Warriors sign guard Tyler Ulis

The Warriors have signed free agent guard Tyler Ulis. It’s likely just a non-guaranteed deal that merely brings Ulis to Warriors training camp.

Ulis, 22, averaged 7.8 points 4.4 assists, 1.8 rebounds, 1.00 steals and 23.4 minutes in 71 games (43 starts) last season with the Phoenix Suns. The 5’10” guard owns career averages of 7.6 points, 4.1 assists, 1.7 rebounds and 21.1 minutes in 132 games (58 starts) over two seasons with the Suns. The April 2017 NBA Rookie of the Month was originally selected by Phoenix in the second round (34th overall) of the 2016 NBA Draft.

Raul Neto out with hamstring injury

Raul Neto out with hamstring injury

Utah Jazz guard Raul Neto has suffered a right hamstring injury. He will be reevaluated in two weeks.

Entering his fourth season with the Jazz, the 6-foot-1, 179-pound guard appeared in 41 games last year, owning averages of 4.5 points, 1.8 assists and 1.2 rebounds in 12.1 minutes per contest, also seeing action in eight postseason games.

According to the Deseret News, “this injury is the latest setback for the Brazilian, who missed half of the 2017-2018 regular season because of a variety of unrelated injuries. He re-signed with Utah over the summer on a two-year, $4.4 million contract.”

Joel Embiid practice update

Sixers center Joel Embiid is still under careful health watch by the team. How long this will go on, no one knows. Here’s the Philadephia Inquirer with the latest:

The 76ers plan to give Joel Embiid a day off periodically to rest. The first one came Monday, three days into training camp.

But Embiid did participate in a post-practice one-on-one drill against a staff member, along with Dario Saric.

“We had two great days and tomorrow he’ll come in, and it’s sort of a game day for us,” Sixers coach Brett Brown said in reference to the Blue and White scrimmage at 7 Tuesday night at Penn. “We’ll come in, have a shootaround, then go to the Palestra and play in front of a fantastic crowd. We just felt like, let him have today to rest and we’re going to jump back into it tomorrow.”

Full article

Business as usual, says Kyle Lowry

For a long time, the Raptors were Kyle Lowry, DeMar DeRozan, and company. Now they’re Lowry, Kawhi Leonard and company. How does Lowry feel about the change? Here’s the Toronto Star from Raptors media day:

[Lowry] was hurt by the trade which sent DeRozan packing last July in return for Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green. But in his first public utterances about it Monday, the 32-year-old said he’ll simply do what he does.

“You know how it is, I come to work, no matter what,” Lowry said at the team’s annual media day at the Scotiabank Arena. “This is a business. I understand the business. I’ve been traded before, I’ve had a point guard drafted (supposedly to take his job) on draft night. It’s a business. I’ve always understood that.

“We come in here, come to work, and understand that’s what it is. Me, I have to come in and be in the best shape I can be, the best player I can be, the best individual talent I can be to help my teammates and to help our team win a championship.” …

That Lowry didn’t speak on the DeRozan trade until Monday isn’t surprising — he never does a lot of summer time media in any circumstances, and as long as he performs when practices and games arrive, what else matters?

Full article

Melo says all is good with Mike D`Antoni

Mike D’Antoni coached Carmelo Anthony in New York. It didn’t work out too well. Now D’Antoni will coach him in Houston. Here’s the Houston Chronicle reporting Melo’s positive-minded words at media day today:

Any issues the two had with each other in the past are staying there though, Anthony said Monday at Rockets media day.

“I think when Mike was trying to run his system in New York , the timing wasn’t right,” Anthony said. “That’s something that we both acknowledge.”

Anthony said he and D’Antoni had a conversation about their time in New York. Both admitted the problems they’d had and made the decision to move forward. Neither anticipate any issues as they pair up this season with the Rockets.

“The good thing… I liked about having that conversation with Mike was the simple fact that he made it very loud and clear – I am much more mature, he is more mature. He’s older, I’m older. We both are out of New York, which could be a very intense situation and now there’s opportunity to start a new chapter.”

Full article

Donovan Mitchell undecided on trying to defend dunk title

Nobody is thinking about 2019 All-Star weekend yet. But when the guy who won the 2018 dunk title is in front of you, it makes sense to ask if he’s thinking of trying to defend it. Here’s the Deseret News reporting on young Jazz star Donovan Mitchell:

Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell is certainly focused on reaching new heights in his sophomore campaign, but the rising star hasn’t decided on whether or not he’ll be defending his slam dunk title.

“I don’t know … that’s a good question,” Mitchell said during Monday’s Utah Jazz Media Day. “I don’t know, we’ll see. I’ll leave it there.”

All-Star Weekend 2019 will be played in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Feb. 15-17.

As a rookie, Mitchell reached a new level of popularity after winning the slam dunk crown at Los Angeles’ Staples Center as a late addition.

Full article

Grizzlies sign Ismaila Kane

Grizzlies sign Ismaila Kane

The Memphis Grizzlies signed forward Ismaila Kane today.

The signing is probably a non-guaranteed deal that merely brings Kane to Grizzlies training camp.

Kane (6-9, 200) appeared in 13 games last season for Atlanta Metropolitan of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) and averaged 14.3 points, 11.5 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.69 blocks. The Senegalese native went unselected in the 2018 NBA Draft.

Brandon Knight will miss preseason with injury

A new Rocket who will likely have a big role off the bench will be out at least for preseason, reports the Houston Chronicle:

Rockets guard Brandon Knight, who missed last season with the Suns because of a knee injury, will be out for the preseason and likely beyond.

Acquired along with Marquese Chriss for Ryan Anderson and De’Anthony Melton, Knight was expected to compete for a role as a third point guard behind James Harden and Chris Paul, and could be in the mix to earn a role playing with Harden, Paul or Eric Gordon in small lineups.

Full article

Pacers keeping eye on waiver wire

Here’s the Indianapolis Star reporting on the Pacers, who are open to adding another player this season, and not just somebody brought in only to be said goodbye to once training camp wraps up:

Training camp doesn’t start until Tuesday but the Pacers already find themselves with an unexpected open roster spot after C.J. Wilcox went down with an Achilles tear during a workout at the team’s facility.

Wilcox, a 6-5 shooting guard taken in the first round by the L.A. Clippers in 2014, was on partially guaranteed two-way contract. Edmond Sumner is the Pacers’ other two-way player…

“What we’re going to be doing is watching the waiver wire,” Pacers president Kevin Pritchard said.

Full article

LeBron James meets media as a Laker

Here’s ESPN.com reporting on Lakers forward LeBron James. That’s right. LeBron’s on the Lakers. The signing really happened this summer. It wasn’t all a dream. LeBron is a Laker. Accept this. Anyway:

Speaking with an all-business tone in his first press conference with his new team, LeBron James said the Los Angeles Lakers have “a long way to go” before getting on the same level as the Golden State Warriors.

James says he is excited to play alongside multiple ballhandlers but understands the Lakers may have to take their “bumps and bruises” early with so many new pieces.

“We got a long way to go to get to Golden State,” James said when asked if the Lakers can challenge the two-time defending champs. “They can pick up right where they left off, starting with training camp. … We are picking up from scratch so we got a long way to go. We can’t worry about what Golden State is doing. … They’ve been together for a few years now.”

Full article