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Chris Herrington: Mike Miller, Tayshaun Prince, Darrell Arthur joining Rudy Gay. Beno Udrih, Jon Leuer and Quincy Pondexter among the former Marc Gasol teammates in the house. Dave Joerger also here.
Bucks release Jon Leuer
Shams Charania: Sources: The Milwaukee Bucks have waived forward Jon Leuer.
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Keith Langlois: No surprise, but Blake Griffin is ACTIVE for Game 4. Jon Leuer being inactive supports the idea that the Pistons are confident he'll play typical minutes.
Detroit Pistons big man Jon Leuer didn't see a tiebreaker as necessary, either. Harden's heroics, surrounded by a roster churned both by the acquisition and then release of 10-time All-Star Carmelo Anthony as well as a slew of injuries, was enough. Nor did he discount Harden's league-leading point production because head coach Mike D'Antoni gives him the greenest of lights to shoot. "To me, it's Harden," Leuer said. "People say his numbers are inflated because of D'Antoni's system, and he dribbles the air out of the ball, but carrying his team every night no matter who is out there, you can't go against that. The team thing does factor in, which is why Giannis has to be considered. But the knock was the Rockets were a lower seed, and now they're one of the top four in the West. I just don't see how it's not James."
James Edwards III: Kalin Lucas and Isaiah Whitehead are here in Detroit. Drummond (nasal injury) is out, Smith (adductor) is questionable, Leuer (illness) is probable.
Vincent Ellis: No Jon Leuer tonight. Illness. #Pistons.
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“I’ve always kind of prided myself on being a guy who works really hard,” said, Leuer, who sat in repose in downtown Minneapolis’ Target Center, less than 15 hours after his number was retired at nearby Orono High School. “My approach really didn’t change because of the situation or contract. “(Stan and I) talked about that before. I knew that was going to be my role. I knew I was going to play big minutes, more than I did previously in my career … I had some good stretches before that, but definitely getting those 25, 30 minutes a night was what kind of allowed my game to grow, confidence to grow.”
"Back then I was stretch-four, but the league has gone so small now that I’m a five.” Leuer was known as a shooting big, but he always felt that he had more to his game than that. Even in college, he could put the ball on the floor and make plays for himself and others. That’s something he still feels confident about. “I feel like I’m a good finisher around the rim; I feel like I can still make plays and make good decisions. That’s the fun part of the game for me,” Leuer said. “Shooting is fun, making shots, but getting in the lane, making plays, finishing at the rim, I feel like I can do that at a high level.”
The Orono High School gym was packed on Dec. 18 for the 7 p.m. Spartans Boys Basketball game against Washburn High School. At the end of the first quarter, the Spartans held a ceremony to retire the jersey number of alum and current NBA player Jon Leuer.
Leuer’s family, friends and several of his Pistons teammates were in attendance as his jersey, #22, was retired. “I just want to say how honored I am that Orono choose to retire my jersey; I know they’ve never done it before,” Leuer told the crowd. “I’d also like to thank all my family, friends, coaches, teammates, teachers; I’ve been very fortunate to have great people support me over the years; to see so many of you guys here tonight, that’s what really makes this night special, is that I get to share it with all those people that supported me.”
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