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Nets sign Justin Anderson as Substitute Player for NBA restart

The Brooklyn Nets have signed guard/forward Justin Anderson as a Substitute Player for the remainder of the 2019-20 NBA season.

The Nets are incredibly short-handed going into the NBA restart, which tips off July 30 at the single-location NBA campus at Disney Wide World of Sports in Florida, with 22 participating teams.

Anderson (6’5”, 231) was previously signed to a 10-day contract with Brooklyn on Jan. 6 and appeared in three games. He also saw action in 16 games (14 starts) this season with Brooklyn’s NBA G League affiliate, the Long Island Nets, averaging a team-high 20.5 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.0 steals in 33.6 minutes per game en route to All-NBA G League Third Team honors.

The Montross, Va., native has appeared in 219 games across five NBA seasons with Dallas (2015-17), Philadelphia (2017-18), Atlanta (2018-19) and Brooklyn (2020), recording averages of 5.3 points and 2.5 rebounds in 13.1 minutes per contest. He has also seen action in 38 career NBA G League games, registering averages of 21.1 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.0 steals in 34.5 minutes per game.

With a 30-34 record, the Nets sit 7th in the Eastern conference, above the 8th place Magic and 9th place Wizards. Although Orlando is a healthy squad, the Wizards are without backcourt stars John Wall and Bradley Beal. The Nets face a tough road during the “seeding games” they’ll be playing, but the Wizards, who are 5.5 games out of the 8th spot, face an incredibly difficult task.

Anderson was originally selected by the Mavericks with the 21st pick in the first round of the 2015 NBA Draft following a three-year (2012-15) collegiate career at the University of Virginia. While playing for the Cavaliers, Anderson earned National Basketball Coaches Association All-America Third Team honors and was named to the All-ACC Second Team as a junior. He was also named the ACC Sixth Man of the Year by the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association as a sophomore.

Nets sign Lance Thomas as Substitute Player for NBA restart

The Brooklyn Nets have signed forward Lance Thomas as a Substitute Player for the remainder of the 2019-20 season.

Thomas (6’8”, 235) has seen action in 392 career games (124 starts) across eight NBA seasons with New Orleans (2011-13), Oklahoma City (2014-15) and New York (2015-19), recording averages of 5.2 points and 2.6 rebounds in 18.4 minutes per game. The 32-year-old last suited up for an NBA team with the Nets in the 2019 preseason, appearing in one game prior to being waived on Oct. 18.

Thomas went undrafted in 2010 after a four-year (2006-10) collegiate career at Duke, where he earned ACC All-Defensive Team honors as a senior while helping the Blue Devils capture the 2010 NCAA National Championship.

In EuroLeague, Toko Shengelia signs with CSKA Moscow

Here’s Euroleague.net reporting on a former NBA player signing a new deal overseas:

CSKA Moscow solidified an already-strong roster by signing one of the premier players on the continent, former All-EuroLeague First Team selection Toko Shengelia, to a three-year contract on Thursday. Shengelia (2.06 meters, 28 years old) arrives from KIROLBET Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz, where he spent the last six seasons. He averaged 15.9 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 28 EuroLeague games last season

Shengelia played briefly in the NBA, between 2012-14, mostly for the Nets, plus nine games for the Bulls, for a career average of 1.3 points in 5.5 minutes per game.

Nets sign Donta Hall as Substitute Player for NBA restart

The Brooklyn Nets have signed forward/center Donta Hall as a Substitute Player for the remainder of the 2019-20 NBA season.

Hall (6’9”, 229) signed two consecutive 10-day contracts as a rookie with the Detroit Pistons this season, appearing in four games and averaging 1.5 points and 3.8 rebounds in 12.0 minutes per contest. Suiting up in 38 games (37 starts) for the Grand Rapids Drive of the NBA G League in 2019-20, the Alabama native recorded averages of 15.4 points, 10.5 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 1.0 steals and 1.3 blocks in 28.6 minutes per game, earning him All-NBA G League Second Team and All-Rookie Team honors.

The 22-year-old went undrafted in 2019 after a four-year (2015-19) collegiate career at the University of Alabama, appearing in 135 career games (85 starts) and averaging 7.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.7 blocks in 20.8 minutes per contest. He was a two-time SEC All-Defensive Team honoree (2018, 2019) and became just the fifth player in Crimson Tide history to record more than 1,000 points (1,014), 800 rebounds (850) and 200 blocks (228) in a career.

Nets sign Michael Beasley as Substitute Player for NBA restart

The Brooklyn Nets have signed forward Michael Beasley as a Substitute Player for the remainder of the 2019-20 season.

Per the New York Post, “Beasley hasn’t played in the league since February 2019, spending this season in China. But he averaged 13.2 points on 50.7 percent shooting two years ago with the Knicks, and Durant wanted Beasley to join him in Golden State last season. Now he’ll get his wish.”

Beasley (6’9”, 235) has seen action in 609 career games (238 starts) across 11 NBA seasons with Miami (2008-10, 2013-14, 2015), Minnesota (2010-12), Phoenix (2012-13), Houston (2016), Milwaukee (2016-17), New York (2017-18) and the L.A. Lakers (2018-19), recording averages of 12.4 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 22.8 minutes per game while shooting 46.5 percent from the field, 34.9 percent from 3-point range and 75.9 percent from the free-throw line. He’s logged action in 25 career postseason games over five playoff appearances, most recently with the Bucks in 2017.

The Maryland native has also had three stints in the Chinese Basketball Association with the Shanghai Sharks (2014-15), Shandong Golden Stars (2015-16) and the Guangdong Southern Tigers (2019), helping lead the Tigers to the 2019 CBA championship. Beasley last appeared in an NBA game in February 2019 with the Lakers.

Beasley was originally selected with the second overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft by Miami and earned All-Rookie First Team honors in his inaugural season. Prior to beginning his NBA career, the 31-year-old spent one year (2007-08) at Kansas State, where he was named Big 12 Player of the Year and Big 12 Freshman of the Year and set the school’s single-season record for points scored (866), rebounds (408) and double-doubles (28) en route to becoming one of just two first team All-Americans in program history.

Nets sign 40-year-old scoring guard Jamal Crawford as Substitute Player for NBA restart

The Brooklyn Nets have signed guard Jamal Crawford as a Substitute Player for the remainder of the 2019-20 season.

Per the New York Post, “the decimated Nets have lost six players to injury or COVID-19, and arrived in Orlando on Tuesday with just a dozen available bodies. But they’re bringing in a fresh faces, half reinforcements for 2020 and half tryouts for 2021. And it’s likely no coincidence that Kevin Durant’s close friend Beasley is among them.”

Crawford (6’5”, 185) has appeared in 1,326 career games (433 starts) across 19 NBA seasons, the most of any active player, with Chicago (2000-04), New York (2004-08), Golden State (2008-09), Atlanta (2009-11), Portland (2011-12), the L.A. Clippers (2012-17), Minnesota (2017-18) and Phoenix (2018-19), registering averages of 14.6 points, 2.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 29.4 minutes per game, while shooting 41.0 percent from the field, 34.8 percent from 3-point range and 86.2 percent from the free-throw line. He last appeared in an NBA game in the 2018-19 regular season finale with the Suns, becoming the oldest player in NBA history (39 years, 20 days) to record a 50-point game when he scored 51 points against the Mavericks. He also became the first player in league history to register a 50-point game for four different teams. Crawford has made eight postseason appearances, notching averages of 14.3 points, 1.9 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 28.1 minutes per contest in 74 games.

More from the Post: “This is a low-risk audition for cost-effective vets to fill out the roster next season should Brooklyn bring in a third star to join Durant and Kyrie Irving. Building a Big Three means following the blueprint of Miami, Cleveland and Golden State, and using their taxpayer’s exception ($18 million over three years) wisely.”

The Seattle native is a three-time Sixth Man of the Year, winning the award with the Hawks (2009-10) and Clippers (2013-14 and 2015-16), while becoming one of just two players in the 37-year history of the award to win it three times, joining Clippers guard Lou Williams. Crawford also earned the NBA’s Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year award in 2018 with Minnesota. He ranks eighth in NBA history in 3-pointers made (2,220), 18th in games played (first among active players) and seventh among active players in points scored (19,414).

Crawford was originally selected with the eighth overall pick in the first round of the 2000 NBA Draft by Cleveland before having his draft rights traded to Chicago. He spent one year (1999-00) at the University of Michigan prior to embarking on his NBA career.

Brooklyn Nets eight-game schedule for restart of 2019-20 NBA season announced

The Brooklyn Nets have announced their eight-game schedule for the restart of the 2019-20 NBA season. The schedule will tip off versus the Orlando Magic on Friday, July 31, at 2:30 p.m. at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Fla.

The matchup is the first of eight “seeding games” the Nets will play to determine the participants and seeds for the 2020 NBA Playoffs.

Brooklyn currently stands in seventh place in the Eastern Conference with a 30-34 record. The Nets last suited up in a 104-102 victory in Los Angeles against the Lakers on March 10.

All games will be broadcast regionally on the YES Network and can be heard on WFAN.

UPDATED NETS SCHEDULE FOR SEEDING GAMES AT DISNEY IN ORLANDO:

Fri., July 31 vs. Orlando
Sun., Aug. 2 vs. Washington
Tues., Aug. 4 at Milwaukee
Wed., Aug. 5 at Boston
Fri., Aug. 7 vs. Sacramento
Sun., Aug. 9 at L.A. Clippers
Tues., Aug. 11 at Orlando
Thurs., Aug. 13 vs. Portland

Knicks add Theo Pinson off waivers, and waive Allonzo Trier

The New York Knicks have claimed guard/forward Theo Pinson off waivers from the Brooklyn Nets.

The team has also waived guard Allonzo Trier.

Pinson, 6-5, 212-pounds, appeared in 51 games over two seasons with Brooklyn (2018-20), averaging 3.9 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.5 assists over 11.3 minutes. He also played in nine games (all starts) for the Long Island Nets (NBA G League), averaging 15.1 points, 6.6 rebounds and 5.1 assists over 31.8 minutes. He holds career averages with Long Island of 19.5 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.9 assists over 34.8 minutes in 43 games (43 starts).

The Greensboro, NC-native was originally signed to a two-way contract by Brooklyn on Sep. 19, 2018 after going undrafted out of the University of North Carolina in the 2018 NBA Draft. He went to back-to-back NCAA Championship games with the Tarheels (2016, 2017), securing a National Championship in 2017.

Trier, 6-4, 200-pounds, averaged 9.7 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.7 assists over 19.9 minutes in 88 games (four starts) over two seasons with New York. He was originally signed by the Knicks to a two-way contract on July 3, 2018.

Nets forward Nicolas Claxton undergoes shoulder surgery, will not rejoin team this season

Brooklyn Nets forward Nicolas Claxton underwent arthroscopic labrum repair surgery yesterday on his left shoulder.

He therefore will not join the team for the resumption of the 2019-20 NBA season in Orlando. The Nets will already be without point guard Kyrie Irving as well as forward Kevin Durant if league play does restart in late July as planned.

The procedure was performed by Dr. Riley Williams III at the Hospital for Special Surgery.

The Nets expect Claxton to make a full recovery in time for training camp next season.

In 15 games played for the Nets this season, Claxton recorded averages of 4.4 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 12.5 minutes per game while shooting 56.3 percent from the field. The rookie also appeared in nine games for Brooklyn’s NBA G League affiliate, the Long Island Nets, averaging 16.7 points on 65.9 percent shooting from the field, 7.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.2 blocks in 21.3 minutes per contest.

In other recent Nets news that has already been reported, the team waived swingman Theo Pinson and signed guard Tyler Johnson.

Nets sign guard Tyler Johnson, who last played for Suns

The Brooklyn Nets, who yesterday waived guard/forward Theo Pinson, signed guard Tyler Johnson today.

Johnson (6’4, 190) is a six-year NBA veteran who appeared in 31 games (three starts) this season with the Phoenix Suns, recording averages of 5.7 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 16.6 minutes per game. In 301 career games (71 starts) split between Miami (2014-19) and Phoenix (2019-20), the 28-year-old has registered averages of 10.5 points on 43.0 percent shooting from the field and 35.8 percent shooting from 3-point range, 3.2 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 25.7 minutes per contest.

Per the New York Daily News, “he should give the Nets some additional depth at the point guard position as the Nets attempt to make a playoff run without Kyrie Irving. The Nets nearly signed Johnson to a four-year, $50 million contract when he was a restricted free agent in 2016, but the Heat ultimately matched the offer sheet.”

Johnson averaged double figures in points in three straight seasons (2016-19), with his most productive season coming in 2016-17 with Miami, when he saw action in a career-high 73 games and averaged career bests in points (13.7), rebounds (4.0), assists (3.2), steals (1.2) and minutes (29.8). Johnson also made two postseason appearances with Miami (2016 and 2018), appearing in 10 playoff contests.

The Grand Forks, N.D., native went undrafted in the 2014 NBA Draft, beginning his first professional season with the NBA G League’s Sioux Falls Skyforce. Johnson played in 15 games with the Skyforce before signing two 10-day contracts and a multi-year deal with Miami in early 2015. Prior to beginning his professional career, Johnson spent four years (2010-14) at Fresno State, earning All-Mountain West Conference Second Team honors as a senior.

Brooklyn’s roster now stands at 17 players.