On J.R. Smith and the trade deadline

Here’s the Akron Beacon Journal on Cavs shooting guard J.R. Smith, who surely had an interesting experience on the day of the NBA trade deadline, as his squad made a dramatic shakeup that could very well have included him as well:

J.R. Smith said he had never heard his name mentioned so often before the NBA trade deadline.

But it wasn’t just the rumors leading up to Thursday that weighed on the 32-year-old Cavaliers guard. The final hour or two as the clocked ticked down to 3 p.m. may have been the most stressful.

“My name was being thrown around a lot out there, so it was nerve wracking for sure,” Smith said after Sunday’s 121-99 victory over the Boston Celtics at TD Garden. “When you see six guys getting traded and there’s still more than an hour to the trade deadline, there’s no telling what can happen.”

But after three trades involving four teams as general manager Koby Altman orchestrated a total roster makeover, Smith survived.

After Smith scored 15 points on 6-of-7 shooting in Sunday’s rout of the Celtics, friend and teammate LeBron James observed, “J.R. gave us something tonight to let us know that he’s still here.”

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Nick Gilbert, son of Cavs owner, to undergo brain surgery

Wishing all the best to Nick Gilbert and the Cavs family. Here’s ESPN.com reporting:

Nick Gilbert, the 21-year-old son of Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert, is scheduled to undergo major brain surgery at a Detroit-area hospital this week, according to a team spokesman.

Gilbert’s son was born with neurofibromatosis, commonly referred to as NF, a nerve disorder that causes tumors to grow anywhere in the body at any time. One out of 3,000 people on average is born with NF.

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Warriors CMO Chip Bowers leaving organization

Here’s an update on the Warriors that sports business-minded people would be interested in, from the San Jose Mercury News:

After stockpiling their staff in recent years, the Warriors have lost one of their top executives to another team. Warriors chief marketing offer Chip Bowers plans to take a job with the Miami Marlins of Major League Baseball, Bay Area News Group confirmed. Bowers will serve as the Marlins’ president of business operations and report to part-owner and Chief Executive Officer Derek Jeter. Bloomberg first reported the news.

It is not immediately clear when Bowers will make the transition. Bowers was currently in his sixth season with the Warriors, where he has overseen broadcasting, marketing and corporate partnership sales for the organization.

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Suns sign Josh Gray to second 10-day contract

The Phoenix Suns have signed guard Josh Gray to a second 10-day contract after initially signing him on February 2.

Gray made his NBA debut against Utah on February 2 and has averaged 6.8 points, 3.0 assists, 2.5 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 17.5 minutes in four games with the Suns. He has eight steals, including four on Wednesday against San Antonio and three on Saturday against Denver, becoming the first Suns rookie to total at least eight steals through his first four career games since Richard Dumas in 1993.

A 6-1, 180-pound guard, Gray was originally called up him up from the Northern Arizona Suns of the NBA G League. In 31 games with the NAZ Suns this season he averaged 17.9 points, shooting 44.7 percent from the field and 42.1 percent from three-point range, 6.0 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 2.3 steals (t-1st in G League). The NBA G League Player of the Week for games played Jan. 1-7, Gray has four games scoring 30-plus points this season including a career-high 32 points in a win over the Agua Caliente Clippers on Jan. 26.

The 29th GATORADE Call-Up in the NBA this season and sixth in NAZ Suns history, Gray is Northern Arizona’s all-time leader in points (1,228), assists (410), field goals made (474), field goals attempted (1,065), steals (148), games (81) and minutes (2,250). Overall in 81 career NBA G League games, all with Northern Arizona over the past two seasons, Gray has averaged 15.2 points, 5.1 assists, 3.7 rebounds and 1.8 steals. On Nov. 27, 2016, he recorded the only triple-double in NAZ Suns history with 24 points, 13 rebounds, 11 steals and five steals against Sioux Falls.

The 24-year-old went unselected in the 2016 NBA Draft out of Louisiana State University. Gray tried out for the NAZ Suns prior to their inaugural season in 2016-17, earning an invite to training camp where he made the team and went on to have one of the better seasons by a local tryout in G League history.

A native of Lake Charles, La., Gray began his collegiate career at Texas Tech University in 2012-13 before transferring to Odessa College for the 2013-14 season then completing his career with two seasons at LSU from 2014-2016.

Kings waive Joe Johnson

The Sacramento Kings, who are undergoing a youth movement and are building for the future, not the present, waived veteran guard/forward Joe Johnson today.

Johnson appeared in 32 games this season for the Utah Jazz and averaged 7.3 points (.420 FG%, .274 3pt%, .833 FT%), 3.3 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 21.9 minutes per game. Over the course of his 16-year career, the seven-time NBA All-Star has accrued averages of 16.2 points (.442 FG%, .372 3pt%, .802 FT%), 4.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 34.9 minutes per game through 1253 games (1090 starts) with six teams; Boston, Phoenix, Atlanta, Brooklyn, Miami and Utah.

Jazz sign Naz Mitrou-Long to 10-day contract

The Utah Jazz have signed Naz Mitrou-Long to a 10-day contract.

Mitrou-Long (6-4, 218, Iowa State) has appeared in 32 games (27 starts) for the Jazz’s exclusively owned and operated G League team, the Salt Lake City Stars, this season averaging 16.7 points, 6.1 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.2 steals in 34.6 minutes per contest. He originally signed a two-way contract this season with the Jazz on Dec. 23, appearing in one game with Utah, tallying three points against Denver on Dec. 26, before being waived on Jan. 13. Additionally, Mitrou-Long spent training camp with the team this year, playing in two preseason games, averaging 4.0 points and 1.0 assists in 7.0 minutes per contest.

A four-year collegian at Iowa State, he averaged 15.1 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists during his senior season with the Cyclones, earning 2017 All-Big 12 Second Team honors. The guard also shot 47 percent from the field and led the conference with 2.8 three-point field goals per game, also connecting on a team-high 98 three-point attempts, which was the third highest in a single-season in school history.

Over his four years at Iowa State, Mitrou-Long appeared in 131 games (83 starts) averaging 9.5 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.6 assists, helping to lead the Cyclones to three Big 12 Championships. He would finish his collegiate career with 260 three-point field goals, the second most in school history, in addition to becoming just one of 11 players ever for Iowa State to tally 1,200 points, 300 rebounds and 200 assists over his career.

Born in Ontario, Canada, Mitrou-Long played high school basketball at Findlay College Prep in Henderson, Nev.

Jazz waive Derrick Rose

InsideHoops.com

The Utah Jazz on Saturday waived guard Derrick Rose.

Rose (6-3, 190, Memphis), a former NBA MVP, isn’t the player he used to be. He played in 16 games (seven starts) this season for the Cavaliers, averaging 9.8 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 19.3 minutes per outing.

Over his nine-year NBA career, the 29-year-old Chicago native has averaged 19.2 points, 5.8 assists and 3.6 rebounds in 34.2 minutes through 486 games (476 starts) with the Bulls, Knicks and Cavaliers.

According to the Deseret News, “former Jazzman Joe Johnson was also part of the three-team deal with Rose and was originally sent to Sacramento. However, the veteran scorer will agree to a contract buyout to sign with the Houston Rockets, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.”

Mavericks waive Josh McRoberts

The Dallas Mavericks on Saturday requested waivers on forward/center Josh McRoberts.

McRoberts (6-10, 240) was acquired by the Mavericks on July 7, 2017, along with a second round pick and cash considerations, from the Miami Heat in exchange for center A.J. Hammons.

The 10-year career veteran saw action in two games for the Mavericks this season after spending the first 37 games of the season on the inactive list while rehabbing a left foot injury.

Isaiah Thomas plays well in Lakers debut, but in loss to Mavs

The good news is, Isaiah Thomas played well in his debut for the Lakers. The bad news is, the squad still lost to the Dallas Mavericks, 130-123. Of course, the Lakers are not a playoff contender and are focused on the future, in which case losing can also be a good thing. Anyway, here’s the Los Angeles Times reporting:

In his first half wearing purple and gold, Thomas played 14 minutes, scored 16 points and hit four three-pointers with four assists. Bounced around the court, playing with joy and scoring better than he ever did in Cleveland.

He was, as fellow Cleveland export Channing Frye promised he would be, the old Isaiah Thomas…

The Lakers brought Thomas off the bench in his first game since being traded from the Cleveland Cavaliers, and he scored 22 points on seven of 12 shooting, making four of eight three-point attempts. Brandon Ingram also scored 22 points and Julius Randle, a Dallas native, led the Lakers with 26 points. Randle also had eight rebounds and seven assists.

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Grizzlies waive Brandan Wright

The Memphis Grizzlies waived forward/center Brandan Wright today.

According to a report from Yahoo Sports, if he clears waivers Wright intends to sign with the Rockets. That’s a great addition to the bench of an already potent team.

Wright (6-10, 235) appeared in 67 games (eight starts) over three seasons (2015-18) with the Grizzlies and averaged 6.1 points and 3.2 rebounds in 15.3 minutes. Selected with the eighth overall pick of the 2007 NBA Draft following his collegiate career at the University of North Carolina, the 30-year-old has appeared in 427 regular season games (62 starts) over 10 NBA seasons and has averaged 7.0 points and 3.6 rebounds in 16.2 minutes for the Golden State Warriors, New Jersey Nets, Dallas Mavericks, Boston Celtics, Phoenix Suns and Memphis Grizzlies.

The Grizzlies’ roster now stands at 16 players.