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Forward Al Harrington has been around the block and now finds himself in a good situation with the Denver Nuggets.
Assuming that Carmelo Anthony and Kenyon Martin are around to start at the two forward spots, Harrington can back either guy up and be a big part of the team.
InsideHoops.com met with Harrington and talked about his situation. Harrington names the team that also really wanted him, and his goal of a longer-than-usual NBA career.
Read: Al Harrington interview.
The NBA today released its 2010 preseason schedule, which is highlighted by a comprehensive international slate of games that includes seven contests in China, Europe and Mexico. The preseason slate tips off on Oct. 3, when the New York Knicks visit Armani Jeans Milano – the former team of Knicks forward Danillo Gallinari and head coach Mike D’Antoni – in Milan, Italy, and the New Jersey Nets host Maccabi Haifa.
As is the case these days, the action starts overseas, with a few NBA squads heading to Europe.
I’ve always had mixed feelings about teams playing preseason ball overseas. Because generally it’s just a warmup. I think if NBA fans overseas are going to get a rare taste of live NBA action, it should be the best basketball possible, and we usually don’t see that before the regular season begins.
See the complete 2010-11 NBA preseason schedule.
Bill Nichols of the Dallas Morning News reports:
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Dallas Mavericks point guard Roddy Beaubois suffered a broken bone in his left foot while training with the French national team. Mavs president Donnie Nelson on Friday confirmed the initial report by the French newspaper L’Equipe.
Beaubois reportedly could miss up to three months if surgery is required to repair the fifth metatarsal bone in his left foot.
The NBA season begins in late October, which would put Beaubois in danger of missing the first part of the season.
Mavs officials hope it’s a hairline fracture. A timetable for his return will be determined when Beaubois is evaluated by team doctors. He was to fly back to Dallas late Friday.
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Washington Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld announced today that the team has re-signed free agent swingman Josh Howard. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not announced. It had been reported that the deal would be for one year.
“We were impressed with Josh’s versatility, how well he fit in with our team and his attitude and work ethic both before and after his unfortunate knee injury,” said Grunfeld. “His experience playing in a winning situation makes him an ideal veteran presence for us as we develop our roster of young talent.”
A former All-Star (2007), Howard holds career averages of 15.3 points and 6.0 rebounds per game in 435 games (371 starts) over seven professional seasons in Dallas and Washington, including career highs of 19.9 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.2 assists during the 2007-08 season. He was originally acquired by the Mavericks in the first round (29th pick) of the 2003 Draft, and later appeared in 62 career playoff games (57 starts) for Dallas, with averages of 15.5 points and 7.2 rebounds per game in postseason play. Howard averaged 16.7 points and 7.4 rebounds in 23 playoff games (all starts) for the Mavericks during their run to the 2006 NBA Finals.
Howard initially joined the Wizards via trade from Dallas on February 13, 2010, and appeared in four games (three starts) for Washington last season. In his first three contests as a Wizard, he averaged 17.0 points and 4.0 rebounds per game before a knee injury on February 22nd vs. Chicago caused him to miss the final 28 games of the season.
An InsideHoops.com poll started on July 17 asking readers to select the five best teams in the NBA gave some expected results.
The league champion Los Angeles Lakers, receiving 3,540 votes, got more support than any team, followed by the Miami Heat (3,151 votes), Orlando Magic (2,931) and Boston Celtics (2,900).
The other two teams to receive over 1,000 votes were the Chicago Bulls (1,426), who added Carlos Boozer this summer, and Oklahoma City Thunder (1,149), a talented young team featuring star Kevin Durant.
The Dallas Mavericks (873) also received support.
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The Boston Celtics announced today that they have re-signed guard/forward Marquis Daniels. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Daniels, a 6’6″ guard/forward, appeared in 51 games for the Celtics last season averaging 5.6 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 18.4 minutes per game. The former Auburn Tiger also shot a career-best 49.8% from the field. Daniels netted a season-high with 16 points on 8-of-9 shooting from the floor against New Jersey on February 27. Daniels made four starts during last season and he averaged 11.8 points and 3.3 rebounds while shooting 65.6% from the field. Over his seven year career Daniels has posted career averages of 9.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 steal in 22.9 minutes per game. His best statistical season came during the 2008-09 season when he was with the Indiana when he averaged career-highs of 13.6 points and 4.6 rebounds in 31.5 minutes per game. He also made a career-high 43 starts that season.
The AP reports:
Former University of Memphis basketball players Shawne Williams and Kareem Cooper have been arrested after police found marijuana and a loaded gun in the car they were traveling in.
Williams played 15 games with the Mavericks in the 2008-09 season and averaged 2.8 points and 3.1 rebounds per game.
Memphis police say they pulled over the Dodge Charger on Friday because Williams wasn’t wearing a seat belt. He was charged with driving on a suspended license.
InsideHoops.com says: This guy appears to be a lost cause. Oh well.
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The Dallas Mavericks announced today they have re-signed forward Dirk Nowitzki. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Nowitzki (7-0, 245) remains with the Mavericks, the team that acquired his draft rights on June 28, 1998. While in Dallas, Nowitzki has been a nine-time All-Star (starting twice), named to the All-NBA Team each of the past nine seasons and was honored as the NBA’s Most Valuable Player for the 2006-07 season when he led the Mavericks to a franchise-high 67 wins.
The Wurzburg, Germany native became the Mavericks’ all-time scoring leader on March 8, 2008 when he scored his 16,644th point to surpass Rolando Blackman. Nowitzki also holds the franchise’s top-spot in several other categories, including rebounds (7,802), field goals (7,348), 3-point field goals (7,348), free throws (5,284), free throw percentage (.876), starts (895), games (920) and minutes (33,732).
On January 13, 2010, Nowitzki became the 34th player in NBA history to hit the 20,000-point plateau and currently ranks 27th on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. He has been named Western Conference Player of the Month six times and Player of the Week 14 times, including four times during the 2009-10 season. Nowitzki has competed in All-Star Saturday Night’s three-point contest four times, winning the shootout in 2006, and won the 2010 Haier Shooting Star contest along with former Houston Rocket Kenny Smith and San Antonio Silver Star Becky Hammon.
Nowitzki, a 12-year pro, holds career averages of 22.9 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.0 blocks and 36.7 minutes in 920 career games with the Mavericks. Additionally, Nowitzki has played in 97 postseason contests and averages 25.5 points, 11.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.0 blocks in Playoff games.
The Dallas Mavericks announced today they have signed first round draft choice Dominique Jones. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Jones (6-4, 215) was originally the 25th overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft by the Memphis Grizzlies. The Mavericks acquired his rights from Memphis for cash considerations in a draft day trade.
The Lake Wales, Fla., native finished his three-year career at South Florida ranked fifth in career scoring (1,797 points), first in free throws attempted (615) and fifth in both field goals made (592) and attempted (1,339). He was named First Team All-Big East as a junior when he averaged 21.4 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.7 steals per game.
Jones led the Bulls in scoring in each of his three years. He was an honorable mention All-American and a finalist for both the Wooden Award and Naismith Award as a junior and was the only player in the nation to average at least 21 points, six rebounds and three assists per contest. He ranked second in the Big East (15th in the nation) in scoring in his final season with South Florida.
The Dallas Mavericks announced today they have signed center Ian Mahinmi (pronounced Yan mah-HEEN-me). Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Mahinmi (6-11, 230) joins the Mavericks as a free agent from the San Antonio Spurs where he spent two NBA seasons. He holds career averages of 3.8 points, 1.8 rebounds and 5.8 minutes in 32 career games.
Originally a first round draft pick (28th overall) of San Antonio in 2005, Mahinmi played in 26 games for the Spurs last season averaging 3.9 points and 2.0 rebounds in 6.3 minutes per game and shooting .636 from the field. He also saw the first postseason action of his career in the series against the Mavericks when he played in two games averaging 4.5 points and 1.0 rebounds per contest.
The Rouen, France native played in only six games during his rookie season (2007-08) and spent the majority of the year with the Austin Toros of the NBA Development League. While in Austin, he averaged 16.8 points, 8.0 rebounds and 1.7 blocks en route to being named All-NBA Development First Team in 2008. He missed the entire 2008-09 season with an ankle injury.
Mahinmi was born and raised in France by his mother who is from Jamaica and his father who hails from Benin. He spent four seasons in the French A League before making his debut with the Spurs and was a named a French League All-Star in 2006. Mahinmi was also a member of the French National Team that captured bronze at the 2004 European Junior Championship.