Warriors Recall Kent Bazemore
A fine performance in his D-League debut was apparently enough to earn Kent Bazemore a return trip to the big club, as the Warriors have recalled the rookie from their D-League affiliate in Santa Cruz, according to an announcement from the team. Golden State sent Bazemore down yesterday in time for Santa Cruz's game against Reno, and he put up 27 points, nine rebounds and five steals in 33 minutes of action.
The Warriors seem to have plans for the 6'5" swingman who went undrafted out of Old Dominion this June, since they're reportedly unwilling to cut him to bring back former Warrior Dominic McGuire, whom the Raptors let go earlier this week. Bazemore is on a minimum-salary contract that's partially guaranteed for $25K.
Still, this might not be Bazemore's final trip to Santa Cruz this season. We heard this week that the Warriors may shuttle him and Jeremy Tyler back and forth between the D-League and the NBA, given the proximity of Santa Cruz to Oakland. The Warriors bought the former Dakota Wizards last year and moved them to California.
Spurs Assign Cory Joseph To D-League
The Spurs announced that they have re-assigned guard Cory Joseph to the Austin Toros of the NBA D-League. Joseph was first assigned to the Toros on November 15th and was recalled days later on November 21.
Joseph, 21, appeared in four games for Spurs, averaging 1.8 points and 1.5 assists in 7.8 minutes. In three stints with the Toros last season, the 6’3″ guard averaged 13.8 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 5.1 APG, and 1.29 steals in 14 games. Joseph also spent 29 games with the Spurs in 2011/12, averaging 2.0 PPG in 9.0 minutes per contest.
Hawks Assign Jenkins, Scott To D-League
The Hawks are sending rookies John Jenkins and Mike Scott to their D-League affiliate in Bakersfield, according to Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (via Twitter). The length of stay for both players is to be determined.
Jenkins was taken with the 23rd overall pick in the 2012 draft out of Vanderbilt. The 21-year-old guard saw just 13 minutes across four games this season and figures to see more action in the D-League. Scott, a 6'8" forward, was tabbed in the second-round (43rd overall) and saw 16 minutes of burn in five games.
Be sure to check out our complete list of D-League assignments and recalls to keep track of the latest moves.
Warriors Assign Kent Bazemore To D-League
The Warriors have officially assigned rookie Kent Bazmore to their D-League affiliate, the team announced today in a press release. Marcus Thompson of the Bay Area News Group first reported that the team would send Bazemore to the Santa Cruz Warriors today.
Bazemore, an undrafted rookie out of Old Dominion, was invited to Warriors camp in the fall and was a somewhat unexpected addition to the regular season roster. Although he's appeared in six games for Golden State, Bazemore hasn't seen much action, failing to score his first NBA points in about 10 total minutes of play.
Bazemore is the first Warriors player to be assigned to the team's single-affiliate D-League squad in Santa Cruz.
Celtics Recall Kris Joseph From D-League
The Celtics have recalled Kris Joseph from their D-League affiliate, the team announced today in a press release. The move adds a little depth to the C's roster with Rajon Rondo suspended and Jeff Green questionable to play tonight.
Joseph, 23, was the 51st overall pick in June's draft. He appeared in one game for the Celtics early in the month before being sent to the Maine Red Claws along with Fab Melo. In two games for Maine, Joseph averaged 25.5 PPG and 7.5 RPG, though he shot just 35.6% from the field.
Be sure to check out our complete list of D-League assignments and recalls to keep track of the latest moves.
Rockets Assign Jones, Machado To D-League
Terrence Jones and Scott Machado are heading to the Rockets' D-League affiliate, the team announced today. Machado will join the Rio Grande Valley Vipers for the second time this season, while for Jones it's his first D-League assignment.
Jones, 20, has appeared in seven contests for the Rockets so far in his rookie season, averaging 3.6 PPG and 2.0 RPG in 10.4 MPG. The 18th overall pick in the 2012 draft is one of a handful of mid-first-rounders to be assigned to the D-League this week — No. 12 pick Jeremy Lamb and No. 13 pick Kendall Marshall have also been sent to their teams' respective D-League affiliates in the last couple days.
Machado, meanwhile, finally made his NBA regular-season debut on Wednesday night against the Thunder. He was recalled from the Valley Vipers earlier this week, along with Donatas Motiejunas.
Warriors Rumors: McGuire, Bazemore, Bogut
Of the two games on the NBA's schedule last night, the Spurs/Heat contest drew most of the headlines for Gregg Popovich's decision to send his stars home. But the evening's late contest in Golden State was arguably the more thrilling game of the two. Andre Iguodala's potential game-winning buzzer-beater left his hand a split second too late, allowing the Warriors to hang on for a one-point victory, 106-105. As the team comes off a big win against the Nuggets, here are a few Friday morning Warriors updates:
- With ex-Warrior Dominic McGuire being released by the Raptors, Marcus Thompson of the Bay Area News Group (Sulia link) says not to bank on Golden State having interest in McGuire. Sources tell Thompson that the Warriors don't want to waive Kent Bazemore, the player most likely to be cut if the team adds another player.
- Bazemore will, however, be leaving the NBA team for now, as Thompson tweets that the rookie will be assigned to the D-League's Santa Cruz Warriors today.
- The Warriors have yet to apply for a disabled player exception following Brandon Rush's season-ending injury, according to Thompson (via Twitter). Such an exception would allow the team to add a player for this season for a salary up to $2MM. With the Warriors already over the tax line, approaching a hard cap, and still holding their $1.96MM bi-annual exception, perhaps the club figures there's no point in asking for an exception that won't be used.
- Appearing on Chronicle Live, Warriors GM Bob Myers apologized for deceiving fans in regard to Andrew Bogut's injury situation, as Thompson transcribes. The team did not reveal that Bogut had undergone microfracture surgery earlier this year, news that surfaced this week. "If there was blame to be laid on how this was communicated," Myers said. "That blame ultimately rides with me as the general manager of this organization."
Odds & Ends: Maggette, Pargo, Harden, Kapono
Although he only turned 33 years old earlier this month, Corey Maggette has been around the NBA for a long time, having made his debut back in 1999. With his contract set to expire next summer, Maggette was non-committal about what his immediate future may hold, says David Mayo of MLive.com.
"Who knows what will happen? Who knows? I might be a guy that might be in a front-office position," Maggette said. "I'm already preparing myself for that as I finish this career. The biggest thing is to worry about what's going on now and let the future take care of itself. We don't even know if we're going to wake up tomorrow."
While I'd be surprised if Maggette retired as a player next year, it seems he's already considering the next stage of his career, having spoken to Pistons GM Joe Dumars and assistant GM George David about the paths they took to their current jobs. Here are a few more odds and ends as we prepare for a light Thursday evening NBA schedule:
- Speaking to USA Today's Sam Amick about his extension negotiations with the Thunder and the trade that sent him to the Rockets, James Harden says the final offer he got from Oklahoma City was for four years and $53MM.
- Jannero Pargo is on top of "several NBA teams' radars," Pargo's agent Mark Bartelstein tells Shams Charania of RealGM.com (Twitter link). Considering the source of the info, it's not clear how much stock we should put in it, but Pargo was recently said to be drawing interest from the Bulls and others, and is hoping to get a deal done soon.
- Jason Kapono, whose agreement with Panathinaikos has been on hold, is expected to join the Greek team on December 10th, according to a Gazzetta.gr report (English translation via Sportando).
- Thunder coach Scott Brooks thinks Jeremy Lamb's D-League assignment is a great opportunity for the rookie to earn some playing time, according to Darnell Mayberry of the Oklahoman. "He's going to get great work on the practice floor and game floor," Brooks said. "But we like what he does. He has a very high skill set. He definitely needs to continue to develop his body and his game, but that’s a great position for him to be in."
- If you're curious about which D-League players may be in line for a shot from an NBA team in the coming weeks, keep an eye on four players Ryan Ripley of Ridiculous Upside identifies as hot starters.
- Offseason signee Randy Foye has found a home in the starting lineup for the Jazz, as Bill Oram of The Salt Lake Tribune chronicles.
Thunder Assign Jeremy Lamb To D-League
The Thunder have assigned Jeremy Lamb to their D-League affiliate, the team announced today in a press release. Lamb will be in uniform for the Tulsa 66ers when the team hosts the Rio Grande Valley Vipers tomorrow night.
A week ago, Oklahoma City assigned Daniel Orton and DeAndre Liggins to the 66ers. As Larry Coon writes in his CBA FAQ, NBA teams are believed to be able to assign up to two players to the D-League at any one time, so it's unclear whether that rule has been modified or whether one of the previous assignees is rejoining the Thunder. Assuming there's no corresponding announcement, it seems Lamb, Orton, and Liggins will all be on the 66ers' roster.
Lamb, the 12th overall pick in June's draft, was sent to Oklahoma City in last month's James Harden trade. The 20-year-old has appeared briefly in eight games for the Thunder, scoring a total of 17 points and making four of his eight shots from three-point range.
Pacific Notes: Kings, Virginia Beach, Billups
The latest update on Virginia Beach's arena proposal comes from Dale Kasler, Tony Bizjak, and Ryan Lillis of the Sacramento Bee. According to the Bee report, the arena proposal would include commitments of $150MM from the state of Virginia, $195MM from the city of Virginia Beach, and just $35MM from Comcast-Spectator. Part of that cost would be put toward relocating a professional sports team, presumably the Sacramento Kings, to Virginia Beach.
Given that the proposal calls for 90% public funding, it's already drawing opposition from some public officials, according to the Bee report — city councilman Bill DeSteph suggested that Virginia Beach "can't afford" to put $195MM into the project.
As we wait to see if Virginia Beach's arena plan continues to move forward, here are a few more notes from around the Pacific Division:
- Rob McAllister of Cowbell Kingdom is skeptical that Virginia Beach is really a viable relocation option for the Kings, contending that the Maloofs are playing the city in order to boost the value of the franchise.
- Chauncey Billups' return to the Clippers lineup was timely, writes Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game, who says Billups helped quell a locker-room revolt last season and could be instrumental in convincing Chris Paul to remain long-term with the Clips.
- Young Warriors players like Jeremy Tyler and Kent Bazemore could be shuttled back and forth between the NBA and the D-League this season, given the proximity of the team's Santa Cruz affiliate, writes Carl Steward of the Oakland Tribune.
- Making his case for why the Lakers should trade Pau Gasol, Sean Deveney of the Sporting News writes that it's "becoming obvious that the rumor mill may know something the Lakers and Gasol don’t seem to know — he would be better off elsewhere."