NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 3/20/17
Here are the D-League transactions from Monday:
- The Bulls have assigned guard Cameron Payne to their D-League affiliate, Nick Friedell of ESPN tweets. Payne has missed time this month with a sore foot, the same one that he had surgery on earlier in the season, and will look to ease into play with the Windy City Bulls. (Herb Gould of the Chicago Sun-Times has more on the decision)
- The Pistons have assigned rookie Henry Ellenson to their D-League affiliate, Keith Langlois of the team’s official website writes.
- The Grizzlies have assigned big man Deyonta Davis to the Iowa Energy, the team reports in a press release on its website. Davis has averaged 10.8 points and 8.3 rebounds per game in 18 matchups with the Iowa Energy already.
- The Warriors have recalled Kevon Looney from their D-League affiliate following his latest stint with the Santa Cruz Warriors, the team reports in a press release on its website.
- The Rockets have assigned Troy Williams to the D-League, the team reports in a press release relayed by Fox 26’s Mark Berman.
Tyler Lydon To Enter NBA Draft
Syracuse forward Tyler Lydon intends to sign with an agent and enter his name in the 2017 NBA draft, according to Jon Rothstein of FanRag Sports. If Lydon formally hires an agent, he’ll forfeit the ability to withdraw his name from the draft pool later on and will forgo his remaining years of NCAA eligibility.
The sophomore is currently slated to fall in the 25-35 range, Rothstein writes, but could get a better understanding of what his personal forecast might look like after going through the NBA combine process prior to officially signing an agent.
Though his Orange squad fell in the second round of the NIT, he profiles as a solid 3-4 with good size and an ability to step out and hit the three. He shot .392 from beyond the arc in his second NCAA season.
Though much can change between now and the deadline to withdraw from the draft, Draft Express ranks the forward slightly higher than Rothstein at No. 23 in their latest mock. News of head coach Jim Boeheim returning to campus, however, could give the 20-year-old added incentive to go back for his junior season.
Atlantic Notes: Holmes, Embiid, Crowder
Add one more intriguing young big man to Philadelphia’s seemingly endless frontcourt log jam. Which is a good thing, we suppose. The improved play of 2015 second-round pick Richaun Holmes of late has ignited conversation that not only could the Sixers have their backup center of the future, but – per Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer – a possible starter.
In the Sixers’ last five games, Holmes has averaged 14.6 points, 7.0 rebounds, 1.8 blocks and 1.8 steals per game – or roughly 22.1 points and 10.6 rebounds per 36 minutes. What’s more, the Sixers have won three out of those five to boot.
“You can count on him,” Sixers head coach Brett Brown said of the 23-year-old. “Those effort, energy sort of type things are the reliable part of his game. The other things [three-point shooting, making open 18-footers] at times are outliers and really tip him over the top when he starts doing those other things.”
Pompey isn’t the only local reporter to praise the upstart second-year big man. Jessica Camerato of CSN Philadelphia spoke with teammate Justin Anderson about Holmes recent play for the Sixers.
“He’s a beast,” Anderson said. “I’ve [seen] that for a while. I remember watching him in summer league. He plays extremely hard, and then now he’s shooting the three, his ability to just dunk on people. He’s really good. He’s a really good player. I’m happy for him. When he gets going like that, we’re a tough team.”
There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:
- Injured Sixers rookie Joel Embiid is back in Philadelphia while the information from his time rehabilitating his knee in California is reviewed. Jessica Camerato of CSN Philadelphia tweets that there has been no timetable for the next steps.
- That rebounder the Celtics were said to desperately need could very well be right under their nose. A. Sherrod Blakely of CSN New England suggests that forward Jae Crowder could be just that. Blakely writes that Crowder has averaged 7.7 rebounds per game since the All-Star Break.
- Both Brett Brown and Brad Stevens were hired as head coaches four years ago but the rebuilding processes that the Sixers and Celtics have taken ever since differ, Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes. Cooney suggests that the C’s have had the leg up all along because they started with a better base.
Central Notes: Harris, Cavs, Bucks
With just 2.5 games separating sixth place in the Eastern Conference from 10th, the eight-seed Pistons can’t afford to struggle down the stretch. On Friday it was announced that Tobias Harris would slide back into the starting lineup for the remainder of the season.
After months tinkering with the Pistons’ first unit, head coach Stan Van Gundy has come to the conclusion that the flip-flopping might not have helped. “Tobias (is starting) and we’re going to stay with that,” he told Rod Beard of the Detroit News. “We’re going to quit juggling them — I don’t think that’s helped.”
As we touched on earlier this month, there was a growing case for Harris’ return to the Pistons’ starting five; he was the club’s most dominant scorer.
“Because of our offensive struggles, Tobias has been our best guy overall and a guy who generally gets going a little earlier,” Van Gundy explained. “We’re going to go with him.”
There’s more out of the Central Division:
- Any implication that the Cavaliers front office isn’t doing everything within its power to help LeBron James and company win a second consecutive title is false, Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes. The Cavs, he says, have spent by far the most that any team has ever spent over a three-year span.
- This upcoming offseason will be a critical one for the Bucks, Spencer Davies of Basketball Insiders writes, but if they play their cards right the squad could be a serious contender in the future. Davies talks about players the club could target in the draft and what they might want to consider regarding extra backcourt depth.
- With Dwyane Wade ruled out for the remainder of the Bulls’ regular season, Sam Smith of the team’s official website took a look at what could be in the cards for the franchise. Expect more from Denzel Valentine and Nikola Mirotic, he says, which gives the team a more natural pace and space lineup.
Dejounte Murray To Miss Additional 2-3 Weeks
Out of action since March 9, Spurs guard Dejounte Murray could actually miss two-to-three more weeks with a pelvic bone injury, Jabari Young of the San Antonio Express-News tweets. That leaves veterans Tony Parker and Patty Mills to man the point guard position for the bulk of the remaining season.
Although the San Antonio Express-News’ Melissa Rohlin adds that head coach Gregg Popovich was surprised at the severity of the issue, the franchise has elected to play it safe with the rookie guard as the postseason approaches. The decision to hold Murray out for the extended period of time comes after an MRI.
Murray has shown flashes of potential over the course of the season but has also spent 15 games in the D-League. Regardless of how exactly they’ll deploy the 20-year-old when he’s available, his presence as an option in the backcourt will serve Popovich well at the tail end of the season should the established recovery timeline hold up.
In 8.5 minutes per game for the Spurs, Murray has averaged 3.5 points.
Lakers Notes: Ingram, Russell, Ball
Growing confidence and familiarity with the game have contributed to Brandon Ingram‘s gradual improvement this season. The No. 2 overall pick has seen his minutes climb over the course of the season and head coach Luke Walton believes that the exposure has paid off.
“I think it’s more just an overall confidence that he’s gaining from playing night after night after night,” Walton told Joey Ramirez of the team’s official website.
In eight March games, Ingram has averaged 12.3 points and 3.9 rebounds, a sign that Los Angeles’ decision to rest veterans Timofey Mozgov and Luol Deng in favor of giving their young players more of an opportunity is paying off.
Ingram’s statistical improvements, Ramirez writes, stem not from an increase in three-point shooting but maturation attacking the hoop and a more reliable mid-range game.
There’s more out of Los Angeles:
- Head coach Luke Walton is proud of D’Angelo Russell for sticking up for Nick Young in a brief altercation with the Bucks this week and didn’t feed into Draymond Green‘s criticism of the second-year guard’s actions. “I was proud of D’Angelo for getting in there and sticking up for his teammate,” Walton told Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News.
- The Lakers will get extra opportunities to scout Lonzo Ball as UCLA squares off in the NCAA Tournament. The 6’7″ guard has spurred a “cultural revolution” for the Bruins, writes Mark Heisler of the Los Angeles Daily News, and could be of particular interest to Magic Johnson.
- He may be from Los Angeles but Amir Johnson still plays for the Celtics. That, of course, makes his high praise for recently appointed president of basketball operations Magic Johnson particularly compelling. “I always saw how Magic has a lot of businesses — the Magic Johnson theaters and 24-Hour Fitness and all that — and I think it’s dope that he really committed to the community. He’s doing all this great stuff. It kind of shows you what this job can do for you,” the forward told Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald.
Mavs Sign Jarrod Uthoff To Second 10-Day Deal
MARCH 19: The Mavericks have officially re-signed Uthoff to another 10-day contract, the team announced in a press release.
MARCH 18: The Mavericks intend to sign big man Jarrod Uthoff to a second 10-day deal, Marc Stein of ESPN tweets.
The 23-year-old forward saw limited action during his first deal, playing limited minutes just twice earlier in the week. He last took the court in Dallas’ Monday evening loss to the Raptors on March 13.
Given that the Mavs are currently in the hunt for the final postseason berth in the Western Conference, it’s unclear if Uthoff will see more than the 2.5 minutes per game he saw the first time around, but even if they don’t aggressively audition the undrafted rookie, the franchise will benefit from the added depth on the roster.
Mavs Sign Manny Harris To New 10-Day Deal
MARCH 19: Harris’ second 10-day deal with the Mavs is now official, per a press release from the team.
MARCH 18: The Mavericks intend to bring journeyman guard Manny Harris back for a second 10-day contract, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.
The guard saw 7.0 minutes per game in three tastes of action for the playoff hopeful Mavs his first time through.
Considering that the franchise is in the thick of a playoff hunt, it’s unclear how much action the 27-year-old will see in his second deal but he saw 16 minutes in Friday night’s loss to the Sixers.
Hornets Sign Weber To Two-Year Deal
MARCH 19, 10:25am: The deal is official, according to a tweet from the team.
MARCH 18, 1:01pm: The Hornets and Briante Weber agreed on a two-year deal, Shams Charania of The Vertical tweeted Friday. That puts the undrafted 24-year-old in position to back up Kemba Walker for the remainder of the 2016/17 campaign.
Though the exact terms of the deal haven’t been announced, even if the second year of the contract isn’t guaranteed Weber appears in line to get more than enough of an opportunity to prove his worth over course of the season’s final month.
Weber has done relatively little across stops with the Warriors and Hornets this season but has only played more than a handful of minutes twice all year. Now that the struggling Hornets have started to come to terms with the fact that their playoff hopes are fading, that could change.
Per Jerry Stephens of Fan Sided’s Swarm and Sting blog, head coach Steve Clifford is open to slotting Weber ahead of Brian Roberts and the injured Ramon Sessions on the depth chart providing a slightly larger sample size for the guard to prove that there is legitimate value behind his impressive D-League statistics.
Weber averaged 16.5 points, 7.3 rebounds and 7.5 assists per game in 31 contests for the Sioux Falls Skyforce this season.
NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 3/18/17
Here are the D-League transactions for Saturday:
10:45pm:
- The Knicks have assigned forward Maurice Ndour to their Westchester affiliate, the team tweeted.
- The Grizzlies have recalled center Deyonta Davis from Iowa, the team announced in an email.
2:17pm:
- The Raptors have assigned forward Bruno Caboclo and center Pascal Siakam to their D-League affiliate, the team’s media department reports on Twitter. Caboclo has seen limited action in just seven games with Toronto this season while Siakam has averaged 4.2 points and 3.3 rebounds in 52 contests at the big league level.
- The Thunder have assigned forward Josh Huestis to their D-League affiliate, the team announced in a press release. Huestis has played 27 games with the OKC Blue already this season.
- The Cavaliers recalled rookie guard Kay Felder from their D-League affiliate, the team reports on its official site. Felder has played 37 games with the franchise already this season.