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Indiana Pacers sign Paul George to multi-year contract extension

The Indiana Pacers announced Wednesday they have signed veteran guard/forward Paul George to a multi-year contract extension. According to the Indianapolis Star, “George is eligible for a five-year contract that will pay him approximately $80 million to $90 million, according to the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement. If he is named to one of the league’s three All-NBA teams at the end of next season, he would be eligible for more than $90 million. If not, he could make almost $80 million.”
According to the Associated Press, “We’re all in this year,” Larry Bird said. They proved it Wednesday by officially singing George to a five-year max contract extension that guarantees him between $80 and $90 million and could be worth even more if George reaches an escalator clause. George’s deal comes after David West’s new three-year, $36 million contract, Bird’s offseason spending spree to improve the bench and last year’s expensive deals to keep center Roy Hibbert and point guard George Hill. The Pacers are almost certain to have their core nucleus together for several more years. And with the Pacers coming off back-to-back playoff runs in which they pushed Miami, the expectations are soaring.”

The 6-7, 225-pound George is considered one of the rising stars in the NBA. Last season, his third in the NBA, George averaged 17.4 points, 7.6 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.8 steals per game. He made his first All-Star appearance as a reserve for the East in the NBA All-Star Game, was named the NBA’s Most Improved Player while also being named to the All-NBA third team and the All-Defensive second team. George was the Pacers’ No. 1 draft pick (10th overall) in the 2010 draft.

“I want to thank the Pacers for believing in me when they drafted me,” said George. “To continue my career with the Pacers was a very easy decision. We have great ownership, a great front office, great fans and I’m blessed with great coaches and great teammates. I use great a lot because that is what this franchise is and I’m hopeful we can be part of great things in the future.”

“Paul represents not only what our team and franchise is about, but what a professional athlete should be,” said President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird. “He strives every day to be the best he can be, as a player, as a teammate, as a person and as a representative of this franchise.”

Associated Press: “George showed up for the news conference in a nifty gray suit, dapper shoes, trendy eyeglasses and neatly trimmed hair. But he didn’t sound different from the blue-collar guy who has been impressing Pacers coaches and teammates since he was taken 10th in the 2010 draft.”

Shaq happy to mentor DeMarcus Cousins

DeMarcus Cousins

Still developing, in multiple ways

O’Neal, formally introduced Tuesday as a new minority owner of the Kings, said he’ll be available to help Cousins reach his potential on the court and transform the Kings back to the franchise that challenged his Lakers teams for championships.

It’s monitoring Cousins’ development as a player that O’Neal will concentrate on most.

“I understand everything that (Cousins is) going through,” O’Neal said Tuesday. “We have similar backgrounds. I understand everything he’s going through, and I speak his language. That’s why my conversation with him is going to be easy.”

Critics chided O’Neal for making movies and rap albums while his teams weren’t winning titles. O’Neal said it was a conversation with Lakers and Hall of Fame coach Phil Jackson that changed his direction and led him to championships.

Reported by Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee

New Sacramento NBA arena may have interesting twist

The Sacramento Kings introduced their new celebrity part-owner Tuesday and pulled back the curtain on an “indoor-outdoor” concept they’re planning for the team’s new downtown arena.

At a news conference dominated by new partner Shaquille O’Neal, majority owner Vivek Ranadive dropped tantalizing hints about the design of the $448 million arena that’s supposed to open at Sacramento’s Downtown Plaza in 2016. While declining to release details, he said fans would be able to see certain events from outside the building.

Ranadive and O’Neal’s sometimes comical news conference kicked off a day’s worth of developments surrounding the Kings. Hours later, the City Council agreed to let the Kings accelerate repayment of their $62 million debt to the city by imposing a 5 percent surcharge on tickets at Sleep Train Arena, where the Kings now play. The council also OK’d a deal that would let the team reimburse the city for certain pre-development costs at the new building.

Reported by Dale Kasler, Ryan Lillis and Tony Bizjak of the Sacramento Bee

New Milwaukee Bucks court design

Tonight at the Milwaukee Art Museum, the Bucks unveiled a new design for their new state-of-the-art playing surface at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.

A renowned pop artist famous for his “LOVE” artwork, Indiana created the design for the Bucks court that was used at the MECCA Arena from 1977-87. Indiana’s original floor, with bright colors and a giant “M” flanking each side of the midcourt line, is recognized as one of the largest pieces of pop art ever produced and brought international recognition to Milwaukee as a progressive, forward-thinking city that appreciates art as much as it does sport.

The Bucks’ brand new home court at the BMO Harris Bradley Center takes inspiration from Indiana’s original pop art design, reproducing the world-famous “M’s” bracketing the midcourt line – this time in two shades of hand-stained Wisconsin hard maple – along with the simple, yet unmistakable “Milwaukee” adorning each baseline, just as in Indiana’s iconic work of original art. At center court is the Bucks logo, stripped down to the aggressive image of the eight-point white tail buck head that represents the powerful and focused approach of the team. Painted surfaces of the court are almost exclusively green, tying together all eras of the Bucks’ 46-year history.

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Miami Heat training camp location: The Bahamas

Miami Heat holding training camp in the Bahamas

For the second time in the four seasons that LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh have played as teammates, the Miami Heat will hold their training camp away from South Florida.

After holding camp at the Hurlburt Field Air Force installation in the Florida panhandle in 2010 in the wake of the signing of the Big Three, the Heat returned to AmericanAirlines Arena for camp the past two years.

But now, as they prepare to defend a second consecutive NBA title, the Heat again are attempting to escape the expected media crush by moving their camp to The Atlantis Paradise Island Resort, Bahamas.

Reported by Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel

Prosecutors pursue assault case against Jared Sullinger

Prosecutors say they intend to pursue domestic assault charges against Boston Celtics forward Jared Sullinger even though his accuser wants to drop the case.

The 21-year-old Sullinger appeared in Waltham District Court on Monday to face charges of assault and battery, destruction of property and witness intimidation in connection with the Aug. 31 confrontation with his girlfriend. She accused Sullinger of pinning her to a bed and the floor at his Waltham home.

His lawyer, Charles Rankin, says the girlfriend does not want to continue the case and is not afraid of Sullinger.

Reported by the Associated Press

Philadelphia 76ers sign rookies Nerlens Noel and Michael Carter-Williams

The Philadelphia 76ers announced today that they have signed rookies Nerlens Noel and Michael Carter-Williams. They were both first-round draft picks, and therefore were guaranteed to receive contracts. So, this move is standard and was expected.

Carter-Williams (6-6, 185) was the 11th overall pick by Philadelphia in the 2013 NBA Draft. As a sophomore at Syracuse last season, the 21-year-old averaged 12 points, seven assists, five rebounds and three steals en route to earning All-Big East Second Team honors. Back in July, Carter-Williams averaged 14 points, seven assists, four rebounds and two steals for the Sixers in the Orlando Pro Summer League.

Noel (6-11, 228) was originally the sixth overall pick by New Orleans in the 2013 NBA Draft. The Sixers acquired his rights along with a 2014 first round pick from the Pelicans in exchange for Jrue Holiday and the 42nd pick in the 2013 NBA Draft. As a freshman at Kentucky last season, the 19-year-old averaged 11 points, 10 rebounds and two steals while leading the NCAA with nearly four and a half blocks. Noel was named SEC Defensive Player of the Year, SEC Freshman of the Year and First Team All-SEC.

Carter-Williams and Noel were teammates in Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) basketball during high school.

D-League news: Ken McDonald named head coach of Austin Toros

Spurs Sports & Entertainment today announced that they have named Ken McDonald as head coach of the Austin Toros.

McDonald served as an assistant last season for the Toros under head coach Taylor Jenkins, where he helped lead the team to a 27-23 overall record and to the semifinals of the 2013 NBA D-League Playoffs.

Prior to the Toros, McDonald served as head coach at Western Kentucky University from 2008-12 where he accumulated a 67-48 overall record. In his first season with the Hilltoppers, McDonald guided the school to the Sun Belt regular season and tournament championships, and to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

The Rhode Island native served as an assistant coach for the University of Texas (2004-08) where he helped guide the Longhorns to four straight NCAA Tournament appearances. During his four seasons on the Texas bench the Longhorns posted a 106-35 (.752) record. The 106 wins are still the most victories in a four-year period in school history. Texas captured Big 12 Conference regular-season championships in both 2005-06 and 2007-08 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament “Elite Eight” in both of those years as well.

McDonald also served as an assistant coach at the University of Georgia (2003-04), Western Kentucky University (1998-2003) and Clemson University (1994-98).

A Providence College graduate, McDonald played two seasons with the Friars before playing professionally for the St. Paul Revelles in Killarney, Ireland from 1993-94. Before transferring to Providence he played two seasons at the Community College of Rhode Island, where he was a first-team junior college All-American, setting school records for single season scoring as well as three-pointers made in a game, season and career.

The Toros are scheduled to open the 2013-14 NBA D-League season on the road Nov. 22 when they visit the Santa Cruz Warriors. The team will open its home slate on Dec. 1 against the Delaware 87ers at 3 p.m. inside Cedar Park Center.

New York Knicks sign center Cole Aldrich

New York Knicks Executive Vice President and General Manager Glen Grunwald announced today that the team has signed center Cole Aldrich. We assume this is a non-guaranteed contract that merely brings Aldrich to training camp, where he will then try to earn a regular season contract. He may have potential to be a decent NBA backup, though so far, early in his career, he’s been more of an end-of-the-bench type of player.

Aldrich, 6-11, 245-pounds, holds career averages of 2.0 points, on 54.-percent shooting, with 2.3 rebounds over 7.9 minutes in 89 games over three seasons with Oklahoma City, Houston and Sacramento. Last season, he averaged 2.2 points and 2.7 rebounds over 8.6 minutes in 45 games for the Rockets and Kings.

The Burnsville, MN native was originally selected by New Orleans in the first round (11th pick overall) of 2010 NBA Draft following his junior season at the University of Kansas, and then, had his draft rights traded to Oklahoma City. He was a member of the 2008 NCAA Championship team and finished his collegiate career with averages of 9.4 points and 7.7 rebounds.

Wizards invite Josh Childress to training camp

Veteran swingman Josh Childress has accepted an invitation to attend Wizards training camp, a league source with knowledge of the situation confirmed Monday.

A versatile, 6-foot-8 swingman, Childress had a promising start to his career, averaging 11.1 points and 5.6 rebounds in his first four seasons with the Atlanta Hawks before leaving the NBA to sign a more lucrative deal in Greece in 2008. The move was expected to open up a more competitive global market for NBA players, but the overseas exodus never followed, and within two years, Childress was eager to come back.

The Wizards expressed interest in Childress when he decided to leave Greece in 2010, but the Stanford product instead elected to sign a five-year deal for the full mid-level exception with the Phoenix Suns. The return hasn’t been very rewarding for Childress.

Reported by Michael Lee of the Washington Post (Blog)