Category: Brooklyn Nets Blog

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Nets sign Noah Vonleh

The Brooklyn Nets have signed free agent forward Noah Vonleh.

Vonleh (6’10”, 257) has played in 335 career games (171 starts) across six NBA seasons with Charlotte (2014-15), Portland (2015-18), Chicago (2018), New York (2018-19), Minnesota (2019-20) and Denver (2020), recording averages of 5.0 points and 5.2 rebounds in 16.9 minutes per game. Vonleh’s most productive season was the 2018-19 campaign with the Knicks, as he registered career-best averages of 8.4 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 25.3 minutes per contest.

Most recently, Vonleh signed with the Bulls on Nov. 27, but was waived on Dec. 14.

The 25-year-old has also made three postseason appearances with the Trail Blazers (2016 and 2017) and Nuggets (2020).

Vonleh was originally selected with the ninth overall pick in the first round of the 2014 NBA Draft by Charlotte after spending one season at Indiana. In his lone collegiate season, the Haverhill, Mass., native was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year, while also garnering All-Big Ten Third Team honors.

Kevin Durant removed from Raptors vs. Nets game due to COVID-19 contact tracing concerns

It was an unusual situation in Brooklyn tonight, centered around Nets star forward Kevin Durant.

Via the Toronto Star:

Brooklyn’s Kevin Durant was going to play, then wasn’t allowed to play, then got clearance to play and finally had to stop playing in the third quarter of a truly odd Nets-Raptors game in Brooklyn.

The Durant saga underscores the oddities in a testing/contact tracing world the NBA is trying to navigate through this regular season.

It put a damper on, and added considerable confusion to, a delightful offensive display by both teams but highlights the inherent difficulty with pulling off games and seasons with daily testing, contact tracing and other aspects of dealing with a raging pandemic.

The game itself was delightful as Kyle Lowry simply willed the Raptors to a 123-117 win with typical fourth-quarter brilliance.

Lowry finished with a season-high 30 points, seven assists and five rebounds, and Pascal Siakam added 33 points as the Raptors played one of their best games of the season.

And the New York Post:

Kevin Durant was a last-minute scratch from the Nets’ starting lineup Friday night, then was inserted into the game late and finally pulled for good, all due to COVID-19 contact tracing.

Durant will not travel with the team to Philadelphia on Saturday, according to ESPN.

The NBA said in a statement that Durant was pulled from the game “out of an abundance of caution” after someone he interacted with tested positive for coronavirus after their initial test was inconclusive. The league also said Durant tested negative three times in the past 24 hours.

The entire world is learning to navigate through the the coronavirus pandemic. And it’s certainly a learning process for any event-based organizations, especially sports leagues. The NBA certainly has to examine exactly what happened today, and what to take away from this going forward.

Nets are much-improved in TV ratings department

The Nets are rising in the TV ratings department. Via the New York Post:

James Harden hasn’t faced the Knicks in his new Brooklyn uniform but he’s already beating them.

Harden was obtained in a blockbuster trade on Jan. 13, hours before the Nets played the Knicks at the Garden.

The Nets, since Harden’s first game, are averaging 122,000 viewers per game to the Knicks’ 111,000 viewers, based on Nielsen ratings, according to sources.

This isn’t a surprise. The Knicks are playing respectable basketball this season but are in a rebuilding state. While the Nets have three of the NBA’s best and most popular players, are still working out team chemistry, especially on the defensive end, but are focused on competing for the 2021 NBA championship and should certainly make the playoffs.

James Harden, Nikola Jokic named NBA Players of Week

The NBA announced today that Brooklyn Nets guard James Harden has been named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week and Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokić has been named the Western Conference Player of the Week for games played from Monday, Jan. 25, through Sunday, Jan. 31.

The honor is Harden’s first as a Net and the 25th Player of the Week award of his career.

Harden led Brooklyn to a 3-1 week, including a 3-0 mark in games he appeared in. Harden recorded averages of 25.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 11.3 assists, 1.0 steals and 1.0 blocks in 37.6 minutes per game, while shooting 56.8 percent from the field, 55.0 percent from 3-point range and 88.2 percent from the free-throw line. His assists per game were the highest in the league for the week. Harden opened the week by recording 20 points, four rebounds and eight assists in 34 minutes in a 98-85 victory over the Miami Heat at Barclays Center on Jan. 25. He followed up that performance by posting 31 points, eight rebounds, a Nets season-high 15 assists, two steals and one block in 46 minutes in a 132-128 overtime win at the Atlanta Hawks on Jan. 27. In that game, Harden became the second player this season, and the first player in the Eastern Conference, to register 30 or more points and 15 or more assists in a game. He also became the first Nets player since Stephon Marbury on Jan. 20, 2000, versus Detroit to notch 30 or more points and 15 or more assists in a game. Harden rounded out his week by logging his third triple-double in eight games as a Net, registering 25 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists in 32 minutes in a 147-125 victory on Jan. 29 at Oklahoma City. The 147 points for the Nets matched a franchise record for points scored in a regulation game. Harden sat out Brooklyn’s fourth and final game of the week last night at Washington with a left thigh contusion.

Harden is the 27th player in franchise history to earn Player of the Week honors and the second this season, joining Kevin Durant, who captured the award on Jan. 18. Harden and Durant are the first Nets teammates to win Player of the Week awards in the same season since Brook Lopez and Deron Williams in the 2014-15 campaign, and the second set of teammates to earn Player of the Week honors in the NBA this season, joining Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid (Jan. 25) and Tobias Harris (Jan. 4).

In his 12th NBA season, Harden has appeared in 16 games this season, including eight with the Nets. In those eight games as a Net, he’s registered averages of 24.3 points, 7.8 rebounds, 11.8 assists (first in the NBA) and 1.1 steals in 39.9 minutes per game, shooting 48.4 percent from the field, 40.0 percent from 3-point range and 87.7 percent from the free-throw line.

Jokić wins the award in consecutive weeks, becoming the first Nugget to win in back-to-back weeks since Carmelo Anthony in 2006 (11/27/06 & 12/4/06). He has now earned Western Conference Player of the Week honors eight times in his career, the second most in franchise history.

Jokić, 25, averaged 30.8 points, 10.8 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.30 steals while shooting .623 from the field and .455 from three-point range. He helped lead the Nuggets to a 3-1 week, including a home win over the Utah Jazz on 1/31, snapping their 11-game winning streak and two road wins over the Dallas Mavericks and Miami Heat. The 3-1 week moved Denver’s record to 12-8, fourth best in the Western Conference.

Jokić started the week by registering 20 points (8-13 FG’s), 10 rebounds, four assists and two steals in a road victory over the Dallas Mavericks on 1/25. Denver then headed to Miami, where he put up a stat-line of 21 points, 11 rebounds and three assists in 40 minutes. Jokić followed that performance up with another massive game, finishing with 35 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and one steal at San Antonio on 1/29. He finished the week with arguably the best game of his career vs. Utah, tying a career-high with 47 points (17-26 FG’s), 12 rebounds, five assists and two steals in 37 minutes, becoming the first Nugget to ever post those numbers. He scored 22 points in the first quarter and 33 points in the first half, both career-highs in any single quarter or half.

Jokić leads the NBA in PER, is third in total assists, fifth in assists per game, sixth in rebounds per game and 12th in scoring, while averaging 26.8 points, 11.8 rebounds, 8.6 assists and 1.75 steals in 35.8 minutes. He has also produced a double-double in all 20 games, becoming just the second player since 1976 to record a double-double in each of the first 20 games (Walton).

Nets sign center Norvel Pelle

The Brooklyn Nets have signed free agent center Norvel Pelle.

Pelle (6’10”, 231) spent the 2019-20 season with the Philadelphia 76ers, originally signing a two-way contract with the team on July 2, 2019, before having his contract converted to a standard deal on Feb. 7, 2020. In 24 games off the bench, Pelle recorded averages of 2.4 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 9.7 minutes per game. He registered multiple blocks in 11 of the 24 games he saw action in, including a season-high four blocks on Nov. 29, 2019, at New York. He also appeared in one playoff game for the Sixers in their first round playoff series against Boston.

Per the New York Post, “the Nets have been looking for interior help since trading away center Jarrett Allen in the megadeal for James Harden. While they’ve been linked with a number of veteran Cleveland big men like Andre Drummond and JaVale McGee, those are only targets. Pelle is a Net, albeit a low-risk, high-upside flier who brings a 7–foot-3 1/2 wingspan, athleticism and rim protection.”

Prior to his NBA career, the 27-year-old played professionally for six years (2013-19), competing overseas in Italy, Lebanon and Taiwan and in the NBA G League in four stints with the Delaware Blue Coats. In 83 career NBA G League games (38 starts), Pelle averaged 8.7 points on 63.5 percent shooting from the field, 5.9 rebounds and 2.2 blocks in 18.1 minutes per contest and earned NBA G League All-Defensive Team honors at the conclusion of the 2018-19 season.

Pelle was born in Antigua and Barbuda, attended high school in California and has played for the Lebanese national team.

Nets will be without Kevin Durant against Cavs tonight

The Nets won’t be at full strength tonight. Via the Sun Sentinel:

The second appearance of the Brooklyn Nets’ Big Three was put on hold Friday until the Miami Heat’s Saturday visit to Barclays Center.

As they continue to manage Kevin Durant’s recovery from the torn Achilles that kept him out last season, the Nets announced Friday that Durant would not play in Friday night’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Instead, Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden are expected to play for only the second time as a trio when the Heat open their two-game set against the Nets at 8 p.m. Saturday, a set that concludes Monday at Barclays Center.

The Cavs handed the Nets a loss in double overtime on Wednesday.

With Durant out, this gives everyone a chance to focus on how Harden and Irving play alongside each other. Which is actually the biggest thing to pay attention to on the Nets roster right now.

New Pacer Caris LeVert out after a small mass was discovered on his kidney

Pacers shooting guard Caris LeVert will be out indefinitely after an MRI revealed a small mass on his left kidney during a physical prior to finalizing the four-team trade with Brooklyn, Houston and Cleveland.

LeVert will undergo further medical tests.

“On behalf of my family and myself, we want to thank the Indiana Pacers for their support and guidance,” said LeVert in a statement. “We are grateful for their extreme thoroughness during the physical process and I am looking forward to joining the team and being part of this great organization as soon as possible.”

Pacers President of Basketball Operations Kevin Pritchard: “We acquired Caris because of who he is as a young man first and foremost. His basketball skill and on court play speaks for itself and we know he has a great career ahead of him. We will support Caris through this time and know that he will join us on the court as soon as he is able.”

Recent three-team James Harden trade amended into four-team trade to include Pacers

The Houston Rockets today announced that their three-team trade with Brooklyn and Cleveland has been amended into a four-team trade involving Indiana.

Click the link in this sentence to see the original three-team James Harden to Nets trade from a few days ago.

The Rockets traded guard James Harden to the Nets and a 2023 second round pick to the Pacers while acquiring guard Victor Oladipo (oh-lah-DEE-po) from Indiana, guard Danté Exum from the Cavaliers, and forward Rodions Kurucs (RO-dee-ahns KOO-rootz) from the Nets.

Houston also acquired the following draft assets:

– Three unprotected first round picks from Brooklyn in 2022, 2024, and 2026.

– The right to swap first round picks with Brooklyn in 2021, 2023, 2025, and 2027.

– Milwaukee’s first round pick in 2022 from Cleveland.

As part of the deal, the Pacers also received a future second round draft pick from Houston and a future second round draft pick from Cleveland.

“First and foremost, we want to thank Victor for what he gave to the Pacers through his play, his diligence in rehab coming back from a serious injury, and his community efforts,” said Pacers President of Basketball Operations Kevin Pritchard. “These decisions are obviously never easy and this one in particular was hard because of our relationship.

Continued Pritchard, “Caris is a high-quality person who will fit in with what we as an organization are doing, on and off the floor. He’s a versatile young talent who we think will be a great fit with the direction our team is taking. He can play multiple positions and affect the game at both ends of the floor.”

Originally drafted by the Pacers in the 2016 NBA Draft, LeVert was traded to the Brooklyn Nets on July 7, 2016. A 6-6, 205-pound guard, he spent part of five seasons with the Nets. He will wear jersey #22 with the Pacers.

Oladipo (6-4, 210) is in his eighth season and is a two-time All-Star. In 430 career games with 370 starts, he is averaging 17.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, and 1.7 steals. Over the past three seasons, he was the only player to have averaged at least 20.0 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 4.0 rpg, and 1.90 spg. In 2017-18, Oladipo was named Most Improved Player, All-NBA Third Team, and All-Defensive First Team.

Exum (6-5, 214) was the fifth overall pick by Utah in the 2014 NBA Draft. In 245 career games with 72 starts, the 25-year-old is averaging 5.7 points, 2.1 assists, and 1.8 rebounds in 18.6 minutes per game. Over the past three seasons, Exum averaged 14.6 ppg, 5.0 apg, and 4.2 rpg per 36 minutes played.

Kurucs (6-9, 230) was the 40th overall pick by Brooklyn in the 2018 NBA Draft. In 115 games with 55 starts, the 22-year-old is averaging 6.5 points, and 3.4 rebounds in 17.3 minutes per game. Over his first two seasons, Kurucs averaged 13.6 ppg, 7.0 rpg, and 1.9 apg per 36 minutes played.

Three-team NBA trade sends James Harden to Nets, Caris LeVert to Rockets, Jarrett Allen to Cavs

UPDATE: This three-team trade was amended on January 16 to become a four-team trade that included Victor Oladipo and the Pacers.

The Brooklyn Nets have acquired six-time All-NBA First Team guard James Harden from the Houston Rockets as part of a three-team trade that includes the Cleveland Cavaliers.

As part of the trade, Brooklyn sends center Jarrett Allen and forward Taurean Prince to Cleveland, and guard Caris LeVert and forward Rodions Kurucs, as well as three first round draft picks (2022, 2024 and 2026) and four first round pick swaps (2021, 2023, 2025 and 2027) to Houston.

The Rockets also receive guard Dante Exum and a 2022 first round draft pick from Cleveland (via Milwaukee), and Brooklyn acquires a 2024 second round draft pick from the Cavaliers to complete the deal.

“Adding an All-NBA player such as James to our roster better positions our team to compete against the league’s best,” said Nets General Manager Sean Marks. “James is one of the most prolific scorers and playmakers in our game, and we are thrilled to bring his special talents to Brooklyn. While we are excited to welcome James and his family to the Nets, we also want to thank the players who are departing. Caris, Jarrett, Rodions and Taurean were instrumental to the team’s success and have made an enormous impact on our organization. It has been a pleasure watching them grow both as players and as people and they will always be part of our Nets family. We wish each of them and their families all the best in the future.”

“On behalf of the entire Rockets organization and the City of Houston, I’d like to thank James Harden for an amazing eight-plus seasons in a Rockets uniform,” said Rockets owner Tilman J. Fertitta. “James has provided us with so many great memories as we’ve watched him grow from Sixth Man of the Year to a perennial All-Star and MVP. My family and I also want to thank James for his many off the court contributions, including generous charitable donations and multiple annual community events. We wish James the best of luck and will always be grateful for the memories.”

The league’s Most Valuable Player in 2018, Harden (6’5”, 220) has been named an All-Star in each of the last eight seasons (2013-20), which marks the second-longest active streak of All-Star appearances behind only LeBron James (16 consecutive appearances). He’s a three-time scoring champion (2018-20) and became the first player to win three straight scoring titles since Kevin Durant did so from 2010-12. Harden was also the league leader in assists in 2017, and he’s one of just six players in NBA history who have won both scoring and assist titles in their careers, joining James, Nate Archibald, Oscar Robertson, Jerry West and Russell Westbrook. Harden’s six All-NBA First Team selections tie with Durant for the second-most among active players, trailing only James’ NBA-record 13 first team honors. He ranks 36th on the NBA’s all-time scoring list with 21,160 career points (fourth among active players) and 54th on the league’s all-time assists list with 5,338 career assists (sixth among active players).

Harden has appeared in 841 games (628 starts) across 12 NBA seasons with Houston (2012-21) and Oklahoma City (2009-12), registering career averages of 25.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 1.6 steals in 34.3 minutes per game while shooting 44.3 percent from the field, 36.3 percent from 3-point range and 85.8 percent from the free-throw line. In the 2019-20 season, Harden recorded averages of 34.3 points on 44.4 percent shooting from the field, 35.5 percent shooting from distance and 86.5 percent shooting from the free-throw line with 6.6 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 1.8 steals in 36.5 minutes per game through 68 regular season games, earning All-NBA First Team honors for the fourth straight season and finishing third in MVP voting. Since the start of his NBA career, Harden has played in 841 of a possible 885 regular season games, and no player has appeared in more games since the start of the 2009-10 season than Harden.

The Compton, Calif., native has also never missed the playoffs in his NBA career, seeing action in 128 games (85 starts) in 11 postseason appearances and posting averages of 23.5 points, 5.4 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 1.7 steals in 35.3 minutes per contest. He’s made four trips to the Western Conference Finals in his career, twice with the Rockets (2015 and 2018) and twice with the Thunder (2011 and 2012). Harden has also represented the United States in international competition, earning a gold medal with the U.S. men’s basketball team at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.

Harden was originally selected with the third overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft by the Oklahoma City Thunder. Prior to beginning his NBA career, Harden spent two years (2007-09) at Arizona State, earning All-Pac-10 First Team honors twice and garnering consensus first-team All-America honors, as well as the Pac-10 Player of the Year award, in his second and final collegiate season.

Allen saw action in 234 games (180 starts) in his four seasons (2017-21) with the Nets, posting averages of 10.1 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.4 blocks in 24.4 minutes per game. In the 2020-21 season, Allen has appeared in 12 games (five starts), registering averages of 11.2 points, 10.4 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.6 blocks in 26.6 minutes per game. The Austin, Texas, native was named to the Mtn Dew Ice Rising Stars as part of 2019 NBA All-Star Weekend in Charlotte during his sophomore season. He is also the Nets’ all-time leader in field goal percentage (61.2 percent) and set the franchise’s single-season record for field goal percentage last season (64.9 percent). The 22-year-old was originally selected with the 22nd overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft by Brooklyn.

LeVert appeared in 225 games (96 starts) in five seasons (2016-21) in Brooklyn, averaging 13.1 points, 3.7 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.1 steals in 25.9 minutes per game. In 12 games (four starts) this season, the Columbus, Ohio, native has registered averages of 18.5 points, 4.3 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 1.1 steals in 27.8 minutes per contest. The 26-year-old was originally selected with the 20th overall pick in the first round of the 2016 NBA Draft by the Indiana Pacers and was traded to Brooklyn after the draft.

Kurucs saw action in 115 games (55 starts) in three seasons with the Nets, recording averages of 6.5 points and 3.4 rebounds in 17.3 minutes per game. The Latvian native was originally selected with the 40th overall pick in the second round of the 2018 NBA Draft by Brooklyn.

Prince appeared in 272 games (204 starts) across five NBA seasons with Brooklyn (2019-21) and Atlanta (2016-19), registering averages of 11.4 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 26.0 minutes per game. In 76 games (65 starts) in Brooklyn, Prince averaged 11.4 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 27.3 minutes per contest. In the 2020-21 season, the San Antonio, Texas, native has seen action in 12 games (four starts), averaging 8.1 points and 2.8 rebounds in 18.1 minutes per contest. The 26-year-old was originally acquired by Brooklyn via trade with the Atlanta Hawks on July 6, 2019.

Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie undergoes ACL reconstruction surgery

Brooklyn Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie underwent anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction surgery on his right knee this morning. The procedure was performed by Dr. Riley Williams III at the Hospital for Special Surgery.

Dinwiddie will begin rehabilitation next week and the team expects him to make a full recovery.

In three games this season, Dinwiddie has averaged 6.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 21.4 minutes per game. Through seven NBA seasons, Dinwiddie has registered averages of 12.9 points, 2.8 rebounds and 5.0 assists in 25.7 minutes per contest.