NBA ANNOUNCES AFFILIATIONS WITH NBA DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE FOR 2012-13 SEASON - Eleven NBA Teams Have ‘One-to-One’ NBA D-League Affiliations - NEW YORK , July 17, 2012 – The National Basketball Association and the NBA Development League, the official minor league of the NBA, today announced the affiliation system for the 2012-13 season. An all-time high eleven NBA teams will have single NBA D-League affiliates including first-year partnerships between the Boston Celtics and Maine Red Claws and the Portland Trail Blazers and Idaho Stampede. For the eighth consecutive year, each NBA team has one NBA D-League team to which it may assign players. During the 2011-12 season, the NBA D-League saw all-time highs in NBA player assignments (67) and individual players assigned (44) from their NBA parent clubs. Jeremy Lin headlines the group of 44 players to benefit from the assignment system during the 2011-12 season. Lin returned to the NBA D-League, joining the New York Knicks affiliate Erie BayHawks for one game following a 20 game assignment from the Golden State Warriors to the Reno Bighorns the previous year. In 21 total games over two seasons, Lin averaged 18.5 points and 4.7 assists. Beginning in the 2012-13 season, NBA players in the first three years of their NBA careers may be assigned to their NBA D-League affiliate an unlimited number of times, according to the NBA Collective Bargaining Agreement. For the second consecutive year, players beyond the first three years of their NBA careers may be assigned to their NBA D-League affiliate with their consent and the consent of the NBA Players Association. “We’re thrilled to have 11 single affiliates next season in the NBA D-League while continuing a highly effective development system that benefits all 30 NBA teams and 16 NBA D-League teams,” said Dan Reed, NBA D- League President. “The assignment system has proven to be an invaluable tool in the development of countless young NBA prospects, and I look forward to watching a new crop of players benefit from increased playing time and exposure while on assignment in the NBA D-League next year.” Of the 16 NBA D-League teams playing during the 2012-13 season, five are fully owned and operated by their NBA affiliates: the Austin Toros (San Antonio Spurs), Canton Charge (Cleveland Cavaliers), Dakota Wizards (Golden State Warriors), Los Angeles D-Fenders (Los Angeles Lakers), and Tulsa 66ers (Oklahoma City Thunder). The Wizards have applied to relocate the team from Bismarck, North Dakota to Santa Cruz, California in a move that would bring the team closer to the Warriors. The Erie BayHawks (New York Knicks), Rio Grande Valley Vipers (Houston Rockets) and Springfield Armor (Brooklyn Nets) join the Stampede (Trail Blazers) and Red Claws (Celtics) as teams with ‘hybrid’ single-affiliation partnerships, where the NBA teams control their NBA D-League affiliates’ basketball operations. The Dallas Mavericks remain solely affiliated with the Texas Legends. The remaining five NBA D-League teams will have three or four NBA parent teams: Bakersfield Jam (Atlanta Hawks, Los Angeles Clippers, Phoenix Suns, Toronto Raptors), Fort Wayne Mad Ants (Charlotte Bobcats, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Milwaukee Bucks), Iowa Energy (Chicago Bulls, Denver Nuggets, New Orleans Hornets, Washington Wizards), Reno Bighorns (Memphis Grizzlies, Sacramento Kings, Utah Jazz), Sioux Falls Skyforce (Miami Heat, Minnesota Timberwolves, Orlando Magic, Philadelphia 76ers). The NBA D-League continues to be a launching pad for NBA talent – 27 percent of all NBA players on 2011-12 end-of-season rosters have played in the NBA D-League, while one third of the NBA Draft classes from 2009, 2010, and 2011 played in the NBA D-League. - more - Page 2 The complete affiliation system for 2012-13 is listed below: 2012-13 NBA DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE TEAM AFFILIATIONS AUSTIN TOROS (TX) LOS ANGELES D-FENDERS (CA) San Antonio Spurs Los Angeles Lakers BAKERSFIELD JAM (CA) MAINE RED CLAWS (Portland, ME) Atlanta Hawks Boston Celtics Los Angeles Clippers Phoenix Suns RENO BIGHORNS (NV) Toronto Raptors Memphis Grizzlies Sacramento Kings CANTON (OH) Utah Jazz Cleveland Cavaliers RIO GRANDE VALLEY VIPERS (TX) DAKOTA WIZARDS (Bismarck, ND) Houston Rockets Golden State Warriors SIOUX FALLS SKYFORCE (SD) ERIE BAYHAWKS (PA) Miami Heat New York Knicks Minnesota Timberwolves Orlando Magic FORT WAYNE MAD ANTS (IN) Philadelphia 76ers Charlotte Bobcats Detroit Pistons SPRINGFIELD ARMOR (MA) Indiana Pacers Brooklyn Nets Milwaukee Bucks TEXAS LEGENDS (Frisco, TX) IDAHO STAMPEDE (Boise, ID) Dallas Mavericks Portland Trail Blazers TULSA 66ERS (OK) IOWA ENERGY (Des Moines, IA) Oklahoma City Thunder Chicago Bulls Denver Nuggets New Orleans Hornets Washington Wizards About the NBA Development League The NBA Development League, founded in 2001, is the NBA’s official minor league. Featuring 16 teams with direct affiliations to NBA franchises, the NBA D-League is a proven developer of talent: 27 percent of players in the NBA at the conclusion of the 2011-12 season boasted NBA D-League experience, and the league continues to develop coaches, referees, and front-office staff for the NBA and its teams. In fostering the league’s connection to the community, its teams, players and staff promote health and wellness, support local needs and interests, and assist in educational development through NBA D-League Cares programs. The NBA D-League also advances the game of basketball as the research and development arm of the NBA. Throughout the league’s 11th season, fans could watch all NBA D-League games online for free at nba.com/dleague. # # # .