| RECENT NBA NEWS provided by RotoWire.com |
| Coverwire Update |
Coverwire Take |
| LeBron James (F) CLE |
7/23/2008 |
| James sprained his right ankle while practicing with Team USA for the Summer Olympics, the Associated Press reports. |
Team USA is describing the injury as minor and will treat the ankle and re-evaluate on Wednesday. |
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| Jason Hart (G) LAC |
7/23/2008 |
| The Jazz have traded Hart to the Clippers in exchange for Brevin Knight. |
Hart, who spent 23 games with the Clippers two seasons ago, returns to Los Angeles after appearing in 57 games for the Jazz last season. He averaged 9.0 points and 4.0 assists for the Clippers in 2006-07. This time around, he'll back up Baron Davis. |
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| Brevin Knight (G) UTA |
7/23/2008 |
| The Jazz have acquired Knight from the Clippers for guard Jason Hart. |
The veteran point guard will back up Deron Williams in Utah. |
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| Anthony Tolliver (F) SAN |
7/23/2008 |
| The San Spurs signed Tolliver on Wednesday. |
Tolliver, who spent most of last season in the NBA's Developmental League, provides the Spurs with some depth at forward. |
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| Walter Sharpe (F) DET |
7/23/2008 |
| Sharpe signed a contract with Detroit. |
Sharpe was selected 32nd overall by the Sonics and was traded to Detroit in the 2008 NBA Draft. In five summer league games, he has averaged 8.8 points and 3.4 rebounds. Sharpe will have trouble getting minutes in Detroit during his rookie season. |
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| Maurice Evans (G) GS |
7/23/2008 |
| Evans signed a three-year, $6.4 million contract with Golden State, the Riverside Press-Enterprise reports. |
Evans was likely signed as a replacement for free agent Kelenna Azubuike, who was offered a contract with the Clippers. Evans averaged 9.3 points per game in 68 games with Orlando and will bring a solid swingman who can defend well to the Warriors. |
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| Josh Childress (F) |
7/23/2008 |
| Childress has officially signed a three-year deal with Greek club Olympiakos on Wednesday, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. |
Initial reports have suggested that Childress would make $20 million over the course of the deal, but that figure appears to be significantly lower than the final amount that the two sides agreed to. Childress' contract allows him to leave the Greek club after any of three seasons to return to the NBA if that's what he desires. |
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| Alexis Ajinca (C) CHR |
7/22/2008 |
| Ajinca suffered a left knee sprain Saturday during a summer-league game, the Charlotte Observer reports. |
Ajinca underwent an MRI, but results won't be evaluated until later on Tuesday. |
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| Alando Tucker (F) PHO |
7/22/2008 |
| The Suns wanted Tucker to work on his defense and outside shooting during the Las Vegas Summer League, the East Valley Tribune reports. |
Tucker ranked fourth in scoring in Vegas, averaging 21.6 points per game and showing an ability to score in a variety of ways. "We asked him to focus on defense in this league and we still need him to improve his outside shooting. He is very adept at scoring off post-up moves, but we have Shaq (O’Neal) and Amaré (Stoudemire) and I don’t know how many of those opportunities there will be for him. But his scoring talent is there and it’s something any team can enjoy," said general manager Steve Kerr. |
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| Robin Lopez (C) PHO |
7/22/2008 |
| Lopez averaged 14 points and 7.8 rebounds during the Las Vegas Summer League, but showed little stamina, the East Valley Tribune reports. |
Lopez showed some nice low-post moves and good energy in short bursts, but couldn't sustain that level of energy. "A lot of the top draft picks tapered down their workouts before and after the draft and it took a toll on their wind," general manager Steve Kerr said. "Every time Robin came back in off the bench, the activity and pace returned and that’s something he’ll be able to maintain longer when he’s in optimum condition." |
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| DJ Strawberry (G) PHO |
7/22/2008 |
| Strawberry averaged 18 points a game during the Las Vegas Summer League while running the Suns from the point guard position, but only averaged three assists, the East Valley Tribune reports. |
The Suns have been looking for a backup point guard during the offseason, and will probably continue that search as Strawberry's point skills still need work. "D.J. is a combo guard, and that’s probably not going to change," general manager Steve Kerr said. "But his defensive abilities will allow him to guard points, shooting guards and even some small forwards." |
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| Louis Williams (G) PHI |
7/22/2008 |
| The Sixers met with Williams' agent to discuss the possibility of a new contract for the restricted free agent guard, the Philadelphia Daily News reports. |
Agent Merle Scott confirmed a meeting with Sixers president/general manager Eddie Stefanski and assistant general manager Tony DiLeo. "We've had good conversations, good dialogue back and forth with the Sixers, and we're continuing to talk," Scott said. "Right now, this is a matter of us doing our due diligence, and the Sixers have been more than obliging in their willingness to communicate." The Warriors had expressed interest in Williams, though that may have waned with the news of Golden State acquiring Marcus Williams from New Jersey. |
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| Nicolas Batum (G) POR |
7/22/2008 |
| The Blazers signed Batum on Tuesday. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. |
Batum is a 19-year old swingman who has played his last three years in France. He will be buried on Portland's depth chart for the 2008-09 season, but could turn into a solid player in a couple of years. |
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| Shawne Williams (F) IND |
7/22/2008 |
| If the Pacers decide not to have Williams play for them, they will not buy his contract out, the Indianapolis Star reports. |
If he doesn't play, the Pacers will either trade Williams or have him sit out at home. "We hear this buyout stuff all the time," Pacers president Larry Bird told WFNI-1070 AM. "I think these guys should earn their money. If you can't trade them, let them stay at home. We're in some situations here where the same people continue to get in trouble. We have to deal with it. We'll deal with it the way we think is appropriate." |
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| Marcus Williams (G) GS |
7/22/2008 |
| The Nets dealt Williams to Golden State on Tuesday for a future first-round pick. |
Williams will enter a pretty nice situation in Golden State and instantly becomes the second-most experienced guard on the roster behind Monta Ellis with second-year men Marco Belinelli and C.J. Watson the Warriors' only other true guards. While both Corey Maggette and Stephen Jackson have the ability to play shooting guard, there still should be a decent amount of minutes available for Williams in Golden State's lineup. It should also be noted that Williams is just 22 years old and entering a contract year, making him a possible sleeper next season. |
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| Kurt Thomas (C) |
7/22/2008 |
| San Antonio re-signed Thomas on Tuesday, the Associated Press reports. |
Though he'll be 36 by the start of the 2008-09 season, Thomas remains a productive role player with the ability to play both power forward and center. |
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| Devean George (F) |
7/22/2008 |
| George has received interest from the Celtics, according to the Boston Globe. |
The Celtics have roughly $2.8 million left of their midlevel exception after re-signing Eddie House, and George could help fill the backup swingman void left by James Posey. |
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| Tony Allen (G) BOS |
7/22/2008 |
| Allen signed a two-year, $5 million deal with the Celtics on Monday, according to the Boston Globe. |
Allen will attempt to fill the backup swingman void left by James Posey, who signed with the Hornets last week. |
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| Eddie House (G) BOS |
7/22/2008 |
| House signed a two-year, $5.6 million deal with the Celtics on Monday, according to the Boston Globe. |
House's re-signing could make reserve point guard Sam Cassell expendable. |
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| Walter Sharpe (F) DET |
7/22/2008 |
| The Pistons are close to signing Sharpe to a two-year deal, Michigan Live reports. |
Sharpe was the first of three second-round picks selected in the 2008 NBA Draft. Sharpe averaged 8.8 points and 3.4 rebounds in five games during summer league for Detroit. |
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| Will Bynum (G) DET |
7/22/2008 |
| Bynum has agreed to a multi-year deal with the Pistons to become their third point guard, Michigan Live reports. |
Bynum, who played for Maccabi Tel Aviv last year, participated in summer league for the Pistons, averaging 11.8 points on 62.9 percent shooting and 3.2 assists in five games. The deal is for two years with a team option for a third. |
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| Dwight Howard (C) ORL |
7/22/2008 |
| Howard participated in practice as Team USA opened a four-day training camp on Monday, the Associated Press reports. |
Howard, who sat out practices late in June because of a slight fracture of the sternum suffered during the playoffs, said he's ready for the Summer Olympics in Beijing. "I feel real good out there," Howard said after the closed workout at Valley High School. "I didn't have any problems. I'm looking to get in better shape. I'm just ready to go." |
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| Emeka Okafor (C) CHR |
7/22/2008 |
| Negotiations between the Bobcats and Okafor have reached an impasse, the Charlotte Observer reports. |
A source said the team is offering less than the $12 million-plus annual salary it did lest year, when Okafor turned down the deal. Okafor now wants a sign-and-trade, the source said, and is not inclined to return to the team. |
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| Danilo Gallinari (F) NY |
7/21/2008 |
| The Knicks are considering resting Gallinari (back) for the remainder of the summer, according to a team source, the New York Post reports. |
The club is also requesting that he not play for the Italian national team when it gets together in two weeks. |
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