NBA Rumors and News for November 1, 2013

Friday, November 1

Daily Trivia: Which mascot was introduced in 2002 as the Portland Trail Blazers mascot? Answer below.

Magic lose Solomon Jones to knee injury
Posted at 01:58 PM ET
Orlando Magic forward/center Solomon Jones has suffered a torn lateral meniscus in his left knee, General Manager Rob Hennigan announced today. Jones will undergo surgery and will be out indefinitely. He suffered the injury during Orlando’s overtime loss on Oct. 30 while playing the Timberwolves in Minnesota. The Magic are running low on players at the power forward postion. Tobias Harris is nursing an ankle injury and is expected to return to the lineup soon. Glen Davis is also out, he’s recovering from a fractured left foot. Davis is scheduled to begin contact drills at practice in about one week. Jones had four points and eight rebounds in the game. He also appeared in seven preseason outings, averaging 4.6 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 1.29 steals per game. He was was signed as a free agent on Sept. 27.

Gordon Hayward and Eric Bledsoe come up empty on extension deadline
Posted at 11:01 AM ET
Utah Jazz swingman Gordon Hayward and Phoenix Suns guard Eric Bledsoe, two players widely considered strong contenders to receive contract extensions before Thursday’s 11:59 p.m. ET deadline, did not get new deals before the buzzer sounded and will become restricted free agents in July, writes Marc Stein of ESPN. It’s been reported that Hayward and the Jazz were just about to finalized a four-year extension, but talks fell through on the last day. Suns general manager Ryan McDonough also said publicly last week that he was hopeful of striking a deal with Bledsoe’s camp before the deadline. But Phoenix, like Utah, decided to take a gamble and will let Bledsoe hit free agency.