The Dallas Mavericks have signed guard Isaiah Thomas to a 10-day contract under the COVID-related hardship allowance, the team announced Wednesday.
The 32-year-old Thomas is expected to join the team in Sacramento, where he began his NBA career, for the Mavericks’ game against the Kings tonight. He recently signed a 10-day contract with the Lakers on Dec. 17 and averaged 9.3 points, 2.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists, and 25.3 minutes in four games (one start) in his second stint with the franchise.
Thomas (5-9, 185) is an 11-year veteran with career averages of 18.0 points (.435 FG, .362 3FG, .872 F.T.), 2.4 rebounds, 4.9 assists, and 28.8 minutes in 532 games (362 starts) with Sacramento, Phoenix, Boston, Cleveland, the L.A. Lakers, Denver, Washington, and New Orleans.
He enjoyed his best statistical seasons as a member of the Boston Celtics, where he was a two-time All-Star (2016, 2017) and averaged 24.7 points, 6.0 assists, 1.0 steals, and 32.2 minutes in 179 games (155 starts) with the franchise. He averaged a career-best 28.9 points for Boston in 2016-17, ranking third in the league in scoring.
Thomas will wear No. 2 for the Mavericks – the same number he donned at Washington and had retired by the school in 2018.
Cavaliers point guard Ricky Rubio with miss the rest of the 2021-22 NBA season after tearing his ACL, the team announced Wednesday.
According to the Cavs, an MRI administered Wednesday revealed the injury.
The 31-year-old Rubio left Tuesday night’s road loss to the Pelicans late in the fourth quarter and did not return.
This is a massive loss for the Cavaliers. Rubio, who Cleveland acquired from Minnesota in the offseason, was averaging a career-high 13.1 points, 6.6 assists, and 4.1 rebounds per contest off Cleveland’s bench. The 10-year veteran gave the Cavaliers great minutes this season.
The Cavaliers will need another point guard on this roster. At this point, Kevin Pangos would be the backup point guard, but that probably won’t be enough, and with Darius Garland out due to health and safety protocols, Pangos could be the starter going forward.
Cleveland returns to action Thursday night against the Washington Wizards.
The Cleveland Cavaliers have signed guard Malik Newman to a 10-day contract via the NBA’s hardship exception, the team announced Wednesday.
Newman (6-3, 190), 24, has appeared in 13 games (4 starts) this season for the Cleveland Charge, the Cavaliers’ exclusively owned and operated NBA G League affiliate, averaging 17.8 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.9 assists in 27.3 minutes per contest.
Newman has appeared in 77 total games for the Charge during his career, appearing in 25 games in 2018-19 and 39 games (31 starts) during 2019-20 in addition to this season. Newman has played in one career NBA game for the Cleveland Cavaliers during the 2019-20 season after receiving a 10-day contract.
Currently, Cleveland has five players in health and safety protocols: Jarrett Allen, Ed Davis, Darius Garland, Lamar Stevens, Dylan Windler.
Cleveland should have beaten the Pelicans Tuesday night at Smoothie King Center, but after a great start, which included a 23-point first-quarter lead, the Cavaliers went cold and fell to New Orleans 108-104.
The Pelicans were without their leading scorer Brandon Ingram(Achilles soreness), Nickeil Alexander-Walker(health and safety protocols), and Josh Hart(ankle).
Cleveland got back Evan Mobley and Isaac Okoro(health and safety protocols). However, their leading scorer Darius Garland missed Tuesday’s game due to health and safety protocols, and Cleveland was still without their starting center Jarrett Allen(health and safety protocols).
After winning six straight, Cleveland(20-14) has lost two of three, while New Orleans(13-22) has won three of four.
Here is the Great, the Not So Great, and the Bottom Line of the Cavs’ tough loss to New Orleans:
The Great for the Cavaliers:
-Ricky Rubio got the start in place of Garland, and he did it all. He had a game-high 27 points and a game-high 13 assists to go along with nine rebounds. Sadly, he could not finish the game as he left late with what appeared to be a nasty left leg injury.
-Kevin Love, who got his first start of the season against the Raptors, went back to the bench after Mobley’s return. In the first quarter, Love scored 12 of his 24 points and four of his game-high seven threes. He got Cleveland off to a great start, and he also had a solid ending as he scored 10 points, including three threes in the fourth. This is the tenth straight game that Love has been in double figures.
-Evan Mobley is back and it was like he never left. The rookie, who missed four games due to health and safety protocols, was efficient as he went 9/12 from the field to score 22 points to go along with seven rebounds. This was the first time Mobley has been over 20 points since November 7th.
First Quarter Cavs: Coming into this contest, the Cavs led the league in first-quarter scoring margin, and Cleveland got the start they wanted against the Pelicans. They shot 56% from the field, including 9/12 from downtown(75%). Love and Rubio combined for 22 of the team’s 39 points, and the Cavaliers had their largest lead of 23 points in the first. Cleveland would take a 39-20 lead into the second quarter.
The Not So Great for the Cavaliers:
Three-Point shooting after the first quarter: The Cavaliers were 9/12 from three-point range in the first quarter. After that, they were 5/29 the rest of the way, including 0/10 in the second quarter.
“I thought we got a little stagnant offensively and settled little bit too much for too many threes,” Cavs head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said postgame.
2nd-4th quarters: Cleveland had a 19-point lead(39-20) after the first quarter. However, after that, they were outscored in every quarter and were outscored 88-65 the rest of the way, including by 11 in the fourth.
Fourth Quarter: Cleveland led 83-76 heading into the fourth, but things unraveled in the final quarter. The Cavaliers were outscored 32-21 in the fourth as they went cold. Cleveland shot 30% from the field, including 3/12 from downtown. The Cavs took a 95-83 lead at the 07:59 mark of the fourth, but the Pelicans went on a 16-2 run to take the lead for good at 99-97.
Ricky Rubio’s injury: Rubio’s injury did not look good, and he did not put any pressure on the leg. Unfortunately, it seems like he could be gone for an extended period of time, if not the rest of the season.
Bottom Line:
This was a devastating loss in more ways than one. First, you blow a 23-point lead to a depleted team, and next, you lose one of the MVPs of your squad in Rubio. If the season derails, we will look back at this game. The team was clearly dejected after the game, including Love, who spent time with Rubio in Minnesota:
“I really care for him,” Love said. “I’m just praying that he’s going to be OK. We don’t know what the near future is going to hold for him. We’re just completely gutted. He was having such a great season.”
Rubio is expected to get an MRI Wednesday.
What’s Next:
Cleveland concludes their two-game road trip in Washington against the Wizards Thursday night.
Best of the Rest:
-Herbert Jones led the Pelicans with 26 points; Devonte’ Graham added 18 points, five rebounds, and five assists, and Jonas Valanciunas had 15 points and 10 rebounds as all five starters scored in double figures.
-Lauri Markkanen added 14 points and five rebounds, and Isaac Okoro, who made his return after missing three games due to health and safety protocols, had six points.
It’s next man up around the NBA, including the Dallas Mavericks. Due to health and safety protocols, Dallas was without Luka Doncic, Tim Hardaway Jr., Maxi Kleber, Trey Burke, and Reggie Bullock.
The man that led the way for the Mavericks Monday night against the Portland Trailblazers(13-20) was Kristaps Porzingis. He scored 24 of his season-high 34 points in the first half to go along with nine rebounds, five assists, two steals, and two blocks as the Mavericks(16-17) defeated the Blazers 132-117 at Moda Center.
Porzingis’ 34 points was the highest-scoring game by a Maverick this season, and Dallas improved to 3-0 this season when he scores 30-plus points.
“After I missed the first three, I don’t know why, but I was like, ‘I know I’m going to make shots,'” Porzingis said. “It was straight on, a little bit short. The third one, I was already like, okay, ‘This is going in,’ and it was like in and out. End of the quarter, I was like, ‘I have to keep shooting. I know it’s going in…
“I just had that feeling that I’m going to make some shots, and now consistency is what I’m looking for.”
Mavs head coach Jason Kidd added on Porzingis: ‘”I thought (Porzingis) let the ball come to him tonight, he didn’t force anything. If they didn’t double, he went to score, and if they did, he found the open guy. I thought his rhythm was great from start to finish.”
Next man up was not just Porzingis. Brandon Knight, who appeared in his third game with the Mavericks, had 18 points (6-12 FG), five assists, three rebounds, and one steal; Josh Green had nine points to go along with a career-high 10 assists and a season-high-tying two steals, and Dwight Powell recorded a season-best 22 points.
Dallas continues their five-game road trip with a two-game set in Sacramento against the Kings starting Wednesday.
Watch below as Porzingis reacts to Dallas’ win over Blazers:
The Cleveland Cavaliers returned to action Sunday night against the Toronto Raptors, and both teams were depleted due to health and safety protocols.
Toronto(14-16) had ten players in health and safety protocols, including Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, Fred VanVleet, and Gary Trent Jr. Cleveland had six players in health and safety protocols, including Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen, and Cedi Osman. In addition, they were without Isaac Okoro((return to competition reconditioning).
Cleveland(20-13) had six players in double figures and led by as many as 47 points against the Raptors. Ultimately, Cleveland would defeat Toronto 144-99. The Cavaliers had 118 points through the first three quarters, the most points after three quarters in team history.
Furthermore, the Cavaliers’ 45-point victory is their largest win in 30 years.
The Great for the Cavaliers:
Cavs’ Frontcourt: Cleveland got big-time contributions from their frontcourt. In his first start of the season, Kevin Love had 22 points, including a season-high six threes to go along with nine rebounds. Lauri Markkanen added 20 points and seven rebounds, and Dean Wade had 17 points and seven rebounds. The Cavs’ frontcourt scored a combined 59 points and grabbed 23 rebounds.
Cavs’ Backcourt: Darius Garland scored 11 of his 22 points in the third to go along with eight assists, and four rebounds. He scored 20-plus points for the third straight game, and Ricky Rubio added 16 points and six assists. The backcourt combined for 38 points and 14 assists.
With the Cavs being depleted due to health and safety protocols, Denzel Valentine got an extended run Sunday night, and he took full advantage of it. Valentine had season-highs in points(17) and threes(5) in 26 minutes of action.
Third Quarter: Cleveland had a 17-point lead at halftime but busted it wide open in the third by scoring 46 points, which tied their franchise record for most points in a quarter. The Cavaliers shot 62% from the floor, including nine threes. Cleveland went on a 15-0 run in the third to go up by 34 points. They led by as many as 40 points in the quarter as Cleveland took a 118-78 lead into the fourth.
The Not So Great for the Cavaliers:
You score 144 points and win by 45 points, yeah, it’s all great for the Cavaliers.
Bottom Line:
This game came down to the Cavaliers having more healthy bodies. You could argue that Cleveland was playing the Toronto’s G League affiliate, Raptors 905. However, you play who’s on your schedule, and in reality, every team is dealing with COVID issues right now.
For any team, it’s just good to get a win.
“We’ve got a good thing going, and I’m having a lot of fun,” Love said. “It’s going to be great watching this young team develop.”
What’s Next:
The Cavaliers return to action on the road against the Pelicans Tuesday night.
Best of the Rest:
-Yuta Watanabe led the Raptors with 22 points and 11 rebounds, and Chris Boucher added 20 points and five rebounds.
Watch below as Markkanen and Garland talk win over Raptors:
The two best teams in the NBA, the Golden State Warriors and Phoenix Suns faced off on Christmas Day at Footprint Center, and the game lived up to the hype.
Steph Curry scored 10 of his game-high 33 points in the fourth, while Otto Porter added 13 of his 19 points in the final period as the Warriors would pick up a second-straight win over the Suns 116-107.
The Warriors(27-6) now have the best record in the NBA and lead the season series 2-1.
Down the stretch, it became the Otto Porter show for the Warriors. With Golden State leading 104-99 with just over five minutes to go, Porter scored 10 of the Warriors’ final 12 points.
Without Andrew Wiggins(health/safety), Jordan Poole(health/safety), and Klay Thompson(Achilles), Porter stepped up, and the Warriors got a big win on Christmas Day.
“Coach(Steve Kerr) drew up a couple of plays that freed me open, and my teammates did a good job of finding me,” Porter said, who also added six rebounds and three assists. “I was able to step in and knock some shots down, and they kept finding me, so I kind of got into a rhythm.”
Suns’ Christ Paul, who had a team-high 21 points to go along with eight assists, and six rebounds, added on Porter: ‘He hit big shots down the stretch. He damn-near was a max player in this league at one point.”
For the Phoenix Suns(26-6), their 15-game home winning streak is now over, and the sentiment on their side was that the Warriors wanted it more.
“They created those breaks. They played harder than us,” Suns head coach Monty Williams said. “It’s rare when I say that about our team. They outworked us more consistently for 50-50 balls, timely offensive rebounds, diving out of bounds to save balls.”
Devin Booker, who had 13 points against Golden State, added: “They wanted it more, and they played like it. We just have to take this loss and move on to our next game.”
It appears these two teams will battle it out the rest of the way for supremacy in the West and the NBA. It would also appear that the Warriors could have the advantage as they will get back Klay Thompson and James Wiseman at some point.
Because of their great start, we forget the Golden State Warriors are not whole, so this team could be even more formidable when they get everybody back.
Watch below as Porter talks big win over Suns on Christmas Day:
This season, the 42-year-old Bickerstaff has led the Cavaliers to the fifth-best record in the Eastern Conference at 19-13 and the franchise’s best 32-game start since 2017-18 (23-9). Cleveland has recorded 12 of their 19 victories against teams with a winning record, and their 14 wins by at least 10 points trails only Golden State (18) and Utah (17).
“J.B. Bickerstaff is, with all certainty, the right head coach to lead this franchise into what we believe is a very promising future,” said Cavs GM Koby Altman. “The decision to extend J.B. is not based solely on the early success of this season, but rather a body of work since his arrival to Cleveland.”
Cleveland has faced one of the NBA’s most demanding schedules, playing 25 of their 32 games against teams that made the playoffs or play-in tournament last season. Cleveland has had at least a 10-point lead in 24 contests and has registered three separate win streaks of at least four games this season, including a season-high six-game win streak.
Before coming to Cleveland, he was the Memphis Grizzlies head coach for the 2018-19 season; Bickerstaff was named head coach of the Cavaliers on February 19, 2020.
The Phoenix Suns continued their winning ways Thursday night as they defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder 113-101 at Footprint Center.
Devin Booker scored a game-high 30 points, 15 of which came in the third quarter, to go along with seven rebounds and seven assists.
The Suns(26-5) extended their winning streak to five games, and also extended their home winning streak to 15.
After trailing by five in the third, Phoenix used a 28-10 run to take complete control of the game, and OKC never threatened after that.
Now, it’s onto their big Christmas Day showdown against the Warriors(26-6) at Footprint Center. The last time the Suns played on Christmas Day was back in 2009.
Many of Phoenix’s players have not experienced Christmas Day basketball, including Deandre Ayton and Cam Johnson, and both are super excited.
“I’m not going to lie, I feel like I should thank the NBA for gifting me with a Christmas gift of playing on Christmas Day,” Ayton, who added 19 points and 12 rebounds against OKC, said. “A lot of guys that aren’t playing on Christmas are going to be opening their gifts, probably working out, probably getting ready for the next game, but me, I got kids waking up to go see Deandre and the Phoenix Suns play. That’s an honor. You can’t take that for granted. Stuff like that is just hard work. People recognizing us, just winning and stuff like that, and this is the reward. We just have to be grateful and not take it for granted at all.”
Cam Johnson, who scored 21 points on 7-of-7 shooting from the field, including a 5-of-5 from downtown against OKC, added: “I’ll be honest with you, I’m viewing it as my first time, ever in my life, playing a basketball game on Christmas—watched NBA games every Christmas since I was a little kid, just the opportunity to go and play in that game. I like the time of the game, 3 P.M.; I’m hoping it stays that way, we show up, get to it. It’s like a dream come true, playing on Christmas, getting out there, and I’m just super excited for that. Never mind whatever else might be going around, just excited to have that game.”
Phoenix is 1-1 against the Warriors this season, and both games had a playoff feel. According to Chris Paul, playing Golden State is a good test for the Suns.
“Playing against Golden State, they always make you think, playing against the Lakers, Milwaukee, all those good teams,” he said. “They’re going to make you think the game, so it’s always a good test for us because every team is different.”
Phoenix and Golden State are the two best teams in basketball, so Saturday’s game against the Warriors should be a lot of fun.
Watch below as Ayton talks win over OKC, playing Warriors on Christmas Day:
On Thursday night against the Milwaukee Bucks, the Dallas Mavericks had seven players in health and safety protocols, including Luka Doncic, Tim Hardaway Jr, Maxi Kleber, and four others. In addition, Dallas was without Kristaps Porzingis(toe).
Dallas had five players who they recently signed to 10-day contracts(Brandon Knight, Marquese Chriss, Theo Pinson, George King, Carlik Jones) play Thursday night, and while the Bucks also had some health and safety protocol issues(Giannis Antetokounmpo, Dante DiVincenzo, and Bobby Portis), Milwaukee(21-13) still had Khris Middleton(26 points), Jrue Holiday(24 points), and DeMarcus Cousins(22 points).
Ultimately, the Bucks defeated the Mavs 102-95 at American Airlines Center.
Dallas has now lost three of four. The Mavericks(15-16) had six players in double figures, including all five starters. Jalen Brunson led the way with 19 points.
The Mavericks trailed 95-90 with just over five minutes to go, and they would score only five points the rest of the way. However, Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd was happy with the team’s effort.
“The guys played hard,” Kidd said. “We were in position, a great position tonight against the world champs. We missed some opportunities. Had good looks, got stops, just couldn’t score the ball there [in] the last five minutes.”
The players on the 10-day contracts for the Mavericks have an opportunity to catch on with the team or elsewhere, and according to Kidd, those players have a limited amount of time to impress.
“For the guys, this is their second game, Theo [Pinson] and those guys, [Marquese] Chriss; they did everything they could. And for the new guys, [Brandon] Knight, George [King], they’ve just got to get their feet settled,” Kidd said. “Unfortunately, they’re on the clock; it’s only 10 days. I don’t know what the rules are, but if you bring them back another 10 days, we’ll see who makes that.”
Chriss, who had 13 points and five rebounds off the bench, added: “I think the biggest thing was just sitting at home watching everybody else play and missing it and feeling like I could contribute and be somewhere and be myself. I’m just thankful to be here and taking it one day at a time.”
The Mavericks travel to Utah to battle the Jazz on Christmas Day. They will continue to be a depleted team due to health and safety protocols, which will give the newly signed players more opportunities to make an impression.
Dallas is in a tough spot, but they have to figure it out.
