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Nerlens Noel almost ready to return

The weeks and months have quickly piled up. Nerlens Noel has not played an NBA regular-season game since last season ended for the Sixers on April 13. Nearly eight months later, Noel is nearing the return he has been eyeing for quite some time now.

“It’s always an excitement to be able to play basketball after this amount of time, including the summer, not being able to play organized basketball at a competitive level,” Noel said Thursday. “I’ve been really looking forward to this. I think I’ve gained some momentum coming back from this minor surgery, and I think I’m in a really good place and I’m feeling good with my body. Everything is on point.”

Noel has been sidelined since undergoing elective left knee surgery in October to address an inflamed plica. He traveled to New Orleans on Wednesday to join the Sixers ahead of their 99-88 win over the Pelicans (see game recap). Noel continued his rehab Thursday while the team prepped for the game.

— CSN Philly

Quick Take: The Sixers are 5-18 this season, the second worst record in the NBA, ahead only of the 4-17 Mavericks. It’s nice that they’re getting Noel back, but it’s very unclear how he, Joel Embiid and Jahlil Okafor will fit together. The chemistry experiment will be worth watching.

Ian Mahinmi having knee checked out

Ian Mahinmi, who has appeared in just one game for the Wizards this season because of injuries to both knees, will get another MRI on his right one Friday, league sources tell CSNmidatlantic.com.

Mahinmi was the Wizards’ most expensive offseason acquisition this summer and set to back up Marcin Gortat in the middle. However, he required surgery to repair torn cartilage in his left knee before the season tipped and then developed soreness — believed to be tendinitis, league sources told CSN — in the right knee after playing just 14 minutes vs. the San Antonio Spurs on Nov. 26.

— CSN MidAtlantic

Quick Take: The Wizards have gotten a total of 14 total minutes in one game of action from Mahinmi so far this season. Hopefully he’s able to produce soon. The team needs him.

Lakers dealing with multiple injuries

When Lakers coach Luke Walton and his staff meet before every game to finalize offensive sets and defensive schemes, they often tackle another question. Who do we start?

Finding themselves without D’Angelo Russell (left knee), Nick Young (right leg) and Jose Calderon (right hamstring) in recent weeks, those conversations have become more difficult.

As the Lakers were reminded in their 134-95 loss to the Houston Rockets on Wednesday at Toyota Center, seemingly none of the combinations they have tried since the slew of injuries has adequately addressed the team’s diminished backcourt situation or its slow starts. On Wednesday, Walton started seldom-used guard Marcelo Huertas at point guard and inserted reserve Jordan Clarkson into the starting shooting guard spot he assumed for all of the 2015-16 season.

— OC Register

Quick Take: The Lakers are 10-14 this season, which is solid considering they’ve lost four games in a row and seven of their last 10. Earlier in the season when they enjoyed good health, they were one of the most fun teams to watch in the league. There’s no reason why they can’t resume that once the squad is complete again.

Derrick Rose misses game vs Cavs

Derrick Rose missed the Knicks’ game against Cleveland Wednesday night at the Garden because of lower back pain, the first game he’s missed since joining the team.

The point guard underwent an MRI on Wednesday, which the Knicks said revealed no structural damage. He’s day-to-day and is expected to travel with the Knicks on Thursday to the West Coast for their five-game road trip that begins Friday night in Sacramento.

Rose has missed 228 games over the last five seasons and made one of his goals to play in all 82 in his first year as a Knick.

— NY Newsday

Quick Take: The Knicks are missing D-Rose early, trailing the Cavs by 16 points mid second quarter.

Jodie Meeks helping Magic so far

Jodie Meeks made a major impact in his first few games back from foot surgery in mid-July.

The veteran shooting guard made 54.5 percent of his 3-point tries and averaged 11.7 points in games against the Philadelphia 76ers, Detroit Pistons and Washington Wizards.

It’s no coincidence that the Orlando Magic won all three games.

Meeks was especially efficient in the Magic’s 124-116 win over the Wizards on Tuesday. He scored 18 points in 16 minutes as he sank four of his five attempts from beyond the arc.

— Orlando Sentinel

Quick Take: The Magic are 10-12 this season, which is tied for 10th best in the East. They’re being led this season by Evan Fournier (16.9 ppg), Serge Ibaka (14.5 ppg) and Nikola Vucevic (12.4 ppg, 11.3 rpg). Their offense has been a major struggle all season. So far, Meeks is helping.

Jose Calderon out 2-4 weeks with hamstring strain

Lakers guard Jose Calderon, who was injured in the first quarter of Saturday night’s game in Memphis, was evaluated and had an MRI by team orthopedist Dr. David McAllister of UCLA Health. The results confirmed a right hamstring strain, which is expected to sideline Calderón 2-4 weeks.

In 14 games (nine starts) this season for the Lakers, Calderón is averaging 4.7 points, 2.6 assists, and 2.2 rebounds in 13.9 minutes per game while shooting 41.7% from three-point range.

Grizzlies sign Toney Douglas

Memphis Grizzlies General Manager Chris Wallace today announced the team has signed guard Toney Douglas pursuant to the NBA’s hardship rule.

Douglas (6-2, 195) has appeared in 370 regular season games (65 starts) and averaged 7.8 points, 2.2 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 19.2 minutes during his seven-year NBA career with the New York Knicks, Houston Rockets, Sacramento Kings, Golden State Warriors, Miami Heat and New Orleans Pelicans.

Most recently, Douglas was a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 2016 preseason roster. He played in 61 games (18 starts) last season with New Orleans and averaged 8.7 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.6 assists in 20.7 minutes while shooting 41.1 percent from the field, 39.9 percent from three-point range and 84.8 percent from the free throw line.

The 30-year-old has competed in 15 playoff games (three starts) with New York and Miami, including a 10-game postseason run with the Heat in 2013-14. During his stint in Miami, Douglas was coached by then-Heat assistant and current Grizzlies head coach David Fizdale.

A native of Jonesboro, Ga., Douglas was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round (29th overall) of the 2009 NBA Draft after his senior season at Florida State University. While with the Knicks, he scored 29 points and made a career-high nine three-pointers against the Grizzlies on March 17, 2011 at Madison Square Garden.

Joakim Noah back in action for Knicks

Jeff Hornacek, psychic.

Before Sunday night’s game, Hornacek spoke about the Knicks’ need to finish and step on opponents’ throats which sort of became a theme when the Knicks let a 21-point lead get whittled to one before winning. But earlier in the day, he told his wife he believed Brandon Jennings would have a big game.

Hornacek was 2-for-2. Jennings scored 19 points and made huge endgame plays.

“He gave us a big lift. I saw it this morning,” Hornacek said after the 106-98 victory against the Kings…

Joakim Noah returned from a two-game absence with a sprained ankle. Noah has battled a series of ills, including flu and a hamstring which everybody concedes has hindered his acclimation to a new system.

“I feel better, but I still have a lot of work to do. Can’t get frustrated with the process,” Noah said. “Our team is definitely playing a lot better basketball right now. So just keep focusing on the positive and just keep focusing on my improvement. I’ve had a lot of knick-knacks from the start of this. The hamstring, ankles, I got sick. I’m just trying to get some consistency right now. … It’s going to come.”

— NY Post

Quick Take: Noah started the game, played almost 25 minutes, and only put up two points and five rebounds. He’s having an underwhelming season so far.

Dwight Powell steps up in Mavs win vs Bulls

All it took for Dwight Powell to play his best NBA game was to be patient and not get ahead of himself.

Powell used that strategy to tally a career-high 17 points and pull down eight rebounds Saturday night as the Dallas Mavericks crushed the Chicago Bulls 107-82. It was just the fourth win of the season for the Mavs, who entertain the Charlotte Hornets on Monday night at American Airlines Center.

The Mavs have been searching for this production out of Powell ever since they signed him to a four-year, $37 million contract July 8. And they believe they’ve figured out a way to squeeze the best out of Powell — a third-year pro described as a gym rat by the coaching staff.

“He is just getting better and getting more experience,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “He is recognizing situations a little bit better.”

— Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Quick Take: The Mavs have been one of the worst teams in the league so far this season, with a 4-15 record through Sunday’s games. With Dirk Nowitzki mostly watching from the sideline this season, Deron Williams missing a lot of time, Jose Barea out and lots of other stuff going wrong, there’s nowhere to go but up. Maybe. Hopefully.

Kevin Durant fitting in perfectly with Warriors

Sometimes, as they do in Kevin Durant’s case, numbers tell the story.

Twenty games into his inaugural Warriors season, Durant not only leads his team with 27.3 points per game but leads his team — and the entire NBA — in scoring efficiently.

Durant ranked seventh in the league in points per game and eighth in field-goal percentage (56.2) entering Sunday’s games. That made him the only player in the top 10 in scoring to also rank among the top 20 in field-goal percentage.

Widen the scope and Durant’s efficiency becomes even more striking. The only other players in the top 10 in scoring to also rank among the top 30 in field-goal percentage were New Orleans’ Anthony Davis (No. 1 in scoring and No. 21 in field-goal percentage through Saturday) and the Warriors’ Stephen Curry (No. 8 in scoring, No. 29 in field-goal percentage).

— San Francisco Chronicle

Quick Take: Things are as expected in Golden State. The offense is beautiful and amazing. The defense is still improving. And overall, Durant has been the best of a very talented bunch.