Nuggets Rumors

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 1/8/17

Here are the D-League assignments and recalls from Sunday:

10:20pm:

  • The Spurs moved guard Dejounte Murray to the Austin Spurs of the D-League, the team announced on its website. The rookie guard has appeared in 19 games for San Antonio, averaging 2.3 points in 5.5 minutes.
  • The Mavs announced via press release that they have assigned center A.J. Hammons and guard-forward Nicolas Brussino to their D-League affiliate. Hammons has appeared in 17 games for the Mavericks this season, averaging 1.4 points and 1.2 rebounds in 4.5 minutes. Brussino has played in 27 games for Dallas this season, averaging 1.4 points and 1.1 rebounds in 6.8 minutes.
  • The Nuggets recalled rookie guard Malik Beasley, Denver announced in a press release.

12:18pm:

  • The Sixers have recalled forward Richaun Holmes from their Delaware affiliate, the team announced in a press release. He had 10 points and eight rebounds in the 87ers’ win Saturday.
  • The Knicks have recalled Maurice Ndour and Marshall Plumlee from their Westchester affiliate, the team tweeted.
  • The Bulls have recalled forward Paul Zipser from their Windy City affiliate, the team announced via press release. Zipser had played in the D-League team’s last two games, averaging 16.5 points and 7.0 rebounds.
  • The Celtics have assigned guard Demetrius Jackson to their affiliate in Maine, the team tweeted.
  • The Rockets have assigned forward Kyle Wiltjer to their affiliate in Rio Grande Valley, according to a tweet from the team.

Arthur Hill contributed to this report.

Nuggets Re-Sign Alonzo Gee To 10-Day Deal

The Nuggets re-signed Alonzo Gee to a 10-day contract just two days after waiving him, Denver announced on its official team websiteChristopher Dempsey of The Denver Post had first reported that the Nuggets were interested in bringing back Gee.

Gee will be with the team for Thursday’s game vs. Indiana in London. Denver had parted ways with Gee to avoid Saturday’s deadline that would have guaranteed his contract for the rest of the season.

Gee has appeared in just 13 games for the Nuggets, averaging 0.8 points and 0.8 rebounds in 6.8 minutes per night. Denver signed him in November after he was waived by New Orleans. The 6’6″ forward has played for six franchises in his eight-year NBA career including stops with the Spurs and Cavs.

Nuggets May Bring Back Alonzo Gee

The Nuggets may not be done with veteran swingman Alonzo Gee, who was waived Friday, according to Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post.

Denver parted ways with Gee to avoid Saturday’s deadline that would have guaranteed his contract for the rest of the season. However, he could be brought back on a 10-day deal later in the year.

“We love Alonzo,” said Nuggets coach Michael Malone. “He was terrific. So that move by no means was an indication of how we feel about him. The front office made a move that going forward gives us flexibility.”

Gee has appeared in just 13 games for the Nuggets, averaging 0.8 points and 0.8 rebounds in 6.8 minutes per night. Denver signed him in November after he was waived by New Orleans. Gee has played for six franchises in his eight-year NBA career.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 1/7/17

Here are the D-League assignments and recalls from Saturday:

10:11pm:

  • The Bulls have recalled forward Bobby Portis from their Windy City affiliate, the team announced in a press release. Portis had 32 points and nine rebounds in Friday’s game.
  • The Spurs have recalled rookie guard Dejounte Murray from their affiliate in Austin, the team posted on its website. Murray is coming off a 25-point performance Friday and is averaging 16.6 points per game in 12 D-League contests. He has played 18 games for San Antonio, getting 5.6 minutes per night.
  • The Pacers have recalled Georges Niang from their Fort Wayne affiliate, according to the team’s website. He connected on five 3-pointers and scored 23 points in his last game for the Mad Ants.

2:07pm:

  • The Suns have recalled Derrick Jones Jr., according to a team-issued press release. Jones comes off of his fourth assignment to the club’s D-League affiliate this season.
  • The Lakers have assigned center Ivica Zubac to the D-League, reports Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times via a team press release. Zubac has already played 11 games for the team’s affiliate, averaging 15.9 points and 9.4 rebounds per game.
  • The Nuggets have recalled Juan Hernangomez from their D-League affiliate, the team announced in a press release. Hernangomez appeared in just one game for the Sioux Falls Skyforce.

11:30am:

Nuggets Openly Shopping Nurkic

The Nuggets have seen first-hand that there may not be enough room for both Nikola Jokic and Jusuf Nurkic to thrive in Denver. After starting the first 25 games of the season at center, 23-year-old Nurkic’s role has been drastically reduced. In a timeshare with Jokic, Chris Dempsey of the Denver Post writes, Nurkic has played over 30 minutes only once.

According to Marc Stein of ESPN, the Nuggets are now “openly shopping” the third-year big man.

Though the sample size remains relatively small considering that he spent half of the 2015/16 campaign on the sidelines, Nurkic’s career per-36 numbers paint a picture of promise. The Bosnian Beast is capable of big games, just not while Jokic is in the picture vying for minutes and opportunities of his own.

Nurkic is owed $1.9MM this season, in the second last year of his rookie contract.

Earlier this week, J.J. Vega of FanSided’s NuggLove blog speculated about where the big man could end up.

Nuggets Waive Alonzo Gee

The Nuggets have waived Alonzo Gee, according to a team press release. Denver’s roster count is now at 14 players, as the team’s depth chart at Roster Resource indicates.

Gee joined Denver in November and his deal was partially guaranteed, though had he remained on the roster through Saturday, it would have became fully guaranteed. The cap hit for the move is $418K, as Bobby Marks of The Vertical tweets.

Gee played sparingly for the team, appearing in only 13 contests. The veteran has played for six different franchises in his seven-year career.

Nuggets Have Assets For Major Trade

The sheer abundance of valuable young assets on the Nuggets make Denver a team to watch prior to February’s trade deadline, writes Tim Bontemps of the Washington Post. Bontemps cites Nikola Jokic and the club’s backcourt full of promising guards as two of the major reasons why the franchise’s forecast is so bright.

In addition to their coveted young core, the multiple first-round picks they hold and a bevy of reliable veterans make them uniquely qualified to deal in the coming months. That bodes particularly well as rumors swirl around Hawks forward Paul Millsap. Millsap has been linked to the Nuggets this year and was nearly dealt to the Mile High City last year as well.

If nothing else, the Nuggets could look to simply free up space for the young players they feel most confident about heading forward. As head coach Mike Malone learned with Jokic and Jusuf Nurkic earlier this season, there are only so many opportunities to go around.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 1/4/17

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

4:25pm:

  • The Lakers have re-assigned rookie big man Ivica Zubac to the D-League (Twitter link). Zubac will be in uniform for the L.A. D-Fenders tomorrow night for the team’s game against Iowa.
  • The Pistons officially announced in a press release this afternoon that they’ve sent Henry Ellenson to the Grand Rapids Drive. As Keith Langlois of Pistons.com tweets, fellow rookie Michael Gbinije likely would’ve joined him, but he’s battling a forearm injury.
  • Forward Troy Williams has been recalled by the Grizzlies from his assignment with the Iowa Energy, per a team release. Williams averaged 24.3 PPG in three games during his D-League stint, including 32 in 28 minutes on December 27.

2:28pm:

  • Richaun Holmes, who has completed and passed all the elements of the NBA’s concussion protocol, has been assigned to the D-League by the Sixers, the team announced today in a press release. While some NBADL rehab assignments don’t include game action, the Sixers suggest that Holmes is expected to suit up tonight for the Delaware 87ers.

12:55pm:

  • A pair of Nuggets rookies, Malik Beasley and Juan Hernangomez, have been assigned to the D-League, according to a press release. Despite having a fairly young roster, Denver hasn’t used the D-League much this season, since the team doesn’t have its own affiliate. Beasley and Hernangomez will join the Sioux Falls Skyforce, Miami’s NBADL squad.
  • The Raptors have sent Bruno Caboclo and Fred VanVleet back to the D-League, the team announced today (via Twitter). The duo has bounced back and forth between the NBA and NBADL all season — it’s the 13th D-League assignment for Caboclo and the ninth for VanVleet.
  • Maurice Ndour is headed to the D-League, having been assigned to Westchester today by the Knicks (Twitter link). New York’s D-League affiliate is in action tonight against Grand Rapids, and Ndour is expected to suit up for the game.
  • The Suns have assigned rookie forward Derrick Jones to the D-League, the team announced today (Twitter link). It’s the fourth NBADL assignment of the season for Jones, who has averaged 14.0 PPG and 6.1 RPG in 14 games for Northern Arizona.

Malone, Gallinari Disagree On Nuggets' Veteran Leadership

The race for the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference is wide open, but the Nuggets were unable to grain ground on Tuesday night, losing their third straight game. Tuesday’s loss was particularly frustrating since it came at home against the Kings, the team ahead of Denver for that eighth seed in the West. In the wake of Denver’s defeat, Michael Malone was critical of his team’s performance and effort, telling reporters that the Nuggets have “the worst defense in the NBA.”

“Right now we have no leadership, we have no veteran leadership on this team stepping up,” said the Nuggets head coach, per Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post. “I don’t hear anybody speaking, taking the lead. We have two young guys trying to speak up on the team’s behalf, which you applaud them but you need some leadership to shine and step up when we are struggling, which we are.”

One person who didn’t agree with Malone’s assessment? Danilo Gallinari, who took exception to the idea that the Nuggets lack veteran leadership. “That’s definitely not the problem with this team,” Gallinari said, according to Dempsey. “Every veteran on this team can agree with me. So, I don’t agree with that.”

The Nuggets have frequently been mentioned as one of the teams most likely to make a move before the trade deadline, so the situation in Denver will be worth monitoring in the coming weeks. Let’s round up a few more notes from out of the Western Conference…

Hawks Nearly Dealt Millsap On Two Occasions

The Hawks were going to send Paul Millsap to the Raptors during the offseason if Al Horford re-signed with the team, according to Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com (audio link). The team wanted to pair free agent addition Dwight Howard with Horford, but the former Florida Gator decided to sign with the Celtics, which led to Atlanta keeping Millsap.

Windhorst added that the team had a deal lined up to send Millsap to the Nuggets at last year’s trade deadline. Atlanta also had separate deal lined up to trade Jeff Teague at the time, though the franchise opted to keep both players on the roster through the end of the season.

Earlier today, Millsap reiterated his desire to remain in Atlanta. The Hawks are reportedly entertaining trade offers for the power forward, but the team doesn’t necessarily feel it has to make a move.