Charlotte Hornets Blog – Page 52 – NBA Blog

Thunder trade Byron Mullens to Bobcats

Thunder Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti announced today that the team has acquired a 2013 2nd round draft pick from the Charlotte Bobcats in exchange for center Byron Mullens and cash considerations.

“While we believe that Byron will be a productive player in this league, it became apparent that in the near future it would be difficult for him to continue his development and have the opportunity to make a significant impact on our club because of the current make-up of our roster,” Presti said. “This trade allows us the opportunity to create both future financial and roster flexibility while providing us with an additional draft pick in 2013.”

In two seasons with the Thunder, Mullens has appeared in 26 games and posted averages of 1.5 points and 1.3 rebounds in 5.3 minutes per contest.

Oklahoma City originally acquired the draft rights to Mullens from the Dallas Mavericks on draft night after he was selected in the 1st round (No. 25 overall) of the 2009 NBA Draft.

The former Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year at Ohio State saw action in 41 games for the Tulsa 66ers of the NBA D-League during the past two seasons. With the 66ers, Mullens recorded averages of 15.1 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.1 blocked shots in 30.2 minutes per game.

Bobcats forward Eduardo Najera out 6-8 weeks

Charlotte Bobcats forward Eduardo Najera underwent successful surgery this morning to repair a cartilage tear in his left knee that was discovered during an MRI earlier this week. The surgery was performed by Bobcats team physician Dr. Glenn Perry at Midtown Medical Plaza in Charlotte.

He is expected to be sidelined for approximately 6-8 weeks.

Najera saw action in 31 games for the Bobcats last season, averaging 2.2 points and 1.4 rebounds in 12.0 minutes per game.

Charlotte Bobcats sign guard Reggie Williams

Charlotte Bobcats President of Basketball Operations Rod Higgins announced today that the team has signed guard Reggie Williams. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed. We’ll post contract details here later today.

The 6-6 Williams signed with the Warriors in March 2010 and spent the remainder of the 2009-10 season and all of 2010-11 with the team. In 104 total games, he has career averages of 10.6 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.8 assists, while shooting .477 from the field (408-855) and .405 from beyond the three-point line (135-333). In 80 games played last season, he averaged 9.2 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.5 assists, and ranked ninth in the NBA with a three-point field goal percentage of .423 (102-241).

Williams will have surgery in the coming days to repair a tear of the lateral meniscus in his left knee. He is expected to be sidelined for approximately 6-8 weeks.

Williams, who led all NCAA Division I players in scoring in both his junior and senior years at Virginia Military Institute, was not selected in the 2008 NBA Draft and spent the 2008-09 season playing in France before joining the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA D-League for the 2009-10 season. A 2010 D-League All-Star, he was leading the league in scoring at 26.4 points per game and was named Player of the Month in February before being called up to the Warriors.

Golden State Warriors sign Dominic McGuire

The Golden State Warriors have signed free agent forward Dominic McGuire, the team announced today. Per team policy, terms of the agreement were not released.

McGuire, 26, played with the Charlotte Bobcats last season, appearing in 52 games (eight starts) and averaging 3.3 points and 3.8 rebounds in 14.6 minutes per contest. In eight starting assignments, the 6’9” forward averaged 3.8 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.13 blocks in 26.4 minutes.

Originally selected by the Washington Wizards in the second round (#47) of the 2007 NBA Draft out of Fresno State, McGuire owns career averages of 2.6 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 15.2 minutes in 252 regular-season games over four seasons with the Washington Wizards, Sacramento Kings and Charlotte Bobcats. The San Diego, CA, native makes his return to the Bay Area, where he spent two seasons (2003-05) at the University of California, Berkley.

Charlotte Bobcats sign Melvin Ely

Charlotte Bobcats President of Basketball Operations Rod Higgins announced today that the team has signed forward/center Melvin Ely. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

An eight-year NBA veteran, Ely has played in 373 games for the Clippers, Bobcats, Spurs, Hornets and Nuggets. He holds career averages of 5.3 points and 3.3 rebounds, while shooting .460 from the field (780-1696). Last season, Ely averaged 2.3 points and 2.5 rebounds in 12.2 minutes in 30 games played for the Nuggets.

Ely previously played for the Bobcats from 2004-07, joining the team in a trade with the Clippers. He averaged 7.5 points and 4.0 rebounds in 160 games played for the Bobcats before being traded to the Spurs in February 2007. Ely had his best statistical season in 2005-06, when he averaged career highs of 9.8 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 23.6 minutes in 57 games played for the Bobcats.

Bobcats sign forward Derrick Brown

Charlotte Bobcats President of Basketball Operations Rod Higgins announced today that the team has signed forward Derrick Brown. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The 6-8 Brown was initially drafted by the Bobcats with the 40th overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft, and played in 98 games for the team before being waived on February 24, 2011. He finished last season with the New York Knicks after being picked up from waivers. In two NBA seasons, he has played in 108 total games and holds career averages of 3.5 points and 1.7 rebounds, while shooting .511 from the field (142-278).

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Bobcats rookie Bismack Biyombo still dealing with overseas contract dispute

Rookie lottery pick Bismack Biyombo was among six Charlotte Bobcats who worked out Friday on the court at Time Warner Cable Arena.

Now he just hopes he’ll be there when the NBA season opens later this month.

Biyombo is in the midst of contract dispute with Fuenlabrada after playing for the Spanish team last season prior to being selected with the seventh pick in the draft. He’s suing the team for breach of contract and a civil trial scheduled for Dec. 19 in Spain could cause him to miss a portion of training camp—or even longer if he loses the case.

Biyombo’s United States-based agent Joel Bell doesn’t believe that’ll happen.

“He’s not going to pay anything,” Bell said. “He’s going to win the trial. They’re in breach of contract.”

Fuenlabrada wants a transfer fee to give up its rights to Biyombo.

— Reported by Steve Reed of the Associated Press

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Charles Oakley will not return to Bobcats coaching staff

Charlotte Bobcats President of Basketball Operations Rod Higgins announced today that Charles Oakley will not return as an assistant coach on Paul Silas’ staff.

“I’ve known Charles Oakley for a long time and his work ethic as a coach mirrored the intensity he displayed during his playing career,” Higgins said. “While we are disappointed that things did not work out the way we had hoped, we want to thank Charles for his efforts last season and wish him the best in his future endeavors.”

Austin Rivers is a work in progress

The Duke Blue Devils are 5-0 after a hard-fought win against Tennessee in the opening round of the Maui Invitational. Mike Krzyzewski now has a historic 905 wins and counting.

But for Krzyzewski’s star freshman, Austin Rivers, things are still a work in progress. Rivers led all Duke scorers with 18 points Monday in Maui. But it was an inefficient 18. He shot 6-for-15 from the field, made critical turnovers and passed on wide-open jump shots for contested shots at the basket.

Four games into his career, he sometimes looks like the star he was billed to be. Other times like a former high school stud who suddenly finds himself in over his head at the next level.

Rivers’ inconsistency was on display for a huge contingent of NBA GMs and scouts to see. He started the game by missing five of his first six shots. He drove wildly into the teeth of the defense. He looked to shoot every time he touched the ball.

And just as quickly, as scouts started to shake their heads and jot down derogatory notes in their iPads, Rivers exploded. First it was a pair of 3-pointers toward the end of the first half. Later, in the second half, he hit a couple of beautiful floaters in the lane.

— Reported by Chad Ford of ESPN.com

InsideHoops.com editor Jeff Lenchiner says: It’s too early to really judge Rivers or any other freshman one way or another. It’s certainly fine to start to form an opinion, but we will learn a lot more in the coming weeks and months.

Doc Rivers keeping eye on son, Austin, at Duke

Freshman guard Austin Rivers came to Duke as one of the nation’s top players, the kind of lofty status that always generates a bunch of one (year) and done talk.

But with the NBA lockout already wiping out hundreds of games already – and more likely to come in the coming weeks – you have to wonder if he or any other highly-touted player is all that eager to make that jump.

Austin’s father, Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers, said his son hasn’t really paid too much attention to the many issues that have factored into the stalemate between the owners and the union.

“He’s just trying to be a better player. He’s had good games and bad games already as a freshman,” the elder Rivers said. “He’s just trying to not be a freshman.”

In three games for the Blue Devils (3-0), Rivers has averaged 12 points per game while shooting 37.5 percent from the field.

— Reported by A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE