Los Angeles Clippers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Avery Bradley Among Grizzlies’ Free Agent Targets

June 27th, 2018 at 4:57pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Clippers shooting guard Avery Bradley is high on the Grizzlies‘ list of free agent targets, Marc Stein of the New York Times tweets.

Memphis is expected to lose Tyreke Evans in free agency, and Bradley would be an upgrade over the team’s remaining collection of shooting guards. That list includes Wayne Selden, Ben McLemore and MarShon Brooks, though Selden’s contract for next season is not guaranteed.

The Grizzlies are over the cap, so they’d have to hope their mid-level exception with a starting salary of $8,567,770 would be enough to snag Bradley’s services.

Bradley had an injury-filled 2017/18 season after being dealt from the Celtics to the Pistons last offseason. He missed playing time with a groin injury after a strong first month, then was included in the Blake Griffin blockbuster in late January. He underwent season-ending sports hernia surgery in mid-March.

Bradley only appeared in six games with the Clippers after playing 40 games with Detroit. He averaged 14.3 PPG in 46 games last season.

He enjoyed a career year in Boston the previous season, his seventh and final with that organization. The 6’2” Bradley, 27, averaged a career-best 16.3 PPG, 6.1 RPG and 2.2 APG in 55 games.

Bradley has long been considered a superior perimeter defender and solid 3-point shooter (36.6% career average).

Lakers Feeling Pressure To Land Kawhi Before LeBron Decision?

June 27th, 2018 at 11:29am CST by Luke Adams

Pressure appears to be mounting on the Lakers to make a deal for Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard before LeBron James makes his free agent decision, according to Adrian Wojnarowski, Brian Windhorst, and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com.

As ESPN’s report explains, there’s a belief that James would be reluctant to commit to the Lakers in free agency if he’s the only star headed to Los Angeles. With Paul George no longer viewed as a lock to land in L.A., Leonard may represent the Lakers’ best bet to acquire another star to help convince James to head west.

James’ player-option decision due on Friday, so there’s a race to acquire Leonard by then, per Woj, Windhorst, and Shelburne. The Celtics, Cavaliers, Sixers, and Clippers are among the teams that have made offers for Leonard, and multiple teams in that group figure to be in the mix for James too. If the Lakers were to lose out on Leonard to, say, the Sixers or Cavs, it could reduce L.A.’s chances of recruiting LeBron to L.A.

Of course, the Spurs have stated they won’t rush into any trade involving Leonard, since their preference would be to retain him. It’s possible that they receive an offer this week that they simply can’t refuse, but the Spurs likely won’t be eager to improve another team’s chances of landing James.

Here are several other key updates related to the Lakers, Cavaliers, James, Leonard, and more:

Although the Lakers came away from their initial conversation with the Spurs feeling like San Antonio “shut the door” on them, ESPN’s trio reports that the Spurs haven’t ruled out trading Leonard to any destination in the Eastern or Western Conference.
The Lakers have been on the lookout for a future first-round pick on the trade market and are willing to take on 2018/19 salary, per ESPN. The Lakers could keep a max-salary slot open for a free agent even if they take on some salary, and that pick could be used to sweeten a larger trade package.
While the Cavaliers have been actively exploring ways to upgrade their roster via trades or free agency, they haven’t been given the chance to meet with or discuss scenarios with James, league sources tell ESPN. With LeBron unwilling to commit to the Cavs, it will be tricky for the front office to execute a major trade in the interim. For instance, if George were to consider picking up his player option to accommodate a trade to Cleveland, he’d want to know that James was sticking around.
Although the Cavaliers have inquired about Leonard, they probably don’t have the assets to pull off a deal, given their competition for the star forward, per ESPN’s report.
James is hoping to decide on his free agent destination fairly quickly, according to ESPN.
Some league executives who spoke to Sean Deveney of The Sporting News believe that James would be willing to sign with the Lakers even if the team hasn’t made any other impact moves yet. “They’re doing enough research to suggest that he’s going to be willing to take that plunge and let the roster come together,” one GM told Deveney. “It’s what happened in Cleveland four years ago.” When James signed with the Cavaliers in 2014, he did so before the team had finalized a trade for Kevin Love.

Clippers Invite Chris Babb For Workout

June 27th, 2018 at 9:42am CST by Luke Adams

Free agent shooting guard Chris Babb, who spent last season with Russia’s Lokomotiv Kuban, has received a workout invite from the Clippers, per international basketball reporter David Pick (Twitter link).

Clippers, Wizards Swap Austin Rivers, Marcin Gortat

June 26th, 2018 at 10:29pm CST by clarkcrum

10:29pm: Both teams have now officially announced the trade.

6:29pm: The Clippers are trading guard Austin Rivers to the Wizards in exchange for center Marcin Gortat, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, making it perhaps even more likely that center DeAndre Jordan is on his way out of L.A.

It was reported earlier today that Jordan, who has yet to decide on his 2018/19 player option, is considering exercising his option in order to facilitate a trade to another team, a la former teammate Chris Paul last season. While nothing has been reported officially, it seems odd that the Clippers would trade for Gortat if they have any expectation of keeping Jordan in Los Angeles.

After drafting Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jerome Robinson in the lottery last week, Rivers appears to be a casualty of the Clippers’ guard heavy roster moving forward, especially given his price tag of $12.65MM, which is approximately twice the amount that the Clippers will pay their two rookies combined.

Meanwhile, it had already been reported that the Wizards were hoping to move on from Gortat. The Wizards needed a proven reserve guard to give John Wall and Bradley Beal some backup and, as detailed by Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN, to move on from Gortat from a locker room standpoint. As was highly publicized, Gortat and Wall had an inconsistent relationship, culminating in a public social media spat last season.

The Wizards now figure to enter the free agent period this weekend in search of a center. Ian Mahinmi and Jason Smith are currently under contract for next season.

From a salary cap perspective, the salaries of Rivers and Gortat match nicely, with Gortat scheduled to make $13,565,218 next season, only $915,218 more than Rivers. Assuming the swap is made official before the new league year begins on Sunday, the Wizards will create a trade exception worth $957,609, the difference between the two players’ 2017/18 salaries.

The Wizards will also save about $1.4MM in luxury tax penalties by taking on Rivers’ salary in exchange for Gortat’s, as noted by ESPN’s Bobby Marks.

Both Rivers and Gortat are in the final year of contracts, and will become unrestricted free agents next summer.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

DeAndre Jordan Mulling Opt-In To Facilitate Trade?

June 26th, 2018 at 11:31am CST by Luke Adams

Clippers center DeAndre Jordan, one of several players who has yet to decide on his 2018/19 option, is weighing a number of options in advance of Friday’s deadline, reports Marc Stein of The New York Times (via Twitter). According to Stein, one option Jordan is considering involves exercising his option in order to facilitate a trade to another team.

Opting in to accommodate a trade is what Jordan’s former teammate Chris Paul did a year ago, when the Rockets lacked the cap room to sign CP3 outright. If Jordan is interested in joining an over-the-cap team, he could negotiate an agreement with the Clippers that would see him traded to that new team. However, as was the case last year with the Clippers, Rockets, and Paul, all three parties would have to be on board with the arrangement.

The Mavericks are among the teams with potential trade interest in Jordan, according to Stein, though he adds (via Twitter) that one source describes a Jordan-to-Dallas trade as a “long shot.” As we heard earlier this week, the Mavs appear ready to let bygones be bygones in regard to Jordan’s 2015 free agency debacle. A free agent that summer, Jordan committed to Dallas, then backed out of the agreement to re-sign with the Clippers.

Jordan’s player option for 2018/19 is worth $24,119,025, so if he opts in, that figure would need to be taken into account in trade negotiations — a trade partner would have to either match salaries or have the cap room to accommodate that amount.

If Jordan decides to opt out, he’ll become an unrestricted free agent on July 1.

Lou Williams Wins Sixth Man Award

June 25th, 2018 at 8:39pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Lou Williams career year earned him the league’s Sixth Man of the Year award, it was announced at the NBA’s annual awards show. The 31-year-old Clippers guard easily beat out the other finalists, the Rockets’ Eric Gordon and the Raptors’ Fred VanVleet.

Williams had always provided instant offense off the bench during his career but he turned it a couple of notches this past season. He easily surpassed his previous scoring standards by averaging 22.6 PPG while dishing out 5.3 APG, another career best. Williams shot 43.5% from the field and 35.9% on 3-point attempts in 79 games in 19 career starts.

Williams scored 30 or more points in 17 games and blew up for a career-best 50 points against the Warriors on January 10th. Gordon won the award in 2017 while Williams was one of the finalists.

Notable Player Option Decisions Still To Come

June 25th, 2018 at 11:15am CST by Luke Adams

The lack of salary cap space around the NBA this offseason has resulted in a substantial uptick in veterans exercising player options. In 2016, just three players picked up those options, while five followed suit in 2017. So far in 2018, 16 players have elected to opt into their contracts for 2018/19, and Spurs swingman Danny Green is expected to increase that number to 17.

Player option decisions are due by June 29, this Friday, and there are still several noteworthy decisions to come. Here’s a quick breakdown of the ones we’re still waiting on:

LeBron James, Cavaliers ($35,607,968): While it seems like a lock that James would opt out to reach free agency, exercising his option makes more sense if he wants to join certain over-the-cap teams, as we explained here. I still expect LeBron to opt out, but if he picks up this option, he’ll likely be doing so with a specific trade destination in mind.
DeAndre Jordan, Clippers ($24,119,025): Jordan is unlikely to get a $24MM starting salary in free agency, but if he could get a three- or four-year contract with an average annual value of $15-20MM, that might be preferable to opting in. His decision will have a huge impact on the Clippers’ offseason, since the club would be well over the cap with Jordan’s salary on its books.
Paul George, Thunder ($20,703,384): Of all the options on this list, George’s looks like the easiest call. Even if he wants to stay with the Thunder, he’s more likely to opt out and sign a new deal that starts at his max, $30.3MM. This option is a virtual lock to be declined.
Enes Kanter, Knicks ($18,622,514): Picking up the option is probably the right move for Kanter, who wouldn’t get an $18MM+ salary on the open market, but he has talked about opting out. As in Jordan’s case, turning down the option could mean accepting a lesser salary in 2018/19 in exchange for greater long-term security.
Thaddeus Young, Pacers ($13,764,045): Young is said to be strongly considering declining his option, and he’s another player who could seek a longer-term deal that increases his overall payday. For example, a new three-year, $30MM contract might appeal more to Young than finishing out a one-year, $13MM+ deal.
Garrett Temple, Kings ($8,000,000): Temple is coming off a solid year in Sacramento, but he’s 32 years old and isn’t a starting point guard, so opting in for an $8MM guarantee appears to be the right call.
Joffrey Lauvergne, Spurs ($1,656,092): Lauvergne is reportedly considering turning down his option. If he does so, there’s little downside — he’d simply have to find another minimum salary offer in order to match his option salary. The big man may not want to risk following in the footsteps of former Spur David Lee, who declined a minimum-salary player option last summer and then didn’t sign another NBA contract, but at age 26, Lauvergne should a safe bet to receive an offer.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

City Of Inglewood Faces Another Clippers-Related Lawsuit

June 24th, 2018 at 7:12pm CST by Luke Adams

The Clippers have considered the possibility of moving out of the Staples Center and into an Inglewood arena at some point in the future, but the City of Inglewood is facing a second lawsuit related to the team’s proposed stadium. Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com has the details.

Clippers’ Milos Teodosic Opts In

June 24th, 2018 at 8:21am CST by Arthur Hill

Serbian guard Milos Teodosic has opted in for another season with the Clippers, tweets Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports. However, the decision doesn’t guarantee he will be back in L.A. next year. The final year of Teodosic’s contract carries just a $2.1MM guarantee on his $6.3MM salary if the Clippers waive him by July 15.

L.A. could decide that financial flexibility is preferable to another year of Teodosic, who was limited to 45 games in his rookie season because of injuries. Austin Rivers ($12.7MM) and Wesley Johnson ($6.1MM) have already exercised their options for next year, while DeAndre Jordan has until Friday to decide on his $24.1MM option. The Clippers also have to decide whether to guarantee Patrick Beverley‘s $5MM deal and will be well over the salary cap if all those players remain on the roster.

A report this week says L.A.’s front office is leaning toward unloading Teodosic before the start of free agency, in part due to concerns over a tear of the plantar fascia in his left foot that he suffered late in the season. The 31-year-old said during the year that he likes playing in the NBA, but it’s possible he could return to Europe if he gets a better offer there.

Teodosic averaged 9.5 points and 4.6 assists during his first NBA season, starting 36 of the 45 games.

Clippers’ Austin Rivers Exercises 2018/19 Option

June 23rd, 2018 at 9:03am CST by Arthur Hill

JUNE 23, 9:03am: Rivers has officially opted in, according to RealGM’s Transactions log.

JUNE 21, 2:37pm: Clippers guard Austin Rivers plans to opt in for next season on a $12.65MM contract, tweets Brad Turner of The Los Angeles Times.

Rivers’ move is one of three major player option decisions for the Clippers, who are also waiting to hear from DeAndre Jordan ($24,119,025) and Milos Teodosic ($6.3MM).

Rivers, 25, put up career-best numbers in his third full season in L.A., averaging 15.1 points and 4.0 assists in 61 games. He became a full-time starter this season, but missed six weeks with an injured right ankle.