Category: NBA News Blog

NBA news blog

Utah Jazz sign Treveon Graham

The Utah Jazz announced today that the team has signed free agent guard/forward Treveon Graham (TRAY-vee-on).

Until we hear otherwise, we will assume this is a non-guaranteed deal that merely brings Graham to training camp.

Graham (6-6, 220, VCU) played four seasons at Virginia Commonwealth University, serving as team captain and averaging 16.2 points, 7.1 rebounds and 1.6 assists during his senior campaign. He was also named to the All-Atlantic 10 First Team for the second-straight year (2014, 2015). He ranked eighth in the conference in scoring during the 2014-15 season and logged 28 games of 10-or-more points. Graham also led VCU to four consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances (2012-15). In 2013, he competed for Team USA at the 2013 University World Games in Kazan, Russia.

A native of Temple Hills, Md., Graham played high school basketball at St. Mary’s Ryken High School in Leonardtown, Md.

Pistons arena being renovated

It’s always fun to see the new version of an NBA arena after it’s been renovated. Even slight changes, if done well, can make a place seem new. Looking forward to the final result. Here’s the Detroit Free Press reporting:

For those fans hoping that the Pistons eventually would move back to downtown Detroit: Forget about it.

Owner Tom Gores has put $40 million into renovations in the Palace over the past four years.

The current project is replacing all the seats in the Palace and refurbishing the floors, a project that will take three years to complete, according to Kevin A. Grigg, vice president of public relations for Palace Sports & Entertainment and the Pistons.

“This is the first phase of what’s going to be a three-year seating renovation inside the Palace,” Grigg said Wednesday. “The first stage that you see now will be completed per the start of the preseason. That involves from the lower-level suites all the way down to the floor. We’ll have new courtside seats and new seats going into the stands up to the first-level suites.”

Kings to hire Roland Beech for analytics job

Here’s ESPN.com reporting on the Sacramento Kings, who have found themselves a new analytics guy:

The Sacramento Kings have come to terms with Roland Beech to hire the longtime NBA sabermetrician to head up their analytics department, according to league sources.

Sources told ESPN.com that Beech is poised to join the Kings as their vice president of analytics under Vlade Divac, Sacramento’s new head of basketball operations.

Beech will thus fill a void created after another of the league’s foremost analytics experts — Dean Oliver — recently left the organization.

Zoran Dragic signs in Russia

Here’s Euroleague.net reporting news on a player NBA fans will be familiar with:

Reigning Eurocup champion Khimki Moscow Region continued to bolster its roster ahead of its return to the Turkish Airlines Euroleague, signing a two-year deal with swingman Zoran Dragic, club announced on Thursday. Dragic (1.96 meters, 26 years old) has spent last season in the NBA, playing first part of the season with Phoenix before getting traded to Miami, but has appeared in a total of 16 games. He previously spent two seasons with Unicaja Malaga, and has played 44 Euroleague games during that time.

Michael Jordan cologne deal worked out great for Jordan

Here’s the Chicago Sun-Times reporting just how great it is to be Michael Jordan when it comes to business deals:

Michael Jordan reportedly made huge money off cologne deal

Jordan simply gave his permission to the fragrance company XEL to sell Michael Jordan cologne. A close adviser testified Thursday that Jordan did nothing else — but the company still paid him $10.6 million between 2002 and 2012.

Estee Portnoy, a long-time marketing manager for Jordan, also testified Thursday that a Japanese TV station hoping to produce a documentary about Jordan once offered him $100,000 to use footage of his days with the Chicago Bulls.

The footage belonged to the NBA, Portnoy said.

Dallas Mavericks sign JaVale McGee

Dallas Mavericks sign JaVale McGee

The Dallas Mavericks announced today that they have signed free agent center JaVale McGee.

McGee (7-0, 270) is a seven-year veteran with career averages of 8.4 points, 5.5 rebounds, 1.8 blocks and 19.9 minutes per game in 382 games (158 starts) with Washington, Denver and Philadelphia. He has shot 54 percent from the field for his career.

Famous for making mistakes on the court, McGee has talent, especially on defense. It’s tough for a winning team to count on him as their primary center, but he’s still a good addition provided there isn’t too much pressure on him.

McGee appeared in 23 games for Denver and Philadelphia in 2014-15, averaging 4.6 points, 2.7 rebounds and 0.9 blocks in 11.1 minutes per contest.

A native of Flint, Mich., McGee spent two seasons at the University of Nevada. As a sophomore, he averaged 14.1 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. McGee declared for the NBA Draft following his sophomore season and was the 18th overall selection by the Washington Wizards in 2008.

McGee’s father, George Montgomery, was a second-round draft pick of the Portland Trail Blazers in 1985 and his mother, Pamela McGee, played in the WNBA for the Los Angeles Sparks and Sacramento Monarchs.

Lakers sign Jonathan Holmes

The Los Angeles Lakers have signed forward Jonathan Holmes to a multi-year contract, it was announced today by General Manager Mitch Kupchak.

In five games for the Celtics’ entry in the 2015 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, Holmes averaged 12.2 points, 5.6 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and 1.0 steals in 21.8 minutes per game, while shooting 55.6% from the field. The 6’9’’ Holmes also appeared in three games for Boston in the 2015 Utah Jazz Summer League, and in his eight games (seven starts) between the two competitions, shot a perfect 15-15 from the free throw line, and 13-28 (46.4%) from beyond-the-arc.

Undrafted after spending four seasons at the University of Texas (2011-15), Holmes averaged 9.2 points and 5.9 rebounds in 23.1 minutes per game over 127 contests with the Longhorns. The San Antonio native was named All-Big 12 Second Team and team MVP as a junior after averaging 12.8 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks on 50.5% shooting, and was an All-Big 12 Honorable mention as a senior with averages of 10.3 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 1.0 blocks per game, while hitting 1.3 three-pointers per contest.

Mike Scott faces up to 25 years on drug charges

Here’s the Atlanta Journal Constitution reporting the latest on a Hawks forward i. A very scary and serious situation:

Mike Scott faces up to 25 years in prison on two felony drug charges stemming from his arrest last month.

An initial court date in the case could take several months to be placed on the calendar as the drugs have been sent to an independent lab for processing, according to the Banks County assistant district attorney. That would mean an initial court appearance would come during the upcoming NBA season.

Scott was arrested, along with his younger brother, on July 30 after a traffic stop along Interstate 85 in Homer. In the vehicle, police found 35.2 grams of marijuana and 10.9 grams of Schedule I drug MDMA, known as Molly. The charge on the MDMA carries a sentence of up to 15 years. The charge on the marijuana carries a sentence of up to 10 years, according to Georgia statutes.

Pacers sign Toney Douglas

Pacers sign Toney Douglas

The Indiana Pacers announced Tuesday they have signed free agent Toney Douglas to a contract.

“We look forward to having him in camp,” said Pacers President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird. “He’s a veteran player who’s a good pro and he can play two positions. He’s the type of player we’re looking for with our new style of play. We look forward to working with him and having him in camp.”

Douglas, a 6-2, 190-pound guard, is entering his seventh season in the NBA. After attending Florida State University, he was drafted by the L.A. Lakers as the 29th overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft. In his career, he has played for New York, Houston, Miami, Golden State, Sacramento and New Orleans. He has career averages of 7.6 points, 2.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game.