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NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 2/26/19

February 26th, 2019 at 10:09pm CST by ChrisCrouse

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

The Jazz have recalled Grayson Allen from the Salt Lake City Stars, according to the team’s Twitter feed. The stint was Allen’s ninth assignment this season.
The Clippers have assigned Jerome Robinson to the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario, according to the team’s Twitter feed.
The Pacers have assigned Edmond Sumner to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, according to the team’s transaction log. Sumner recently signed a two-year contract with Indiana.
The Wizards assigned Troy Brown Jr. to the Capital City Go-Go, according to the team’s Twitter feed.
The Heat have assigned Emanuel Terry to the Sioux Falls Skyforce, according to the team’s Twitter feed. Terry has seen action in just one game for Miami this season, playing just three minutes.
The Grizzlies have assigned Jevon Carter to the Memphis Hustle, per the team’s Twitter feed.

Satoransky Envisions Playing In Spain Again

February 25th, 2019 at 9:15pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Wizards point guard Tomas Satoransky has become a starter due to John Wall‘s injuries but he still envisions returning to Spain later in his career, as he told ACB.com in a story relayed by Sportando. Satoransky played for two Spanish teams before joining the NBA.

“I have a lot of goals to accomplish in the NBA, but I always think that I would love to return to Spain,” the Wizards guard said. “I grew up there, I love the people and Spanish basketball. I love Spanish life and, one day, I would love to return to Liga Endesa (the Spanish league).”

Wizards guard Jordan McRae is nearing the end of his 45-day NBA clock as a two-way player and he’s likely to spend more time in the G League to avoid reaching the limit, as Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington explains. The franchise would risk losing him or be forced to sign him to a standard contract if he doesn’t spend most of the next four weeks with the Capital City Go Go, Hughes continues. The team wants to retain McRae but it’s barely under the luxury tax threshold and doesn’t want to go over it by converting McRae’s contract, Hughes adds.

G League Assignments/Recalls: 2/23/19

February 23rd, 2019 at 9:07pm CST by Arthur Hill

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

The Wizards recalled rookie forward Troy Brown Jr. so he could play in tonight’s game against the Pacers, Washington announced in a tweet. It’s the 30th NBA game of the season for Brown, who entered the night averaging 2.4 PPG in about seven minutes per game.
The Raptors assigned Chris Boucher and Malcolm Miller for today’s game against Long Island, according to a tweet from Raptors 905.

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 2/21/19

February 21st, 2019 at 9:49pm CST by JD Shaw

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

The Sixers have assigned guard Zhaire Smith to the Delware Blue Coats, the team announced on social media. Smith was selected by Philadelphia with the No. 16 overall pick in last year’s NBA Draft.
The Wizards have assigned Troy Brown to the Capital City Go-Go, according to a tweet from the team. Brown will be available for the team’s game against the Greensboro Swarm on Friday night.
The Suns recalled guard De’Anthony Melton from the Northern Arizona Suns, the team announced in a press release. Melton is averaging 18.5 points, 6.8 rebounds and 6.3 assists with Northern Arizona on the season.

Dwight Howard To Begin On-Court Work

February 20th, 2019 at 10:37am CST by Luke Adams

The Wizards‘ big free agent signing of the 2018 offseason hasn’t worked out as planned so far, as health issues have limited Dwight Howard to just nine games this season. However, Howard – who underwent surgery on his spine in November, appears to be making progress toward a return.

According to Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter), Howard is scheduled to return to Washington today to begin on-court work. With the Wizards’ playoff hopes on life support, the team could use the veteran center back in its lineup to provide rebounding and low-post scoring down the stretch. As Ben Standig of NBC Sports Washington notes though, it’s still not clear whether Howard is ready to participate in full practices or when he might be able to play in a game.

Bradley Beal: I Would Never Demand Trade

February 18th, 2019 at 5:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Wizards guard Bradley Beal took some time during All-Star weekend to do some recruiting, Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington reports. Beal wouldn’t name the players he spoke with because he wanted to avoid any league discipline. “The recruiting process is really going alright. It’s going alright. I’m trying,” Beal said. “This is new for me. I’m definitely getting some ears and seeing what guys are looking for.”
Beal declared he would never demand a trade from the Wizards despite injuries and deals that have changed the outlook of a once promising season, Hughes writes in a separate story. “I always feel like if I requested a trade, and I didn’t get traded, there’s no way in hell I’m gonna be able to go and play with my teammates who know I don’t want to be here. That’s mind-boggling to me,” he told Hughes.

Wizards, Kings Ahead Of Sports Betting Curve

February 17th, 2019 at 7:04pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Monetizing the legalization of sports betting is a hot topic among owners of North American professional sports franchises and several NBA teams are positioning themselves to be at the forefront of the movement.

The Wizards and Kings are among the teams looking to educate potential bettors in preparation for when legalized betting arrives in their respective areas, as ESPN passes along.

“I think this is the most important new business for us,” Wizards owner Ted Leonsis said while stressing the importance of making sure new bettors are not confused when placing wagers.

The Kings are allowing fans to “Call the Shot,” something that gives fans the ability to predict outcomes like the score of a quarter or the statistics of a certain player. The team is adding a lounge for premium seat holders where fans can go to and use iPads to make “bets” before returning to their seats to watch the events unfold. The Kings are calling the experience “predictive gaming.” which is expected to be available for four select games in March.

“The arena is the game console,” Sacramento owner Vivek Ranadive said. “And your phone is the controller for the game console. So we’re only limited by our imagination.”

There currently is no monetary value to the “bets,” as fans can play for free and will get virtual credits for winning. Sports betting is not currently legal in California but the Kings will have the infrastructure in place should wagering become legal.

“We’d have all the infrastructure in place,” Ranadive said. “We’d have the fan base that’s already educated. We’d have the ability to execute and all of that. So we think that we would be able to flip the switch very quickly and move.”

Washington D.C. is closer to legalized sports betting than California, as a bill that would allow sports betting inside of professional sports franchise stadiums and arenas is expected to be passed before the end of the NBA season. The Wizards are among the franchises in the district that are expected to build a Las Vegas-style sportsbook inside its stadium, according to the Washington Post.

Brick-and-mortar sportsbooks are expected to be permitted inside of Audi Field (D.C. United of the MLS), Capital One Arena (Wizards, NHL’s Capitals), St Elizabeth’s East Entertainment and Sports Arena (WNBA’s Mystics and Wizards’ G League affiliate GoGo), and National Park (Nationals of the MLB).

The Wizards have been progressive about getting their fans familiar with real-time betting. The team scheduled live, alternate sports betting broadcast for seven games this season where potential bettors can view what a version of live betting will look like while they watch the Wizards play.

“Right now, the people who go to casinos to gamble, it’s a small community and it generates $8-10 billion a year in revenues and play,” Leonsis said. “But there’s probably $100 billion that’s in the shadows by really sophisticated gamblers. And obviously, the first step is we want to get that audience that’s gaming illegally to come into the sunlight.”

Shifting experienced bettors away from the illegal market remains a challenge. CEO Geoff Freeman of the American Gaming Association believes it’s going to take a partnership between the leagues and betting operators to ensure that illegal bookmakers are put out of business, as I passed along previously in a piece for CNBC.

Eight states (DE, MS, NJ, NM, NV, PA, RI, WV) currently allow for sports wagering, though the impact on the illegal market hasn’t been drastic. “It’s not as if the bookies are out today shopping for new careers,” Joe Asher, CEO of the Britain-based sports betting operator William Hill, said after the landmark Supreme Court decision which made sports betting a reality in many states.

Pennsylvania is the only state with an NBA team that currently has legalized sports betting in place. However, there is no mobile betting available yet, so Philadelphians cannot place legal bets from inside the Wells Fargo Arena as they watch the Sixers play.

Bradley Beal Hopes To Retire With Wizards

February 16th, 2019 at 9:17am CST by marksuleymanov

Coming out of last week’s trade deadline, the Wizards had been one of the league’s more active teams. In salary shedding moves, the team had parted ways with Otto Porter and Markieff Morris, which signaled a restart of sorts in Washington.

Among the players left, Bradley Beal is the centerpiece of the Wizards’ core. The 25-year-old is in Charlotte this week, partaking in All-Star week festivities for the second straight season. Beal, who signed a five-year, $127MM deal with Washington in July 2016, is committed to the organization despite their recent trades and 24-34 record entering the break.

“If I can retire in this jersey, I will. I’m all about loyalty,” Beal said during a Q&A session earlier this week, per Fred Katz of The Athletic (subscription required).

Katz noted that in a post-trade deadline meeting with Wizards owner Ted Leonsis, Beal did not echo that exact sentiment. However, Beal and Leonsis mutually agreed that Beal is a focal point of Washington’s future.

“You do emphasize the fact that this is home. This has been home for me for seven years. He knows that. Ted knows me. Everybody knows me,” Beal said. “I’m gonna be committed until I’m not, until I’m moved. That’s just my mindset. I’m gonna continue to lead and continue to do what I possibly can to help get us to that.”

Statistically, Beal is in the midst of his best season to date. Through 58 games, Beal is averaging career-bests in PPG (25.1), APG (5.4), RPG (5.1) and minutes (37.2). Also, despite the Wizards’ inconsistent play, the team is just three games back of the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference.

In an overall assessment of the current NBA, Beal said, “I hate super teams.” The Warriors are the gold standard of that phrase, boasting a lineup of five perennial All-Stars. However, the two-time All-Star said that the Wizards can be a competitive force in the league without a chorus of superstars spread across the roster.

“I’m a firm believer that no matter who we have — I think I can do it with anybody. I feel like it’s possible with anybody as long as you have that work ethic and that dedication to get to that level,” Beal said. “But it’s not gonna be easy. It’d be naive to say that. I’d be naive to say it’s been a great year. But it’s definitely been one that I’ve embraced and learned a lot throughout the course, too. Tough times don’t last. Tough people do.”

Beal Believes Raptors Or Bucks Will Win East

February 15th, 2019 at 7:34pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Trevor Ariza was glad he was traded to the Wizards because of his familiarity with the organization and some of their players, Kimberly Cataudella of NBC Sports Washington relays. Ariza even implied he had some input on the trade made with the Suns, with whom he signed a one-year contract last summer. “If I [were] to leave [Phoenix], for me, it would be home or a place that I’m familiar with, and the opportunity came to come to Washington, and I chose Washington over everything,” he said. Ariza is averaging 15.4 PPG, 5.6 RPG and 4.3 APG in 28 starts since the trade.
Wizards guard Bradley Beal may have irritated some Celtics and Sixers fans with a comment he made during an All-Star event, as Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington tweets. Asked which team he believed would win the Eastern Conference championship, Beal replied: “I think it’s going to be Toronto or Milwaukee.”

Eastern Notes: Portis, Bulls, Lin, Pacers

February 14th, 2019 at 10:04pm CST by JD Shaw

The agent for new Wizards forward Bobby Portis, Mark Bartelstein, clarified his client’s comments about being traded in an interview with K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune this week.

Portis, who was moved to Washington with Jabari Parker in exchange for Otto Porter Jr. on trade deadline day, explained his unhappiness with how the transaction went down at the time:

“They told me how much they loved my energy, my heart, how hard I worked, how much I loved playing for the Bulls,” Portis said, as detailed in a previous Hoops Rumors story. “Them telling me that I’m going to be there [through the deadline] and telling me that they want to work things out this summer [in restricted free agency]. We weren’t able to agree to a contract extension [before the October deadline], but they said they wanted to agree to something this summer before free agency hits.

“I think back on everything they told me. All this stuff was said and then I don’t even get notified when I’m getting traded? (pause) It’s just a crazy feeling. I guess I’m getting my first taste of the business. Business is business, I guess. I just don’t think it was done the right way.”

Bartelstein then clarified that his client and the Bulls are on the same page, as was evident by how Portis visited Chicago’s locker room after their game against the Wizards last Saturday.

“[General manager] Gar [Forman] made it very clear to me they had no interest in trading Bobby and wanted him there long term,” Bartelstein said. “However, like with anyone else, they had to listen to offers coming in. A day before the deadline, he didn’t think anything was going to happen. There’s no doubt in my mind that Gar and [executive vice president] John Paxson were sincere about their desire to re-sign him.

“I told Bobby: ‘They love you. They want to get a deal done this summer and have no interest in trading you. But if the right offer comes about, absolutely you can get traded.’ The analogy I said to Bobby — these weren’t Gar’s words, they were mine — was, ‘If the Warriors offer Kevin Durant and the Lakers offer LeBron James, you’re getting traded.’ Basically, if somebody offers something the Bulls can’t refuse.”

There’s more from the Central Division tonight:

The Bulls are expected to focus on adding a point guard around the draft or free agency this summer, Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times writes. Chicago’s list, according to Cowley, is headlined by Ricky Rubio and Darren Collison — two players who could push starting guard Kris Dunn going into training camp.
When Jeremy Lin was asked why he joined the Raptors as a free agent, Lin explained that the team “really, really” wanted him, as relayed by Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports (Twitter link). “That means something,” Lin said of Toronto’s interest. Lin holds several years of NBA experience and has made the postseason four times, but he’s never advanced past the first round.
The Pacers and city officials are negotiating a deal that would keep the team in Indiana for roughly 25 more years, Chris Sikich of the Indianapolis Star writes. The Pacers’ current deal is worth $160 million and expires in 2024, according to Sikich. The team has floated the idea of publicly funding upgrades to Bankers Life Fieldhouse for about two years.