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Central Notes: Jones, Cavs, Johnson, Bulls

December 3rd, 2016 at 9:19am CST by Dana Gauruder

Cavaliers swingman James Jones plans to retire after the 2017/18 season, Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal reports. Jones, 36, becomes a free agent after this season but would likely remain with Cleveland, given LeBron James‘ affinity for Jones as a teammate, Lloyd adds. “I know playing 15 years is a number where I can look back and I can be like, ‘I accomplished something,’ ” Jones told Lloyd. “Fourteen vs. 15 may not be much, but to be able to say I played 15 years, that’s enough for me to hang ’em up.”

In other news around the Central Division:

The Cavaliers are in the market for a backup point guard and could fulfill that need later this month, according to Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. That potential acquisition will likely come after December 15th, when free agents who signed contracts over the summer can be traded, Vardon adds. Cleveland doesn’t have a true point guard to back up Kyrie Irving other than rookie Kay Felder, who has played sparingly.
Stanley Johnson needs to improve his work habits in order to reclaim his rotation spot, Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy told Aaron McMann of MLive and other beat reporters. Johnson, a 2015 lottery pick, was benched in two games the last two weeks and also served a one-game team suspension after showing up late for the morning shootaround, McMann continues. Johnson only played four garbage-time minutes against the Hawks on Friday. “He’s got to be a better practice guy,” Van Gundy told McMann. “He’s got to be a better workout guy. He’s got to be better with all that stuff. Really working to get better. Once he’s out there competing, you don’t have a problem with that. He’ll play as hard as anybody, but he’s got to understand that’s not the whole thing. It’s preparing to play.”
Bulls forward Doug McDermott could return sometime next week from a concussion that has sidelined him the last eight games, Vincent Goodwill of CSNChicago.com writes. McDermott has suffered two concussions this season and the might practice with the team’s D-League affiliate, the Windy City Bulls, as well as the NBA team before he returns, Goodwill adds. “It’s gonna take him at least a couple days to have full practices,” Chicago coach Fred Hoiberg told Goodwill and other reporters.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 12/2/16

December 2nd, 2016 at 5:13pm CST by Eddie Scarito

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

The Clippers recalled forward Diamond Stone from the D-League earlier today, the team announced. Stone appeared in four games for the Santa Cruz Warriors, where he was sent via the flexible assignment rule, and averaged 14.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.0 block in 17.0 minutes of action per outing.
The Sixers sent Nerlens Noel to their D-League affiliate in Delaware earlier today in order for the big man to participate in the 87ers’ practice, the team announced. The center was subsequently recalled this afternoon, Jessica Camerato of CSNPhilly.com tweets.
The Hawks have recalled small forward DeAndre’ Bembry from the D-League, the team announced via press release. Bembry’s stint in the D-League was spent with the Salt Lake City Stars, Utah’s affiliate, since Atlanta does not possess an affiliate of its own. The 2016 first-rounder has appeared in seven games for the Hawks this season, averaging 1.3 points on 33.3% shooting.
Chris McCullough has been assigned to the Nets‘ D-League affiliate, the team announced via press release. McCullough has averaged 18.7 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 29.1 minutes per contest in six games on assignment with Long Island this season.
The Pelicans sent rookie forward Cheick Diallo to the Austin Spurs of the NBA Development League via to the flexible assignment system, the team announced. Diallo has appeared in six games with Austin already this campaign, averaging 14.3 points on .553 shooting from the floor, 6.7 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 12/1/16

December 1st, 2016 at 8:36pm CST by Luke Adams

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

8:36pm:

The Nets recalled point guard Yogi Ferrell and forward Chris McCullough from the Long Island Nets in time for their game against the Bucks, according to a team press release. Ferrell and McCullough started for Long Island earlier in the day in the team’s 114-104 victory over Santa Cruz in Brooklyn. Ferrell recorded a double-double with 18 points and 10 assists, while McCullough totaled 20 points, nine rebounds and four assists.

2:34pm:

As expected, Nerlens Noel was recalled from the D-League today by the Sixers, the team announced in a press release. Noel figures to go back and forth between the NBA club and the Delaware 87ers as he continues to rehab his knee injury and works toward a return.
Speaking of going back and forth between the NBA and the D-League, the Raptors once again assigned Bruno Caboclo and Fred VanVleet to their NBADL affiliate today, per the team (Twitter link). Given the close proximity the Raptors and Raptors 905, Caboclo and VanVleet are among the league leaders in D-League assignments so far this season.
The Bucks have recalled guard Rashad Vaughn from the Westchester Knicks, according to a press release from the club. Milwaukee doesn’t control its own NBADL affiliate, so Vaughn played for New York’s affiliate, and has averaged just 16.6 minutes per game for the quad in three games this year — if the Bucks had their own D-League team, Vaughn likely would have seen more playing time.

Jeff Ayres Joins Lakers’ D-League Affiliate

December 1st, 2016 at 1:54pm CST by Luke Adams

Veteran NBA big man Jeff Ayres is back in the D-League, according to a press release issued today by the Los Angeles D-Fenders. The Lakers’ NBADL affiliate announced that it has acquired Ayres’ rights as a returning player.

Ayres, who was named a D-League All-Star last season after being selected first overall in the NBADL draft, averaged 16.2 PPG, 9.4 RPG, and 1.0 BPG in 27 total contests for the Idaho Stampede and L.A. D-Fenders. The 29-year-old was acquired in a trade by the D-Fenders during the season, and received an NBA call-up just two games later, when he signed with the Clippers.

After playing on two 10-day contracts, Ayres signed with the Clippers for the remainder of the 2015/16 season. He appeared in 17 games for L.A., averaging 1.8 PPG and 1.3 RPG in limited playing time. Ayres has also played for the Trail Blazers, Pacers, and Spurs over the course of his six-year NBA career, winning a championship in 2014 with San Antonio.

Ayres signed with Russia’s CSKA Moscow earlier this year, but was let go by the club last week and was said at the time to be seeking an NBA return. Previously represented by Impact Sports Basketball, Ayres hired BDA Sports for representation, and will now attempt to showcase his skills in the D-League as he looks for a new NBA home. The man formerly known as Jeff Pendergraph is expected to suit up tonight for the D-Fenders against the Salt Lake City Stars.

And-Ones: Postponement, Goodwin, Adams, Smith

November 30th, 2016 at 9:46pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Sixers and Kings will have to find room on their schedules for a make-up game after tonight’s contest in Philadelphia was postponed because of excess moisture on the floor of Wells Fargo Center. Crews worked for about an hour trying to dry the court before the game was officially called off. No makeup date was announced, but there is speculation that it will be rescheduled when the Kings make their next Eastern swing in late January. Both teams are off and the arena will be available on January 30th, tweets The Vertical’s Bobby Marks.

There’s more basketball news tonight:

Archie Goodwin, who was waived by the Pelicans November 20th, has been claimed by the Greensboro Swarm of the D-League, according to a tweet from D-League Digest. The Hornets’ affiliate reportedly tried to trade Goodwin’s rights, but couldn’t work out a deal (Twitter link). Goodwin spent the last three seasons with the Suns, but was released in the preseason. The Pelicans signed him earlier this month when injuries left them shorthanded, but he played just three games in New Orleans.
Shooting guard Jordan Adams, who was claimed by the Oklahoma City Blue on Monday, has failed his physical, according to D-League Digest (Twitter link). The team will still retain the rights to Adams and will not move back to the top of the waiver order (Twitter link). Adams, a UCLA product, was waived by the Grizzlies during the preseason. A first-round pick in 2014, he had spent the past two seasons in Memphis, playing 30 games in 2014/15 and two games last season.
Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue says a mental lapse by J.R. Smith that led to an easy Bucks basket Tuesday night is a sign of an overall focus problem by the team, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com. Smith walked to the Milwaukee bench to greet Jason Terry during an inbounds play, leaving Matthew Dellavedova open for an easy layup. “Obviously we both know it wasn’t intentional, but it was just a lack of focus,” Smith said. “One of the multiple things that compounded onto the loss was just as a team we haven’t been as focused as we previously were.”

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/30/16

November 30th, 2016 at 4:55pm CST by Luke Adams

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

4:55pm:

The Nets have assigned a pair of players to the D-League, sending Yogi Ferrell and Chris McCullough to the Long Island Nets, the team announced today in a press release. Long Island will host an afternoon contest against the Santa Cruz Warriors on Thursday, so the duo will likely suit up for that game.

12:54pm:

As expected, the Hawks have assigned 2016 first-rounder DeAndre’ Bembry to the D-League, tweets Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal Constitution. Since Atlanta doesn’t have its own D-League squad, Bembry will play for the Salt Lake City Stars, Utah’s affiliate.
A day after being recalled by Golden State, rookie center Damian Jones has been sent back to the Santa Cruz Warriors, the team announced today in a press release. Santa Cruz had an early game today, which Jones participated in — he picked up two points, four rebounds, and a pair of blocks.
In addition to confirming Nerlens Noel‘s D-League assignment (noted below), the Sixers announced today that they’ve recalled Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot from the Delaware 87ers after a brief D-League stint for the rookie.

9:52am:

The Sixers are sending Nerlens Noel to their D-League affiliate for injury rehab purposes, league sources tell Marc J. Spears of ESPN.com. According to Spears, Noel, who has yet to make his 2016/17 debut after undergoing a knee procedure, is set to practice on Wednesday with the Delaware 87ers, Philadelphia’s D-League affiliate. Like Jerryd Bayless, who was recently assigned to the 87ers on a rehab assignment, Noel is not expected to play in any games during his time in Delaware. The big man hopes to return to the Sixers by mid-December.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/29/16

November 29th, 2016 at 10:35pm CST by Luke Adams

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

10:35pm:

The Spurs have recalled Bryn Forbes, Nicolas Laprovittola and Dejounte Murray from their Austin affiliate, the team announced on its website.
The Nets have recalled forwards Anthony Bennett and Chris McCullough from their Long Island affiliate, the team announced in a press release. Both started Long Island’s game today and were available for Brooklyn’s game with the Clippers.
The Raptors have quickly recalled Caboclo and VanVleet, whose assignments to the D-League were noted below (Twitter link).

2:07pm:

After getting a rare shot at playing time for the Raptors on Monday night in the team’s blowout of the 76ers, Bruno Caboclo and Fred VanVleet have been re-assigned to Raptors 905, according to Blake Murphy of Raptors Republic. As Murphy writes, the schedules for Toronto’s NBA and D-League teams overlap neatly this week, so Caboclo and VanVleet could be up and down a couple more times.
Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, who received some playing time on the other side of that blowout in Toronto on Monday, has been assigned to the Delaware 87ers in advance of the team’s Tuesday night contest, according to a press release issued by the Sixers. The 2016 first-rounder has appeared in 11 games for Philadelphia so far, and one for Delaware.
Former first-round pick Josh Huestis has been re-assigned to the Oklahoma City Blue, the Thunder announced today in a press release. Huestis has appeared in a pair of games for the D-League squad so far, averaging a modest 9.0 PPG and 6.5 RPG.

And-Ones: Labor Talks, Draft, D-League, McGrath

November 29th, 2016 at 9:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

The NBA’s $24 billion in television money has helped to preserve labor peace in the league, writes TNT’s David Aldridge. The TV contract, which runs through 2025, removed the financial incentive for either the owners or the players to force a work stoppage. The salary cap has nearly doubled over the past three years and the league just came off a summer of free agency with unprecedented levels of spending. Not only are player salaries rising, but so are the valuations of teams. Aldridge cites a recent Forbes Magazine article that estimates the value of all 30 teams at $1.25 billion, up 13 percent from a year ago. Both sides have the right to opt out of the current deal until December 15th, but all indications are that talks are going well and a new CBA will be announced soon.

There’s more basketball news tonight:

Kansas forward Josh Jackson remains on top of the list of top 100 draft prospects compiled by ESPN’s Chad Ford. He describes the 6’8″ freshman as a “super athletic wing” with a high basketball IQ. Rounding out Ford’s top five are Washington point guard Markelle Fultz, UCLA point guard Lonzo Ball, North Carolina State point guard Dennis Smith and Duke power forward Harry Giles.
Sioux Falls point guard Briante Weber is the most likely D-League player to get an NBA callup, according to Chris Reichert of Fansided. The 23-year-old is known for his energy and defense, although shooting remains an issue. Weber played six games with Memphis and one with Miami last season. The Heat waived Weber in the preseason, but promised to monitor his progress in the D-League.
Donnie McGrath of the Nets’ D-League affiliate in Long Island has turned down overseas offers to remain with the team, tweets international basketball writer David Pick. The 32-year-old has attracted interest from Spanish teams Fuenlabrada and Betis.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/28/16

November 28th, 2016 at 11:00pm CST by Luke Adams

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

11:00pm:

The Nets have assigned forward Anthony Bennett to their Long Island affiliate, the team announced in a press release. He has played 10 games for Brooklyn, averaging 5.3 points and 2.6 rebounds per night.

2:32pm:

The Warriors have recalled rookie center Damian Jones from the D-League, the team announced today in a press release. It’s not clear if Jones is ready to make his NBA debut quite yet, or if he’s just being called up to practice with Golden State for now.
A day after he was on the receiving end of an emphatic dunk by Wayne Selden, forward Rakeem Christmas has been recalled by the Pacers, according to a team release. Christmas contributed 18 points and seven boards to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants’ win on Sunday.
The Magic have assigned rookie center Stephen Zimmerman to the Erie BayHawks, the team announced today (via Twitter). A second-round pick in June, Zimmerman has only appeared in two regular season games so far for Orlando.
Chris McCullough continues to be shuttled back and forth between the Brooklyn Nets and the Long Island Nets. The team announced today in a press release that he has been sent back to the D-League, where he has appeared in four games so far for Long Island, averaging 17.5 PPG and 6.5 RPG.

Tony Wroten, Archie Goodwin Sign With D-League

November 28th, 2016 at 8:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Former NBA guards Tony Wroten and Archie Goodwin have signed D-League contracts, according to Chris Reichert of The Step Back.

Wroten, who was waived three times during the offseason, has been claimed by the Texas Legends, the Mavericks’ D-League affiliate (Twitter link). Goodwin, who has been waived by both the Suns and Pelicans in the past five weeks, is also joining the D-League (Twitter link).

Wroten, 23, spent a lot of time in the D-League during his four NBA seasons with the Grizzlies and Sixers. He played in just eight NBA games last season, all with Philadelphia, before being waived on Christmas Eve.

Wroten signed with the Knicks in March, but never played for the team. He agreed to a two-year deal with no guaranteed money, and was waived in June after New York traded for Derrick Rose. Wroten was claimed off waivers by the Grizzlies, who waived him in July, re-signed him in August, then waived him again in October.

The 25th pick in the 2012 draft, Wroten started his career in Memphis but spent just one season there before being traded to the Sixers. He is averaging 11.1 points and 3.0 assists in 145 career games.

Goodwin, the 29th pick in the 2013 draft, also made frequent trips to the D-League during his three seasons in Phoenix. A 22-year-old combo guard, Goodwin averaged 6.2 points and 1.2 assists per night in 150 games with the Suns. He signed with New Orleans on November 7th, but appeared in just three games before being released.