Eastern Notes: Stokes, Powell, Harris
The Wizards have been one of the more disappointing teams early in the season, and Washington’s drop off is directly related to the loss of Paul Pierce, who departed as a free agent for the Clippers this past offseason, Keith P. Smith of RealGM writes. With Washington determined to maintain as much free cap space as it can in order to make a run at Kevin Durant next summer, any changes will likely need to come from within, Smith notes. If the Wizards do make any moves, they will likely be small and involve bringing in players who are owed no guaranteed money beyond this season, the RealGM scribe concludes.
Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:
- Cavs shooting Joe Harris, who is currently on his fourth D-League assignment of the season, views his time in Canton as a means to stay in game shape as well as an opportunity to stoke his competitive fire, Joe Gabriele of NBA.com relays. When asked if there were specific facets of the game he is sent to the D-League to focus on, Harris told Gabriele, “They just want me to go down there and play – ‘be aggressive and work on your game.’ It’s basically an opportunity to go down there and get minutes because I don’t get much tick up here. There’s only so much you can do as far as individual skill work and conditioning on a bike. But you can’t simulate playing in an actual game. And it can’t satisfy the competitive itch you feel as a player.“
- The Heat have assigned Jarnell Stokes to the Sioux Falls Skyforce, their D-League affiliate, the team announced. This will be the power forward’s second jaunt of the season to the D-League.
- Power forward Josh Powell, who was waived by the Bucks this preseason, signed with San Lorenzo in Argentina, the team announced (translation by Orazio Cauchi of Sportando). The arrangement is for the remainder of the season, though it’s unknown if the pact includes an NBA out clause.
Cavs Notes: James, Mozgov, Harris
Judging by LeBron James‘ comment to Lee Jenkins of SI.com, it seems like the relationship between James and Heat president Pat Riley is slowly starting to improve,
Here’s more from Cleveland:
- Timofey Mozgov‘s right knee is still bothering him after offseason surgery, and it’s affecting his play, as Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal details. The Cavs aren’t panicking, but they’re concerned, Lloyd writes. Mozgov is in the final year of his contract, but Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group and the Cleveland Plain Dealer suggests that pressure not from looming free agency but from the no-nonsense atmosphere that James has imposed on his teammates is also detracting from the big man’s performance.
- Free agent Dionte Christmas, whom the Cavs waived shortly before the season started, is set to sign with Hapoel Holon in Israel, according to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). The 29-year-old shooting guard averaged 6.8 points in 19.9 minutes per game over four contests in the preseason for the Cavs.
- The Cavs assigned shooting guard Joe Harris to their D-League affiliate, the team announced in a press release. Harris has played in five games for the Cavs this season.
Chuck Myron contributed to this report.
New York Notes: Prokhorov, Teletovic, Fredette
Nets majority owner Mikhail Prokhorov and real estate developer Bruce Ratner’s Forest City Enterprises have reached an agreement that will give Prokhorov sole ownership of the team and the Barclays Center, Scott Soshnick of Bloomberg.com reports. The terms of the potential sale have not been disclosed, and the NBA is in the process of reviewing the proposal, Soshnick notes. Gaining full ownership of the Nets and Barclays Center would make it easier for Prokhorov to sell all or part of either asset if he desired down the line, the Bloomberg scribe adds. The franchise is still undergoing a valuation to assess its worth, but sources have informed NetsDaily (via Twitter) that the team itself, minus the arena, will be second to only the Clippers, which sold to Steve Ballmer for $2 billion.
Here’s more from the Big Apple:
- Mirza Teletovic, whom the Suns signed to one-year, $5.5MM deal this past offseason, didn’t shut the door on a potential return to the Nets in the future, Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops relays (via Twitter). When asked if he’d consider playing in Brooklyn again, Teletovic said, “Yeah, why not? I enjoyed the time here. Like I said before, I love the city, I love the atmosphere, I love the way people treat basketball and they show respect to it. I really wouldn’t mind.“
- Jimmer Fredette, who recently returned to the Knicks‘ D-League affiliate after the Pelicans waived him, hopes he can catch the eye of an NBA team and return to the league this season, Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com writes. “I know I can play in the NBA, and I can be a very good player in the NBA. I’m excited to be able to start here,” Fredette told Begley. “Sometimes you’ve got to be able to go backwards in order to get back up to where you want to be.“
- The Knicks have recalled Cleanthony Early from their D-League affiliate, the team announced, just hours after sending him down. This was Early’s second trip of the season to Westchester.
Atlantic Notes: Scola, Okafor, Wood, Early
Luis Scola harked back to his Rockets days as he added an effective 3-point shot to his repertoire for this season, telling Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today that the difference is that he’s allowed the shot to come natually to him, unlike his attempts to add the long-range look in the past. Scola is one of several big men around the league who are extending their range, as Zillgitt examines, and it’s added value to the one-year, $2.9MM deal Scola signed with the Raptors in the summer.
“Houston loves analytics and is big on that. I tried to learn from them a lot,” Scola said. “They planted that seed and said, ‘You’ve got to do this if you want to move forward with the NBA.’”
See more from the Atlantic Division:
- TMZ Sports obtained a video that depicts second altercation involving Jahlil Okafor on November 25th, the same night he was allegedly involved in a fight with a heckler outside a Boston nightclub. Boston police officials told TMZ that charges are likely to be filed. The Sixers will provide Okafor with a bodyguard going forward, coach Brett Brown said Tuesday, clearing up some confusion from earlier.
- Neither the Sixers nor their D-League affiliate formally announced the move, but the Sixers assigned Christian Wood to their D-League affiliate Tuesday and recalled him later in the day, according to the D-League. Philly sent the rookie down so he could practice with the D-League team, the Delaware 87ers said, according to Adam Johnson of D-League Digest (Twitter link).
- The Knicks assigned Cleanthony Early to their D-League affiliate today, the team announced (on Twitter). New York had just recalled Early on Monday, and the plan is for him to again rejoin the NBA squad in time for tonight’s game, tweets Marc Berman of the New York Post.
Pacific Notes: Rondo, Butler, Kobe, Dawson, Wilcox
The negative experience he had with the Mavericks left Rajon Rondo “hungrier” than before, though he never doubted himself, as he told Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com. Rondo contends the back injury the Mavs said he suffered in the playoffs this past spring, reportedly a ruse that Rondo and the Mavs concocted to allow Rondo to save face, was legitimate, though he admitted to MacMahon that he probably could have played through it. The point guard who signed with the Kings on a one-year deal has “nothing but love” for the Dallas organization, he said to MacMahon, and doesn’t hold a grudge even toward Rick Carlisle, with whom he clashed.
“Every relationship doesn’t work,” Rondo said to MacMahon. “It just didn’t work. No excuses. No pointing the finger at anybody. It made me stronger, made me appreciate just playing the game, especially playing at a high level. I never doubted myself. It just didn’t work. Try to keep staying positive, but things just didn’t work out for the best for either side. And that’s just part of it. Every player, every coach doesn’t always see eye to eye. Every team doesn’t fit every person’s style of play.”
See more out of the Pacific Division here:
- Caron Butler grew up in Wisconsin as an admirer of George Karl‘s turn-of-the-century Bucks teams and sees a lot of the rumors surrounding Karl and DeMarcus Cousins as hype, as the Kings small forward told Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times. “Everybody is not going to be comfortable with everything, whether it’s with their roles or whatever,” Butler said. “But if you come together and find the median in it, you can find ways to win. And that’s what’s we’re trying to do and that’s what all NBA teams try to do. Opinions are going to be voiced at times and sometimes they’re well-documented because they come from certain people. I don’t think that’s fair all the time. We had a great team meeting and got things together and have been moving forward ever since.’’
- Kobe Bryant‘s accomplishments on the basketball court speak for themselves, but it’s his relentless will that sets him apart, observes Eric Koreen of The National Post.
- The Clippers recalled C.J. Wilcox and Branden Dawson from the D-League late Monday, the Suns affiliate announced. Wilcox and Dawson went to Phoenix’s D-League team because the Clippers don’t have an affiliate of their own, and the pair hooked up with the Suns through the league’s flexible assignment system.
And-Ones: Dunleavy, Mekel, D-League
Bulls small forward Mike Dunleavy Jr., who underwent back surgery in September, suffered a “setback” and his timetable for a return to the court is unclear, coach Fred Hoiberg told reporters, including Nick Friedell of ESPN.com. Dunleavy re-signed with Chicago during the summer. Hoiberg, per Friedell, said there isn’t concern at this time that Dunleavy will have to miss the entire season or have another procedure on his back.
Here’s more from around the league:
- Former Mavericks and Pelicans point guard Gal Mekel has signed with European power-agent Misko Raznatovic, International Journalist David Pick tweets.
- The Knicks have assigned Cleanthony Early to their D-League affiliate, the Westchester Knicks, according to the team’s Twitter feed. Early has only seen 24 minutes of NBA action this season.
- The Cavs have recalled Joe Harris from the Canton Charge, the team’s D-League affiliate, according to a team press release. Harris appeared in three games during his latest stint, averaging 22.7 points in 36.9 minutes per game.
- Lang Greene of Basketball Insiders takes a look at the league’s landscape so far this season and the Hawks are among his underachievers. Greene believes one major reason for the disappointing start is that Atlanta still hasn’t found an adequate replacement for DeMarre Carroll.
Will Joseph contributed to this post.
Western Notes: Rondo, Matthews, D-League
Rajon Rondo is enjoying an impressive comeback season after inking a one-year deal with the Kings and therefore is setting himself up for a big payday next summer, Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News writes. Mavs coach Rick Carlisle, Rondo’s former coach, attributes a lot of the point guard’s success this season to Kings coach George Karl.
“George has done a great job of putting him in a position where he can really maximize his ability,” Carlisle said. “Somebody’s going to have to back up the truck to get him. That’s how well he’s playing and George has a lot to do with it. He’s a great coach.”
Here’s more from around the Western Conference:
- The Thunder have assigned Josh Huestis and Mitch McGary to their D-League affiliate, the team announced on Twitter. This will be Huestis’ fourth trip to the D-League of the season. McGary, who is headed to the Blue for the first time this season, has played in six games for the Thunder this season, averaging 1.5 points and 1.5 rebounds in 6.3 minutes per game.
- The Jazz assigned center Tibor Pleiss to the Idaho Stampede, their D-League affiliate, per a press release.
- Wesley Matthews has struggled with his 3-point shooting, but he needs to get his offense going in other ways because the Mavs invested four years and $70MM in him during the summer, Sefko argues in a separate piece.
Southeast Notes: Oladipo, Horford, Hansbrough
Victor Oladipo can’t be pleased with the Magic‘s decision to move him to the bench, despite the team-first comments he’s made to the media, posits Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel. The former No. 2 overall pick who’ll become eligible for a rookie scale extension this summer is averaging 20.0 points per game in his three appearances as a reserve, and the team has gone 3-0 in those games, leading Schmitz to wonder if the move will be for the long term.
“We got to stick with what works,” coach Scott Skiles said. “[Oladipo] has been so good in that role. We’ll keep him out there until it doesn’t work.”
Skiles has proven to have the right touch so far for the 9-8 Magic, Schmitz observes, nonetheless noting that the future for the team’s personnel isn’t in quite as sharp a focus as it was before the move. See more on the Magic amid the latest from the Southeast Division:
- Al Horford, set for free agency at season’s end, finds it odd to be going up against former college coach Billy Donovan, whose Thunder visit the Hawks for a game tonight, notes Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “He always encourages guys to work hard,” Horford said of Donovan. “He really pushes you beyond what you think you can accomplish. A lot of the time with his players, we get that we are on one level but he gets you to another level. That’s what he did with me at least. He gave me that confidence, that ability, for me to take that next step.”
- Tyler Hansbrough is averaging a career-low 5.0 minutes per game and doesn’t figure to be much more than a bit player for the Hornets after signing a one-year, minimum-salary deal in the offseason, but the team will surely need him sooner or later, opines Tom Sorensen of the Charlotte Observer. He and Al Jefferson are the only healthy Hornets players who play a physical style, Sorensen observes.
- The Magic have assigned Devyn Marble to the D-League, the team announced. Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel first reported the move would take place (Twitter link). It’s the first time the 56th pick in the 2014 draft has gone down to the Erie Bayhawks this season, though he went on three D-League assignments last year.
Eastern Notes: Okafor, Johnson, Williams
Nets small forward Joe Johnson is struggling mightily with his shot, connecting on just 33.5% of his attempts, but the veteran is doing his best to contribute in other ways, writes Fred Kerber of The New York Post. “Just trying to do my job to the best of my ability, which I don’t think is necessarily about trying to score more,” Johnson said. “I think it’s all around, whatever it is to try to help this team win. We all have a role on this team and we have to play it to the best of our ability. I’m just trying to do my job. Some nights it’s pretty good, some nights it’s not so good.” Johnson is earning a whopping $24.895MM this season, and will become an unrestricted free agent next summer.
Here’s more from out of the East:
- Sixers rookie Jahlil Okafor expressed regret over the altercation he was involved in with a heckler while outside a Boston nightclub earlier this week, John Finger of CSNPhilly.com relays. “It was definitely dumb on my part and something I’m embarrassed about,” Okafor said. “We’re still dealing with the league and with the team, but I’m not happy about it at all. We’re going through the whole process of what we’re going to do.”
- Combo forward Derrick Williams has not had his number called regularly by Knicks coach Derek Fisher, and notes that he and the coach have not discussed his changing role, which is becoming a source of frustration, Marc Berman of The New York Post writes. “Yeah man, I feel that’s the reason I’m here, bring that spark off the bench,’’ Williams said. “You can’t control that. It’s up to the coaching staff. At the same time, it does get frustrating. I know I can help. But we have more games.’’
- The Cavaliers assigned Joe Harris to the Canton Charge, their D-League affiliate, the team announced. This will be Harris’ third sojourn of the season to the D-League, as our tracker shows.
Eastern Notes: Harris, Biyombo, Lamb
Former Bucks coach and current Magic coach Scott Skiles said he was never in favor of trading power forward Tobias Harris to Orlando, according to Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Sentinel. Skiles didn’t give Harris a lot of playing time as a rookie and second-year player but liked Harris’ potential and attitude, the story continues. Harris was dealt from the Bucks to the Magic on Feb. 21st, 2013 in a six-player swap. None of the players Milwaukee acquired are still with the team. “At that time, we just felt (Luc) Mbah a Moute was a better defender and (Mike) Dunleavy was a better offensive player, and Tobias didn’t get as many minutes. But we were high on him,” Skiles told Gardner. “Not that anybody would have listened to me, but if I would have still been the coach, I would not have been for moving Tobias.
In other news around the Eastern Conference:
- Bismack Biyombo‘s stint as Jonas Valanciunas’ injury replacement is off to a strong start, Lori Ewing of The Canadian Press reports. Coach Dwane Casey likes what Biyombo brings to the starting unit as the new Raptors starting center after he had 11 points and 12 rebounds against the Cavs this week, Ewing continues. “He set the tone for us defensively,” Casey told the Toronto media. “Protecting the paint, talking, being physical, being a deterrent at the rim and that was big for us.” Valanciunas is out approximately six weeks with a hand injury.
- Jeremy Lamb could be a serious candidate for the league’s Sixth Man and Most Improved Player awards if he continues to produce at his current level, Steve Aschburner of NBA.com write. The Hornets shooting guard is averaging career highs in points, rebounds, assists and field goal percentage. Lamb, who agreed to a three-year, $21MM extension, has surprised coach Steve Clifford with his passing ability, Aschburner continues. “I knew he could shoot — I mean, he can really shoot — but I had no idea how well he could pass the ball,” Clifford told Aschburner. “He can pass off the dribble. He makes good decisions, so he’s a better pick-and-roll player than I thought. And what he’s done for us, he’s given us a lot of drive-and-kick plays that I didn’t know he was capable of doing.”
- The Celtics have assigned rookie power forward Jordan Mickey to the D-League’s Maine Red Claws, the team tweets. Mickey, an early second-round pick out of LSU, has played a total of just five minutes with Boston.