Isaiah Taylor

Southeast Notes: Morris, Felix, Hawks, Hezonja

Wizards forward Markieff Morris was ready to make his season debut in tonight’s loss to the Suns, but he had to serve a one-game suspension first, tweets Chase Hughes of NBC Washington. Morris, who has been sidelined since abdominal surgery in late September for a sports hernia, was suspended for leaving the bench in Friday’s game against Golden State.

“We’re just going through protocol,” Morris told reporters in comments relayed by ESPN. “Everybody’s body is different. Mine, I feel like it healed a little faster than normal and I’m just ready to go now.”

There’s more tonight from the Southeast Division:

  • Also suspended after Friday’s altercation was Wizards guard Carrick Felix, who is less able to afford the loss of money or playing opportunities, Hughes writes in a full story. Felix earned a roster spot with Washington after being out of the NBA since 2014. His only previous experience was seven games with the Cavaliers. “I might help him out, man. It was all my fault, anyways,” said teammate Bradley Beal. “I gotta help my guy out. We might start a Go Fund Me and help out my guy Carrick Felix. He’s gonna need some cash, for sure.” Hughes notes that Felix served his suspension in Sunday’s rout at Sacramento, which could have provided his first game action of the season.
  • The Hawks had point guards Malcolm Delaney and Isaiah Taylor on the court at the same time in tonight’s loss to the Sixers, relays Michael Cunningham of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. If both are going to be in the rotation, then Marco Belinelli will be the only wing off the bench and little playing time will be left for Tyler Dorsey and Nicolas Brussino, according to Cunningham.
  • Magic forward Mario Hezonja doesn’t plan to let his contract situation bother him over the rest of the season, writes John Denton of NBA.com. Hezonja is headed toward unrestricted free agency next summer after Orlando declined his fourth-year option. “This is not going to change anything and I’m still going to be working hard on my game and still coming with the same mentality to try and get even better,’’ Hezonja said. “I’m here to play and I didn’t come from home to here to watch.”

Hawks Sign Isaiah Taylor

OCTOBER 17: The Hawks have officially signed Taylor, the team announced tonight in a press release.

OCTOBER 16: The Hawks have reached an agreement with Isaiah Taylor and will sign the free agent point guard to a two-year contract, reports Shams Charania of The Vertical. Taylor cleared waivers on Sunday after being cut by the Rockets.

Taylor, who went undrafted out of Texas in 2016, caught on with the Rockets for training camp last fall, then became a G League affiliate player for the team after being waived in the preseason. The 23-year-old guard had an excellent season for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, averaging 21.0 PPG and 6.0 APG with a shooting line of .515/.457/.816 in 25 G League games.

Taylor rejoined the Rockets before season’s end, inking a multiyear deal and finishing the year with the club. However, he didn’t make the cut for Houston’s 2017/18 regular season roster, having been waived by the team on Friday.

With a spot open on their NBA roster and a two-way slot available too, the Hawks have some flexibility when it comes to adding Taylor. Charania’s report suggests Taylor will fill the 15th and final spot on Atlanta’s roster, with Michael Cunningham of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution adding (via Twitter) that the deal will be partially guaranteed.

Chris Johnson Among Four Rockets Cuts

The Rockets have waived Chris Johnson, Isaiah Taylor, Tim Quarterman and George de Paula, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle tweets. The four cuts slash Houston’s roster down to 15 players in time for the 2017/18 season.

Johnson, the 27-year-old veteran out of Dayton, last suited up for the Jazz back in 2015/16 while point guard Taylor spent time with Houston in 2016/17.

Quarterman on the other hand was acquired by the Rockets in the flurry of trades leading up to the Chris Paul deal and de Paula, the undrafted rookie out of Brazil, has yet to make his NBA debut.

Southwest Notes: Mavericks, Pelicans, Rockets

The Mavericks have liked what they’ve seen from Chinese swingman Ding Yanyuhang in limited Summer League minutes, but may not be able to keep him stateside with a low-paying two-way contract, writes Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. As Sefko details, if the Mavs want to keep Ding around, it will likely require an NBA contract offer, even if the 23-year-old may not be NBA-ready quite yet.

Within his story on Ding, Sefko also suggests that Nicolas Brussino‘s time with the Mavericks may be coming to an end. Brussino’s salary guarantee deadline for 2017/18 is next Thursday, and the Argentinian swingman seems unlikely to remain in Dallas beyond that date, per Sefko.

Here’s more from around the Southwest division:

  • The Pelicans remain in the market for an impact guard and an outside shooter, but would likely need to shed salary to add both, tweets Scott Kushner of The Advocate. As Kushner notes, it will be complicated for New Orleans to accomplish all three goals.
  • In an interview with Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated, Chris Paul explained why he felt it was time to move on from the Clippers, and what drew him to the Rockets.
  • Isaiah Taylor, who has a non-guaranteed minimum salary for 2017/18, will likely spend the majority of the season with the Rockets rather than the team’s G League affiliate in Rio Grande Valley, per head coach Mike D’Antoni (Twitter link via Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle). Of course, that assumes Houston doesn’t use Taylor’s non-guaranteed contract to help accommodate a trade.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 4/16/17

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

  • The Celtics are in action in the first round of the NBA playoffs tonight, but Demetrius Jackson and Jordan Mickey aren’t with them, having been assigned to the Maine Red Claws, per the team (Twitter link). Jackson and Mickey are playing in Maine’s game against the Raptors 905 today in the D-League postseason.
  • The Rockets have assigned Chinanu Onuaku, Isaiah Taylor, and Kyle Wiltjer to the D-League, the team announced today (Twitter link). Like Boston, Houston has both its NBA team and its D-League affiliate playing postseason games today, so Onuaku, Taylor, and Wiltjer will suit up for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers rather than the Rockets.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 4/14/17

Here are Friday’s assignments/recalls from around the league…

  • The Raptors assigned Bruno Caboclo and Pascal Siakam to Raptors 905, the team announced via Twitter (link). Caboclo and Siakam should pick up steady minutes for Raptors 905, as they take on the Maine Red Claws in the D-League Eastern Conference finals.
  • The Rockets recalled Chinanu Onuaku, Isaiah Taylor, and Kyle Wiltjer from the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the team announced via Twitter (link). All three players received 35+ minutes in Rio Grande’s Game 1 loss to the Blue on Thursday.
  • The Thunder recalled Josh Huestis from Oklahoma City Blue, the team announced in a press release. Huestis scored 11 points over 29 minutes with the Blue in the D-League playoffs last night.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 4/13/17

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

  • The Thunder have assigned Josh Huestis to the D-League, the team announced today in a press release. The Oklahoma City Blue are in action tonight, as their playoff series against the Rio Grande Valley Vipers gets underway, so Huestis will get a chance to play in that game.
  • The Rockets have assigned Chinanu Onuaku, Isaiah Taylor, and Kyle Wiltjer to their D-League squad, according to the team (Twitter link). The trio, of course, will suit up for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers and will take on Huestis’s OKC Blue tonight.
  • Demetrius Jackson and Jordan Mickey have been recalled from the Maine Red Claws, the Celtics announced today (via Twitter). Boston’s D-League affiliate remains alive in the NBADL postseason, but the team’s series against the Raptors 905 doesn’t get underway until Sunday, so Jackson and Mickey can stick with the NBA club for now.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 4/9/2017

Here are Sunday’s D-League assignments and recalls from around the league, as the NBADL postseason continues:

  • The Rockets have recalled Chinanu Onuaku and Isaiah Taylor from the Rio Grand Valley Vipers, according to the team’s Twitter feed. Both players were sent to Houston’s D-League affiliate on Saturday for the team’s tilt against the Los Angeles D-Fenders.