Josh Boone Signs With Iowa Energy
The Iowa Energy in the NBA D-League have signed center Josh Boone, the team has announced. Boone had previously signed a contract to play in the Philippines with Bangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings, but only appeared in two contests for the team. In an unusual move the Kings signed former NBA player Kevin Jones to take Boone’s place before he had even appeared in his first game for the team, writes Carlo Pamintuan of Yahoo! Sports.
Boone was the 23rd overall pick by the Nets in 2006. The former Connecticut Husky averaged 5.2 PPG and 4.9 RPG in his four years with the Nets. He played for the Wizards summer league team before they cut ties with him prior to this season.
Boone appeared in two games for the Energy last season, averaging 16.5 PPG and 7.5 RPG before an injury ended his season. Boone will wear number 33 and will available for tonight’s game.
Cavs Rumors: Curry, Edwards, James
It’s been a tough few seasons for the Cavaliers organization. No team has a worse record since 2010/11, as Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Plain Dealer points out, Cleveland is 90-209 in that stretch, good for just a .301 winning percentage. Let’s look at the latest on the Cavs:
- Cleveland signed Seth Curry to a 10-day contract yesterday, and the young guard is excited for the opportunity he’ll have to prove he belongs in the NBA, reports Jodie Valade of the Plain Dealer. With five players sidelined for tonight’s game versus the Rockets, Curry will likely receive ample opportunity to showcase his abilities.
- An official team announcement confirmed that Shane Edwards has re-signed with the D-League affiliate of the Cavs, the Canton Charge. Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio was the first to report that the forward would return to Canton, where he’s spent most of the season, if the Cavs decided not to retain him. Cleveland terminated his 10-day contract Friday to make room for Curry.
- LeBron James is surprised at the Cavs’ lack of success in 2013/14, but he doesn’t think it’s fair for him to judge the club, writes Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel. “Who am I to say they should play better or not? I’m not there with them every day,” said James. “I’m not coaching them. I’m not playing. From the beginning of the season, I think we all would say they’d be in better contention in the East.” A rumored offseason reunion between James and Cleveland has been one of the most discussed topics this season, but he doesn’t sound overly impressed with the team as it stands.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Western Notes: Buss, White, Mekel
The Lakers ownership and decision making has been complicated since the passing of Jerry Buss, but Jeanie Buss has stated emphatically that she’s the “boss”, writes Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com. In an interview on the “Mason and Ireland”show, Buss said, “I am responsible ultimately for anything with the team and decisions that are made. In my position, I empower people that are in positions to do their jobs. [Executive vice president of player personnel] Jim Buss and [general manager] Mitch Kupchak are responsible for all basketball decisions. They are empowered to do that. My job is to make sure, as a boss, that I provide them the tools to do the job successfully. But it’s up to them to make the day-to-day decisions on how they operate their area of the business.”
More from out west:
- Royce White may finally achieve his dream of playing in the NBA tonight when the Kings take on the Spurs, writes Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee. White has had a tumultuous career since being taken 16th overall by the Rockets in the 2012 NBA Draft. Mental health issues have taken their toll and kept him off the court. In regards to those issues, White said, “I think (the issues) kind of resolved themselves over time. Just me being in the league for a year and a half and having things be on the table with the league and the union and discussing it put this organization in a better position to handle things. It’s been so good we haven’t even had a discussion about anything. That’s exciting.”
- The Mavericks have recalled Gal Mekel from the NBA D-League, the team announced. In 31 appearances for the Mavs, Mekel has averaged 2.4 PPG, 0.9 RPG, and 2.0 APG in 9.4 minutes per game.
- The Warriors have assigned Ognjen Kuzmic to Santa Cruz in the D-League, the team announced. Kuzmic has compiled averages of 6.1 PPG, 10.2 RPG in 21.4 minutes per game over nine games for Santa Cruz this season.
Cavs Sign Seth Curry, Release Shane Edwards
The Cavaliers have officially signed Seth Curry to a 10-day contract, the team announced. To make room, Cleveland terminated its 10-day deal with Shane Edwards, which was set to expire tonight. Curry, the 23-year-old former Duke shooting guard, appeared to have a deal with the Cavs earlier this week, but the team seemed to waffle and considered re-signing Edwards instead. The Cavs also apparently had their eyes on another player. Ultimately, the Cavs circled back to their original target. Curry, brother of Warriors star Stephen Curry, had a brief stint with the Grizzlies earlier this season after going undrafted this past summer.
Seth Curry was also in camp with the Warriors in the fall, but he failed to make the opening-night roster. He appeared in just one game for a four-minute stretch with the Grizzlies, who waived him in January shortly before his contract would have become guaranteed for the rest of the season. Memphis decided against bringing him back on a 10-day, and he’s been playing with the Warriors D-League affiliate ever since. The 6’2″ client of Jeff Austin is averaging 19.4 points and 5.9 assists in 35.3 minutes per game for the Santa Cruz Warriors.
Today’s moves leave Cleveland with 15 players, 14 of whom are on guaranteed contracts. Edwards appears to be headed back to the D-League affiliate of the Cavs, where he played before signing his 10-day deal.
Diamond Leung of the Bay Area News Group initially reported that Curry and the Cavs had a deal (Twitter link). Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal followed with a report that Curry, Edwards and another player were all in the mix to fill Cleveland’s open roster spot. Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio identified Edwards as the favorite and wrote that he’d head back to the D-League if he didn’t re-sign with the Cavs. The Plain Dealer followed with a report that Curry would sign, and Lloyd seconded that (Twitter link). The Plain Dealer’s Mary Schmitt Boyer followed up minutes later to note that Curry had put pen to paper on his contract.
Pacific Rumors: Sacre, Kings, White, Kuzmic
Although Robert Sacre isn’t likely to make any All-Star teams in the foreseeable future, Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni is happy to have the big man on his squad, according to Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times. “He works harder than anyone on the team, without a doubt, it’s not even close,” said D’Antoni. “In the weight room, on the floor, before practice, he’s trying to make himself into a player.” Sacre’s deal runs through the 2015/16 season, though his final year is non-guaranteed. Here’s more from the Pacific Division:
- Sacramento has received the legal OK to take possession of a former Macy’s store on the site of the planned Kings arena, eliminating one of the final hurdles to beginning construction, the team announced. Sacramento and the Kings must open the arena by 2017 to prevent the league from seizing control of the team and perhaps selling it to investors who’d move it to another city.
- Kings coach Mike Malone says Royce White might make his NBA debut as early as tomorrow night, reveals Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee. White is on his second 10-day deal with Sacramento and has played four games with their D-League affiliate, the Reno Bighorns. Apparently, White’s discussions with team GM Pete D’Alessandro have been positive, and White doesn’t have any doubts that the organization will work to properly handle his anxiety disorder that kept him from taking the court last season (All twitter links).
- The Warriors have recalled Ognjen Kuzmic from the D-League, the team announced. In 18 appearances for Golden State, Kuzmic has played just 61 minutes and averaged 0.5 PPG.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Eastern Rumors: ‘Melo, Billups, Allen, Heat
Carmelo Anthony is full of optimism about what Phil Jackson can do for the Knicks, as Ken Berger of CBSSports.com observes. ‘Melo is similarly enthusiastic about what he can learn from Jackson and is glad that the Zen Master wants him to stick around beyond this season.
“I was hoping that I would be part of the future plans,” Anthony said. “I never once said that I wanted to leave New York or anything like that. The only thing I said was I’m going to dabble and try the free agency out, that I was going to opt out and become a free agent. … I’m excited about the opportunity to hopefully work with Phil.”
Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:
- Chauncey Billups says he won’t necessarily retire at the end of the season, but teams have already gauged his interest in joining their front offices, Billups told reporters, including Vincent Goodwill of The Detroit News. It’s unclear if the Pistons are one of those clubs, but Billups said he’d consider them if they offered a position. The 37-year-old would like to become a basketball executive at some point, adds Chris Dempsey of The Denver Post, who notes that Billups and Pistons president of basketball operations Joe Dumars are close.
- Ray Allen, a free agent at season’s end, still has affection for Boston, and he’d like to see the Celtics retire his number, writes Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald.
- The Heat have assigned Justin Hamilton to the D-League, the team announced. The center will play in two games for the Sioux Falls Skyforce and return to the Heat after Saturday’s contest, according to Miami’s release.
And-Ones: Bucks, Dedmon, Gooden, Pelicans
A source tells Don Walker of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that Bucks owner Herb Kohl is receiving considerable nationwide interest from investors who’d like to buy at least a minority share of the team, and many of them are in close proximity to Milwaukee. Kohl is reportedly close to selling a majority stake in the franchise, but Walker hears that no deal is imminent. Sports business experts say the team would be more valuable in another market, Walker writes, but Kohl has been insistent that the team stay in Milwaukee. Here’s more from around the league:
- Dewayne Dedmon‘s latest contract with the Magic gives him the chance to make the team’s roster next season, writes Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel, so presumably that means the deal covers 2014/15 with a non-guaranteed salary.
- The Wizards didn’t bring Drew Gooden aboard until last month, but they’d been monitoring him since December, tweets J. Michael of CSNWashington.com. Gooden followed a pair of 10-day contracts with a deal Tuesday for the rest of the season.
- The Pelicans have more than $54MM in commitments for next season, and GM Dell Demps acknowledged that it’s unlikely the team will be a major player on the free agent market, as John Reid of The Times-Picayune observes. Demps also said he doesn’t regret last summer’s Jrue Holiday trade, even though there’s a strong chance it could cost them another lottery pick this year.
- The Bulls may have to make a few creative cap maneuvers to entice Nikola Mirotic to sign this summer, depending on the dollars-to-euros exchange rate and Real Madrid’s willingness to negotiate the amount of Mirotic’s buyout. Nate Duncan of Basketball Insiders has the details.
- Twelve-year NBA veteran Ricky Davis had been attempting a comeback with the D-League affiliate of the Knicks, but the Erie BayHawks announced that they have cut him loose.
And-Ones: Rookie Scale, Griffin, Coaches
Phil Jackson and the Knicks have dominated headlines today, but that’s not the only story in the NBA. Here’s the latest from around the league, with four weeks and a day to go before the end of the regular season:
- Grantland’s Zach Lowe noted earlier that there are several draft-related ideas the league is kicking around to remove the incentive teams have to tank, and another is increasing rookie scale salaries, Lowe adds via Twitter.
- Everyone who signed with the Clippers this year was banking on Blake Griffin developing into a top-five player, and Griffin has been validating their decisions, as Sports Illustrated’s Lee Jenkins writes.
- Precisely half of the league’s head coaches played primarily at point guard in the NBA, college or both, while three more played both guard positions, notes Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel, who examines why this is so.
- Warriors coach Mark Jackson is vilified for some of the same coaching traits that Phil Jackson drew adulation for, Bleacher Report’s Ric Bucher opines.
- The Warriors have recalled Nemanja Nedovic and Ognjen Kuzmic from the D-League, the team announced via press release. Nedovic was in the D-League for the past six days, but Kuzmic returns after a stint that began February 21st.
- The Cavs have recalled Sergey Karasev from the D-League’s Canton Charge, the Charge announced via Twitter. The 19th overall pick in the 2013 draft has appeared in 18 D-League games this year, almost as many as the 20 he’s played for Cleveland.
Darius Morris To Play In D-League
Darius Morris has been acquired off waivers by the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the NBA D-League, reports Gino Pilato of D-League Digest (Twitter link). The 23-year-old guard has played for three NBA teams already this season. He last played for Memphis on a 10-day contract that expired back on February 13th. He’s still free to sign with any NBA team that comes calling.
This season, Morris appeared in 10 games for the Clippers and averaged 0.9 PPG in 5.4 MPG. He then played in 12 games for the Sixers and averaged 6.9 PPG, and 2.6 APG in 16.1 MPG. His last action was with the Grizzlies where in five games he put up 3.0 PPG, and 1.6 APG in 13.2 minutes per contest.
Morris’ last stint in the D-League was during the 2012/13 season when he appeared in two games for Los Angeles, and he averaged 15.0 PPG, 6.0 RPG, and 5.5 APG in 35.0 minutes per contest.
West Notes: D’Antoni, Jackson, Blazers, Spurs
There are a lot of different takes on coach Mike D’Antoni within the Lakers organization, writes Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. One league source says the Lakers have not offered any indication D’Antoni’s job has become in jeopardy. Meanwhile, the Lakers don’t plan to evaluate him until after this season ends on April 16th and they may not decide definitely then, either. More out of the West..
- The Knicks’ hire of Phil Jackson puts pressure on Blazers owner Paul Allen and GM Neil Olshey, writes John Canzano of The Oregonian. If Jackson can pull the Knicks out of their mediocre spin and make a deep run in the playoffs before the Blazers do, it’s going to confirm what many have said all along – that Allen would be better off simply hiring good basketball people and getting out of the way.
- The Blazers announced (via Twitter) that they have recalled guard Allen Crabbe from the Idaho Stampede of the D-League. During Crabbe’s three-game stint in Idaho he averaged 16.7 points and 5.3 rebounds and shot 42.6 percent from the field and 27.8 percent from three-point range.
- The Spurs announced that they have recalled forward Austin Daye from the Austin Toros of the D-League. In Saturday night’s contest against the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, Daye recorded 27 points, 13 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocked shots in 40 total minutes. The California native has appeared in two games for the Spurs’ varsity squad, averaging 3.0 points in 1.5 minutes per contest.