No negativity toward Rockets from Omer Asik

Here’s the Houston Chronicle Blog reporting on center Omer Asik, who is gone from Houston:

No negativity toward Rockets from Omer Asik

Former Rockets’ center Omer Asik said that he was going to miss Houston and was grateful for his time with the Rockets.

Asik, the only NBA player on the Turkish national team, is preparing for the FIBA World Championships taking place later this month in Spain.

Just before coming back to Turkey this summer, he found out he would be traded to the New Orleans Pelicans. Asik said he was excited for the opportunity and that he would miss the people in the Rockets organization and his teammates.

He said there were no hard feelings toward the franchise despite the early season drama that surrounded the team’s acquisition of Dwight Howard. Asik, a former starter, had been made a backup to Howard and then suffered a series of leg injuries. Despite the tough year, he was key in the postseason, starting alongside Howard against the Blazers and giving the Rockets the “twin towers” look that they were after when the season started.

Stephen Curry may play off ball more under Coach Kerr

Here’s the Bay Area News Group blog reporting on Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry:

Stephen Curry may play off ball more under Coach Kerr

Warriors guard Stephen Curry has high hopes after becoming an All-Star for the first time last season.

“I’m trying to establish myself as the best point guard in the league, and just that that quest for a championship is something that I value highly,” Curry told CBS Sports Radio on Wednesday.

New coach Steve Kerr, who as a TNT broadcaster gave Curry a vote for the All-NBA second team last season, will look to help his star player get there by taking some pressure off the guard who carried the load for Mark Jackson’s offense.

According to associate head coach Alvin Gentry, that means taking the ball out of Curry’s hands more often with big men doing more passing so that the All-Star doesn’t have to work as hard every night to score.

Isaiah Thomas undergoes left wrist surgery

Isaiah Thomas undergoes left wrist surgery

Phoenix Suns guard Isaiah Thomas today underwent a successful arthroscopy of his left wrist, the team has announced. He is expected to participate fully in the team’s training camp. The procedure was performed by Dr. Michelle Carlson at the Hospital for Special Surgeries in New York.

The Suns acquired Thomas from the Sacramento Kings in a sign-and-trade on July 12. A product of the University of Washington, Thomas is a three-year NBA veteran who averaged career-highs of 20.3 points on 45.3 percent shooting, 6.3 assists, 2.9 rebounds and 1.3 steals in 72 games with the Kings last season. For his career, Thomas holds averages of 15.3 points on 44.7 percent shooting from the field, 36.0 percent from behind the arc and 85.7 percent from the stripe.

Dramatic Carmelo Anthony weight-loss

Here’s the New York Post reporting on Knicks star forward Carmelo Anthony. Note that in our opinion, the angle and lighting in the photo above probably exaggerates the amount of weight Melo lost. Sure, he got thinner, but the photo makes him look like a skinny teenager. Guess we’ll find out once training camp opens in September. Here’s the Post:

Carmelo Anthony took a $5 million pay cut on his new contract, but it appears he took a bigger cut in weight. According to an Anthony confidant, Anthony has done so in order to resemble his physique as a rookie with the Nuggets and to be more viable in Phil Jackson’s triangle offense.

A photo of Anthony this week on his Instagram showed what appeared to be a dramatic weight loss since the season ended. Anthony, who turned 30 on May 29, looks younger with the weight loss.

“He wants to be as athletic as he was when he was a rookie,’’ the confidant told The Post. “Plus he wants to be a facilitator in the triangle and speed will help that.’’

D-League: Dean Cooper named head coach of Idaho Stampede

The Utah Jazz announced today that the team has named Dean Cooper as head coach of the Idaho Stampede, the team’s D-League affiliate, pending league approval.

Cooper becomes the 10th head coach in Stampede history and the sixth since the organization became a member of the NBA Development League.

“We are pleased to welcome Dean to our organization,” said Utah Jazz General Manager Dennis Lindsey. “The D-League is a critical component in building teams and it begins with each affiliate’s head coach. Dean’s addition is another step in the continued expansion of our basketball operations, and his experience and teaching ability will be a tremendous asset to both the Idaho Stampede and Utah Jazz.”

Cooper spent the past two seasons as an assistant coach for the Houston Rockets on Kevin McHale’s staff. He began his NBA career with the Rockets in 1999 as a video coordinator, eventually becoming an assistant coach to Rudy Tomjanovich. When Jeff Van Gundy succeeded Tomjanovich, Cooper transitioned to the front office as a personnel scout for one season before eventually becoming the Director of Scouting (2004-07) and Vice President of Player Personnel (2007-08).

He spent the 2008-09 season as an assistant coach for the Minnesota Timberwolves when McHale was the interim coach. Following a one-year stint as a regional scout for the Timberwolves (2009-10), Cooper became Director of Player Development for the Portland Trail Blazers under then-coach Nate McMillan.

“The Utah Jazz and Idaho Stampede are both model organizations with winning traditions and passionate fans,” said Cooper. “I am looking forward to working with Coach Snyder as we develop a unified approach to player development while continuing to put a team on the floor that will compete every night and make the Boise community proud.”

Prior to the NBA, Cooper coached four years at the collegiate level. For two seasons he was an assistant coach at his alma mater, Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, Mich., before taking a similar role at the University of Buffalo for two years. While at Aquinas, he also served in an advance scouting role for the Connecticut Pride of the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) for one season. Cooper began his coaching career at a pair of Michigan high schools, spending five years at Belding High School and three years at Caledonia High School.

A native of Belding, Mich., Cooper has been a camp director in the NBA’s Basketball without Borders program since 2005. Married to Melanie Cooper, he earned his undergraduate degree in business administration from Aquinas College.

“Having coached in the D-League for three seasons, I learned what an extension your affiliate is of your NBA program,” said Utah Jazz Head Coach Quin Snyder. “Dean has a proven history of player development which is an integral aspect of my coaching philosophy. As an extension of our staff, he will work hand-in-hand with us to establish a clear, seamless connection to ensure we are stressing the same principles in Utah and Idaho.”

The Jazz and Stampede have a single affiliation partnership that begins with the 2014-15 NBA D-League season. The partnership, also referred to as a “hybrid affiliation,” is the ninth of its kind in the NBA D-League and enables the Jazz to manage all aspects of the Stampede’s basketball operations, while the existing local ownership group headed by Bill Ilett maintains primary responsibility for the team’s off-the-court business operations and community initiatives.

Kris Humphries feels great about joining Wizards

Here’s CSN Washington with an update on a new Wizard:

Kris Humphries feels great about joining Wizards

In 10 seasons, Kris Humphries only has been to the playoffs three times. He has never been past the first round either, but who would’ve thought coming to the Wizards could get him closer to his goal?

“There are sacrifices all the way around when you try to work for something greater,” Humphries said via conference call from Los Angeles on Wednesday. “From guys who are there to guys coming in, when you’re on a team like this — I feel blessed to be in this situation — everything you do is important and you feel important. … Whatever you do on a winning team is magnified. You feel better about doing stuff when you’re working toward something. It’s a little tougher when you’re playing the right way, making sacrifices and your team doesn’t have a chance to make the playoffs.”

A 6-9 forward, Humphries has been a role player for his entire career, averaging 6.8 points and 5.5 rebounds. While he has averaged a double-double twice, it came on Nets teams that won 24 and 22 games. The Wizards acquired him in a trade with the Boston Celtics in July on a three-year deal.

Hornets want 2017 or 2018 NBA All-Star weeekend in Charlotte

Here’s the Charlotte Observer reporting on the Hornets and their desire to host NBA All-Star Weekend:

The Charlotte Hornets officially announced their bid to host the NBA all-star game on Tuesday morning. They will bid for both the 2017 and ’18 all-star games, hoping to lure one of them to Charlotte.

Team and city officials both said that Time Warner Cable Arena will need various upgrades of close to $42 million whether or not its bid succeeds for an all-star game. These would include improvements to the scoreboard and the lighting system, but other specifics were not revealed. It was also not clear whether the Hornets would make a contribution to the arena upgrades or if it would be funded entirely by hospitality tax revenue.

Miami Heat sign Reggie Williams

reggie williams

The Miami HEAT announced today that they have signed guard Reggie Williams.

Williams, a five-year NBA veteran, has appeared in 180 regular season career games (32 starts) averaging 8.5 points, 2.6 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 19.7 minutes while shooting 46.0 percent from the field, 37.1 percent from three-point range and 74.3 percent from the foul line. The 6’6”, 210-guard has previously played in the NBA for the Golden State Warriors (2009-11), Charlotte Bobcats (2011-13) and Oklahoma City Thunder (2013-14). He enjoyed his finest NBA season as a member of the Warriors in 2010-11 when he appeared in 80 games (nine starts) and averaged 9.2 points, 2.7 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 20.3 minutes while shooting 42.3 percent from three-point range, connecting on a career-high 102 three-point field goals.

He split the 2013-14 season between the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Tulsa 66ers of the NBA Development League and the San Miguel Beermen of the Philippine Basketball Association. He appeared in three games for the Thunder and averaged 3.7 points and 5.7 minutes. He also appeared in 25 games (21 starts) for Tulsa and averaged 20.2 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.9 assists while shooting 47.7 percent from the field, 35.9 percent from three-point range and 73.2 percent from the foul line. In 10 games (all starts) for San Miguel, Williams averaged 29.1 points, 9.2 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 44.8 minutes while shooting 48.3 percent from the field and 44.4 percent from three-point range.

Williams, who led the NCAA in scoring average in consecutive seasons (2006-07 and 2007-08) at Virginia Military Institute, went undrafted by the NBA upon graduation. After playing overseas in France for one season with JDA Dijon, he was drafted by the Sioux Falls Skyforce in the 2009 NBA Development League Draft. In his lone season with the Skyforce, Williams was named to the 2010 NBA D-League All-Star Team and earned All-NBA D-League First Team honors after averaging 26.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 40.0 minutes while shooting 57.6 percent from the field, 41.0 percent from three-point range and 82.4 percent from the foul line.