Gregg Popovich was the coach nobody wanted.It's hard to fathom now, after five NBA championships as coach of the San Antonio Spurs and with him now alone in fifth place on the league's all-time victory list. But it's true — Popovich's decision to fire Bob Hill and make himself coach and general manager in December 1996 was horribly received at first, leaving even some of his own players baffled.The San Antonio Express-News took a poll after that season and found that 92 percent of Spurs fans wanted Popovich fired.As Popovich would suggest now (on politics, one of his favorite topics), sometimes voters get it wrong."The pressure is always there for any coach," Popovich said. "You've got to get the job done. If you don't, you're not there. If you do get it done, you get to stay."He said those words in 1997. He was right.Popovich now has 1,176 wins. He's 34 away from No. 4 Pat Riley, 45 shy of No. 3 Jerry Sloan, and should catch both next season. He would need 156 to catch No. 2 Lenny Wilkens,... [More]

Former college basketball star Jimmer Fredette, who has struggled to make an impact in the NBA, will reportedly play in China this season.Fredette is preparing to sign with the Shanghai Sharks, who are owned by former NBA standout Yao Ming. The Sharks play in the Chinese Basketball Association.Fredette had a standout college career at Brigham Young and was selected 10th in the 2011 NBA draft. But he didn't pan out during 2 1/2 seasons with the Sacramento Kings and has also played for the Chicago Bulls, New Orleans Pelicans and New York Knicks.Fredette is averaging 6.0 points in 235 career NBA games.

G Jimmer Fredette won't get another 10-day contract from the Knicks, according to multiple reports.Fredette's initial 10-day contract was set to expire Wednesday. He was called up from the Westchester Knicks of the NBA Development League on Feb. 22. Fredette, 27, played in two games during his 10-day contract with the Knicks for a total of five minutes, and he scored seven points.

The New York Knicks don't plan to re-sign guard Jimmer Fredette to another 10-day contract, according to multiple reports Wednesday.Fredette's initial 10-day contract was set to expire Wednesday. He was called up from the Westchester Knicks of the NBA Development League on Feb. 22.Fredette, 27, played in two games during his 10-day contract with the Knicks for a total of five minutes and seven points.Fredette was the No. 10 pick in the 2011 NBA draft after leading the nation with 28.9 points per game at BYU. He spent 2 1/2 seasons with the Sacramento Kings before finishing the 2013-14 campaign with the Chicago Bulls. Fredette played in 50 games with New Orleans last season and was with the Pelicans for four games earlier this season.The 6-foot-2, 195-pound Fredette holds NBA career averages of 6.0 points, 1.4 assists and 1.0 rebounds in 235 games (seven starts) over five seasons with Sacramento, Chicago, New Orleans and the Knicks.Sources told ESPN.com that Fredette is expected to return... [More]

G Jimmer Fredette's first 10-day contract with the Knicks expires Thursday. If he is not re-signed, available free agent guards include Tony Wroten and Ray McCallum. Wroten was released by the Philadelphia 76ers in December and McCallum was waived Monday by the San Antonio Spurs.

G Jimmer Fredette was signed to a 10-day contract from the NBA Development League's Westchester Knicks. He is the 18th D-League player called up this season and the third by the Knicks over the past two seasons. He scored on a 3-pointer, his only shot in 1:49 of fourth-quarter action Monday.

G Jimmer Fredette was signed to a 10-day contract by the Knicks from the NBA's D-League Westchester Knicks. Knicks interim coach Kurt Rambis said before the game there is no immediate plan to get him minutes.

The New York Knicks are preparing to sign guard Jimmer Fredette to a 10-day contract, according to published reports.New York currently has a roster opening and Fredette will reportedly be signed next week.Fredette is averaging 22.3 points and 4.8 assists for the Westchester Knicks, which is New York's D-League squad. He was named MVP of the D-League All-Star Game last Saturday when he scored 35 points.Fredette, a former college star at BYU, has averaged just 6.1 points in 229 NBA games over parts of five seasons.He was a first-round draft pick of Sacramento in 2011 and spent 2 1/2 seasons with the Kings before finishing the 2013-14 campaign with the Chicago Bulls. Fredette played 50 games with the New Orleans Pelicans last season and was with the Pelicans for four games earlier this season.

G Jimmer Fredette was signed by the Pelicans on Tuesday. A lottery pick in the 2011 NBA Draft, Fredette played 50 games with the Pelicans last season, averaging 3.6 points per game. He played two game two preseason games with the San Antonio Spurs earlier this year. Coach Alvin Gentry said he is hopeful Fredette will added a much-needed outside threat.

The injury-ravaged New Orleans Pelicans signed guard Jimmer Fredette on Tuesday.The Pelicans received an injury hardship exception from the NBA to add a 16th player to their roster. According to reports, Fredette's contract is not guaranteed.Fredette, the 10th overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft by the Sacramento Kings, has bounced around the league to four teams in four seasons. He was waived Oct. 21 by the San Antonio Spurs.In late October, Fredette was made the No. 2 overall pick the NBA Developmental League draft by the Westchester Knicks. The team will retain Fredette's rights during his NBA stint with the Pelicans.In 229 career NBA games, Fredette has averaged 6.1 points.

Don't count out Jimmer Fredette just yet.The former first-round pick - No. 10 overall in 2012 - has bounced around the NBA with stops in Sacramento, Chicago, New Orleans and even San Antonio, where he was cut during training camp in October.On Saturday, Fredette got another chance to rekindle a career in the NBA.The Westchester Knicks, New York's Developmental League team, selected Fredette with the No. 2 overall pick in the D-League draft.Fredette was national college player of the year while a senior at BYU when he led the nation in scoring. But that success hardly translated into Fredette being a threat in the NBA.In 229 games, he started only seven. For his career, Fredette has averaged 6.0 points and 1.4 assists in 13.7 minutes of action per game.He remains a free agent and can sign with any team despite his D-League affiliation.

Jimmer Fredette was waived by the San Antonio Spurs.Fredette, 26, was the 10th overall pick in 2011 with the Sacramento Kings and bounced from the Chicago Bulls to the New Orleans Pelicans before signing with San Antonio this summer. He was the first player released from the Spurs' training camp roster. He made 2 of 10 shot attempts with the Spurs in three preseason games.NBA rules require rosters be reduced to 15 by Monday.

Fredette is finalizing a deal to sign with the Spurs, Marc Stein of ESPN reports.

Fredette's future in the NBA was looking bleak after he once again failed to consistently be part of a rotation in his fourth NBA season, as he appeared in just 50 games for the Pelicans in 2014-15 and played just 10 minutes per game. However, it looks as if the Spurs are going to give the sharp-shooter an opportunity. There is a chance this pans out for the organization given that they lost some depth in their backcourt last season with both Cory Joseph and Marco Belinelli signing elsewhere, but the former BYU star will still likely have to prove his worth in training camp. Should Fredette's time with the team extend beyond preseason, he would be able to provide a shooting stroke off the bench that the team currently feels they lack.

Fredette, in his fourth NBA season and final under a guaranteed contract, appeared in just 50 games for the Pelicans, averaging 3.6 points and 1.2 assists over 10 minutes per game.

Fredette continues to struggle to find a role in the NBA, and it's still not looking too good for the former college hoops superstar. Through the entire 2014-15 season, Fredette was buried on a roster filled with point guards, and it appeared that New Orleans was doing everything they could to not put him on the floor. When starter Jrue Holiday went down with a leg injury, Tyreke Evans took over the starting duties, and then the team went out and acquired Norris Cole via a trade with the Heat and Toney Douglas via free agency. Both players immediately found the floor in a reserve role before Fredette. Even when Fredette did see the floor, he still did not impress, as he shot 38 percent from the field and just 18.8 percent from behind the arc, which is supposed to be his claim to fame. The former lottery pick is now a free agent heading into the offseason, and while it's likely a team takes a chance on him because of his offensive potential, Fredette is running out of time and opportunities to make an impact in this league.

Fredette played two minutes against the Lakers Wednesday night, breaking a streak of three straight DNPs.

Fredette continues to struggle to find a role in the NBA. Despite Jrue Holiday being sidelined with injury, Fredette has played double-digit minutes just five times since the All-Star break. He's behind Norris Cole and Toney Douglas for backup guard minutes.

Fredette got 11 minutes Sunday, the most he's played in the last five games.

The former BYU star has struggled to hold a spot in the Pelicans' rotation, despite the injury to Jrue Holiday. When he has played, he hasn't been the prodigious scorer he was in college, and even his 3-point shooting has been at a career-low mark. Things don't look promising for Fredette's value the rest of the season.

Fredette has now played in three straight games after three straight DNP-CDs.

Fredette hasn't hit double-digit minutes in any of those three games, but it is reassuring to see him attack and get to the linehe took five free throws Friday night. Even with Jrue Holiday out, Fredette has had his hands full fighting for minutes with Nate Wolters off the bench. However, it is not outside the realm of possibility that the former college standout leapfrogs Wolters at some point.

Fredette is in line to see a bump in reserve minutes after the impending departure of Austin Rivers, the Times-Picaune reports.

Fredette is currently averaging 10.3 minutes over 23 games for the Pelicans this season. While he certainly may see more than his current average moving forward, he's still listed behind Eric Gordon, Tyreke Evans, and John Salmons on the depth chart. As a result it would be surprising if the former BYU standout worked his way up to standard league relevancy by the end of the season, although he may serve as a viable candidate for three-point specialization in very deep leagues.

Fredette played 21 minutes Tuesday against the Suns, scoring nine points (3-7 FG, 0-2 3Pt, 3-3 FT) and adding four assists as New Orleans topped Phoenix 110-106.

Fredette hadn't played in New Orleans' previous four games, but the absence of John Salmons may have opened a spot for him to grab some minutes. Still, Fredette has very limited value in most formats and probably won't see this kind of playing time on a regular basis.

Fredette hasn't appeared in any of the Pelicans' last three games.

The former college star has struggled to get any consistent time in coach Monty Williams' rotation, sitting out the last three games and has played more than five minutes just four times this month. Fredette is going to need a lot of injuries to guys in front of him to get major minutes this year.