Category: NBA News Blog

NBA news blog

Nuggets sign head coach Michael Malone to contract extension

The Denver Nuggets and Head Coach Michael Malone have agreed to a multiyear contract extension, KSE Vice Chairman Josh Kroenke and General Manager Calvin Booth announced today.

“We are thrilled to announce this extension with Coach Malone and to keep him leading the Nuggets for years to come,” said KSE Vice Chairman Josh Kroenke. “To see our team continue to improve year after year, culminating with our ultimate goal of an NBA Championship is exactly what we all envisioned on the day we hired Michael in 2015. This extension is extremely well deserved and there’s no question about the commitment and dedication that Michael has shown to our organization.”

“I’m excited to continue working alongside Coach Malone as we look towards the future with our core intact and a lot of young talent to develop as well,” stated General Manager Calvin Booth. “Michael has proven he is the right coach for our team and there is no doubt he will continue to keep pushing and striving for more after last season’s Championship run.”

Pistons guard Monte Morris injury update: out 6-8 more weeks

Detroit Pistons injury updates:

Pistons guard Monte Morris underwent a PRP injection on Friday, November 17 as Pistons medical staff continues to treat and rehab a right quad strain. He will be re-evaluated again in 6-8 weeks.

Per the Detroit Free Press today, on Morris: “The 28-year-old guard arrived in Detroit in June, when he was traded from the Washington Wizards. His outside shooting, low turnover rate and veteran experience was expected to immediately lift a young Pistons backcourt. His season debut may not come until late January.”

Jalen Duren (right ankle) is expected to return to practice this week.

Pistons forward Bojan Bogdanović (right calf strain) has begun a return to play progression and is cleared for full basketball contact. He will continue these progressions and begin practicing with the team in the upcoming days.

Celtics squeeze out close win vs. Grizzlies

Per the Boston Herald:

As chaos hit its climax in the final seconds, Kristaps Porzingis kept his cool. With the Celtics leading the Grizzlies by two during a wild sequence, the ball found Ziaire Williams, whose desperation game-tying shot found Porzingis’ hand.

Porzingis stood in satisfaction of the moment and seemed to send some trash talk in Williams’ direction as he lay on the court. His Celtics teammates swarmed him. And they all stood there for a moment to ensure the victory was secured.

Somehow, the Celtics survived.

For a second consecutive game, the Celtics were not at their best. Against an inferior Grizzlies team missing eight players, they were caught in another rockfight. It was emotional, physical, frustrating and sloppy, a game deserving of Marcus Smart, who was sitting on the Memphis bench all night due to an injury. But once again, the C’s found a way. Porzingis’ sixth block of the game clinched a gutsy 102-100 victory in Memphis.

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Karl-Anthony Towns clutch for Timberwolves in win over Pelicans

Per the Pioneer Press:

As he’s been during much of his recent stretch of strong offensive play, Karl-Anthony Towns was quick and decisive when it mattered most Saturday in New Orleans.

With Minnesota trailing by one in the final 10 seconds of the game, Towns quickly attacked the smaller Dyson Daniels, got to the edge of the paint and threw a floater off the glass to give Minnesota a one-point edge.

“It was a real skilled move. He’s got a lot of skill,” Timberwolves coach Chris Finch told reporters postgame. “We’ve really been harping on him trying to clean up his game offensively. And he’s got so much talent that if he just focuses on the simple things done really, really well, he doesn’t need to kind of create a lot of extra activity around his game. … And he’s really taken to that, so that would be a clear example.”

Brandon Ingram missed a decent look a few seconds later, and Minnesota escaped New Orleans with a 121-120 victory Saturday.

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Warriors lose 6th straight game

Per the Bay Area News Group:

The Warriors lost their sixth straight game in a 130-123 overtime heartbreaker to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday night. They fall to 6-8 and are 1-6 at home.

Andrew Wiggins’s fifth 3-pointer of the night gave the Warriors a three-point lead with 1.5 seconds remaining in regulation. But Chet Holmgren hit a desperation 3 out of the timeout to send the game to overtime.

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Clippers sign Daniel Theis

The LA Clippers have signed center Daniel Theis, announced Lawrence Frank, Clippers president of basketball operations.

Theis, 31, has appeared in 314 games with the Indiana Pacers, Boston Celtics, Houston Rockets and Chicago Bulls, averaging 7.5 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists while shooting 54.2% from the field. The 6-foot-8 center has also appeared in 40 playoff games, averaging 5.8 points and 4.6 rebounds while shooting 52.7% from the field. A native of Salzgitter, Germany, Theis won a gold medal with Germany at the 2023 FIBA World Cup, where he averaged 10.9 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists in eight games.

Grizzlies guard Marcus Smart injured, out 3-5 weeks

Per the Memphis Commercial Appeal:

Marcus Smart’s first mini-homecoming with the Boston Celtics won’t come on Sunday. The Memphis Grizzlies guard is expected to miss three to five weeks because of a left foot sprain, the team announced Friday.

Smart suffered the injury in the first quarter of the 134-107 loss to the Lakers on Tuesday in Los Angeles. He has played in all 11 games this season, but he also dealt with abdominal soreness in the preseason.

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