Category: NBA Teams

NBA teams blog

Cavs forward Larry Nance Jr out 1-2 weeks

Cleveland Cavaliers forward Larry Nance Jr. will miss around 1-2 weeks of action due to continued left knee soreness that he’s experienced since missing December 23 Cavs game against the Hawks.

Nance underwent imaging and evaluation at Cleveland Clinic Sports Health by the Cavaliers medical staff today. He will now undergo a period of treatment and rehabilitation and his return to play will be updated as appropriate.

An active member of the team’s rotation this season, Nance has come off the bench for 26 of his 31 games played, and in 24.3 minutes per outing is averaging 8.0 points and 7.0 rebounds.

Cavs give forward Tyler Cook a standard contract

The Cleveland Cavaliers have converted the Two-Way contract of forward Tyler Cook into a standard NBA contract.

Cook, listed at 6-foot-9, 255 pounds, was claimed off waivers by the Cavaliers as a Two-Way player on Oct. 19. He has played in six games for Cleveland this season. He has also played in 15 games (four starts) with the Cavaliers’ G League team, the Canton Charge, for whom he averaged 12.6 points on .602 shooting from the field and 6.1 rebounds in 20.7 minutes per game.

Cook played college basketball at the University of Iowa, putting up modest stats. He went undrafted in 2019. But has worked hard and gotten himself a real deal, and must now continue to step up in the hope of solidifying his place in the NBA.

The Cavs have a 10-24 record, but have won first of their last ten games. They’re being led in scoring this season by Collin Sexton (18.1 PPG), Kevin Love (16.6 PPG) and Tristan Thompson (12.6 PPG).

Magic forward Jonathan Isaac out 8-10 weeks with knee injury

Orlando Magic forward Jonathan Isaac, who suffered a hyperextended left knee early first quarter during Orlando’s 122-101 road win January 1 against the Wizards, on Jan. 1, underwent an MRI yesterday which revealed a posterior lateral corner injury and a medial bone contusion.

Isaac will be re-evaluated in 8-10 weeks.

The team says that operative and non-operative treatments will be considered and his return to the court will depend on how he responds to treatment and rehabilitation.

“While this certainly is disappointing news, there was no damage to his ACL, MCL and PCL ligaments,” said Orlando Magic President of Basketball Operations Jeff Weltman. “All signs point to a complete recovery and this should not impact his future growth.”

According to the Orlando Sentinel, “Isaac injured his knee when he tried to convert a steal into a layup. Isaac’s knee buckled as he tried to slip past Wizards guard Bradley Beal and get to the basket. As Isaac tried to step across Beal and get into the lane, video showed the back of Isaac’s left leg catching Beal’s right leg.”

The 6-foot-10, 230-pound Isaac has played in 32 games this season for the Magic, starting all 32, and has been a bright-spot for the team, especially due to his defensive ability. His season average is 12.0 points, 6.9 rebounds, 1.4 assists, a team-high 2.44 blocks. and a team-high 1.56 steals. in 29.7 minutes per game.

Through yesterday’s games, Isaac has a higher total of blocks plus steals than any player in the league.

Nets waive David Nwaba, who was out with a season-ending injury

The Brooklyn Nets have waived guard/forward David Nwaba, who recently suffered a season-ending injury.

According to the New York Daily News, “Nwaba was ruled out for the season after tearing his Achilles in a Dec. 19 matchup against the San Antonio Spurs.”

Nwaba appeared in 20 games for Brooklyn this season, recording averages of 5.2 points and 2.3 rebounds in 13.4 minutes per contest. He signed with the Nets on July 17, 2019.

More from the Daily News: “The Nets had a full roster and could only add a full-time replacement by waiving the injured Nwaba.”

The Nets’ roster now stands at 16 players.

Wizards rookie Rui Hachimura to miss more time than expected

The Wizards injury train continues to plow through the station (I don’t actually know what that means, but it does leave you, the reader, with a correct impression, that the Wizards have a lot of injuries, so for the fun of it let’s go with that), as talented rookie forward Rui Hachimura isn’t close to returning to action just yet. Here’s NBC Sports Washington reporting:

When Wizards rookie Rui Hachimura first went down with a groin injury and underwent a minor procedure, the team said he would miss at least five games before getting re-evaluated. He has since missed seven and now several more weeks can be tacked on to his return timeline.

Head coach Scott Brooks revealed that after the team’s practice on Tuesday, suggesting Hachimura would again be re-evaluated sometime in early- to mid-January. Hachimura, 21, has not only been held out games, he hasn’t been with the team.

And the Washington Post on some of the big picture:

Injuries have plagued the Wizards this season and it appears the start of the new year will not usher in good health.

Before the season started, the Wizards set into motion a cautious approach with injured players and applied for a disabled player exception for John Wall, who suffered an Achilles’ injury in February 2019. Only teams with a player who is expected to miss the season, as determined by a league-appointed doctor, can qualify for the exception. The NBA did not grant the exception. Still, almost 11 months after his surgery, Wall remains out and could sit the entire season.

Along with Bradley Beal scoring big and forward Davis Bertans showing big-time shooting ability, Hachimura turning out to be a talented rookie has been a bright spot for the Wizards this season. Hopefully he does return to action fairly soon.

Badly-injured Wizards step up and beat Heat 123-105

 

 

 

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After being outscored by 10 points in the first quarter, an incredibly short-handed Washington Wizards stepped up at home, outscored the Miami Heat 42-29 in the second quarter, and controlled the 4th quarter for a 123-105 win.

Inactive for the Wizards today were John Wall, Bradley Beal, Rui Hachimura, Thomas Bryant, Moritz Wagner, CJ Miles and Davis Bertans. Their starting lineup was Isaiah Thomas and Gary Payton II at guard, Troy Brown Jr. and Johnathan Williams at forward, and Ian Mahinmi at center.

Here’s the Washington Post reporting:

Although seven players were inactive Monday night as one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference came to play, the Wizards rolled past the Miami Heat, 123-105. And the final score doesn’t begin to tell the story of a bizarre yet delightful night.

The Wizards’ trio of Ian Mahinmi, Jordan McRae and rookie Garrison Mathews — the least likely Big Three — played like stars. Mahinmi made his first seven shots and scored a career-high 25 points. Mathews poured in 28 points — including a remarkable 20 in the second quarter alone — on 6-for-9 shooting overall and 4-for-7 shooting from beyond the three-point arc, by far the best night of his young professional career. And McRae finished with a season-high 29 points and eight assists, the most he has ever had.

Although Miami (24-9) had a healthy team led by Jimmy Butler, who finished with 27 points, and a large contingent of fans who periodically started “Let’s Go Heat!” chants, the Wizards (10-22) closed the decade with one of their most shocking wins of the season.

Mahinmi shot 10 for 11. And McRae shot 9 for 14, including 6 of 8 three-pointers, for his 29 points in 35 minutes off the bench.

After the game, Mahinmi had this to say: “It’s huge, it’s huge. This is part of building character. When you’re down and you have a lot of injuries and stuff going on and not going your way… To have the toughness of a young player to come out and step up, make big plays, be aggressive, make the right read, play good defense and give everything you have is huge. All of our young guys are taking tremendous advantage of their opportunity, so it’s good. There’s a lot of stuff not going our way, but I’m very proud of what everyone is doing: Isaac Bonga, Scho [Admiral Schofield], Gary [Gary Payton II], obviously Garrison [Mathews] tonight, Johnathan [Williams] and Troy [Brown Jr.]. It’s great.”

It was a magical day for D.C. If you’re a Wizards fan and don’t have New Year’s Eve plans, staying home and watching a replay of this game isn’t the worst way to bring in the new year.

Jaylen Brown and Brandon Ingram named NBA Players of the Week

Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown and New Orleans Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram have been named NBA Players of the Week, for games played December 23-29, 2019. With Brown as the Eastern conference Player of the Week and Ingram from the West.

It’s the first time in Brown’s four-year career he’s received Player of the Week honors.

Brown, 23, averaged a team-high 27.0 points on 62.2% shooting (57.9% 3-PT), 6.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.0 steal over three games at Toronto and at home against Cleveland and Toronto. He was the only Eastern Conference competitor to produce at least 25.0 points on 60.0% shooting throughout the week.

The fourth-year forward reached the 30-point mark in both of Boston’s victories, including a career-high 34-point performance on 13-of-20 shooting (5-10 3-PT) against the Cavaliers on Dec. 27. Brown scored 30 points (76.9% FG) the previous game on Christmas Day in Toronto, marking the first time in his career he’s produced 30+ points in consecutive games.

Brown is the first Celtics player to receive Player of the Week honors since guard Isaiah Thomas did so in Feb. of 2017.

In 27 games this season (all starts), Brown is averaging 20.6 points (51.8% FG, 40.0% 3-PT), 7.0 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.1 steals and 33.6 minutes played. He’s one of four NBA players averaging at least 20.0 points on 51.0% shooting in 2019-20, joining Giannis Antetokounmpo, Karl-Anthony Towns and DeMar DeRozan.

Ingram helped lead New Orleans to a 4-0 week while averaging 25.3 points on .493 shooting from the floor, including .542 from three-point range and a perfect 1.000 from the free throw line, as well as 7.3 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 2.0 steals. The fourth-year pro finished the week ranked fourth in the NBA in total points scored (101), was one of four players to average at least 25.0 points while shooting over .450 from the field and over .500 from three-point range (of the four, Ingram held the highest FT%), and was one of just two players in the NBA to average at least 25.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 2.0 steals. Ingram led the Pelicans in scoring three out of their four games, and assists twice. On Christmas Day, Ingram connected on a career-high seven three-pointers at Denver, setting a new NBA Christmas Day record for three-point field goals by an individual.

Ingram becomes the eighth player in franchise history to earn Player of the Week honors, joining Baron Davis, Jamaal Magloire, Chris Paul, David West, Greivis Vasquez, Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins. It is the first time in Ingram’s career he has earned Player of the Week honors.

In 30 games this season, Ingram is averaging 25.3 points (10th in NBA), 7.0 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.0 steals.

Lonzo Ball shines, Pelicans win 4th straight game

The Pelicans on Sunday faced a badly-injured Rockets team that was without James Harden, Russell Westbrook and Clint Capela. But no win is automatic in the NBA. Work must still be put in. But the Pelicans have a bit of a flow lately and handled business. Here’s the New Orleans Times Picayune reporting:

The Rockets were forced to insert Austin Rivers and Eric Gordon into the starting lineup and dust off other little-used pieces. Somehow, their skeleton crew still set off fireworks.

Houston hit 15 3-pointers, but New Orleans countered with 18 makes of its own from behind the arc to pull out a 127-112 win. A sizzling Lonzo Ball hit seven 3s, a new career high, and E’Twaun Moore scored 25 points off the bench as the Pelicans won their fourth game in a row.

New Orleans, which outscored Houston 41-19 in the fourth quarter, has ripped off five wins in six games. It is now just 3½ games back of the eighth seed in the Western Conference.

Ball played perhaps his best all-around game in a Pelicans uniform, finishing with 27 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists.

For much of the season, the story of the Pelicans has just been wait-and-see until Zion Williamson is eventually healthy enough to make his NBA regular season career debut. And yes, that’s still the big season-long picture, but lately, New Orleans is playing solid basketball.

Heat beat Pacers, improve record to 23-8

Despite the Pacers missing point guard Malcolm Brogdon, while awaiting the eventual return of shooting guard Victor Oladipo, Friday’s matchup between the Pacers and Heat was still an anticipated battle worth watching. The game proved worthy of attention. Here’s the Miami Herald reporting:

In a game that included 20 lead changes and eight ties, the Heat (23-8) survived to defeat the Indiana Pacers 113-112 on Friday at AmericanAirlines Arena. Miami improved to 14-1 at home this season, and 23-8 marks its best 31-game start to a season since starting 24-7 in 2013-14.

With the Heat trailing by one with less than a minute to play, guard Goran Dragic made a 9-foot game-winning floater with 6.8 seconds remaining. Offensive rebounds from Bam Adebayo and Jimmy Butler kept Miami’s final offensive possession alive before Dragic hit the shot.

In the win, the Heat had six players put up double-digit points. They were led by Jimmy Butler’s 20 points, nine rebounds and six assists, Bam Adebayo’s 18 points, 15 rebounds and six assists, Duncan Robinson’s 18 points, and Kendrick Nunn’s 17 points.

The Pacers had seven players score double-digits, and put up a respectable effort.

Hawks guard Trae Young exits game vs Bucks with ankle sprain

Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young sustained a right ankle sprain during Friday’s home game against the Milwaukee bucks.

He underwent an X-Ray at State Farm Arena, which was negative. Young will not travel with the team to Chicago and will remain in Atlanta to receive treatment.

According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, “Young was called for an offensive foul when he drove the lane with 1:32 remaining in the second quarter. He appeared to twist his ankle as he fell to the ground following a collision with the Bucks’ D.J. Wilson. Young needed to be helped off the court by John Collins and Kevin Huerter. He immediately went to the locker room.”

The Bucks, who are already without guard Eric Bledsoe and today were without superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, won the game, 112-86.

Young scored 12 points in 15 minutes before exiting the game with the injury. He’s having a fantastic season for the struggling Hawks, who have a league-worst 6-26 record.

 

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