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NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/8/16

November 8th, 2016 at 10:35pm CST by Luke Adams

Here are Tuesday’s D-League assignments and recalls:

10:35pm:

The Knicks have assigned Ron Baker and Marshall Plumlee to their D League affiliate in Westchester, Ian Begley of ESPN.com tweets. The duo are expected to participate in the team’s scrimmage against the Nets’ affiliate on Wednesday, Begley adds.
The Thunder have recalled Huestis from their D-League affiliate, the team announced via press release.

2:51pm:

The newest member of the Bulls, R.J. Hunter, has been assigned to the team’s D-League affiliate, the Windy City Bulls, according to a press release. Hunter signed with Chicago during the first week of the regular season after being cut by Boston, but has yet to appear in a game for the Bulls.
For the second time in two days, the Nets assigned Chris McCullough to the Long Island Nets to practice with the D-League squad, then recalled him later in the day, the club announced in a pair of press releases. McCullough is expected to be active for Brooklyn’s game tonight against the Timberwolves.
Josh Huestis, who recently changed agents, was assigned to the Oklahoma City Blue today by the Thunder to participate in the D-League team’s practice. The Thunder issued a press release confirming the move.

Jackson To Blame For Team's Woes?

November 8th, 2016 at 9:16pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Knicks are a team rife with dysfunction after just six games this season and much of the blame should fall on team president Phil Jackson, Mike Vaccaro of The New York Post opines. The Post scribe calls out the executive for his stubborn insistence on running the triangle despite the players not buying into the system, as well as his puzzling decision to install assistant coach Kurt Rambis as the “defensive coordinator” despite him being an offensive specialist by trade and not having had success as a head coach in the NBA.

New York Notes: Rambis, Randle, Foye, Nets

November 8th, 2016 at 1:45pm CST by Luke Adams

As we passed along earlier today, Knicks president Phil Jackson is reportedly unhappy with the team’s offense, which hasn’t incorporated many elements of the triangle. While Jackson and some of the Knicks players appear to be at odds over the triangle, it’s the team’s defense that has been the real problem — New York ranks dead last in the NBA in points allowed per 100 possessions, and hasn’t held any of its opponents under 102 points in a game so far. We’ve got some details on how the Knicks plan to tackle that area of concern, along with some other notes out of New York:

The Knicks have put assistant coach – and former interim head coach – Kurt Rambis in charge of their defense, reports ESPN’s Marc Stein (Twitter links). According to Stein, the club’s assistants weren’t assigned any specific areas of emphasis to start the season, but have asked Rambis to focus on defense after a troublesome start.
Point guard Chasson Randle was “all but assured” of a regular-season roster spot with the Knicks, but a fractured orbital bone last month led to his preseason release. Marc Berman of The New York Post takes a closer look at the current situation for Randle, who says he has contemplated playing overseas but still hopes to return to the Knicks when he’s healthy.
Summer signee Randy Foye received a modest one-year contract from the Nets and wasn’t necessarily viewed as a significant addition. However, with Jeremy Lin and Greivis Vasquez sidelined, Brooklyn will be very happy to see Foye return from a hamstring injury and make his Nets debut, writes Howie Kussoy of The New York Post. “It just gives us some stability, some leadership, defense and I think it’s gonna help us [and] help our young guys,” head coach Kenny Atkinson said on Monday. “He looked good in practice. [It’s] welcome news.”

Phil Jackson Unhappy With Knicks’ Offense

November 8th, 2016 at 9:51am CST by Luke Adams

The new-look Knicks are off to a slow start this season, having won just two of their first six games, and according to Ian Begley of ESPN.com, team president Phil Jackson has been unhappy with his club’s performance on offense. Specifically, Jackson isn’t pleased with the numbers of times the Knicks have run the triangle offense, says Begley.

Although new head coach Jeff Hornacek has vowed to implement “principles of the triangle” offense into New York’s half-court sets, he has also made an effort to speed things up in the early going, writes Begley. One Eastern Conference scout tells Begley that during the Knicks’ Friday win over the Bulls, New York ran a play out of a triangle set just a handful of times.

While Jackson isn’t happy about the lack of triangle sets in the offense, some Knicks players aren’t thrilled about using it at all. Sources tell Begley that a few of the Knicks players have suggested that the triangle offense doesn’t suit the club’s personnel, including point guard Derrick Rose, who is more effective in pick-and-roll sets.

Although the offense may be a point of contention during the first two weeks of the season for the Knicks, their defensive performance has been of greater concern. The club entered play on Monday ranked dead last in points allowed per 100 possessions, and hasn’t allowed fewer than 102 points in any of its six games so far.

Jackson, a former head coach, is a little more hands-on in his approach than most team presidents around the NBA. And with a new head coach on the bench in New York, there will likely be some growing pains during the first few weeks of the season as Hornacek and Jackson look to find common ground on the best approach for the team going forward.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/7/16

November 7th, 2016 at 10:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Here are today’s D-League assignments and recalls from around the NBA

10:00pm:

The Nets have recalled Chris McCullough from the Long Island Nets, according to a press release issued by the team. Brooklyn sent the 21-year-old forward to the D-League earlier today, as noted below.

2:46pm:

After assigning them to the Austin Spurs on Sunday, the Spurs have recalled Bryn Forbes, Danny Green and Dejounte Murray today, the club announced in a press release. Green appears to be on the verge of returning from the quad injury that has sidelined him so far this season.
The Knicks assigned Willy Hernangomez, Maurice Ndour, and Marshall Plumlee to their D-League affiliate today, allowing the trio to practice with the Westchester Knicks, per Ian Begley of ESPN.com (Twitter link). They’re expected to be back with New York tomorrow.
The Mavericks assigned A.J. Hammons to the Texas Legends today, then recalled him a few hours later, according to Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com (Twitter links).
Former first-round pick Bruno Caboclo was sent to the Raptors 905 by the Raptors today, according to Toronto’s D-League affiliate (via Twitter). Caboclo has yet to appear in an NBA game this season, so the Raptors have been getting him work with their D-League squad when possible.
The Nets assigned Chris McCullough to their D-League team, the Long Island Nets, the team announced today (via Twitter).

Knicks Don't Want To Place Pressure On Porzingis

November 7th, 2016 at 8:18pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Kristaps Porzingis represents a major part of the Knicks‘ future, but coach Jeff Hornacek doesn’t want to place added pressure on the young big man and prefers not to make him the focal point of the team’s offense, Al Iannazzone of Newsday relays. “You don’t want to put that on a — what did he, just turn 21; second year in the league — when you have players like Carmelo Anthony and now Derrick Rose, guys who have proven it in this league for years,” Hornacek said. “We try not to make [Porzingis] the focal point, but we’re trying not to make Carmelo necessarily the focal point or Derrick the focal point. We want everybody to be involved.”

Lee, Rose Unhappy With Defense

November 6th, 2016 at 6:05pm CST by Arthur Hill

Knicks newcomer Courtney Lee questioned the team’s defensive practice habits last week, and now his backcourt partner is blasting the game effort, relays Marc Berman of The New York Post. Derrick Rose cited poor communication on defense after New York let a 13-point lead get away in this afternoon’s loss to Utah. “I always said it’s our defense with our team that will spark everything,’’ Rose said. “Our defense is everything. Offensively we’re going to be fine. It’s definitely everybody being on a string, everybody communicating, everybody on the same page.’’ Lee claimed the Knicks are weak on defending pick-and-rolls because they only practice against the triangle.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/5/16

November 5th, 2016 at 9:35pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Here are Saturday’s D-League assignments and recalls from around the league:

The Knicks assigned Ron Baker, Maurice Ndour and Marshall Plumlee to their D-League affiliate, the Westchester Knicks, earlier today so they could practice with the team, according to their Twitter feed. New York has since recalled all three players.
The Pistons have assigned Henry Ellenson and Michael Gbinije to the Grand Rapids Drive, the team’s D-League affiliate, according to a team press release. Ellenson has only appeared in two games for Detroit, while Gbiniji has only seen action in one.
The Thunder assigned Josh Huestis to the Oklahoma City Blue earlier today so he could participate in practice, per a team press release. The practice has commenced and the team has subsequently recalled the forward.

Knicks Notes: Randle, Bench, Lopez

November 5th, 2016 at 8:13pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Chasson Randle, who is currently nursing a fractured orbital bone, has begun his rehab stint with the West Chester Knicks and New York is expected to add him to the roster once he is ready to play, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes. The Knicks currently have 15 players under contract, as the team’s depth chart at Roster Resource indicates, so they will have to make a corresponding move.

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

Randle will be a nice addition, but the Knicks‘ bench remains an area of concern, Berman opines in the same piece. In Friday night’s win over the Bulls, the starters accounted for 100 of the team’s 117 points, causing Berman to speculate that the team could look to the trade market to bolster the second unit.
Robin Lopez was surprised when he found out that he was traded to the Bulls this past offseason, though the big man is happy about his new home, as he tells Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders. “You know that’s how the league works,” Lopez said “I’m grateful for my experience in New York, for the season I was there, and I’m excited to be in Chicago as well. Very excited.”
Lopez said it was an “eye-opening” experience playing for the Knicks and he added that he wouldn’t have signed elsewhere had he known he would be traded just one season into his four-year deal, as he tells Scotto in the same piece. “Oh, not at all, not at all,” Lopez said. “Like I said, I think there are a lot of positives [that come] to mind from that experience.”

Rose, Noah Successful In Homecoming

November 5th, 2016 at 9:08am CST by Arthur Hill

The homecoming was a little friendlier for Joakim Noah, relays Marc Berman of The New York Post. The former Bulls center, who signed with the Knicks in July for $72MM over four years, was cheered loudly during introductions. He responded with 16 points, nine rebounds and four assists in the 117-104 victory. “There was a lot of love in this building,’’ said Noah, who spent nine seasons in Chicago. “I wanted to keep my emotions in check in this building.’’