Western Notes: Clippers, Granger, White

After years of futility and being seen as a less than desirable location to play, the Clippers have officially become a draw for players, writes Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com. With the recent signing of Glen Davis and the team possibly inking Danny Granger, it definitely is a departure from the past. The fact that a veteran player in pursuit of a championship ring would consider signing a minimum deal to join the Clippers over teams like the Spurs and the Heat is yet another example of how far the Clippers have come as both contenders on the court and in the minds of players as a destination franchise, opines Markazi. Doc Rivers, weighing in on the matter, said, “I don’t know if we’re going to make it THE destination, but we want it to be one of them. That’s our goal. Bringing in Big Baby when he could have gone to a lot of other places was a good thing. Darren Collison could have gone to a lot of other places and came here. At the end of the day we just have to keep being a good basketball team and the rest of the stuff will follow. I think the key to this is showing that we have a shot and we’re a good team. Players follow that. They’ll go anywhere for that.”

More from the west:

  • Speaking of Granger, he is expected to make a decision on Friday, and the Clippers are his likely destination, tweets Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com.
  • In a video for the Journal Times, Gery Woelfel says the Jazz were considering Nate Wolters for the 21st overall pick last summer. Wolters wound up going 38th overall and has been a mainstay for the Bucks this season.
  • The Kings have been entertaining the idea of signing Royce White to a 10-day contract. Tom Ziller of SB Nation details the reasons why this pairing could work out, and also looks at some possibilities for why the Sixers traded for him this past summer.
  • Rockets center Greg Smith is going to have surgery on his knee, tweets Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. It is unknown if and when he will return to the court this season.
  • A scout claims the Timberwolves tried to trade J.J. Barea at the deadline because team executives want Ricky Rubio finishing games, writes Chris Broussard of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required). The scout also weighs in on why he thinks Rubio is overrated as a player.
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