Lakers have signed two players to Exhibit 10 contracts

The Lakers have brought in two young prospects several weeks ahead of training camp.

With about a month and a half to go before the start of training camps across the NBA, the league is in its annual dead period, but that doesn’t mean nothing is happening behind the scenes.

Teams will have to bring in enough players to make for enough competition during camp while giving some underdog-type players and reclamation projects a chance to make their final rosters.

The Los Angeles Lakers announced on Wednesday that they signed Kylor Kelley and Quincy Olivari, and both were reportedly signed to Exhibit 10 deals. Both players originally went undrafted — Kelley was undrafted in 2020, while Olivari went undrafted a year ago.

Kelley stands seven feet tall and weighs 215 pounds, and he has spent the last few years with three different G League teams. In 29 games with the Maine Celtics this past season, he averaged 8.4 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.9 blocked shots in 22.0 minutes per game.

While at Oregon State University, he was named to the Pac-12 All-Defensive Team in back-to-back seasons.

Olivari was on the Lakers’ summer league team last month, and in both the California Classic and the main Las Vegas summer league, he put up 5.8 points and 1.8 rebounds in 14.9 minutes per game on 28.6% field-goal shooting and 26.7% from 3-point range. He scored 20 points in their final summer league contest, which was a 107-81 win over the Chicago Bulls.

Lakers end summer league with third straight win

Although the Lakers won’t be playing for the summer league championship, they did end their trip to Las Vegas on a positive note.

Because of their 2-2 record in the Las Vegas summer league at the end of this week, the Los Angeles Lakers were scheduled for one more game: a “consolation” game on Saturday versus the Chicago Bulls.

Their coaching staff decided to sit out Bronny James, Dalton Knecht and Maxwell Lewis, arguably their three best players, which may have led one to think they would lose this final contest.

Instead, Los Angeles came out red hot, going 12-of-18 from the field while hitting all seven of its 3-point attempts in the first quarter as it took a 39-18 lead. Although it cooled off considerably over the next two quarters, it still ended the game with a 107-81 victory.

A number of unsung heroes played well for the Lakers and made this win possible.

Guard Blake Hinson started the day in excellent fashion, scoring 21 points in the first half thanks to some very hot outside shooting. Although he went cold in the second half, he still had 25 points in 26 minutes.

Quincy Olivari, a guard from Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio, ripped the nets for 20 points while going 6-of-13 from downtown. Grayson Murphy, a 6-foot-3 guard who went undrafted in 2022 out of Belmont University, registered 11 rebounds and 10 assists.

Center Moses Brown once again did some admirable work on the boards. He finished with 10 points, eight rebounds and two blocked shots in 15 minutes.

Texas hoops stifles panic meter with positive transfer portal news

The ‘Horns are in serious contention for big time portal players.

It’s been a wild last few days on the Forty Acres. The suspense surprisingly isn’t coming from Texas football. Continue reading “Texas hoops stifles panic meter with positive transfer portal news”

Texas Basketball: Longhorns in the mix for two top transfer targets

Texas is among the top schools for two transfer portal targets. 

Texas basketball is among the top schools for two transfer portal targets.

Virginia center Kadin Shedrick has Texas in his top five schools, along with Duke, Kansas State, Missouri and Xavier. Rice point guard Quincy Olivari also named Texas as a finalist, with Auburn, Xavier and Miami in the running.

Shedrick played in 30 games for Virginia this past season, averaging 6.2 points and 3.8 rebounds per game. The 6-foot-11 forward is fresh off a trip to Duke and is expected to visit Texas on April 18.

Olivari is an experienced guard with four seasons of college basketball under his belt. The Rice transfer is one of the top scoring threats in the portal, averaging 18.9 points per game.

Guard is a significant position of need entering the offseason. Texas lost Marcus Carr and Sir’Jabari Rice to graduation and awaits the status of Tyrese Hunter testing draft waters. Olivari fits the bill of what the Longhorns are looking for in its backcourt.

Rodney Terry is looking to capitalize off the momentum from this season and rebuild a roster ready to compete for a national title. Shedrick and Olivari are two players Terry believes can help the Longhorns in a significant way.

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Report: Texas basketball reaches out to Rice transfer Quincy Olivari

Quincy Olivari is one of the more sought-after transfers in the portal so far.

Texas basketball has reportedly reached out to Rice transfer Quincy Olivari. Continue reading “Report: Texas basketball reaches out to Rice transfer Quincy Olivari”

Musselman, Hogs touch base with player who scored almost 19 a game last year

Eric Musselman will almost certainly need to rebuild his backcourt for Arkansas.

With the expected losses of Nick Smith Jr. and Anthony Black from the Arkansas backcourt, coach Eric Musselman is seeking a rebuild.

On Monday, former Rice guard Quincy Olivari said he was in contact with the Razorbacks, with Fayetteville being a potential destination via the transfer portal.

Olivari averaged 18.1 points and 5.9 rebounds last year for the Owls. As of Monday afternoon, the 6-foot-3 guard, a rising graduate player, had planned to also talk with Indiana, Cincinnati and Auburn in the coming days.

Smith and Black just finished their freshman seasons, but both are likely to be NBA lottery picks. Neither has announced a decision about his plans next year.

Musselman brought in five players from the transfer portal last offseason and six players the year before that. Arkansas does not currently have enough places on its roster for such a number again, even taking into consideration the loss of Kamani Johnson and potential losses of Smith and Black. However, some players on the roster right now are likely to head to the portal, themselves, though nothing has been announced.

Regardless, given the time of year and Musselman’s propensity for using the portal, expecte plenty of chatter in the next month or so about the shakeup of the Arkansas basketball roster for 2023-24.

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