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NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 12/19/19

December 19th, 2019 at 10:45pm CST by ChrisCrouse

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

The Raptors recalled Dewan Hernandez from their G League affiliate, Blake Murphy of The Athletic tweets. Toronto needs all hands on deck as a result of various frontcourt injuries this week.
The Magic have assigned Melvin Frazier and Amile Jefferson to the Lakeland Magic, the team announced on Twitter. Lakeland plays the South Bay Lakers in its first game of the G League showcase.
The Pacers have assigned Alize Johnson to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, per the team’s transaction log. This is Johnson’s third G League stint of the week.
Justin Robinson has been assigned to the Capital City Go-Go, per the Wizards‘ Twitter feed. The G League squad takes on the Iowa Wolves in its first match of the showcase in Las Vegas.
The Mavericks have recalled Isaiah Roby from the Texas Legends, according to the team’s Twitter feed.
The Thunder have recalled Deonte Burton from the Oklahoma City Blue, per the team’s website. Burton has played seven games in the G League this season, averaging 16.1 points per game.

Magic Plan To Treat Al Farouq Aminu's Torn Meniscus Without Surgery

December 15th, 2019 at 6:52pm CST by JD Shaw

The Magic plan to treat Al-Farouq Aminu‘s torn meniscus without surgery, according to Josh Robbins of The Athletic (Twitter link). Aminu averaged 4.3 points and 4.8 rebounds in 18 contests before suffering the injury, with the 29-year-old in his first season on the team.

Nikola Vucevic To Return This Afternoon

December 15th, 2019 at 1:37pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Magic officials have stated that center Nikola Vucevic has been ruled active and available to suit up today against the Pelicans for the first time in 11 games, according to Josh Robbins of The Athletic (Twitter link). Vucevic had been inactive since suffering a right ankle sprain in a 113-97 loss to the Raptors on November 20th.

Additionally, head coach Steve Clifford tells Robbins that Vucevic will face a minutes restriction, in accordance with the wishes of the team’s sports medicine specialists.

“(High performance director) David (Tenney) will watch him. (Head trainer) Earnest (Eugene) will watch him,” Clifford said, per The Orlando Sentinel’s Roy Parry (Twitter link). “He won’t play his regular minutes, but he’s going to play significant number, too.”

Vucevic, 29, was Orlando’s best player during the 2018/19 season, and received his first All-Star nod as the team went 42-40. They were defeated 4-1 in the first round of the 2019 playoffs by the eventual champion Raptors. It was Clifford’s first year on the sidelines with the Magic. Orlando is currently the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference with an 11-14 record thus far this season.

Injury Updates: Fox, Kuzma, Gordon, Favors, Vucevic

December 13th, 2019 at 9:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Kings star guard De’Aaron Fox has been out since November 11 due to a Grade 3 left ankle sprain but he’s hopeful of returning next week, as he told Jason Anderson of the Sacramento Bee. “I have more range of motion now than I did before I got hurt,” he said. “My left ankle has just never had that much range of motion, but since we’ve been pounding it hard and going at it so hard, it’s been a lot better than before I got hurt.”

We have more injury updates:

Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma hopes to return from a left ankle sprain sometime during the team’s current trip, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin tweets. The injury is unrelated to the stress reaction he suffered this summer, McMenamin adds. Kuzma suffered the injury on Sunday and has missed the last two games.
Pelicans power forward Derrick Favors, a potential trade candidate, had eight points and eight rebounds in 15 minutes against Philadelphia on Friday. He had not played since November 16 due to knee and back injuries and personal issues.
Rockets guard Eric Gordon has begun on-court running, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle reports. Gordon underwent knee surgery on November 13 with a projected six-week timetable. A return around Christmas remains in play, according to Feigen, though the plan is to gradually increase his workload and ease off as necessary.
Magic center Nikola Vucevic could return on Sunday, John Denton of the team’s website relays. He missed his 11th consecutive game on Friday against Houston due to a right ankle injury. “I think he’s feeling better and hopefully he’ll be able to get through a practice (on Saturday) and still feel good,” Magic coach Steve Clifford said. “I think there’s a good chance he’ll play on Sunday.”

Magic Recall Frazier And Jefferson

December 11th, 2019 at 10:15pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Magic have recalled shooting guard Melvin Frazier and power forward Amile Jefferson from their G League affiliate, the Lakeland Magic, the team’s Twitter account reveals. The second-year players have seen limited time in Orlando this season. Jefferson has played limited minutes in five games, Frazier in four.

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 12/10/19

December 10th, 2019 at 9:33pm CST by ChrisCrouse

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

The Hornets recalled Cody Martin from the Greensboro Swarm, the team announced. The move concluded Martin’s fifth stint in the G League this season.
The Rockets have sent Isaiah Hartenstein down to the G League, Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston relays (Twitter link). The big man has appeared in eight games for Houston this season.
The Kings have assigned Wenyen Gabriel to the Stockton Kings, the team announced on its Twitter feed. The power forward has seen action in seven games for Sacramento this season.
The Magic have sent Melvin Frazier Jr. and Amile Jefferson to the G League, the team’s Twitter feed reveals. Frazier and Jefferson suited up for the Lakeland Magic earlier tonight.

Vucevic Making Progress From Bone Bruise

December 9th, 2019 at 9:43pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Magic center Nikola Vucevic is showing progress as he rehabs an ankle injury, Josh Robbins of The Athletic tweets. Vucevic’s post-shootaround session on Monday included more running, jump shooting and some contact work, Robbins continues, but he’s still feeling some discomfort on certain movements from the bone bruise. The right ankle ailment, which he suffered November 20, is expected to sideline the big man for at least four weeks. He missed his ninth consecutive game on Monday.

Suns Notes: Ayton, Trade Market, Baynes, Rozier

December 5th, 2019 at 3:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Suns will get suspended center Deandre Ayton back in less than two weeks, but coach Monty Williams believes it will take 10 games or so for the team to get used to playing with him again, writes Gina Mizell of The Athletic. The top pick in last year’s draft played just one game this season before being suspended by the league after testing positive for a diuretic.

“We’re really gonna see who we are in the next month,” Williams said. “Most teams know all your plays. Most guys are setting their rotations. I think we’ll find out what our team looks like with the addition of DA.”

Ayton raised a lot of expectations with 18 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks on opening night. The Suns want to see if he can become the anchor of their defense and an effective pick-and-roll partner for Ricky Rubio or if he’ll slip back into some of the bad habits of his rookie season.

There’s more out of Phoenix:

Power forward could be a position of need if the Suns decide to become active on the trade market, Mizell adds in the same piece. Dario Saric has played well, but he’s the only Phoenix starter without a long-term contract and he stands to get a sizable offer as a restricted free agent. Mizell states that the Suns have to be intrigued by Arizona alum Aaron Gordon‘s 32-point performance against them last night, but the Magic may want to hold onto him as long as they’re in the playoff race. She lists Kevin Love, Blake Griffin and LaMarcus Aldridge as veterans who might become available by the February trade deadline.
Jonathan Tjarks of The Ringer examines whether the Suns and Kings are better off without Ayton and Marvin Bagley III, who are both slated to return soon. In Phoenix’s case, veteran center Aron Baynes stepped in for Ayton and helped the Suns to a surprising 7-4 start. They didn’t slip down the standings until he suffered injuries to his hip and calf. Baynes has always been a strong defender, but he has developed his offense since coming to Phoenix, averaging a career best 14.7 points and 2.9 assists per game.
Hornets guard Terry Rozier explained to reporters why he gave serious consideration to the Suns in free agency this summer (video link from The Arizona Republic). “Their identity is guys just play hard,” Rozier said. “Young, physical team, wanna win … obviously I’m not with them so I don’t really care about that no more.”

Trading For DeRozan Doesn't Make Sense

December 4th, 2019 at 10:56pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Trading for DeMar DeRozan doesn’t make a lot of sense for the Magic, Josh Robbins of The Athletic opines. The Magic are reportedly interested in DeRozan but he can become an unrestricted free agent by declining his $27.7MM player option this summer, Robbins notes. Giving up a good young player like Aaron Gordon for DeRozan would be too risky unless the veteran guard made a commitment to stay with Orlando. A trade with the Warriors for guard D’Angelo Russell would be more feasible, though the Magic’s interest level in doing that is unknown, Robbins adds.

Southeast Notes: Wizards, MCW, Butler

December 2nd, 2019 at 3:04pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Criticism can be hard to give and harder to accept but it’s something that teams in the NBA need to be comfortable with in order to improve. Wizards players are still figuring out one another and being constructive with criticism is something that the team has discussed within the locker room, as David Aldridge of The Athletic relay.

“You do it strategically,” said Ish Smith, who was part of the rebuild in Philadelphia. “Everybody ain’t rah-rah. You’ve got to be able to talk to them. And you’ve got to read people’s body language. How people walk, how do people talk, how they’re feeling, if they’re down if they’re up. Those are the things you’ve got to be able to do. You’ve got to communicate, not just by yelling and screaming. You’ve got to be able to pull guys to the side. And that all grows with relationships and just building throughout the season.”

Here’s more from the Southeast Division:

The Magic have listed Michael Carter-Williams as doubtful for Tuesday’s contest vs. the Wizards, Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel tweets. The designation is technically an upgrade on out, which is what MCW has been for the last six contests, so the point guard may be nearing a return.
Jimmy Butler is proving to be the ultimate teammate, Ira Winderman of the Sun-Sentinel writes. Butler is simply trying to win games and he’s not making it about personal glory or any statistics during his first year with the Heat.
In the same piece, Winderman explains why Justise Winslow has been playing in crunch time for the Heat over Tyler Herro and Kendrick Nunn. Winslow remaining on the floor has to do with his defense and coach Erik Spoelstra valued that late in games recently.