The Nets have announced details of the open workout for the Springfield Armor on September 22 in New Jersey and on October 21 in Springfield. Interested players should submit completed registration and release forms (available on armorhoops.com) along with a $150 non-refundable participation fee to the Armor office.
Three Springfield Armor players will be featured in the D-League All-Star Game which begins at 2 p.m. on NBA TV. Guards JamesOn Curry and Jerry Smith, along with center Jeff Foote, will participate. Also on the official roster: Andre Emmett, who just finished up a 10-day contract with the Nets. Foote is seen as the most likely of the three to be called up by the Nets. The 24-year-old seven footer has improved dramatically this season and Armor coach Bob MacKinnon has been lobbying for him.
The D-League Showcase is underway in Reno and the Springfield Armor will make the first of two appearances Monday on NBA TV at 3:45 p.m. ET vs. the Los Angeles D-Fenders. The D-Fenders feature Gerald Green and two former short-term Nets, Orien Greene, who played under a 10-day contract last season, and Brian Hamilton, who was a training camp invite in both 2008 and 2009. The Armor signed Preston Knowles, formerly of Louisville, Monday.
Marcus Hill could be the shortest player in the D-League this season at 5'6" but he's unlikely to be the least noticed. A high energy player, he's already impressed Coach Bob MacKinnon and GM Milton Lee up in Springfield. "Marcus is a great competitor, a proto-typical point guard,'' Lee said. "He has a presence, and what he lacks in height, he makes up in intangibles."
With the Nets set to take over basketball operations at the Springfield Armor on May 1, the two teams are expected to lay out plans for the connection next week. The Nets will hire a coach and assistant coach, as well as a trainer. All three will be Nets employees. As for the Armor, they're already selling Nets gear on their website.
Ben Uzoh's second D-League game will be televised on Saturday. The Springfield Armor visit the Fort Wayne Mad Ants at 7:30 p.m. ET, and the game will be televised at 11 p.m. on Versus. Uzoh scored seven points, grabbed eight rebounds and dished out six assists in Springfield's 106-105 loss to Fort Wayne on Thursday. After Saturday, he's expected to play at least two more games (in Sioux Falls) with the Armor.
Ben Uzoh played 24 minutes in his debut with the Springfield Armor, scoring seven and handing out a game-high six assists as the Armor fell, 106-105, to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants in Fort Wayne. Uzoh's next game, also vs. the Mad Ants, will be televised on Versus via a tape delay at 11 p.m. Saturday.