Bryn Forbes

Southwest Notes: Finney-Smith, Harrell, Forbes

Undrafted Mavericks rookie Dorian Finney-Smith has started 25 games so far this season despite barely making Dallas’ roster out of training camp. With the former Florida Gator’s partially-guaranteed contract set to guarantee on January 5, the fact that he’s managed to hold onto his spot in the starting lineup even with Dirk Nowitzki healthy bodes well.

In 22.8 minutes per game this season, the 23-year-old Finney-Smith has emerged as a capable perimeter defender for the Mavericks – even if that means being thrown into the deep end against NBA superstars like Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson.

It’s great experience for young guys,” Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisle said of his rookie’s recent baptism by fire. “They learn a lot in a very short period of time. And some of it is very painful. But this is how you get better.”

As Eddie Sefko of Dallas News writes in the same article, the 15th and final addition to the Mavericks roster last fall has already beaten the odds.

That’s not all out of the Southwest Division:

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 1/2/17

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

7:40pm:

12:27pm:

  • Forward Joel Bolomboy is headed back to the Salt Lake City Stars, according to a press release issued by the Jazz. In Bolomboy’s last game for Utah’s D-League affiliate, on Friday, he posted 18 points and 12 boards to help lead the Stars to a double-overtime win.
  • The Celtics have recalled a pair of players, Jordan Mickey and Demetrius Jackson, from the D-League, the team announced today (via Twitter). The duo could be active tomorrow for the C’s, depending on the health of a few Boston players.
  • The Spurs have recalled rookie guard Bryn Forbes from Austin, writes Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News. Forbes has played well for the NBADL Spurs this season, averaging 23.4 PPG in seven games.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 12/27/16

Here are Tuesday’s D-League assignments and recalls from across the NBA, with the most recent updates added to the top of the list throughout the day:

6:25pm:

  • The Warriors have assigned Damian Jones back to Santa Cruz to join Golden State’s D-League affiliate, according to a press release. The rookie center figure to play for the NBADL Warriors against Sioux Falls tonight.

5:02pm:

1:36pm:

  • A day after Rockets rookie Chinanu Onuaku received his first opportunity to get into an NBA game and show off his underhanded free throws, the 2016 second-rounder is headed back to the D-League. The Rockets announced today (via Twitter) that Onuaku has been re-assigned to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. Houston’s D-League affiliate will play three games in the next four days, so Onuaku may remain with the Vipers during that stretch.
  • The Thunder have sent forward Josh Huestis back to the D-League, the team announced today in a press release. The 25-year-old, who has yet to appear in an NBA game for Oklahoma City this season, will suit up for the OKC Blue on Wednesday night, assuming he’s not recalled before then.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 12/22/16

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

10:55pm:

  • The Nets recalled forward Chris McCullough from the Long Island Nets, the team tweets. McCullough was assigned to the D-League Nets on December 9 and started the team’s last five games. He had 20 points and eight rebounds in 35 minutes against the Grand Rapids Drive on Thursday.

3:50pm:

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 12/18/16

Here are the D-League assignments and recalls for Sunday:

  • The Spurs assigned guard Bryn Forbes to the Austin Spurs, the team announced on its website. Forbes scored 23 points against the Westchester Knicks on Sunday afternoon.
  • The Thunder recalled forward Josh Huestis from the Oklahoma City Blue, the team announced in a press release. In nine games with the Blue this season, Huestis is averaging 12.1 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 2.11 blocks in 31.7 minutes. Huestis has appeared in five games with the Thunder, averaging 2.8 points and 2.0 rebounds in 11.0 minutes.

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

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.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/27/16

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

  • Forwards Anthony Bennett and Chris McCullough were recalled by the Nets after being assigned to Long Island earlier today for the D-League team’s game against Grand Rapids, the team announced in an email. Bennett had 22 points, eight rebounds and five assists, while McCullough put up 15 points and nine rebounds.
  • The Raptors have recalled Jakob Poeltl, Bruno Caboclo and Fred VanVleet from Raptors 905, according to The Toronto Sun. All three had been sent down to participate in Satuday’s game against Maine.
  • The Spurs assigned rookie guards Dejounte Murray, Bryn Forbes and Nicolas Laprovittola to Austin, writes Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio News-Express. They are expected to be recalled in time for San Antonio’s game on Tuesday.
  • The Pelicans have recalled rookie forward Cheick Diallo from Austin, the team announced in an email. He has played six games in the D-League and just one for New Orleans.
  • The Mavericks recalled rookie center A.J. Hammons from the Texas Legends, according to an email from the team. He was assigned Saturday for a game against Salt Lake in which he scored eight points and grabbed four rebounds.
  • The Bulls have recalled forward/center Cristiano Felicio and guards Jerian Grant and R.J. Hunter from their Windy City affiliate, the team announced in an email.

Southwest Notes: Gasol, D-League, Fizdale, Harrell

A consistent scorer since entering the NBA, Pau Gasol has faced a huge adjustment since signing with the Spurs this summer, writes Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News. Gasol went scoreless Friday in Boston and he has put up a pair of two-point games during the early season. It’s a change for Gasol, who has averaged 18.1 points per game through his career, but apparently not an issue for coach Gregg Popovich. “I’m not really too concerned with who scores and who doesn’t,” Popovich said. “We just try to have more than the other guys.”

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

  • The largest rookie class in Spurs history has gotten a lot of D-League training, McDonald notes in a separate piece. Bryn Forbes, Davis Bertans, Dejounte Murray and Nicolas Laprovittola all earned spots on San Antonio’s roster, but they have spent much of their first month in Austin. “It’s been real important to us, keeping guys in shape and getting guys minutes, learning the game, learning the NBA,” Popovich said. “We’ve been fortunate we have had guys who have had the character and humility to do that and not think it’s below them.”
  • Grizzlies coach David Fizdale defended his maintenance program after point guard Mike Conley was used as a reserve and played just 23 minutes in Friday’s loss, relays Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal. Conley, who re-signed during the summer for $153MM over five years, said he is willing to trust Fizdale’s strategy, while the coach admitted it’s a work in progress. “Obviously you can tell the number of minutes that [Conley] played, what was happening,” Fizdale said. “I just tried to find a balance somewhere and just try to patch it up where we can, going after the win.”
  • Second-year Rockets big man Montrezl Harrell is finding his opportunities limited behind Clint Capela and Nene, notes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Circumstances have given Harrell more playing time than usual the past two games, but coach Mike D’Antoni doesn’t expect him to become part of the rotation. “Not that I don’t have confidence in him,” D’Antoni said. “I have a lot of confidence in him. It’s just hard. I want to get Clint up to 30 minutes. Clint is playing as well as anybody on our team. If I get him up to 30, that leaves only 18. Now, you’re trying to split time. Is that nine minutes each, 12 minutes for one guy and six [for the other]? In special circumstances, I wouldn’t hesitate. If we’re a little sluggish, I wouldn’t hesitate … because I think he brings energy and something different. But it’s hard to play three guys in that role if one guy is taking up 30 minutes. It’s almost impossible. It’s not fair to the other two guys, actually.”

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/20/16

Listed below are Sunday’s D-League assignments and recalls from around the NBA.

  • The Grizzlies sent rookie guard Wade Baldwin to the Iowa Energy, the team announced in an email. He has appeared in nine games for Memphis, averaging 3.1 points.
  • The Knicks recalled center Marshall Plumlee from Westchester, the team tweeted.
  • The Hornets recalled guard Aaron Harrison and forward Christian Wood from Greensboro, the team announced on its website. They were the first players ever to be assigned to the new D-League franchise.
  • The Spurs recalled guards Bryn Forbes and Dejounte Murray from their Austin affiliate, according to the team’s website. Both players were sent down Saturday to participate in a game against Erie.
  • The Wizards will recall guard Danuel House from the Sixers‘ affiliate in Delaware in time for Monday’s game, according to J. Michael of CSNMidAtlantic.

NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/19/16

Listed below are Saturday’s D-League assignments and recalls from around the NBA. This post will be updated throughout the day if and when other teams announce moves.

6:47pm:

  • The Suns have recalled Derrick Jones Jr. from the Northern Arizona Suns, the team’s D-League affiliate, according to their Twitter feed.
  • The Clippers have assigned Diamond Stone to the D-League and he will play for the Santa Cruz Warriors, Marc J. Spears of ESPN.com tweets.
  • The Bucks have assigned Rashad Vaughn to the D-League and he will play for the Westchester Knicks, Chris Reichert of The Step Back reports (Twitter link).

1:11pm

  • The Spurs have assigned Dejounte Murray and Bryn Forbes to the D-League, according to the team. While the headline of San Antonio’s press release indicates Murray has been recalled from the Austin Spurs, the rookie had already been with the NBA club, and the release itself says he and Forbes are being sent to Austin, where they’ll be available for tonight’s game against the Erie Bayhawks. It’s already the fifth assignment of the season for Murray, and the third for Forbes.