2012 October | Hoops Rumors

Odds & Ends: Christmas, Dumars, Knicks, Green

October 15th, 2012 at 10:30pm CST by Michael Pina

A quick look around the league at some interesting notes on this Monday evening.

CSNNE.com's A. Sherrod Blakely reports that Celtics guard Dionte Christmas is on the "inside track" for a roster spot with the team.
Yahoo! NBA reporter Adrian Wojnarowski has a feature on Hall of Fame Pistons general manager Joe Dumars, and how his rebuilding of a franchise he once led to a title is closer to being completed than most people think.
Lamar Odom has been the definition of a x-factor these last few years. ESPNLA.com's Arash Markazi asks which player the Clippers will be getting.
After signing Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis in the offseason, the Heat have stockpiled on three-point shooters, writes FoxSports.com's Chris Tomasson.
KnicksNow.com's Jonah Bellow writes about the Knicks new backcourt trio of Jason Kidd, Pablo Prigioni, and Raymond Felton.
It took longer to establish himself than most lottery picks, but now that Gerald Green has finally locked down a long-term contract, he wants to prove he's more than just a dunker, writes the Indianapolis Star's Mike Wells.

Update On Seattle Arena

October 15th, 2012 at 9:40pm CST by Michael Pina

The King County Council and the Seattle City Council have given a final approval on an agreement to build a $490 million basketball and hockey arena in the city, despite the threat of a lawsuit from longshore workers, according to a report by the Associated Press.

The County Council approved the agreement unanimously, and the City Council voted 7-2. Both groups had previously approved the deal, but it was a different version. Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn said the votes were an important step toward bringing professional men's basketball back to Seattle. He and King County Executive Dow Constantine were scheduled to sign the deal Tuesday.

Categories:
City of Seattle

Suns Waive Othyus Jeffers

October 15th, 2012 at 8:44pm CST by Michael Pina

The Suns waived Othyus Jeffers today, reports AZCentral.com's Paul Coro. The 27-year-old Jeffers had been out of the league for a season after knee surgery and was trying to make a Suns team that needs to replace place Channing Frye this season.

Jeffers' one preseason appearance came in a loss to the Kings on Wednesday night. He scored two points and grabbed two rebounds. He did not play in Friday night's game.

Injury Notes: Lowry, Clark, Deng, Stoudemire

October 15th, 2012 at 8:03pm CST by Michael Pina

Earlier we discussed Andrew Bynum's knee, which has lingered as a legitimate news item longer than Sixers fans would like. Now, here's a look towards other injury situations throughout the league as we head into the regular season, just a short two weeks away.

New Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry looks to make his debut with the team on Wednesday night, reports Jay Satur from Raptors.com. Lowry has been battling a groin injury this offseason.
Lakers forward Earl Clark is out indefintely with a groin injury, reports ESPNLA.com's Andy Kamenetzky. Clark came over from Orlando in the Dwight Howard trade earlier this summer.
Recovering from a bone bruise in his left knee, Amare Stoudemire plans to make his preseason debut on Friday, reports Newsday's Al Iannazzone.
After sitting out last Friday night's preseason game with a sore groin, Bulls forward Luol Deng will play Tuesday night against the Bucks, reports ESPNChicago.com's Nick Friedell.
Still recovering from a platelet-rich plasma injection he received in September, Pacers forward Danny Granger is aiming to make a return for the last two games of the preseason, reports Pacers.com writer Mark Montieth.

Reggie Theus To Coach D-League’s D-Fenders

October 15th, 2012 at 6:50pm CST by Michael Pina

OCTOBER 15th, 6:50pm: The D-Fenders officially named Reggie Theus as their head coach today, reports ESPNLA.com's Brian Kamenetzky.

SEPTEMBER 28th, 8:16am: Theus and the D-Fenders have agreed to terms on a deal that will make the longtime NBA guard the team's coach, reports Andy Katz of ESPN.com.

SEPTEMBER 24th, 6:33pm: Former NBA player and head coach Reggie Theus has emerged as the leading candidate to become head coach of the Los Angeles D-Fenders, tweets Yahoo! Sports columnist Adrian Wojnarowski. After serving as head coach of the Kings for the 2007 season, Theus was fired after a 6-18 start in 2008. He then sat on Kurt Rambis' bench as an assistant with the Timberwolves from 2009 to 2011.

Reggie Theus

Andrew Bynum Update

October 15th, 2012 at 5:57pm CST by Michael Pina

According to a press release from the Sixers, on Monday, October 22, Andrew Bynum will receive a Synvisc injection in his right knee from Dr. David Altchek of the Hospital of Special Surgery.

Mentioned in the report is news that following the injection, Bynum will be examined by Dr. Jack McPhilemy of Main Line Health and the team will provide additional updates as they are available and appropriate. The shot has been a routine procedure for Bynum during the previous two seasons and is unrelated to previous reports of his bone bruise.

Bulls Waive Andre Emmett

October 15th, 2012 at 4:58pm CST by Luke Adams

The Bulls have officially waived Andre Emmett, the team announced today in a press release. Emmett is the second camp invitee released by the Bulls, along with Vance Cooksey, who was let go early in the month. The team's roster now stands at 16 players.

Emmett, a second-round pick in 2004, went seven seasons between NBA games, appearing in eight contests in 2004/05 and then not seeing his next NBA action until 2011/12 with the Nets. He appeared in a pair of preseason games for the Bulls this month, but didn't see much playing time, averaging just 1.5 PPG and 1.5 RPG in 3.8 MPG.

If the Bulls want to keep any of their camp invitees on the roster once the regular season gets underway, they'll need to either trade one of their 12 guaranteed contracts or release Nate Robinson, whose deal is partially guaranteed. Because the Bulls are up against a hard cap, Kyrylo Fesenko, Marko Jaric, and Ryan Allen are all facing uphill battles to make the team.

Odds & Ends: Stone, Ellington, Pistons, Kings

October 15th, 2012 at 4:39pm CST by Luke Adams

Julyan Stone, recovering from hip surgery, could be out until January, Nuggets coach George Karl tells Benjamin Hochman of the Denver Post. Stone's contract is only partially guaranteed for $100K, so it's possible the team decides to cut him, but Hochman stresses that the Nuggets "love" the second-year point guard, suggesting he's still part of their plans going forward. Here are a few more updates from around the NBA:

Following up on David Aldridge's story on extension candidates that we covered earlier, Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal says Wayne Ellington won't be extended by the Grizzlies due to the pending change in ownership.
General manager Joe Dumars has the Pistons on an upward trajectory as the team continues to rebuild, writes Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
Kings coach Keith Smart recently appeared on Sacramento radio station KHTK to discuss Tyreke Evans, DeMarcus Cousins, and changing the culture in Sacramento. Eric Schmoldt of Sports Radio Interviews has the details.
Jon Pastuszek of NiuBBall.com passes along Chinese reports that indicate the Qingdao Double Star Eagles are still considering signing Jerome Jordan. We'd heard previously of Qingdao's interest in Jordan, but perhaps the seven-footer is more intrigued by the possibility now that Tracy McGrady is on board.
Gino Pilato of Ridiculous Upside wonders if Kelenna Azubuike could head to the D-League after being released by the Cavaliers.

Kings Waive Cyril Awere

October 15th, 2012 at 3:03pm CST by Luke Adams

The Kings have officially requested waivers on Cyril Awere, the team announced today in a press release. Having released Awere, who didn't see action in the team's only preseason game to date, the Kings now have 17 players under contract.

Awere a 6'11" center from Nigeria, had been playing for Stade Nabeulien in Tunisia before he was added to the Kings' training camp roster. When the team signed him, I noted that he and fellow camp invitee Willie Reed were extreme long shots to make Sacramento's regular-season roster. However, with 14 players on guaranteed contracts, there is one roster spot available for the Kings' three remaining camp invitees — Reed, Tony Mitchell and Hamady N'Diaye are the candidates for that 15th spot.

Stern Not Looking To Expand NBA To Europe

October 15th, 2012 at 2:37pm CST by Luke Adams

In his latest piece for the Boston Globe, Gary Washburn examined commissioner David Stern's desire to expand the NBA to Europe. According to Washburn, at one point, Stern was considering adding a team called the London Abbeys to the Association. However, in recent years, the commissioner has backed off the idea of expanding the league to Europe, in part because there aren't enough NBA-ready facilities in place.

"I don’t think having a single team in Europe is practical," Stern said last week in Milan. "I never have. What I’ve said is if we’re going to have an NBA presence here in terms of the league, it should be five teams. It’s safe to say that there aren’t enough buildings, there aren’t adequate TV arrangements, we don’t have owners, and I’m not sure we could charge the prices that would be necessary. I don’t think our fans are that avid yet."

Most of the basketball venues in Europe aren't large enough to generate the revenue that would be required to maintain NBA franchises overseas. Stern acknowledged that there are arenas in London and Berlin that likely could house teams, but besides a proposed Paris arena, there are no additional venues in the works for the near future.

"In one of my recent visits here," Stern said. "There was a discussion about both an arena in Rome that construction ceased upon, and the possibility that there would be a new arena in Milano in connection with the world expo, but that’s not happening, either. So right now, it’s the same two buildings, with the prospect of construction in France that will start in 2014. So, realistically, there is no short-term way that we could, I think, profitably consider that."

The NBA will continue scheduling preseason exhibition games and the occasional regular season contest overseas, but it appears that Stern has no interest in making a commitment beyond that. According to Washburn, "the NBA’s flirtation with Europe appears done" for now.

David Stern

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