NBA Teams – Page 475 – NBA Blog

Warriors hire Dr. Rick Celebrini as Director of Sports Medicine and Performance

The Warriors have hired Dr. Rick Celebrini as Director of Sports Medicine and Performance.

Celebrini, a sports and orthopedic physiotherapist, joins the Warriors after spending the previous eight years as Head of Sports Medicine and Science for Major League Soccer’s Vancouver Whitecaps FC. Additionally, Celebrini served as Director of Rehabilitation for the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks, a franchise he joined as a consultant in 2014. He is also the Chief Sport Officer and co-founder of Fortius Sport and Health, an athlete development center located in British Columbia.

“Rick is a world-class physiotherapist and will play a vital role in helping to sustain the performance level of our players,” said Warriors President of Basketball Operations/General Manager Bob Myers. “He has worked closely with a number of elite athletes throughout his career and is a great fit for our organization as we strive to maintain the on-court successes of these past few seasons.”

As a therapist and consultant, Celebrini has also worked with the Dallas Mavericks, the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks, the Canadian Alpine Ski Team, Canadian Soccer Association and the NHL Players Association. In 2010, Celebrini served as chief therapist at the Vancouver Winter Olympics and was the manager of medical services for the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC).

A native of Burnaby, British Columbia, Celebrini is a former professional soccer player and represented the Canadian National Team in the 1987 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Chile. He graduated with a degree in physical therapy from the University of British Columbia (UBC) in 1992 and, in 2011, received his PhD in rehabilitation sciences from the faculty of medicine at UBC. He recently received a Doctor of Letters, honoris causa from Capilano University.

Once again, Devin Harris joins Mavs

The Dallas Mavericks signed free agent guard Devin Harris today.

Harris (6-3, 185) will return for his third stint with the Mavericks in 2018-19. He played in 71 games (one start) for Dallas and Denver last season, averaging 8.4 points and 2.1 assists in 18.9 minutes per game. He was traded by the Mavericks to the Nuggets on Feb. 8, 2018, as part of a three-team trade-deadline deal that sent Doug McDermott from New York to Dallas, Emmanuel Mudiay from Denver to New York, a 2018 second-round pick from the Knicks to the Nuggets, and a 2018 second-round pick from the Nuggets to the Mavericks.

The 14-year veteran holds career averages of 11.1 points, 4.1 assists, 1.1 steals and 25.0 minutes in 917 games (446 starts) with Dallas, New Jersey, Utah, Atlanta and Denver. He moved into 10th place on the Mavericks’ all-time games played list (540) in 2017-18, and also ranks eighth in franchise history in steals (524).

Harris enjoyed his best season as a pro in 2008-09 when he averaged career highs in points (21.3), rebounds (3.3), assists (6.9), steals (1.7) and minutes (36.1) in 69 games (all starts) for New Jersey en route to earning Eastern Conference All-Star honors.

Dallas originally acquired Harris from Washington, along with Jerry Stackhouse and Christian Laettner, in a draft-day trade for Antawn Jamison on June 24, 2004. He played for the Mavericks from 2004-08 and was an integral part of the 2005-06 Western Conference championship team. The 6-3 guard was traded from Dallas to New Jersey on Feb. 19, 2008, in a deal that brought Jason Kidd to the Mavericks.

Harris returned for his second stint with Dallas after signing with the team as a free agent on July 31, 2013. He then re-signed with the club on July 17, 2014.

The Milwaukee native was named 2003-04 Big Ten Player of the Year at Wisconsin where he broke Michael Finley’s single-season scoring record with 624 points (19.5 ppg) in his junior season. He was also named Second Team All-America by the Associated Press.

Timberwolves sign James Nunnally

The Minnesota Timberwolves signed forward James Nunnally today.

Nunnally, 6-7, has spent the last two years playing in Turkey with Fenerbahçe, making back-to-back EuroLeague Final Four appearances, including winning a championship in 2017. Over 29 EuroLeague games in 2017-18, he averaged 9.3 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game, while shooting 54.0% overall from the field, including a 55.4% mark from beyond the arc.

Undrafted in 2012 out of UC Santa Barbara, Nunnally spent parts of the 2013-14 NBA season with Atlanta and Philadelphia, totaling averages of 3.4 points and 1.5 rebounds in 12.7 minutes per game in 13 contests. He has also played in the G League with Bakersfield and Texas, as well as overseas in Greece, Puerto Rico, Spain, Israel and Italy. Nunnally earned Italian League MVP honors in 2016 after averaging 18.4 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.5 assists in 40 games.

Nuggets sign DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell and Emanuel Terry

The Denver Nuggets have signed rookie free agent DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell to a two-way contract and rookie free agent Emanuel Terry to a training camp contract.

Akoon-Purcell, 6-5, 200, most recently appeared in four games for the Nuggets’ Las Vegas Summer League team, averaging 12.0 points, 2.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 2.00 steals in 19.3 minutes per game. Akoon-Purcell went undrafted in 2016 out of Illinois State University and has spent the last two seasons playing for the Bakken Bears of the Danish league.

The Orlando, Florida native averaged 18.2 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.65 steals in 49 games (45 starts) for the Bakken Bears in 2017-18. He appeared in 53 games (43 starts) during the 2016-17 campaign, posting averages of 20.2 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.89 steals while being named both the Danish League MVP and Finals MVP.

Terry, 6-9, 220, also played for the Nuggets’ 2018 Las Vegas Summer League team, appearing in all five games while averaging 7.4 points and 5.0 rebounds on .607 shooting from the field in 17.6 minutes per game. The Birmingham, Alabama native went undrafted in 2018 after spending four years at Lincoln Memorial University.

Terry started all 31 games as a senior in 2017-18, averaging 16.9 points, 10.3 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 2.19 blocks while shooting .711 from the field. He was named the South Atlantic Conference (SAC) Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year as well as earning SAC All-First Team, SAC All-Tournament Team and NABC Division II All-American Team honors that season.

Clippers trade Sam Dekker to Cavs

The Cleveland Cavaliers have acquired forward Sam Dekker from the Los Angeles Clippers. In exchange, Cleveland will trade the draft rights to Vladimir Veremeenko to the Clippers. The Cavaliers will also receive the draft rights to Renaldas Seibutis and cash considerations from Los Angeles.

“We want to thank Sam for his contributions to our team competitiveness and culture this past season,” said Clippers President of Basketball Operations Lawrence Frank. “Sam is a talented and hard-working athlete who represented this organization well as a player and a person. We wish him the best of luck with his opportunity in Cleveland.”

Dekker (6-9, 230) spent last season with the Los Angeles Clippers, averaging 4.2 points on .494 shooting and 2.4 rebounds in 12.1 minutes per game over 73 games (one start). Over his three NBA seasons, he owns career averages of 5.3 points on .481 shooting and 3.0 rebounds in 15.1 minutes per game during 153 career contests (three starts) with the Clippers and Houston Rockets. Dekker also appeared in four postseason games with Houston in the 2017 Playoffs, averaging 2.3 points and 2.5 rebounds in 7.8 minutes per game.

The 6-9 forward, who hails from Sheboygan, Wisconsin, and played collegiately at the University of Wisconsin, was originally selected by the Rockets with the 18th overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft.

Raptors sign Jordan Loyd to two-way contract

The Toronto Raptors today signed guard Jordan Loyd to a two-way contract.

Loyd, 6-foot-4, 210 pounds, averaged 17.4 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 33.3 minutes in 38 games last season with Hapoel Eilat in Israel. He shot .482 (219-454) from the field and .399 (75-188) from three-point range.

Loyd spent the 2016-17 season with Fort Wayne of the NBA G League. He averaged 15.1 points, 4.2 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 28.4 minutes in 49 games. Loyd was picked 48th overall by the Mad Ants in the 2016 NBA G League Draft.

A native of Atlanta, Georgia, Loyd played three seasons at Indianapolis (2013-16) after transferring from Furman (2012-13). He was selected to the All-GLVC First Team and All-GLVC Defensive Team as a senior with the Greyhounds.

Loyd recently participated with the Raptors’ entry at NBA Summer League 2018 in Las Vegas, averaging of 8.3 points, 2.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 17.3 minutes in four games.

Bucks sign Jordan Barnett

The Milwaukee Bucks have signed Jordan Barnett to a training camp contract.

Barnett, 22, appeared in all five of the Bucks’ Las Vegas Summer League games in July and averaged 6.0 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 18.6 minutes per game. The 6-foot-7 forward went undrafted in the 2018 NBA Draft after playing the final two seasons of his collegiate career with Missouri after transferring from Texas. As a senior in 2017-18, Barnett averaged 13.7 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 32 games (all starts) with the Tigers while shooting 44.9 percent from the field and 41.4 percent from 3-point range.

Magic sign Amile Jefferson to two-way contract

The Orlando Magic signed free agent forward Amile Jefferson to a two-way contract today.

Jefferson, who is 6-foot-9, 222 pounds, born 5/7/1993, played in 47 games (46 starts) last season with the Iowa Wolves of the NBA G League, averaging 17.8 ppg., a team-high 12.8 rpg., 2.5 apg. and 1.00 stlpg. in 34.8 minpg., while shooting .626 (335-525) from the floor. He recorded an NBA G League-record 36 double-doubles. Jefferson was named to the All-NBA G League Second Team, the NBA G League All-Defensive and All-Rookie Teams.

Not drafted by an NBA franchise in 2017, Jefferson played 150 career games at Duke University from 2012-17, averaging 7.2 ppg. and 6.3 rpg. in 22.3 minpg., while shooting .620 (426-687) from the floor. His 150 games are the most played in Duke history and tied for the seventh most all-time in NCAA history. Jefferson helped the Blue Devils capture the 2015 NCAA National Championship. Duke went 124-26 when he played, giving him the third-most wins in program history. At the end of his career, Jefferson also ranked second on Duke’s all-time list in field goal percentage, third in offensive rebounds (361), seventh in blocked shots (138) and 11th in rebounds (944).

Per NBA rules, teams are permitted to sign two players to two-way contracts in addition to the 15-man regular-season roster. A two-way player for Orlando will provide services to the team’s G League affiliate – the Lakeland Magic – but can spend up to 45 days with Orlando, not including any time prior to the start of Lakeland’s training camp and at the conclusion of their season.

Pistons name Sachin Gupta assistant general manager

Pistons name Sachin Gupta new assistant general manager

The Detroit Pistons have hired Sachin Gupta as assistant general manager.

“We are pleased to welcome Sachin Gupta to the Detroit Pistons organization,” said Ed Stefanski, Special Advisor to owner Tom Gores. “Sachin is a creative thinker, extremely intelligent, and has a great handle on the analytical side of basketball operations systems. His analytics and salary cap background will be a tremendous resource while serving a leadership role for our basketball operations team.”

Gupta spent last season as a special advisor to Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey, his second stint with the organization. The Boston-area native began his NBA career with the Rockets in 2006 as Morey’s first hire, laying the foundation for the team’s extensive analytics undertaking, which the Rockets would later become renowned for. In addition to his responsibilities as an analyst, Gupta also assisted in managing the team’s salary cap during his six-year tenure in Houston.

Gupta transitioned to the Philadelphia 76ers front office in 2013 as a consultant prior to the NBA Draft while finishing MBA studies at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business. He then moved to a more permanent position, Vice President of Basketball Operations in 2014 and served as General Manager Sam Hinkie’s top lieutenant. Gupta served a substantial role in driving the club’s overhaul that led to this past season’s return to the NBA Playoffs.

Prior to joining the NBA ranks, Gupta spent two years at ESPN where he had a hand in fostering basketball’s analytical movement, implementing advanced NBA metrics on ESPN.com before their use had become widespread across the league. While at ESPN, he also became well versed in the CBA when he developed the widely popular NBA Trade Machine.

Gupta earned a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and Electrical Engineering from MIT.

Grizzlies sign Shelvin Mack

The Memphis Grizzlies signed guard Shelvin Mack today.

According to ESPN.com, it’s a a one-year deal.

The only clear starter in the Memphis backcourt is veteran Mike Conley at point guard. Mack is mostly joining a big cast of backup guards, many of whom will have the opportunity to compete for real minutes.

Mack, 6-foot-3, 203 pounds, has appeared in 399 regular season games (53 starts) over a seven-year NBA career and has averaged 6.4 points, 2.0 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 17.9 minutes for the Washington Wizards, Philadelphia 76ers, Atlanta Hawks, Utah Jazz and Orlando Magic. The 28-year-old also has competed in 30 postseason games (three starts) and has averaged 5.3 points, 1.9 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 13.1 minutes for Atlanta and Utah.

Last season, Mack saw action in 69 games (three starts) for Orlando and averaged 6.9 points, 2.4 rebounds and a career-high 3.9 assists in 19.8 minutes while shooting 43.0 percent from the field, 34.5 percent from three-point range and 71.1 percent from the free throw line.

Mack was selected by Washington in the second round (34th overall) of the 2011 NBA Draft following his junior season at Butler University after he helped guide the Bulldogs to back-to-back NCAA Tournament Finals (2010, 2011). The Lexington, Kentucky native was named an NBA G League All-Star during the 2012-13 season while playing for the Maine Red Claws.