Tag: Chris Clemons

Report: Celtics waive Theo Pinson, Garrison Mathews, and Chris Clemons: two way slot remains unfilled

Boston has left its last two way slot open – could they have a target in mind?

The Boston Celtics are nearing what their 2021-22 NBA regular season roster will look like after The Athletic’s Jared Weiss reports that the Celtics are waiving guards Theo Pinson, Garrison Mathews, and Chris Clemons.

Per Weiss, Mathews — whose cutting is something of a surprise given the team’s need for shooting and his two way eligibility — will become a free agent, while Pinson and Clemons will join the (Portland) Maine Celtics, Boston’s developmental affiliate in the G League, as affiliate players. Luke Kornet, Ryan Arcidiacono, and Juwan Morgan will join them in that role with the Maine Celtics according to The Athletic NBA insider.

Jabari Parker and Bruno Fernando will reportedly remain with the team for the time being.

Celtics reportedly waive Ryan Arcidiacono, Juwan Morgan; sign Chris Clemons to exhibit-10 deal

The team inches closer to its 2021-22 regular-season roster.

The Boston Celtics are waiving camp invitees Ryan Arcidiacono and Juwan Morgan according to The Athletic’s Jay King. It seems probable that Morgan will end up with the Maine Red Claws as an affiliate player, while Arcidiacono’s future is less clear given he has no two way eligibility remaining.

The Athletic’s Jared Weiss reported Thursday evening that point guard Chris Clemons was signed by the team to an exhibit-10 deal, which is usually done to retain affiliate rights to a player in the G League (Tacko Fall is a rare example of such a player making the team as a two way player from such a deal) as the team inches closer to finalizing its 2021-22 regular-season roster.

Clemons had seen his previous two way deal with the Houston Rockets converted to a full NBA contract in 2019-20 before tearing his Achilles tendon.

The team now stands at 19 regular, two way or camp deals, and will need to slim down by two more players to make it to the regular-season limit of 17 total players counting two way players.

It seems likely that Boston will at least consider one of Theo Pinson and Garrison Mathews for its remaining two way slot, with veteran forward Jabari Parker’s prospects looking brighter after having survived this round of cuts.

This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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Five months after Achilles tear, Chris Clemons is already dunking again

In the same building where Clemons tore his Achilles in December 2020, the second-year NBA guard is already throwing down dunks again.

Only five months after suffering an Achilles tear during the 2020-21 preseason, former Rockets guard Chris Clemons is already dunking again. The 5-foot-9 guard, known best for explosive athleticism and scoring bursts despite his small size, shared the video on his Instagram.

In Monday’s video, the 23-year-old can be seen dunking on the Toyota Center practice court. Houston teammate David Nwaba, who suffered his own Achilles tear during the previous season as a member of the Brooklyn Nets, responded to Clemons with one word: “How?!!”

The basketball future of the second-year guard isn’t yet clear. Clemons was waived by the Rockets in January to clear a roster spot for Kevin Porter Jr. and isn’t under contract anywhere, at the moment. Moreover, as impressive as the dunking display is, the upcoming NBA Summer League in August is likely too soon for him to return to game action, since that would be less than eight months from when he suffered the injury.

Nonetheless, Clemons is showing that he could be ready to compete for a roster spot when 2021-22 training camps open in late September or early October. During his rookie season (2019-20) in Houston, Clemons scored 4.9 points (34.6% on 3-pointers) in 8.8 minutes per game. At the G League level with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, he averaged an impressive line of 24.1 points, 5.9 assists, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.9 steals.

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Wherever and whenever his next opportunity comes, it certainly can’t hurt that he has two former teammates in Nwaba and John Wall who have successfully navigated the Achilles rehabilitation process, themselves. Both said following Clemons’ injury last December that they would be available to the young guard as a resource throughout his recovery, which appears to be going faster than anyone could have imagined.

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Rockets waiving Gerald Green, likely due to Chris Clemons injury

As feared, the season-ending injury to Clemons — which guarantees his 2020-21 salary — will cost Green a roster spot due to the hard cap.

As many had feared, the season-ending Achilles injury to second-year guard Chris Clemons will likely cost veteran guard Gerald Green a roster spot, at least for the time being. News of the team’s plan to waive Green was first reported by the Houston Chronicle’s Jonathan Feigen.

The Rockets are subject to a hard salary cap after the offseason sign-and-trade acquisition of Christian Wood, and the season-ending injury to Clemons caused his contract to become fully guaranteed. As a result, it then became very difficult to fit in a contract for Green — who was signed just prior to training camp — beneath the hard cap.

While Green played well in limited preseason minutes, he was a strong release candidate due to Houston’s abundance of veteran wing depth off the bench (Ben McLemore, David Nwaba, and Sterling Brown).

A native Houstonian, the 35-year-old Green could be a strong candidate to return to the team later in the season, once the pro-rated amount of a minimum salary becomes low enough to fit under the hard cap. However, it’s certainly possible that Green played well enough in the preseason to receive a contract from another team before Houston is able to offer one.

In two exhibitions, Green averaged 11.5 points (50.0% on 3-pointers) and 4.0 rebounds in 13.7 minutes per game off the bench.

Green could be brought back sooner if a trade to clear salary is made, such as a blockbuster involving disgruntled All-Star guard James Harden. As of Saturday, however, nothing appeared imminent on that front.

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Rockets expect to lose Chris Clemons for season to torn Achilles

The loss of Clemons could be even more costly, since the Rockets have a hard salary cap and may not be able to replace that roster spot.

Second-year guard Chris Clemons is expected to miss the entire 2020-21 NBA season due to a torn right Achilles tendon suffered in Tuesday’s exhibition versus San Antonio, per Shams Charania of The Athletic.

The Rockets are thin at point guard behind starter John Wall, and the loss of Clemons could force Houston to look elsewhere to fill that role.

Yet, the prospect of further roster additions is now more complicated, since the Rockets are likely on the hook for Clemons’ full $1.5-million salary — assuming it is deemed a long-term injury. Per ESPN’s Bobby Marks, the Rockets are only about $1 million below their hard salary cap, which was triggered by the sign-and-trade acquisition of Christian Wood.

Clemons’ salary for the 2020-21 season had yet to be guaranteed.

Clemons had just made a 3-pointer before his foot appeared to give out on him on the defensive end. He was immediately taken off in a wheelchair, indicating that the Rockets knew it was a severe injury.

Per Charania, the 5-foot-9 guard will have an MRI on Wednesday morning to confirm the extent of the injury.

“Really unfortunate,” head coach Stephen Silas said postgame. Silas said he did not yet have an official update on the injury.

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Rockets begin reporting to Toyota Center for COVID-19 tests, workouts

Danuel House Jr., David Nwaba, Ben McLemore, P.J. Tucker, and Chris Clemons are taking part, per Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle.

Danuel House Jr., David Nwaba, Ben McLemore, P.J. Tucker, and Chris Clemons are among the Rockets’ players that have begun limited workouts at Toyota Center as they begin preparing for the 2020-21 NBA season, per Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle.

Per Feigen, players have been working out at the arena for a maximum of four days per week. There are temperature checks in the loading dock parking area, followed by symptom checks and a daily COVID-19 test.

The team believes this is a safer alternative to the pickup games and workouts that players typically take part in before reporting to training camp, which begins on Tuesday, Dec. 1 for the upcoming season.

For the time being, activities are fairly limited. Feigen writes:

The first week limited workouts to one player per coach. This week, two players could share a halfcourt with one coach along with two more players in the weight room.

Veterans such as James Harden, Russell Westbrook, and Eric Gordon have yet to take part in workouts at Toyota Center, since many of these players have offseason homes outside of the Houston area. All are expected to return closer to the Dec. 1 start date for training camp.

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Eight players on Rockets to wear social justice messages on jerseys

Houston will have eight players wearing social justice jerseys, led by Russell Westbrook and Robert Covington with “Black Lives Matter.”

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Earlier this month, the NBA and National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) agreed on social justice messages that can be displayed on the back of jerseys, similar to the usual placement of a player’s last name.

The idea is to use the platform and large television audience of the league’s looming restart to help promote the growing U.S. social justice movement, which picked up steam after George Floyd’s death in late May.

Because messages were limited to only approved options, some players are choosing not to use the option. For example, reserve guard Austin Rivers of the Houston Rockets wanted to use his jersey to honor Trayvon Martin, but the approved list does not offer that possibility.

Per NBA.com, here are the eight members of the Rockets who will wear an approved social justice message on their jersey:

Robert Covington | Black Lives Matter
Russell Westbrook | Black Lives Matter
Michael Frazier | Equality
Eric Gordon | Equality
Luc Mbah a Moute | Justice
Bruno Caboclo | Justice Now
Chris Clemons | Justice Now
Jeff Green | Vote

Players who are not listed will simply have their last name at its usual nameplate spot on the back of their jersey. For those players wanting to express a different message, the NBPA recently announced a plan to partner with Westbrook’s clothing line to design social justice shirts, which include additional statement options. These can be worn around the league’s Disney World campus, as well as before and/or after games.

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As for the revised jerseys, they will be worn by the Rockets in the 2019-20 regular season and playoffs, beginning with Friday’s first game of the restart against Southwest Division rival Dallas. Tip-off from the NBA “bubble” in Florida is set for 8:00 p.m. Central, with the game broadcast regionally on AT&T SportsNet Southwest and nationally on ESPN.

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Chris Clemons flirted with a triple-double Friday in the G League

The Rockets rookie finished a perfect 5-of-5 from 3-point range on assignment in the G League with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.

Houston Rockets rookie Chris Clemons scored 25 points on assignment Friday night in the G League with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers during a 130-128 loss to the Santa Cruz Warriors.

The undrafted guard finished by shooting 9-of-12 from the field, including a perfect 5-of-5 from 3-point range in the loss. He also dished out a career-high nine assists and seven rebounds, nearly recording his first professional triple-double.

Clemons showed off his deep range throughout the contest, often pulling up from well behind the 3-point line. He used his quickness and agility to drive to the basket and initiate offense for the Vipers.

Clemons has 11 appearances this season with the Vipers after spending much of the season in the NBA with the Rockets.

The former Campbell guard is averaging 24.3 points, 5.3 assists and 3.3 rebounds with the Vipers while shooting 39.6% from the field. He recorded a career-high 40 points on Jan. 5 against the Austin Spurs.

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Campbell retired the jersey of Chris Clemons over the All-Star break

Clemons left Campbell University as the all-time leading scorer in program history with 3,225 career points.

Houston Rockets rookie Chris Clemons had his No. 3 jersey retired by Campbell University over the All-Star break as the undrafted guard became the first player from the university to suit up in the NBA since 1968.

After four years, Clemons left as the all-time leading scorer in program history as his 3,225 career points rank third in NCAA Division I history. He led the NCAA in scoring last year after averaging 30.1 points per game for the Fighting Camels.

He is one of only 10 players in history to reach 3,000 career points.

Clemons joined the Rockets in Summer League and quickly made his mark. He averaged 20.8 points in five games while he shot 42.1% from 3-point range. Clemons signed a two-way contract after Summer League and eventually earned a standard NBA deal in December.

Clemons is averaging five points in 28 appearances with the Rockers this season. He has scored in double figures six times this season and recorded a career-high 19 points on Nov. 16 against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

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Campbell University retires jersey of Rockets rookie Chris Clemons

With the Rockets on their All-Star break, rookie guard Chris Clemons was honored by his alma mater with a jersey retirement ceremony.

With Houston on its All-Star break, Rockets guard Chris Clemons had his jersey retired to the rafters by his alma mater, Campbell University.

Located in Buies Creek, North Carolina, the Fighting Camels honored Clemons with a #ChrisClemonsDay celebration, leading up to his jersey retirement to the arena rafters during a home basketball game.

The 5-foot-9 Clemons was the NCAA’s top scorer in the 2018-19 season at 30.1 points per game and is the third-highest scorer in D1 college basketball history. According to Basketball-Reference, Clemons’ offensive win shares (6.1) ranked second-best among all college players last season, while his player efficiency rating (33.0) was top 10 in the country.

Yet, primarily due to his small frame, Clemons was not selected by any team in the 2019 NBA Draft. The Rockets picked him up as an undrafted free agent and he quickly turned heads, averaging a team-best 20.8 points per game in Summer League, including 43.1% on 3-pointers.

“He’s really winning over the veterans,” Rockets GM Daryl Morey said of Clemons last offseason. “He’s got a skill that is already NBA ready in terms of shooting. His attacking the basket is actually very good as well.”

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From there, Clemons got an invite to training camp, and he was successful enough in that setting to earn a Two-Way contract. By late December, with the NBA service days on that deal running out, the Rockets signed the 22-year-old rookie to a standard contract for up to three years.

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In 28 appearances with the Rockets, Clemons is averaging 5.0 points in 8.8 minutes per game. When guards Russell Westbrook and Eric Gordon were each out on Nov. 16 in Minnesota, Clemons scored a career-high 19 points on 7-of-11 shooting (63.6%) — including 5-of-9 (55.6%) on 3-pointers — to help lead Houston to a key win.

In seven games this season with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, which serve as Houston’s G League affiliate, Clemons is averaging 24.6 points, 4.4 assists, and 2.4 steals in 32.3 minutes per game.

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