Tag: austin rivers

Timberwolves sign Austin Rivers

The Minnesota Timberwolves have signed guard Austin Rivers.

Rivers, 6-4, spent last season with the Denver Nuggets where he averaged 6.0 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game in 67 games (18 starts). He registered his best season in 2017-18 with the LA Clippers, where he saw action in 61 games (a career-high 59 starts) and averaged a career-high 15.1 points, 2.4 rebounds and a career-best 4.0 assists. In 10 seasons in the NBA with the New Orleans Pelicans organization, Clippers, Washington Wizards, Houston Rockets, New York Knicks and Nuggets, Rivers has tallied 5,741 points, 1,359 rebounds and 1,438 assists throughout 655 games (174 starts).

The Santa Monica, Calif. native, has seen action in 60 postseason matchups (15 starts) during seven trips to the NBA playoffs, including four straight seasons. He holds playoff career averages of 7.5 points, 2.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 22.1 minutes per game. Rivers was originally selected by the New Orleans Hornets with the 10th overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft.

Nuggets re-sign Austin Rivers

The Denver Nuggets have re-signed guard Austin Rivers to a multiyear contract, President of Basketball Operations Tim Connelly announced today.

Rivers, 6-4, 200, appeared in 15 games (five starts) for Denver last season, averaging 8.7 points, 2.6 assists and 2.3 rebounds in 26.9 minutes while shooting 41.8% from the field. He also appeared in 10 playoff games (nine starts) and averaged 9.2 points, 2.1 assists and 1.7 rebounds, shooting 41.5% from three in 30.5 minutes per game. He scored 21 points and connected on five three-pointers in a pivotal Game 3 win at Portland that helped Denver earn a third-consecutive first round playoff victory. Rivers originally signed a 10-day contract with the Nuggets on April 20, 2021 and then signed for the remainder of the season on April 30, 2021.

The 10-year NBA veteran holds career averages of 9.1 points, 2.3 assists and 2.1 rebounds while shooting 41.8% from the field and 35.0% from long distance in 588 career games (156 starts) with Denver, New Orleans, L.A. Clippers, Washington, Houston and New York.

Rivers was drafted 10th overall by New Orleans in 2012 after spending one season at Duke University. In his lone collegiate season he averaged a team-high 15.5 points on 43.3% shooting in 34 games, becoming the third freshman ever to lead Duke in scoring.

Nuggets sign Austin Rivers for remainder of season

The Denver Nuggets have signed veteran guard Austin Rivers for the remainder of the season, President of Basketball Operations Tim Connelly announced today.

Rivers, 6-4, 200, signed a 10-day contract with the Nuggets on April 20th and has appeared in six games for Denver, averaging 6.2 points, 1.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.20 steals in 24.5 minutes per game.

The nine-year NBA veteran holds career averages of 9.1 points, 2.3 assists and 2.1 rebounds while shooting 41.8% from the field and 34.7% from long distance in 579 career games (151 starts) with New Orleans, L.A. Clippers, Washington, Houston, New York and Denver.

The 28-year-old, provides valuable postseason experience, playing in a total of 45 playoff games (six starts), averaging 7.4 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists, shooting 40.3% from the field in 20.2 minutes with Houston and the L.A. Clippers. Rivers has a total of 16 career postseason games scoring 10 or more points.

Rivers was drafted 10th overall by New Orleans in 2012 after spending one season at Duke University. In his lone season, he averaged a team-high 15.5 points on 43.3% shooting in 34 games, becoming the third freshman ever to lead Duke in scoring.

Nuggets sign Austin Rivers to 10-day contract

The Denver Nuggets yesterday (Tuesday, April 20) signed veteran guard Austin Rivers to a 10-day contract, President of Basketball Operations Tim Connelly announced.

Rivers, 6-4, 200, appeared in 21 games (two starts) this season with the New York Knicks, averaging 7.3 points, 2.2 rebounds and 2.0 assists while shooting 43.0% from the field and 36.4% from three in 21.0 minutes per game. The nine-year NBA veteran holds career averages of 9.1 points, 2.3 assists and 2.1 rebounds while shooting 41.8% from the field and 34.9% from long distance in 573 career games (151 starts) with New Orleans, L.A. Clippers, Washington, Houston and New York.

The 28-year-old provides valuable postseason experience, playing in a total of 45 playoff games (six starts), averaging 7.4 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists, shooting 40.3% from the field in 20.2 minutes with Houston and the L.A. Clippers. Rivers has a total of 16 career postseason games scoring 10-or-more points.

Rivers was drafted 10th overall by New Orleans in 2012 after spending one season at Duke University. In his lone season, he averaged a team-high 15.5 points on 43.3% shooting in 34 games, becoming the third freshman ever to lead Duke in scoring.

Thunder waive Austin Rivers

The Oklahoma City Thunder has waived guard Austin Rivers, it was announced today by Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti.

Rivers was originally acquired from the New York Knicks in a three-team trade on March 25.

The 6-foot-4, 200-pound Rivers has an NBA career average of 9.1 points, 2.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 24.4 minutes per game. His career-high scoring season was in 2017-18 when he averaged 15.1 ppg while playing 33.7 minutes per game for the Clippers.

Three-team trade sends George Hill to Sixers, Austin Rivers to Thunder, Terrance Ferguson to Knicks

Philadelphia 76ers President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey announced today that the team has acquired George Hill from the Oklahoma City Thunder and Ignas Brazdeikis from the New York Knicks in a three-team trade.

Philadelphia sent Tony Bradley and two second-round picks (2025 and 2026) to Oklahoma City and Terrance Ferguson, Vincent Poirier, the rights to Emir Preldžić, a 2021 second-round pick and Miami’s 2024 second-round pick (protected Nos. 31-55) to New York.

The Knicks also traded Austin Rivers to Oklahoma City as part of the deal.

In his 13th NBA season, Hill has appeared in 14 games (all starts) with the Thunder, averaging 11.8 points, 2.1 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 26.3 minutes per game. He’s shot .508 from the field, .386 from beyond the arc and .840 from the free-throw line. Hill posted a season-high 22 points on Jan. 24 at the L.A. Clippers, shooting 9-12 from the field and 3-4 from three-point range and has scored in double figures in nine of his 14 contests this season.

All told, Hill has seen action in 799 career games (463 starts) with Oklahoma City, Milwaukee, Cleveland, Sacramento, Utah, Indiana and San Antonio, averaging 11.1 points, 3.1 rebounds and 3.2 assists in 27.7 minutes per contest. Last season’s NBA leader in three-point percentage (.460), he’s shot .384 from beyond the arc in his career. A two-way talent, Hill has collected more than 700 steals in his career and is one of nine active players shooting at least 38-percent from three-point range in 20,000-or-more career minutes. Hill’s teams have made the playoffs in 11 of his 12 NBA seasons as he’s seen action in 127 postseason games (91 starts), boosting his scoring average to 12.1 points in those contests.

A native of Indianapolis, Hill played collegiately at IUPUI, earning Summit League Player of the Year honors in his final season, before he was selected by San Antonio with the No. 26 overall selection in the 2008 NBA Draft.

Brazdeikis has played in 13 NBA games over two seasons with New York. Most recently, he appeared in 12 NBA G League games with the Westchester Knicks during single-site play at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando. With Westchester, Brazdeikis averaged 20.8 points, 9.8 rebounds and 3.6 assists in 34.1 minutes per game. He and the 76ers’ Paul Reed were the only two players to average at least 20 points and nine rebounds during the 2021 NBA G League season.

Brazdeikis was originally selected by Sacramento with the No. 47 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, following a standout 2018-19 season at Michigan, during which he was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year. He averaged 14.8 points and 5.4 rebounds in 29.6 minutes per game as he helped lead the Wolverines to a 30-7 record and an appearance in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. Originally from Lithuania, Brazdeikis grew up in Canada and has represented the country internationally, earning a silver medal at the 2015 FIBA Americas Under-16 Championship.

Bradley, Ferguson and Poirier were acquired by Philadelphia prior to the 2020-21 season. Bradley has played in 20 games this season, Ferguson has seen action in 13 and Poirier has appeared in 10. The rights to Emir Preldžić were originally acquired by Philadelphia on Feb. 6, 2019.

Ferguson, 6-6, 190-pounds, has appeared in 204 NBA games (124 starts), averaging 4.5 points and 1.3 rebounds over 19.6 minutes in four seasons with Oklahoma City and Philadelphia. He has appeared in 13 games for Philadelphia this season. The Tulsa-OK native, was originally selected by Oklahoma City with the 21st overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft.

Poirier, 7-0, 235-pounds, has appeared in 32 games, averaging 1.5 points and 1.8 rebounds over two seasons with Boston and Philadelphia. The Clamart, France native was originally signed by Boston as a free agent on July 15, 2019.

Brazdeikis, 6-7, 214-pounds appeared in 13 games for New York, averaging 1.5 points over 4.6 minutes over two seasons. He was originally selected by Sacramento in the second round (47th overall) of the 2019 NBA Draft and had his draft rights traded to New York.

Rivers, 6-4, 204-pounds appeared in 21 games (two starts) for New York this season, averaging 7.3 points, 2.2 rebounds and 2.0 assists over 21.0 minutes. He was originally acquired by New York from Houston on November 27, 2020.

Bradley (6-10, 260) has appeared in 20 games (eight starts) with the 76ers this season, recording averages of 5.5 points and a career-high 5.2 rebounds in 14.4 minutes per contest, shooting a career-best 68.0 percent from the floor. The UNC product has made appearances in 90 career games (11 starts) and averaged 4.7 points and 4.4 rebounds in 11.3 minutes, shooting 64.6 percent from the field.

Austin Rivers signs with Rockets

 

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The Houston Rockets have signed free agent guard Austin Rivers for the remainder of the season.

Originally drafted 10th overall by New Orleans in the 2012 NBA Draft, the 6-4, 200 Rivers played one season at Duke.

Rivers, now in his 7th NBA season, has played in 437 games (132 starts), averaging 9.3 points, 2.4 assists and 2.1 rebounds in 24.2 minutes per game.

Last season, as a Clipper, Rivers averaged career highs of 15.1 points, 4.0 assists, 2.4 rebounds and 1.21 steals. He also averaged a career-best 2.2 3-pointers made on 37.8% shooting.

The 26-year-old started this season with Washington prior to being traded to the Suns on Dec. 17.

The Rockets are 17-15 this season and host the OKC Thunder tomorrow.

Wizards trade Kelly Oubre, Austin Rivers to Suns for Trevor Ariza

The Phoenix Suns completed a trade with the Washington Wizards today, acquiring forward Kelly Oubre Jr. (pronounced OOH-bray) and guard Austin Rivers in exchange for forward Trevor Ariza.

“Trevor has been one of the most effective, efficient and versatile players at his position for over a decade,” said Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld. “We are obviously very familiar with the leadership and experience he brings as one of the league’s most respected professionals and look forward to welcoming him back to the team.”

Ariza (6-8, 215) returns to Washington for a second stint with the Wizards. He averaged 12.3 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.5 steals while shooting .393 from three-point range with the team from 2012-2014, helping the team advance to the second round of the playoffs in 2013-14. The 15-year veteran has averaged 10.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.5 steals while shooting .353 from three-point range in 968 career games (667 starts) over 15 seasons with Phoenix, Houston, Washington, New Orleans, the L.A. Lakers, Orlando and New York. He has averaged 9.9 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.5 steals in 26 games (all starts) with the Suns this season.

Over the past 10 seasons (entering the 2018-19 season), Ariza had 1,304 three-pointers and 30.5 defensive win shares (estimate of number of wins contributed by a player due to his defense), joining LeBron James and Kevin Durant as the only players to post those numbers. He has also averaged at least 2.0 three-pointers and 1.5 steals in each of the past five seasons (coming into the 2018-19 season), joining Stephen Curry and James Harden as the only players to do so. Dating back to 2008-09, Ariza has the third-most steals (1,245) in the NBA behind only Chris Paul and Russell Westbrook and he joins Harden and Westbrook as the only players with at least 4,000 points, 2,000 rebounds, 800 assists and 600 steals since 2013.

Ariza brings extensive playoff experience to the Wizards, averaging 10.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.4 steals while shooting .367 from three-point range in 102 postseason contests (90 starts). He helped lead the Lakers to the 2009 NBA championship, averaging 11.3 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.3 steals while shooting .476 from three-point range in 23 games (all starts) and helped lead the Rockets to the Western Conference Finals in both 2015 and 2018, starting all 34 games in those combined playoff runs.

Oubre, a 6-7, 205-pound forward, is in his fourth NBA season and posting career highs by scoring 12.9 points per game and shooting 43.3 percent from the field this season. He has played particularly well of late, scoring at least 20 points in three of his last six games and averaging 17.7 points (51.4 FG%, 40.7 3FG%, 79.2 FT%) over this six-game stretch. Oubre scored a season-high 23 points last Monday at Indiana then scored 20 last Wednesday vs. Boston, giving him consecutive 20-point games for the first time in his career.

For his career, the 23-year-old has averaged 8.2 points, 3.5 rebounds and 0.8 steals in 252 games (32 starts) all with the Wizards. He has also appeared in 18 career playoff games, averaging 7.0 points in 18.4 minutes. Over the last two seasons, Oubre is averaging 12.1 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.5 three-pointers and 1.0 steals while shooting 81.4 percent from the free throw line in 110 games.

The left-hander was initially the 15th overall pick of the 2015 NBA Draft by Atlanta before being traded to Washington on draft night. He played one season at the University of Kansas and was named to the Big 12 All-Newcomer Team after averaging 9.3 points and 5.0 rebounds while helping the Jayhawks to a Big 12 regular season title. A native of New Orleans, prior to the Wizards’ games at the Pelicans in each of the past two seasons Oubre has presented 10 high school students from the New Orleans area with scholarships.

“We commend Kelly on the growth and development he showed within our system to become a solid rotation player as well as the work he did in the D.C. community during his time as a Wizard,” said Grunfeld. “We also appreciate Austin’s contributions during his brief time with us and wish them both the best as they continue their careers.”

Rivers, a 6-4, 200-pound guard, is in his seventh NBA season and averaging 7.2 points, 2.4 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 29 games with the Wizards this season. For his career, the 26-year-old has averaged 9.3 points, 2.4 assists and 2.1 rebounds in 437 games (132 starts) with the New Orleans Hornets/Pelicans, Clippers and Wizards. Initially the 10th overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft by New Orleans, Rivers played one season at Duke University where he averaged 15.5 points.

On new Wizards guard Austin Rivers

Here’s NBC Sports Washington on new Wizards guard Austin Rivers, who should certainly improve the team’s backcourt as he likely comes off the bench behind starters John Wall and Bradley Beal:

Rivers, though far from perfect, is potentially a significant upgrade for the Wizards at backup shooting guard and that help is coming at a good time. All-Star Bradley Beal played in all 82 games last season, but that was arguably not a good thing, as he ended up logging the fourth-most minutes of any NBA player and seemed to run out of gas at times late in the season.

Rivers should at the very least be able to take some of the workload off of Beal’s shoulders. Rivers could also help solve the Wizards’ issues at backup point guard behind John Wall and possibly even play some in three-guard lineups with both Beal and Wall on the floor.

Rivers’ likely role is clear. The question is how he will adjust to it given what he has grown accustomed to in recent years in L.A. and given he will be in a contract year. Rivers started 59 games last season for the Clippers and averaged 13.2 field goal attempts per night. Barring injuries, he will not get those opportunities in Washington.

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Wizards trade Marcin Gortat to Clippers for Austin Rivers

Washington Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld announced today that the team has acquired guard Austin Rivers from the Los Angeles Clippers in exchange for center Marcin Gortat.

“Acquiring Austin gives us another versatile, experienced player who provides scoring and playmaking,” said Grunfeld. “He is coming off a career year and his ability to create offense for himself and others will help our second unit and allow us to play a variety of lineups throughout the season.”

“We are excited to welcome Marcin Gortat to the Clippers, a respected player that brings years of NBA experience and additional toughness to this team. We’ve been a fan of Marcin’s for some time and this decision will help rebalance the roster by adding another proven big man to the front court,” said Lawrence Frank, Clippers’ President of Basketball Operations. “Austin’s development as a player is a testament to his work ethic and desire to improve. We experienced a lot of success with Austin and are grateful for his contributions during his four seasons with the club. The Clippers wish Brittany and Austin all the best in Washington.”

Rivers (6-5, 200) averaged career highs of 15.1 points, 4.0 assists, 2.4 rebounds and 1.2 steals this season while shooting a career-high .378 (136-360) from three-point range in 61 games (59 starts). The 25-year-old guard posted 12 games of 20+ points, three games of 30+ points and set a new career high with 38 points at Memphis on Dec. 22 (one night after scoring 36 at Houston).

He holds career averages of 9.4 points and 2.4 rebounds in 408 career games (130 starts) while shooting .355 from three-point range in five seasons with the Clippers and New Orleans. The 10th overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, Rivers has appeared in 23 career playoff games (six starts), all with the Clippers. He entered the NBA after one season at Duke, where he earned First Team All-ACC honors.

Gortat, who was originally acquired prior to the 2013-14 season, posted 11.6 points, 9.2 rebounds and 1.1 blocks while shooting .555 from the field in 402 (out of a possible 410) games over his five seasons in Washington. The team posted an .543 (223-187) overall record and made four playoff appearances during his tenure.

“We appreciate Marcin’s contributions during his time with us and wish him the best moving forward,” said Grunfeld. “He is a very durable professional who helped the team in many ways to become a perennial playoff contender and set an example with his work in the community both in D.C. and in his native country of Poland.”