NBA Blog – NBA Basketball Blog
NBA Blog: The NBA basketball news blog section of Inside Hoops
Hornets Blog – Charlotte Hornets blog
Stephen Jackson of the Charlotte Bobcats has been fined $50,000 for verbal abuse of game officials, it was announced today by Stu Jackson, NBA Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations.
The incident occurred following the Bobcats’ 97-90 loss to the Detroit Pistons last night at the Palace of Auburn Hills.
WTVD (ABC) reports:
Warrants have been obtained charging 25-year-old Gavin Troy Grant with first degree burglary, assault with a deadly weapon, attempted robbery with a dangerous weapon, and conspiracy to commit armed robbery.
The attempted robbery happened on September 24 around 10 p.m at an apartment on Crossroads Arbor Way.
Police say two suspects forced their way into the apartment and assaulted two people who were inside.
The victims fought off the suspects, who fled before being about the complete the robbery.
One of the victims in the case is former NC State baseball player Domonique Rodgers.
Rodgers was arrested four hours after the incident for running a marijuana operation at his house.
Charlotte Bobcats General Manager Rod Higgins announced today that the team has exercised the fourth-year option on point guard D.J. Augustin and the third-year option on guard Gerald Henderson.
Augustin, who was selected by the Bobcats with the ninth overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft, has posted career averages of 8.9 points, 2.9 assists and 1.5 rebounds in 153 games. Additionally, he has connected on .410 from the field, .418 from beyond the three-point line and .853 from the free-throw line. In 72 games as a rookie, he averaged 11.8 points, 3.5 assists and 1.8 rebounds in 26.5 minutes and was named to the 2008-09 All-Rookie Second Team.
An early-entry candidate from Duke University, Henderson averaged 2.6 points and 1.3 rebounds in 43 games last season. He was selected by the Bobcats with the 12th overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft.
The Charlotte Bobcats, who became the NBA’s 30th franchise when they joined the league in 2004-05, host the Indiana Pacers tonight at 7:00 p.m. at Time Warner Cable Arena. The game will be televised on SportSouth and heard on WFNZ 610 AM and across the Bobcats radio network.
Charlotte Bobcats General Manager Rod Higgins announced today that the team has waived forward Darius Miles and forward/center Matt Rogers. In seven preseason appearances, Miles averaged 3.6 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 15.1 minutes per game. Rogers appeared in three games and averaged 0.3 points, 2.7 rebounds and 0.7 blocks in 4.7 minutes per contest.
Miles has played in 446 career NBA games for the Clippers, Cavaliers, Trail Blazers and Grizzlies, averaging 10.1 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 26.3 minutes. He was selected with the third overall pick in the 2000 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Clippers and was named to the All-Rookie First Team following the 2000-01 season.
Rogers joined the Bobcats as a free agent after going undrafted in the 2010 NBA Draft. He played four seasons at Southwest Baptist University in Missouri, averaging 15.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 3.8 blocks. He was named Second Team Division II All-America as a junior in 2008-09 and Third Team as a senior in 2009-10.
The Bobcats roster now stands at 15.
Charlotte Bobcats General Manager Rod Higgins announced today that the team has waived guard Javaris Crittenton. In four preseason appearances, he averaged 3.3 points, 1.8 assists, 1.5 rebounds and 1.3 steals in 13:27 minutes.
Crittenton has played in 113 career NBA games for the Lakers, Grizzlies and Wizards, averaging 5.3 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 16.4 minutes. The two-year veteran was initially selected by the Lakers with the 19th overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft.
The Bobcats roster now stands at 17.
An InsideHoops.com front page poll asking fans to predict the eight Eastern conference teams that will qualify for the 2010-11 NBA playoffs had the following results:
Celtics 2,046 votes
Heat 2,045 votes
Magic 2,011 votes
Bulls 1,985 votes
Hawks 1,886 vote
Bucks 1,658 votes
Bobcats 1,011 votes
Knicks 1,074 votes
Wizards 637 votes
Sixers 481 votes
Pistons 336 votes
Nets 333 votes
Cavaliers 333 votes
Pacers 229 votes
Raptors 173 votes
Fans felt that the six teams — the Magic, Celtics, Heat, Bulls, Hawks and Bucks — are strong locks to make the playoffs.
After those teams, the Bobcats and Knicks came in next, with the 7th and 8th highest votes.
InsideHoops.com editor says: These are some pretty fantastic results. Look at the top eight teams, in order. That’s pretty close to what an East power ranking list should look like.
Missing the playoffs but getting good support were the Wizards, receiving the 9th highest votes.
 |
The Charlotte Bobcats announced today that center Kwame Brown will miss a minimum of 4-6 weeks due to a third degree left ankle sprain.
Brown suffered the injury during offseason workouts on Thursday. He received an MRI later that afternoon, performed by team physician Dr. Glenn Perry, who confirmed the severity of the sprain. On Friday, Brown had a precautionary exam performed by foot and ankle specialist Dr. Bob Anderson to ensure no further damage was present in the ankle, on which Brown previously had surgery in May 2007.
Brown will wear a protective boot for the next two weeks prior to beginning the rehabilitation process.
The Charlotte Bobcats, who became the NBA’s 30th team when they joined the league in 2004-05, finished the 2009-10 season with a franchise-best 44-38 overall record (31-10 at home) and first-ever playoff appearance.
Charlotte Bobcats General Manager Rod Higgins announced today that the team has named 11-year NBA veteran Chris Whitney Director of Player Development.
“Chris Whitney was the consummate professional as a player, both on and off the court, during his NBA career. He always carried himself in a first-class manner and set a great example as a team leader,” said Higgins. “His experience and the great respect that players around the league have for him makes Chris the ideal person to help our players continue to be positive contributors in our community.”
In his new role with the organization, Whitney will cultivate one-on-one relationships with Bobcats players, provide guidance to help them develop life skills, both professionally and socially, and assist in planning for life after basketball.
The NBA’s Player Development Program was designed to aide players with life skills training and development, player counseling and assistance, and education and career transition. The program’s overall mission is to help NBA players realize their potential both on and off the court through comprehensive educational programming and critical support services and mentoring.
Whitney, who was initially selected by San Antonio with the 47th overall pick in the 1993 NBA Draft, played in 579 career NBA games for San Antonio, Washington, Denver and Orlando, averaging 6.5 points, 2.8 assists and 1.4 rebounds. Eight of his 11 seasons came with the Bullets/Wizards, where he remains the team’s all-time career leader in free-throw percentage (.885) and ranks third all-time in three-point field goals (481).
No stranger the Carolinas region, Whitney played collegiately at Clemson University from 1991-93, following two seasons at Lincoln Trail College in Robinson, Illinois, where he was named First Team NJCAA All-American in 1991. He remains the Tigers’ career leader in three-point field goals per game (2.88), while ranking second in steals per game (1.97), second in assists per game (6.10) and fifth in three-point percentage (.413). Despite playing only two seasons, Whitney ranks seventh among the school’s career leaders in three-point field goals (167) and ninth in career assists (354). He holds two of Clemson’s top nine single-season three-point field goal totals and is one of just four players in school history with consecutive seasons of 80 or more three-point field goals.
While playing with the Wizards, Whitney created the C-WHIT (Children with Hope in Tomorrow) Foundation to assist programs dedicated to helping children in Washington, DC, and his hometown of Hopkinsville, Kentucky. He was the runner-up for the NBA’s Sportsmanship Award in 2000-01.
The Charlotte Bobcats, who became the NBA’s 30th team when they joined the league in 2004-05, finished the 2009-10 season with a franchise-best 44-38 overall record (31-10 at home) and first-ever playoff appearance.
Michael Lee of the Washington Post reports (via blog):
 |
Javaris Crittenton is hoping to return to the NBA after accepting an invitation to try out for the Charlotte Bobcats in training camp, his agent Mark Bartelstein said on Tuesday.
The other half in the infamous altercation with Gilbert Arenas involving guns in a Verizon Center locker room, Crittenton is coming back after missing all of last season, with the final 38 games lost as the result of a season-ending suspension from NBA commissioner David Stern. But that embarrassing incident — which led to Crittenton receiving one year of unsupervised probation and a $1,250 fine after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor gun charge in January — overshadowed the fact that the 6-foot-5 point guard was going to miss the entire year anyway because of a severe left ankle injury.
Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle reports:
 |
Seeking additional center depth with Yao Ming on a strict playing time limit, the Rockets have offered free agent center Erick Dampier a two-year, $4 million contract, a person with knowledge of the offer said on Wednesday.
Dampier, who was waived by the Charlotte Bobcats on Tuesday, is also expected to consider a minimum contract offer from the Miami Heat and an offer from the Memphis Grizzlies.