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Dwyane Wade thinks NBA should have postponed Heat at Knicks game

The NBA is getting Heat from one of its marquee players over Friday night’s game between Miami and the Knicks at Madison Square Garden.

Dwyane Wade took to Twitter to express his feelings over the league’s decision not to postpone the contest between the two Eastern Conference rivals in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.

“3 hour traffic just to get into the NY city.. C’monMan…” Wade tweeted on Thursday night.

Wade clarified his comments later on after deleting that original tweet.

“2 be clear “Traffic tweet was meant 2 say”… We shouldn’t B hre 2 play a basketball game when theirs so many families obviously still R affected by #Sandy,” Wade wrote.

— Reported by Anthony Sulla-Heffinger of the New York Post (Blog)

Dallas Mavericks set to add Troy Murphy

Free agent forward Troy Murphy has reached agreement on a one-year deal with the Dallas Mavericks, league sources told Yahoo! Sports.

Dallas is working to clear a roster spot to sign Murphy. The Mavericks, at the league limit of 15 players, have been unsuccessfully shopping third-year guard Dominique Jones.

Murphy, 32, played a sparing role in 59 games for the Los Angeles Lakers a season ago, but he’s still a capable perimeter shooter.

— Reported by Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports

Read NBA fan reaction and share your opinion in this basketball forum topic.

NBA and NBPA donate $1 million to Hurricane Sandy relief

The National Basketball Association (NBA) and the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) announced today that they are making a commitment of $1 million to the Red Cross and other organizations, including The Salvation Army, New York Cares and Jersey Cares, that have mobilized to assist the people and communities affected by Hurricane Sandy. In addition, NBA teams and players around the league are supporting a number of humanitarian organizations to help bring much-needed aid to those impacted by the devastation caused by the storm. The league and its broadcast partners will also air pregame and in-game messages to encourage fans to support relief efforts by the Red Cross.

“Many homes and lives were devastated by Hurricane Sandy and our thoughts, abiding concerns and hopes are with all those affected,” said NBA Commissioner David Stern. “The NBA, the NBPA, our teams, and players are partnering with the Red Cross and other humanitarian organizations to support the relief efforts to help families and communities recover.”

“The immeasurable damage and heartbreaking impact of this latest natural disaster continues to shock all of us,” said NBPA Executive Director Billy Hunter. “The NBPA and its members will assist ongoing relief efforts by partnering with the Salvation Army along with other organizations as part of a long term commitment to help those in need.”

Michael Jordan says he remains committed to Bobcats

THIS IS GOOD NEWS, CONSIDERING HE OWNS THE TEAM

Bobcats owner Michael Jordan says he’s “in it for the long haul” when it comes to seeing his struggling franchise transformed into a consistent winner.

He knows it won’t be a quick, easy process after Charlotte “hit rock bottom” last season. But the always-competitive Jordan says the franchise needs to start turning things around.

He said Thursday the Bobcats are not a playoff team now, “but we need to get the ball rolling in the right direction.”

— Reported by the Associated Press

Marcus Camby almost signed with the Heat

Knicks forward Marcus Camby talked on Thursday about how close he was to becoming a member of the Heat this offseason. The Heat plays the Knicks at Madison Square Garden on Friday.

“I was going on the plane to Miami when Allan [Houston], Glen [Grunwald] and [Mike Woodson] came down to Houston,” Camby said. “That’s how close I was. I had a good talk with coach Riley on the phone. We talked for an extended period of time about them wanting me to come down there. In hindsight, I felt I was always a Knick at heart.”

Ironically, the Heat ended up with Josh Harrellson.

— Reported by Joseph Goodman of the Miami Herald (Blog)

Postponed Knicks at Nets game rescheduled for November 26

The New York Knicks at Brooklyn Nets game that was originally scheduled for tonight has been rescheduled for Monday, November 26 at 7 p.m. ET at Barclays Center, the National Basketball Association announced today.

The game will be televised by TNT.

The original game was scheduled for Thursday, November 1 but was postponed due to the effects of Hurricane Sandy.

Philadelphia 76ers sign guard Jrue Holiday to contract extension

The Philadelphia 76ers announced today they have come to terms with guard Jrue Holiday on a multi-year contract extension. The deal is reportedly worth $41 million over four years.

“Jrue is both an outstanding player and an important part of our future,” said Sixers Managing Owner Josh Harris. “We are very excited to keep a player of Jrue’s caliber in Philadelphia and truly look forward to further building the 76ers legacy around his leadership.”

“I’m ecstatic to continue playing in Philadelphia,“ Holiday said. “I’m going to keep putting in the work and pushing myself every day in order to bring a championship to the city and our fans.”

In 220 career games leading into this season, Holiday has posted averages of 11.9 points, 5.0 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 1.4 steals in 31.2 minutes per game.

During the 2011-12 season, Holiday scored 20 or more points 10 times, including a career-high 30 points at Chicago on March 17. He scored 19 points in the third quarter at Cleveland on April 18, the most by any Sixers player in a quarter during the 2011-12 season.

Holiday, 6’4”, 205, has appeared in 18 post-season games for the Sixers, averaging 15.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, 5.3 assists in 37.9 minutes per game.

The Sixers drafted Holiday with the 17th overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft. Holiday was rated the No. 1 point guard and the No. 2 overall prospect in the High School Class of 2008 by Rivals.com and named the 2008 Gatorade National Player of the Year and Parade Magazine First Team All-America.

Chicago Bulls sign forward Taj Gibson to contract extension

BULLS REWARD GIBSON FOR BEING SMART, HARD-WORKING

The Chicago Bulls announced today that the team has agreed to terms with forward Taj Gibson on a multi-year extension. According to the Chicago Tribune, it is a 4-year deal worth up to $38 million

“Taj has proven to be a key member of our team and we are very pleased to have reached an agreement with him,” said Chicago Bulls General Manager Gar Forman. “We look forward to him to continue to develop his game and we are happy that Taj will be a Bull long term.”

In his first three seasons with the Bulls, Gibson (6-9, 225) played in 225 games (89 starts), and averaged 7.9 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 1.29 bpg, 0.8 apg, 0.52 spg, 23.2 mpg and shot .485 from the field and .648 from the line.

“I’m very happy that I’m going to remain a Bull for the long haul,” said Gibson. “The Bulls are like my second family and I’m excited to know that I’m going to continue to wear ‘Bulls’ across my chest.”

The 27-year old Gibson has also played in 27 playoff games (five starts) with the Bulls and owns postseason averages of 7.0 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 1.30 bpg, 0.6 apg, 20.9 mpg, .500 from the floor and .625 from the free throw line.

Chicago drafted Gibson in the first round (26th overall) of the 2009 NBA Draft.

Toronto Raptors sign guard DeMar DeRozan to contract extension

RAPTORS NEED DEROZAN TO KEEP IMPROVING

The Toronto Raptors announced Wednesday they have signed guard DeMar DeRozan to a multi-year contract extension. Several reports say the deal is for four years and around $40 million. We’ll update that info later tonight if needed.

“DeMar has worked very hard and has been a significant part of the building process here in Toronto,” said Raptors President and General Manager Bryan Colangelo. “We view DeMar as a young, athletic and talented basketball player whose character fits what we are putting together.”

The 23-year-old DeRozan entered the 2012-13 season having averaged 14.1 points, 3.4 rebounds and 30.3 minutes in 222 career games with the Raptors, with 210 of those being starting assignments. He has shot .802 (743-927) from the charity stripe.

DeRozan, 6-foot-7, 217 pounds, averaged 16.7 points, second on the team, and a team-best 35.0 minutes last season. He ranked 10th among all Eastern Conference players in post-All-Star scoring at 17.8 points per game. He paced the Raptors in scoring 28 times and had 26 games of 20 or more points. He ranked 12th in the NBA in free throws made and 15th in attempts.

DeRozan appeared in all 82 games in the 2010-11 season, where he averaged a career-best 17.2 points. He had the biggest scoring increase among all second-year players and third in the NBA going from 8.6 points per game in his rookie season to 17.2. He led the team in scoring 17 times and posted a team-best 68 games scoring in double figures. He also was the team leader with 85 steals.

The University of Southern California product was selected ninth overall by the Raptors in the 2009 Draft. He averaged 8.6 points and 2.9 rebounds in 77 appearances in his rookie campaign. He became just the fourth rookie in team history to start on opening night.

Grizzlies exercise fourth-year contract option on Quincy Pondexter

The Memphis Grizzlies exercised the fourth-year contract option on guard/forward Quincy Pondexter, Grizzlies General Manager and Vice President of Basketball Operations Chris Wallace announced today. Pondexter now is signed through the 2013-14 season.

Pondexter (6-6, 225) posted 4.2 points and 2.0 rebounds in 15.7 minutes in 64 games (eight starts) for Memphis last season after being acquired from the New Orleans Hornets for Greivis Vasquez on Dec. 24, 2011. The 24-year-old owns career averages of 3.5 points and 1.6 rebounds on .432 shooting in 13.4 minutes in 130 games (14 starts) for Memphis and New Orleans.

After leaving the University of Washington as the school’s all-time leader in games played (136), the Fresno, Calif. native was drafted by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round (26th overall) of the 2010 NBA Draft before his rights were traded to New Orleans in a draft-night deal.

The Memphis Grizzlies will tip-off the 2012-13 regular season tonight against their 2012 NBA Playoffs opponent, the Los Angeles Clippers, at 9:30 p.m. CT at STAPLES Center. Grizzlies fans can see the regional telecast on SportSouth HD and listen on 92.9 FM ESPN/680 AM.