SB Nation - Thomas Gardner

Waive Goodbye, Part 3

Jon L — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 13:15:16 -0000

by Chris Young - AP

Pops! (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Chris Young)

We wrap up our look at which players got waived last week and which made their respective teams with the Divisions Atlantic and Southwest. Really, I promise those are the correct divisions. I know some of these cuts happened a while ago, but I think that seeing them all as a group helps give a broader perspective as to which teams around the league are filling out the end of their benches with cheap talent (and it is talent). Here's part 1, and here's part 2 (and ignore the whole "Derrick Byars made the Bulls" thing. It happened, then it didn't happen.) Part 3 is here:

Boston Celtics

Who got cut: Mike Sweetney

Who got kept: No one.

Well, not no one, but their third-string guards are going to be recent draft picks Lester Hudson and the J.R. Giddens Rebounding Machine. Mike Sweetney is trying, he really is, and he's mostly fine on the offensive end. His conditioning is awful, though, which means he gets hurt and that he's several steps too slow on defense when he makes it onto the court. There's been some suggestion that he could try working his way back into shape in the D-League, and it will be interesting to see what he does from here. J.R. Giddens will likely see some D-League action himself, as his shooting is still really bad. I'm guessing Lester Hudson will as well. After all, the Celtics have a team in their own backyard, and they can't make Danny's son look bad by withholding their NBA talent.

Dallas Mavericks

Who got cut: Jake Voskuhl

Who got kept: No one.

What, you want me to talk about Jake Voskuhl? The Mavericks also rid themselves of Nate Jawai, who hadn't been there all that long, but I suspect that was more of a cap move than anything. D-League-wise, ESPN's Marc Stein things that rookie Rodrigue Beaubois could see some time in Alberquerque, as minutes could be hard to come by for him in Dallas. Beaubois is definitely talented, and he had an intriguing Summer League, so he could be fun to watch for the Thunderbirds.

Houston Rockets

Who got cut: Will Conroy, Romel Beck, Garrett Temple

Who got kept: Pops Mensah-Bonsu

The Rockets had to waive Brent Barry in order to keep Pops, so that's something. It's a shame Conroy couldn't stick around, as he played very well in Summer League and decently when he got preseason minutes, but the (ridiculous?) upside is that he hopefully showed other teams around the league that he can run an offense and is ready to play in the NBA. It's great that Mensah-Bonsu made the team, obviously, but it shouldn't really be that much of a surprise. A power forward/center somewhere between 6'6" and 6'9" who rebounds the hell out of the ball? Sounds like the Rockets to me. Add to that the fact that the team doesn't really know what it's going to get from new center David Andersen either, and you can see why they might want some extra frontcourt help behind Scola, Hayes and Landry. Mensah-Bonsu's offense will be up and down, but as Rockets fans are finding out, that's going to be true for a lot of their players. I'd definitely expect to see Jermaine Taylor and hopefully (for his and the team's sake) Chase Budinger in Rio Grande Valley at some point later this season.

Memphis Grizzlies

Who got cut: Mike Taylor, Thomas Gardner, Leon Rodgers

Who got kept: No one.

Again, it's not really "no one," as Trey Gilder is still around after signing a partially-guaranteed contract back in August. Mike Taylor has proven that he can play in the NBA, provided he can keep his turnovers to a minimum. It will be interesting to see what he does, as other players with less NBA experience have already said they're fed up with trying to make it out of the D-League and are heading to Europe. Taylor probably could lead the Euroleague in scoring, but he'd also be perhaps the number one call-up candidate should come back to the D-League, based on his NBA experience and ability.

New Jersey Nets

Who got cut: Bennet Davis, Will Blalock, Brian Hamilton

Who got kept: No one.

I didn't really expect any of these guys to stick around. Blalock and Hamilton are headed back overseas, I suspect, while Davis would do well to go back to the D-League and either develop an offensive game or become a top-notch post defender to go with his elite shot-blocking ability.

New Orleans Hornets

Who got cut: Earl Barron, Larry Owens

Who got kept: No one.

The Hornets are one of those teams that clearly don't care about the D-League, so I'm not really sure what to write here. Pass? Incomplete? Not qualified? Earl Barron has a D-League pedigree, sure, but even given his time with the Miami Heat this was pretty clearly not going to work out for him unless Hilton Armstrong went down with an injury. I'm guessing Barron goes the overseas route, but seeing him in the D-League would be a pleasant surprise.

New York Knicks

Who got cut: Warren Carter, Sun Yue, Ron Howard, Gabe Pruitt

Who got kept: Marcus Landry

Plus, don't forget the team also cut partially-guaranteed guys Chris Hunter and Joe Crawford. This team is all about winning on the cheap, right? And yet they cut several good, cheap players. But hey, have fun with that whole Jared Jeffries thing. Carter is probably going back to Europe, though I think coming to the D-League might be worth his time, because as I've noted several times before he has a David Lee-ish game. Ron Howard may come back to the D-League, though I'm less certain about Sun or Hunter. I wouldn't be surprised if Sun entered the draft, as he's become a semi-prominent example of a Chinese basketball product aiming for the NBA, and to give up on that while he's so young could be somewhat embarrassing. It also would give the D-League someone to market with so many players headed overseas this year. If he does enter the draft, it will be interesting to see both where he ends up and in what round, as the league considers him somewhat of a star, and while NBA stars can play pretty much anywhere, I'm not sure the same is true for the D-League. A crazy thought popped just into my head: would the Spurs/Toros be interested in giving him the Marcus Williams Treatment? Sun's offense isn't nearly at the level that Williams's is and was, but the Toros essentially created an NBA point guard where there wasn't one, which is what Sun Yue is. Or isn't.

Philadelphia 76ers

Who got cut: Stromile Swift, Sean Singletary, Rashad Jones-Jennings, Brandon Bowman, Dionte Christmas

Who got kept: No one.

So the 76ers apparently were comfortable with their roster as it stood. How's that working out? Yeah, yeah, they already had a lot of guaranteed contracts, and it's not like Sean Singletary is the bee's knees, but this is yet another team that doesn't really care about the D-League, or where their end-of-bench guys come from. Singletary could benefit from some D-League time, but a lot of European teams don't really care whether their point guards can distribute the ball as long as they can score, so that's likely where he's headed. Christmas could stay in the U.S., if for no other reason than to be on hand if the 76ers decide they want to sign him to a 10-day and then not play him.

San Antonio Spurs

Who got cut: Marcus Williams, Curtis Jerrells, Dwayne Jones, Jack McClinton

Who got kept: Malik Hairston

San Antonio went with Keith Bogans over Marcus Williams, even though Bogans played pretty poorly in the preseason while Williams barely played. I say that Williams was waived instead of Bogans and not Malik Hairston because Hairston played so well in both Summer League and the preseason that I would've beeen pretty shocked to see him gone. McClinton, Jones and Jerrells have already signed overseas, and Williams is another guy who it will be interesting to watch, because he'd be at the front of the call-up list should be come back to the D-League. He'd probably also be a first-round D-League draft pick and maybe the first player taken overall. As much as we praise him here at RU, Williams does still have some work to do as a point guard, mainly getting his turnovers down. And, if he tries to hang around the Spurs universe he'll have to become a better-than-passable defender. But the fact that he's gone from a gunning wing to a high-scoring, (mostly efficient), high-assist point guard in the span of less than a year is a testament to Williams's talent and how hard he's willing to work to improve his chances, which speaks well to his basketball future.

Toronto Raptors

Who got cut: No one.

Who got kept: No one.

Okay, this is who should get the pass/incomplete/not qualified. They didn't sign any waiver fodder, so they didn't have to cut any waiver fodder. All is not lost, however, as Sonny Weems seems to have landed solidly in Toronto after being traded twice this offseason. He's begun the season on the inactive list, where I suspect he'll see a fair amount of time, but still.

Training Camp Invites - Memphis Grizzlies

Jon L — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 18:06:23 -0000

More photos » by Pat Sullivan - AP

9 months ago: Los Angeles Clippers' Mike Taylor, left, is pressured by Houston Rockets' Aaron Brooks during the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, March 28, 2009, in Houston. (AP Photo/Pat Sullivan)

Browse more photos »

Mike Taylor - You should know who Taylor is but this point, as he's probably the D-League's biggest recent success story. After making his name in the D-League primarily as a scorer and a dunker, Taylor finally got his shot with the Clippers last season, and he made the most of it. He's still not a premier point guard, as he averaged just under five assists per 36 minutes last season, and he's not a great three-point shooter, but he filled in admirably when Baron Davis was out with injury, and he works hard and hustles. In some ways he makes more sense on the Memphis bench than Allen Iverson does, and if Taylor can work to limit his turnovers he could be an interesting player for the Grizzlies' backcourt.

Thomas Gardner - Gardner initially got some notice as a solid perimeter shooter, but that skill has yet to translate in NBA games (his career eFG percentage is .364, and his three-point percentage is .200). He's not particularly athletic or quick, and he doesn't offer much in the way of assists or rebounds, so Gardner will have to show that he can adjust to NBA defenses and still make his shots if he wants to show that he can stay in the league, let alone on the Grizzlies' roster.

Leon Rodgers - Rodgers has been a scoring big man over in China and around Europe for the past several years. Last season with the Jilin Northeast Tigers he averaged 35 points on 56 percent shooting, including 42 percent on three-pointers. He's an okay rebounder, but the biggest question with Rodgers is whether his prodigious scoring ability will translate over to the NBA.

OKC Thunder @ Memphis Grizzlies OPEN THREAD

Mr Pappagiorgio — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 23:30:17 -0000

TV: None | Radio: WWLS (98.1 FM, 640am in OKC, 97.1 FM in Tulsa)

Opponent Perspective: Straight Outta Vancouver

2009-10 Oklahoma City Thunder Pre-Season Roster
NUM	PLAYER	POS	HT	WT	DOB	FROM	YRS
40	Ryan Bowen	F	6-9	218	11/20/1975	Iowa	9
4	Nick Collison	F-C	6-10	255	10/26/1980	Kansas	5
35	Kevin Durant	F-G	6-9	230	09/29/1988	Texas	2
22	Jeff Green	F	6-9	235	08/28/1986	Georgetown	2
13	James Harden	G	6-5	220	08/26/1989	Arizona State	R
	Mike Harris	F	6-6	240	06/15/1983	Rice	1
9	Serge Ibaka	F	6-10	235	09/18/1989	Congo	R
6	Tre Kelley	G	6-0	188	01/23/1985	South Carolina	R
12	Nenad Krstic	C	7-0	240	07/25/1983	Serbia & Montenegro	5
14	Shaun Livingston	G	6-7	185	09/11/1985	Peoria Central HS (IL)	4
23	Byron Mullens	C	7-0	275	02/14/1989	Ohio State	R
7	Kevin Ollie	G	6-2	195	12/27/1972	Connecticut	12
51	Michael Ruffin	F-C	6-8	248	01/21/1977	Tulsa	9
2	Thabo Sefolosha	F-G	6-7	215	05/02/1984	Switzerland	3
36	Etan Thomas	C	6-10	260	04/01/1978	Syracuse	7
5	Kyle Weaver	G	6-6	201	02/18/1986	Washington State	1
0	Russell Westbrook	G	6-3	187	11/12/1988	UCLA	1
3	D.J. White	F	6-9	251	08/31/1986	Indiana	1

2009-10 Memphis Grizzlies Pre-Season Roster
NUM	PLAYER	POS	HT	WT	DOB	FROM	YRS
00	Darrell Arthur	F	6-9	235	03/25/1988	Kansas	1
1	DeMarre Carroll	F	6-8	212	07/27/1986	Missouri	R
11	Mike Conley	G	6-1	185	10/11/1987	Ohio State	2
31	Thomas Gardner	G	6-5	225	02/08/1985	Missouri	2
33	Marc Gasol	C	7-1	280	01/29/1985	Spain	1
22	Rudy Gay	F	6-8	222	08/17/1986	Connecticut	3
2	Trey Gilder	F	6-9	185	01/24/1985	Northwestern State-Louisiana	R
15	Hamed Haddadi	C	7-2	265	05/19/1985	I.R. of Iran	1
45	Steven Hunter	C	7-0	240	10/31/1981	DePaul	7
3	Allen Iverson	G	6-0	165	06/07/1975	Georgetown	13
55	Marko Jaric	G	6-7	224	10/12/1978	Serbia	7
32	O.J. Mayo	G	6-4	210	11/05/1987	USC	1
50	Zach Randolph	F	6-9	260	07/16/1981	Michigan State	8
21	Leon Rodgers	F	6-6	217	06/19/1980	Northern Illinois	R
24	Mike Taylor	G	6-2	165	01/21/1986	Iowa State	1
34	Hasheem Thabeet	C	7-3	267	02/16/1987	Connecticut	R
5	Marcus Williams	G	6-3	205	12/03/1985	Connecticut	3
4	Sam Young	F-G	6-6	220	06/01/1985	Pittsburgh	R

Thunder Gameday: Oklahoma City Thunder at Memphis Grizzlies

Mr Pappagiorgio — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 14:00:42 -0000

Finally, finally, finally! The Oklahoma City Thunder get their 2009-10 season underway tonight, in Memphis, against the Grizzlies! Who cares if its only the pre-season? Thunder Basketball is back, so get ready to Thunder Up! Sadly enough, at the time of this writing (Last night), we don't have any update as to whether or not this game will be televised anywhere that Oklahomans will be able to see, but at the very least we should all be able to listen on the WWLS, The Sports Animal, which should be carrying the game (although I haven't confirmed that yet either). I'm sure you are quite tired of hearing me complain about the game not being televised, but let's face it, if you are reading this blog on a regular basis, chances are you are a pretty big Thunderhead yourself and just as pissed off. So hey, I'm being your voice, and you just never know who is reading. I griped and moaned all season about games that weren't broadcast in HD and a quick look at the TV schedule for the upcoming season will show that perhaps someone was listening as every single game is listed as being in HD this season.

It is still just a pre-season game, so why should you even care? Well, I'm gonna take a few minutes and hopefully give you enough reasons to be interested. First and foremost is your Thunder Roster is very different than it was just a few short months ago as the team closed out its inaugural season. When you make the jump, you'll see the entire pre-season roster which will be cut down substantially before the season begins. Gone are the likes of Robert Swift, Malik Rose, and Earl Watson, and inserted in their place are a host of new players that you should be just as anxious to see such as Etan Thomas and Kevin Ollie. As young as this team was last season, it may have gotten even younger this year as James Harden joins the mix along with some other terrific young players including Serge Ibaka, and Byron Mullens, amongst others. So go ahead and make the jump to see the full roster, along with our continued preview which will have a few more reasons to be interested in tonight's game, because there are a few more, I assure you.

If you can remember back a few short months, there was some extremely heated debate regarding who the Thunder should take, Hasheem Thabeet, or James Harden. Regardless of who we wanted or who we would have picked (although it does seem pretty clear that Harden had emerged as our guy shortly before the draft), the Grizzlies went ahead and made things a bit easier for us by picking Hasheem Thabeet with the #2 overall pick. So tonight will be our first chance at seeing these two guys match up head to head, even though they'll rarely be close to one another on the court since Harden plays guard and Thabeet is six million feet tall.

Another reason you are going to want to tune in is to check out Allen Iverson in his new home. We all know him, we all um, okay, so we all don't love him, but you still have to respect the guy on the court, no matter his flaws. For now he doesn't even seem to be a clear cut starter on the team, but it'll be interesting to see if that's a motivating factor for him in the pre-season. It'll also be fun to see how he works and interacts with guys like O.J. Mayo and Rudy Gay. Oh wait, that's what you could have looked forward to if he didn't get himself injured on Sunday, so I guess we'll have to look forward to seeing that later on in the year. The Grizzlies are quite possibly the most exciting young team in the league outside of our own beloved Thunder, so this game will definitely be intriguing as two of the leagues better, up and coming, young teams, square off head to head. I tend to think we're a bit further ahead in our cycle than they are and should come away with a win, even if it is just a pre-season game, but the fun part will be watching, err, listening tonight.

Also, we will have a Live Game OPEN THREAD for commenting tonight as I'm sure one way or another a lot of us will be either listening to or watching the game. Hell, if we are listening, there is no reason to not be on the site commenting, so you better get your ass into the thread by tipoff so we can get some nice live game commenting going. Also, we'll update this post and the live game thread with anymore information on TV and Radio Coverage as the information becomes available.

2009-10 Oklahoma City Thunder Pre-Season Roster
NUM	PLAYER	POS	HT	WT	DOB	FROM	YRS
40	Ryan Bowen	F	6-9	218	11/20/1975	Iowa	9
4	Nick Collison	F-C	6-10	255	10/26/1980	Kansas	5
35	Kevin Durant	F-G	6-9	230	09/29/1988	Texas	2
22	Jeff Green	F	6-9	235	08/28/1986	Georgetown	2
13	James Harden	G	6-5	220	08/26/1989	Arizona State	R
	Mike Harris	F	6-6	240	06/15/1983	Rice	1
9	Serge Ibaka	F	6-10	235	09/18/1989	Congo	R
6	Tre Kelley	G	6-0	188	01/23/1985	South Carolina	R
12	Nenad Krstic	C	7-0	240	07/25/1983	Serbia & Montenegro	5
14	Shaun Livingston	G	6-7	185	09/11/1985	Peoria Central HS (IL)	4
23	Byron Mullens	C	7-0	275	02/14/1989	Ohio State	R
7	Kevin Ollie	G	6-2	195	12/27/1972	Connecticut	12
51	Michael Ruffin	F-C	6-8	248	01/21/1977	Tulsa	9
2	Thabo Sefolosha	F-G	6-7	215	05/02/1984	Switzerland	3
36	Etan Thomas	C	6-10	260	04/01/1978	Syracuse	7
5	Kyle Weaver	G	6-6	201	02/18/1986	Washington State	1
0	Russell Westbrook	G	6-3	187	11/12/1988	UCLA	1
3	D.J. White	F	6-9	251	08/31/1986	Indiana	1

2009-10 Memphis Grizzlies Pre-Season Roster
NUM	PLAYER	POS	HT	WT	DOB	FROM	YRS
00	Darrell Arthur	F	6-9	235	03/25/1988	Kansas	1
1	DeMarre Carroll	F	6-8	212	07/27/1986	Missouri	R
11	Mike Conley	G	6-1	185	10/11/1987	Ohio State	2
31	Thomas Gardner	G	6-5	225	02/08/1985	Missouri	2
33	Marc Gasol	C	7-1	280	01/29/1985	Spain	1
22	Rudy Gay	F	6-8	222	08/17/1986	Connecticut	3
2	Trey Gilder	F	6-9	185	01/24/1985	Northwestern State-Louisiana	R
15	Hamed Haddadi	C	7-2	265	05/19/1985	I.R. of Iran	1
45	Steven Hunter	C	7-0	240	10/31/1981	DePaul	7
3	Allen Iverson	G	6-0	165	06/07/1975	Georgetown	13
55	Marko Jaric	G	6-7	224	10/12/1978	Serbia	7
32	O.J. Mayo	G	6-4	210	11/05/1987	USC	1
50	Zach Randolph	F	6-9	260	07/16/1981	Michigan State	8
21	Leon Rodgers	F	6-6	217	06/19/1980	Northern Illinois	R
24	Mike Taylor	G	6-2	165	01/21/1986	Iowa State	1
34	Hasheem Thabeet	C	7-3	267	02/16/1987	Connecticut	R
5	Marcus Williams	G	6-3	205	12/03/1985	Connecticut	3
4	Sam Young	F-G	6-6	220	06/01/1985	Pittsburgh	R

Solomon Jones decides to build temple elsewhere

hawksdawgs — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 21:31:14 -0000

More photos » by Doug Benc - Getty Images

Solomon's best use of his 7'4'' reach.

Browse more photos »

Solomon Jones has signed a two year deal with the Indiana Pacers taking his 2.6 points and 2.1 rebounds per game with him. I must say I miss Solo. Every game he provided me with upwards of 12 seconds of pure pleasure. Which is more than Thomas Gardner can say. Solo may have lacked any real understanding of team defense, but he found a way to carve his own niche in the world that is Hawks basketball.

Assuming the Hawks sign another big man...any big man, the team probably will not miss any contribution Solo provided on the court, but I must say I will miss him as a member of the team. In his honor, I have constructed a top ten of my favorite memories of our third string center.

10. The pain he indirectly caused Hoopinion every time Bret watched Paul Millsap.

9. His diligent practice of the buzzer beater three at the end of warm-up.

8. The time he actually hit the buzzer beater three against the Thunder pushing the Hawks to an 11 point lead and probably ruining the 10s of people who bet on Thunder/Hawks games.

7. His attempt to block Mike Bibby's first layup in the layup line and how it always was somehow hilarious to the two of them.

6.The pain said joke brought me as I watched Bibby's only successful drive of the night happen when it didn't matter against what was suppose to be our shot block specialist.

5.The 21 times he tied his career high in steals at one.

4. That time he had a double double against Detroit his rookie year and I thought about thinking he could be a decent contributor and then decided Rasheed Wallace let him get it just to mess with my head.

3. How in his third year, Solo graduated out of the intro line for starters to run through and to the greeter at the end of that line.

2. Dick Bavetta protecting Dwayne Wade from his lanky grope.

1. The time he punched Zaza in the face.

NBA Summer League Rosters Taking Shape

Scott Schroeder — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 02:00:21 -0000

UPDATED - check after the jump for everything updated in the past three days.

Alright, we got all of the personal mumbo-jumbo out of the way - let's begin with the Summer League coverage!

The Orlando of the NBA Summer League schedule (July 6-10) is here, the Vegas portion of the NBA Summer League schedule (July 10-19) is here and the NBA Summer League roster of your favorite team (so far) is... After the jump!

I was all drafted out, so sorry for the lack of posting going on this weekend - I sincerely apologize to all thirteen of you that were disappointed. As a show of goodwill, I worked feverishly throughout the weekend to scour my sources, google the news, and do anything and everything I could to start piecing together an accurate view of what your team will look like this Summer.

Granted, it's probably not likely to expect much out of some of these players, but each year there are players that pop up from nowhere in Summer League and impress enough to earn a spot on an NBA roster. The most recent example would be Bobby Brown from last season, though there are plenty more (and we'll look at them throughout the next week heading into the Orlando portion of NBA Summer League's).

After the jump, I've put together a list of which players I've (all but) confirmed. If you're aware of anymore, let me know in the comments! If you're unsure of one of the players, click on the link - it'll either take you to their SBNation page or, if they're a bit more obscure, whichever source linked them to said Summer League team.

[Note by Scott Schroeder, 06/29/09 9:21 AM CDT ] Added Wink Adams to New York

[Note by Scott Schroeder, 06/29/09 11:15 AM CDT ] Added Daniel Artest to Houston

[Note by Scott Schroeder, 06/29/09 9:34 PM CDT ] Added Paul Harris to Minnesota, from Cleveland

[Note by Scott Schroeder, 06/30/09 12:02 AM CDT ] Added Kevin Kruger to Utah

[Note by Scott Schroeder, 06/30/09 12:48 AM CDT ] Added Acie Law to Golden State

[Note by Scott Schroeder, 06/30/09 8:58 AM CDT ] Added Lee Cummard to Phoenix, Luke Nevill to New Orleans

[Note by Scott Schroeder, 06/30/09 10:27 AM CDT ] Added Alex Ruoff to Washington

[Note by Scott Schroeder, 06/30/09 12:59 PM CDT ] Added Trent Plaisted, Deron Washington, Will Bynum, Dwayne Jones, Clay Tucker, Ibrahim Jaaber and Matt Freije to Detroit

[Note by Scott Schroeder, 06/30/09 1:42 PM CDT ] Added Mohamed Tangara to Milwaukee

[Note by Scott Schroeder, 06/30/09 8:50 PM CDT ] Added Rod Benson to Houston, Demetris Nichols to Toronto

[Note by Scott Schroeder, 07/01/09 12:19 AM CDT ] Added Dar Tucker and Kevin Rogers to Dallas; Jaycee Carroll to New Orleans; completed Minnesota, Golden State and Utah

[Note by Scott Schroeder, 07/01/09 11:54 AM CDT ] Completed San Antonio, Orlando and Boston roster

[Note by Scott Schroeder, 07/01/09 2:08 PM CDT ] Added Phoenix roster, Robert Swift to Boston

[Note by Jon Lewallen, 07/01/09 2:50 PM CDT] Added Jim Baron to Washington

[Note by Jon Lewallen, 07/01/09 5:00 PM CDT] Completed Chicago, Sacramento and New Orleans rosters

[Note by Scott Schroeder, 07/01/09 6:40 PM CDT ] Completed Indiana, Milwaukee, New York, Oklahoma City, LA Clippers

[Note by Scott Schroeder, 07/01/09 8:02 PM CDT ] Completed Washington

[Note by Scott Schroeder, 07/02/09 4:05 PM CDT ] Completed Houston

[Note by Scott Schroeder, 07/02/09 5:31 PM CDT ] Completed Portland, Memphis

[Note by Jon Lewallen, 07/02/09 8:10 CDT ] Completed Philadelphia/N.J. roster

[Note by Scott Schroeder, 07/03/09 11:12 AM CDT ] Completed (?) Denver roster

[Note by Jon Lewallen, 07/07/09 7:45 PM CDT ] Completed Dallas, Detroit and D-League Select rosters

2009 ORLANDO SUMMER LEAGUE ROSTERS

Boston Celtics

Bryan Mullins, Lester Hudson, Chris Lofton, Gabe Pruitt, Bill Walker, J.R. Giddens, Michael Sweetney, Coby Karl, Darius Washington, Bryce Taylor, Kevin Rogers, Robert Swift,

Indiana Pacers

Aaron Jackson, Leo Lyons, Tyler Hansbrough, Brandon Rush, Josh McRoberts, A.J. Price, Roy Hibbert, Will Blalock, Trey Johnson, Anthony Smith, Derrick Byars, Courtney Sims, Scott Vander Meer,

Philadelphia 76ers/ New Jersey Nets

Blake Ahearn, Jrue Holiday, Marreese Speights, Dionte Christmas, Chris Johnson, Rob Kurz, Gary Forbes, Marcus Slaughter, Terrence Williams, Chris Douglas-Roberts, AJ Abrams, Jeff Adrien, Jason Ellis,

Oklahoma City Thunder

Serge Ibaka, Shaun Livingston, BJ Mullens, James Harden, Robert Vaden, DeVon Hardin, Russell Westbrook, Kyle Weaver, D.J. White, Marcus Dove, Moses Ehambe, DeAngelo Alexander, Richard Roby, Kyle Hines, Doug Thomas, Keith McLeod,

Orlando Magic

Ryan Anderson, Levance Fields, Richard Hendrix, Russell Robinson, Darian Townes, Maurice Ager, Lance Allred, Brian Chase, Ronald Dupree, Courtney Fells, C.J. Giles, Steven Milosevic, Jeremy Pargo, Milovan Rakovic, Jeremy Richardson

Utah Jazz

Eric Maynor, Gary Wilkinson, Goran Suton, Kosta Koufos, Kyrylo Fesenko, Wesley Matthews, Kevin Kruger, Kevin Lyde, Andre Ingram, James Augustine, Cedric Bozeman, Justin Reed, Josh Duncan, Jim Baron, Reyshawn Terry and Larry Turner

2009 VEGAS SUMMER LEAGUE ROSTERS

Chicago Bulls

Luke Zeller, James Johnson, Taj Gibson, Bryan Mullins, Tyrell Biggs, Mario Austin, AD Vasallo, Anthony Roberson, Linton Johnson, Chris Davis, Taurean Green, Lorenzo Mata-Real, DeMarcus Nelson, Julius Hodge, Brandon Costner, James Augustine, Nick Lewis

Cleveland Cavaliers

Maureece Rice, Christian Eyenga, Danny Green, Jawad Williams, Darnell Jackson, Tarence Kinsey,

Dallas Mavericks

Aaron Miles, Rodrigue Beaubois, Ahmad Nivins, Curtis Jerrells, Dar Tucker, Kevin Rogers, Quinton Hosley, Damjan Rudez, Luke Jackson, Henry Dugat, Nick Calathes, Mickael Gelabale, Herbert Hill, Shan Foster, Trent Strickland, Andre Owens, Alfred Aboya, Moussa Seck, Bryson McKenzie

Detroit Pistons

Austin Daye, DaJuan Summers, Jonas Jerebko, Walter Sharpe, Trent Plaisted, Deron Washington, Will Bynum, Dwayne Jones, Clay Tucker, Ibrahim Jaaber, Michael Bramos, Andre Owens

Denver Nuggets

Richard Hendrix, Ty Lawson, Derrick Byars, Ronald Dupree, CJ Giles, Coby Karl, Kareem Rush, Cedric Simmons, Sonny Weems

Golden State Warriors

Stephen Curry, Anthony Morrow, Anthony Randolph, Jermareo Davidson, Acie Law, Connor Atchley, Lawrence Hill, Joe Ingles, Jared Jordan, Cartier Martin, Quan Prowell, Lawrence Roberts, Jamal Sampson

Houston Rockets

Garrett Temple, Will Conroy, Jermaine Taylor, Chase Budinger, Rod Benson, Hassan Adams, Marcus Cousin, Joey Dorsey, Charles Gaines, Mike Green, Brad Newley, Maarty Leunen, Darryl Watkins, James White

Los Angeles Clippers

Kyle McAlarney, Kevinn Pinkney, Blake Griffin, Eric Gordon, DeAndre Jordan, Mike Taylor, Sean Banks, Dionte Christmas, Marcellus Kemp, Nik Caner-Medley,

Los Angeles Lakers

Tony Gaffney, Chinemelu Elonu, Alan Anderson, Aron Bynes, Dominique Coleman, Terrel Harris, Justin Hawkins, Ben McCauley, David Monds, Adam Morrison, Taylor Rochestie, Luke Schenscher, Mustafa Shakur,

Milwaukee Bucks

Brandon Jennings, Salim Stoudamire, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, Joe Alexander, Jodie Meeks, Dominic James,Mohamed Tangara, Will McDonald, Juan Palacios, Chris Richard, Szymon Szewczyk, Lorrenzo Wade

Minnesota Timberwolves

Ben Woodside, Corey Brewer, Jonny Flynn, Wayne Ellington, Paul Harris, Oleksiy Pecherov, Bobby Brown, Pat Carroll, Devin Green, Gerald Henderson, Steven Hill, Rob Kurz, Garrett Siler,

Memphis Grizzlies

Jeff Adrien, Hasheem Thabeet, DeMarre Carroll, Sam Young, Darrell Arthur, Hamed Haddadi, Daniel Ewing, Greg Stiemsma, Erik Daniels, Trey Gilder, Longar Longar, Brion Rush, Donta Smith, Marcus Williams

New Orleans Hornets

Marcus Thornton, Terry Martin, Darren Collison, Julian Wright, Luke Nevill, Jaycee Carroll, Earl Barron, Earl Calloway, Bryan Cusworth, Larry Owens, Marc Salyers, Courtney Sims, Anthony Tolliver, Quinton Watkins

New York Knicks

Jordan Hill, Blake Ahearn, Toney Douglas, Alex Acker, Wink Adams, Morris Almond, Warren Carter, Joe Crawford, Patrick Ewing Jr., Ron Howard, Yaroslav Korolev, David Noel, Mouhamed Sene, Rashaad Singleton, Nikoloz Tskitishvili,

Oklahoma City Thunder

Phoenix Suns

Earl Clark, Taylor Griffin, Goran Dragic, Robin Lopez, Lee Cummard, Alando Tucker, Micah Downs, Zabian Dowdell, Josh Carter, Kaspars Berzins, Jiri Hubalek, Geary Claxton, Chris Rodgers, Carlos Powell

Portland Trail Blazers

Jeff Pendergraph, Dante Cunningham, Jerryd Bayless, Patrick Mills, Thomas Gardner, Pooh Jeter, Bobby Jones, David Padgett, Deji Akindele, Matt Freije, Dwayne Mitchell, David Moss

Sacramento Kings

Tyreke Evans, Omri Casspi, Jon Brockman, Donté Greene, Jason Thompson, Wesley Matthews, Jerel McNeal, Spencer Hawes, Robert Battle, John Bryant, Pat Calathes, Marcus Landry, Brian Roberts, Victor Stowes, Ryan Toolson

San Antonio Spurs

James Gist, Jack McClinton, DeJuan Blair, Eric Dawson, Malik Hairston, George Hill, Romel Beck, Nando de Colo, Carldell "Squeaky" Johnson, Antonio Anderson, Marcus Vinicius, Ian Mahinmi, Alonzo Gee,

Toronto Raptors

Brent Petway, DeMar DeRozan, Nathan Jawai, Demetris Nichols, Quincy Douby, Roko Ukic, Patrick O'Bryant, Carl English, Ekene Ibekwe, David Doublas, Paul Davis, Smush Parker

Washington Wizards

Tyrese Rice, Nick Young, Javaris Crittenton, JaVale McGee, Alex Ruoff, Jim(my) Baron, Alade Aminu, Ryan Ayers, Jon Edwards, Josh Heytvelt, James Lang, Dominic McGuire, Tywain McKie, Jason Rich, Diamon Simpson, Kyle Spain, Brandon Wallace

NBA D-League Select

Coleman Collins, Walker Russell, Will Frisby, Gary Forbes, Marcus Hubbard, Othyus Jeffers, Jasper Johnson, Trey Johnson, Kurt Looby, Curtis Stinson

A fan reaction to the other guy we drafted.

hawksdawgs — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 16:00:29 -0000

More photos » by John Bazemore - AP

Well, I am never going to be around to coach this guy....

Browse more photos »

The hate is strong with this one. The "F" are coming out so fast I feel like I am back in college Spanish class.

I understand it only in regards to the other second round talent that appeared to be available to the Hawks. Mostly the two Pitt stars that went back to back at picks 36 and 37.

However, in a vacuum, this pick sits pretty well with me. His name is Sergiy Gladyr which alone is probably worth a second rounder. The reviews on him are good. He can shoot, has above average athleticism, will have the poise from playing pro basketball for 15 years by the time he comes State side. I would have been willing to wait for Rudy Fernandez for a few years, and best case scenario, we just got ourselves a poor man's Rudy.

I mean it was the 49th overall. Salim Stoudamire was long gone at this point in his draft. Certain frustrations will always exists when Thomas Gardner has a roster spot and the Hawks draft someone who may never suit up for the Hawks. But the guy seems to have skills and maybe Rick Sund will be more excited about bringing him over since he actually drafted him than he is about David Anderson.

A trade up would have been nice. I would have been on ebay right now waiting to buy the first Blair jersey that came up for auction. But right now, the free agent market with Zaza, Flip, Bibby, and Marvin is much more important to the Hawks immediate success than any pick the Hawks made here.

If the Hawks mess up these next two free agent summers, it won't matter when Sergiy comes to America or how good he is.

Boxed Out: Season Finale

Steve Weinman — Mon, 11 May 2009 09:00:18 -0000

More photos » by Andrew D. Bernstein - NBAE/Getty Images

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Boxed Out: A weekly look at statistical oddities around the NBA

We've finally reached the point in the season at which the calendar thins out just a bit too much to make goofing around with box scores grounds for a full-length feature each week. So we present to you today the 2008-09 regular season's final edition of Boxed Out.

Dwight Howard, Monday at Boston: 6-for-12 from the field, 4-for-5 foul shooting, 16 points, 22 rebounds, 3 blocks

And he really didn't dominate that night. Scary thought.

Lamar Odom, Monday versus Houston: 4-for-8 from the field, 1-for-6 foul shooting, 9 points, 5 rebounds

As LO goes, so go the Lakers?

Joe Smith, Tuesday versus Atlanta: 20 minutes, 0-for-4 from the field, 0 points, 2 rebounds, 3 fouls, plus-20

That's known as being in a good situation.

Nene, Tuesday versus Dallas: 8-for-12 from the field, 9-for-13 foul shooting, 25 points, 8 rebounds

Had his own personal playoff coming-out party early in this series.

Eddie House, Wednesday versus Orlando: 11-for-14 from the field, 4-for-4 on threes, 5-for-6 foul shooting, 31 points

Eddie Mansion. Eddie Money. Celtics win.

Carl Landry, Wednesday at LA Lakers: 7-for-9 from the field, 7-for-13 foul shooting, 21 points, 10 rebounds, 0 ejections

Not being ejected might have been the real achievement in this particular game.

Thomas Gardner, Thursday at Cleveland: 4-for-11 from the field, 3-for-5 on threes, 12 points, plus-12

M-I-Z! Z-O-U! Oh, whoops. The Hawks lost by 20.

Von Wafer, Friday versus LA Lakers: 2-for-10 from the field, 4-for-5 foul shooting, 9 points

Rough night for Vienna Finger. But he did draw a cool three-shot foul on Sasha Vujacic by leaning into him.

Brandon Bass, Saturday versus Denver: 2-for-5 from the field, 12-for-14 foul shooting, 16 points

He played 25 minutes and went to the line 14 times. He's Brandon Bass!

Dirk Nowitzki, Saturday versus Denver: 33 points, 16 rebounds

His efforts in this series should be recognized at some point before his team's season expires.

LeBron James, Saturday at Atlanta: 15-for-25 from the field, 5-for-10 on threes, 12-for-16 foul shooting, 47 points, 12 rebounds, 8 assists

The rest of the Cavs totaled 50 points and seven assists.

Aaron Brooks, Sunday versus LA Lakers: 12-for-20 from the field, 4-for-9 on threes, 6-for-6 foul shooting, 34 points

That business of trading Rafer Alston continues to pay dividends.

Paul Pierce, Sunday at Orlando: 9-for-15 from the field, 8-for-9 foul shooting, 27 points, 4 assists

That fourth assist came on the screen-and-roll that won the game. Also, the Infuriated Infant is a beast.

So there you have it, folks. That wraps up this season's many editions of Boxed Out. Thanks for sticking with us through the inaugural campaign, and feel free to shout out any notable stat lines we missed.

The Daily Babble comes at you this afternoon as a tribute to Glen Davis with extended game notes (bullet ponts-style) on tap for Tuesday. Catch ya on the flip side of the meridian.

Recapping a Busy Night In The D-League

Scott Schroeder — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 15:00:11 -0000

Just my thoughts as I peruse the box scores with close attention to potential NBA Gatorade Call-ups. I mean, seriously, there's like 40 former NBAer's with in the D-League with RidiculousUpside. Here's a rundown

Reno 102, Idaho 91 -- Reno was led by Richie Frahm, who scored 25 points, but contributed nothing else to the box score. Patrick Ewing Jr. came off the bench to score 20 points, had eight boards, and swatted four shots, though shot just 4-for-13 from the field. Gerry McNamara had 15 points and five assists off the bench, including 4-for-6 from 3-point territory. For the Stampede, Former Cav Lance Allred had 20 points and five boards, former Bobcat Kevin Burleson had 10 points, six assists, and former a-lot-of-teams Luke Jackson had 15 points, seven assists, and five turnovers.
Erie 98, Sioux Falls 96 -- Erie had four players in double figures, led by Erik Daniels, who scored 21 points, had seven assists, and six rebounds. For Sioux Falls, Bobby Jones had 22 points andd 1 boards. John Edwards had 15 points, eight rebounds. Kasib Powell missed his second straight game.
Albuquerque 120, Tulsa 114 -- For Albuquerque, 6'8", 320 pound Jasper Johnson dominated. He had 42 points and 19 rebounds. Keith McLeod had a career game, scoring 29 points and dishing 11 assists, somehow getting to the line TWENTY times. Will Conroy was a DNP, presumably with an eye injury. Tulsa was led by former Jazz first round pick Ryan Humphrey, who put up 42 points and 11 rebounds. Draft eligible Keith Clark scored 20 points and had eight rebounds.
Iowa 107, Utah 96 -- Iowa was led by 6'5" guard Othyus Jeffers, who scored 27 points and added nine rebounds. Demetris Nichols had 25 points, but turned the ball over five times. The Flash were led by Ronald Dupree with 22 points, five boards, five assists. Dontell Jefferson added 19 points.
Los Angeles 116, Anaheim 104 -- The D-Fender's were led by Gabriel Hughes, who I have no clue about. He finished with 22 points and 15 boards off the bench. Lakers' second round pick Joe Crawford had 20 points. CJ Giles, Dwayne Mitchell, and Longar Longar all didn't play. Anaheim was led by James White, who had a great all-around game. He scored 33 points, had 11 boards, and seven assists. Hawks send-down Othello Hunter had 10 points and 11 rebounds and teammate Thomas Gardner had 26 points and seven boards.
The Bakersfield Jam snuck by RGV, with a 107-106 victory. Derrick Byars led Bakersfield with 24 points and seven boards. Mateen Cleaves added 13 points and 14 assists. RGV was led by former Cav Jawad Williams, who had 24 points. Jared Jordan also had a good game, best in the D-League by far, with 23 points, nine assists, and six rebounds.

Gameday Statistical Notes

Hoopinion — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 16:20:12 -0000

It's been mentioned in more than one game thread here. Drew's written about it. CoCo's written about it.

ITEM: Flip Murray and Acie Law IV do not form an effective backcourt combination.

On the season...

They are -42 in 137 minutes on the court together.
Over the 137 minutes they've shared in the backcourt, the Hawks have averaged 86 points per 100 possessions.

During their shared minutes...

Acie Law has shot 39.5% from the field*. Overall, Law has shot 41.5% from the field.
Law averages 6.1 A/40. Overall, Law averages 6.8 A/40
Flip Murray has shot 31.7% from the field. Overall Flip Murray has shot 38.7% from the field.
Murray averages 17.5 FGA/40. Overall, Murray averages 16.2 FGA/40.

*This is the old, less revealing FG% rather than eFG% as the former is that's listed with the player pairs stats at 82games.

Admittedly, 137 minutes is not a huge sample size but I believe that it's time to try something else, be it more minutes for Law alongside Mike Bibby (with Law serving as the primary ball-handler), giving Flip Murray's minutes to Thomas Gardner* for a month, or using Maurice Evans for the vast majority of the minutes backing up both Marvin Williams and Joe Johnson.

*Gardner would certainly maintain Murray's tradition of bad defense and turnovers but would possibly make more shots while handling the ball less often.

Some more fun Flip Murray stats to make you feel ill...

Player	Min	FGA	FGA/36	FTA/36	A/36	TO/36
Al Horford	542	137	9.1	4.3	2.7	1.5
Flip Murray	401	163	14.6	4.3	1.7	2.2

Just think how good the Hawks offense (6th in the league) could be if Flip Murray (43.6 eFG%) didn't shoot 60% more often than Al Horford (53.3 eFG%).

Only Joe Johnson (27.5) has a higher usage rate* than Flip Murray (26.2). Josh Smith (21.7) and Mike Bibby (21.5) are third and fourth on the team in usage rate.

Only Zaza Pachulia (TO%: 20.2) finishes more of his possessions with a turnover than does Flip Murray (TO%: 18.6).

*Usage rate estimates of the percentage of team possessions used by an individual player when he is on the court.