An MRI has revealed that Lakers forward Metta World Peace has a lateral meniscus tear in his left knee, tweets Orange County Register reporter Kevin Ding. His timetable for return is to be determined after meeting with the Lakers team doctor in Los Angeles tomorrow.
World Peace is averaging 12.8PPG while barely shooting 40% from the floor. In what's been an injury plagued season for Los Angeles, this knee injury is just another setback for a team that's been unable to sustain any continuity amongst its regular starters.
A few notes from around the Eastern Conference on this Tuesday evening.
The Pacers have been hobbled by injuries to key players all season, but recently some more role players have begun to miss time. According to the Associated Press, a few key guys are coming back soon but the knee injury to Danny Granger, who's missed nearly the entire season, should force conversation this offseason regarding what to do with his expiring contract.
The Cleveland Plain Dealer takes a look at the Cavaliers draft prospects in the lottery and Dion Waiters' emergence as a legitimate threat his rookie season.
Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo continues to show particular interest in European prospects by traveling to Italy to scout Italian forward Gigi Datome, according to Sportando.
Before Colangelo's visit to Europe, at least one NBA team had already shown interest, when Bucks general manager John Hammond took a trip to Italy to scout the Italian forward.
As captain of Italy's Virtus Roma, the 25-year-old Datome is averaging 17.3PPG and 5.7RPG this season.
Having served his 20-game suspension for a failed drug test, Hedo Turkoglu is eligible to return to action for the Magic, but the team may not have him in its short- or long-term plans, as he acknowledges to Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel.
"I don't even know my future right now," Turkoglu said. "I don't know if I'll be here next year or not. At the end of the season, I'll be here and I'll try to do my best for these young guys and for this organization. When the summertime comes, we'll see what happens."
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the NBA:
With a big City Council vote coming up tonight, Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld discusses the Sacramento group's bid to keep the Kings. According to Kyler, Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson and the investment group have received a "fairly specific set of objectives" to meet if they want to have a realstic chance to keep the team.
Two more NCAA underclassmen are eyeing the NBA draft. Marshawn Powell of Arkansas announced on Twitter that he has decided to declare his intent, while New Mexico announced that junior forward Tony Snell will test the waters (Twitter link via ESPN.com's Andy Katz).
In his latest piece for HoopsWorld, Alex Kennedy examines the effect the NCAA tournament has on a prospect's draft stock and speaks to Rashard Lewis about his first year with the Heat.
Andres Nocioni, who previously played for the Bulls, Kings, and Sixers, is in the final year of his contract with Spain's Caja Laboral, but it doesn't sound as if he's considering an NBA comeback. Nocioni spoke this week about his future, and Emiliano Carchia of Sportando has a translation of the highlights, via PlanetACB.com.
We'll track today's D-League assignments and recalls here, with any additional moves added to the top of the page throughout the day:
Quincy Acy has been recalled from the Bakersfield Jam by the Raptors, the club announced today in a press release. In 13 D-League games this season, Acy has averaged 13.0 PPG and 7.7 RPG.
The Thunder have once again assigned DeAndre Liggins and Daniel Orton to the D-League, the team announced today in a press release. When I looked at D-League assignment trends last week, Orton and Liggins ranked among the most-assigned players of the season, and this is the second time both players have been sent to the Tulsa 66ers since then. The 66ers will play the Rio Grande Valley Vipers tonight and tomorrow as they look to lock up a D-League playoff spot.
In addition to publishing a new piece on ESPN.com today, Chad Ford also updated his big board and conducted an afternoon chat. Let's check in on Ford's latest draft nuggets….
A day after our Zach Links profiled the injured Kentucky big man, Nerlens Noel has recaptured the top spot in Ford's 2013 prospect rankings. Ford explains that while some top prospects haven't looked great in the NCAA tournament, scouts and GMs are remember Noel's increasing productivity prior to his ACL injury. Ford doesn't go so far as to call Noel a "consensus No. 1" but says NBA decision-makers are starting to lean in that direction.
Other risers on Ford's big board include Michigan's Trey Burke, who moved into the top 10, Lehigh's C.J. McCollum (12th), Michigan's Glenn Robinson III (16th), and San Diego State's Jamaal Franklin (17th).
In a separate Insider-only piece, Ford looks at a few more players whose stocks have been affected by their play during the NCAA tournament, and addresses the topic of whether any Florida Gulf Coast players are candidates to be drafted, either this year or in the future.
Ford also answered an hour's worth of draft-related questions in his latest chat with readers at ESPN.com.
Following the expiration of his second 10-day contract, the Hawks have re-signed Shelvin Mack for the remainder of the season, according to Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (via Twitter). Vivlamore had reported yesterday that the two sides were in talks about a rest-of-season deal for Mack.
Mack, 23, had his best game with the Hawks in last night's loss to the Pacers, recording 10 points, four assists, and a pair of rebounds to go along with two three-pointers. Since joining the Hawks following stints with the Wizards and Sixers, Mack has appeared in nine of the club's 12 games.
With Mack now under contract for the rest of 2012/13, the Hawks are at the maximum 15 guaranteed contracts, meaning we likely won't see any more roster moves from the club before season's end.
As our 10-day contract tracker shows, Mack is the ninth player this season to be signed for the season following two 10-day deals with a club.
Once the Heat won in Boston last Monday, extending their winning streak to 23 games, we expected the team to have a relatively clear path to 27 straight victories, considering the schedule. After surviving a close call in Cleveland, Miami cruised to wins against the Pistons, Bobcats, and Magic, and sure enough, the team has increased its streak to 27.
Having played the East's four worst teams though, Miami is now facing a tougher portion of the schedule. The Heat's next three games are on the road, and two of those are against talented playoff teams, in the Bulls and Spurs. Sandwiched in between those two contests is a game in New Orleans, where the Hornets ended the Nuggets' 15-game winning streak last night.
Logic would dictate that, like the Nuggets did, the Heat will stumble at some point in the next week or two, and fall short of the 33-game record set by the Lakers over 40 years ago. But Miami has also clearly established itself as the NBA's premier team, and figures to be favored in every game going forward.
So today's poll question is this: When will the Heat suffer their next loss? Which team is the best bet to end this incredible streak? Or, at this point, do you expect the Heat to get to 34?
Another early entrant will declare his intent, according to Marc J. Spears, who tweets word that 6'10" center Norvel Pelle plans to enter this June's draft. As Spears notes, Pelle was ranked as the top center of the 2011 high schools by Rivals.com.
After initially committing to St. John's for the 2011/12 season, Pelle was ruled ineligible when the NCAA did not accept three summer classes he took at Philadelphia's Northeast Preparatory School. The big man committed to Iona for 2012/13, but was again never cleared by the NCAA. One source told Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv back in December that Pelle "went to so many schools, they’re still probably trying to track down his paperwork."
Pelle, who spent last season at L.A. City Prep, was once viewed as a top recruit, so if he doesn't withdraw his name from draft consideration before next month's deadline, NBA teams may kick the tires on him. I'd be pretty surprised if he ends up being drafted though.
Following the 2012/13 season, Metta World Peace will have the option of extending his contract with the Lakers for one more year for a salary of $7.73MM, or turning down that player option and becoming an unrestricted free agent. While the man formerly known as Ron Artest had been viewed as a lock to pick up that option, he tells NBA.com's Scott Howard-Cooper that he's not ruling out the possibility of declining it, if it means re-signing with the Lakers on a longer-term contract.
As Howard-Cooper notes, the idea of World Peace turning down that money seems to defy logic. Earlier this month, I listed him among this offseason's amnesty candidates, assuming he'd opt in. However, it may be precisely that possibility that prompts the 33-year-old to try to work out a new deal with the Lakers — if he simply opts in, he immediately becomes a candidate to be amnestied or traded, and it sounds as if his strong preference is to remain in Los Angeles.
"I think my agent (Marc Cornstein) is trying to see if he can get an extension to stay here in L.A.," World Peace told Howard-Cooper. "I’m really excited about the possibilities of staying here in L.A."
If World Peace did turn down his player option in an attempt to work out a new contract with the Lakers, he'd have to be prepared to take a significant pay cut. Although the team is projected to be well into the tax in 2013/14, it has very few commitments on its books beyond '14. I'd guess there'd be some reluctance to compromise future flexibility by locking up World Peace, whose best days are behind him.