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NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 12/26/16

December 26th, 2016 at 10:24pm CST by Luke Adams

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

11:24pm:

The Clippers have assigned rookie center Diamond Stone to the Salt Lake City Stars, according to the team’s website. He previously played four games with Santa Cruz, as the Clippers don’t have a direct affiliate in the D-League. The 40th pick in this year’s draft, Stone has appeared in four games for L.A.
The Kings have recalled Skal Labissiere and Georgios Papagiannis from Reno, tweets James Ham of CSNBayArea. Labissiere was activated for tonight’s game, but Papagiannis was not.

5:30pm:

The Grizzlies have assigned Troy Williams to Iowa Energy, the team announced on its website. Up to this point, the undrafted rookie has played 24 games for Memphis and started 13 of them.

2:20pm:

The Nets sent Chris McCullough back to their D-League affiliate today, the team announced in a press release. McCullough, who is playing in the Long Island Nets’ afternoon game, could be recalled prior to tonight’s contest between Charlotte and Brooklyn, which would allow him to suit up for both Nets teams today.

Injury Notes: Nance, Nowitzki, Parsons, Oladipo

December 21st, 2016 at 7:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

Lakers forward Larry Nance Jr. has a bone bruise in his left knee and will be out indefinitely, the team announced on its website. He suffered the injury Tuesday in Charlotte. Nance had an MRI today to confirm the injury, but further results were limited because of swelling. He will be re-evaluated Sunday, and the Lakers plan to issue an update on availability after that examination. Nance has played in 28 of the team’s 31 games this season, all off the bench.

There’s more injury news from around the NBA:

Dirk Nowitzki won’t play tonight, but the Mavericks hope to have him back soon, according to Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. Nowitzki is almost fully recovered from a strained right Achilles and could play Friday against the Clippers or Monday against the Pelicans. “I’ll probably get a good workout tonight and see how it responds,” Nowitzki said. “I’ll probably get my first practice [Thursday] and see how it feels, basically go from day to day. It’s been encouraging. It hasn’t gotten worse from some of the stuff we’ve been doing. Hopefully, I’ll be out there soon.”
Grizzlies forward Chandler Parsons is active for tonight’s game with the Pistons, tweets Ronald Tillery of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. Parsons, who was still recovering from offseason surgery on his right knee when the season started, has appeared in just six games. He suffered a bone bruise on his left knee shortly after returning.
Thunder guard Victor Oladipo says his injured right wrist is improving, but he will sit out his fifth straight game tonight, writes Brett Dawson of The Oklahoman. Despite his optimism, coach Billy Donovan said there has been “no change at all in terms of what he can and can’t do” since suffering the injury in a December 11th game. “He is getting better,” Donovan said. “I don’t want to come across like he’s not. There is improvement there, but it’s not at a point where he can do enough in terms of catching, passing, shooting, playing right now.”
Back tightness forced Hawks center Dwight Howard to sit out tonight for the second straight game, according to Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “It’s a lot better than it was a couple days ago,” Howard said. “It continues to get better.” Howard, who signed a three-year, $70.5MM deal with the Hawks in July, has had back issues before. In 2014/15, back and knee problems limited him to 41 games with the Rockets.
The Jazz expect to have point guard George Hill back in the lineup soon, although it may not happen until next week, report Aaron Falk and Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune. Hill went through an intense workout Tuesday as he tries to overcome a sprained toe that has sidelined him for nearly a month.
Wizards center Ian Mahinmi had platelet-rich plasma treatments on both knees this morning, tweets Candace Buckner of The Washington Post. Knee problems have limited him to just one game after signing a four-year, $64MM contract this summer.

Fizdale Criticizes Grizzlies' Leadership; Parsons To Return

December 21st, 2016 at 9:49am CST by ChrisCrouse

After blowing a 17-point lead en route to an overtime loss on Tuesday night, The Grizzlies received some harsh criticism from head coach David Fizdale, who suggested that “nobody wants to step up and lead this group now during this tough time.” Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com has the details and the quotes from the rookie head coach.
Chandler Parsons could see action for the Grizzlies tonight, Michael Wallace of NBA.com tweets. Parsons hasn’t played in over a month because of bone bruise on his left knee.

Parsons Practices, Eyes Return "Mid-Week"

December 19th, 2016 at 8:52pm CST by Austin Kent

Chandler Parsons could be back in action for the Grizzlies in a “matter of days,” tweets Ronald Tillery of the Commercial Appeal. The news is the latest in a series of positive headlines for a franchise that has already recently welcomed back Mike Conley and James Ennis.

Parsons has been out of action since November 18 when he sustained a bone bruise on his left knee, the latest in a concerning line of various knee ailments. On Monday, however, the 28-year-old forward practiced for the first time in a month and spoke with Tillery about getting back into routine with the Grizzlies.

Having fallen victim to knee injuries twice in the past year (he had surgery on his right knee back in March), Parsons will have his work cut out for him to prove that he can be a reliable option for the Grizzlies. In a feature for CBS Sports earlier this month, James Herbert detailed some of the small forward’s previous injuries, going so far as to say that concern over his torn meniscus is what led to the Mavericks opting against signing him to a long-term contract over the summer.

Grizzlies Listening, But Reluctant To Move Tony Allen

December 19th, 2016 at 12:17pm CST by Luke Adams

Although the Grizzlies are listening to inquiries on Tony Allen, they don’t necessarily want to move him, sources tell Kyler. Still, the team recognizes that his modest salary, expiring contract, and on-court play could make him a valuable trade chip.

[SOURCE LINK]

Grizzlies Open To Dealing Tony Allen

December 18th, 2016 at 5:45pm CST by Austin Kent

The Grizzlies are open to trading veteran shooting guard Tony Allen, according to Ronald Tillery of the Commercial Appeal, who says that rival teams are gauging interest and Memphis is listening. The shutdown defender would be a valuable addition to any NBA team looking to lock down the league’s top perimeter threats so it comes as no surprise that teams are inquiring on him.

The 34-year-old comes with a cap-friendly $5.5MM contract expiring this year and a defensive résumé that puts him in a class of his own. In five of the past six seasons, Allen has been named to an All-Defensive Team, most recently to the Second Team in 2016 and earlier this year, Kobe Bryant referred to the pesky two-guard as the “best defender he ever faced.”

As Chris Crouse explained for Hoops Rumors last week, the traditionally defensive-minded Grizzlies have had success of late reverting back to their old identity. Moving their most decorated perimeter stopper seems counter-intuitive to that, but more in line with their offseason decision to embrace a faster playing style.

Allen has played a significant role in Memphis’ success over the course of the past seven seasons after playing the first six years of his career with the Celtics. Through 21 games in 2016/17, he has averaged 10.2 points and 5.3 rebounds per game in just under 27 minutes.

JaMychal Green An Under-The-Radar 2017 Free Agent?

December 18th, 2016 at 3:48pm CST by Luke Adams

Keith P. Smith of RealGM.com identifies 11 players on track for 2017 free agency who may be flying under the radar a little, including JaMychal Green (Grizzlies), Patty Mills (Spurs), and Bojan Bogdanovic (Nets).

Poll: Biggest Threat To Warriors In West?

December 17th, 2016 at 3:59pm CST by Luke Adams

The Warriors entered the 2016/17 season as significant favorites to come out of the Western Conference and win the NBA Finals, and little has changed during the first couple months of the season. Golden State isn’t quite on a 73-win pace again this season, but the team is 23-4 and its offense is producing at a historic pace.

Although the Warriors haven’t looked invincible, they also haven’t had to endure many growing pains as they’ve incorporated prized offseason signee Kevin Durant into their rotation. It will be an extremely tall order for any Western Conference team to beat Golden State four times in a seven-game playoff series, but a handful of teams in the conference have looked good so far.

The Spurs have the West’s second-best record, at 21-5, though advanced statistics suggest that pace is probably unsustainable, as Mika Honkasalo of HoopsHype writes. The Clippers got off to a hot start and briefly looked like they belonged in the discussion with the Warriors, but a cool stretch starting in late November brought them back down to earth, and they’ve struggled against Golden State in recent years. L.A. has lost its last seven games to the Warriors, and was blown out in the only meeting between the two teams so far this season.

While San Antonio and Los Angeles were expected to be the Warriors’ top challengers coming into the season, another trio of teams has helped form a strong second tier in the conference. The Rockets, led by MVP candidates James Harden and a record-setting barrage of three-pointers, have won nine games in a row and are tied with the Clips at 20-7. The Grizzlies, who surged without their top player (Mike Conley), are right behind them, and the Jazz, who have battled injuries all year, look like they could be a dangerous club if and when they finally get healthy.

What do you think? Which of these teams should the Warriors be most worried about facing in the Western Conference portion of the postseason? Is there another team in the conference that could create problems for Golden State? Weigh in below with your vote!

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Mike Conley Expected To Play Tonight

December 16th, 2016 at 1:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley will be back in the lineup tonight, three weeks after fractures were found in his lower back, tweets Chris Vernon of Grizzlies.com. He participated in the team’s shootaround this morning before being cleared for game action (Twitter link).

Conley was expected to “minimally miss approximately six weeks” when doctors discovered the fractures on November 29th. The original plan called for him to be re-evaluated around the end of the year to see when a return might be possible. Conley was forced out of a game the night before with a lower back injury, which turned out to be a transverse process fracture in the vertebrae.

Conley’s return from injury will coincide with the return to Memphis by former Grizzlies coach Dave Joerger. He was hired by the Kings shortly after being fired by the Grizzlies in May.

“Both of us know so much about each other and the schemes we like to do and how we play,” Conley said of the chance to face Joerger. “It will be good to see him and good to compete against him.” (Twitter link).

Before the injury, Conley had been one of keys to Memphis’ early-season success, averaging 19.2 points and 5.7 assists per game. The 29-year-old is in the first-year of a record-setting five-year deal worth more than $150MM.

Fizdale Among Coach Of The Year Candidates

December 16th, 2016 at 11:06am CST by Arthur Hill

The Rockets‘ Mike D’Antoni is the early favorite to be named Coach of the Year, according to Marc Stein of ESPN. D’Antoni’s up-tempo attack has turned James Harden into an MVP candidate and has made Houston a contender in the West. The Rockets are off to a 19-7 start after a disappointing 41-41 season under Kevin McHale and J.B. Bickerstaff. Stein says a close runner-up to D’Antoni is new Grizzlies coach David Fizdale, whose team is 18-9 despite an injury-filled start to the season.