Chandler Parsons was headed to Las Vegas for his girlfriend’s birthday and not to Houston to recruit DeAndre Jordan when he touched off the infamous Twitter iconography battle that served as a sideshow to Jordan’s free agency flip–flop, as Parsons said on The Ben & Skin show on KRLD-FM 105.3 in Dallas (transcription via the Dallas Morning News).
“At that point, it was already over and he was going back to the Clippers, so might as well make light of it,” Parsons said in part.
Rhetoric concerning Jordan’s turnabout has escalated again this past week, a sure sign that one of the offseason’s most significant storylines isn’t about to vanish into memory even as the season is about to get underway. See more on Jordan, the Mavs and the rest of the Southwest Division:
- Jordan was unlikely to become the sort of offensive presence the Mavs sold him on becoming, opines Shaun Powell of NBA.com. Still, his change of heart casts the team into a transition phase, further reducing the chances that Dallas wins a title before Dirk Nowitzki retires, and the Mavs did well to retain cap flexibility for future seasons and maintain a strong position for trades, Powell believes.
- Kawhi Leonard staggered to the finish line in the playoffs last season, and while that would have been acceptable in previous years, that’s no longer so for the 24-year-old, whom the Spurs are counting on now, writes Dan McCarney of the San Antonio Express-News. Leonard re-signed on a five-year max contract in July.
- Free agent signee Brandan Wright, and not trade acquisition Matt Barnes, was the best offseason addition for the Grizzlies, argues Ben Dowsett of Basketball Insiders, citing Wright’s versatility, among other traits. Dowsett sees Wright as an upgrade over Kosta Koufos, who left in free agency for the Kings.
While Aldridge makes the Spurs a serious contender again, there’s no doubt that Leonard is their best and most important player.
I agree. Leonard has their be the most important player. Spurs will be lethal this season, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they got off to a rocky start trying to get Aldridge involved.
The DJ situation is a shame for the Mavs. If they knew he wasn’t coming, perhaps they could have signed Robin Lopez or Kosta Koufos and they could have been a lock for the eighth seed.