- New Hawks principal owner Tony Ressler is planning a major upgrade to Phillips Arena, according to Chris Vivlamore of The Journal Constitution. Ressler, who bought the team nine months ago, claims Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed told him the city could finance about half of a planned $200MM to $300MM project. The work is projected to begin in the summer of 2017 and be completed in 2018.
- Thabo Sefolosha filed a civil suit this week against five New York City police officers and the city, as expected, notes Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN.com. It stems from the incident a year ago today in which Sefolosha emerged with a broken leg after a scuffle with police. The suit levies charges of false arrest, excessive force, malicious prosecution and false imprisonment, and it alleges the incident was a “a racial matter,” as Arnovitz relays. It also claims the encounter and injury jeopardized and shortened his basketball career and negatively affected the market value for his services, tweets Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today. Sefolosha, who saw an increased role for the Hawks this season in the wake of DeMarre Carroll‘s departure, is under contract for next season at $3.85MM.
The Hawks hope they’ve scored some brownie points with free agents through today’s announcement that P3 Sports Science, a California training facility that counts many NBA players among its clients, will open a location within the new practice facility that the team revealed plans for today, tweets Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN.com. Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution first reported the Hawks would announce today that they’re building the $50MM practice facility, to be paid for through private funding (Twitter links), and Hawks owner Tony Ressler was adamant that building the new facility is his top priority for the team, Vivlamore notes (Twitter link). Soon-to-be free agent Al Horford is among the dozens of NBA players that P3 lists as clients. The facility is scheduled to open in time for the 2017/18 season, Vivlamore writes.
- Former Hawks center Pero Antic has filed a civil rights suit against the New York Police Department in connection with an incident from April 2015 outside a New York nightclub, tweets Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN.com. He adds that Thabo Sefolosha, who is still with Atlanta, plans to formally file his lawsuit this week. Sefolosha suffered a broken fibula and ankle ligament damage in the scuffle and had to miss last year’s playoffs. He was cleared in October of charges of resisting arrest and obstructing the administration of government. Antic is now playing for Fenerbahce in Turkey.
Bradley Beal‘s harsh comments toward his teammates after Wednesday’s loss in Sacramento are a sign of underlying problems on the Wizards, contends J. Michael of CSN Mid-Atlantic. Beal, who is headed toward restricted free agency this summer, said the team isn’t “hungry enough” and seemed to give up in the closing moments of the game. “We bark too much,” Beal said. “We say what we need to do. We scream at one another. We can even try to blame [coach Randy Wittman] if we want to, but at the end of the day we still the ones playing. … We just do dumb mental lapses that just mess up the game and end up hurting us in the long run.” Michael thinks Beal and John Wall need to get together as team leaders and work out whatever personal differences they have with each other before their relationship is too far gone.
There’s more from the Southeast Division:
- Nicolas Batum figures to be the most sought after among a large group of Hornets free agents, writes Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer. Contracts for Marvin Williams, Courtney Lee and Al Jefferson will also expire at the end of the season and Jeremy Lin has the choice to opt out, but Batum has risen above the crowd with his versatile play. “I’ve been around teams where people think about their contract and their personal situation. I can’t understand that,” Batum said. “With this team, we know if we do great as a team, if we all do our jobs, everything will work out.”
- If the Heat were giving any thought to trading point guard Goran Dragic and pursuing Grizzlies free agent Mike Conley, Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald says Dragic has changed their minds with his recent performance. “We love Goran,” said team president Pat Riley. “Now he’s playing like The Dragon. His game has opened up. I’m very happy that we have this point guard.”
- The Hawks plan to keep Lamar Patterson and Edy Tavares with the Austin Spurs through the D-League team’s playoff run, according to Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Both rookies have spent extensive time in the D-League this season. Tavares, a 7’3″ center, has played in 27 games for the affiliates of the Spurs, Suns and Cavs, while Patterson has been in 17 games with San Antonio’s and Cleveland’s D-League teams.
- The Hawks have assigned Lamar Patterson to the NBA D-League, the team announced. Patterson will report to the Austin Spurs as part of the league’s flexible assignment rule since Atlanta does not have its own affiliate.
- The Hawks assigned swingman Lamar Patterson to the D-League’s Austin Spurs, Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes. Patterson has played in a combined 16 games for Austin and the Canton Charge under the league’s flexible assignment rule. Patterson has also appeared in 35 games with the Hawks, averaging 2.4 points in 11.3 minutes.
Kirk Hinrich says he’s enjoying his time with the Hawks, but the trade that sent him to Atlanta from the Bulls last month took him from his family, and they’ll be a consideration as the 35-year-old decides whether to retire this summer, observes K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. Hinrich’s contract expires at season’s end. “I would love to keep playing if the situation was ideal,” Hinrich said. “At this point, I have to think about my family as well.” The 13th-year veteran’s chances of an extended stay in Atlanta don’t appear too strong, as he’s a third-stringer and has appeared in only seven games since the February 18th trade.
- The Hawks have recalled Lamar Patterson from the D-League, tweets Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Patterson was assigned to the Canton Charge, the affiliate of the Cavs, via the flexible assignment rule.
- Paul Millsap spurned other suitors last summer and re-signed with the Hawks because he believed that the franchise was on the cusp of becoming a perennial contender in the East, Michael Lee of the Vertical writes. While the team won’t equal its 60 wins of a season ago, the power forward still believes Atlanta has what it takes to reach the Conference Finals, Lee adds. “I think we do. Record says otherwise. But we don’t care about the record,” Millsap told Lee. “I think the main thing we have to do is stay focused on winning as many as we can. I don’t think we care where we fall. As long we’re in and we have an opportunity to play for a title, it doesn’t matter where we fall. Because at the end of day, we’re going to have to go through everybody. And whoever it is in the first round, hopefully, we’ll be ready.“