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Paul George, Kevin Durant named NBA Players of Week

paul george

The Indiana Pacers’ Paul George and the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Kevin Durant were today named NBA Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week, respectively, for games played Monday, Nov. 23 through Sunday, Nov. 29.

George led the Pacers to a 3-0 week behind an Eastern Conference-leading 37.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.3 steals. He shot 54.7 percent from the field, 57.1 percent from three-point range and 86.7 percent from the foul line. On Nov. 24, George tallied 40 points on 14-of-19 shooting, including 7-of-8 from beyond the arc, during a 123-106 win over the Washington Wizards.

kevin durant

Durant led the Thunder to a 3-0 week behind averages of 30.3 points (second in the Western Conference), 8.3 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.3 blocks (fourth in the Western Conference). He shot 58.5 percent from the field, 52.2 percent from three-point range and 94.4 percent from the foul line. On Nov. 27, Durant recorded 34 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and three blocks during a 103-87 win over the Detroit Pistons.

Other nominees for the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week were Charlotte’s Kemba Walker, Cleveland’s Kevin Love, Golden State’s Draymond Green, Houston’s James Harden, the Los Angeles Clippers’ Blake Griffin, Orlando’s Victor Oladipo, Philadelphia’s Robert Covington, Portland’s Damian Lillard, and Toronto’s DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry.

Roy Hibbert has not kept in touch with Pacers

Here’s the Los Angeles Daily News reporting on the not-so-existent relationship between Lakers center Roy Hibbert and his former team, the Indiana Pacers:

Roy Hibbert has not kept in touch with the Pacers

Roy Hibbert’s past and present will collide on Sunday when the Lakers host the Pacers. He maintained he has “great memories” of his seven-year NBA career in Indiana. But his last season ended on a sour note amid a reduced role to accommodate a quicker and smaller lineup. The Pacers then traded Hibbert to the Lakers last summer for a second-round draft pick.

“I’m going to feel something,” said Hibbert, who will become a free agent next summer after making $15.5 million this season. “But I have to move on and try to get a win.”

Hibbert insisted he has no hard feelings, but admitted he has not kept in touch with anyone associated with the Pacers.

“I haven’t talked to them in a while,” Hibbert said. “I haven’t watched any of their games. No offense, but I don’t think many of them are on TV.”

Paul George playing great for Pacers

The Indiana Pacers are 6-4, and through Friday have won three straight games. Here’s the Indianapolis Star reporting on one of the biggest reasons for the team’s current success:

Paul George shining bright for Pacers

[Paul] George has become only the fourth player in franchise history to score 26 or more points in six straight games, tying Danny Granger’s feat from Jan. 3-12, 2009 according to STATS, LLC. Over the same six-game stretch, George has scored 176 points, the second-highest mark in his career — in six consecutive games from Jan. 14-24, 2014, he scored 177 points.

Also during the past six games, George has shot 47.5 percent from beyond the 3-point arc, and his rebounding has swelled to 9.5 per game, all while defending the best wing player on the opposing team.

On Friday night, George scored a game-high 29 points on efficient 8-of-17 shooting, another example of how the offense seems to suit him. He’s free to rise up in catch-and-shoot situations or be aggressive within the space and make plays in isolation. And that’s the whole point, as the 2015-16 Pacers are the vessel to launch George back into the NBA cosmos where the stars live.

Pacers great Mel Daniels has died

The Indiana Pacers today are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of former center Mel Daniels, a stalwart on the team’s three American Basketball Association championship teams and a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Daniels died Friday in Sheridan, Ind. He was 71. He is survived by his wife, CeCe and family.

“I join our extended Pacers family in offering my sincerest condolences to CeCe and Mel’s family,” said Pacers Sports & Entertainment owner Herb Simon. “We will miss him greatly, but when we look at that Hall of Fame banner in Bankers Life Fieldhouse, we will be forever reminded of what he meant to this franchise.”

Daniels was twice named the ABA’s MVP (1969 and 1971). He played six seasons with the Pacers, averaging 19.4 points and 16.0 rebounds per game.

A four-time All-ABA selection, Daniels was named to the First Team in 1969, 1970 and 1971, and was a Second Team pick in 1973. He also was named the ABA All-Star Game MVP in 1971 and was the ABA’s first Rookie of the Year in 1968 while playing with Minnesota. He is the Pacers’ all-time leading rebounder in the ABA (7,643) and he holds the Pacers’ ABA record for rebounds in a single season (1,475 in 1970-71).

He is a graduate of the University of New Mexico.

Following the end of his playing career, he joined the basketball staff of the Pacers.

His jersey number was retired on November 2, 1985. In September 2012, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Pacers waive Toney Douglas

Pacers waive Toney Douglas

The Indiana Pacers announced Monday they have requested waivers on 6-2 guard Toney Douglas.

He played in five preseason games and averaged 6.6 points and 1.6 assists per game.

At this point in his career, Douglas may latch onto another team’s roster, but he also might fall out of the league. If we had to guess, the veteran has a fairly good shot at sticking around in the league for another season.

Fort Wayne Mad Ants open tryouts

Fort Wayne Mad Ants open tryouts

The Fort Wayne Mad Ants announced today that they will hold open tryouts on Saturday, October 17th and Sunday, October 18th in Fort Wayne for the 2015-16 NBA Development League season. The open tryout will be held at the McMillen Park Community Center located at 3901 Abbott Street, Fort Wayne, Indiana 46806.

The first day of this Fort Wayne tryout will be Saturday, October 17th at the McMillen Park Community Center with check-in beginning at 9:00 a.m. and the tryout beginning promptly at 10:00 a.m. lasting until around 3:00 p.m. Players will receive an official Mad Ants tryout jersey upon registration.

Spectators are invited to attend tryouts for an entry fee of $2 for adults, with kids entering for free.

The Mad Ants local player tryouts offer athletes an opportunity to showcase their talents in front of the Fort Wayne Mad Ants’ coaching staff. Players will compete to earn an invitation to the team’s training camp, which will begin in early November.

Players who are interested in trying out for the Mad Ants on October 17th should submit the official registration and release forms, in addition to a $150 non-refundable fee to the Mad Ants office by Wednesday, October 14th. The registration fee is $200 for all forms received after Wednesday, October 14th (pre-registration is not required and athletes may register on the morning of the tryout). Payments must be made by money order or cashier’s check. Application forms are available on the Mad Ants’ website at www.fortwaynehoops.com.