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And-Ones: Dorsey, Muhammad, B. Miller, Tall Ball

February 25th, 2023 at 7:00pm CST by Luke Adams

The Texas Legends – the Mavericks‘ G League affiliate – have parted ways with guard Tyler Dorsey, the team announced today (via Twitter). Dorsey had been averaging 18.9 points per game with a .370 3PT% in 12 regular season appearances (30.7 MPG) for the Legends.

It’s possible Dorsey recognized that no NBA call-up opportunities were imminent and requested his release — as a Eurohoops story notes, March 1 is the deadline for EuroLeague teams to add new players to their rosters, and Dorsey reportedly drew interest from multiple clubs in the EuroLeague when he was waived by Dallas earlier this season.

Meanwhile, the Texas Legends announced on Friday that they’ve reacquired veteran forward Justin Jackson. Jackson, who played for the Legends last season, spent most of this season in Boston, but was traded to Oklahoma City at this month’s trade deadline and was subsequently waived by the Thunder.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

  • Free agent wing Shabazz Muhammad has agreed to a “significant” deal with Beirut Club in Lebanon, his agency Edge Sports International announced (via Twitter). The former first-round pick signed a G League contract earlier this season as he attempted to make his way back to the NBA, but will continue his career overseas for now.
  • After police testimony earlier this week revealed that star Alabama prospect Brandon Miller allegedly brought the gun that was used in the killing of a woman on the Tuscaloosa strip last month, Miller’s attorney issued a statement attempting to clarify the 20-year-old’s role (or lack thereof) in the incident (link via Jeff Goodman of Stadium). As Jeff Borzello of ESPN writes, the school announced in a statement on Wednesday that Miller would continue to play for the Crimson Tide, since he’s “not considered a suspect in this case, only a cooperative witness.” Several hours later, Miller scored a career-high 41 points in an overtime win over South Carolina.
  • David Aldridge of The Athletic explores the resurgence of “Tall Ball” across the NBA, pointing to frontcourt pairings in Cleveland (Jarrett Allen, Evan Mobley), Milwaukee (Brook Lopez, Giannis Antetokounmpo), and Washington (Kristaps Porzingis, Daniel Gafford) as some examples of the trend.
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NBA G League Announces 24 Players For Next Up Game

February 7th, 2023 at 1:36pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA G League announced today that G League Ignite guard Scoot Henderson and Timberwolves/Iowa Wolves forward Luka Garza have been named team captains for the NBAGL Next Up Game, which will take place in Salt Lake City during All-Star weekend.

While the exhibition match isn’t technically being called a G League All-Star Game, that’s essentially what it is. The 24-player pool was selected by a fan vote and by the league itself.

Henderson averaged 21.2 PPG, 6.0 APG, and 4.3 RPG in six Showcase Cup games (28.5 MPG) before missing time with an injury. The guard, widely projected to be the No. 2 pick in this year’s draft, has registered 17.7 PPG, 5.7 APG, and 4.5 RPG in 11 regular season games (29.8 MPG) since returning.

Garza, meanwhile, has been dominant at the G League level while playing for the Timberwolves on a two-way contract. He averaged 29.8 PPG, 9.2 RPG, and 3.2 APG on .628/.500/.794 shooting in nine Showcase Cup games (34.4 MPG) and has been boosted those averages in two regular season games (32.5 PPG, 12.0 RPG, 5.0 APG) for the Iowa Wolves.

Here’s the full list of players who will take part in the G League Next Up Game:

(* Players marked with an asterisk are on two-way contracts with NBA teams.)

As is the case with the NBA All-Star Game, the team captains – in this case, Henderson and Garza – will select their 12-man squads in a draft. The draft for the G League Next Up Game will take place on February 14.

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Elfrid Payton Signs G League Contract

February 1st, 2023 at 9:49pm CST by Rory Maher

Free agent guard Elfrid Payton has signed a contract to play in the NBA G League, sources tell veteran reporter Marc Stein (Twitter link).

Payton, who turns 29 in a few weeks, was a lottery pick back in 2014, selected 10th overall by the Magic. He spent last season with the Suns on a minimum-salary contract, but didn’t see much playing time as the third string point guard, appearing in 50 games with career lows in minutes per game (11.0), points (3.0), rebounds (1.8), assists (2.0), FG% (38.3) and FT% (37.5).

While Payton has never been a great shooter, posting a career .447/.287/.623 slash line, he has been an above-average rebounder and decent play-maker. Across 500 regular-season games (395 starts, 26.8 MPG) with Orlando, New Orleans, New York and Phoenix, he holds career averages of 10.1 points, 4.0 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.2 steals.

The eight-year veteran is joining a growing list of free agents attempting to drum up interest by playing in the NBAGL. Other veterans who have signed G League deals in the past couple months include Tony Snell, Stanley Johnson (now with the Spurs), Sterling Brown (who later inked a 10-day deal with the Lakers), David Nwaba and Andre Roberson, among others.

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Thunder’s G League Affiliate Acquires Andre Roberson

February 1st, 2023 at 7:14pm CST by Rory Maher

The Oklahoma City Blue, the NBA G League affiliate of the Thunder, has acquired veteran NBA wing Andre Roberson, the team announced (via Twitter).

After being drafted 26th overall in 2013, Roberson spent his first seven seasons with the Thunder. He emerged as one of the league’s top defensive players before a major knee injury and a series of setbacks derailed his career.

Roberson, who turned 31 in December, last played for the Nets during the 2020/21 season, making five appearances. In 307 career regular-season games (269 starts, 22.2 MPG), the very limited offensive player averaged 4.5 PPG, 4.0 RPG and 0.9 SPG on .473/.253/.468 shooting.

Considering he has played 12 games since January 27, 2018, and his most recent appearance was March 3, 2021, it’s safe to say it’s a long shot that Roberson will make it back to the NBA. Still, it would be a great story if his comeback attempt is successful.

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Tony Snell Joins Celtics’ G League Affiliate

January 31st, 2023 at 12:58pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Maine Celtics have acquired veteran swingman Tony Snell from the G League’s player pool, the team announced in a press release.

Snell has been a free agent since finishing last season with the Pelicans. He had a workout in November with the Lakers and now turns to the G League in his effort to get back to the NBA.

The 31-year-old has appeared in 601 games in his nine-year NBA career, with averages of 6.1 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.1 assists per night. He’s a career 39.4% shooter from three-point range and hopes to show teams that he’s still an effective marksman from long distance.

Snell spent three seasons with the Bulls after being selected with the 20th pick in the 2013 draft. He was traded to the Bucks in 2016, to the Pistons in 2019 and to the Hawks in 2020. After signing with the Trail Blazers as a free agent in 2021, he was traded again last season, being sent to New Orleans at the deadline.

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Moses Moody Assigned To Warriors’ G League Affiliate

January 26th, 2023 at 2:24pm CST by Rory Maher

Moses Moody, the 14th overall pick of the 2021 draft, has been assigned to the Warriors‘ G League affiliate in Santa Cruz, the team announced (via Twitter).

Still just 20 years old, the second-year wing has struggled to land a regular spot in head coach Steve Kerr‘s rotation this season. He did not play at all in three of the last four games, so obviously the Warriors want him to get more reps in.

Through 39 games (14.8 MPG), Moody is averaging 5.2 PPG and 1.7 RPG on .452/.367/.703 shooting. The former lottery pick made 10 total appearances (Showcase Cup, regular season and postseason) with Santa Cruz as a rookie, but this is his first G League stint during the 2022/23 season.

After defeating Memphis on Wednesday night, the defending champions are now 24-24, the No. 8 seed in the West.

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And-Ones: Faried, CBA, Wembanyama, Thompson Twins

January 24th, 2023 at 3:06pm CST by Luke Adams

In a conversation with Sam Yip of HoopsHype, Kenneth Faried admits that it has been “extremely difficult” to be out of the NBA since 2019, since he believes that he’s still capable of playing at that level and helping a team. Faried is currently suiting up for the Mexico City Capitanes in the G League as he seeks an NBA comeback.

“At the same time, patience is a virtue. I’m very patient,” Faried said. “I’m working hard towards showing that I can still do it at that level. … I’m ready, I’m focused, I’m locked in, I’m a better vet, a better person, a better leader and I don’t even need to be a leader. I can be quiet and sit back and just follow whoever the leader is.”

As Yip points out, Faried is one of several NBA veterans playing for Mexico City’s G League team. Shabazz Napier, Gary Clark, and Mason Jones are among the other Capitanes players hoping for a call-up.

“For us to now be on a team, and all trying to have the same kind of goal to make it back to the NBA and try to find a way is great, because we’re not trying to be selfish to each other,” Faried said. “We’re trying to help each other. And everyone’s here trying to help each other get better, trying to showcase that we’re still good enough in great shape and ready for whatever may happen, ready for a contract for real.”

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

  • Don’t expect the NBA’s next Collective Bargaining Agreement to include an upper spending limit (ie. a hard cap), ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said during the latest episode of his Hoop Collective podcast. The NBA was reportedly pushing a de facto hard cap earlier in CBA discussions, but Windhorst believes negotiations between the two sides would be far more contentious if the league was still prioritizing that concept. He does think there will be changes made to the luxury tax system, however.
  • Although the 2017 CBA improved the guidelines for veteran contract extensions and led to a huge uptick in those deals, the rule limiting players to a 20% raise for the first year of an extension is outdated, according to Bobby Marks of ESPN, who notes that it makes it virtually impossible for clubs to extend players who are coming off team-friendly deals. Marks suggests tweaking the rule to allow teams to offer the same amount in an extension that they’d be able to in free agency.
  • Top prospect Victor Wembanyama is expected to play for France’s national team in two World Cup qualifying contests next month, as Johnny Askounis of Eurohoops writes. The February 23 and 26 games conflict with the EuroLeague schedule, but Wembyanama’s Metropolitans 92 aren’t a EuroLeague team.
  • Twins Amen Thompson and Ausar Thompson, projected top-10 picks in the 2023 NBA draft, are looking forward to competing against other top players from their draft class and showing how the Overtime Elite program has benefited them, writes Jacob Polacheck of ZagsBlog.com.
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Josh Jackson Joins Kings’ G League Team

January 24th, 2023 at 1:10pm CST by Arthur Hill

Josh Jackson, who finished last season with the Kings, has officially joined Sacramento’s G League affiliate in Stockton, tweets Brandon Nunes of Kings Pulse. Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link) first reported that Jackson had signed a G League contract and was set to join the Stockton Kings.

Jackson, the fourth selection in the 2017 draft, was in training camp with the Raptors but was waived shortly before the start of the season. The 25-year-old wing has previous G League experience, playing 26 games with the Memphis Hustle in 2019/20.

Jackson has turned into an NBA journeyman after spending his first two seasons in Phoenix. The Suns traded him to the Grizzlies in 2019, and he signed with the Pistons as a free agent in 2020. Detroit shipped him to Sacramento as part of a four-team deal at the trade deadline last February, and he appeared in 12 games with the Kings before becoming a free agent again.

In five seasons, Jackson has played 291 total games with career averages of 11.3 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.8 assists.

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And-Ones: NBAGL, Dunn, Noel, Klutch, CBA, 2023 Draft

January 14th, 2023 at 12:04pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA G League will have an increased presence at this year’s NBA All-Star weekend, having introduced a new Next Up Game that will take place on Sunday, February 19 prior to the NBA’s All-Star Game.

As outlined in a G League press release, the game will feature 24 NBAGL standouts, with 10 of those players selected by fan vote.

Players on G League contracts or two-way deals who have appeared in at least four games this season will be eligible to participate in the game. However, players on standard NBA contracts won’t be — that means you wouldn’t be able to vote for, say, Warriors center James Wiseman, despite the fact that he has appeared in 10 games this season for Santa Cruz.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

  • Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington take a closer look at Kris Dunn‘s efforts to “get back to the NBA the correct way.” The former No. 5 overall pick is playing this season for the Capital City Go-Go, the Wizards‘ G League affiliate, and is seeing his work on a revamped jump shot pay dividends. In 20 G League games, Dunn is making 58.2% of his shots from the field and 42.1% of his three-pointers.
  • Pistons center Nerlens Noel and Klutch Sports reached a settlement in their financial dispute this week, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who tweets that Noel has agreed to pay Rich Paul and Klutch the commission fees on his 2020 Knicks deal and has dropped his legal proceedings against the agency. Noel sued Paul and Klutch back in 2021 after the agency filed a grievance over $200K in commission that the big man hadn’t paid.
  • Although there’s still no agreement between the NBA and the players’ union on a new Collective Bargaining Agreement, there’s too much money at stake to expect a work stoppage, Steve Bulpett of Heavy.com writes in a check-in on the league’s labor talks.
  • Sam Vecenie of The Athletic and Jeremy Woo of SI.com both published new 2023 mock drafts this week. There are plenty of differences between the two mocks starting at No. 3, where Vecenie has Amen Thompson of Overtime Elite and Woo has Arkansas’ Anthony Black. Woo has Thompson at No. 6 in his mock, while Vecenie has Black all the way down at No. 11 in his.
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Mac McClung To Become First G League Player In Dunk Contest

January 13th, 2023 at 2:32pm CST by Luke Adams

The third participant confirmed to be taking part in the NBA’s Slam Dunk Contest in Salt Lake City next month isn’t an NBA player, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link), who reports that G League guard Mac McClung has accepted an invitation to the event.

Assuming he doesn’t get called up to the NBA within the next month or so, McClung will be the first G League player to compete in the dunk contest, according to Charania. The 24-year-old is currently playing for the Delaware Blue Coats, the Sixers‘ NBAGL affiliate.

McClung does have a little NBA experience, having signed a pair of 10-day contracts with the Bulls in 2021/22 and then a two-way contract with the Lakers during the final days of the regular season. The 6’2″ guard appeared in one game for each team and finished off the Lakers’ season by emphatically throwing down a double-clutch reverse dunk (YouTube video link).

The Warriors signed McClung to a training camp deal this past summer, but waived him during the preseason.

McClung joins Trail Blazers rookie Shaedon Sharpe and Rockets forward Kenyon Martin Jr. as the dunk contest participants who have been reported so far. The event will take place on Saturday, February 18 in Utah.

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