Los Angeles Clippers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Multiple Teams Interested In Eric Griffin

March 16th, 2015 at 6:22pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Jazz, Clippers and Celtics are all showing interest in a possible call up of Eric Griffin, sources tell Shams Charania of RealGM.com. Griffin is currently playing for the Texas Legends, the D-League affiliate of the Mavs. Dallas signed the 24-year-old last summer but released him right before the season began. Griffin is averaging 17.9 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game in the D-League this season.

Utah currently has a full 15-man roster. With the exception of Jack Cooley, who signed his second 10-day contract today, all of the players are signed through at least the end of the season. Boston also has a full 15-man roster.

Los Angeles makes the most logical destination for the 6-foot-8 forward, as its wings are arguably its greatest area of weakness. The team currently has a 14-man roster, and is expecting to sign Jordan Hamilton for the rest of the season. Hamilton sprained his ankle on Sunday, the last day of his 10-day contract and Doc Rivers said that the injury won’t affect the team’s decision to retain him the rest of the way. Griffin is more likely to replace Nate Robinson, who isn’t signed through the season, although that is just my speculation.

Western Notes: Griffin, Jordan, Nurkic, Lakers

March 14th, 2015 at 9:48pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Clippers‘ Blake Griffin will return to action soon, according to Dan Woike of The Orange County Register. Griffin, sidelined for five weeks with a staph infection in his right elbow, could be ready for Sunday’s game with the Rockets. If not, the team expects to have him Tuesday against the Hornets. A final decision on Griffin will be made Sunday morning, tweets Ben Bolch of the Los Angeles Times.

There’s more from the Western Conference:

Despite a projected jump in the salary cap after the 2016 season, Clippers free-agent-to-be DeAndre Jordan has no interest in signing a one-year contract, reports Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com. Jordan, one of the favorites for the Defensive Player of the Year award, is likely to get a maximum deal this summer. “I’m not going to be greedy and sign a one-year deal,” Jordan said. “Nah. I’m just focused on getting it over with and focusing on playing again. I’m just trying to win here.”
Despite being nearly 7 feet tall and weighing 280 pounds, center Jusuf Nurkic fits into the Nuggets‘ running game, writes Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post. Interim coach Melvin Hunt has increased the tempo since taking over in Denver, and he says Nurkic has no problem keeping up. “Jusuf Nurkic is built to run,” Hunt said. “Don’t let it fool you with the big body he has. He likes a fast-tempo game. Look at the way he guards the pick-and-roll and look how fast his hands are. He has incredible hands and feet. Sometimes he gets a little bored when it’s a slow-tempo game.”
Lakers coach Byron Scott described his team as “selfish” and “not very bright” after Thursday’s loss to the Knicks, writes Jovan Buha in a special report for ESPNLosAngeles.com. Scott didn’t mention any players by name, but expressed frustration that his team is losing winnable games. “I thought we came in with a lack of respect for a team that had beaten us in New York,” he said. “We can’t afford to look at teams’ records and think, ‘OK, their record is worse than us, so we’re a better team than they are.’”

And-Ones: Draft, Knicks, Hawes

March 13th, 2015 at 10:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Spencer Hawes‘ first season as a member of the Clippers after inking a four-year, $23MM deal has been a tremendous disappointment, Ben Bolch of The Los Angeles Times writes. “He’s obviously not had the year we’d like, but it’s a long year. It still is a long year,” coach/executive Doc Rivers said of Hawes. “It doesn’t matter if it’s late in the year. I’ve seen guys have horrible regular seasons and then break out in the playoffs. You don’t know where it’s coming, but we still believe in him just like the other 20 teams that wanted to sign him in the league. It’s there and we have to get it out.” The 26-year-old big man is averaging 6.6 points and 3.9 rebounds while only sinking 40.3% of his field goal attempts for the season.

Here’s more from around the league:

The Knicks will need to upgrade at the center position prior to next season and Tommy Beer of Basketball Insiders runs down some free agent big men who New York could target this summer.
Jahlil Okafor continues to occupy the top spot in the latest iteration of Chad Ford of ESPN.com‘s (Insider subscription required) Big Board. The big change in Ford’s 2015 NBA draft rankings is Kentucky big man Karl-Anthony Towns overtaking Emmanuel Mudiay for the No. 2 spot.
Okafor also tops the latest mock draft from Sean Deveney of The Sporting News, with D’Angelo Russell and Towns rounding out Deveney’s top three.

Pacific Notes: Rivers, Granger, Divac

March 10th, 2015 at 12:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

Doc Rivers and Flip Saunders hold the dual titles of coach and president of basketball operations for the Clippers and Timberwolves, respectively, but they’ve encountered vastly different jobs, as Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune explores.

“It’s not been hard, Flip’s had to do a lot more,” Rivers said. “They have a lot more work, far more assets than they have to try to get in and out. He has a ton of [financial] flexibility. When I came here, I looked at our roster and flexibility and there was not a lot we could do. We were more in the minimum contract and mid-level [exception] stuff. You’ve got to have assets and we do, but none that we want to trade. He has had a lot more work to do than I have. He’s trying to rebuild an entire team.”

Rivers signed a new deal worth more than $50MM over five years with the Clippers this past summer. Here’s more from the Pacific Division:

Danny Granger says he considered retirement after undergoing knee surgery when he was with the Pacers in 2013, according to Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. He’s never been the same since missing all but five games of the 2012/13 season, but the Suns trainers have told him “it can be fixed,” as Coro details. The 31-year-old with a player option of more than $2.17MM for next season explored options to buy his way off the Suns and join a contender shortly after the deadline-day trade that sent him from Miami to Phoenix, but he decided against it, Coro writes.
Granger added that he wants to get “extremely healthy” before playing again, and while Suns coach Jeff Hornacek wouldn’t rule out his return before season’s end, as Coro relays in the same piece, the chances don’t appear overwhelmingly strong. “As we go on, if we’re still in the race, yeah, why not get a veteran guy like that in there?” Hornacek said. “If somehow we’re out of it, then maybe it makes more sense to play the young guys. Our thoughts right now are we’re still in the playoff hunt and we’re still going to go after it. If he can give us something toward the end there, maybe that happens.”
Vlade Divac turned down other opportunities to work in NBA front offices before he joined the Kings as vice president of basketball and franchise operations last week, as he tells USA Today’s Sam Amick.

And-Ones: Kerr, Jones, Embiid, Wade

March 9th, 2015 at 10:49pm CST by Charlie Adams

Steve Kerr still has a small ownership stake in the Suns, notes Diamond Leung of the Bay Area News Group (via Twitter). Kerr was required by the NBA to sell his investment in Phoenix after he became the coach of the Warriors, but he’s been unable to complete the divestiture to this point. Here are more miscellaneous notes from around the league..

The NBA fined Dahntay Jones $10K for bumping into Draymond Green during a postgame interview after the Warriors’ victory over the Clippers on Sunday, as Greg Beacham of The Associated Press details.
Joel Embiid suffered a “minor setback” in his recovery from the broken right foot that’s kept him from debuting in the NBA this season, reports Tom Moore of Calkins Media (on Twitter). While a report in January indicated Embiid could potentially play this season, Brett Brown cast doubt on the possibility of such a scenario late last month.
Dwyane Wade expressed disappointment in Hassan Whiteside‘s lack of maturity following a Heat loss in which Whiteside was ejected after committing a flagrant-two on Kelly Olynyk, observes Jason Lieser of the Palm Beach Post (Twitter link). “Very [disappointed],” said Wade. “We all are. As a Heat fan you are. In this locker room we are. Everybody.” Whiteside, who’s put up impressive numbers with Miami, is signed through the 2015/16 season on a minimum salary deal.
John Zitzler of Basketball Insiders looks back at the path that led Khris Middleton to the Bucks and explores the unexpected value he’s been able to provide to Milwuakee. The 23-year-old swingman is poised to hit restricted free agency this summer.

Pacific Notes: Green, Griffin, Lakers, Bryant

March 8th, 2015 at 9:02pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Warriors‘ Draymond Green should be Defensive Player of the Year, argues Ben Dowsett of Basketball Insiders. It’s a somewhat surprising choice, given the widespread opinion that the Clippers’ DeAndre Jordan is the front runner for the award, but Dowsett contends Green’s versatility and performance against the pick-and-roll make him the league’s most valuable defender. If he were to win DPOY, it would strengthen Green’s bargaining position heading into restricted free agency this summer.

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

Jesse Blancarte of Basketball Insiders wonders if Green is worth a max contract. At 6’7″ and 230 pounds, the Warriors’ standout is a uniquely stocky small forward who can also play power forward effectively and guard every position except for center. However, his per-game stats fall below what you’d expect from a max level player.
Clippers coach Doc Rivers says there’s still no timetable for Blake Griffin to return from his staph infection, according to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter). The timetable remains the same as it was before for Griffin, Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com adds (on Twitter). The original estimate was 4-6 weeks, and Monday will mark four weeks since his surgery.
The Lakers will have plenty of options in June’s draft, writes Jabari Davis of Basketball Insiders. Los Angeles, of course, needs to have its pick fall in the top five or it will be transferred to Philadelphia. Assuming the Lakers keep their pick, Davis writes that Duke’s Jahlil Okafor or Kentucky’s Karl-Anthony Towns would form a solid front-line nucleus with injured rookie Julius Randle. If they decide to go for backcourt help, options include Emmanuel Mudiay of the Chinese Basketball Association and Ohio State’s D’Angelo Russell.
It may not be a coincidence that Kobe Bryant was on the Lakers‘ bench tonight for the first time in many games, tweets Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com. The Lakers are hosting the Mavericks, and Bryant may want a closer look at soon-to-be free agent Rajon Rondo.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Western Notes: Clippers, Lin, Nuggets

March 7th, 2015 at 10:50pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Clippers‘ desire to find a veteran who could play right away led to today’s signing of Nate Robinson, according to Rowan Kavner of NBA.com. Robinson, who agreed to a 10-day contract, is expected to ease the loss of Jamal Crawford, who is sidelined with a calf contusion. “We looked at a lot of different guys,” coach Doc Rivers said. “We looked at another three, we almost brought in a two, there’s a four out there we could’ve brought in. At the end of the day, I just said, ‘Who’s the best player of the group?’ (The staff) said Nate, and I said, ‘Let’s sign Nate,’ and I know Nate.”

There’s much more from the Western Conference:

There were reports this week that Blake Griffin could rejoin the Clippers for Sunday’s game against the Warriors, but that now appears doubtful, Kavner reports in a separate story. Sunday marks the four-week anniversary of the first game Griffin missed with a staph infection in his elbow, roughly the time he was expected to be out of action. But he hasn’t received clearance to play yet from team doctors.
The emergence of Jordan Clarkson virtually ensures a break-up between Jeremy Lin and the Lakers, writes Mike Bresnahan of The Los Angeles Times. Clarkson’s rise has meant less playing time for Lin, who will become a free agent this summer. Clarkson, a rookie, will earn just slightly more than $845K next season, making him a low-cost solution at point guard. “I’m not going to answer any of those free agency questions until after the season,” Lin said after Friday’s loss to Memphis. “I’ll discuss that later.”
Mike D’Antoni might be the answer to reviving fast-paced basketball in Denver, opines Mark Kiszla of The Denver Post. D’Antoni, 63, became famous for his up-tempo style during his time as coach of the Suns, Knicks and Lakers. He said he would love to get back into coaching after a year away from the game and would have strong interest in the Nuggets’ job. “You get addicted,” he said. “There’s some really good basketball being played in the league right now, from Golden State to Atlanta.”

Clippers Sign Nate Robinson To 10-Day Pact

March 7th, 2015 at 2:04pm CST by Eddie Scarito

2:04pm: The signing is official, the Clippers announced.

1:04pm: The Clippers have signed free agent Nate Robinson, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports reports (Twitter link). The two sides reached an agreement after meeting earlier this morning, Shams Charania of RealGM tweets. The deal is a 10-day contract, and not one for the remainder of the season, Spears adds in a separate tweet. The Clippers have an open roster spot, so no corresponding move will be necessary in order to bring Robinson aboard.

The diminutive point guard became a free agent after reaching a buyout arrangement with the Celtics, who had acquired Robinson from the Nuggets in return for Jameer Nelson. The Clippers were reportedly the 30-year-old’s preferred destination. The Heat, Wizards, Bulls and Cavs were also mentioned as possibilities to ink Robinson.

In 33 games for the Nuggets this season, Robinson averaged 5.8 points, 1.2 rebounds, and 2.3 assists in 14.1 minutes per contest. His career numbers over nine seasons in the league are 11.1 PPG, 2.1 RPG, and 3.0 APG. His career slash line is .424/.360/.796.

Clippers Interested In Andre Emmett

March 7th, 2015 at 1:43pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Clippers are considering signing free agent Andre Emmett, Shams Charania of RealGM reports (Twitter link). The 6’5″ swingman currently plays for the Fort Wayne Mad Ants in the NBA D-League. Los Angeles reportedly has reached an agreement with Nate Robinson on a 10-day pact, which would increase the Clippers’ roster count to the league maximum of 15. The team has Jordan Hamilton also signed to a 10-day pact, so he would be a likely candidate to be released if Emmett is signed, though that is merely my speculation.

Emmett, 32, is reportedly considering a lucrative offer to play in the Philippines, so it’s unclear if the chance to chase his NBA dream on what would likely be a minimum salary arrangement would be enough to keep him stateside.

In 39 games for Fort Wayne this season Emmett is averaging 22.6 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 2.6 assists in 33.5 minutes per contest. The 2004 second-rounder out of Texas Tech has had two brief stints in the NBA that were separated by a period of six seasons. Emmett appeared in eight games for the Grizzlies during the 2004/05 season, and he followed that up with a six game cameo for the Nets during the 2011/12 campaign. He owns a career scoring average of 1.4 points on 46.2% shooting.

Western Notes: Afflalo, Lee, Robinson

March 6th, 2015 at 8:58pm CST by Will Joseph

Arron Afflalo should fill a lot of the void for the Blazers that was created after soon-to-be unrestricted free agent Wesley Matthews‘s season ending injury, Joe Freeman of the Oregonian writes. Afflalo, who has a player option for next season worth $7.75MM, was acquired in a February deal. His skill-set and unselfishness make him a solid replacement for Matthews, Freeman wrote. “I’ll be me,” Afflalo said. “Even before Wes went down, the goal wasn’t for me to come in here and try to be somebody that I wasn’t. Obviously adjusting to a new role is difficult and takes time, but the way I lead, be it vocally or by example, I’ll continue to do that.”

Here’s more from the Western Conference:

The Clippers continue to show interest in free agent guard Nate Robinson, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders notes (Twitter link). It was first reported back in January that the Clippers were Robinson’s preferred team, and Los Angeles possessed some level of interest in the diminutive guard.
Celtics coach Brad Stevens says that the Spurs have thrived, in part, because of their roster continuity, according to Ben Rohrbach of WEEI.com (Twitter links). “Obviously, there’s going to continue to be some change but I think a lot of these guys are going to be in Celtics uniforms for a while coming, and that’s encouraging,” the coach said.
The Jazz had serious discussions with the Warriors at the trade deadline about acquiring David Lee, according to Spencer Checketts of 1280 The Zone (via Twitter). The Warriors were said to be willing to trade Lee, but they were looking to get assets of value in return.
David Stockton, son of Hall of Famer John Stockton, in his return to the D-League’s Reno Bighorns, Sacramento’s affiliate, scored a season-high 44 points in what Erika Marmolejo of NBA.com called a “statement game.” The Kings previously decided against signing Stockton to another 10-day contract. Stockton was unable to find decent time behind starting guard Ray McCallum and newly acquired veteran Andre Miller, Marmolejo notes.

Zach Links and Eddie Scarito contributed to this post