NBA Teams – Page 2310 – NBA Blog

76ers pick up J.Smith, T.Young options

Philadelphia 76ers President and General Manager Ed Stefanski announced today that the team has exercised the third-year options on the contracts of Jason Smith and Thaddeus Young.

Young (6-8, 220) was selected with the 12th overall pick by Philadelphia in the 2007 NBA Draft. In 74 games with 22 starts last season, he averaged 8.2 points, 4.2 rebounds and 0.99 steals in 21.0 minutes per game. He had the highest field goal percentage (53.9%) of any rookie qualifier and was named to the NBA T-Mobile All-Rookie Second Team.

Smith (7-0, 240) was originally selected by Miami with the 20th overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft before the Sixers acquired him in exchange for the rights to Daequan Cook (21st overall pick), a future second round pick and cash considerations. In 76 games with one start last season, Smith averaged 4.5 points and 3.0 rebounds in 14.6 minutes per game.

Oct 12: Lakers 94, Kings 89

The AP reports: Pau Gasol had 12 points and six rebounds to help the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Sacramento Kings 94-89 in exhibition play Sunday night… Los Angeles built its largest advantage at 84-72 with 5:25 left. The Kings cut it 92-89 with 36 seconds to go, but got no closer.

InsideHoops.com Stat Notes: For the Lakers, Kobe Bryant (just 4-of-12) had 9 points. Andrew Bynum had 9 points and 5 rebounds. Vladimir Radmanovic had 9 with 7 rebounds and 3 assists. Lamar Odom, coming off the bench, had 4 points, 9 rebounds and 3 assists. For the Kings, Jason Thompson came off the bench to put up 15 points and 8 rebounds. Brad Miller had 10 points and 4 rebounds. John Salmons (just 4-of-15) had 11 points and 3 steals. Off the bench, Spencer Hawes had 6 points, 10 rebounds and 3 blocks.

Oct 12: Jazz 93, Blazers 80

The AP reports: Andrei Kirilenko had 15 points and five assists, and the Utah Jazz beat the short-handed Portland Trail Blazers 93-80 in a preseason game Sunday. With the exception of center Greg Oden, the Blazers’ expected starters for the season rested or were out because of injuries. Carlos Boozer played in his first exhibition game for the Jazz, who led by as many as 19 points. He missed the first two preseason contests due to a sore left hamstring. Boozer had 12 points and eight rebounds in 15 minutes… Oden has been on a plan that has him playing about 20 minutes a game during the preseason. On Sunday, the 7-foot center had six points and six rebounds in 20 minutes… Nicolas Batum led the Blazers with 16.

Oct 12: Nets 94, Heat 92

The AP reports: Vince Carter made three free throws in the final 10 seconds to help the New Jersey Nets hold on for a 94-92 win over the Miami Heat on Sunday in a preseason game played in front of a boisterous London crowd… Carter finished with 19 points and Yi Jianlian added another 17 in his debut for the Nets (2-0) in a game that treated the British fans to a number of high-flying dunks but even more sloppy turnovers. Marcus Banks had 19 points, and Dwyane Wade added 18 for the Heat (0-3), who fought back from a 19-point first-quarter deficit to push the game to the final seconds. Miami has not won a preseason game since 2006, after going 0-7 in exhibition contests last year before posting the league’s worst record (15-67).

Oct 12: Sixers 85, Raptors 79

The AP reports: Thaddeus Young scored 17 points, Andre Igoudala added 13, and the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Toronto Raptors 85-79 in an NBA preseason game Sunday. Philadelphia rookie Marreese Speights scored 10 of his 12 points in the fourth quarter, and Louis Williams chipped in 10 points for the 76ers (2-1)… Jason Kapono led Toronto with 14 and Will Solomon had 12. Andrea Bargnani and Anthony Parker also scored in double figures, netting 10 points each, for the Raptors (2-1). Elton Brand had 10 points and nine rebounds in 29 minutes for Philadelphia.

Wolves waive Rafael Araujo

The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced the team has released center Rafael Araujo. The Timberwolves’ roster now stands at 18 players.

Araujo, a 6-11 center from BYU, played five minutes (one point, two rebounds) in two preseason games for the Wolves. A former first-round pick of the Toronto Raptors, he signed with the Timberwolves on Sept. 29.

InsideHoops.com editor says: Araujo will probably head overseas.

Okafor no.1 at getting stuffed

The Charlotte Observer (Rick Bonnell) reports: Friday morning I asked Charlotte Bobcats center Emeka Okafor why so many of his shots were blocked last season. The question mystified him. “You think I get my shot blocked a lot?” he replied. Why, yes, I told him, about once a game. Then I passed along a statistic published on espn.com: That 12 percent of Okafor’s shots were rejected last season, the highest such percentage in the NBA. It never occurred to him how susceptible he was to shot blockers, and apparently no one from the previous coaching staff raised the issue with him last season. “It’s a fluke,” Okafor said with a shrug. “That’s all I can say about it.”

Oct 11: Warriors 122, Thunder 102

The AP reports: Marco Belinelli had 22 points and six assists and Al Harrington added 16 points and nine rebounds to help the Golden State Warriors beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 122-102 in exhibition play Saturday night. DeMarcus Nelson, one of a handful of guards the Warriors (2-1) are looking at as a possible replacement for the injured and suspended Monta Ellis, added 18 points, seven assists and four rebounds. He had two thunderous dunks, both in the second half. Kevin Durant had 16 points and 14 rebounds for the Thunder (0-3), who shot just 38.6 percent from the floor to remain winless in the preseason. Damien Wilkins added 23 points, and Chris Wilcox had 15 points and eight rebounds.

Oct 11: Nuggets 77, Suns 72

The AP reports: Whether it was the wind, the temperature or just a different environment to play in, the NBA’s first outdoor game in more than three decades was an offensive struggle. The Denver Nuggets beat the Phoenix Suns 77-72 on Saturday night in the exhibition game billed as “NBA Outdoors!” at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. Both teams struggled from the field and the free-throw line and combined to go 3-of-27 from 3-point range on a night when the temperature dipped into the 60s with some wind hitting the court by the end of the game.

Insidehoops.com Stat Notes: For the Nuggets, JR Smith (just 6-of-16) had 12 points. Mateen Cleaves (4-of-5) scored 11 off the bench. Nene (4-of-10) had 10 points and 7 rebounds. No other Denver players reached double digits. Carmelo Anthony and Allen Iverson didn’t play. For the Suns, Steve Nash (5-of-12) had 16 points, just 2 assists and 6 turnovers. Raja Bell (3-of-8) scored 9. Robin Lopez (4-of-7) had 8 off the bench. The Nuggets shot just 37.7%, the Suns just 33.3%. The Nuggets hit just 1-of-10 three-pointers, the Suns just 2-of-14. The Nuggets hit just 50% of their free throws, while the Suns connected on 69.2%. Rebounding was close. The two teams combined to dish just 15 total assists.

Oct 11: Pistons 111, Bucks 99

The AP reports: Arron Afflalo scored 28 points and Rodney Stuckey added 15 to help the Detroit Pistons remain perfect in the preseason with a 111-99 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday night… Charlie Villanueva led the Bucks (0-4) with 26 points and Michael Redd had 17.

InsideHoops.com editor says: Even though it’s just a preseason game, Afflalo putting up 28 points is a nice sign for Detroit.