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Author: Will Joseph

Latest On Khris Middleton

January 19th, 2017 at 9:00am CST by Will Joseph

There is now a growing thought that Khris Middleton could return to the floor in early- to mid-February, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports, league sources. What’s more, Stein writes that Middleton has a shot to return to the lineup during a three-game homestand next month before the All-Star ‎break.

While Stein’s report offers a more optimistic timetable, the news echoes what Middleton told Steve Aschburner of NBA.com earlier this month, when the 25-year-old said he could be back ahead of schedule and potentially take the court this year at some point after the All-Star Break. There would be a minutes restriction on Middleton if he were to return, Stein reports, but there is a good chance the Bucks, who are 20-21, would eventually receive a jolt from the two-way standout swingman’s presence.

The Bucks initially expected Middleton, 25, to be out for six months when he tore his left hamstring in September. Milwaukee signed Middleton to a five-year, $70MM deal last offseason. In the first year of the deal, he averaged 18.2 points and 1.7 steals in 79 games. He was drafted by the Pistons with the 39th pick in the 2012 draft before coming to the Bucks in the Brandon Jennings deal.

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Heat Sign Okaro White

January 17th, 2017 at 10:37am CST by Will Joseph

JANUARY 17: The Heat have formally announced the signing of White, issuing a team release to confirm the deal. While the team didn’t disclose the terms, it’s a 10-day contract, as Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel tweets.

JANUARY 15: The Heat will sign power forward Okaro White from their D-League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce, after Miami acquired a player exception, Shams Charania of The Vertical reports (Twitter link). The hardship exception was granted because Miami has four players that have missed at least three games, as Bobby Marks of The Vertical tweets.  International journalist David Pick tweets that the Heat will make the signing on Monday and that it will be a 10-day pact.

The Heat have battled the injury bug all season with notable players missing significant time. Chris Bosh is out because of his ongoing battle with blood clots, second-year forward Justise Winslow is out for the year after shoulder surgery and veteran big man Josh McRoberts is sidelined indefinitely with a foot problem. It is unclear how long White will be with Miami, but the 24-year-old is averaging 18.4 ppg and 8.7 rpg while shooting 43% from the field for Sioux Falls.

White was cut by Miami after training camp before playing in the D-League. White went undrafted out of Florida State in 2014 and then headed overseas, spending the 2014/15 campaign with the Italian club Granarolo Bologna, where he averaged 12.2 points and 6.9 rebounds on the season. White then headed to Greece, notching averages of 13.9 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 26.8 minutes per outing. He shot .465/.337/.791 from the field on the year.

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NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 1/15/17

January 15th, 2017 at 5:21pm CST by Will Joseph

Here are the D-League transactions for the day so far:

5:21pm:

2:15pm:

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Hoops Links: Paul, Spurs, Thomas

January 15th, 2017 at 4:50pm CST by Will Joseph

Every Sunday, we link to some of the very best work from around the basketball blogosphere. Do you have a link to a great basketball blog post – either your own or someone else’s – that you want to see featured on Hoops Rumors? Then you should send it to us at HoopsLinks@gmail.com. Here’s this week’s rundown …

Please send submissions for Hoops Links to Will at HoopsLinks@gmail.com.

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Community Shootaround: Hawks’ Paul Millsap Decision

January 9th, 2017 at 7:20pm CST by Will Joseph

The Hawks decided today to pump the brakes on entertaining offers on all-star forward Paul Millsap. Instead, Atlanta is said to be determined to compete in the Eastern Conference, which makes sense considering the Hawks are atop the Southeast Division and fourth in the Eastern Conference with a 21-16 record and Millsap is a significant reason why. He leads the Hawks in scoring, and is second in rebounds, assists and blocks.

Still, not many are banking on the Hawks making a deep playoff run. There were several suitors for Millsap, including teams such as the Nuggets, Kings and Raptors linked in trade rumors and talks. Evidently, any offers that were made were not enough for the Hawks to unload Millsap.

Millsap, however, has a player option for next season and can opt out and become an unrestricted free agent, a move that he is expected to make because it would fetch him a higher salary. In that sense, moving Millsap for the right deal would make sense on some level. What’s more, the Hawks had just traded Kyle Korver to the Cavs last weekend.

What do you think? Should the Hawks have removed Millsap from the market? What do you think of their recent moves? Jump into the comments section below to weigh in with your thoughts!

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Sixers Notes: Noel, McConnell, Covington

January 9th, 2017 at 6:15pm CST by Will Joseph

While the Sixers are still very much in their rebuilding phase, players such as T.J. McConnell and Robert Covington are in the position to find out what their respective niches are in the league, Bob Cooney of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes. Some teams may be watching, as Cooney points out, so McConnell and Covington, two players who have proven to be capable in the league, can look at their situations as sort of auditions in some way. In any event, the increased roles players have with the Sixers would likely not exist on another squad and it is a good opportunity for some to develop and learn if they belong in the league, Cooney surmises.

Here is more from Philadelphia:

  • Nerlens Noel had to adjust on mental and emotional levels when the Sixers replaced former GM Sam Hinkie, who told Noel that he wouldn’t trade him, as the big man discussed with The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski (podcast link). Among the other topics worth listening in on include Noel’s thoughts on the Sixers’ center logjam, and Noel acknowledging that communication could have been better between him and team when he was working out on his own during the offseason.
  • While talk of making the playoffs is still premature for the Sixers, having Noel, who is known as a solid defender, lead the second unit along with Dario Saric and Gerald Henderson or Nik Stauskas has yielded positive results, Cooney writes in a separate column.
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Paul Millsap Off Trade Market

January 9th, 2017 at 5:05pm CST by Will Joseph

After receiving interest for a couple of weeks and forcing the rumor mill to churn with hypothetical trades, the Hawks are informing teams that Paul Millsap is no longer on the trade market, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reports (on Twitter). This is a sign, at least for now, that Atlanta is determined to compete in the Eastern Conference instead of unloading assets, as Wojnarowski notes (on Twitter).

The Hawks definitely contemplated the move, however, and gave it considerable thought before arriving at the belief that Millsap was ultimately too valuable to the franchise, Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. This decision may have come from ownership, Vivlamore adds.

Millsap, who has a player option for next season and can opt out and become an unrestricted free agent, expressed happiness about the situation, per Vivlamore, and wanted to stay in Atlanta. Millsap has not said he will become a free agent, but that would make sense considering he would maximize his money that way.

Several teams were linked to Millsap, an All-Star forward who would be viewed as a solid addition to virtually any team. The Nuggets were interested, according to Chris Dempsey of The Denver Post (Twitter link), and Vivlamore reported that the Kings were a serious contender for Millsap’s services as well. Millsap was also thought to be the missing piece for the Raptors.

The decision on Millsap comes only a couple of days after the Hawks traded Kyle Korver to the Cavs this weekend in in exchange for a protected 2019 first-round draft pick and Mike Dunleavy Jr. Atlanta, however, never claimed to be moving in a rebuilding direction with the move, and judging from the way it has played, perhaps it makes sense that it shouldn’t. The Hawks are atop the Southeast Division and fourth in the Eastern Conference with a 21-16 record and Millsap is a significant reason why. Millsap leads the Hawks in scoring, and is second in rebounds, assists and blocks.

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Pablo Prigioni Announces Retirement

January 9th, 2017 at 4:05pm CST by Will Joseph

Pablo Prigioni announced his retirement via his personal and verified Twitter account in a lengthy note after a stint with his old team in Spain. The 39-year-old, known for his competitive nature, outlined how difficult it was to come to terms that his playing days are now behind him.

The now-former point guard signed with Saski Baskonia nearly two months after the Rockets released him. Prigioni first played with Baskonia before making the jump to the NBA several years ago. Prigioni joined the NBA as a 35-year-old rookie with the Knicks in 2012. He was a solid backup for two and a half seasons with New York, and was then traded to the Rockets. He was then shipped to the Nuggets, waived by Denver, signed by the Clippers, and then signed by the Rockets this past summer before going back overseas.

In 270 career regular-season NBA games, Prigioni averaged 3.5 PPG and 2.8 APG in 16.9 minutes per contest, with a solid shooting line of .425/.379/.872. He also appeared in 33 postseason games, including 17 with the Rockets during the club’s run to the Western Conference Finals in 2015.

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NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 1/8/17

January 8th, 2017 at 10:20pm CST by Will Joseph

Here are the D-League assignments and recalls from Sunday:

10:20pm:

  • The Spurs moved guard Dejounte Murray to the Austin Spurs of the D-League, the team announced on its website. The rookie guard has appeared in 19 games for San Antonio, averaging 2.3 points in 5.5 minutes.
  • The Mavs announced via press release that they have assigned center A.J. Hammons and guard-forward Nicolas Brussino to their D-League affiliate. Hammons has appeared in 17 games for the Mavericks this season, averaging 1.4 points and 1.2 rebounds in 4.5 minutes. Brussino has played in 27 games for Dallas this season, averaging 1.4 points and 1.1 rebounds in 6.8 minutes.
  • The Nuggets recalled rookie guard Malik Beasley, Denver announced in a press release.

12:18pm:

  • The Sixers have recalled forward Richaun Holmes from their Delaware affiliate, the team announced in a press release. He had 10 points and eight rebounds in the 87ers’ win Saturday.
  • The Knicks have recalled Maurice Ndour and Marshall Plumlee from their Westchester affiliate, the team tweeted.
  • The Bulls have recalled forward Paul Zipser from their Windy City affiliate, the team announced via press release. Zipser had played in the D-League team’s last two games, averaging 16.5 points and 7.0 rebounds.
  • The Celtics have assigned guard Demetrius Jackson to their affiliate in Maine, the team tweeted.
  • The Rockets have assigned forward Kyle Wiltjer to their affiliate in Rio Grande Valley, according to a tweet from the team.

Arthur Hill contributed to this report.

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Cavs Notes: Korver, Liggins, McRae

January 8th, 2017 at 9:01pm CST by Will Joseph

The Cavs figure to make at least one or two more transactions before the playoffs begin in April after acquiring Kyle Korver Saturday in a trade, Jason Lloyd of The Akron Beacon Journal writes. It was a shrewd deal for the Cavs because the game has evolved into focusing more on small-ball and relying on three-pointers, Lloyd surmises. Trading a future first-round pick for a veteran comes with risk, especially since LeBron James could bolt in the 2018 summer, Lloyd cautions.

Here is more out of Cleveland:

  • Korver is with the Cavs in Phoenix for the game against the Suns, but cannot play or be on the bench because Mike Dunleavy Jr.‘s physical hasn’t been completed yet, Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com reports (ESPN NOW link). The Cavs hope the medicals will be completed by Monday so that Korver can go through his first practice with the team, McMenamin adds.
  • There was virtually no chance DeAndre Liggins would have been waived prior to his salary becoming fully guaranteed Saturday, but Jordan McRae‘s situation wasn’t as predictable, Joe Vardon of Northeast Ohio Media Group relays. The Cavs kept both players; they’re salaries are approximately $1MM each. While Liggins is a starter as a top-notch defender, McRae was a fringe rotation player and the latter’s chances of staying on the Cavs grew when Mo Williams was traded, as Vardon explains. Cleveland could’ve waived McRae to avoid paying his full salary (along with the tax penalty on his salary) and freed up a roster spot, as Vardon notes.
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