Washington Wizards guard Delon Wright will be out indefinitely with a grade two strain of his right hamstring. Wright suffered the injury in the fourth quarter of Tuesday’s game vs. Detroit.
He will be re-evaluated in approximately three weeks.
Pelicans transfer two-way player Dereon Seabron to G League
The New Orleans Pelicans have transferred two-way guard Dereon Seabron to the team’s G League affiliate, the Birmingham Squadron.
Seabron, 6-7, 180, played two collegiate seasons at North Carolina State, where he averaged 12.1 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 2.2 assists in 56 games. Seabron is coming off of a redshirt sophomore season in which he started 32 games, averaging 17.3 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 3.2 assists en route to being named the ACC’s Most Improved Player and earning All-ACC Second Team honors.
Seabron appeared in five preseason games for the Pelicans this season, averaging 4.4 points and 1.8 rebounds in 7.3 minutes per contest.
The Squadron will host the Lakeland Magic at Legacy Arena in their season opener on Sunday, November 6 at 5:00 p.m. CST.
Babacar Sane signs with NBA G League Ignite team
NBA Academy graduate Babacar Sane of Senegal has signed with NBA G League Ignite, General Manager Anthony McClish announced today.
The 19-year-old guard becomes the fifth NBA Academy graduate to sign with Ignite, joining fellow 2022-23 Ignite players Efe Abogidi of Nigeria and Mojave King of Australia and Ignite alums Dyson Daniels of Australia and Princepal Singh of India.
Sane also joins Abogidi as the two players to sign with Ignite after participating in NBA Academy Africa, an elite basketball training center in Saly, Senegal, for top high school-age prospects from across Africa. A native of Bignona, Senegal, Sane started with NBA Academy Africa in 2019.
Sane was one of the 12 prospects from NBA Academy Africa selected to play in the 2022 Basketball Africa League (BAL) season through the BAL Elevate program, competing for Dakar Université Club.
In international competition, Sane has played with the Senegalese National Team at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 African Qualifiers. He has appeared in five games as the youngest member of the team. Sane also represented Senegal at the 2020 FIBA U18 African Championship, where he averaged 14.0 points and 6.0 rebounds in five games and helped the team reach the final.
Sane becomes the seventh player on the 2022-23 Ignite roster who has not gone through the NBA Draft process yet, joining Abogidi, King, Sidy Cissoko, Scoot Henderson, London Johnson and Leonard Miller. Both Sane and Johnson will be eligible for the 2024 NBA Draft and have signed with Ignite for two seasons.
Ignite tips off its 2022-23 NBA G League season against the Oklahoma City Blue on Friday, Nov. 4 at 7 p.m. PT/10 p.m. ET at The Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, Nev.
Wizards 2022 ‘Throwback Night’ will include Gilbert Arenas, Caron Butler, Antawn Jamison
The Washington Wizards will reunite the “Big Three” of Gilbert Arenas, Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison to celebrate “Throwback Night” in recognition of the team’s 25th anniversary since rebranding to the Wizards. The game will take place on Friday, November 18, when the Miami Heat come to Capital One Arena. Tipoff will be at 7:00 p.m.
As part of “Throwback Night,” the team will recognize Arenas, Butler and Jamison in a halftime celebration for their contributions to the franchise. The trio played together from 2005-06 to 2009-10 and led Washington to three consecutive playoff appearances (2006-2008).
“Celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Wizards brand wouldn’t be complete without honoring the contributions of ‘The Big Three’ and having them all together on the same night makes it even more special,” said Wizards President & General Manager Tommy Sheppard. “Gilbert, Caron and Antawn represent a definitive era for the franchise and they deserve to be recognized for the excitement they generated on the court and the impact they had in our community, both of which led to a new generation of Wizards fans.”
The trio recently recorded an interview with Wizards legend and former broadcaster Phil Chenier, which will be featured during pre and postgame coverage of Friday’s game against the Indiana Pacers on NBC Sports Washington (the pregame show will begin at 7:00 with the game set to tip off at 7:30).
The first 10,000 fans in attendance will receive a hat designed by Antawn Jamison.
Following the game, those in attendance can enjoy a postgame concert with R&B artist and producer Teddy Riley. He will be joined by Dave Hollister and Joe. They will entertain fans with classics such as “Stutter,” “I Wanna Know,” “One Woman Man” and “Don’t Leave Me.”
Lakers forward Cole Swider out with foot injury
Los Angeles Lakers team doctors have diagnosed two-way forward Cole Swider with a navicular stress reaction of the right foot.
Swider will be reevaluated in approximately four weeks, and further updates will be provided at that time.
Spurs sign Charles Bassey to a two-way contract, waive Jordan Hall
The San Antonio Spurs have signed center Charles Bassey to a two-way contract, and waived forward Jordan Hall.
Bassey, 6-11/235, played high school basketball in San Antonio at St. Anthony Catholic High School for two seasons from 2015 to 2017. Selected by the Philadelphia 76ers in the second round of the 2021 NBA Draft, the 53rd overall pick appeared in 23 games for the Sixers last season, averaging 3.0 points and 2.7 rebounds in 7.3 minutes while also appearing in three playoff games. Bassey appeared in one preseason game this year before being waived by Philadelphia on Oct. 13.
Originally from Nigeria, Bassey played three seasons at Western Kentucky, twice earning Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year honors and capturing Player of the Year as a junior in 2020-21. He averaged 15.9 points, 10.5 rebounds and 2.56 blocks in 72 games played in his college career.
Hall appeared in four preseason games for the Spurs after signing a two-way contract with San Antonio on Aug. 11.
The Spurs roster now stands at 17 players.
Cavaliers guard Darius Garland out with eye injury
Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland sustained a left eye injury in the Cavaliers season opener at Toronto on Wednesday night.
Garland missed the remainder of the game versus the Raptors.
Additional examination at the Cleveland Clinic Cole Eye Institute today revealed no structural damage. Surgery was not required.
Garland will be re-evaluated over the next couple of days and his status will be updated as appropriate.
Longtime NBA referee Tony Brown has passed away at age 55
Longtime NBA official Tony Brown passed away today surrounded by his family, friends and fellow officials after a courageous battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 55.
“We are and have been sustained by the consistent outpouring of love and support through this journey in developing strength, acceptance and peace,” said Tony’s wife, Tina Brown. “We ask that you join us in that spirit as we prepare to celebrate Tony’s life. Our biggest thank you to our village of family and friends, near and far, old and new. Your love is immeasurable. Thanks to the Lustgarten Foundation and PanCan. Keep striving for the cures. Many, many thanks to our NBRA and NBA family whose generosity is unmatched. And a very special thank you to the Emory/Bridgeway Hospice Unit. Your compassion and care went above and beyond. We are forever grateful!”
“Tony Brown was one of the most accomplished referees in the NBA and an inspiration to his colleagues,” said NBA Commissioner Adam Silver. “After his pancreatic cancer diagnosis early last year, Tony fought courageously through countless rounds of treatment to return to work this past season at the NBA Replay Center, demonstrating the dedication, determination and passion that made him such a highly respected official for 20 years. The entire NBA family mourns Tony’s passing and we send our deepest condolences to his wife, Tina; their children, Bailey, Basile and Baylen; and his fellow referees.”
Brown officiated 1,110 regular-season games and 35 playoff games in 20 seasons as an NBA staff official. He made his debut as an NBA Finals referee during the 2019-20 season. A graduate of Clark Atlanta University, a Historically Black College and University (HBCU), Brown was a member of the crew that officiated the 2021 NBA All-Star Game in Atlanta, which honored HBCUs.
In lieu of flowers, the Brown family encourages donations to the Tony and Tina Brown Basketball Program Endowment at Clark Atlanta University. For more information, please visit https://secure.givelively.org/donate/clark-atlanta-university-inc/tony-brown-basketball-scholarship-endowment.
Trail Blazers sign John Butler Jr. to a two-way contract
The Portland Trail Blazers have signed forward John Butler Jr. to a two-way contract.
Butler, 7-1, appeared in four summer league games for the New Orleans Pelicans in 2022 and averaged 8.5 points (75.0% FG, 66.7 3-PT%, 57.1 FT%), 3.8 rebounds and 1.0 blocks in 16.7 minutes per game. In a matchup against Oklahoma City at the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas on July 17, Butler scored 25 points while shooting 9-for-9 from the field including 6-for-6 from three.
Undrafted out of Florida State, Butler accrued averages of 5.9 points (41.6% FG, 39.3% 3-PT), 3.2 rebounds, 1.2 blocks and 19.0 minutes per game in 31 games (24 starts) for the Seminoles during the 2021-22 season. The Greenville, SC native became the first freshman in Florida State history to lead the team in 3-point field goals made (33) and 3-point field goal percentage shooting (.393) in a season.
On the Rockets after their season opener
Via the Houston Chronicle:
The Houston Rockets dropped their fifth straight season opener in Wednesday’s 117-107 loss in Atlanta.
It was a difficult shooting night for Stephen Silas’s squad, and a poor fourth quarter could be a harbinger of things to come for what is expected to be a lottery-bound team. Yet Houston’s young talent did provide some hope in the loss. Forward Jabari Smith tallied 17 points in his NBA debut, and fellow rookie Tari Eason provided a spark off the bench with eight points and seven rebounds. This season could be another slog for Rockets fans. It will be worth appreciating the little things as the team heads toward a likely 50-plus loss season…
Jabari Smith is a serious spacer: The No. 3 pick didn’t post the most efficient shooting night as he went 6-17 from the floor and 3-11 from beyond the arc, but frankly the sheer number of three-point attempts from Smith on Wednesday is an encouraging sign. Smith projects to be one of the best shooting big men in the league in the coming years, and he drained 42 percent of attempts during his lone season at Auburn. It was encouraging to see him shoot with confidence in his pro debut.