NBA Blog: The NBA basketball news blog section of Inside Hoops
Brooklyn Nets guard/forward David Nwaba underwent surgery today to repair a ruptured right Achilles tendon.
The injury, which occurred during last night’s game at San Antonio, will result in Nwaba missing the remainder of the season.
In 20 games played this season, Nwaba recorded averages of 5.2 points and 2.3 rebounds in 13.4 minutes per game, shooting 52.1 percent from the field and 42.9 percent from 3-point range.
The Toronto Raptors just got hit with a series of injuries:
Marc Gasol sustained a strained left hamstring in the first quarter of play Wednesday, Dec. 18 at Detroit. He was reevaluated on Thursday and it was determined he will be out indefinitely.
With 6:47 to play in the fourth quarter, Pascal Siakam sustained a stretched groin after an awkward landing. He was evaluated Thursday and will be listed as out indefinitely.
Norman Powell left the same game with 3:17 to play in the fourth quarter after a collision with another player. After testing in Toronto on Thursday, it was determined he had sustained a subluxation of the left shoulder. He will also be out indefinitely.
Per the Toronto Star, “every time it has appeared Toronto was about to get healthy this season, another player or two has gone down. First it was Kyle Lowry and Serge Ibaka. Then it was VanVleet. This latest setback could be the most difficult one to overcome yet as it takes away the Raptors’ leading scorer in Siakam, the recently surging Powell and Gasol, who has been a lockdown defender in the post.”
All three players will be reevaluated in the coming weeks.
Three-time Grammy Award winners and Chicago natives Chance The Rapper and Common will headline musical performances at the 2020 NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, Feb. 16 at United Center in Chicago.
Chance The Rapper’s brother, fellow rap artist Taylor Bennett, will perform at halftime of NBA Rising Stars on Friday, Feb. 14 at United Center.
The 69th annual game will air live at 8 p.m. ET on TNT and will reach fans in more than 200 countries and territories in more than 40 languages.
On Sunday, Feb. 16, Common will welcome fans to Chicago with anarrative about what basketball means to the city. This prior to introducing players from both teams before tip-off of the NBA All-Star Game.
At halftime, Chance The Rapper and special guests will perform a medley of chart-topping hits, including tracks from his first studio album, The Big Day.
Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton recently returned from a 25-game suspension, played well, but is now out with an ankle sprain.
Here’s the Arizona Republic:
The Suns haven’t had their full roster healthy all season. That unfortunate trend will continue as Deandre Ayton is ruled out Friday’s game at Oklahoma City with a right ankle sprain he suffered in the second half of his return game from a 25-game suspension Tuesday at the Los Angeles Clippers…
The Suns (11-16) have also been without Devin Booker their last three games because of a right forearm contusion. Booker is listed as questionable for Friday’s game.
It’s unclear how big a deal that sprain is. Hopefully it’s minor. The team hasn’t released an official statement yet.
The biggest game of the NBA season so far is the Lakers vs Bucks matchup on TNT at 8 p.m. ET tonight. Both teams are 24-4, and are the current favorites, if you had to make a prediction today, to reach the 2020 NBA Finals.
While the Bucks are without injured guard Eric Bledsoe, the Lakers will have forward Anthony Davis in action, said the team this evening.
Per ESPN.com, “Davis did not play in the Lakers’ loss at Indiana on Tuesday due to the mild ankle sprain. It was the second game Davis has missed this season. He is leading the team in points (27.4), rebounds (9.3) and blocks (2.6) per game.”
It’s a must-watch game. Tune in.
The Basketball Africa League (BAL), a new professional league featuring 12 club teams from across Africa and scheduled to begin play in March 2020, today unveiled the league’s official logo. The new logo, which features the silhouette of a basketball player taking a jump shot on a vibrant green, yellow, red and royal blue background, celebrates the Pan-African footprint of the league, Africa’s diversity and the continent’s rich basketball heritage.
The announcement was made today by BAL President Amadou Gallo Fall prior to the BAL qualifier game at the Kigali Arena in Kigali, Rwanda in the presence of Rwanda President Paul Kagame, Rwanda Minister of Sport Aurore Mimosa Munyangaju, FIBA Africa and BAL Board President Anibal Manave, FIBA Africa Executive Director Alphonse Bilé, two-time NBA All-Star and South Sudan Basketball Federation President Luol Deng, and former NBA player Olumide Oyedeji (Nigeria).
The BAL logo is inspired by the NBA and FIBA’s commitment to establishing the BAL as a world-class professional league that champions inclusion and youth development, provides an entertaining product for fans of all ages, and drives economic growth across the continent.
Talented Raptors forward Chris Boucher deserves more minutes. But head coach Nick Nurse has tough decisions to make in order for that to happen. Here’s the Toronto Star reporting:
“It’s not an easy thing to figure out,” Nurse said. “If you say you want to give someone more minutes that means you are taking some away from somebody else, and I don’t really know who that is right now.
“Do I chip a couple away from Pascal (Siakam)? Maybe. I certainly don’t think OG (Anunoby) is in position to have his (clipped). He’s wanting more the way it is. Serge (Ibaka) has been pretty low. Marc (Gasol) has been pretty low.
“There is not a lot of free minutes there. I will keep thinking about how I am going to figure out how to expand his role.”
There are worse problems for a coach to have.
Celtics backup center Vincent Poirier underwent surgery this morning to fix a fracture of the proximal phalanx on his right pinkie finger.
Poirier is expected to return to play in 4-6 weeks.
The Celtics are 17-7 so far this season. Poirier has played in just nine games, averaging 1.7 points in 4.9 minutes per outing.
The Phoenix Suns have their young center back, as Deandre Ayton returned to action yesterday. Here’s Arizona Sports reporting:
In his first time speaking to the media since being suspended 25 games, Deandre Ayton commented on testing positive for a diuretic.
“I know what I did,” he said to the assembled media before Tuesday night’s matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers, his return game. “It was the biggest mistake, and unintentional mistake that happened in my life and it’s just something to learn from and just build from it. It’s a mistake and everybody makes mistakes.
“It’s just how you bounce back. I think that’s what everybody is waiting for. I already did my time so I’m here.”
Ayton returned on a night in which the Suns faced a tough task — a visit to Los Angeles to face the Clippers. And although Ayton’s shot was a bit off, he put up nice numbers: 18 points and 12 rebounds in just 24 minutes. Despite this, the Clippers, who had three scorers put up 20 or more points, came away with a 120-99 win.
Still, getting Ayton back is a win for Phoenix.
The next Suns game is Friday on the road against the Thunder.
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Utah Jazz guard Mike Conley was evaluated by the team’s medical staff on Wednesday and the following was determined:
Conley reinjured his left hamstring during Utah’s game against Orlando in Salt Lake City last night. He will be reevaluated during the team’s upcoming road trip. Any further updates will be provided when necessary.
According to the Salt Lake Tribune, “Conley missed five games after experiencing hamstring tightness, which was frustrating for the Jazz point guard. “That’s why they’re like, ‘Be patient, be patient, don’t push it.’ And I’m just trying to push it every day,” Conley said before his return.”
Conley has appeared in 22 games (all starts) in his first season with Utah, averaging 13.6 points, 4.6 assists and 3.3 rebounds in 29.4 minutes per contest.
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