Top pick Fultz to miss rest of summer league
Markelle Fultz, the No. 1 overall pick, will miss the rest of the NBA summer league because of a sprained left ankle.
The Philadelphia 76ers said Fultz is expected to return to basketball activities in one to two weeks. Fultz tweeted Sunday: "I'm ok, thank you for all who (were) worried!"
Fultz appeared to roll his ankle in Saturday night's game and was helped to the locker room by two teammates.
He had just signed his contract earlier in the day and was taken for X-rays. The former Washington star had eight points in 15 minutes.
It was the last thing the Sixers wanted to see just when they appeared ready to put years of misery behind them. They have dealt with significant injuries to center Joel Embiid and last year's No. 1 pick, Ben Simmons, the last three years.
The 76ers pulled off a trade with Boston before the draft to move up from No. 3 to No. 1 to take Fultz, the dynamic scoring point guard that team president Bryan Colangelo felt was the perfect piece to put with Simmons and Embiid.
Griffin pulls name from Knicks' front office search
Former Cleveland Cavaliers general manager David Griffin decided to pull his name out of contention for the New York Knicks' top basketball executive opening, according to multiple reports.
Griffin turned down the opportunity because he and the Knicks couldn't agree on a role, sources told ESPN. The issue reportedly came down to finding a proper role for Griffin while executive Steve Mills continues to work for the team.
Sources said that the Knicks and Griffin were at odds over Griffin not having full authority on basketball decisions and over Griffin's preference to bring in his own staff.
Trades help Raptors avoid luxury tax
Looking down the barrel of some significant luxury tax penalties, Toronto Raptors GM Masai Ujiri is moving swiftly to get below the tax line while keeping his team competitive.
Ujiri pulled off two trades in about 12 hours, sending veteran forward DeMarre Carroll to Brooklyn in a salary dump and landing C.J. Miles in a sign-and-trade with Indiana for Cory Joseph, three people with knowledge of the dealings told The Associated Press.
The Raptors and Nets agreed to the Carroll deal late Saturday night, with Toronto sending a future first- and second-round pick to Brooklyn with Carroll and getting Justin Hamilton in return.
The deal allowed Toronto to offload Carroll's remaining two years and $30 million from its books, which helped the Raptors dip below the punitive luxury tax line in a summer when they re-signed point guard Kyle Lowry to a threeyear, $100 million deal.
The Raptors agreed to terms with Miles on a three-year, $25 million contract and sent backup point guard Cory Joseph to the Pacers to complete the trade. The 30-year-old Miles is coming off one of the best seasons of his career.
Dealing Joseph opens up more time at point guard behind Lowry for emerging talent Delon Wright while giving the rebuilding Pacers an experienced ball-handler after losing Jeff Teague in free agency.