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Grizzlies fill training camp roster

The Memphis Grizzlies today announced the team has signed free agents Yakhouba Diawara (ya-KOO-ba dee-a-WA-ra), Ryan Hollins, Michael Holyfield, Lazeric Jones and Daniel Nwaelele (wah-LAY-lay).

Diawara (6-7, 225) comes to Memphis after spending last season with Cimberio Varese in the Italian SerieA league. The 33-year-old spent four seasons in the NBA (2006-10) and holds career averages of 3.5 points and 1.4 rebounds in 14.0 minutes in 187 games (56 starts) with the Denver Nuggets and Miami Heat. Undrafted in the 2005 NBA Draft after finishing his collegiate career at Pepperdine University, he has played six of his 10 professional seasons, including the last five, in Italy and his home country of France. The Paris native is a member of the French National Team and represented France in the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

Hollins (7-0, 230), a nine-year NBA veteran (2006-15), owns career averages of 3.7 points and 2.2 rebounds in 11.8 minutes in 481 games (64 starts) for the Charlotte Bobcats, Dallas Mavericks, Minnesota Timberwolves, Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics, Los Angeles Clippers and Sacramento Kings. Drafted by Charlotte in the second round (50th overall) of the 2006 NBA Draft, the 30-year-old Pasadena, Calif. native enjoyed a four-year collegiate career at UCLA, leading the Bruins to the 2006 NCAA Championship Game as a senior.

Holyfield (6-11, 270) helped guide Memphis to an undefeated record and the championship at the 2015 Orlando Pro Summer League, averaging 6.4 points and 4.2 rebounds in 14.3 minutes in five games (two starts). Undrafted in the 2015 NBA Draft after a four-year collegiate career at Sam Houston State University, the 22-year-old Albuquerque, N.M. native was named the 2015 Southland Conference Defensive Player of the Year and selected to the 2015 All-Southland Second Team after setting the school’s single-season record for blocks (86) as a senior.

Jones (6-0, 187) joins the Grizzlies after playing last season in Hungary, guiding Szolnoki Olaj to the Hungarian League Championship with averages of 11.4 points, 3.6 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.7 steals in 29.1 minutes in 11 games (all starts). Undrafted in the 2012 NBA Draft, the 25-year-old Chicago native has competed in Israel (2012-13) and Greece (2013-14) and participated in the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas for the Sacramento Kings (2012), Chicago Bulls (2014) and New Orleans Pelicans (2015) following his four-year collegiate career at UCLA.

Nwaelele (6-5, 205) comes to Memphis after competing most recently with the Santa Cruz Warriors of the NBA Development League, where he averaged 10.4 points, 3.6 points and 1.7 assists in 26.0 minutes in 76 games (43 starts) over two seasons (2012-14). Undrafted in the 2007 NBA Draft, the 31-year-old also played professionally in Israel during the 2010-11 season. A native of Bothell, Wash., Nwaelele lettered all four years at the United States Air Force Academy, finishing his collegiate career ranked second in program history in three-point field goal percentage (.451). He spent five years in the Air Force, including two overseas deployments to Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia during his years of service.

The Grizzlies roster stands at 20 players entering training camp.

Sixers waive Gerald Wallace

In conjunction with the announcement of the Philadelphia 76ers 2015-16 training camp roster, the team has signed J.P. Tokoto, T.J. McConnell, Jordan McRae and Christian Wood.

In conjunction with these signings, the Sixers have waived forward Gerald Wallace.

Tokoto was selected by the Sixers with the 58th overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft. An ACC All-Defensive team selection, Tokoto played three seasons at North Carolina and during his junior season, he was one of four players in the ACC ranked in the top 10 in both assists and steals. Over his final two seasons with the Tar Heels, Tokoto averaged nine points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals per game.

McConnell posted averages of 10 points, five assists and two steals over his four-year NCAA career. During his senior season at the University of Arizona, McConnell led the Pac-12 in assists per game (6) and total assists (238) and was also named to the NCAA West Regional All-Tournament Team.

McRae was originally acquired by the Sixers during the 2014 NBA Draft after being selected with the 58th overall pick by San Antonio. He played in 27 games for Melbourne United of the Australian National Basketball League in 2014-15, where he averaged 20 points, five rebounds and three assists per game. McRae then joined the Delaware 87ers of the NBA Development League, where he averaged 18 points, four rebounds and four assists in 13 games.

Wood was an early entry candidate for the 2015 NBA Draft after playing two seasons at UNLV. Wood averaged 16 points and 10 rebounds and blocked 90 total shots in his final season with the Runnin’ Rebels.

The L.A. Clippers announced today the team has signed free agent forward Luc Mbah a Moute and forward/center Nikoloz Tskitishvili.

A seven-year NBA veteran, Mbah a Moute has appeared in 466 career regular season games (301 starts) with Milwaukee, Sacramento, Minnesota and Philadelphia averaging 6.8 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 24.3 minutes. Born in Yaounde, Cameroon, the 29-year-old spent last season with the 76ers, averaging 9.9 points and 4.9 rebounds in 28.6 minutes of play over 67 games (61 starts). Mbah a Moute played three seasons at UCLA, where he helped the Bruins reach three straight Final Fours. He was the 37th overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft by the Bucks.

The former fifth overall pick in the 2002 NBA Draft by the Denver Nuggets, Tskitishvili has appeared in 172 career games (16 starts) for Denver, Golden State, Minnesota and Phoenix averaging 2.9 points and 1.7 rebounds in 11.3 minutes of play. The Tbilisi, Georgian native has played in Spain, Italy, Iran, Lebanon and the United Arab Emirates post-NBA. The 32-year old played for Champville of the Lebanese Basketball League last season.

Mike Dunleavy undergoes back surgery

Bulls forward Mike Dunleavy successfully underwent a low back microdiscectomy procedure earlier today at Rush University Medical Center. Dunleavy had experienced some occasional back discomfort over the summer which had recently worsened. Conservative measures failed to satisfactorily resolve his symptoms, therefore, the decision was made to perform the surgery. The timing is unfortunate, but it was imperative that all conservative measures were exhausted prior to making this decision. He is expected to be out 8-10 weeks.

Wizards add five players to training camp

Washington Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld announced today that the team has signed guards Jaron Johnson, Toure’ Murry and Ish Smith and centers Josh Harrellson and Jaleel Roberts.

Wizards training camp begins on Tuesday, Sept. 29, at SECU Arena on the campus of Towson University. The team will hold their first three practice sessions (Sept. 29-Oct. 1) in Baltimore before returning to Verizon Center for the remainder of camp.

Harrellson (6-10, 275) is a three-year NBA veteran who holds career averages of 3.5 points and 3.0 rebounds in 11.8 minutes in 75 career games with New York, Miami and Detroit. He was originally selected by New Orleans in the second round (45th overall) of the 2011 NBA Draft and then traded the same night to New York. During the 2014-15 season, the Kentucky alum split time between the Chinese Basketball Association, playing 14 games for Chong Qing, and the Puerto Rican professional basketball league (Baloncesto Superior Nacional), playing 44 games for Guayama.

Johnson (6-6, 205) went undrafted in 2014 after spending two seasons at Louisiana Tech. The Tyler, TX native averaged 9.1 points and 3.5 rebounds in 21 minutes per game during his senior campaign in 2013-14. Last season, Johnson appeared in 50 games with Rio Grande Valley of the D-League where he averaged 15.1 points, 1.7 assists and 4.5 rebounds in 29 minutes per game.

Murry (6-5, 195) is a two-year NBA veteran holding career averages of 2.6 points in 7.0 minutes in 56 career games with New York, Utah and Washington. The undrafted Wichita State alum originally signed with the Knicks as a free agent in September of 2013. During the 2014-15 campaign, Murry appeared in five games with Utah and Washington while averaging 1.2 points in 3.6 minutes of action.

Roberts (7-1, 225) went undrafted in 2015 after playing three years at UNC Asheville. Last season as a senior, he averaged 7.0 points and 5.0 rebounds in 19.3 minutes per game. Roberts was a member of the Wizards 2015 Summer League roster that competed in Las Vegas.

Smith (6-0, 175) is a five-year NBA veteran who holds career averages of 3.6 points, 2.3 assists and 1.5 rebounds in 12.3 minutes in 246 career games with Houston, Memphis, Golden State, Orlando, Milwaukee, Phoenix, Oklahoma City and Philadelphia. The Wake Forest product was undrafted in 2010 and signed as a free agent with Houston on August 23, 2010. During the 2014-15 season, Smith appeared in 55 games with Oklahoma City and Philadelphia, averaging 6.1 points, 3.3 assists and 1.8 rebounds in 15.1 minutes per game.

The Wizards’ training camp roster currently stands at 20 players.

Celtics complete training camp roster

The Boston Celtics announced today that they have signed guards Levi Randolph and Corey Walden, as well as forwards Coty Clarke and Malcolm Miller. Each contract is likely non-guaranteed and just for training camp.

Randolph played in five contests for the Oklahoma City Thunder in the 2015 Las Vegas Summer League and averaged 8.4 points, 2.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.6 steals in 31.2 minutes per game. During his senior year at Alabama, the 6’4” guard averaged a team-high 15.4 points, 2.5 assists and 1.4 steals, while also averaging 5.1 rebounds, in 35.3 minutes per game. Randolph was the first player in the program’s history to be named to the CoSIDA/Capital One First Team Academic All-District Team for three consecutive years. He was also named the 2015 SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year and second team All-SEC.

Walden appeared in two games for the Celtics during the Las Vegas Summer League and averaged 2.0 points, 2.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 3.5 steals in 16.5 minutes per game. The 6’2” guard out of Eastern Kentucky averaged 18.6 points to go along with 4.0 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 3.1 steals in 34.6 minutes per game during his senior year. Additionally, Walden earned a spot on the Lou Henson All-America Team and the first team All-Ohio Valley Conference for the 2014-15 NCAA season.

Clarke, a 6’7” forward, spent the 2014-15 season playing for Hapoel Kazrin in Israel and averaged 19.4 points and 9.4 rebounds in 30.7 minutes per game over that span. As a senior at the University of Arkansas, he averaged 9.4 points and 5.6 rebounds in 22.3 minutes per game.

Miller appeared in seven games for the Celtics during summer league play and averaged 4.0 points and 1.3 rebounds in 12.1 minutes per game. The 6’7” forward was named to the All-Patriot League second team and averaged 14.5 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.6 blocks in 31.7 minutes per game during his senior year at Holy Cross.

Kobe Bryant minutes-per-game should decrease this season

Kobe Bryant minutes-per-game should decrease this season

Here’s the Los Angeles Daily News reporting on the Lakers, who must decide how much to use Kobe Bryant this season. The squad is mostly about the future. But Kobe’s still on the roster. And despite being close to the end of his career, he’s is still a big draw. Fans want to see him be Kobe. Which will only happen if he stays healthy.

[Lakers general manager Mitch] Kupchak maintained “there hasn’t been any formal discussions” with Lakers coach Byron Scott, trainer Gary Vitti, Lakers president Jeanie Buss and Bryant himself on a number of things surrounding Bryant’s workload. Kupchak said the Lakers have not decided Bryant’s minute and practice limitations as well as if he will sit in any of the team’s 17 sets of back-to-back games. Kupchak only sounded certain that Bryant would sit out in portions of any of the Lakers’ two-a-day sessions in training camp beginning next Tuesday in Hawaii.

Kupchak sounded aware that Bryant played only 41 games in the past three years amid season-ending injuries to his left Achilles tendon (April 2013), left knee (Dec. 2013) and right shoulder (Jan. 2015).

“It’s important for us to keep that in mind and see how he progresses and how he responds to training camp,” Kupchak said. “I would imagine he would not practice twice a day every day. He’s earned the right to really progress in training camp at a certain pace that works for him and works for us.”

Still, Scott has said he hopes to play Bryant in the mid 20-minute range and rest him on back-to-back games, a contrast to last season when he averaged 22.3 points on a career-low 37.3 percent shooting in 36.4 minutes.

Lakers sign Metta World Peace

The Los Angeles Lakers have signed forward Metta World Peace, it was announced today by General Manager Mitch Kupchak.

According to the Orange County Register, “the contract essentially confirms the endorsement Coach Byron Scott gave World Peace last week, when he trumpeted the former champion’s virtues in an interview with the Register. “We know what type of defender he is,” Scott said. “He’s a guy who’s going to get on you. “He’s strong, he’s physical, he’s tough. He’s made Julius work, which I think is great. Then when the game is over he’s always talking to Julius about certain things that he feels Julius can do better.”

A 15-year NBA veteran who spent four seasons in Los Angeles between 2009-13, World Peace holds career averages of 13.8 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.8 steals in 33.0 minutes per game over 931 contests (833 starts) with the Bulls, Pacers, Kings, Rockets, Knicks, and Lakers. Born Ron Artest before changing his name during the 2011 offseason, World Peace was an integral member of the Lakers’ 2010 NBA Championship team, starting all 23 playoff games and averaging 11.2 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.5 steals in 36.5 minutes per game during the postseason.

Selected with the 16th pick of the 1999 NBA Draft by Chicago, the 35-year-old was named the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year in 2003-04 in addition to being chosen as an All-Star and member of the All-NBA Third Team that same year. He has also garnered four NBA All-Defensive Team selections and made the postseason nine times (including all four of his seasons in L.A.) with four different franchises.

His most recent NBA action came during the 2013-14 season when he appeared in 29 games for the New York Knicks, and has since played in the Chinese Basketball Association and Lega Basket Serie A, Italy’s top division.

World Peace was honored with the NBA’s J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award in 2011, and is actively involved in mental health awareness initiatives.

Jusuf Nurkic will not be ready for start of training camp

Here’s the Denver Post with an update on Nuggets center Jusuf Nurkic, who averaged 6.9 points, 6.2 rebounds and 1.1 blocks — impressive considering he played just 17.8 minutes per game last season:

Nuggets center Jusuf Nurkic will not be ready for the start of training camp as he continues to rehab his left knee, general manager Tim Connelly said Wednesday.

“We’re going to take our time with him,” Connelly said.

Nurkic underwent surgery in May to repair a partially torn left patella tendon. The original timetable was three to four months. Connelly, however, did say that Nurkic was “ahead of schedule,” but he wouldn’t “put a firm timetable on when he’ll be back.”

Jason Richardson retires from NBA

Jason Richardson, aka J-Rich, was a dunk phenom and a mighty fine basketball player. Between 2001 and 2015 he averaged 17.1 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. A fantastic NBA career is in the books. Here’s the Philadelphia Inquirer blog reporting:

The thought was that Jason Richardson would extend his career as a member of the Atlanta Hawks.

But the shooting guard, who was with 76ers the past three seasons, announced his retirement Wednesday on his personal Instagram page.

“Today is a bitter sweet moment for me,” he wrote. “ I’m officially announcing my retirement from pro basketball. I like to thank the organizations and fans in Charlotte, Phoenix, Orlando, Philly and especially The Bay Area for their loyal support the past 14 years. Walking away was the hardest decision I had to make but choosing my health and spending time with my family is more important to me! God bless!”

This announcement comes after Richardson had signed a non-guaranteed, one-year deal with the Hawks for the league minimum back in August.