NBA News Blog – Page 832 – NBA Blog

Sixers to add Greg Foster to coaching staff

The Sixers have hired Greg Foster as an assistant coach, according to a source close to the situation.

Foster, 44, joins Lloyd Pierce and Chad Iske on Brett Brown’s staff after spending the last three seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Texas at El Paso, his alma mater.

He played power forward and center for nine teams in a 13-year NBA career that included two trips to the NBA Finals with the Utah Jazz and a championship with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2001. He also played professionally in Spain and Greece.

Reported by Jason Wolf of the Courier Post (Blog)

Phoenix Suns sign guard Dionte Christmas

The Phoenix Suns today signed guard Dionte Christmas, who averaged 10.1 points for the Suns’ Las Vegas Summer League entry this summer.

“We’re excited to add Dionte to our roster,” said Suns General Manager Ryan McDonough. “He was a key contributor for our Las Vegas Summer League team and his scoring ability, leadership and toughness will help us this season.”

Christmas, a 6-5, 205-pound guard, joins the Suns after spending the last four seasons playing internationally in some of the top leagues around the world after going undrafted in the 2009 NBA Draft. Christmas has gained professional experience in Israel (Hapoel Afula), Turkey (Mersin), Czech Republic (Nymburk), Greece (PAOK, Rethymno), Russia (CSKA Moscow) and Italy (Montepaschi Siena). In 2011-12, with Rethymno of the Greece A-1 League, Christmas averaged 18.6 points to lead the league in scoring.

Christmas, a member of the Suns’ 2013 Las Vegas Summer League squad, averaged 10.1 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 20.8 minutes while coming off the bench in all seven contests. He shot 46.3 percent from the field in Summer League play and had four games scoring in double figures, including three with at least 15 points.

A four-year standout at Temple University, Christmas averaged 15.7 points and 4.4 rebounds in 130 career games (98 starts), and posted at least 19.5 points per game in each of his final three seasons with the Owls. He was named All-Atlantic 10 First Team in both 2008 and 2009, and also earned Atlantic 10 Tournament Most Outstanding Player honors in 2008 and 2009 as he led the Owls to consecutive conference tournament titles.

The Suns’ roster now stands at 17.

Dallas Mavericks sign Devin Ebanks

The Dallas Mavericks announced today they have signed forward Devin Ebanks. We assume it is just a non-guaranteed deal that merely brings Ebanks to training camp, where he will have to compete to earn an actual regular season contract.

Ebanks (6-9, 215) was the 43rd overall selection in the 2010 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Lakers. In three seasons with the Lakers, he holds career averages of 3.6 points and 1.9 rebounds in 63 games with 15 starts. Ebanks also saw action in 9 postseason contests (starting 6) in 2012 and averaged 4.1 points, 2.2 rebounds and 14.0 minutes.

The Brooklyn, N.Y., native was an early-entry candidate in the 2010 Draft after a standout career at West Virginia University. In his final year with the Mountaineers, Ebanks averaged 12.0 points, 8.1 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.1 steals in 34.1 minutes per game.

With the signing the Mavericks’ current roster stands at 19 players.

Philadelphia 76ers add Brandon D. Williams to front office

The Philadelphia 76ers announced today that they have added Brandon D. Williams to the front office. Williams will also oversee the Delaware 87ers as General Manager, the first in team history. The Sevens begin their inaugural NBA Development League season in late November.

Williams joins the clubs after serving eight seasons in the NBA’s League Office, most recently as the NBA’s Associate Vice President of Basketball Operations. Prior to that position, Williams served as the Director of Player Development in the NBA’s Community and Player Programs department. He worked closely with teams across the league in helping prepare players for the demands of being a professional athlete as well as aiding their eventual transition away from the game to a second career.

Williams is well versed in the challenges a young player faces in his pursuit of making the NBA. A standout player at Davidson, Williams earned All-Southern Conference First Team honors as a senior in 1996. After going undrafted, Williams played both overseas and in the Continental Basketball Association before appearing in his first NBA game as a member of the Golden State Warriors in 1998. The following season, Williams was picked up by the San Antonio Spurs, who went onto win the NBA Championship. All totaled for his career, Williams played internationally in six countries. He also experienced the D-League up close as an Honorable Mention All D-League player for the Huntsville Flight in 2003.

In addition to a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from Davidson, Williams received his Juris Doctorate from Rutgers University School of Law-Newark in 2012. While enrolled at Davidson, Williams interned at the White House for the Domestic Policy Council during President Bill Clinton’s first term.

Trail Blazers sign forward Richard Howell

The Portland Trail Blazers have signed rookie forward Richard Howell, it was announced today by General Manager Neil Olshey. We assume that this is a non-guaranteed contract that merely brings Howell to Blazers training camp and gives him a chance to prove himself worthy of a regular season contract.

Howell, 22, averaged 12.7 points (51.8% FG, 63.3% FT), 10.9 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 31.6 minutes his senior 2012-13 season at North Carolina State. A First Team All-ACC selection last season, Howell ranks fifth all-time in school history with 1,055 rebounds.

He appeared in three games for the Denver Nuggets 2013 NBA Summer League entry in Las Vegas, averaging 1.7 points, 2.0 rebounds, 1.30 blocked shots and 10.7 minutes.

With the addition of Howell (6-8, 257), the Trail Blazers roster stands at 19 players.

Wizards hiring Marc Eversley as VP of scouting

The Wizards front office is less empty now.

Washington hired former Raptors executive as Marc Eversley as Vice President of Scouting, Yahoo! Sports’ Marc Spears reported on Thursday.

Eversley enters the front office along with former Oklahoma City Thunder scout Frank Ross. Going the other way, former director of player personnel Pat Connelly, ex-VP of player personnel Milt Newton and Mike Wilson, who headed the organization’s college scouting.

Reported by Ben Standig of CSN Washington

Cavaliers are signing undrafted rookie Matthew Dellavedova

Undrafted rookie Matthew Dellavedova has signed a two-year contract with the Cavaliers for about $1.3 million, but only a small portion of this season’s deal is guaranteed, a league source confirmed. The source was speaking on the condition of anonymity because the team had not announced the signing. The signing was first reported by Australian media.

Dellavedova averaged 2.8 points and three assists in five summer league games with the Cavaliers after leaving St. Mary’s as the school’s all-time leader in scoring, assists, games played, free-throw percentage and 3-pointers. The biggest knock against him is a lack of athleticism.

Dellavedova has an excellent chance to make the Cavs as a third point guard. The Cavs still have one roster spot open. Camp opens Oct. 1.

Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal

Khalif Wyatt agrees to terms with Sixers

Khalif Wyatt will become a 76er. The undrafted rookie free agent out of Temple agreed to terms with the team Thursday night.

Wyatt will sign a partially guaranteed, multiyear contract on Friday. The guard will be on the team’s roster when it opens the season against the Miami Heat on Oct. 30. However, there is a chance that Wyatt will spend part of the season with the Delaware 87ers, the Sixers’ NBA Development League affiliate.

Reported by Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer (Blog)

Minnesota Timberwolves announce athletic training staff hires

The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced the hiring of Koichi Sato as the team’s Director of Sports Performance and Mark Kyger as Director of Athletic Therapy. Both Sato and Kyger will report to Timberwolves Head Athletic Trainer Gregg Farnam.

“We are pleased to welcome Koichi and Mark to our training staff,” Farnam said. “They both have many years of experience in working with athletes and will help us achieve the highest standard possible in the physical preparation and maintenance of our players.”

Sato will be responsible for overseeing all areas relating to performance enhancement. He comes to the Wolves from the Washington Wizards where he was the team’s Rehabilitation Coordinator/Assistant Athletic Trainer since 2008. Prior to that, Sato was an Assistant Athletic Trainer/Performance Specialist for Athletes’ Performance in Los Angeles for one year. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Tokyo International University and a Bachelor of Science degree from Eastern Illinois University. Sato received his Master’s degree in Exercise Science/Physical Education from Arizona State in 2001. From 2000 to 2006, Sato was an Assistant Athletic Trainer for the Sun Devils. He has been a speaker and instructor on different areas of training for the last 10 years.

Kyger will play an integral role in the health care of the Timberwolves players. He comes to the Wolves from Arizona State University where he was the Sun Devils’ Rehabilitation Coordinator, providing physical therapy and athletic training for athletes in the school’s 21 varsity sports since 2007. Prior to that, Kyger was employed by Physiotherapy Associates in Tempe, Ariz., from 2005-07 where he specialized in sports therapy. Kyger received an undergraduate degree in Human Performance and Wellness from Mesa State College and received a Doctorate of Physical Therapy from Regis University Ruekert-Hartman School for Health Care Professions. He is a member of the American Physical Therapy Association, National Athletic Trainers’ Association, and National Strength and Conditioning Association. Kyger played college basketball at Mesa State, earning four letters and serving as the team’s co-captain in 2000-01.

Sacramento Kings hire Robert Schaefer as Director of Athletic Performance

The Sacramento Kings today announced Robert “Chip” Schaefer as Director of Athletic Performance, according to General Manager Pete D’Alessandro.

A veteran in the athletic training and sports performance field with more than 25 seasons of basketball experience to his credit, Schaefer’s career includes contributions to 11 NBA Championship teams.

Prior to joining the Kings, Schaefer served the last two years as Assistant Athletics Director for Sports Performance at the University of California, Santa Barbara. His change to the collegiate ranks followed 12 seasons (1999 – 2011) with the Los Angeles Lakers organization working as Director of Athletic Performance, where he was part of five title teams after helping Chicago win six championships during his eight seasons as head trainer for the Bulls (1990 – 1998).

In addition to his NBA experience, Schaefer was on-staff at the renowned Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic in Los Angeles, where he worked with many of the nation’s elite professional and amateur athletes. He also served as head athletic trainer at Pete Newell’s Big Man Camps after a three-season stint as head trainer at Loyola Marymount University (1987-1990).

Schaefer’s role with Sacramento includes design and implementation of all strength and conditioning programs aimed at maximizing core strength, explosiveness, speed and endurance. He will also assist Director of Sports Medicine Pete Youngman and Head Athletic Trainer Manny Romero with injury prevention and health maintenance.

Schaefer is a member of the National Athletic Trainer’s Association (NATA) and a certified strength and conditioning specialist. He is also recognized by the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) as a specialist in performance enhancement, corrective exercise and fitness nutrition.

A native of Deerfield, Ill., Schaefer received his B.A. in physical education and sports medicine from the University of Utah in 1983. He later earned his master’s degree in counseling from Loyola Marymount. During the interim, he acted as head trainer for the U.S. Men’s Ski Team from 1984-86.