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Spencer Dinwiddie

And-Ones: Dinwiddie, Coaches, Heisley

April 26th, 2014 at 10:12pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com (Twitter link) reports that former Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley passed away earlier today at the age of 77. Our condolences go out to his family and friends. Heisley owned the team for 12 years and was responsible for moving the team from Vancouver, British Columbia to Memphis, Tennessee back in 2001. He sold the team in 2012 to an ownership group headed up by Robert Pera, but he had interest in purchasing another franchise soon after. Reports indicated that he was eyeing the Wolves and came close to buying the Bucks last year before his health deteriorated.

More from around the league:

  • Spencer Dinwiddie has signed with agent Sam Goldfeder of Excel Sports, reports Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
  • The team at Basketball Insiders examine which NBA coaches need to be let go by their respective teams.
  • There are quite a few differences between coaching at the collegiate level and the NBA. Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune breaks them down as well as looks at some examples of previous coaches who attempted to make the transition.
  • In a separate article, Zgoda examines which college coaches would consider taking the vacant Timberwolves head coach position.
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Spencer Dinwiddie Declares For Draft

April 24th, 2014 at 3:02pm CST by Chuck Myron

Colorado junior Spencer Dinwiddie announced in a press conference today that he’s entering the NBA draft. The shooting guard had been leaning heavily toward doing so, but the news is still somewhat surprising, since he tore his left ACL in January and missed the rest of the season. Chad Ford of ESPN.com has him as the 40th-best prospect for this year, while Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress rates him 49th.

Dinwiddie was a potential first-round pick before the injury, and Givony ranked him 22nd going into the season. He scored 14.7 points in 31.1 minutes per contest in 17 games this year and shot 41.3% from behind the arc. It was something of a bounceback from three-point range for the 21-year-old, who made just 33.8% of his treys as a sophomore after nailing 43.8% his freshman year.

He traveled to Houston for a medical evaluation this past weekend before making his decision just three days before the deadline for underclassmen to enter the draft. It’s too late for him to withdraw and keep his NCAA eligibility, but providing he returns to full health, there seems to be a decent chance he’ll become a second-round steal for an NBA team.

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Draft Notes: Dinwiddie, Smart, Kentucky

April 1st, 2014 at 7:29pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Colorado junior Spencer Dinwiddie is leaning heavily toward leaving for the NBA, writes Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com. The 6’6″ guard, who tore the ACL in his left knee on January 12th, will likely will forgo his final college season, unless the NBA evaluation he receives back says he does not have a chance to go in the first round of the draft, reports Goodman. Dinwiddie was averaging 14.7 PPG, 3.1 RPG, and 3.8 APG at the time of his injury. He is currently ranked as the 46th best prospect by Chad Ford of ESPN.com.

More news related to draft matters:

  • Marcus Smart is close to signing with Wasserman Media Group, notes Jared Zwerling of Bleacher Report (Twitter link). Zwerling also notes that Jay-Z and Bill Duffy are candidates to sign Andrew Wiggins.
  • As many as eight Kentucky players might declare for this year’s NBA Draft. Yannis Koutroupis of Basketball Insiders breaks down each candidate and what their draft prospects are. Koutroupis has also released his latest mock draft.
  • Chad Ford (Insider subscription required) breaks down which players have moved up and which have moved down his draft rankings based on their NCAA Tournament performances.
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Draft Rumors: Wiggins, Parker, Smart

March 24th, 2014 at 5:18pm CST by Zachary Links

Earlier today, we learned Ohio State small forward LaQuinton Ross is on the fence about entering the draft.  While he’s not one of the top talents available this June, Ross was ranked No. 32 by ESPN’s Chad Ford and that’s no small feat given the depth of this year’s class.  Here’s the latest draft news..

  • Projected lottery picks Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker and Doug McDermott some of their worst during NCAA tournament action the past few days. Still, their performances haven’t discouraged NBA team executives, who tell Chris Mannix of SI.com that this weekend’s results will do little to alter their draft stocks (Twitter link).
  • In today’s column, David Aldridge of NBA.com looks at the shallow pool of point guards in the 2014 draft.  While there’s a significant drop-off after Australian prospect Dante Exum, Oklahoma State sophomore Marcus Smart, and Syracuse freshman Tyler Ennis, Aldridge rightfully notes that it’s not a huge problem for most NBA teams.  The classic, pass-first floor general is nearly extinct thanks to rule changes over the years.
  • NBA scouts told Chris Dempsey of The Denver Post that they regarded 6’6″ Colorado point guard Spencer Dinwiddie a late first-round pick, at least, before he tore his ACL in January. Concerns about his recovery and the absence of a chance to take part in predraft workouts will make it easy for Dinwiddie to decide against entering this year’s draft, Dempsey believes.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

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