[Kasib Powell checks in one last time before he heads overseas (Trikala, Greece) to make that money.  Last time Powell checked in with us, he was coming off of a good Summer League in Orlando.  From everyone at RU, we'd like to wish him luck and hopefully everything works out the way it's supposed to in the long run -- Scott]

As I'm sitting here Sunday morning, I'm making a list of things that I will need this season in Greece: Plenty of DVD's, white tees, Skype, a global phone, and the most important thing - an electronics adapter.  People might not realize how important the last thing on my list is, but the adapter is key. I got to learn that quick when I had a mini explosion with my XBox 360 and my brand new hair clippers last time I was overseas!

My decision to go to Europe was a difficult and stressful one that took longer then I wanted, but at the same time it felt like I had to make a decision quick.  My options were laid out on the table and I had already turned down two great jobs in Europe.  This would have been the third situation that slipped by me, so instead I decided to grab the situation by the horns and embrace it. So I'm headed to Trikala, Greece! I have never been so excited to go to Europe as I am now!! Every overseas team I have played on (except one) has never had any other Americans on the team.  This year in Greece though, I will be playing with AJ Abrams from the University of Texas and Tyrrell Biggs from Pittsburgh. Both of those guys are use to winning and the three of us will take that attitude to Greece and win many games in a great league. 

My other option was going to training camp with an NBA team. I could have rolled the dice, but honestly, I have rolled the dice too much and it was time to stop rolling and jump on a great team that WANTED me and that was going to GUARANTEE my money.   If I was 22 or 23, I would have stuck around and rolled the dice, but at this point in my career, it is a wise move.  After I have a great season in Trikala, who knows how much Panathinakos or Olympiakos will offer me with the way they are signing people?  Or maybe I have such a great year that my next destination after this year will be with the Phoenix Suns?  Besides, if you're a former D-league MVP struggling to get into the league that the NBA has a direct affiliation with, then maybe I needed to go to Europe and try that route.

Many players get into the NBA late after many years in Europe or the minors so I will keep hope alive that I will be a late addition that plays 5 or 6 years in the NBA. I still feel my game is an NBA game but I will be taking my services to Europe. No love lost from any teams in the NBA or the NBA in general. I will still watch games over in Greece and I still am a big fan. There is always next year. I dont leave the country for another week so as I'm getting all my items for this season, I will check in before my departure.

-Sib
Jersey!

Time again for Ridiculous Transactions, where we take a look at some of the signings, trades, and cuts from the past week involving D-League players and some others who may not (or may) be in the NBA.  Some of these moves are also discussed during the week, but this is a way to make sure we cover what we need to cover, and hopefully take a larger view on some of these moves (and, truthfully, recurring features are always good in a what-should-I-write-about-today sort of way).

August 10: Jeremy Richardson - signed with Aris BSA (Greece); Kaniel Dickens - signed with SLUC Nancy (France)

Aris also signed Ira Newble, but I'm a little less interested in that.  Neither Richardson nor Dickens have played in the D-League for a few years, but depending on what they want to do with their careers both could potentially end up back in the U.S., I would guess.  Richardson is a solid scorer, and he's gotten several NBA looks, including a dozen or so games with Orlando last year.  Dickens is maybe less likely to make the NBA again, as he's 31 now and has a pretty good skill-set to play in Europe, but he's played a bit for Cleveland and if that team loves one thing it's guys they've heard of.

August 11: Linas Kleiza - signed with Olympiacos Piraeus (Greece)

If I can step over and talk about the NBA for a little bit here, Kleiza going to play in Greece combined with the Sonny Weems trade (which is how I'm referring to it) means that a lot will be on JR Smith this year.  Sure the Nuggets signed Arron Afflalo, but that was largely for his defense, and while he improved as a shooter last season he's still not a big scorer.  Denver's bench scoring took two hits with Weems leaving town and Kleiza leaving the country, so as the roster stands right now, this is the year JR Smith needs to really put everything together.

August 13: Jeremy Tyler - signed with Maccabi Haifa (Israel)

We've touched on this already, but I'll add that Haifa will play in the Israeli Super League last season for the first time in about a decade, so Tyler will face better competition than he could have (and indeed, I wonder if this was a selling point/reason Vaccaro picked them).  I still wonder how much playing time Tyler will end up getting, as last year their starting center was Ido Kozikaro, who also plays on the Israeli national team, and I would imagine he'll start again this year.  They also have former Division III Player of the Year Ben Strong and Davon Jefferson, who came out of college too early in 2008 but who was a very good high school player.  The bottom line is, Haifa has guys who can play already, and now that they're back in the Super League I'm not sure they'll want to spend the time helping Tyler develop his game.  I guess we'll see how this goes.

August 14: Josh Shipp - signed with Izmir (Turkey); Houston Rockets - signed with Chase Budinger; Utah Flash - signed head coach Brad Jones to a one-year contract extension; Reno Bighorns - retained Jay Humphries as head coach.

Shipp went undrafted in this year's NBA Draft but landed on Chicago's Summer League team, and while he shot the ball pretty poorly (.192 overall), he occasionally showed some rebounding ability.  Plus, I can tell you that Izmir's really nice (they have really good oranges, olives and cucumbers), though going from living in Los Angeles (Shipp went to UCLA) to a small mountain town will be...different.  Budinger played a fair amount in Summer League, and can definitely score, though he doesn't contribute much else at this point.  Don't be surprised if he ends up with teh Vipers for a stretch or two this season, as Houston's practically swimming in forwards.

As for the coaches, I thought Jones did a good job last year, managing several NBA assignees and using them to help the Flash reach the D-League finals, so this wasn't really a surprise.  I think Humphries is a solid coach as well, a former NBA player and assistant under Mike D'Antoni in Phoenix.  Reno just missed the playoffs last year, but if they had Rod Benson for the whole season they could've made it in.

One of the reasons I adore the NBA Developmental League so much is that both the central office and the team organizations get extremely excited about the product they produce.  So much so that they have press conferences and send out releases that are usually superfluous and occasionally hilarious.  For example, how can you not find the over-hyping of Sun Yue last season at least somewhat unintentionally hilarious?  Sun Yue is a comedy goldmine.

As part of the consistent strain of pressers that the D-League releases, there are those comedy gems that truly stick out.  So far, the two biggest culprits of this hilariousity during the offseason have been the new kids on the block: The Maine Red Claws and the Springfield Armor.  Our journey through the maze of inconceivably funny PR moves began with this video some months ago and culminated in the Red Claws jersey unveiling yesterday afternoon.

So what if my ancestors were not born in Maine, I have an allergy to shellfish, and shop at the Home Depot for my wood?  Does this mean Red Claws basketball isn't for me?  Maybe not.  Because I also love driving on Route 1, blast!   Well at least we know that the Red Claws organization is raring to go, but how about the locals?  Are they ready for some basketball?  The answer: YES (check out the dude at 2:17). 

Another Portland resident preparing for the upcoming Red Claws season

J-U-M-P

Continue reading this post »

[Note: I've updated the schedule breakdowns for Maine, Springfield and Utah - JL]

The D-League released its 2009-2010 schedule this afternoon.  It's been a fairly eventful offseason (okay, maybe not the last week or two), with teams closing up shop (even if only for a year), others moving across the country, another being taken under an NBA team's wing; coaches being fired, coaches being hired; players deciding that playing in Europe or Asia is what their careers need right now.  The NBA schedule being released is a time for beat writers across the country to see what storylines might crop up and note any interesting matchups that may arise.  I'm not a beat writer, but what's good for the NBA is good for the D-League, right?  The month-by-month schedule can be found here.

To paraphrase the league's press release: the whole thing kicks off November 27 with six games (why watch college football that weekend when the D-League's in town?); the D-League Showcase will be in Boise again this year from January 4-7, but the complete Showcase schedule isn't available yet; a lot of D-League games will be played on the weekend this year; and the Springfield Armor open their season at home, while the Maine Red Claws start on the road before playing their second game in Portland against the Armor.  The press release also contains this quote from league president Dan Reed:

"As the NBA D-League continues to expand its footprint in the Northeast, and with season tickets available in every market for as little as $10 or less per game, more fans and families alike will be able to watch top NBA prospects at affordable prices in a fast-paced, fun, and family-oriented environment."

which means the league either forgot about Bakersfield or is ignoring it.

In the other bit of semi-big news, the league also realigned/consolidated, going from three divisions to two conferences.  I was pretty interested to see how they would do this, since last year's Central Division had teams that are reasonably close to Maine and Massachusetts (Erie) but others that are not (Dakota).  It looks like the Wizards are still a bit stuck (along with the Skyforce), but maybe if/when Harlem gets a D-League team one or both of them can (re)join the West.  Though I also assume that next year's Frisco team will be in the West with its Texas brethren, and even that would put the Western teams at 10 to the East's seven, which in a 17 team league is a somewhat-significant discrepancy.  I can tell you that as it stands right now, Teddy Roosevelt would be appalled.  It will also be interesting (again, to me anyway) to see how they handle the playoffs this year, and whether they take the top eight regardless of conference and still let the top teams pick their opponents.  Here they are:

Hit the jump for my quick team-by-team breakdown of the schedule, at least as it looks now. 

Continue reading this post »

I know, I know.  This is probably exactly what you expected out of me: Puff pieces talking about how sweet the D-League is and how you all should become a fan.  Well, I would have written this even if I was still good ol' Ridiculous Scott, with non-stop scoops and girls throwing their proverbial panties (do people still use this word?) at me as I traveled from city to city on the information superhighway, covering the beat of the D-League.  There's even a precedent to this historic event, as DJ Turtleface recently tried telling the world to love the Memphis Grizzlies.  Without further adieu, the reasons you should love the D-League, even if you're a fan of the Orlando Magic a team that hates the D-League.

[Editor's Note: I'll do the rest of the teams later, unless this epically flops as I expect.. Essentially this is filler until the D-League schedule comes out this afternoon.]

Continue reading this post »