Tag: tarik black

Rockets sign Tarik Black

Rockets sign Tarik Black

Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey announced today that the team has signed free agent forward/center Tarik Black.

Black (6-9, 250) was eligible for the 2014 NBA Draft following his senior season at Kansas. He signed as a rookie free agent with Houston prior to the start of the 2014-15 season and appeared in 25 games with 12 starts as a Rocket before joining the Los Angeles Lakers, where he spent the past two and a half seasons.

For his career, Black has appeared in 169 games with 55 starts, while shooting 54.2% from the floor. This past season, he saw action in 67 games with 16 starts for the Lakers, while averaging 5.7 points and 5.1 rebounds in 16.3 minutes per game. He was one of three players to have averaged at least 5.0 ppg and 5.0 rpg in fewer than 17.0 mpg. Black also shot 75.2% from the line in 2016-17, up from 51.5% his first two seasons.

Over the past three seasons, Black is the only player to have averaged at least 2.0 offensive rebounds in fewer than 17.0 minutes per game with at least 50 games played. Of players with at least 60 games played in 2016-17, he ranked tied for fourth in offensive rebounds per 36 minutes played.

Lakers re-sign Tarik Black

Lakers re-sign Tarik Black

The Lakers have re-signed center Tarik Black, the team announced today.

New addition Timofey Mozgov will likely start at center for the Lakers. Black will be a reserve.

“Tarik is a player whose strengths are well-suited for the style of play we envision for our team going forward,” said General Manager Mitch Kupchak. “He plays the game with a mix of athleticism, energy, and physicality that make him a valuable frontcourt contributor in today’s NBA.”

In two seasons with the Lakers, Black has averaged 5.3 points and 5.2 rebounds in 16.9 per game while shooting 57.5% from the field over 77 games (27 starts). Awarded to the Lakers on a waiver claim on December 28, 2014, he also appeared in 25 games (12 starts) for the Houston Rockets to begin the 2014-15 season before being waived.

The 24-year-old Black averaged 9.3 points and 7.5 rebounds per game on 60.5% shooting after being reinserted into the starting lineup at center in 2014-15, and finished his rookie season ranked second amongst all first year players in offensive rebounds per game and third in total rebounds per game. On April 12, 2015, he grabbed a career-high 19 rebounds, becoming the first Lakers rookie since Leroy Ellis in 1963 to record that many rebounds in a game.