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NBA notebook: Timberwolves trade Mo Williams to Hornets

Alan Draper profile picture
Sports Editor
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The Minnesota Timberwolves acquired guard Gary Neal and a 2019 second-round draft pick from the Charlotte Hornets on Tuesday in exchange for guards Mo Williams and Troy Daniels.

The Timberwolves also obtained forward-center Adreian Payne in a trade with the Atlanta Hawks for a protected future first-round draft pick.

Neal, 30, is averaging 9.6 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 43 games for Charlotte this season. Williams, 32, is averaging 12.2 points and 6.4 assists in 41 games this season, and the 23-year-old Daniels is averaging 2.8 points in 7.3 minutes per game this season. Daniels was acquired from the Houston Rockets on Dec. 23.

Payne, 23, was the 15th overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft by the Hawks. He played in three games for Atlanta, averaging 1.7 points and 1.3 rebounds, but spent the majority of the season in the NBA Development League, averaging 12.9 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 17 games.

—Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade will pass up playing in the NBA All-Star Game because of a strained right hamstring that continues to sideline him.

Commissioner Adam Sterling will name a replacement for the 11-time All-Star before Sunday’s game in Madison Square Garden in New York.

Wade has missed the Heat’s past six games and is not scheduled to play Wednesday night when Miami is at Cleveland in its final action before the All-Star break. Wade’s last appearance in a game was Jan. 27.

—Kevin Love said Tuesday he has no problem with Cleveland Cavaliers teammate LeBron James.

“I was caught off-guard when I heard about it,” Love said Tuesday from the team’s Independence, Ohio, training headquarters, discussing the well-publicized alleged dispute with James.”I talk to LeBron every day. We’re teammates, we see each other, there’s no problem with us.”

Saturday night before a 32-point, 10-rebound effort from Love in a 15-point win over the Lakers the next day, James wrote on his Twitter account, “Stop trying to find a way to FIT-OUT and just FIT-IN. Be apart of something special! Just my thoughts.”

—New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony, frustrated after tweaking his ailing left knee Monday, said he will consider shutting down for the season to be fully healthy for next season.

There is little to gain for the Knicks (10-42) in 2014-15 and Anthony, who is averaging 24.1 points and 6.7 rebounds per game, does not feel healthy. He sat out Saturday’s game against the Washington Wizards before playing Monday night in a 109-95 loss to the Miami Heat.

—Houston Rockets guard Patrick Beverley will replace Washington Wizards guard John Wall in the 2015 Skills Challenge during All-Star Saturday at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.

The skills challenge features a head-to-head, bracket-style tournament format for the first time and part of the All-Star Game weekend festivities that will include the Slam Dunk contest, Three-Point Contest and Shooting Stars.

Beverley is averaging 10.7 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.2 assists in 39 games with the Rockets this season. A second-round pick of the Los Angeles Lakers in 2009, Beverley signed with Houston in January 2013 after four-plus seasons playing overseas.

—The Memphis Grizzlies recalled forward-center Jarnell Stokes and guard Russ Smith from Iowa of the NBA Development League on Tuesday.

Stokes averaged 12.3 points, 9.9 rebounds and 1.14 blocked shots in seven games since he was reassigned to Iowa on Jan. 20. In 16 games for the Grizzlies as a rookie, he has averaged 2.1 points and 1.3 rebounds.

Smith averaged 18.2 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists in nine games, including three starts, for Iowa. In 16 D-League games this season with Iowa and Fort Wayne, he averages 16.9 points, 3.3 rebounds and 4.0 assists.

Alan is an expert gambling writer who works as one of the chief editors for Basketball Insiders. He has been covering online gambling and sports betting for over 8 years, having written for the likes of Sportlens, Compare.bet, The Sports Daily, 90min, and TopRatedCasinos.co.uk. His particular specialisms include US online casinos and gambling regulations, and soccer and basketball betting. Based in London, Alan holds an MA in English Literature and is a passionate supporter of Chelsea FC.

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