Spurs to Call-Up NBA D-League's Larry Owens for 10-Day Contract

Filed under: Spurs, NBA D-League, Tulsa 66ers

The San Antonio Spurs needed to add a 13th player by Wednesday after releasing Ime Udoka prior to his contract becoming guaranteed on January 5.

Saturday night, the Spurs went ahead and made the decision to call-up Larry Owens (photo, with ball) from the NBA D-League's Tulsa 66ers, a source told FanHouse, to once again come in line with the league's mandate of having at least 13 players on each team's roster. Draft Express first reported on Twitter that Owens was a call-up candidate of the Spurs.

"Larry Owens has been a staple for what the 66ers stand for the past two seasons," 66ers head coach Nate Tibbetts said. "He comes to work every day to improve and he is truly a professional. Everyone in Tulsa is excited and proud of him."

Owens, a 6-foot-7 forward out of Oral Roberts, has amassed averages of 14.8 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.4 steals in 73 career regular season games in the D-League. His best D-League performance may have come in his eight playoff games last season, however, as he averaged 18.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 1.2 blocks while making 13 of his 28 shots from three-point territory while leading the 66ers to the championship series.

Though Owens' statistics aren't the most gaudy, and his last two games where he scored just eight points on nine shots aren't going to impress most fans, the work Owens has put in over the past two and a half seasons certainly makes him deserving of a call-up -- especially in the Spurs system.

 

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Source: http://nba.fanhouse.com/2011/01/16/spurs-to-call-up-nba-d-leagues-larry-owens-for-10-day-contract/

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