fourth at the 2002 FIBA World Championship.

Kings fire assistant coach Vance Walberg

The Sacramento Kings announced today a change to its coaching staff, parting ways with assistant coach Vance Walberg, according to Vice President of Basketball Operations and General Manager Vlade Divac.

“This was a tough decision made after consideration of what is best for the team moving forward,” Divac said. “We want to thank Vance for his contributions to the organization and wish him the very best in his future endeavors.”

Walberg joined the Sacramento bench on February 23, 2015.

Thunder assistant coach Mo Cheeks out after hip surgery

Thunder assistant coach Mo Cheeks out six weeks

The Oklahoma City Thunder announced that assistant coach Maurice Cheeks underwent successful hip surgery today. Cheeks will return to the team in a week for practices and meetings, and will be back on the Thunder bench for games in approximately six weeks.

Oklahoma City Blue Head Coach Mark Daigneault will join Thunder Head Coach Billy Donovan’s staff as an assistant for the remainder of the season. Blue assistant coach Jarell Christian will assume Daigneault’s role with the Blue for the rest of their 2015-16 campaign.

Daigneault becomes the third coach to be called up to the Thunder from its D-League team. Darko Rajakovic was hired as Thunder assistant coach in July 2014 after serving two seasons as the head coach of the Thunder’s D-League team, and Royal Ivey was hired at the start of the 2015-16 campaign as a player development assistant following his stint as an assistant for the Blue during the 2014-15 season.

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist undergoes season-ending shoulder surgery

Charlotte Hornets forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist underwent successful surgery today to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder. The procedure was completed by Dr. Gerald Williams at Methodist Hospital in Philadelphia. Kidd-Gilchrist will miss the remainder of the 2015-16 NBA season.

Kidd-Gilchrist is averaging 12.7 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 29.3 minutes per game in seven contests (all starts) for the Hornets this season. The fourth-year forward from Kentucky has averaged 9.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game in 202 games (198 starts) with Charlotte.

Hornets, Grizzlies, Heat trade moves Courtney Lee to Charlotte

Charlotte Hornets General Manager Rich Cho announced today that the team has acquired guard Courtney Lee and cash considerations from the Memphis Grizzlies in a three-team trade. As a part of the trade, Charlotte will send forward P.J. Hairston and two second-round draft picks (Charlotte’s 2018 second-round pick and Brooklyn’s 2019 second-round pick) to Memphis and guard Brian Roberts to the Miami Heat. As part of the trade, Memphis will also receive forward/center Chris Andersen and two second-round draft picks from Miami.

“We are excited to be adding a quality veteran wing player to our roster in Courtney Lee,” Cho said. “Courtney has proven to be a team defender, a consistent outside shooter and a solid scorer in our league for the past eight years. Particularly in terms of experience, he adds depth to our roster in a position of need for us and we expect him to fit in to our system and contribute right away.”

The 22nd overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft, Lee is in his eighth NBA season. He has played in 572 career games (332 starts) for the Magic, Nets, Rockets, Celtics and Grizzlies. A Western Kentucky product, Lee has career averages of 9.7 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 27.2 minutes, while shooting .450 from the field (2106-4677), .383 from beyond the three-point line (587-1531) and .845 from the free-throw line (725-858).

Lee played in 51 games for Memphis this season, starting 37, with averages of 10.0 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 29.2 minutes. He shot .458 from the field (192-419), .370 from beyond the three-point line (51-138) and .826 from the free-throw line (76-92). Lee scored in double figures in 25 of 51 games and has hit multiple three-point field goals in 14 games this year.

“Chris Andersen was absolutely essential in our 2013 NBA Championship run,” said HEAT President Pat Riley. “We want to thank him for his contributions and we wish him nothing but the best, he will always be considered part of the HEAT family. Brian Roberts has been on our radar and we felt it was important to solidify our point guard position due to the injury of Tyler Johnson. We feel like we did that with the addition of Roberts and we would like to welcome Brian to Miami.”

Andersen (6-10, 245) holds career averages of 5.5 points (.533 FG/.653 FT), 5.1 rebounds and 1.47 blocks in 17.8 minutes in 663 games (31 starts) over 14 seasons with the Denver Nuggets, New Orleans Hornets (now Pelicans) and Miami Heat. The 37-year-old owns postseason averages of 5.4 points (.644 FG/.692 FT), 4.8 rebounds and 1.26 blocks in 17.0 minutes in 69 games for Denver and Miami.

A native of Long Beach, Calif., Andersen won an NBA Championship with Miami in 2013 and was instrumental in the Heat’s championship run, averaging 6.4 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.10 blocks in 15.2 minutes in 20 games and setting an NBA postseason record by shooting .807 (46-of-57 FG) from the field.

Hairston (6-6, 230) owns career averages of 5.8 points (.341 FG/.833 FT) and 2.4 rebounds in 17.5 minutes in 93 games (45 starts) in two seasons with Charlotte. The 23-year-old has averaged 6.0 points (.359 FG/.810 FT) and 2.7 rebounds in 19.5 minutes in 48 games (45 starts) for the Hornets this season.

After leading the University of North Carolina in scoring as a sophomore, Hairston joined the NBA Development League and became the first D-League player ever to be selected in the first round of the NBA Draft when Charlotte drafted him 26th overall in 2014. He averaged 21.8 points (.453 FG/.358 3P/.870 FT), 3.5 rebounds and 1.50 steals in 32.3 minutes in 26 games (15 starts) for the Texas Legends and was named to the 2013-14 D-League All-Rookie Second Team.

Roberts is in his fourth NBA season and his second with Charlotte. Roberts signed with the Hornets as a free agent on July 23, 2014, and saw action in 102 games with averages 6.1 points and 2.0 assists in 16.3 minutes per game. He holds career averages of 7.4 points, 2.6 assists and 1.5 rebounds per game in 18.5 minutes per game over the course of 252 contests (57 starts).

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist will have season-ending shoulder surgery

The Charlotte Hornets announced today that forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist will undergo surgery to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder. The surgery will be performed tomorrow by Dr. Gerald Williams at Methodist Hospital in Philadelphia. Kidd-Gilchrist will miss the remainder of the 2015-16 NBA season. He sustained the injury with 8:39 remaining in the third quarter of Charlotte’s 117-95 win against the Indiana Pacers on Feb. 10.

Tiago Splitter will undergo season-ending hip surgery

After seeing multiple specialists to determine the best course of treatment for his right hip pain, Atlanta Hawks center Tiago Splitter has elected to have surgery to repair his right hip. Splitter will miss the remainder of the 2015-16 season, including the 2016 NBA Playoffs.

The timing of the procedure is being finalized and his status will be updated once complete

Magic trade Tobias Harris to Pistons for Brandon Jennings, Ersan Ilyasova

The Orlando Magic have acquired guard Brandon Jennings and forward Ersan Ilyasova (ER-san eel-ya-SO-va) from the Detroit Pistons in exchange for forward Tobias Harris, General Manager Rob Hennigan announced today.

“Brandon (Jennings) and Ersan (Ilyasova) are two veterans that will help balance our roster and provide valuable experience to our team,” said Hennigan. “Both players bring scoring, competitiveness and added depth to our roster. We want to thank Tobias (Harris) for his contributions, both on and off the court.”

Jennings (6’1”, 169, 9/23/89) has played in 23 games (one start) this season with Detroit, averaging 6.8 ppg., 3.0 apg. and 2.0 rpg. in 18.1 minpg. He has led (or tied) the team in scoring once, in rebounding once and in assists three times this season. Jennings has scored in double figures six times this season, including a season-high 22 points on Jan. 30 @ Toronto.

Originally selected in the first round (tenth overall) of the 2009 NBA Draft by Milwaukee, Jennings has played in 435 career regular season NBA games with Milwaukee and Detroit, averaging 16.0 ppg., 6.0 apg., 3.2 rpg. and 1.34 stlpg. in 33.1 minpg., while shooting .800 (1,233-1,541) from the free throw line. He has also appeared in 11 career playoff games, averaging 16.7 ppg., 3.7 apg., 2.7 rpg. and 1.55 stlpg. in 34.7 minpg. Jennings was named to the 2009-10 NBA All-Rookie First Team and earned NBA Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month four times (October/November 2009, December 2009, January 2010 and March 2010), becoming the first Eastern Conference rookie to capture monthly honors four times during one season. He poured in a career-high 55 points on Nov. 14, 2009 vs. Golden State.

Ilyasova (6’10”, 235, 5/15/87) has played and started in 52 games this season with Detroit, averaging 11.3 ppg., 5.4 rpg. and 1.1 apg. in 27.6 minpg. He has led (or tied) the team in scoring four times and in rebounding three times this season. Ilyasova has scored in double figures 30 times this season, including a season-high 23 points on Dec. 2 vs. Phoenix. He logged a career-high 54 minutes on Dec. 18 @ Chicago.

Originally selected in the second round (36th overall) of the 2005 NBA Draft by Milwaukee, Ilyasova has played in 505 career regular season NBA games with Milwaukee and Detroit, averaging 10.8 ppg., 6.0 rpg. and 1.1 apg. in 24.3 minpg., while shooting .369 (506-1,372) from three-point range. He has also appeared in 17 career playoff outings, averaging 9.8 ppg. and 6.2 rpg. in 24.5 minpg.

Harris (6’9”, 235, 7/15/92) has appeared and started in 49 games this season with Orlando, averaging 13.7 ppg., 7.0 rpg. and 2.0 apg. in a team-high 32.9 minpg. Originally selected in the first round (19th overall) of the 2011 NBA Draft by Charlotte, he was acquired by the Magic from Milwaukee, along with Doron Lamb and Beno Udrih, in exchange for J.J. Redick, Gustavo Ayon and Ish Smith on Feb. 21, 2013. Harris played in 205 games (168 starts) with Orlando, averaging 15.6 ppg., 7.0 rpg. and 1.8 apg. in 33.2 minpg.

NBA may change intentional foul rules next season

Here’s the Philadelphia Inquirer reporting on Commissioner Adam Silver’s press conference from this evening:

The NBA may make changes to prevent the increasingly more-practiced, and increasingly loathed, hack-a-Shaq tactic.

Hack-a-Shaq is the strategy of fouling a poor free-throw shooter away from the basketball in an effort to limit an opponent’s scoring. The tactic is best known for being implemented against, and named for, former center Shaquille O’Neal.

“It’s an issue that we have been studying for some time now,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said Saturday night at his all-star weekend news conference.