In today’s NBA news, Glen “Big Baby” Davis will be forced to miss training camp due to a foot injury, and the New York Knicks hire a new general manager.
Big Baby to be sidelined
According to the Orlando Sentinel Magic forward Glen Davis will be forced to miss the entire preseason and possibly the start of the regular season as he recovers from foot surgery.
Davis, 27, is coming off his best season as a pro last year, as he averaged 15 points and seven rebounds per night while being limited to just 34 games due to injury.
When he does return, he will have to battle for minutes at the four spot, with third-year forward Andrew Nicholson, former Milwaukee Buck Tobias Harris, and newly acquired big man Jason Maxiell.
Davis, who is Orlando’s best defender, was acquired via trade from the Celtics in 2011.
His young Magic squad will most likely finish at the bottom of the Eastern Conference this year, as the pieces simply aren’t in place yet.
To read more about how Orlando will fare this season, check out our season preview.
Knicks hire new general manager
The Knicks have a new head man. According to Newsday, Glen Grunwald is out as GM, and will be replaced by long time MSG worker Steve Mills. It is said that Grunwald, who had been executive vice president, will stay on as “an advisor.”
Mills, who is a native New Yorker, spent a decade working for the Garden, while also working in the NBA office for 16 years. He most recently worked as the partner and CEO of Athletes & Entertainers Wealth Management Group.
When asked about being hired by NY, Mills had this to say:
“I want to thank Jim for this opportunity to return to the Knicks in this important position, “It is an honor and a privilege to work for such a storied franchise and I look forward to doing whatever it takes to make the Knicks a successful
franchise and a team that fans can be proud of, both now and in the future.”
Mills will have two key questions hanging over him at the end of this season. Head coach Mike Woodson’s contract isn’t guaranteed after this year, and superstar Carmelo Anthony is eligible to opt out of his current deal (which he will, and then take a five-year extension). Also, what will happen with LeBron James? We will find out the answers to all these questions next summer.
As for this season, the Knicks will have a lot of new faces. They first traded for former number one overall pick, Andrea Bargnani from the Raptors, while also signing free-agents Metta World Peace and Beno Udrih. New York will most likely finish the year as a top-five seed in the East.
To read our Knicks season preview click here.
And to have a look at Grunwald’s body of work, click over to Sheridan’s column on that subject.