2014/15 D-League Usage Report: Hornets
The D-League’s regular season is now complete, and the three-round D-League playoffs are underway. The relationship between the NBA and the D-League continues to grow, and 17 NBA franchises currently have one-to-one D-League affiliates amongst the 18 D-League teams. The remaining 13 NBA teams shared the Fort Wayne Mad Ants this season.
We at Hoops Rumors will be recapping each team’s use of the D-League this season, looking at assignments and recalls as well as the players signed out of the D-League. We’ll continue with a look back at how the Hornets utilized the D-League during the 2014/15 campaign…
D-League Team: Fort Wayne Mad Ants
Affiliation Type: Shared
D-League Team Record: 28-22
Number of NBA Players Assigned To D-League: 2
Total D-League Assignments: 2
Player Stats While On Assignment:
- Jeffery Taylor: 1 assignment, 4 games, 11.8 PPG, 3.5 RPG, and 1.5 APG. .333/.312/.750.
- Noah Vonleh: 1 assignment, 2 games, 7.0 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 0.5 APG. .353/.667/.000.
D-League Signings
- Elliot Williams (Santa Cruz Warriors-Golden State affiliate): Signed 10-day contract on February 4th.
Assignment/Recall Log
- December 27th: Assigned Noah Vonleh (Recalled December 31st)
- December 28th: Assigned Jeffery Taylor (Recalled January 9th) *
*Note: Taylor was assigned to the Austin Spurs, San Antonio’s affiliate.
Southwest Notes: Rondo, Gasol, Spurs
Rajon Rondo has been a disappointment for the Mavericks since they traded for him in December, owner Mark Cuban admits to Grantland’s Kirk Goldsberry, and as the point guard readies to take on the Rockets in the playoffs with free agency looming this summer, Rondo’s time is now.
“He hasn’t been as good of a fit as we would’ve liked,” Cuban said. “And Rajon would tell you the same. I think that he is a guy that is built for the playoffs, and we haven’t had a lot of practice time together. He’s been here for maybe five or six practice days.”
While we wait to see if Rondo, who’s fallen out of the top 10 in the Hoops Rumors Free Agent Power Rankings, can recover some of his value with a strong postseason, here’s more from around the Southwest Division:
- Marc Gasol in February cast doubt on the idea that an early postseason exit for the Grizzlies would dissuade him from re-signing, and owner Robert Pera echoed his center in comments to Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal, who writes in a subscription-only piece. “It’s a very long season and there are always going to be ups and downs,” Pera said. “You can’t get too high when shots are falling or too low when they aren’t. With respect to Marc, he is unique in that he is as much a Grizzlies stakeholder as I am. He has been a Grizzly his entire career, experiencing the lows of rebuilding and the highs of the past few seasons. I believe his goal, like mine, is to build a winning culture in Memphis that will carry on long after we have both faded into the background. In that sense, I believe his decision will be based not on any one particular result but on the process generally and his confidence in the direction of our franchise.”
- Spurs coach/president Gregg Popovich has made Danny Green his whipping boy, but it’s not because he isn’t high on the swingman, as Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News explains. One unnamed executive who spoke with Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops recently estimated Green’s value at $6MM a year.
- The Spurs have assigned rookie Kyle Anderson to the D-League, the team announced. San Antonio’s affiliate has a playoff game tonight, while the NBA club doesn’t tip off its first-round series against the Clippers until Sunday night.
Central Notes: Middleton, Harris, Gasol
Soon-to-be restricted free agent Khris Middleton is in line for salaries of around $10MM this summer, several GMs and other executives tell Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops. Middleton said to Scotto that he would love to return to the Bucks but insists he’ll keep his options open. Still, multiple league sources tell Scotto that Middleton won’t be going anywhere, a sign that the Bucks intend to exercise their right to match any offer for him.
Here’s more from the Central Division:
- A new arena in Milwaukee has seemed well on its way, but Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times has some doubt for the first time about whether the project will come to fruition, given the resistance that public funding has met in the Wisconsin state legislature. The NBA has the right to seize control of the Bucks if an arena deal isn’t in place by November 2017.
- The Cavaliers have recalled guard Joe Harris from the Canton Charge, their D-League affiliate, the team announced. Harris has played in three playoff games for the Charge this season, averaging 17.7 points and 8.0 rebounds in 30.0 minutes per game.
- Pau Gasol has enjoyed a career resurgence in his first season with the Bulls, K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune writes. “This season has been extremely positive individually,” Gasol said. “I’m just happy that I’m playing at this level and accomplishing things I haven’t done in the past, which is pretty remarkable at this stage of my career. I just want to continue to work and stay focused and extend my level of play as long as I can.“
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
2014/15 D-League Usage Report: Nets
The D-League’s regular season is now complete, and the three-round D-League playoffs are underway. The relationship between the NBA and the D-League continues to grow, and 17 NBA franchises currently have one-to-one D-League affiliates amongst the 18 D-League teams. The remaining 13 NBA teams shared the Fort Wayne Mad Ants this season.
We at Hoops Rumors will be recapping each team’s use of the D-League this season, looking at assignments and recalls as well as the players signed out of the D-League. We’ll begin with a look back at how the Nets utilized the D-League during the 2014/15 campaign…
D-League Team: Fort Wayne Mad Ants
Affiliation Type: Shared
D-League Team Record: 28-22
Number of NBA Players Assigned To D-League: 2
Total D-League Assignments: 2
Player Stats While On Assignment:
- Markel Brown: 1 assignment, 1 game, 7.0 PPG, 1.0 RPG, 0.0 APG. .500/.500/1.000.
- Cory Jefferson: 2 assignments, 2 games, 10.5 PPG, 10.0 RPG, 0.0 APG. .615/1.000/.600.
D-League Signings
- None
Assignment/Recall Log
- January 1st: Assigned Markel Brown (Recalled January 8th)
- January 1st: Assigned Cory Jefferson (Recalled January 8th)
*Note: Both players were assigned to the Maine Red Claws, Boston’s D-League affiliate.
Eastern Rumors: Cavs, Kidd, Johnson
GM David Griffin turned the Cavs into a potential championship contender with his in-season moves and unwavering support of first-year coach David Blatt, Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today opines. Cleveland needed those improvements to be a true contender, Zillgitt continues, and his acquisitions of J.R. Smith, Iman Shumpert and Timofey Mozgov made the desired impact. Griffin also diffused a potentially divisive issue with his public support of Blatt while the team was struggling, Zillgitt adds. Cleveland’s turnaround this season has made Griffin a prime candidate for the league’s Executive of the Year award.
In other news around the Eastern Conference:
- Jason Kidd deserves Coach of the Year consideration after guiding the Bucks to the playoffs one season after they won 15 games, Matt Walks of ESPN.com writes. Kidd had to deal with the season-ending injury losses of Jabari Parker and Kendall Marshall as well as Larry Sanders‘ mental health issues that led him into retirement. Kidd also changed point guards from Brandon Knight to Michael Carter-Williams at the trade deadline, yet the club ranks second in defensive efficiency, Walks points out. The Bucks have a strong young core, provided they retains restricted free agent Khris Middleton, and has the draft choices to add more pieces, Walks concludes.
- Tyler Johnson‘s story offers hope for prospects with seemingly little chance to be drafted, as he went from undrafted to a prominent role in the Heat’s playoff push within a single year, as Shams Charania of RealGM examines. Johnson, who’s averaging 18.4 minutes in 30 appearances, has a non-guaranteed salary for next season that becomes 50% guaranteed if he remains under contract through August 1st.
- The Cavs assigned Joe Harris to their D-League affiliate, the Canton Charge, the team announced on Monday. The guard has played in 50 games for the Cavs this season, averaging 2.7 points in 9.5 minutes per game. Harris was available to play for the Charge in their postseason game on Monday against the Sioux Falls Skyforce.
Western Notes: Hudson, Anderson, Kanter
The Clippers’ decision to re-sign Lester Hudson came down to what the guard brought on the defense end, writes Rowan Kavner of NBA.com. “I liked his toughness,” President of Basketball Operations and coach Doc Rivers said. “I like his defense. He has a chance to be a really good defensive player in our program.” Rivers also said that Hudson and Nate Robinson were both options for the roster spot and he added that he didn’t believe Robinson was 100% healthy.
Here’s more from the Western Conference:
- The Spurs have recalled forward Kyle Anderson from their D-League affiliate, the Austin Spurs, according to the team’s website. To date, Anderson has appeared in 31 games for San Antonio, averaging 2.4 points and 2.3 rebounds per game.
- Jesse Blancarte of Basketball Insiders wonders if the Thunder should re-sign Enes Kanter. Blancarte cites Kanter’s defensive struggles as reason Oklahoma City should hesitate to offer the center a lucrative contract.
- DeAndre Jordan has had an impressive season and the center believes coach Doc Rivers was an integral part of his success, as he tells Jim Rome of CBS Sports Radio. “So much respect, so much respect,” Jordan said of Rivers. “He’s helped me out so much, he really believes in each and every one of us 150 % and when you have a guy like that who believes in you and really thinks you can get it done and knows you can get it done, your confidence is so high you will run through a brick wall for a guy like that.” Last month, Will Joseph of Hoops Rumors examined the market for Jordan, who will become a free agent at the end of the season.
Texas Notes: Beverley, Mavs, Spurs
Patrick Beverley hopes to return to the court if the Rockets make a deep playoff run, Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston writes. “Very strong possibility,” the 26-year-old said about his possible return. “Very strong. Let’s hope everything goes right.” Beverley, who will become a free agent at the end the season, also expressed his interest in returning to the team. “I want to be in Houston. I want to be a part of this whole thing that we’ve built since me and James first got here, but that’s not under my control. That’s up to my agent and [general manager] Daryl Morey of the Rockets. It’s going to be interesting this summer. I’m just happy I put myself in a position where I can play basketball and earn enough money to take care of my family,” the point guard said. “The culture, the city is me. A hard-working blue-collar type of city. I embrace that and they embrace me. I will definitely enjoy being here again.”
Here’s more from Texas:
- Tim Cowlishaw of the Dallas Morning News believes this season won’t be Dirk Nowitzki‘s last. Cowlishaw also adds that he could see Tyson Chandler, who will be a free agent this offseason, leave the Mavs. Despite the uncertainty surrounding Dallas’ frontcourt, I’d speculate the team will have both players back for the 2015/16 season.
- San Antonio has assigned Kyle Anderson to its D-League affiliate, the Austin Spurs, according to the team’s website. This will be Anderson’s sixth trip to the D-League this season.
- The Spurs are ready to pass the torch to Kawhi Leonard, writes Andrew Keh of The New York Times. “It’s going to be Kawhi’s team, anyway,” 32-year-old Tony Parker said. “[Tim Duncan] transitioned to [Manu Ginobili], Manu transitioned to me, and now it’s going to be transitioned to Kawhi.” Leonard will be a restricted free agent during the offseason and it was reported that the team would almost certainly match any offer sheet that he signs.
And-Ones: Rondo, Harris, Kaminsky
The career of Mavs point guard Rajon Rondo has included a number of clashes with coaches, and the question persists if Rondo is a good enough player to act out the way that he does, Baxter Holmes of ESPNLosAngeles.com writes in his in-depth look at the player. Rondo is set to become an unrestricted free agent at season’s end, and Dallas will have to make a difficult decision regarding whether or not to re-sign him, and if so, what the limit will be regarding his salary cap hit. In 43 games with the Mavs since being acquired from Boston, the 29-year-old has averaged 9.1 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 6.5 assists.
Here’s more from around the league:
- Joe Harris has been recalled from the Canton Charge, the Cavs‘ D-League affiliate, the team announced. The guard appeared in one playoff game for the Charge on his latest assignment, logging 24 points and 11 rebounds. Harris also played in nine regular season contests for Canton, averaging 15.4 PPG, 5.2 RPG and 3.2 APG in 31.7 minutes per night.
- Virginia junior swingman Justin Anderson is leaning toward entering the NBA draft, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports tweets. The 21-year-old is projected to be a late first round or early second round selection if he chooses to enter June’s draft. Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.com rates Anderson as the No. 33 overall prospect and Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required) places him at No, 36 overall.
- Wisconsin senior Frank Kaminsky has hired Kevin Bradbury of BDA Sports Management to be his agent, Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link). Givony rates the big man as the No. 10 overall prospect and Ford‘s list has Kaminsky ranked 13th.
2014/15 D-League Usage Report: Celtics
The D-League’s regular season is now complete, and the three-round D-League playoffs are underway. The relationship between the NBA and the D-League continues to grow, and 17 NBA franchises currently have one-to-one D-League affiliates amongst the 18 D-League teams. The remaining 13 NBA teams shared the Fort Wayne Mad Ants this season.
We at Hoops Rumors will be recapping each team’s use of the D-League this season, looking at assignments and recalls as well as the players signed out of the D-League. We’ll begin with a look back at how the Celtics utilized the D-League during the 2014/15 campaign…
D-League Team: Maine Red Claws
Affiliation Type: One-to-one
D-League Team Record: 35-15
Number of NBA Players Assigned To D-League: 6
Total D-League Assignments: 22
Player Stats While On Assignment
- Chris Babb: 1 assignment, 45 games, 15.4 PPG, 5.5 RPG, and 2.7 APG. .432/.375/.793.
- Andre Dawkins: 3 assignments, 7 games, 16.1 PPG. 2.4 RPG, and 2.4 APG. .386/.329/.818.
- Dwight Powell: 5 assignments, 4 games, 21.5 PPG, 10.5 RPG, 1.5 APG. .593/.000/.696.
- Phil Pressey: 1 assignment, 1 game, 34.0 PPG. 7.0 RPG, 9.0 APG. .440/.333/.750.
- Marcus Smart: 1 assignment, 1 game, 6.0 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 7.0 APG. .083/.000/.667.
- James Young: 11 assignments, 17 games, 21.5 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 2.0 APG. .463/.442/.766.
D-League Signings
- Andre Dawkins (Sioux Falls Skyforce-Heat affiliate): Signed 1st 10-day deal on January 23rd; Signed 2nd 10-day contract on February 2nd.
- Chris Babb (Maine Red Claws-Celtics affiliate): Signed multiyear deal on April 6th.
Assignment/Recall Log
- November 9th: Assigned Dwight Powell (Recalled November 10th)
- November 15th: Assigned James Young (Recalled November 17th)
- November 15th: Assigned Dwight Powell (Recalled November 17th)
- November 23rd: Assigned James Young (Recalled November 24th)
- December 4th: Assigned Dwight Powell (Recalled December 5th)
- December 4th: Assigned James Young (Recalled December 5th)
- December 4th: Assigned Marcus Smart (Recalled December 5th)
- December 6th: Assigned Dwight Powell (Recalled December 7th)
- December 6th: Assigned James Young (Recalled December 7th)
- December 9th: Assigned Dwight Powell (Recalled December 11th)
- December 9th: Assigned James Young (Recalled December 11th)
- December 28th: Assigned James Young (Recalled December 29th)
- December 31st: Assigned James Young (Recalled January 1st)
- January 3rd: Assigned James Young (Recalled January 5th)
- January 23rd: Assigned Andre Dawkins* (Recalled January 29th)
- January 30th: Assigned Andre Dawkins (Recalled February 1st)
- January 31st: Assigned James Young (Recalled February 1st)
- February 5th: Assigned Andre Dawkins (Recalled February 10th)
- February 5th: Assigned Phil Pressey (Recalled February 6th)
- March 17th: Assigned James Young (Recalled March 21st)
- March 24th: Assigned James Young
- April 6th: Assigned Chris Babb
Western Notes: Afflalo, McAdoo, Abrines
An MRI performed on Trail Blazers guard Arron Afflalo confirmed that he has suffered a right shoulder strain, the team announced. Afflalo is expected to be out of action for one to two weeks, and if that timetable holds, the injury will likely cause the guard to miss Portland’s opening round playoff series. With the team already without Wesley Matthews, who is out for the season with a torn left Achilles, losing Afflalo puts a major dent in the team’s postseason hopes. In 25 games for the Blazers since being acquired from Denver the 29-year-old has averaged 10.6 points and 2.7 rebounds in 30.1 minutes per contest.
Here’s more from around the Western Conference:
- The Warriors have assigned James Michael McAdoo to the Santa Cruz Warriors, their D-League affiliate, the team announced. McAdoo has appeared in 33 games for Santa Cruz this season, averaging 19.5 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 2.3 assists in 32.8 minutes per contest.
- Alex Abrines, a draft-and-stash prospect for the Thunder, in an interview with Gigantes.com (translation by HoopsHype.com) said that he isn’t ready to make the jump to the NBA just yet. The 21-year-old swingman was the No. 32 overall selection in the 2013 NBA draft, and he is under contract with Barcelona through 2016.
- Timberwolves‘ rookies Zach LaVine and Andrew Wiggins have learned much about what it takes to make it through the rigors of an NBA season, and the pair hope to take the momentum that they have gained into the summer to continue their development as players, Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune writes.