Warriors claim Jeff Dowtin off waivers, convert to two-way contract

Dowtin averaged 4.7 points and 1.3 assists in three preseason appearances with the Magic prior to being waived on Saturday.

On Monday, the Golden State Warriors announced that they have claimed guard Jeff Dowtin off of the waiver wire and converted him to a two-way contract.

The news was first reported by Anthony Slater of The Athletic.

Dowtin was waived by the Magic on Saturday after spending training camp in Orlando. He averaged 4.7 points and 1.3 assists in three appearances, with his best game coming on Oct. 13 when he produced 10 points, including the game-winning shot over the Boston Celtics.

He also played with the Magic during the Las Vegas Summer League and the Warriors in the California Classic. He averaged 17 points, four assists and 3.5 rebounds with Golden State.

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Dowtin will now split his time this season between Golden State and Santa Cruz in the NBA G League. He will have the opportunity to develop with Santa Cruz while gaining some NBA experience throughout the season with Golden State.

Players this season signed to two-way contracts are eligible to spend no more than 50 games in the NBA. They will earn a flat salary equal to 50% of the minimum salary applicable to a player with zero years of service.

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

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Warriors claim guard Jeff Dowtin off waivers, convert to final two-way contract spot

The Golden State Warriors filled their final two-way contract spot after claiming guard Jeff Dowtin off waivers.

Before the start of the regular season, the Golden State Warriors had an opening with one of their two-way contract slots for the 2021-22 NBA campaign.

On Monday, the Warriors filled that spot when they claimed Jeff Dowtin off of waivers. After being awarded Dowtin off waivers, the Warriors converted his contract to a two-way deal.

Dowtin spent the 2021 preseason with the Orlando Magic, averaging 4.7 points on 41.2% shooting from the floor with 1.3 assists and 0.7 rebounds in 8.7 minutes per contest.

Via @WarriorsPR on Twitter:

After going undrafted out of Rhode Island in 2020, Dowtin played for the Lakeland Magic in the G League.

During the 2021 offseason, the 24-year-old guard joined the Warriors for the California Classic Summer League in Sacramento. In two games, Dowtin averaged 17 points on 65% shooting from the floor with four assists and 3.5 boards per contest.

Dowtin will now join fellow guard Chris Chiozza on Golden State’s two-way contracts for the 2021-22 NBA season. Chiozza and Dowtin will be able to be active for 50 games with the Warriors during the season.

Golden State will open the season on Tuesday night against the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center.

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

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‘It was surreal’: Magic ecstatic for Jeff Dowtin after game-winner

Dowtin was mobbed by his teammates and doused in water on Wednesday after hitting the game-winning shot over the Celtics.

ORLANDO, Fla. — Jeff Dowtin spent time in the gym on Wednesday practicing shots. The shots would be off one foot, off two feet after penetrating into the paint.

It was the same exact shot that he would later hit to send the Orlando Magic to a last-second win over the Boston Celtics.

With the Magic trailing by one point, and less than seven seconds left, Dowtin led his team down the court. He once again penetrated into the paint, took a dribble to his right and stopped. He made a move, pulled up and drained the 16-foot turnaround shot with 0.2 seconds left.

The shot sent the Magic to a 103-102 win to close out the preseason.

“It was surreal, man,” Dowtin said. “I’m still drenched right now. They threw ice water on me and a bunch of water on me. It just goes to show the great group of guys we have, the family atmosphere we have. That is the type of locker room you want to be a part of. Wins or losses, that team, we’re always together.”

The shot by Dowtin was possible by countless hours in the gym.

Dowtin spent last season with the Lakeland Magic, helping the organization claim the NBA G League championship. He played with Orlando in the Las Vegas Summer League and stayed on with the team throughout training camp.

The game versus the Celtics was his best of the preseason, finishing with 10 points. He previously logged just 11 total minutes in two games, while he sat out another game altogether.

Despite sporadic playing time, Dowtin stayed ready for his opportunity.

“He has put in so much work,” Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley said. “He hadn’t played a lot of minutes. He played in a couple of early games in the preseason and your hat goes off to guys like that who continue to put the work in. He never changed the way he has worked.

“I’m just so excited for him and those guys in that locker room were so excited for him, as well.”

Dowtin was stopped by every player on the roster when the final buzzer sounded, and he was doused in water once he reached the locker room. The team saw him put in the work every day, and were ecstatic for him when he drained that shot.

Said R.J. Hampton:

I felt great for Jeff. I’ve seen Jeff put in the work throughout summer league, preseason and training camp. He deserves it as much as anyone on this team. I had the utmost confidence in him when I saw him with that ball in those last few seconds. I knew that was good when it left his hands.

The shot likely caps off a strong run by Dowtin with the Magic during the preseason.

He signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Magic and will likely re-join Lakeland in the coming days but will do so with plenty of fans inside and outside of the organization after Wednesday night.

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

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Everything to know about NBA G League pre-draft evaluation process

Rookie Wire obtained every detail possible about the NBA G League pre-draft evaluation process, including all of the known invitations sent.

Rookie Wire obtained every detail possible about the NBA G League pre-draft evaluation process, including all of the known invitations sent.

Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, many draft-eligible prospects not invited to the NBA combine have had trouble getting all of their information to team-decision makers in advance of the 2020 NBA Draft. To combat this, the NBA G League is offering a greater opportunity to be evaluated by team decision-makers.

This information included below was shared with USA TODAY Sports Media Group’s Rookie Wire on the condition of anonymity because the person who shared the details was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.

While the G League Elite Camp was canceled this year, a “select number” of participants were given the chance to share virtual evaluations through both shooting drills and an NBA pro day.

Prospects who agreed to participate will use HomeCourt, a mobile basketball training application, to record on-court workouts. The results will be shared with NBA team staffers through the app.

Players were encouraged to have two staffers with them in the gym to assist with the process. The coaches and trainers were required to wear a face mask and gloves during the workout.

NBA Evaluation: 8 Shooting Drills (based on previous editions of the Draft Combine)

  • Warm-Up/free-throws (50 shots)
  • Spot-Up shooting (50 shots)
  • Shooting off dribble/pull-up jumpers (30 shots)
  • Mid-Range/off the catch (20 shots)
  • 3-point drill /3-pointers off the catch (20 shots)
  • Side-mid-side/3-point jumpers on the move (2 minutes)
  • 3-point endurance/catch-and-shoot at game speed (5 minutes)
  • Cool down/free-throws (50 shots)

Each shooting drill can be completed a max of three times. Only the best score is uploaded into the NBA Player Evaluation platform for all NBA teams to access the data and video.

This is how the results look, as obtained by Babcock Hoops’ Derek Murray:

NBA Pro Day: 45-Minute Open Workout

  • This workout allows the draft prospect to share the unique
    aspects of his game through a 45-minute open workout.
  • Players are prohibited from partaking in live competition against any other draft-eligible and/or other players, including: informal scrimmages, pick-up games (e.g., 2-on-2), defensive drills (e.g., pick-and-roll coverage, post defense, etc.), offensive drills (e.g., Pick-and-Roll / Pop situations)
  • Pro Day must be a half-court workout.
  • Pro Day is an open workout for up to 45 minutes. If a player does NOT use the full 45 minutes, that is OK.
  • Must be completed on the same date as shooting drills. The player is allowed a 10-minute break in between.

KNOWN INVITATIONS

USA TODAY Sports Media Group’s Rookie Wire was able to obtain a list of prospects invited to participate in this process. Note that others may have been included as well, though these were the names we can confirm at this time. 

Tres Tinkle, Oregon State

Malik Fitts, Saint Mary’s

Trevelin Queen, New Mexico State

Freddie Gillespie, Baylor

Jordan Ford, Saint Mary’s

Rayshaun Hammonds, Georgia

Jon Teske, Michigan

Emmitt Williams, LSU

Anthony Lamb, Vermont

Austin Wiley, Auburn

Isiaha Mike, SMU

Nate Darling, Delaware

Kamar Baldwin, Butler

Caleb Homesley, Liberty

Anthony Cowan, Maryland

Dwayne Sutton, Louisville

Steven Enoch, Louisville

Osasumwen Osaghae, Florida International

Kylor Kelley, Oregon State

John Mooney, Notre Dame

Xavier Sneed, Kansas State

EJ Montgomery, Kentucky

Quinton Rose, Temple

Jordan Bowden, Tennessee

Jake Toolson, BYU

Samir Doughty, Auburn

Terry Armstrong, South East Melbourne

Eli Pemberton, Hofstra

Kouat Noi, Cairns

Sacar Anim, Marquette

Jeff Dowtin, Rhode Island

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