Jimmy Butler will miss his second straight game and the Heat‘s NBA Cup opener in Detroit on Tuesday, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel tweets. Butler, who has not appeared in more than 65 regular season games in any of the last six seasons due to a variety of injuries, is dealing with an ankle sprain. The star swingman has a $52.4MM player option after this season and Miami’s … [Read more...] about Southeast Notes: Butler, Kuzma, Young, Nance Jr.
Lakers Notes: Hayes, Cap, Goodwin, Possible Trade Targets
Lakers center Jaxson Hayes has been diagnosed with a left ankle sprain, the team announced today. As Dave McMenamin of ESPN details, the injury occurred during Tuesday’s practice and will force Hayes to miss at least a few games. The club’s plan is to reevaluate the big man’s ankle in one-to-two weeks. Hayes has played a regular role in the Lakers’ rotation this fall and is … [Read more...] about Lakers Notes: Hayes, Cap, Goodwin, Possible Trade Targets
Southeast Notes: Bitadze, Carter, Jovic, Love, Sarr
Magic center Goga Bitadze, who stepped up when Wendell Carter was injured and started 33 games last season, finds himself in a similar position this fall. With Carter on the shelf due to left foot plantar fasciitis, Bitadze has started the past four games for Orlando and has averaged a double-double (10.5 points, 10.5 rebounds) to go along with 3.0 assists and 1.8 blocks per … [Read more...] about Southeast Notes: Bitadze, Carter, Jovic, Love, Sarr
Southwest Notes: Popovich, Johnson, Mavs, Kennard, Jenkins
With Gregg Popovich away from the Spurs for health reasons, reporting on Monday indicated that the head coach is “OK” and “just needs rest,” and acting head coach Mitch Johnson later told the media that Popovich is “in good spirits.” Still, Shams Charania of ESPN and Mike Finger of The San Antonio Express-News suggested on Tuesday that Popovich’s health issue shouldn’t be … [Read more...] about Southwest Notes: Popovich, Johnson, Mavs, Kennard, Jenkins
And-Ones: NBA Academies, Free Agents, M. James, More
The NBA intends to close its Global Academy in Australia and its Latin America Academy in Mexico at the end of their respective seasons, reports Jonathan Givony of ESPN. As Givony explains, the league’s intent is to reallocate more resources to “larger, non-traditional basketball countries” that don’t have strong existing infrastructure. The league will focus on markets that … [Read more...] about And-Ones: NBA Academies, Free Agents, M. James, More