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Washington Wizards guard John Wall has been fined $15,000 for public criticism of the officiating, it was announced today by Kiki VanDeWeghe, Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations.
Wall made his comments to the media postgame following the Wizards’ 95-88 loss to the Utah Jazz at Vivint Smart Home Arena on March 31.
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Washington Wizards forward Markieff Morris has been fined $25,000 for kicking Denver Nuggets center Mason Plumlee in the groin, it was announced today by Kiki VanDeWeghe, Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations.
The incident, for which Morris was assessed a Flagrant Foul 2 and ejected, occurred with 2:08 remaining in the fourth quarter of the Wizards’ 123-113 win over the Nuggets on March 8 at Pepsi Center.
Washington Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld announced today that the team has signed guard Brandon Jennings.
In addition, the team waived forward Danuel House.
“Brandon gives us playmaking ability and experience at the guard position while adding another scoring option as well,” said Grunfeld. “His presence, along with the recent acquisition of Bojan Bogdanovic and the continued progression of Ian Mahinmi, will help our team as we continue our push towards the playoffs.”
Jennings (6-1, 170) has played seven-plus seasons with Milwaukee, Detroit, Orlando and New York. In 518 career regular season games, he has averaged 14.8 points, 5.8 assists, 3.1 rebounds and 1.3 steals in 31.4 minutes per game. In 58 games (11 starts) for the New York Knicks this season, Jennings averaged 8.6 points, 4.9 assists and 2.6 rebounds in 25 minutes per game.
He has shot .349 from three-point range for his career, has ranked in the top 20 in the NBA in assists per game four times (including sixth in 2013-14 and averaged 16.7 points and 3.7 assists in 11 playoff games (11 starts) for the Bucks in 2010 and 2013 (including 18.7 points in seven games in 2010).
The former 2009 10th overall draft pick enjoyed his best season in 2011-12 for the Milwaukee Bucks when he averaged a career-high 19.1 points, 5.5 assists, 3.4 rebounds and 1.6 steals, while shooting a career-high .418 from the field. He was named to the 2009-10 NBA All-Rookie Team after averaging 15.5 points and 5.7 assists while playing all 82 games and played in Italy for Virtus Romas in 2008-09 after completing his high school career and before being drafted by Milwaukee.
House, who was signed as a free agent during the offseason, appeared in one game for the Wizards this season. He missed 39 games with a fractured right wrist and 10 games on assignment to the D-League.
Washington Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld announced today that the team has acquired forward Bojan Bogdanovic and forward Chris McCullough from Brooklyn in exchange for forward Andrew Nicholson, guard Marcus Thornton and a 2017 protected first round draft pick.
“Bojan is a very good shooter and a talented overall scorer whose versatility gives us an added dimension as we gear up for the stretch run,” said Grunfeld. “He is a proven starter that will provide us an added boost off the bench and allow us to be creative with our lineups.”
Bogdanovic (6-8, 225, name is pronounced BOY-ahn bog-DON-O-vich) has averaged career-highs of 14.2 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists this season while shooting .357 (99-277) from three-point range in 55 games (54 starts). He holds career averages of 11.2 points and 3.1 rebounds in 212 career games (121 starts) while shooting .441 from the field, .366 from three-point range and .847 from the line in three seasons with Brooklyn. The 31st overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft averaged 11.2 points and 3.2 rebounds while shooting .433 from the field and a career-best .382 from long distance in 79 games (39 starts) last season.
The 27-year-old sharpshooter has scored in double digits 44 times and tallied 20+ points 12 times this season. He played for the Croatian National Team during the 2016 Summer Olympics, leading all scorers with 25.3 points per game while shooting .506 from the field and .450 from three-point range. Bogdanovic was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team after averaging 9.0 points and shooting .355 from three-point range in his first season (2014-15). Prior to the NBA, he played 160 games for Fenerbache Ulker of the Turkish Basketball League, averaging 13.7 points and 2.3 rebounds.
McCullough (6-9, 215) holds career averages of 3.9 points and 2.2 rebounds while shooting .429 from the field in 11.4 minutes per game. As a rookie in 2015-16, the former 29th overall draft pick averaged 4.7 points and 2.8 rebounds in 24 games (four starts). This season, the Syracuse alum has appeared in 14 games with Brooklyn averaging 2.5 points and 1.2 rebounds and has played in 31 games with the Long Island Nets of the D-League where he averaged 18.1 points and 7.7 rebounds to earn 2017 D-League All-Star honors.
“We feel Chris is an intriguing prospect as a first-round pick who was recently named a D-League All-Star,” said Grunfeld. “He has high potential and we look forward to our staff continuing his development.”
Nicholson has appeared in 28 games with Washington this season after signing with the team as a free agent on July 7, 2016, recording averages of 2.5 points and 1.2 rebounds in 8.3 minutes per game. Prior to joining the Wizards, Nicholson spent the first four seasons of his NBA career (2012-16) with the Orlando Magic, appearing in 247 games and posting averages of 6.5 points and 3.2 rebounds in 15.1 minutes per game. The 27-year-old native of Mississauga, Ontario was originally selected with the 19th pick in the 2012 NBA Draft by Orlando after a standout four-year career at St. Bonaventure University, where he earned Atlantic 10 Player of the Year honors, as well as All-American Honorable Mention, while leading the Bonnies to their first-ever Atlantic 10 Tournament title in his senior season.
Thornton has appeared in 483 career games with New Orleans, Sacramento, Brooklyn, Boston, Phoenix, Houston and Washington, recording averages of 11.9 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 23.4 minutes per game. In 33 games this season with Washington, Thornton has averaged 6.6 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 17.4 minutes per game.
“We thank Andrew and Marcus for their professionalism and their contributions to our team,” said Grunfeld. “We wish them both the best moving forward in their careers.”
Washington Wizards assistant coach Sidney Lowe has been fined $5,000, and the Wizards’ organization has been fined $15,000, for Lowe’s standing on the playing court and potentially impacting game action during Washington’s 113-110 win over New York on Jan. 19 at Madison Square Garden, it was announced today by Kiki VanDeWeghe, Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations.
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
Wizards center Ian Mahinmi will undergo PRP (platelet-rich plasma) treatment on both knees following consultation with Dr. James Andrews and Wizards Head Team Physician Wiemi Douoguih. He is expected to miss approximately six weeks.
Mahinmi underwent surgery to repair a partially torn medial meniscus in his left knee on Oct. 14. During the rehabilitation process, he aggravated patellar tendinitis in his right knee and sustained a bone bruise to his left knee. The PRP treatment will be administered at the Andrews Institute for Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine in Pensacola, FL.
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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.
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.
Just one game after making his regular season debut, Ian Mahinmi is back on the Wizards’ injury list.
On Monday, Mahinmi, 30, missed Washington’s matchup against the Sacramento Kings. According to Coach Scott Brooks, Mahinmi, who appeared for 14 minutes Saturday night, is experiencing soreness in his right, non-surgical knee. Mahinmi missed the past six weeks after the repair of a partially torn medial mensicus in his left knee. Mahinmi did not participate in the team’s Monday morning shoot-around.
“Just going to be cautious,” Brooks said. “He’s done a great job of putting himself in a position to come back from surgery and he’s just been sore the last couple of days. It’s day to day. We’ll see how feels tomorrow.”
Quick Take: The Wizards are 5-10 through Sunday’s games. Their scoring leaders this season are John Wall (23.5 ppg), Bradley Beal (20.1 ppg), Otto Porter Jr (14.7 ppg), Markieff Morris (12.8 ppg) and Marcin Gortat (11.3 ppg). Their offense has been average this season but defensively they need improvement.
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Wizards guard Bradley Beal has been fined $15,000 for grabbing at the throat of Orlando Magic guard/forward Evan Fournier, it was announced today by Kiki VanDeWeghe, Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations.
The incident, for which Beal was assessed a technical foul, occurred with 7:40 remaining to play in the fourth quarter of the Wizards’ 94-91 win over the Magic on Nov. 25 at Amway Center.
To view the incident, click on this link.