Category: NBA Teams

NBA teams blog

Matthew Dellavedova out with hamstring injury

nba blog

Bucks guard Matthew Dellavedova injured his right hamstring in the team’s victory over the Detroit Pistons Wednesday and will miss the next two games, coach Jason Kidd said after the team’s shootaround Friday at the Target Center.

Kidd said rookie Malcolm Brogdon will start Friday against the Timberwolves, marking his first NBA start after coming off the bench in the Bucks’ first 30 games.

“I don’t think it’s a big deal,” Brogdon said of being in the starting lineup. “When someone goes down, the next man has to step up. Delly can’t be replaced (with) what he brings to the team, his unselfishness.

— Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Hawks giving away a 2 Chainz mixtape

The Atlanta Hawks and hip-hop artist 2 Chainz have announced plans to enhance the rapper’s December 30 appearance, revealing two new commemorative retail pieces and a 2 Chainz mixtape specially created for the night.

The first 5,000 guests to enter Philips Arena when the Hawks host the Detroit Pistons will receive a free copy of the exclusive music compilation.

“2 Chainz always makes a splash when he performs at our games, and this season he wants to provide Hawks fans an experience they won’t soon forget as we close 2016 with a bang,” said Hawks CEO Steve Koonin. “The energy and atmosphere will make Philips Arena the only place to be in Atlanta on Friday night.”

To mark the occasion, Chainz and his “CEO Millionaires” clothing line collaborated with the Hawks to create a team-themed hooded sweatshirt, and also developed a t-shirt featuring mascot Harry the Hawk performing the popular “Hit Dem Folks” dance.

Prior to tipoff on Friday, Chainz will continue his month-long campaign to give back to the community when the final round of his fourth annual “T.R.U. 2 Hoops Holiday Basketball Classic” takes place on the Philips Arena floor. The tournament is a two-on-two competition for boys ages 10-13, with no participation fee for students in the Clayton County school system. Preliminary action took place at Chainz’s alma mater, North Clayton High School.

Doors open at 6:30 p.m. for the 8 p.m. contest against the Pistons.

Catch up with recent Wizards success

The Wizards opened the season 2-8 under new coach Scott Brooks, but they have been one of the NBA’s hottest teams over the last six weeks.

Washington is 13-8 since Nov. 17, including eight victories in their last 11 games and a current seven-game winning streak at home. The Wizards (15-16) have closed within one game of .500 for the first time since losing their season opener.

The team’s turnaround has featured outstanding play from John Wall, who is averaging a career-high 23.7 points, ranks third in the NBA in assists (9.9 apg) and leads the league in steals (2.24 spg). The three-time All-Star finished with 36 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists in Wednesday’s 111-105 win over the Pacers, becoming the first player in Wizards franchise history to reach all of those statistical minimums in a game.

With Wall and Bradley Beal (21.8 ppg, 3.6 apg) leading the way, the Wizards are rolling on offense. Washington has shot 47.9 percent from the field in its last 21 games – the highest mark in the East and the third-best figure in the NBA during that stretch.

Fourth-year forward Otto Porter has figured prominently in the team’s improved marksmanship. The 23-year-old is shooting 58.9 percent from the field in December, including 49.2 percent from three-point range. Porter is averaging 24.0 points on 70.3 percent shooting from the field over his last three games.

Center Marcin Gortat has joined Porter in supplying steady production in the frontcourt. The 32-year-old from Poland is averaging 11.2 points and ranks in the NBA’s top eight in rebounding (career-high 11.7 rpg) and field goal percentage (career-high 57.1).

— Via NBA News

Bench steps up for Thunder vs Heat

Bench steps up for Thunder vs Heat

Russell Westbrook isn’t the only man playing for the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Thunder won at the Miami Heat on Friday. And even though Westbrook was sitting with another triple-double, his league-leading 15th of the season, by the third quarter, the Thunder didn’t necessarily ache for every one of his numbers. And that’s a concept which was foreign to OKC basketball fans a week ago.

The Thunder got off to a 22-point lead by the second quarter Tuesday and maintained a double-digit advantage for the rest of the game, cruising to a 106-94 victory over the injury-laden, 10-22 Heat. And even as Westbrook finished his magnificent 29-point, 17-rebound, 11-assist night, even if the Thunder were plus-12 with him on the floor, his sovereignty wasn’t the story. For another evening, the stability came from a part of the team which has been criticized for much of the season: The bench.

“It’s great to see those guys continue to get better,” coach Billy Donovan said. “They’re developing a chemistry and a bond. They’re making each other better.”

— Norman Transcript

Quick Take: No matter how great one player is, basketball is a team game. Nobody can do it alone. And really, the same can be said for life itself. But, also basketball.

Mavericks waive Jonathan Gibson, sign Pierre Jackson

Mavericks waive Jonathan Gibson, sign Pierre Jackson

The Dallas Mavericks announced yesterday (Tuesday) that they have signed free agent guard Pierre Jackson.

In a related move, the Mavericks also requested waivers on guard Jonathan Gibson.

Jackson (5-11, 176) has appeared in 10 games (all starts) for the Mavericks’ D-League affiliate, the Texas Legends, this season. He averaged 29.1 points, 4.5 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 1.9 steals and 35.7 minutes per game in those 10 contests.

A native of Las Vegas, Jackson is no stranger to Texas after transferring from College of Southern Idaho to play the final two years of his collegiate career at Baylor University in Waco. While at Baylor, Jackson averaged 16.7 points, 6.5 assists and 3.3 rebounds in 74 games while earning Second Team All-Big 12 twice and Associated Press Honorable Mention All-America in 2012.

Jackson was drafted in the second round (No. 42 overall) by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2013 NBA Draft and had his draft rights, along with Jrue Holiday, traded to the New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for Nerlens Noel. Jackson spent the 2013-14 campaign with ASVEL Basket in France. He returned from overseas to compete with the Pelicans Summer League squad in the summer of 2014, but suffered a ruptured right Achilles that cost him the season. Jackson played with the 76ers Summer League team in 2015, but was later waived after appearing in three preseason games for Philadelphia.

Jackson holds career D-League averages of 25.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 5.6 assists, 1.7 steals and 36.9 minutes in 49 games (37 starts) with the Idaho Stampede and Texas Legends. On Feb. 4, 2014, he set the D-League single-game scoring record with 58 points against the Legends (Jordan McRae later broke it with a 61-point game in January 2016 and Russ Smith topped that with 65-point night in March 2016). Jackson was named to the Futures All-Star roster for the 2014 NBA D-League All-Star Game.

Jackson will wear No. 55 for the Mavericks.

Pistons beat Cavs as LeBron James sits

Pistons beat Cavs as LeBron James sits

A five-game losing streak that tormented the Pistons in recent weeks, prompting tension inside the locker room and a shuffling of the starting lineup, has finally ended.

The Pistons jumped out to an early lead Monday then held serve rest of the way, using a late-third quarter rally that stretched into the fourth to take down the defending NBA champion Cleveland Cavaliers, 106-90, at the Palace.

Cleveland was playing without LeBron James, instead opting to give the 12-time All-Star the night off after playing 40 minutes the night prior.

“We were very hungry,” Pistons point guard Reggie Jackson said. “We dropped I don’t know how many in a row. We dropped the last two that were very tough, against Memphis and Golden State, and I thought we played well but didn’t come out with a win.

“We knew they played yesterday, so we got a jump on them early.”

— Michigan Live

Gerald Henderson struggling with hip pain

Gerald Henderson struggling with hip pain

Gerald Henderson’s left-hip pain was too intolerable for him remain on the court.

The Philadelphia 76ers shooting guard was laboring on the Golden 1 Center with 8 minutes, 58 seconds remaining in Monday night’s 102-100 setback to the Sacramento Kings. Henderson spoke with Sixers coach Brett Brown, who basically came on the court to call a timeout as a way to get his veteran leader out of the game.

— Philadelphia Inquirer

Lakers beat injured Clippers on Xmas Day

Lakers beat injured Clippers on Xmas Day

A win offers breathing room for the Los Angeles Lakers, and on Christmas Day, they got some.

Fittingly, Laker Nick Young hit the game’s last field goal. He is the only Laker who was also on the team in 2013, the last time the Lakers beat the Clippers before an 11-game losing streak — the longest such streak they’ve had to any team since the franchise moved to Los Angeles.

Below are five takeaways from last night’s 111-102 victory.

1. The L.A. Clippers were shorthanded, missing starters Blake Griffin and Chris Paul. Raymond Felton, the point guard who started, was battling a fever, and J.J. Redick left the game in the second half with an injury. But the Lakers have also been hurting for most of December. That led Young to offer this: “ A win is a win. Nobody cared when we were hurt and injured. Why should we?”

2. In the second quarter, Lakers rookie Brandon Ingram picked up a technical foul. That call seemed to energize him, and he was suddenly more aggressive and assertive offensively.

— LA Times