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Chris Copeland To Play In Turkey

December 2nd, 2016 at 10:00am CST by Luke Adams

Free agent forward Chris Copeland is headed overseas, according to international basketball journalist David Pick, who confirms (via Twitter) that the NBA veteran has opted to sign for the 2016/17 season with Tofas Bursa, a Turkish team. Semih Tuna of Eurohoops.net first reported that Copeland would sign in Turkey.

Copeland, 32, appeared in 24 regular season contests for the Bucks last season after having also spent time with the Knicks and Pacers over the course of his NBA career. He played sparingly in Milwaukee, averaging just 2.1 PPG in 6.5 minutes per game for the team, and shot a career-worst 33.3% from the floor, including 27.8% on three-pointers.

This fall, Copeland joined the Pelicans for training camp, but didn’t last long with the club, having been released early in October. His contract with New Orleans didn’t feature any guaranteed money, and it seems no other NBA opportunities arose over the last couple months, resulting in his move overseas.

In Turkey, Copeland will be joining a Tofas Burka team that’s off to a 2-6 start, so he’ll be tasked with helping to turn the club around. His teammates will include Sixers draft-and-stash prospect Vasilije Micic, former DePaul standout Sammy Mejia, and former St. Joseph’s forward Ronald Roberts.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 12/1/16

December 1st, 2016 at 8:36pm CST by Luke Adams

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

8:36pm:

The Nets recalled point guard Yogi Ferrell and forward Chris McCullough from the Long Island Nets in time for their game against the Bucks, according to a team press release. Ferrell and McCullough started for Long Island earlier in the day in the team’s 114-104 victory over Santa Cruz in Brooklyn. Ferrell recorded a double-double with 18 points and 10 assists, while McCullough totaled 20 points, nine rebounds and four assists.

2:34pm:

As expected, Nerlens Noel was recalled from the D-League today by the Sixers, the team announced in a press release. Noel figures to go back and forth between the NBA club and the Delaware 87ers as he continues to rehab his knee injury and works toward a return.
Speaking of going back and forth between the NBA and the D-League, the Raptors once again assigned Bruno Caboclo and Fred VanVleet to their NBADL affiliate today, per the team (Twitter link). Given the close proximity the Raptors and Raptors 905, Caboclo and VanVleet are among the league leaders in D-League assignments so far this season.
The Bucks have recalled guard Rashad Vaughn from the Westchester Knicks, according to a press release from the club. Milwaukee doesn’t control its own NBADL affiliate, so Vaughn played for New York’s affiliate, and has averaged just 16.6 minutes per game for the quad in three games this year — if the Bucks had their own D-League team, Vaughn likely would have seen more playing time.

Jeff Ayres Joins Lakers’ D-League Affiliate

December 1st, 2016 at 1:54pm CST by Luke Adams

Veteran NBA big man Jeff Ayres is back in the D-League, according to a press release issued today by the Los Angeles D-Fenders. The Lakers’ NBADL affiliate announced that it has acquired Ayres’ rights as a returning player.

Ayres, who was named a D-League All-Star last season after being selected first overall in the NBADL draft, averaged 16.2 PPG, 9.4 RPG, and 1.0 BPG in 27 total contests for the Idaho Stampede and L.A. D-Fenders. The 29-year-old was acquired in a trade by the D-Fenders during the season, and received an NBA call-up just two games later, when he signed with the Clippers.

After playing on two 10-day contracts, Ayres signed with the Clippers for the remainder of the 2015/16 season. He appeared in 17 games for L.A., averaging 1.8 PPG and 1.3 RPG in limited playing time. Ayres has also played for the Trail Blazers, Pacers, and Spurs over the course of his six-year NBA career, winning a championship in 2014 with San Antonio.

Ayres signed with Russia’s CSKA Moscow earlier this year, but was let go by the club last week and was said at the time to be seeking an NBA return. Previously represented by Impact Sports Basketball, Ayres hired BDA Sports for representation, and will now attempt to showcase his skills in the D-League as he looks for a new NBA home. The man formerly known as Jeff Pendergraph is expected to suit up tonight for the D-Fenders against the Salt Lake City Stars.

Norris Cole Released By Chinese Team

December 1st, 2016 at 8:56am CST by Luke Adams

After starting the 2016/17 Chinese Basketball Association season with the Shandong Golden Stars, Norris Cole has been released by the team, according to LI Shuangfu of Lanxiong Sports (Twitter link). Zhang Duo reports that the Chinese club has signed former NBA guard A.J. Price to take Cole’s spot on its roster (link via Sportando).

The timing is interesting for Cole, who reached a deal with Shandong nearly two months ago. That contract was believed to include an NBA out, and a report surfaced this week – in the wake of Mike Conley‘s back injury – suggesting that the Grizzlies had expressed interest in bringing Cole back to the NBA. There’s no indication yet that Cole and the Grizzlies have an agreement in place, but it certainly wouldn’t be surprising to see the veteran point guard sign with Memphis within the next few days.

Cole averaged a career-high 10.6 PPG and 3.7 APG last season in 45 games for the Pelicans, but was unable to land a deal with an NBA team as a free agent this offseason. The 28-year-old point guard, who started his career with the Heat when Grizzlies head coach David Fizdale was an assistant in Miami, played in nine games for the Golden Stars this season, averaging 19.1 PPG and 4.3 APG.

If the Grizzlies do intend to sign Cole, they’ll either have to waive a player from their 15-man roster, or wait until they’re eligible to apply for a hardship exception. Teams can become eligible to add an extra player to their roster if they have at least four players who are sick or injured. For a hardship exception to be granted, those four players must have missed at least three consecutive games apiece and must continue to be unavailable.

Currently, Memphis is without Conley, Chandler Parsons, James Ennis, and Brandan Wright, so the team will be eligible to apply for the hardship exception on Saturday, after Conley misses his third consecutive game.

As for Price, the 30-year-old guard started his NBA career with the Pacers back in 2009/10, and ultimately appeared in 261 regular season games for a total of five teams. He spent last season with the CBA’s Shanghai Sharks.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/30/16

November 30th, 2016 at 4:55pm CST by Luke Adams

Here are Wednesday’s D-League assignments and recalls from around the NBA, with the latest updates added to the top of the list throughout the day:

4:55pm:

The Nets have assigned a pair of players to the D-League, sending Yogi Ferrell and Chris McCullough to the Long Island Nets, the team announced today in a press release. Long Island will host an afternoon contest against the Santa Cruz Warriors on Thursday, so the duo will likely suit up for that game.

12:54pm:

As expected, the Hawks have assigned 2016 first-rounder DeAndre’ Bembry to the D-League, tweets Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal Constitution. Since Atlanta doesn’t have its own D-League squad, Bembry will play for the Salt Lake City Stars, Utah’s affiliate.
A day after being recalled by Golden State, rookie center Damian Jones has been sent back to the Santa Cruz Warriors, the team announced today in a press release. Santa Cruz had an early game today, which Jones participated in — he picked up two points, four rebounds, and a pair of blocks.
In addition to confirming Nerlens Noel‘s D-League assignment (noted below), the Sixers announced today that they’ve recalled Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot from the Delaware 87ers after a brief D-League stint for the rookie.

9:52am:

The Sixers are sending Nerlens Noel to their D-League affiliate for injury rehab purposes, league sources tell Marc J. Spears of ESPN.com. According to Spears, Noel, who has yet to make his 2016/17 debut after undergoing a knee procedure, is set to practice on Wednesday with the Delaware 87ers, Philadelphia’s D-League affiliate. Like Jerryd Bayless, who was recently assigned to the 87ers on a rehab assignment, Noel is not expected to play in any games during his time in Delaware. The big man hopes to return to the Sixers by mid-December.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/29/16

November 29th, 2016 at 10:35pm CST by Luke Adams

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

10:35pm:

The Spurs have recalled Bryn Forbes, Nicolas Laprovittola and Dejounte Murray from their Austin affiliate, the team announced on its website.
The Nets have recalled forwards Anthony Bennett and Chris McCullough from their Long Island affiliate, the team announced in a press release. Both started Long Island’s game today and were available for Brooklyn’s game with the Clippers.
The Raptors have quickly recalled Caboclo and VanVleet, whose assignments to the D-League were noted below (Twitter link).

2:07pm:

After getting a rare shot at playing time for the Raptors on Monday night in the team’s blowout of the 76ers, Bruno Caboclo and Fred VanVleet have been re-assigned to Raptors 905, according to Blake Murphy of Raptors Republic. As Murphy writes, the schedules for Toronto’s NBA and D-League teams overlap neatly this week, so Caboclo and VanVleet could be up and down a couple more times.
Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, who received some playing time on the other side of that blowout in Toronto on Monday, has been assigned to the Delaware 87ers in advance of the team’s Tuesday night contest, according to a press release issued by the Sixers. The 2016 first-rounder has appeared in 11 games for Philadelphia so far, and one for Delaware.
Former first-round pick Josh Huestis has been re-assigned to the Oklahoma City Blue, the Thunder announced today in a press release. Huestis has appeared in a pair of games for the D-League squad so far, averaging a modest 9.0 PPG and 6.5 RPG.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/28/16

November 28th, 2016 at 11:00pm CST by Luke Adams

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

11:00pm:

The Nets have assigned forward Anthony Bennett to their Long Island affiliate, the team announced in a press release. He has played 10 games for Brooklyn, averaging 5.3 points and 2.6 rebounds per night.

2:32pm:

The Warriors have recalled rookie center Damian Jones from the D-League, the team announced today in a press release. It’s not clear if Jones is ready to make his NBA debut quite yet, or if he’s just being called up to practice with Golden State for now.
A day after he was on the receiving end of an emphatic dunk by Wayne Selden, forward Rakeem Christmas has been recalled by the Pacers, according to a team release. Christmas contributed 18 points and seven boards to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants’ win on Sunday.
The Magic have assigned rookie center Stephen Zimmerman to the Erie BayHawks, the team announced today (via Twitter). A second-round pick in June, Zimmerman has only appeared in two regular season games so far for Orlando.
Chris McCullough continues to be shuttled back and forth between the Brooklyn Nets and the Long Island Nets. The team announced today in a press release that he has been sent back to the D-League, where he has appeared in four games so far for Long Island, averaging 17.5 PPG and 6.5 RPG.

Tony Wroten, Archie Goodwin Sign With D-League

November 28th, 2016 at 8:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Former NBA guards Tony Wroten and Archie Goodwin have signed D-League contracts, according to Chris Reichert of The Step Back.

Wroten, who was waived three times during the offseason, has been claimed by the Texas Legends, the Mavericks’ D-League affiliate (Twitter link). Goodwin, who has been waived by both the Suns and Pelicans in the past five weeks, is also joining the D-League (Twitter link).

Wroten, 23, spent a lot of time in the D-League during his four NBA seasons with the Grizzlies and Sixers. He played in just eight NBA games last season, all with Philadelphia, before being waived on Christmas Eve.

Wroten signed with the Knicks in March, but never played for the team. He agreed to a two-year deal with no guaranteed money, and was waived in June after New York traded for Derrick Rose. Wroten was claimed off waivers by the Grizzlies, who waived him in July, re-signed him in August, then waived him again in October.

The 25th pick in the 2012 draft, Wroten started his career in Memphis but spent just one season there before being traded to the Sixers. He is averaging 11.1 points and 3.0 assists in 145 career games.

Goodwin, the 29th pick in the 2013 draft, also made frequent trips to the D-League during his three seasons in Phoenix. A 22-year-old combo guard, Goodwin averaged 6.2 points and 1.2 assists per night in 150 games with the Suns. He signed with New Orleans on November 7th, but appeared in just three games before being released.

Kendall Marshall, Jordan Adams Claimed By D-League Teams

November 28th, 2016 at 1:58pm CST by Luke Adams

A pair of former first-round picks have entered the NBA D-League player pool and have been claimed, according to a pair of reports from D-League Digest (Twitter links). Sources tell D-League Digest that the Reno Bighorns have claimed point guard Kendall Marshall, while the Oklahoma City Blue have claimed shooting guard Jordan Adams.

Marshall, who turned 25 this summer, has played for the Suns, Lakers, Bucks, and Sixers since entering the NBA as a lottery pick in 2012. He was sent from Philadelphia to Utah in an offseason trade, and was promptly cut by the Jazz in August before his salary for 2016/17 became guaranteed. Marshall, who has averaged 5.0 PPG and 4.9 APG in 160 career NBA contests, has been a free agent since then, and it appears he has decided to play in the D-League while he continues to seek another NBA opportunity.

Marshall will be joining the Kings’ D-League affiliate in Reno, which is somewhat interesting. There’s no indication that Sacramento’s NBA club has any interest in signing Marshall, but the Kings aren’t particularly stacked at point guard, with Darren Collison and Ty Lawson in the final year of their respective contracts. If Marshall plays well for the Bighorns, perhaps Sacramento will want to take a flier on him.

As for Adams, he was one of several Grizzlies players waived as the team reduced its roster to 15 players at the end of the preseason. The UCLA product was the 22nd overall pick in 2014 and is still just 22 years old, but he has been plagued by injuries since entering the NBA, appearing in just 32 total games for Memphis, so the team was willing to cut its losses and eat his guaranteed salary. Adams, who is still earning $1.221MM from the Grizzlies this season, is set to join the Thunder’s D-League affiliate.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/27/16

November 27th, 2016 at 7:21pm CST by Arthur Hill

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

Forwards Anthony Bennett and Chris McCullough were recalled by the Nets after being assigned to Long Island earlier today for the D-League team’s game against Grand Rapids, the team announced in an email. Bennett had 22 points, eight rebounds and five assists, while McCullough put up 15 points and nine rebounds.
The Raptors have recalled Jakob Poeltl, Bruno Caboclo and Fred VanVleet from Raptors 905, according to The Toronto Sun. All three had been sent down to participate in Satuday’s game against Maine.
The Spurs assigned rookie guards Dejounte Murray, Bryn Forbes and Nicolas Laprovittola to Austin, writes Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio News-Express. They are expected to be recalled in time for San Antonio’s game on Tuesday.
The Pelicans have recalled rookie forward Cheick Diallo from Austin, the team announced in an email. He has played six games in the D-League and just one for New Orleans.
The Mavericks recalled rookie center A.J. Hammons from the Texas Legends, according to an email from the team. He was assigned Saturday for a game against Salt Lake in which he scored eight points and grabbed four rebounds.
The Bulls have recalled forward/center Cristiano Felicio and guards Jerian Grant and R.J. Hunter from their Windy City affiliate, the team announced in an email.