The Sacramento Bee (Scott Howard-Cooper) reports on now retired point guard Jason Williams: “He really has a little bit of a unique place in the history of the NBA, I think,” Kings basketball president Geoff Petrie said, “in the sense that his rookie year and into his second year, he kind of came out of nowhere at a time when the league was coming out of the lockout and sort of struggling with its style of play and just trying to regain some of the footing it had lost at that time. And here was this kid that had these incredible dribbling and passing skills and sort of pedal-to-the-metal attitude about the game. He just caught the imagination of the entire country, along with the rest of our team. “It really helped the NBA. It really helped this franchise, along with a lot of other terrific players, too. He became the darling of ESPN highlights just about every night. I’ve told this to other people: There was a time there, probably for about a year or so, other than Michael Jordan, he was the most popular basketball player in America because of this flamboyant style he had.”
Category: Memphis Grizzlies Blog
Grizzlies blog – Memphis Grizzlies blog
Warrick the lone Grizzlies playoff vet
The Memphis Commercial Appeal (Ronald Tillery) reports: Something rather amusing popped into Hakim Warrick’s head while he looked around the gym as the Grizzlies’ conducted their media day. Warrick, who is entering his fourth NBA season, is the only remaining player from the Grizzlies’ playoff era… “It’s strange,” Warrick said. “None of the coaching staff is here. It’s just funny to see how much this has changed.” … After all, 10 of the 15 players on the training camp roster are indeed younger than Warrick. “It’s crazy,” Warrick said. “I’m like one of the grandpas of the team right now.”
O.J. Mayo brings that swagger
The Memphis Flyer (Chris Herrington) reports: O.J. Mayo is not to be trifled with. If there was a pattern to responses today — from players and other team personnel, on the record and off — it was this: Mayo has an intensity, swagger, and work ethic that is highly unusual for a rookie. When Mike Conley was asked if he thought Mayo might struggle to make a big splash on the team as a rookie — since Conley himself and Rudy Gay both struggled their rookie seasons — Conley smiled and said, “O.J.’s a different guy. He has the swagger right now. It doesn’t matter with him [that he’s a rookie]. Further testimonials continued from a number of non-player team insiders. One said that after Mayo’s team lost in an unofficial pick-up game last week, Mayo spent the next day stewing about it, a story Mayo himself confirmed. This source also said Mayo has been “making everything” in recent team pick-up games.
InsideHoops.com editor says: Mayo sounds like me when I dominate summer pickup games and destroy NBA All-Stars on a regular basis. Go ahead, name your five favorite players. Chances are, I’ve made at least two of them shed tears on the court. Though, there’s an even better chance I’m making this up. Yeah, go with the latter.
Grizzlies sign Quinton Ross
The Memphis Grizzlies announced today that they have signed free-agent swingman Quinton Ross. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
“We are pleased to bring Quinton Ross to our team,” said Grizzlies General Manager and Vice President of Basketball Operations Chris Wallace. “He has been one of the best and most versatile backcourt defenders in the NBA the past four seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers. We are excited to bring him into training camp next week.”
A four-year NBA veteran, Ross has spent his entire career with the Los Angeles Clippers (2004-08), averaging 4.8 points, 2.5 rebounds and 0.71 steals in 21.1 minutes in 302 games (151 starts).
The 6-6, 193-pound guard/forward enjoyed his best statistical season in 2006-07, setting career highs in points (5.2), steals (0.86) and field goal percentage (.467) in a career-best 81 games played. In the 2005-06 season, he helped the Clippers reach the Western Conference Semifinals by averaging 7.7 points on 53.4 percent shooting in 12 postseason games (10 starts), including 18 points (9-14 FG) and five rebounds in 40 minutes in Game 5 of the 2006 Western Conference Semifinals vs. Phoenix on May 18, 2006.
Undrafted in 2003 out of Southern Methodist University, Ross has played the most games of any undrafted player in Clippers history, surpassing former Grizzlies forward Bo Outlaw’s mark last season. Prior to joining the NBA, Ross spent one season overseas with Telindus BC Oostende in Belgium in 2003-04 before signing with the Clippers on August 16, 2004.
The Dallas native is a cousin to Grizzlies rookie forward Darrell Arthur, who was the 27th overall selection in the 2008 NBA Draft.
Jason Williams retires
Los Angeles Clippers point guard Jason Williams announced his retirement from the NBA today, ending his 10-year career. Signed by the Clippers as a free agent on August 7, 2008, Williams did not appear in a game for Los Angeles.
Williams enjoyed a 10-year NBA career that saw him take the court for three different teams, (Sacramento 1998-2001, Memphis 2001-2005 and Miami 2005-2008). A member of the NBA Champion Miami Heat in 2005-06, Williams started all 23 playoff games and averaged 9.3 points and 3.9 assists for Miami in helping to win the organization’s first title.
The West Virginia native leaves the NBA with career averages of 11.4 points, 6.3 assists, 1.3 steals, 2.4 rebounds while shooting 39.6 percent from the floor, 32.5 percent from three-point range and 81.6 percent from the foul line in 679 total games. Williams finishes his career with a 2.77 assist-to-turnover ratio.
He enjoyed his best statistical season in 2001-02 when he averaged 14.8 points, 8.0 assists and 3.0 rebounds for Memphis. In his four seasons with the Grizzlies, Williams became the club’s all-time assists leader and all-time leader in three-point field goals attempted in addition to being named the NBA’s Most Improved Player for the 2002-03 season by Sports Illustrated when he finished tied for second in the league in assists per game.
Originally drafted with the seventh overall selection in the 1998 NBA Draft by Sacramento after one season at the University of Florida, Williams was named to the 1998-99 NBA All-Rookie Team following an electrifying first season that saw him average 12.8 points and 6.0 assists. Over the next nine seasons, Williams emerged as one of the most dependable point guards in the NBA, averaging double-figures in scoring and at least five assists per game in eight of his ten years in the league.
InsideHoops.com editor says: J-Will, aka “White Chocolate,” was a fun player to watch in his prime. Wild, flashy, sometimes out of control, he played like a streetballer, but was good. I will say he was one of the worst players in the whole league to interview. Getting decent answers from him was so painful I don’t think I ever wound up posting a single word he said. Still, he’ll be missed.
Shareef Abdur-Rahim retires
Sacramento Kings’ forward Shareef Abdur-Rahim today announced his retirement from the NBA as a player due to a reoccurring knee injury.
“First of all, on behalf of the entire organization I want to thank Shareef for his contribution to the Kings and NBA both on and off the court,” said Kings’ President of Basketball Operations Geoff Petrie. “He has had an exemplary career as a player and citizen. It is unfortunate for any productive career to be felled by injury. However, no one can ever doubt Shareef’s effort, commitment or desire to excel. It is our intention to find a new role for Shareef with the organization as he begins the next phase of his professional life.”
Abdur-Rahim enjoyed 12 seasons in the NBA with four different teams (Vancouver 1996-97 to 2000-01, Atlanta 2001-02 to 2003-04, Portland 2003-04 to 2004-05 and Sacramento 2005-06 to 2007-08), amassing career averages of 18.1 points (.452 FGs, .297 3FGs, .810 FTs), 7.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game through 830 outings. His most productive season, statistically, occurred during the 1998-99 campaign in Vancouver when he averaged 23.0 points (.432 FGs, .306 3FGs, .841 FTs), 7.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game through 50 contests (NBA Lockout season). The following season (1999-00), Abdur-Rahim averaged double figures in both points (20.3) and rebounds (10.1) per game, in which he played in all 82 contests for the Grizzlies.
“I’ve been in a situation where I’ve been trying to get healthy over the last year and a half,” explained Abdur-Rahim. “I came to grips with the fact that, health-wise, I won’t be able to get back to the condition and level that is needed to play in the NBA. My right knee has become arthritic over the years and is to the point where it won’t allow me do the things and play at the level in which I’m accustomed to playing. As tough as it is to come to grips with, it’s the reality.”
Abdur-Rahim was a member of the gold-medal winning United States Olympic team in 2000 while still with the Vancouver Grizzlies. He was selected to the Eastern Conference NBA All-Star Team where he scored nine points in 21 minutes as a member of the Atlanta Hawks in 2002.
“Regarding my career, I’ve been really blessed and fortunate,” said Abdur-Rahim. “I’m thankful that I had basketball and was able to play in the NBA. There aren’t a lot of people who actually get to do what they grow up dreaming about doing. I’ve had that opportunity and I’m really thankful for that. I’m also thankful for the coaches, trainers, owners, front office people and friends I’ve made through my time in the NBA. It was a tough decision, but in no way am I bitter. I’m just really thankful and happy that I was given the opportunity to play in the NBA.”
On December 28, 2002, Abdur-Rahim became the sixth-youngest player in NBA history to reach the 10,000-point plateau when he scored 18 points at Washington at age 26, trailing only Kobe Bryant, Bob McAdoo, Shaquille O’Neal, Michael Jordan and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with that distinction. He scored a career-high 50 points (including a career-high 21 field goals made) versus Detroit on November 23, 2001, becoming the first Hawks player to hit that mark since Dominique Wilkins poured in 52 points in 1991.
Selected by the Vancouver Grizzlies (now Memphis) as an undergraduate out of California with the third pick of the 1996 NBA Draft, Abdur-Rahim has a long-standing history of community service involvement. He was named by The Sporting News as the NBA’s Number 1 Good Guy for 2004 after funding the Reef House in Atlanta through his Atlanta-based Future Foundation with the purpose of assisting at-risk and underprivileged youth.
Darrell Arthur and Mario Chalmers each fined $20,000
The AP reports: Former Kansas teammates Darrell Arthur and Mario Chalmers were fined $20,000 apiece after being banished last week from the NBA rookie symposium, the league said Wednesday. Security at the resort near New York where the event took place found Arthur and Chalmers in a room with two women, and the scent of marijuana was detected.
InsideHoops.com editor says: The two players were chillin. Some women wanted them. They did what most guys would do. I’m randomly speculating that the women brought the marijuana, not the players. The guys probably felt like rock stars. And before it dawned on them to quickly smarten up and end the evening, they got caught.
NBA players union suspends agent
The AP reports: The National Basketball Players Association suspended player agent Calvin Andrews for one year Friday for alleged recruiting improprieties regarding former Southern California star O.J. Mayo. The union said its Disciplinary Committee has reserved the right to take further action against Andrews.
InsideHoops.com says: I wonder if this means they found some new information, or if this is entirely a result of the reports back when the OJ Mayo recruiting issue stories first broke.
Grizzlies sign Hamed Haddadi
The Memphis Grizzlies signed free-agent center Hamed Haddadi pronounced (ha-MED ha-DAHD-dee), who led all 2008 Olympians in rebounding and blocks, Grizzlies General Manager and Vice President of Basketball Operations Chris Wallace announced today. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The Ahvaz, Iran native recently participated in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China, where he was the only player to average a double-double (16.6 points, 11.2 rebounds, 2.6 blocks) in Olympic competition while playing five games for the Iranian National Team.
The 7-2, 254-pound center had his best performance came against eventual bronze medal winner Argentina when he had a team-high 21 points and game-high 16 rebounds on Aug. 16.
“We are pleased to sign Hamed,” said Wallace. “He is a young center who was very productive as a rebounder, shotblocker and scorer at the Rocky Mountain Revue Summer League in Salt Lake City, Utah, the 2008 Olympics and the FIBA Diamond Ball Tournament in Nanjing, China prior to the Olympics. Our coaching staff is eager to begin working with Hamed.”
Haddadi, who is slated to become the first Iranian to play in the NBA, poured in 31 points and grabbed 10 rebounds against Lebanon in the 2007 FIBA Asian Championship in Japan, helping Iran clinch its first Olympic basketball berth since 1948.
The 23-year-old, who was not selected in the 2004 NBA Draft, recently averaged 14.0 points, 11.5 rebounds and 2.5 blocks in 25.5 minutes in two games for the Iranian team against NBA competition at the 2008 Rocky Mountain Revue.
Haddadi, who spent the 2007-08 season playing for Saba Battery BC in the Iranian Super League, will join former Grizzlies Jake Tsakalidis and Cezary Trybanski as the tallest players in franchise history. He is also the second Grizzlies player to appear in the 2008 Olympics, joining center Marc Gasol, who captured a silver medal with the Spanish National Team.
Web viewing of NBA games may soon exist
The Oklahoman (Mel Bracht) reports: Say you’re working late and can’t make it to the Ford Center to watch Oklahoma City’s new NBA team play its game that night. Instead, you log on to your computer and watch streaming video of the team’s game broadcast. Sound far-fetched? Not if the NBA has its way. The league is aggresively promoting three new Internet elements — video streaming in home markets, interactive TV and video-on-demand — for the upcoming season. Ed Desser, a media consultant for Oklahoma City’s team, said many details have yet to be worked out, and didn’t expect the team to offer the Internet elements anytime soon.