Tag: BJ Boston

Clippers’ Brandon Boston Jr. cleared from health and safety protocol

Boston has been cleared from the health and safety protocol and is questionable to play on Thursday versus the Suns.

Los Angeles Clippers rookie Brandon Boston Jr. has been cleared from the NBA’s health and safety protocol and is questionable to play on Thursday versus the Phoenix Suns.

Boston was at least the fifth individual on the team placed into the health and safety protocol last month. The team has since gotten most of its personnel back from the protocol and now only has two players sidelined because of COVID-19 issues.

Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue, who was in the protocol himself, said on Wednesday that Boston should be available to play against the Suns. Lue missed four games while Lue was out for three games, respectively.

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Boston had played sparingly this season but entered the rotation last month with several players nursing injuries. He averaged 8.8 points and 2.5 rebounds in 13 games during the month of December with a career-high 27 points coming on Dec. 8.

The Clippers posted a 2-2 record without Boston in the lineup.

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Clippers’ Brandon Boston Jr. placed in health and safety protocol

Boston is averaging 8.8 points and 2.5 rebounds in 13 games during the month of December for the Clippers.

Los Angeles Clippers rookie Brandon Boston Jr. on Wednesday was placed into the NBA’s health and safety protocol, the team announced.

Boston is the fourth player on the roster sidelined in the protocol, joining Reggie Jackson, Jay Scrubb and Moses Wright. The Clippers have mostly avoided issues related to the coronavirus with only Marcus Morris Sr. the other player to join the protocol recently.

Players and coaches in the health and safety protocol who are vaccinated can now be cleared to return after six days, compared to the previous 10-day isolation period. Individuals can be cleared sooner if they return two negative PCR tests at least 24 hours apart.

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Boston had played sparingly this season but entered the rotation this month with several players nursing injuries. He is averaging 8.8 points and 2.5 rebounds in 13 games during the month with a career-high 27 points coming on Dec. 8.

The NBA is in the middle of its most challenging stretch of the season as players and teams alike battle the latest wave within the coronavirus pandemic. During the month of December, more than 100 players have entered the health and safety protocol.

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Rookie Wire Power Rankings: Cade Cunningham flexing as No. 1 pick

Rookie Wire takes a look at the top first-year players over the last two weeks of the 2021-22 season.

With two more weeks in the books, the Rookie Wire Power Rankings are back with a new player leading the way as Cade Cunningham has surpassed Scottie Barnes.

Cunningham has seemingly put a slow start behind him and is beginning to emerge as the consensus No. 1 pick. His scoring has taken off as of late while other elements of his game have been on full display with the Pistons, despite a recent 12-game losing streak.

The rest of the rankings feature some familiar names while other first-year players have emerged after seeing extended minutes. Teams are beginning to get decimated by health and safety protocols, opening the door for others to see meaningful playing time.

To make sense of it all, we took a look at the best recent performances of these first-year players and ranked them in the latest edition of the Rookie Wire Power Rankings. The rankings are not for Rookie of the Year purposes but, rather, to illustrate the best players week to week.

Brandon Boston Jr. pays homage to Terrence Clarke after career night

Boston on Wednesday scored a career-high 27 points and dedicated the performance to late friend Terrence Clarke.

Los Angeles Clippers rookie Brandon Boston Jr. on Wednesday scored a career-high 27 points in a win over the Boston Celtics and dedicated the performance to late friend, and former Kentucky Wildcats teammate, Terrence Clarke.

Clarke, 19, was tragically killed in a car accident in April after crashing at a high rate of speed following a pre-draft workout with Boston in the Los Angeles area. Boston was reportedly driving behind Clarke at the time of the collision.

Boston revealed after the contest that Clarke, who was born in Boston, always wanted to play for the Celtics growing up. He played with Clarke on his mind and admitted that his energy helped carry him to his career night versus the Celtics.

He explained how Clarke would have reacted to his performance.

He would have called up screaming, excited with a bright smile on his face telling me, ‘I told you! I told you so! You’re the best in the world! Just keep going.’ That is the type of relationship we had. He was always pushing me to be my best self. I always keep that in the back of my mind. I actually dedicated this game (to him).

Boston led the Clippers en route to the 114-111 victory, scoring 18 of his 27 total points in the second quarter. He joined Eric Gordon and Lamar Odom as the only players in franchise history to score at least 27 points at age 20 or younger.

Dennis Schroder said Boston wasted no time getting to work.

He was on the bench and went off right away. Credit to him. I heard he scored 46 in the G League game. We gotta respect everybody. At the end of the day, he came in and busted our ass. (He had) over 20 and he won them the ballgame.

Of course, Boston erupted for 46 points on Nov. 29 with the Agua Caliente Clippers on assignment in the G League. He drained nine 3-pointers in that contest and matched Cam Thomas for the most points in a game this season with the performance.

The 46-point outburst is beginning to earn Boston recognition around the league. He said some Celtics players on the bench called him “Mr. 46” after draining a 3-pointer in front of them.

I forget what they were saying but they were talking crazy before I even caught the ball. As it went up, they were like, ‘Oh, he’s Mr. 46!’ That’s what I heard. I’m going to run with (the nickname).

With a few injuries on the roster, the Clippers have relied more on Boston as of late. He played sparingly to begin the season but is beginning to get into a rhythm on the court, recording back-to-back contests in double figures for the first time.

Boston has certainly shown what he can do given a larger role and his 27-point performance on Wednesday could ensure him of a spot in the rotation moving forward.

This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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Clippers’ Brandon Boston Jr. ties career-high in loss to Kings

Boston tied a career-high in just his ninth appearance of the season on Wednesday during a loss to the Kings.

Los Angeles Clippers rookie Brandon Boston Jr. tied a career-high in just his ninth appearance of the season on Wednesday during a loss to the Sacramento Kings.

Boston finished with 13 points, three rebounds, two blocked shots and one assist in 23 minutes off of the bench in the 124-115 loss. He went 5-of-10 from the field, including 1-of-3 from 3-point range, as the Clippers lost their third straight contest.

Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue liked what Boston brought off the bench.

I thought he was really good. I thought he came in and gave us a really good lift in the first half. He was a little minutes restriction at 19-years-old but he played well, just to be able to get to the basket, attack and get downhill. We needed that.

Boston was on a 24-minute restriction entering the contest after playing this week with the Agua Caliente Clippers in the NBA G League. The team didn’t want to overwork him too early in the season so that he can stay fresh when needed in L.A.

The minute cap didn’t necessarily bother Boston all that much.

That’s outta my control, minute restrictions. Everybody wants to play every single minute and just me going out there with the minutes I have just giving it my all every time I step onto the court, that’s all I can control.

Boston recently dropped 46 points on assignment with Agua Caliente, which tied the season-high for a game this season. He proved to be highly effective in shooting the ball, draining nine 3-pointers, while he was also able to create for himself and others.

He has played sparingly with Los Angeles to this point of the season but has proven in a small sample size what he can bring on a nightly basis. Certainly, it is something L.A. can eventually use in the future.

This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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Clippers’ BJ Boston tied G League season-high with 46 points

Boston erupted for a career-high 46 points on Monday with the Agua Caliente Clippers in a win over the Salt Lake City Stars.

Los Angeles Clippers rookie Brandon Boston Jr. erupted for a career-high 46 points Monday on assignment with the Agua Caliente Clippers during a win in the NBA G League at Staples Center.

Boston went 15-of-20 from the field, including 9-of-12 from 3-point range, in 35 minutes of work during the 130-97 victory over the Salt Lake City Stars. His 46 points matched the G League season-high set on Nov. 20 by Cam Thomas of the Long Island Nets.

His nine 3-pointers were second-most in a game this season.

Boston did the majority of his work from beyond the arc but also had a couple of nice drives and finishes at the rim. He had 16 points alone in the first quarter and eventually was up to 25 by halftime as the Clippers led by as many as 35 points in the contest.

Boston has played sparingly with L.A. to begin the season, averaging just 2.9 points and one rebound in seven appearances. The contest on Monday was his sixth with Agua Caliente as the organization looks to get him some playing time with minutes at a premium in the NBA.

The 46-point outburst certainly shows what Boston is capable of doing given a larger role. He will likely remain in a development role this season but the Clippers look to have found a second-round gem in Boston moving forward.

This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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Clippers’ Brandon Boston Jr. working out with Ben Simmons, others

The Clippers rookie is among the group of NBA players working out together in Los Angeles.

With the NBA at a standstill ahead of the 2021-22 season, several notable players have been busy playing pickup games in Los Angeles with longtime trainer Chris Johnson.

Johnson often works each offseason with some of the elite players in the NBA, including LeBron James, Ben Simmons and Ja Morant among others. The group of players this year also included Los Angeles Clippers rookie Brandon Boston Jr.

Boston and Simmons are each signed to the Klutch Sports Group, and have spent much of the summer together training in L.A. Simmons often links up with several others every year, with Boston among those getting work in this summer.

Boston was the 51st overall pick in the NBA draft after averaging 11.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.3 steals last season at Kentucky. He signed a two-year contract with $2.5 million guaranteed, the most by a player selected in the 50s that wasn’t a draft-and-stash.

Certainly, the Clippers have high hopes for Boston after handing him such a large contract for a late second-round pick. He could give the team a spark off of the bench next season and it looks as though he will arrive ready to contribute.

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2021 aggregate NBA mock draft 7.0: Ranking the full class of prospects

The 2021 NBA draft is less than a week away and we finally have an idea of who is in — and who has withdrawn — from the class.

The 2021 NBA draft is less than a week away and we finally have an idea of who is in – and who has withdrawn – from the class.

In order to get a better sense of where all of the prospects stand as of right now, we compiled mock drafts from NBADraft.net, CBS Sports, Bleacher Report, Yahoo, The Athletic, The Ringer, Yahoo, NBA Big Board and USA TODAY Sports Media Group’s For The Win to see where the prospects rank at the moment.

Please note that these rankings reflect the composite score to get a feel for consensus, not our own opinion.

Since our previous update last month, some of the players with the most positive momentum include Quentin Grimes, Joe Wieskamp, Vrenz Bleijenbergh, Aaron Wiggins, Justin Champagnie, Jericho Sims, Jason Preston, Josh Primo, Neemias Queta, Trey Murphy and Bones Hyland.

Among players who ranked on our previous update who have since withdrawn from the draft include Roko Prkacin (32), Marcus Bagley (39), Terrence Shannon (48), Ariel Hukporti (50), Max Abmas (53), Johnny Juzang (54), Jordan Hall (66), Carlos Alocen (69) and Ochai Agbaji (75).

The most notable omissions who remain in this class but not these rankings are Yves Pons, Scottie Lewis, Jay Huff, Marcus Zegarowski, Aamir Simms, Dalano Banton, Matt Mitchell, Jose Alvarado, Carlik Jones, Derrick Alston Jr., Romeo Weems, Balsa Koprivica, Chaundee Brown, Isaiah Miller, Jordan Schakel and D.J. Carton.

Note that for the offensive roles, we borrowed a fun idea from Todd Whitehead (formerly of Nylon Calculus) with help from our friends at Bball-Index.com to create a slightly tweaked formula from the version they use.

The goal of that is not to explain how well a player scores but rather offer context for the way that he was used on his most recent team. This should help you predict how he might be used at the next level.

Meanwhile, you can learn the latest updates on every single prospect who has been included in recent mock drafts by scrolling below.

HoopsHype’s Alberto de Roa contributed research to this report

New cohort of projected prospects to the Celtics arrive with Early Entry deadline passage

With the Early Entry eligibility deadline passed, a new crop of mocks projecting players for Boston’s No. 45 pick have come out.

With the passing of the 2021 NBA draft’s deadline for Early Entry prospects to pull out of the coming annual event and still retain their NCAA eligibility on July 7, a clearer picture of who will be taken where begins to come into focus.

Particularly later in the second round where the Boston Celtics will potentially make their only current selection of the 2021 draft, having dealt away their No. 16 overall pick in the deal moving on from starting point guard Kemba Walker. And with that clarity comes a crop of new mock drafts with a new group of players one of whom may well end up in a Celtics uniform on opening day next season.

Let’s take a look at the field of projected candidates for Boston’s No. 45 pick.

Draft stock watch: Davion Mitchell, Josh Giddey, BJ Boston and more

With the NBA draft lottery and combine less than two weeks out, we can reflect on the biggest risers and fallers in this draft class so far.

With the NBA draft lottery and combine less than two weeks out, we can reflect on the biggest risers and fallers in this draft class so far.

Our aggregate mock drafts track where each draft prospect ranks across trusted mock drafts. As we face the calm before the storm, these rankings help us track all of the progress and regression each player faced during this past season.

Preseason rankings are here and the latest update, our fifth edition, is here.

Much like our ongoing free agency series at HoopsHype, we will continue to update with new posts about whose draft stock has gone up – and down – the most as we get closer to the big night.