NBA G League Rumors | Hoops Rumors

NBA G League Assignment/Recalls 3/19/19

March 19th, 2019 at 6:45pm CST by ChrisCrouse

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

Frank Ntilikina, who was nursing a sore groin, has been cleared to practice. He’ll get some run with the Westchester Knicks, as New York has assigned him to the G League for part of his rehab (announcement via Twitter).
We’ve written about Hamidou Diallo every evening this week, as he was sent to the G League on Sunday and recalled by Oklahoma City on Monday. He’s on the move again, as the Thunder have assigned him to the Oklahoma City Blue today, according to a team press release.
The Heat have assigned Charles Cooke to the Sioux Falls Skyforce, per the team’s Twitter feed. Cook is active for the G League tilt against the Blue tonight.
The Spurs have assigned Lonnie Walker and Chimezie Metu to the G League, per the team’s Twitter feed. The pair of rookies are active for the Austin Spurs tonight.

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls 3/18/19

March 18th, 2019 at 8:22pm CST by ChrisCrouse

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

The Clippers have assigned Justin Bibbs and Jerome Robinson to the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario, according to the team’s Twitter feed. The pair were recalled from the G League on Sunday.
The Heat have recalled Charles Cooke from the Sioux Falls Skyforce, according to the team’s website. Cooke, who was signed to a 10-day deal last week, has spent the majority of the season with the team’s G League affiliate, appearing in 39 games with the Skyforce.
The Thunder have recalled Hamidou Diallo from the Oklahoma City Blue, according to a team press release. Diallo has played in five G League games this season and he’s averaging 17.8 points, 7.2 rebounds

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls 3/17/19

March 17th, 2019 at 6:55pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Here are Sunday’s assignments and recalls from around the NBA G League:

The Thunder have assigned Hamidou Diallo to the Oklahoma City Blue, according to a team press release. Hamidou has appeared in 47 games for the Thunder this season, averaging 4.0 points and 2.0 rebounds in 11.1 minutes per contest.
The Clippers have recalled Justin Bibbs and Jerome Robinson from the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario, according to the team’s Twitter feed.
The Grizzlies have assigned Tyler Dorsey to the Memphis Hustle, per the team’s Twitter feed.
The Bucks have recalled Christian Wood from the Wisconsin Herd, per the team’s Twitter feed. The latest assignment was Wood’s 15th in the G League this season.

And-Ones: G League, T. Robinson, Hawes, Ajinca

March 17th, 2019 at 8:56am CST by Arthur Hill

More G League players than ever are either leaving their teams for personal reasons or being “removed from a team,” writes Adam Johnson of 2 Ways and 10 Days. Terrence Jones, who recently completed a pair of 10-day contracts with the Rockets, is the latest example, as Johnson tweets that he has been removed from the active roster of the Erie BayHawks.

Jeff Ledbetter, Lavoy Allen, Jarnell Stokes, Raphiael Putney, Quincy Acy, DeAndre Liggins and Chris McCullough have also left their G League teams this season for various reasons. Some ultimately returned, but Johnson sees the pattern as an issue for the league. He notes the stress involved in being so close to the big leagues can make players react poorly if they have a bad game in front of NBA scouts.

Johnson urges new G League President Shareef Abdur-Rahim to expand the availability of mental health services available to players and encourage more discussion on the topic, just like the NBA did after revelations from Kevin Love and DeMar DeRozan.

There’s more NBA-related news to pass along:

Former NBA forward Thomas Robinson, who signed a G League contract this week, has been claimed on waivers by the Celtics‘ affiliate in Maine, Johnson tweets. The league mistakenly awarded Robinson to the Red Claws a day early, as players must spend at least 48 hours on waivers unless they are claimed by the team with the top waiver spot. Robinson prefers to go to Maine, and Johnson states that still appears to be his destination (Twitter link). The fifth player selected in the 2012 draft, Robinson played for six NBA teams in five seasons.
Spencer Hawes has been impressive in the G League and is “on the radar” for an NBA call-up, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Playing for the Lakers‘ affiliate, Hawes had a 29-point game last night and is shooting 59% from 3-point range.
A few unlikely teams appear to have done very well at the trade deadline, according to Matt John of Basketball Insiders. Many observers thought the Clippers were giving up on this season when they traded away leading scorer Tobias Harris, but they got a nice collection of young talent and future assets in return and acquired Ivica Zubac from the Lakers in a separate deal. The Clippers have solidified a playoff spot at 40-30 and appear in stronger position to make an offseason run at Kawhi Leonard. The Pistons only made minor moves, John adds, but trading away Stanley Johnson and Reggie Bullock created more playing time for Luke Kennard and Wayne Ellington, who have helped Detroit to a 10-4 record since the deadline. The Grizzlies have been playing better since unloading Marc Gasol, JaMychal Green and Garrett Temple. Avery Bradley and Jonas Valanciunas have been standouts in Memphis and have increased the chances that the Grizzlies will convey their first-round pick to the Celtics this year rather than having to worry about it in the future.
Italian club Grison Bon Reggio Emilia has expressed interest in former NBA center Alexis Ajinca, who left his French team last week, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando.

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 3/16/19

March 16th, 2019 at 8:48pm CST by Arthur Hill

Here are Saturday’s assignments and recalls from around the NBA G League:

The Rockets assigned Gary Clark to the Rio Grande Vipers, tweets Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. It’s the second G League trip this month for the rookie forward, who is averaging 2.9 PPG in 42 games with Houston.
The Wizards recalled high-scoring guard Jordan McRae from Capital City Go-Go, tweets Candace Buckner of The Washington Post. McRae tops the G League scoring race at 30.4 PPG in 30 games.

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 3/15/19

March 15th, 2019 at 7:14pm CST by Dana Gauruder

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

The Spurs recalled rookie forward Chimezie Metu from the Austin Spurs, according to a team press release. In 23 games with Austin, Metu has averaged 14.1 PPG, 7.5 RPG and 1.5 BPG in 27.7 MPG. The second-round pick out of USC has played 28 games with San Antonio.
The Suns recalled rookie guard Elie Okobo from the Northern Arizona Suns, according to a team press release. Okobo is averaging 18.1 PPG, 7.4 APG and 4.7 RPG in nine G League appearances. Okobo is averaging 5.5 PPG and 2.5 APG in 17.8 MPG in 44 games with the Suns.

Thomas Robinson Signs G League Contract

March 15th, 2019 at 2:16pm CST by Luke Adams

Former lottery pick Thomas Robinson has signed an NBA G League contract as he looks for a path back to the NBA, reports Adam Johnson of 2 Ways & 10 Days (via Twitter). According to Johnson, the veteran power forward is eligible to be claimed off waivers by an NBAGL team.

Robinson, who was selected fifth overall in the 2012 draft, never developed into a reliable rotation player in the NBA. Over the course of five seasons, he appeared in a total of 313 regular season games, averaging 4.9 PPG and 4.8 RPG for the Kings, Rockets, Trail Blazers, Sixers, Nets, and Lakers. Although he was in camp with the Hawks last fall, he hasn’t seen regular season action since the 2016/17 season, when he played 48 games for the Lakers.

Having continued his career in Russia and China over the last two seasons, Robinson is hoping to catch on with an NBA team in advance of the playoffs. In fact, Johnson tweets that the 27-year-old is specifically hoping to land with the Maine Red Claws in the G League, since he’d like to earn the open spot on the Celtics‘ 15-man roster for the postseason. The Red Claws are Boston’s NBAGL affiliate.

Claiming a roster spot on a playoff team may be a long shot for Robinson, but he’d be postseason-eligible if he signs anytime before the end of the regular season, since he hasn’t been on an NBA roster yet this season.

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 3/14/19

March 14th, 2019 at 9:15pm CST by JD Shaw

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

The Raptors assigned forward Malcolm Miller to the Raptors 905, G League affiliate of the team, announcing the news on social media. After playing for the Raptors 905 earlier today, Miller was recalled by Toronto and suited up for the NBA team against the Lakers.
The Celtics have recalled Robert Williams from the Maine Red Claws, the team announced on social media. Williams was drafted by Boston with the the No. 27 pick in 2018, spending part of this season with Maine.
The Jazz assigned center Tony Bradley to their G League team in Salt Lake City, announcing the move in a press release. Bradley has seen action in 17 games with the team’s G League affiliate, averaging 13.6 points per game on 56% from the field.

Jarrett Jack Suffers Torn ACL In G League Contest

March 14th, 2019 at 7:46pm CST by JD Shaw

Former NBA guard Jarrett Jack has sustained a torn ACL and lateral meniscus in his left knee, a crushing blow for a veteran seeking a comeback in the league, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel tweets. Jack, who also sprained his MCL, has a surgical procedure scheduled for April 1.

Jack had been playing with the Sioux Falls Skyforce — G League affiliate of the Heat. He suffered the injuries in last Saturday’s contest against Rio Grande, exiting the game in the third quarter with a noticeable limp during his lone appearance with the team.

Jack’s surgery will be conducted by Dr. Riley J. Williams lll, the Medical Director and Head Team Physician of the Nets, according to Winderman.

Jack, 35, joined the Pelicans for training camp last fall but was waived in October. He was the No. 22 pick to Denver in 2005, making stops with Portland, Indiana, Toronto, New Orleans, Golden State, Cleveland, Brooklyn, New York and New Orleans across 13 NBA seasons.

Jack has averaged 10.8 points, 5.6 assists and 0.6 steals for his career, a two-way point guard who’s used his leadership and guidance to help NBA teams in recent seasons.

Cavs Notes: Durant, Chriss, Knight, M. Richardson

March 13th, 2019 at 8:31pm CST by Luke Adams

Between the day that the Cavaliers beat the Warriors to win the 2016 NBA Finals and the day Kevin Durant opted to sign with Golden State, Cleveland’s then-GM David Griffin gathered his staff and instructed them to look into possible paths to landing Durant, writes ESPN’s Zach Lowe. As Lowe explains, there was a fear after the Finals that KD would head to the Dubs, and even though the Cavs recognized they had little chance of securing a meeting with him, they wanted to do all they could to explore the possibility.

“I don’t believe you can dream big enough in the NBA,” Griffin told Lowe recently, looking back on that 2016 offseason. “You have to go through the exercise.”

Of course, Durant ultimately signed with the Warriors and the Cavaliers didn’t get a meeting. That second part, at least, came as no surprise, since Cleveland was one of just three clubs during the summer of 2016 that ended up staying over the salary cap despite a huge cap spike that created room for 27 other teams. It would have been extremely difficult for the Cavs to create space to sign Durant, and a sign-and-trade with Oklahoma City would have been a long shot, even if the star forward had considered Cleveland.

It’s hard to even view the Cavs’ failed run at Durant an intriguing what-if scenario, since it never got off the ground at all. Still, it’s a reminder that even the league’s most successful teams will do their due diligence to find ways they can add another star and become even more dangerous — even if the road to an acquisition seems improbable.

Here’s more from out of Cleveland:

While many NBA observers and fans questioned the league’s decision to suspend Marquese Chriss for a game after he defended himself from a physical attack from Serge Ibaka, Cavs head coach Larry Drew thought it was the right call, as Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com relays. “Punches were thrown by both guys and I thought the ruling the league made was the right decision,” Drew said.
When the Cavaliers acquired Brandon Knight from the Rockets at last month’s trade deadline, he was viewed as the salary dump necessary for Cleveland to secure Houston’s first-round pick. Since his arrival though, Knight has been a regular part of the club’s rotation and has showed flashes of his old self, Fedor writes for Cleveland.com. “He’s the Brandon that I remember,” Drew said. “Probably not as explosive as he’s been in the past, prior to the injury, but still a guy who has a tremendous work ethic and he competes. That’s the thing I admire about him and respect about him. He’s a team player and he’s going to give you everything he has when he’s on the floor.”
Former Kings and Raptors swingman Malachi Richardson signed a G League contract and has been claimed off waivers by the Canton Charge, Cleveland’s NBAGL affiliate, a league source tells Adam Johnson of 2 Ways & 10 Days (Twitter link). Richardson was traded from Toronto to Philadelphia at last month’s deadline and was subsequently waived by the Sixers.