New-Look Erie BayHawks Take on Armor

Filed under: Cavaliers, NBA D-League, Erie BayHawks, Springfield Armor

It isn't often that a team off to a solid start decides to restructure its roster 15 games into the season, but that's exactly what the NBA D-League's Erie BayHawks did earlier this week. The BayHawks will find out if it was worth it this afternoon as they take on Scottie Reynolds and the Springfield Armor in a game that will be streamed live on FanHouse at 5 p.m. ET.

Armor PG Scottie Reynolds

The BayHawks, currently 10-6 and tied for third in the Eastern Conference, decided to retool their team last week with two separate moves. First, Erie sent away starting point guard Cedric Jackson -- a local player from Cleveland State who earned call-ups to the San Antonio Spurs, Cleveland Cavaliers and Washington Wizards -- to the Idaho Stampede for a future first-round pick. Then, the team moved the recently acquired Jeff Adrien, a bruising power forward who played for the Golden State Warriors earlier this season, to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.

While it seems odd that the BayHawks would trade both of these players away in the midst of a three-game winning streak, they did it to make room for two other NBA prospects in a returning Blake Ahearn as well as Garrett Temple, who was sent to Erie in the Adrien trade.

Ahearn, a 6-2 guard, was named the D-League's Rookie of the Year for the 2007-08 season and has since played with the Miami Heat and San Antonio Spurs amid stops in the D-League. The sweet-shooting guard began this season playing in Italy for Banca Tercas Teramo. Temple, a 6-5 guard, began last season in the D-League before earning call-ups to the Houston Rockets, Sacramento Kings as well as the Spurs. With the Spurs, the dynamic guard started four games at point guard when Tony Parker was out due to injury.

While the BayHawks will more than likely have a brand new starting backcourt to complement Cleveland Cavaliers assignee Christian Eyenga at small forward, their opponents will also have a new look backcourt as Scottie Reynolds is expected to return from injury.

Reynolds, an All-American as a senior at Villanova last season, is averaging 17.5 points, 5.1 assists and 4.3 rebounds in his first professional season. The 6-2 scorer hasn't played a game since December 18, however, as he's been battling an ankle issue. Joining Reynolds in the backcourt is former NBA draft pick JamesOn Curry, a 6-4 guard currently averaging 17.6 points despite making just 43 percent of his shot attempts. Springfield's frontcourt is anchored by Vernon Goodridge, a 6-9 shot blocker who played with the Golden State Warriors this preseason.

Though the BayHawks currently lead the season series 2-1, the last a convincing 107-84 victory on New Year's Eve, today's game could look as different as their starting lineup -- especially with the return of Reynolds.

 

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