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Chicago Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau says veteran guard Richard Hamilton could miss two weeks because of a foot injury.
Hamilton sustained a left plantar fascia tear in Saturday’s game against Philadelphia and didn’t play in Tuesday’s loss to Indiana. Thibodeau said before Wednesday night’s game against Cleveland that Hamilton, who is averaging 13.9 points, will probably miss a week or two.
— Reported by the Associated Press
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Brooklyn Nets forward Gerald Wallace has been fined $5,000 by the NBA for flopping, joining teammate Reggie Evans as the only repeat offenders under the league’s new penalty system.
The league also gave Clippers veteran Chauncey Billups a warning Wednesday for falling backward after launching a jumper against Utah with little or no contact.
Wallace was defending a driving LeBron James on Saturday in Miami when he went tumbling backward after James put his right hand on Wallace’s body while dribbling with his left.
— Reported by the Associated Press
The Atlanta Hawks have recalled guard John Jenkins from the Bakersfield Jam, their NBA Development League affiliate, Hawks President of Basketball Operations/General Manager Danny Ferry announced today.
Jenkins was assigned on Dec. 1st and played in two games with the Jam, averaging 25.5 points on .529 shooting, 3.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.5 steals in 33.0 minutes per game. In last night’s 109-95 victory over the Los Angeles D-Fenders, the 6-foot-4 guard from Vanderbilt scored a game-high 29 points on 10-21 shooting (.476) and added four rebounds and three assists in 37 minutes.
He will be available for tonight’s nationally-televised game on ESPN against the Denver Nuggets at 8 p.m.
The Boston Celtics announced today that they have recalled forward Kris Joseph from their NBA Development League affiliate, the Maine Red Claws.
Joseph, a 6’7 forward, appeared in one game for the Red Claws while on assignment and recorded 14 points, six rebounds and two assists against Sioux Falls on December 2. In his three games with the Red Claws he has averaged 21.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.33 steals.
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Lakers guard Steve Blake underwent successful surgery today to repair a torn abdominal muscle, it was announced by the team.
The surgery was performed in Los Angeles by Dr. Craig Smith. Blake is expected to be out approximately 6-8 weeks.
The Lakers have been without Blake as well as point guard Steve Nash for much of the season. Blake has played in just seven games, while Nash only played in two.
The San Antonio Spurs today announced that they have recalled guard Cory Joseph from the Austin Toros of the NBA Development League.
Joseph, who has been assigned to the Toros twice this season, has appeared in two games with Austin, averaging 12.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 6.5 assists and 2.0 steals in 35.5 minutes.
The University of Texas product has appeared in four games this season for the Spurs, averaging 1.8 points and 1.5 assists in 7.8 minutes.
Miami Heat guard Norris Cole had hoped to use Saturday’s performance against the Brooklyn Nets as a steppingstone.
Now, he will have to take a couple steps back before making progress. Cole did not play in Tuesday’s game against the Washington Wizards because of a strained groin.
Cole went through the morning shootaround, but coach Erik Spoelstra said it was best for him to rest rather than risk further injury. He suffered the injury at some point during Saturday’s victory against the Brooklyn Nets.
The decision to sit him was made for precautionary reasons.
— Reported by Shandel Richardson of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel
The New Orleans Hornets are expected to change their nickname to the Pelicans as early as the 2013-14 season, numerous sources told Yahoo! Sports.
The Hornets planned to change their nickname since Tom Benson, owner of the New Orleans Saints, purchased the team on April 14. Benson also owns the rights to the nickname Pelicans.
The Hornets also considered the nicknames Krewe (groups of costumed paraders in the annual Mardi Gras carnival in New Orleans) and Brass.
— Reported by Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports
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The Lakers’ much-discussed search for a way to make Mike D’Antoni’s offense work with Pau Gasol, or to make Gasol effective next to Dwight Howard, is on hold.
Gasol, who had been benched at the end of recent games including Sunday’s loss to the Magic, will be out tonight against the Rockets because of tendinitis in both knees. The former All-Star who had been dealt to the Rockets in a trade later vetoed a year ago this week, had been struggling with the injury and the Lakers’ switch to an up-tempo offense in which he was usually at the high post, rather than inside.
“He was playing hurt,” D’Antoni said. “In this league, you just can’t do that. They got to get him healthy, whatever it takes, one game, two games, 10 games, day-to-day, I don’t know. But he’s got to get healthy. It wasn’t fair. He was trying to battle through some stuff. In this league, you just can’t do it.”
— Reported by Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle Blog
The Charlotte Bobcats want Wednesdays to be the new day to party.
The team is spending $18,000 advertising on the city’s light-rail trains and forming partnerships with several EpiCentre restaurants and nightclubs. The hope? That young people will turn a mid-week basketball game into a full night out.
Senior Vice President for Marketing Seth Bennett said the team hopes it will be a stimulus to the whole uptown corridor. The Bobcats also hope it will boost attendance on a day when it is generally much more difficult to fill seats.
Team President and CEO Fred Whitfield said he charged the marketing department with coming up with a plan to boost attendance on Wednesdays soon after the team received its schedule. It called for 13 Wednesday home games, the most it’s ever had. And the opponents – including the Miami Heat, New York Knicks, Brooklyn Nets and Los Angeles Clippers – were pretty good draws.
— Reported by Andrew Dunn of the Charlotte Obsever