The Lakers held on to their half-game lead for the last playoff spot in the Western Conference with a two-point win against the Grizzlies last night, and if L.A. makes the postseason, they could get some reinforcements. Coach Mike D'Antoni revealed that Metta World Peace could be back by the end of the month, knocking two weeks off the original six-week timetable for his recovery from a left knee injury, tweets Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times. Jordan Hill tells Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News he's seeking medical clearance to return at about the same time, though D'Antoni is skeptical about that. Either way, there's reason for optimism in a season that's left Lakers fans with little of it. Here's more on the purple and gold and other news from the Pacific:

• Most signs, including the three years left on D'Antoni's contract, point to him returning to coach the Lakers next season in spite of the team's disappointing play, writes Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Stein also suggests that while Dwight Howard may have sway over D'Antoni's future if the big man threatens to sign elsewhere, Howard won't have nearly the clout that fellow soon-to-be free agent Chris Paul will wield on the Clippers' coaching situation. 
• Regardless of who's in charge of the Kings next season, the "leaguewide presumption" is that neither GM Geoff Petrie nor coach Keith Smart will return, Stein adds in the same piece.
• Kendall Marshall wasn't among the 10 players I mentioned yesterday when I examined 2012 first-round picks who've seen limited action this season, but his 568 total minutes would make him the 11th player on the list. He's been seeing more action of late with the Suns, and Marshall tells Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic that he's finally starting to feel comfortable.

We'll round up today's D-League assignments and recalls here. Make sure to keep up with every D-League assignment and recall for the 2012/13 season with this post.

• Thunder point guard Reggie Jackson has been sent to the D-League for a second-time this season, tweets Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman. His first stint was a one-day assignment earlier this month, and he registered 20 points and 11 assists in his only game with the Tulsa 66ers. The second-year Boston College product has played a limited role for Oklahoma City this year after serving as the primary backup to Russell Westbrook for a stretch last season.
• The 76ers have assigned Arnett Moultrie to the Sioux Falls Sky Force of the D-League.
• The Suns have recalled Kendall Marshall from the Bakersfield Jam. The 12th pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, Marshall led the D-League with 7.6 APG while he was playing for Bakersfield.
• The Celtics announced that they have recalled forward Kris Joseph from the Maine Red Claws.  Joseph, a 6’7" forward, appeared in seven games for the Red Claws this season and has posted averages of 20.9 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 2.0 steals in 38.1 minutes per game.
• The Nets announced that forward Toko Shengelia and guard Tyshawn Taylor have been assigned to the Springfield Armor of the NBA Development League.  Neither rookie has seen significant playing time with the Nets so far this season.  Both players will suit up for the Armor tonight. Shengelia, a practice favorite of coach Avery Johnson, was acquired from the 76ers after being drafted 54th overall in the 2012 NBA Draft.  Taylor, a rookie out of Kansas, has made ten appearances on the year, scoring 13 points with three steals and two assists.

Anderson Varejao leads the NBA in rebounding and is playing at an All-Star level through the season's first month, which makes the Cleveland Plain Dealer's Terry Pluto wonder whether the Cavaliers could max out on his value in a deal before the trade deadline.

• Jason Terry started slow with the Celtics this season, but appears to have finally found a suitable role with the team, writes CSNNE.com's A. Sherrod Blakely. 
• The Chicago Tribune's K.C. Johnson details how Sixers forward Evan Turner has improved in his three years in the league. 
• The Charlotte Observer's Rick Bonnell believes Kendall Marshall's recent demotion to the D-League shouldn't be observed as a demotion, but an opportunity. 

THURSDAY, 12:32pm: The Suns made Marshall's assignment official today, as Stefan Swiat of Suns.com writes.

“Right now Kendall is our third point guard on the depth chart," Suns GM Lance Blanks said. "We made the judgment that it'd be better to get Kendall some live game repetitions and game-time experience in case coach [Alvin] Gentry wants to play him."

WEDNESDAY, 10:29pm: The Suns will send rookie point guard Kendall Marshall to their D-League affiliate, the Bakersfield Jam, tweets Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. The 13th overall pick in this year's draft had seen limited playing time behind Goran Dragic and Sebastian Telfair, and the Suns want to get him some time on the court, Coro says.

Marshall's demotion, however temporary, represents the wide chasm between his sitution and the one enjoyed by Damian Lillard, the other point guard taken in the lottery, who's drawing Rookie of the Year consideration with the Blazers. Portland chose Lillard with the sixth overall pick.

Marshall's assignment is the first for the Suns this year, who didn't send anyone down last season. New D-League rules this year allow teams to assign and recall a player as many times as they want, while the previous limit on demotions per season for a single player was three. To keep tabs on all the movement between NBA teams and their affiliate this year, bookmark our list, which we'll be updating throughout the season. 

The Suns have consistently employed some of the league's best point guards over the last 25 years, with Kevin Johnson, Jason Kidd and Steve Nash among the perennial All-Stars the team has had at the position. They signed Goran Dragic this summer to replace Nash, but the future may lie with Kendall Marshall, whom Phoenix took 12th overall in June. The former North Carolina Tar Heel spoke with Dylan Murphy of Dime magazine and shared his thoughts about the Suns' offseason moves, missing out on the chance to play with Nash, backing up Dragic, and more. Here are a few of the highlights:

On the Suns' pursuit of Eric Gordon this summer and rumors connecting them to James Harden next year:

"Well they want to win, and that’s why I think it’s a great organization to be a part of. They’re going to do what it takes to get to that next level."

 Whether he regrets not getting the chance to play with Nash:

"I won’t say regret, but I was looking forward to the opportunity. You know he’s a great player, I feel like I really could have learned a lot from him. But you can also learn a lot from playing against him. We get to see him four times, that’s also exciting."

About Suns coach Alvin Gentry's fast-paced system and how he feels about coming off the bench behind Dragic:

"That’s what I’m most excited about, the up-tempo offense. I feel like getting up and down with the pieces we have on our team, we can really play to our strength. As far as playing time goes, starting or coming off the bench, that’s all up to the coach. He’s going to do what’s best for the team."

On the three other Tar Heels selected in the first round (Harrison Barnes, Tyler Zeller and John Henson) and the timing of their decisions to turn pro:

This started last year, when Z, John and H were all contemplating whether they were leaving or not. I was praying that they would stay for one more (year). I think that the lockout helped with their decision to come back, especially knowing that we were going to have a great team. With this year, we felt like, we tried that once. Let’s chase more dreams and goals that we had.

The Suns have officially signed first-rounder Kendall Marshall to a rookie scale contract, according to Scott Bodrow of the Arizona Republic. Terms of the deal weren't disclosed, but Marshall will almost certainly receive the full 120% of his rookie scale amount, giving him a first-year salary of $1,919,160.

Marshall, the 13th overall pick in June's draft, averaged 8.1 points and 9.8 assists per game in his sophomore season at North Carolina, and was considered the second-best point guard in the draft, behind Damian Lillard. Marshall is expected to back up Goran Dragic in Phoenix in his rookie year.

ESPN.com's Chad Ford will be in his element over the next few days, as the NBA shifts its focus from the Finals to the 2012 draft. Ford's latest Insider-only piece at ESPN.com breaks down the first-round candidates into tiers, from Tier 1 (Anthony Davis) to Tier 6 (14 players, including Evan Fournier, John Jenkins, and Miles Plumlee). Of particular note is Tier 4, where 10 players figure to compete for the final five lottery spots. The tier ranges from the high-upside prospects (Jeremy Lamb, Perry Jones III) to the safer plays (Tyler Zeller, John Henson). As the countdown until draft night continues, we'll round up today's draft notes right here throughout Friday, with the latest updates on top:

• Raptors sources tell Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun that John Henson had a very good workout for Toronto, putting him into the mix at eighth overall (Twitter link).
• Meyers Leonard headlines the list of prospects scheduled to work out for the Warriors this weekend, according to Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle.

Earlier updates:

• The Suns, picking 13th overall, will bring Kendall Marshall and Arnett Moultrie in for a second look, tweets Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic.
• According to Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com, the pressure is on new Warriors GM Bob Myers to make a good first impression with the seventh overall pick in the draft.
• In a pair of articles for the National Post, Eric Koreen examines the Raptors' options at No. 8, concluding that it's still impossible to say which prospect will land in Toronto.
• Wendell Maxey of Ridiculous Upside looks into the draft-night possibilities for Tomas Satoransky, including the chances of him being selected in the second round and "stashed" in Europe.
• The Hawks' PR Twitter account passes along today's list of prospects working out for the team, including Andrew Nicholson.

With eight days left until June 28th, mock drafts continue to roll in, with the latest coming from Tom Zeller of SBNation.com, who projects surprisingly high selections for Kendall Marshall and Evan Fournier, among others. You can find Hoops Rumors' mock draft right here, and you can follow today's draft notes in this post, with the newest updates added up top throughout the day....

• The Nuggets are expected to work out Michael Eric, Evan Fournier, John Jenkins, Doron Lamb, Ramone Moore, and Izzet Turkyilmaz on Thursday, tweets FoxSports.com's Chris Tomasson.
• Mike Tokito from The Oregonian highlights a few prospects that worked out at the Trail Blazer's facility today, including Austin Rivers and Kendall Marshall. 

Earlier updates:

• ESPN.com's Chad Ford makes some slight adjustments to his latest mock draft in the wake of today's trade.
• Ford also points out (via Twitter) that Austin Rivers only worked out for teams in the 3-11 range, meaning he may not slip to a team like the Suns at No. 13.
• If Harrison Barnes isn't available when the Warriors pick at No. 7, there's a good chance Golden State selects Tyler Zeller, according to Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News.
• Fran Fraschilla of ESPN.com (Insider link) suggests ways in which this year's lottery picks can improve their games and turn into stars.
• SI.com's Sam Amick released his latest mock draft today, albeit before this afternoon's Wizards/Hornets swap that could alter the lottery landscape.
• In his weekly chat, Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio fielded mostly draft-related questions, and mentioned that the Lakers are exploring the possibility of trading into the first round.
• Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv (Twitter link) has the list of potential second-round prospects the Knicks will work out on Thursday.
• Could the Bucks be thinking about trading up in the draft? Director of scouting Billy McKinney hinted at the possibility while talking to Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel about how much the team liked John Henson: "Obviously, we like him, but he's not going to be there at 12 when we select. It's a matter of whether it's practical for us to move up or the teams ahead of us would value him as much as we would."
• Terrence Jones, Perry Jones III, and Arnett Moultrie headline the list of players working out for the Bucks today, as Bucks.com outlines.
• The Suns' interest in a shooting guard is as strong as this draft's crop of two guards, says Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic, examining some potential candidates for Phoenix at No. 13.
• Benjamin Hochman of the Denver Post has the full list of players the Nuggets worked out yesterday, along with the prospects the team will host today.

In case you missed it yesterday, we published our first 2012 mock draft. Be sure to check out our projected first round and jump into the comments section to tell us which choices you like or dislike. In the meantime, we'll continue tracking the latest draft news and rumors. Tuesday's updates can be found right here, with the newest items added up top throughout the day....

• John Reid of The Times Picayune writes that the Hornets will likely keep their 10th pick. GM Dell Demps says that he hasn't received any offers warranting any serious consideration to trade the pick and believes that they can come away with a good player at that slot.
• Jared Sullinger will work out for the Cavaliers on Friday, writes Bob Finnan of The News-Herald. Fab Melo is also scheduled for a workout this week and could join Sullinger.

Earlier updates:

• James Ham of NBA.com tweeted earlier that Harrison Barnes cancelled his upcoming Friday workout with the Kings, speculating that the former Tar Heel may have been given a draft promise from a team in the top 4. However, Sam Amick of Sports Illustrated (Sulia link) was told that Barnes will reconsider working out for Sacramento after his workout with the Bobcats later this week and does not believe that Barnes was given a promise.  
• Sean Meagher of Oregon Live comprised a draft link roundup of Arnett Moultrie, who recently called himself the "sleeper of the draft." 
• Mary Schmitt Boyer of The Plain Dealer provides a breakdown of this year's draft crop of point guard prospects. Damian Lillard tops the list, follwed by Kendall Marshall, Tony Wroten, Marquis Teague, and Tyshawn Taylor. 
• Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star tweeted that those who watched Fab Melo during his workout with the Pacers came away very impressed. 
• WEEI.com continued their series of prospect profiles, this time focusing on Jeffery Taylor out of Vanderbilt. 
• Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times says (via Twitter) that the Bucks will host Perry Jones III and Terrence Jones for a workout on Wednesday. 
• This USA Today article via the Associated Press described Anthony Davis' visit with the Hornets today. 
• Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle has the full list of prospects that withdrew from the draft before yesterday's deadline. We've updated our list of early entrants here.
• After working out for the Pacers today, Fab Melo talked about the academic issues that kept him from playing for Syracuse in this year's NCAA tournament. An Associated Press report (via NBA.com) provides the details and quotes.
• Chad Ford fielded a handful of draft questions in a chat for ESPN.com this afternoon.
• ESPN.com's Chad Ford (Insider link) is back with his newest mock draft, version 8.0. Ford's top four remain unchanged from his last mock, but there's plenty of movement after that, including Harrison Barnes to the Kings, Dion Waiters to the Warriors, and Damian Lillard to the Raptors.
• Evan Fournier is on the Grizzlies' radar at No. 25, writes Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal.
• Anthony Davis will be in New Orleans to meet with Hornets brass today, but he won't work out for the team, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
• Tom Sorensen of the Charlotte Observer thinks the Bobcats should draft Michael Kidd-Gilchrist second overall.
• Draymond Green is working out for the Hawks today, according to the team (via Twitter).
• Bucks.com has the details on today's workout in Milwaukee, which features John Henson, while Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel examines some of the Bucks' draft options as they look to replace Andrew Bogut.

We already rounded up a number of updates on the 76ers this morning, as the team begins to search for a replacement for Rod Thorn and weighs how to handle its free agents. Now, let's catch up on a few of their Atlantic Division rivals, with updates on the Raptors' draft workouts, a Celtic undergoing surgery, and a potential free agent target for the Knicks....

• The Raptors will conduct a pair of draft workouts today, according to a team press release. Kendall Marshall and Terrence Ross are among the six players working out this morning, while Damian Lillard will work out individually this afternoon.
• Doc Rivers will make a major push to retain free-agent-to-be Kevin Garnett, and Garnett's friend Sam Cassell says he can't see KG leaving the Celtics. "KG is a loyal guy," Cassell told Jackie MacMullan of ESPNBoston.com. "I can't see him playing for anyone else except Doc at this point."
• The Celtics' other major free agent, Ray Allen, will undergo ankle surgery on Wednesday morning, according to Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald.
• Marc Berman of the New York Post suggests Derek Fisher could be a realistic low-cost option to back up Jeremy Lin for the Knicks. Although Fisher was noncommital about whether he'd be interested in signing with the Knicks, Berman hears from people close to the player that he loves New York.
• Jeff Van Gundy thinks Mike Woodson was the right choice to coach the Knicks, and doesn't fault the team for not reaching out to Phil Jackson, writes Berman in a separate Post piece.