NBA News Blog – Page 827 – NBA Blog

Denver Nuggets add Reginald Becton, Kyle Fogg, Damion James to training camp

The Denver Nuggets will open training camp with 18 players after signing forward Reginald Becton, guard Kyle Fogg and forward Damion James as non-roster invitees.

Becton, 6-9, 235, is an undrafted rookie out of the University of Mississippi. He set the school record with 326 blocked shots and is a three-time member of the SEC All-Defensive team. He also ranks second in career field-goal percentage and third in career rebounds at Ole Miss.

Fogg, 6-3, 183, averaged 6.4 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the NBA Development League last season. Undrafted out of Arizona in 2012, he was a two-time All-Conference Defensive Team selection and averaged 13.5 as a senior.

James, 6-7, 225, was selected 24th overall in the 2010 NBA Draft and has averaged 4.2 points and 3.5 rebounds in 34 career NBA games with the New Jersey/Brooklyn Nets. He spent much of 2012-13 in the D-League with Bakersfield, averaging 15.8 points and 8.2 rebounds in 44 games.

In four seasons at the University of Texas, James set Big 12 Conference records for career rebounds and double-doubles. He also owns the school records for career starts and rebounds.

The Nuggets, who won an NBA team-record 57 games last season, will open training camp under new coach Brian Shaw on Oct. 1. Their string of 10 consecutive playoff appearances is the second-longest active streak in the NBA.

Anthony Carter is now a D-League assistant coach

The Austin Toros today announced the hire of NBA veteran Anthony Carter as an assistant coach for the team. Carter will join recently named Head Coach Ken McDonald.

“We are pleased to have Anthony on staff with the Toros,” said Coach McDonald. “He brings a great deal of energy and a wealth of experience to our group. He’s familiar with the Spurs culture and what we are trying to build in Austin.”

In 14 NBA seasons, Carter suited up for the Miami Heat (1999-03), San Antonio Spurs (2003-04), Minnesota Timberwolves (2004-06), Denver Nuggets (2006-11), New York Knicks (2010-11) and the Toronto Raptors (2011-12). In 623 career games, the Wisconsin native averaged 4.8 points, 2.1 rebounds and 3.8 assists in 19.6 minutes. Carter suited up in 39 playoff games, averaging 4.5 points, 3.2 assists and 2.5 rebounds in 18.0 minutes.

Los Angeles Clippers finalize coaching staff and front office positions

The Los Angeles Clippers announced today that the organization has named Brendan O’Connor as an assistant coach on the staff of Head Coach and Senior Vice President of Basketball Operations Doc Rivers.

It was also announced that Dave Severns and Howard Eisley will return as Assistant Player Skills Coaches and Bob Thate will return for his second season as shooting coach.

Additionally, the Clippers have named Dave Wohl as Director of Pro Scouting and Jack Nolan as an Advance Scout.

O’Connor, Severns, Eisely and Thate round out Rivers’ coaching staff, which includes Associate Head Coach Alvin Gentry, Assistant Coaches Armond Hill, Kevin Eastman and Tyronn Lue, and Assistant Player Skills Coach J.P. Clark.

O’Connor comes to Los Angeles as an assistant coach after spending last season as an advance scout for the Brooklyn Nets. With more than 10 years of NBA coaching and scouting experience, O’Connor, a New Hampshire native, began his NBA career with the Detroit Pistons as an advance scout in 2000, and was promoted to assistant coach/advance scout in July 2001. He was a member of the Pistons’ coaching staff in 2004 and 2005 on Detroit’s NBA Championship team and Eastern Conference Championship squad, respectively. He has also worked as an assistant coach for the Kings and Knicks. Prior to joining the Pistons, O’Connor coached in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA), United States Basketball League (USBL), and International Basketball League (IBL). He was an assistant coach/director of player personnel with both the Grand Rapids Hoops (1997-99) of the CBA and Richmond Rhythm (1999-2000) of the IBL.

Severns returns to the Clippers for a fourth season. He served as an assistant coach for player development with the Chicago Bulls from 2008-2010 before coming to Los Angeles. Prior to his time with the Bulls, Severns spent 13 years in player development with Nike, working with college players at the All-American Camp, All-Asia Camp, Nike Skills Academies and Jordan Flight School. He also worked at Attack Athletics in Chicago under Tim Grover from 2005-08.

Eisley joined the Clippers prior to the 2010-11 season after a 12-year playing career in the NBA. He averaged 6.5 points, 3.5 assists and 1.7 rebounds in 786 games with Minnesota, San Antonio, Utah, Dallas, New York, Phoenix, Clippers and Denver. In 2005-06, he played in 13 games for the Clippers, averaging 0.7 points, 1.1 rebounds and 1.9 assists.

Thate enters his second season with the Clippers as shooting coach. Previously, he spent the 2005-08 seasons with the New Jersey Nets in the same capacity. A 1970 NBA Draft selection of the Los Angeles Lakers, Thate began a four-year professional career in France (where he still holds the league’s season scoring record) before embarking on a college coaching career that included stops at Pepperdine, Loyola Marymount, University of California-Irvine and Long Beach State.

Wohl begins his first season as Director of Pro Scouting for the Clippers. He brings more than four decades of NBA experience to Los Angeles, including most recently working as an assistant coach for the Minnesota Timberwolves from 2009-2011. Wohl was also the assistant general manager of the Boston Celtics for two seasons (2007-2009), including the team’s 2008 NBA Championship run, and has served in a variety of capacities with Orlando, Miami, Sacramento, the Lakers and a season with Clippers (1993-94). As an assistant coach under Pat Riley, Wohl was a member of the Lakers’ 1985 NBA Championship team. Wohl was the head coach of the New Jersey Nets for two-plus seasons (1985-88), leading the team to the NBA Playoffs in the 1985-86 season. He was selected in the third round of the 1971 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers and appeared in more than 400 games in seven NBA seasons as a player.

Nolan joins the Clippers as an advance scout after one season in the same position with the Boston Celtics. He started in the NBA in 1988 as a scout with the Atlanta Hawks and has worked with a number of teams in scouting and coaching capacities, including Vancouver, New York, Cleveland and Dallas.

Trail Blazers exercise options on Damian Lillard, Meyers Leonard and Thomas Robinson

The Portland Trail Blazers have exercised their third-year options on Damian Lillard, Meyers Leonard and Thomas Robinson, General Manager Neil Olshey announced today.

Lillard, the sixth overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, averaged 19.0 points, 3.1 rebounds and 6.5 assists in his rookie campaign with the Trail Blazers. Only the fourth unanimous Kia NBA Rookie of the Year in league history and fourth Trail Blazer to win the award, Lillard finished last season as one of three rookies in NBA history with 1,500 points and 500 assists.

Leonard, the team’s 11th overall pick in last year’s draft, posted averages of 5.5 points and 3.7 rebounds on 54.5 percent shooting from the floor and 80.9 percent from the charity stripe in his first season with the Trail Blazers.

Robinson, entering his second season in the league, joined the Trail Blazers in a trade with the Houston Rockets on July 10, 2013 in exchange for the NBA rights to Kostas Papanikolaou and Marko Todorovic along with two future second round picks. In his rookie season, Robinson averaged 4.8 points, 4.1 rebounds and 15.1 minutes in 70 games with Sacramento (51 games) and Houston (19 games).

Format for NBA Finals may change

The NBA Finals could return to a 2-2-1-1-1 format.

The league’s Competition Committee has voted unanimously to recommend the change from the current 2-3-2 system and owners will vote on it next month at their meetings.

“The idea was raised at the Competition Committee and was well-received and the committee ultimately unanimously voted to recommend the change in format,” NBA spokesman Tim Frank said yesterday.

If approved, it hasn’t been decided if the change would begin with the 2014 Finals…

The format was switched beginning in 1985, a recommendation commissioner David Stern has said came in part from former Celtics boss Red Auerbach to reduce the cross-country trips between Boston and Los Angeles.

Reported by the Philadelphia Daily News wire

Miami Heat reward coach Erik Spoelstra with contract extension

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra signed a multiyear extension to his contract Sunday, the team announced.

Spoelstra was entering the last season of his contract after leading the Heat to three consecutive NBA Finals, including back-to-back titles. The Heat begins work for its three-peat bid Tuesday with the start of training camp. The first four days of camp are being held at Atlantis Paradise Island in the Bahamas.

With the Heat’s core of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh all facing contract decisions after this season, solidifying Spoelstra’s future was a significant first step toward bringing stability to the equation.

James, Wade and Bosh can all opt out of their contracts after this season.

Reported by Joseph Goodman of the Miami Herald

Channing Frye will return to Phoenix Suns after heart illness

Channing Frye will return to Suns after heart illness

Forward Channing Frye says he will be back with the Phoenix Suns in training camp after sitting out last season with heart-related issues.

Frye made the announcement via Twitter on Sunday, saying he is ”happy to be healthy and have an opportunity” to keep playing.

Frye has said that he has been cleared medically by several doctors but the Suns have not officially said he will be back.

Reported by the Associated Press

New York Knicks sign Ike Diogu

The New York Knickerbockers announced today that the team has signed forward Ike Diogu. We assume this is a non-guaranteed deal that merely brings Diogu to training camp.

Diogu, 6-9, 250-pounds, holds career averages of 6.0 points, on 50.9-percent shooting, 3.1 rebounds and 12.4 minutes in 225 games (18 starts) over six seasons with Golden State, Indiana, Portland, Sacramento, L.A. Clippers and San Antonio. He spent the last two seasons playing in Puerto Rico (Arecibo) and China (Xinjiang), after playing in two games for San Antonio in 2011-12. The Buffalo, NY-native was originally selected by Golden State following three seasons at Arizona State University in the first round (ninth pick overall) of 2005 NBA Draft.

Sixers forward Arnett Moultrie out for months after ankle surgery

Philadelphia 76ers forward Arnett Moultrie suffered an injury to the medial malleolus of his left ankle last week and underwent surgery on Thursday, September 26. Moultrie is not expected to return until some time in the new year.

The Sixers are rebuilding, and while their rotation for upcoming new season wasn’t quite clear yet, it was expected that Moultrie was going to play a solid role.

Sixers center Kwame Brown suffered a right hamstring strain during off-season workouts and will receive a second opinion.

Utah Jazz waive guard Jerel McNeal

The Utah Jazz announced today that the team has waived guard Jerel McNeal. Following the move, Utah’s roster now stands at 13 players.

McNeal (6-3, 200, Marquette), whose first name is pronounced Jah-rell, was originally signed by the Jazz to a 10-day contract on March 27 from the NBA Development League’s Bakersfield Jam, then signed for the remainder of the 2012-13 season on April 6.

McNeal did not appear in a game for the Jazz.