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And-Ones: OT Target Score, G League, Korkmaz, Bitadze

December 21st, 2022 at 11:56am CST by Luke Adams

The NBA G League has been experimenting this fall with its overtime period by using a variation of the “Elam Ending,” as Kevin Pelton writes for ESPN. Instead of following up regulation with a two-minute overtime period, G League teams have played to a target score — the first team to score seven points in overtime wins the game.

The NBA has used the Elam Ending in its All-Star Game in recent years and could explore the idea of adjusting its own overtime periods if the G League experiment gets positive feedback. As Pelton notes, the idea of playing to a target score in OT holds appeal because beginning from a tie makes the concept simpler, and it could help avoid prolonged double- or triple-overtime games that result in players logging heavier minutes than teams would like.

If the NBA were to adopt an Elam Ending for overtime, it would likely have to increase its target score to about 11 points to better approximate its five-minute overtime period, Pelton adds.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

  • Alex Kenendy of BasketballNews.com spoke to NBA G League commissioner Shareef Abdur-Rahim about several topics, including whether the league plans to experiment with any other rule changes and whether expansion to international markets besides Toronto and Mexico City is in the cards.
  • Following an investigation into a confrontation between Turkish and Georgian players at a EuroBasket game earlier this year, FIBA announced discipline for a handful of the players involved, including Sixers guard Furkan Korkmaz and Pacers center Goga Bitadze. Both players were fined and have been placed on a three-year probation period for international competition. If they commit a similar offense during that probation period, Bitadze would be suspended five games and Korkmaz would be suspended for three.
  • In an Insider-only feature for ESPN.com, Bobby Marks takes a look at the trade restrictions, trade assets, and trade targets for all 30 NBA teams.
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Nwaba’s G League Rights Acquired By Pistons’ Affiliate

December 18th, 2022 at 6:53pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Motor City Cruise, the Pistons’ G League affiliate, have acquired veteran guard David Nwaba from the Lakeland Magic in exchange for Micah Potter and a second-round pick in the 2023 NBAGL draft, Marc Stein tweets.

Stein reported on Friday that Nwaba was signing a G League contract. Lakeland claimed him off waivers, then dealt him to the Cruise.

Nwaba spent the past couple seasons with Houston, but he was traded to Oklahoma City in September and subsequently waived before the season started. However, his contract for 2022/23 was fully guaranteed at just over $5MM, so the Thunder are paying his salary.

Nwaba is still free to sign with any NBA team. The G League Showcase takes place this week in Las Vegas, so the six-year veteran will be looking to make a strong impression with the Cruise ahead of January 5, when NBA teams can start signing players to 10-day contracts.

Potter is on a two-way contract with the Jazz. His G League rights were technically held by the Cruise, though he has been playing for the Salt Lake City Stars, Utah’s affiliate. If Potter gets waived by the Jazz or his contract expires, Utah loses any G League rights to Potter and Lakeland would control them.

Potter has appeared in two games for the Jazz. He has started 12 games for the Stars, averaging 14.8 points and 6.9 rebounds per night.

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Shabazz Muhammad Signs G League Contract

December 17th, 2022 at 3:57pm CST by Rory Maher

Free agent swingman Shabazz Muhammad, the No. 14 pick of the 2013 draft, has signed a contract to play in the NBA G League, sources tell Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link).

Muhammad holds five seasons of NBA experience, primarily with the Timberwolves. He was released by Minnesota towards the end of 2017/18 and finished out the season with Milwaukee, but has been out of the league ever since.

Muhammad has been attempting an NBA comeback since at least March, if not earlier. He worked out for the Kings, Lakers and Warriors in the offseason, but was unable to land a contract.

The 30-year-old holds career averages of 9.0 PPG and 2.8 RPG on .473/.319/.751 shooting in 278 games (17.2 MPG). He played in China for a couple seasons after his NBA departure, and last season appeared in a pair of G League games during the Showcase Cup before joining a team in the Philippines.

As was the case with David Nwaba and Sterling Brown — a couple of veterans who recently signed their own G League deals — Muhammad is still free to sign with any NBA team — the move was made to try to impress teams and get another shot.

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David Nwaba Signing G League Contract

December 16th, 2022 at 5:39pm CST by Rory Maher

Free agent swingman David Nwaba is signing a contract to play in the NBA G League, sources tell Marc Stein (Twitter link).

As was the case with Sterling Brown, who just signed his own G League deal, Nwaba is still free to sign with any NBA team — the move was made to prove to teams that he deserves another shot. The G League Showcase takes place next week in Las Vegas, so the six-year veteran will be looking to make a strong impression ahead of January 5, when NBA teams can start signing players to 10-day contracts.

Nwaba, who turns 30 next month, is known as a strong, athletic player who plays solid defense, but is fairly limited on offense. Across 237 career games with the Lakers, Bulls, Cavaliers, Nets and Rockets, he holds averages of 6.8 points and 3.7 rebounds on .490/.320/.673 shooting in 19.3 minutes per contest.

The 6’5″ guard/forward spent the past couple seasons with Houston, but he was traded to Oklahoma City in September and subsequently waived before the season started. However, his contract for 2022/23 was fully guaranteed at just over $5MM, so the Thunder are paying his salary.

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Sterling Brown Signs G League Contract

December 15th, 2022 at 7:44pm CST by Rory Maher

Free agent wing Sterling Brown has signed a contract to play in the NBA G League, league sources tell Marc Stein (Twitter link).

Brown is still free to sign with any NBA team after signing a G League deal — the move was made to prove to teams that he deserves another shot. As Stein notes, the heavily scouted G League Showcase takes place next week in Las Vegas, so the former second-round pick will be looking to make a strong impression ahead of January 5, when NBA teams can start signing players to 10-day contracts.

A five-year NBA veteran, Brown spent his first three seasons with Milwaukee. In the 2020 offseason, he signed a one-year, minimum-salary deal with the Rockets and had a career year, averaging 8.2 PPG and 4.4 RPG on .448/.423/.806 shooting in 51 games (24.1 MPG).

His strong performance in 2020/21 led to a two-year, $6MM contract with the Mavericks, but he struggled to produce last season, averaging 3.3 PPG and 3.0 RPG on .381/.304/.933 shooting in 49 games (12.8 MPG).

Dallas traded Brown back to Houston in the offseason as part of the Christian Wood deal, and then he was rerouted to Oklahoma City at the end of September. The Thunder wound up waiving him before the 2022/23 season started, but his contract was fully guaranteed, so they’re paying his $3MM salary.

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Central Notes: Love, Mitchell, Bulls, Ingles

December 10th, 2022 at 1:35pm CST by Luke Adams

Don’t expect Kevin Love to be on the move before this season’s trade deadline, Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com writes in a subscriber-only mailbag. While the Cavaliers will likely peruse the trade market in search of a small forward upgrade, Love’s cap hit of nearly $29MM makes him unlikely to be dealt, according to Fedor, who points to Cedi Osman and Caris LeVert as more logical trade candidates for the team.

The Cavaliers and Love actually have mutual interest in extending their relationship beyond 2022/23, sources tell Fedor. Love will be an unrestricted free agent next summer, and Fedor wouldn’t be surprised if the veteran power forward ends up re-signing with Cleveland at that point on a “more reasonable number that works for both sides.”

Here’s more from around the Central:

  • The Cavaliers will be without Donovan Mitchell for a second consecutive night on Saturday due to right lower leg soreness, per Kelsey Russo of The Athletic (Twitter link). Love, who is battling low back soreness, will also miss his second straight game.
  • The Bulls have no interest in acquiring Russell Westbrook from the Lakers, even if it means adding multiple draft picks, a source tells Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. While Cowley doesn’t explicitly say so, this report appears to be a response to the rumor about the Lakers internally discussing whether Chicago might become open to the idea of moving DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic for Westbrook and draft assets. Cowley acknowledges that the Bulls’ thinking could change before the February trade deadline, but says the focus for now is getting Lonzo Ball back and pushing for a playoff spot.
  • Bucks forward Joe Ingles, who continues to work his way back from an ACL tear, has been assigned to the Wisconsin Herd for a second time for practice reps, tweets Eric Nehm of The Athletic. Jordan Nwora and rookie MarJon Beauchamp were also sent to the Herd, Nehm notes.
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Trey Burke Joining Kings’ G League Affiliate

December 9th, 2022 at 12:07pm CST by Luke Adams

Free agent guard Trey Burke is headed to the G League, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, who says (via Twitter) that Burke is joining the Stockton Kings, Sacramento’s NBAGL affiliate. The move shows up in the NBAGL’s official transaction log.

Burke, 30, appeared in 42 games for the Mavericks last season, averaging 5.1 PPG and 1.4 APG in 10.5 minutes per contest while shooting a career-worst 31.7% on three-pointers. He was traded from Dallas to Houston in the Christian Wood trade, then flipped to Oklahoma City in an eight-player deal during training camp. The Thunder subsequently waived him, making him an unrestricted free agent.

A former ninth overall pick who has appeared in nearly 500 regular season games since making his NBA debut in 2013, Burke has some G League experience. He averaged 26.6 PPG and 5.3 APG on .489/.418/.831 shooting in 26 games (37.0 MPG) while on an assignment with the Westchester Knicks in 2017/18.

However, Burke was on an NBA contract with New York during that time, so this will be the first time he plays on a G League contract. His NBA rights won’t be held by the Kings — he’ll remain free to sign with any NBA team at any time if an offer comes along.

Burke is the second former lottery pick this week to enter the G League this week. Stanley Johnson has been acquired by the Sioux Falls Skyforce, Miami’s affiliate.

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Stanley Johnson Joins Heat’s G League Affiliate

December 9th, 2022 at 7:59am CST by Luke Adams

Free agent forward Stanley Johnson has signed a contract to return to the G League and has officially joined a new team. The Sioux Falls Skyforce, Miami’s affiliate, announced in a press release that they’ve acquired Johnson from the NBAGL’s available player pool, waiving former South Dakota standout Tyler Hagedorn to complete the transaction.

The eighth overall pick in the 2015 draft, Johnson appeared in 48 games for the Lakers last season, starting 27 of them. He averaged 6.7 PPG, 3.2 RPG, and 1.7 APG on .466/.314/.716 shooting in 22.8 minutes per contest.

Johnson’s contract included a minimum-salary team option for 2022/23, which the Lakers picked up, but he was flipped to Utah along with Talen Horton-Tucker later in the offseason in the trade that sent Patrick Beverley to Los Angeles. Johnson then became a victim of a roster crunch in Utah — the Jazz waived him at the end of the preseason when they had to reduce their roster to 15 players on standard contracts.

With no NBA opportunities presenting themselves since Johnson became an unrestricted free agent in October, he’ll head back to the G League to try to prove that he deserves another shot at the NBA level.

The 26-year-old began last season with the South Bay Lakers before earning a call-up. This time around, he’ll play for the Heat‘s G League affiliate. Although Sioux Falls now holds Johnson’s NBAGL rights, he remains an NBA free agent with the ability to sign with any team at any time.

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Western Notes: Wiseman, Conley, Gay, Garza, Davis, Ingram

December 6th, 2022 at 10:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Warriors recalled James Wiseman from their G League affiliate in Santa Cruz, according to a press release tweeted by the team’s PR department. Wiseman averaged 15.6 points, 10.1 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in seven starts with Santa Cruz. Wiseman struggled during his 11 NBA appearances this season before the team decided to give him a stint in the G League to boost his confidence. He had a minus-24.4 net rating in his 147 NBA minutes.

The No. 2 pick in the 2020 draft, who was assigned to Santa Cruz in mid-November, could jump right back into the rotation. The Warriors won’t have three of their starters when they face Utah on Wednesday. Stephen Curry (left ankle soreness), Draymond Green (left hip tightness) and Andrew Wiggins (right adductor strain) are all listed as out, Anthony Slater of The Athletic tweets. The defending champion are one game ab0ve .500.

We have more Western Conference news:

  • While the Warriors will be depleted, the Jazz could have their starting point guard back in action. Mike Conley is listed as questionable to play, Tony Jones of The Athletic tweets. Conley (knee) has not played since Nov. 19. Rudy Gay, who has been sidelined since Nov. 13 due to a hand injury, is not even on the injury report, so he should be available.
  • Second-year big man Luka Garza has been recalled from the Iowa Wolves by the Timberwolves, the team’s PR department tweets. Garza, who is on a two-way contract, leads the G League at 29.8 points per game. He racked up 44 points and 15 rebounds against the Fort Wayne Mad Ants on Monday.
  • Anthony Davis, who left the Lakers’ game on Tuesday early due to flu-like symptoms, has a non-COVID illness, Dave McMenamin of ESPN tweets. Davis battled a fever throughout the day but tried to play through it. No other players are currently sick, according to coach Darvin Ham.
  • Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram won’t play against Detroit on Wednesday, according to a team press release. Ingram will miss his fifth straight game due to a left great toe contusion.
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And-Ones: Henderson, Top Offseason Adds, 2022 Re-Draft

November 30th, 2022 at 11:19am CST by Luke Adams

G League Ignite guard Scoot Henderson, the consensus No. 2 prospect in the 2023 draft class, has been diagnosed with a nose fracture after entering the concussion protocols and missing the team’s last four games, writes Cody Taylor of Rookie Wire.

Although Henderson has already been sidelined since November 18, the injury isn’t considered a long-term one and he’s being listed as day-to-day for the time being. According to Taylor, there’s a chance Henderson will be cleared to return on Sunday when the Ignite host the South Bay Lakers.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

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