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NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 12/10/16

December 10th, 2016 at 10:59pm CST by Luke Adams

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

10:59pm:

The Magic have recalled center Stephen Zimmerman from their Erie affiliate, the team posted on its website. Zimmerman spent four games with Erie, averaging 21.8 points and 15.5 rebounds per game. He has appeared in two games with Orlando.

3:05pm:

The Pistons have assigned Stanley Johnson, Henry Ellenson, and Michael Gbinije to the D-League, the team announced today in a press release. Ellenson and Gbinije have already spent some time in Grand Rapids this season, but it’ll be Johnson’s first D-League stint of the season. According to Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press (Twitter link), the 2015 eighth overall pick discussed the move with Stan Van Gundy, and will return to the Pistons after playing tonight with the Drive.
Jerian Grant and Paul Zipser have been recalled from the D-League by the Bulls, the club announced in a press release. Both players contributed to the Windy City Bulls’ victory over Canton on Friday night, with Grant making the game-winning shot. R.J. Hunter remains on assignment with the club.
The Hawks don’t have their own D-League affiliate, but they’ve assigned DeAndre’ Bembry back to the Salt Lake City Stars, per Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal Constitution. In a one-game stint with the Stars earlier this season, Bembry poured in 16 of 22 shots and racked up 35 points.
A day after being assigned to the D-League to practice with the Salt Lake City Stars, Joel Bolomboy has been recalled by the Jazz, according to a team release.
The Lakers have sent rookie big man Ivica Zubac back to the D-League, tweets Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News. Zubac will suit up tonight for the Los Angeles D-Fenders in their game against Austin.

Pelicans Sign Reggie Williams

December 10th, 2016 at 12:08pm CST by Eddie Scarito

DECEMBER 10: The Pelicans have officially signed Williams, the team announced today in a press release.

DECEMBER 9: The Pelicans freed up a roster slot earlier today by waiving Anthony Brown and it appears the team will fill that opening by signing Reggie Williams, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter). The details of the arrangement are unknown, but it is more than likely a minimum salary pact that includes little or no guaranteed salary.

The 30-year-old, who was waived by the Thunder during the preseason, last played in the NBA during the 2014/15 season, when he joined the Spurs during the middle of the campaign. He previously played with the Thunder, signing a 10-day contract with the team during the 2013/14 campaign. The forward only saw a total of 17 minutes of action and OKC didn’t re-sign him once the deal expired.

Williams has been playing for the Oklahoma City Blue in the NBA D-League, appearing in 11 games and averaging 17.1 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 33.3 minutes per night. His shooting line is .462/.419/.727.

Pelicans Waive Anthony Brown

December 9th, 2016 at 10:59am CST by Arthur Hill

The Pelicans have waived Anthony Brown, tweets Justin Verrier of ESPN.

The second-year swingman played nine games for New Orleans, putting up averages of 3.8 points and 2.9 rebounds in 15.9 minutes per night. He was signed November 21st in an effort to improve the Pelicans’ depth in the backcourt.

The 24-year-old out of Stanford was selected by the Lakers with the 34th pick of the 2015 draft. He spent his rookie season in L.A., averaging 4.0 points and 2.4 rebounds in 29 games, but was waived before the season started.

The move leaves New Orleans with just 14 players, so another roster move may be coming soon.

Donatas Motiejunas To Re-Sign With Rockets

December 9th, 2016 at 10:03am CST by Arthur Hill

10:03am: Motiejunas has agreed to a new contract with Houston, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. The deal will pay him $35MM over four years (Twitter link), but bonuses could push the value to $37MM, which is identical to the Nets’ offer sheet (Twitter link). Motiejunas will make a fully guaranteed $8.3MM this season, and the Rockets will have a team option on the rest of the deal each July for the next three years (Twitter link).

Also, the trade restrictions that would have come with a matched offer sheet are gone. Motiejunas can now be traded as soon as the season ends and does not have to give his consent to any deal, tweets The Vertical’s Bobby Marks. Motiejunas still must pass a physical before returning to the team (Twitter link). He was limited to 37 games because of back problems last season, but is reportedly healthy now.

9:21am: The Rockets are working on a new contract with Donatas Motiejunas, tweets ESPN’s Marc Stein. The team has pulled an offer sheet that it matched from Brooklyn, and the parties are trying to come up with mutually acceptable terms.

Motiejunas’ status has been in limbo since become a restricted free agent July 1st. He waited through the entire offseason and the first six weeks of the regular season without receiving an offer, then agreed to a four-year, $37MM contract with the Nets last week.

The Rockets announced on Monday that they were matching the deal, but excluded $6MM in incentives that the Nets offered. Motiejunas failed to show up for a team physical in the wake of his decision, with his agent, B.J. Armstrong, saying the 26-year-old forward wouldn’t report until the dispute over incentives was resolved. The Rockets responded by declaring that they wouldn’t withdraw their first refusal exercise notice, which would have made Motiejunas a restricted free agent again.

Houston’s front office had been hoping to get the Motiejunas situation resolved before November 23rd, which was three months before the trade deadline. If the team does work out a new contract with Motiejunas, it will have to hold onto him for at least the rest of the season. After March 1st, NBA rules prohibit Motiejunas from signing with another organization through the end of the season, even if the Rockets were to allow him back on the market.

It appears from this morning’s news that both sides have decided it is in their best interest not to prolong the situation much further, and Calvin Watkins of ESPN tweets that Brooklyn’s offer sheet should help with negotiations because there are now parameters to work with.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 12/8/16

December 8th, 2016 at 10:53pm CST by Dana Gauruder

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

The Warriors recalled rookie center Damian Jones from their D-League affiliate in Santa Cruz, according to a press release. During his most recent assignment, which began Nov. 30, Jones averaged 2.7 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.0 blocks in 19.3 minutes.
Ivica Zubac was assigned by the Lakers to their D-Fenders, Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News tweets. That allowed him to get some game action against Reno. The 7’1” rookie center has appeared in four games with the Lakers.

Grizzlies Extend Three In Front Office

December 8th, 2016 at 3:53pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Grizzlies have agreed to multi-year extensions with GM Chris Wallace, VP of Basketball Operations John Hollinger and VP of Player Personnel Ed Stefanski, according to a team press release. The terms of the three deals were not disclosed, per the team’s policy.

“I am pleased to announce that our Basketball Operations executive team, led by General Manager, Chris Wallace, will continue to lead our franchise for years to come,” controlling ownder Robert Pera said. “Chris, John and Ed bring a wealth of NBA experience and success, and have done a tremendous job establishing the strong culture that I believe is necessary to ensure sustained success in this ultra-competitive environment. More importantly, I am confident that the toughness, resilience, discipline and unselfishness that are embedded in the fabric of our culture will continue to serve as a point of pride for Memphis, the surrounding region and all Grizzlies fans.”

Wallace joined the organization back in 2007 and the team believes the culture he helped established has been a major factor in attracting players in free agency as well as retaining its own free agents.

Hollinger joined the Grizzlies in 2012 and he is best known for his work in the field of basketball analytics. Stefanski, who is a graduate of University of Penn’s Wharton School of Business, has been with the team since 2014.

Nets Sign Spencer Dinwiddie

December 8th, 2016 at 3:36pm CST by ChrisCrouse

After waiving Yogi Ferrell earlier today, the Nets have signed Spencer Dinwiddie, the team announces via press release. The agreement is for three years and it is partially guaranteed, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (Twitter link).

Brooklyn’s roster now stands at 15 players after adding the point guard. The 23-year-old should have an opportunity to see significant playing time, as the team remains without Jeremy Lin because of a hamstring injury.

Dinwiddie most recently played for the Windy City Bulls of the D-League. He last played in the NBA for the Pistons, where he appeared in 46 games over the course of the 2014/15 and 2015/16 seasons. He has career averages of 4.4 points, 2.7 assists and 1.4 rebounds per game.

Nets Waive Yogi Ferrell

December 8th, 2016 at 12:34pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Nets have waived Yogi Ferrell, according to Brian Lewis of the New York Post (Twitter links). The cap hit for the move is slightly over $102K, as Bobby Marks of The Vertical notes on Twitter.

The team’s roster currently sits at 14, so a corresponding move could be forthcoming, but GM Sean Marks wouldn’t commit to a particular position when asked about who will fill the open roster spot. “I’d hate to limit us to just a position. I’ve never put something like that on it. We’ll look at every position to be honest,” Marks said. Brooklyn is without a healthy veteran option at the point guard position, as Jeremy Lin remains out with a hamstring injury.

Ferrell played sparingly for the Nets, only appearing in 10 games. He averaged 5.4 points and 1.7 assists in 15.1 minutes per contest. If Ferrell goes unclaimed and decides to join the D-League, he’ll play for the Long Island Nets, Chris Reichert of The Step Back tweets.

Lorenzo Brown, Royce White Join Non-NBA Teams

December 8th, 2016 at 8:49am CST by Luke Adams

Former NBA draftees Lorenzo Brown and Royce White have signed with new teams, and will be headed to China and Canada, respectively, according to reports. Emiliano Carchia of Sportando (via Zhang Duo) has the details on Brown, who will join China’s Zhejiang Golden Bulls, while Chris Reichert of The Step Back tweets that White has signed with the London Lightning in Canada’s NBL.

Brown, who was in camp with the Pistons this fall, was waived after losing the battle for the team’s third point guard spot, and reached an agreement with Russia’s Unics Kazan last month. However, the 26-year-old reportedly failed his physical with the Russian team, leaving him looking for work elsewhere.

The 52nd overall pick in the 2013 draft, Brown has logged 63 total NBA regular-season appearances for the Sixers, Timberwolves, and Suns. The former N.C. State standout spent much of the 2015/16 campaign with Detroit’s D-League affiliate in Grand Rapids, averaging 18.3 points, 5.8 assists and 2.9 turnovers in 33.3 minutes per game, before he signed with the Pistons near the end of the season.

As for White, the former 16th overall pick only ever appeared in three NBA regular-season games, back in 2014. An anxiety disorder, which included a fear of flying, complicated White’s ability to contribute to an NBA team, though a handful of clubs, including the Rockets, Sixers, and Kings, attempted to make it work. The 25-year-old continues to seek out professional basketball opportunities, but has acknowledged that advocating for mental health awareness is more important to him than trying to return to the NBA.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 12/7/16

December 7th, 2016 at 10:41pm CST by Luke Adams

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

11:41 pm

The Bulls have recalled R.J. Hunter, Doug McDermott and Paul Zipser from their D-League affiliate, according to a team press release. Zipser and Hunter were assigned to the Windy City Bulls just hours ago, so the duo presumably joined Chicago’s affiliate for practice.
The Nets have recalled Chris McCullough from the Long Island Nets, the team’s D-League affiliate, per a team press release. He scored 19 points and 13 rebounds in Long Island’s game today.

12:21 pm

Rookie forward Cheick Diallo, who had been assigned to the Austin Spurs, has been recalled from the D-League by the Pelicans, the team announced in a press release. New Orleans doesn’t have its own D-League affiliate, so Diallo has been playing for San Antonio’s D-League squad, averaging 12.0 PPG, 6.0 RPG, and 2.1 BPG in nine games for Austin.
The Hornets have sent Aaron Harrison and Christian Wood back to the D-League on assignments, according to a press release issued by the club. Harrison and Wood, who have played very sparingly for Charlotte, should get a chance to suit up and see some action for the Greensboro Swarm in Wednesday night’s game.
The Nets have once again assigned Chris McCullough to Long Island, according to a team release. The Nets’ D-League affiliate plays this afternoon, so McCullough could be recalled after the game for Brooklyn’s Wednesday evening contest against Denver.
R.J. Hunter and Paul Zipser have been assigned to the D-League, the Bulls announced today in a press release. Chicago’s affiliate, the Windy City Bulls, doesn’t play until Friday, so it’s not clear how long Hunter’s and Zipser’s assignments will last.