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Pacific Notes: Crawford, Hill, Mayo

October 19th, 2012 at 7:46pm CST by Sean Highkin

The latest notes from around the Pacific Division on Friday evening:

Helene Elliott of the Los Angeles Times talks to new Clippers signee Jamal Crawford, who reveals that he worked on his shot during the offseason for the first time this summer.
Grant Hill is excited about his first season with the Clippers, writes Mirin Fader of NBA.com.
Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic writes that the Suns showed interest in O.J. Mayo this summer, but Mayo wanted a starting job. He eventually signed with the Mavericks.

Amico On Mavs, Clippers, Hornets, Bobcats

October 7th, 2012 at 5:51pm CST by Sean Highkin

Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio has posted some thoughts from the weekend's preseason action, including impressions of players that have changed teams this offseason:

Amico was impressed with the Dallas debuts of Chris Kaman and O.J. Mayo, both of whom signed with the Mavs this summer.
Out of the several veterans the Clippers signed this offseason, Amico says that Jamal Crawford and Matt Barnes made positive first impressions, while Lamar Odom looked considerably less impressive.
Amico writes that Hornets rookies Anthony Davis and Austin Rivers had good performances in their preseason debuts.
Second overall pick Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and third overall pick Bradley Beal had strong showings in the Bobcats' victory over the Wizards, Amico writes.
New Bobcats acquisitions Ben Gordon and Ramon Sessions also had strong performances off the bench, writes Amico.

Ingram On Billups, Clippers, Warriors, Hibbert

October 5th, 2012 at 8:00pm CST by Sean Highkin

HoopsWorld's Bill Ingram has a new column that touches on several topics from around the league, including the rivalry in Los Angeles and the Warriors' expectations.

Ingram talks to Clippers guard Chauncey Billups, who says he is taking his time getting healthy after tearing his left Achilles' tendon last season.
Billups also praises the Clippers' depth, citing the additions of Lamar Odom and Jamal Crawford as moves that will improve the team.
Warriors coach Mark Jackson is optimistic Andrew Bogut, acquired last season at the trade deadline, will be ready on opening night. He also thinks the team's three rookies, including lottery pick Harrison Barnes, will be valuable contributors this season.
Despite coming close to signing with the Trail Blazers in July, Pacers center Roy Hibbert says he never wanted to leave Indiana and that money was not a factor in his decision. Hibbert signed a four-year, $58MM deal with the Pacers this summer.

Pacific Notes: Dwight, Blake, Clippers, Bogut

October 4th, 2012 at 7:13pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Dwight Howard engaged in a post-practice interview with the local media, admitting that he's "still trying to get his legs up and get in some shape" and also elaborating about the different options on offense that he has with his new Lakers teammates. In response to recent comments made by Shaq about being subordinate to Andrew Bynum and Brook Lopez, Dwight replied, "I don't care what (he) says…He's done. He's gone. It's time to move on." (Dave McMenamin of ESPN reports). Ken Berger of CBS Sports further discussed the chance for Howard to put his recent past in Orlando behind him through his new challenge in Los Angeles. Here's what else is brewing out of the Pacific Division tonight…

Lakers guard Steve Blake returned from injury and practiced today, says McMenamin. The back up point guard was originally projected to have a three week recovery after puncturing his foot, but was given full clearance to play just ten days after his injury.
Clippers forward Blake Griffin appears to have fully healed from his knee surgery in July, reportedly moving well during scrimmages and connecting on some signature dunks (according to Eric Pincus of HoopsWorld). Pincus also gives his impressions from DeAndre Jordan, Jamal Crawford, Matt Barnes, and Lamar Odom from scrimmages and also mentions that while Chauncey Billups isn't ready to play yet, the activity level and mobility that he displayed is a good indication that he is progressing along nicely with his rehab.
Tim Kawakami of Mercury News tweets that Warriors center Andrew Bogut looked good during his individual workout today, going through a 40-45 minute session with the team trainer after practice.
In this report from CSNBayArea.com, Klay Thompson talked about his goal to improve his efficiency this season as he embarks on his sophomore year in the league. Coach Mark Jackson also spoke confidently about the young shooting guard, saying that Thompson is "going to get his shots." In the miscellaneous section, Jackson seemed non-committal on who the Warriors' starting small forward will be at this point.
Newly acquired Wesley Johnson has shined during Suns team scrimmages, writes Paul Coro of AZCentral.com. Aside from more observations from practices, Coro also says that Goran Dragic may continue to do more work during the team's two-a-day session on Friday, and that Jermaine O'Neal will withdraw from tomorrow's practice because of soreness.

Poll: Clippers Offseason Acquisitions

August 18th, 2012 at 3:25pm CST by Sean Highkin

Earlier today, Earl Bloom of the Orange County Register touched on several aspects of the Clippers' offseason. While their summer has certainly been dwarfed by that of their Staples Center co-tenants, the Lakers, who added Dwight Howard and Steve Nash, the Clips have certainly made some significant moves. Which of the Clippers' new acquisitions do you think will have the biggest impact? Vote in the poll and weigh in with your thoughts in the comments.

Bloom On Clippers, Olshey, Del Negro

August 18th, 2012 at 2:54pm CST by Sean Highkin

Earl Bloom of the Orange County Register has a new column that touches on the Clippers' offseason following the departure of GM Neil Olshey.

Bloom believes the loss of Olshey isn't as big a blow for the future of the Clippers as it had been made out to be, praising the job Vinny Del Negro, Andy Roeser, and Gary Sacks have done in his place.
The veteran pieces the Clippers have brought in this offseason, including Jamal Crawford, Willie Green, Grant Hill, Lamar Odom, Ryan Hollins, and Ronny Turiaf, could prove to be very valuable, writes Bloom.
Bloom would not be surprised if one of Del Negro, Roeser, or Sacks succeeds Olshey as general manager, pointing to the fact that Mike Dunleavy previously pulled coach/GM double duty for the Clippers.

Contract Details: Novak, Green, Miller, Thompson

July 16th, 2012 at 4:19pm CST by Luke Adams

While most players' contracts include annual raises, or at the very least, identical annual salaries, Steve Novak's new contract with the Knicks is a little different, as Mark Deeks of ShamSports explains (Twitter link). Novak's deal starts at a little over $4MM, dips to below $3.5MM by 2014/15, then rises back up to $3.75MM for 2015/16. The unusual structure of the deal provides the Knicks a small amount of savings in the years when the rest of the team's roster will get extremely expensive.

Deeks shared a number of other contract details from around the league, via Twitter, so let's round them up….

The Spurs' deal with Danny Green is for three fully-guaranteed years and $11,287,500, with no options.
Andre Miller will earn $5MM in each of the next two seasons with the Nuggets. The third year of his deal is partially guaranteed for $2MM of $4.625MM.

Earlier updates:

Jason Thompson's five-year deal with the Kings is worth $30,187,500, though year five is only partially guaranteed for $2.65MM.
According to Deeks, the previously reported figures for Ersan Ilyasova are a little high — his deal with the Bucks is worth $40MM over five years. The first four years are guaranteed at $7.9MM each, then year five is partially guaranteed for just $400K of $8.4MM.
Jamal Crawford received the full mid-level for four years from the Clippers, but the final two years of the contract are only guaranteed for $1.5MM each.
Marcus Camby's contract with the Knicks, $13,151,319 over three years, descends in value, with just $1,025,890 of $4,177,208 guaranteed in the third season.
Every first-round pick to sign so far has received the full 120% of the rookie scale.
DeShawn Stevenson will earn $2,240,450 in each year of his three-year deal with the Hawks, though only the first season is guaranteed.
Kyle Singler's fully-guaranteed deal with the Pistons is worth $3,135,000 over three years, with no options, while Victor Claver's deal with the Trail Blazers is also fully guaranteed and will pay him $4MM over three years.
Jason Kidd (Knicks; three years, $9.09MM), Ian Mahinmi (Pacers; four years, $16MM), and Gerald Green (Pacers; three years, $10.5MM) all received fully-guaranteed contracts with no option years.
The Nets' agreement with Reggie Evans is worth $5,086,905 over three years, and is fully guaranteed.
Hasheem Thabeet's contract with the Thunder appears to be for more than the minimum salary. Deeks pegs the value at three years and $3.65MM, though only the first year and $500K of year two are guaranteed. Oklahoma City will be using either a portion of their mid-level or bi-annual exception for that deal.
I would guess Thabeet's deal will come out of the MLE, since the Thunder are also using a portion of the mid-level on Hollis Thompson, who signed a three-year minimum-salary contract. Only $75K is guaranteed, however.
Doron Lamb received a three-year, minimum-salary deal from the Bucks, with the third year nonguaranteed.

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Clippers Sign Jamal Crawford, Chauncey Billups

July 13th, 2012 at 3:55pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 13TH, 3:55pm: The Clippers have officially signed Billups, according to a release from the team.

JULY 11TH, 5:25pm: The Clippers have officially signed Crawford, reports Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link).

JULY 5TH, 2:36pm: ESPN.com's Chad Ford (Twitter link) confirms that the Clippers can't be paid more than about $21.3MM with the mid-level exception, even if the deal includes unlikely incentives. So something has to give here. If the Clips hope to pay Crawford more than that amount, it seems they'd need a sign-and-trade.

2:05pm: The third and fourth years of Crawford's contract only include "small" amounts of guaranteed money, according to SI.com's Sam Amick (via Twitter).

1:22pm: Crawford's deal with the Clippers will be for four years and up to $25MM, according to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld says it'll be $24MM. Either way, that's larger than the maximum mid-level deal (about $21MM), so it seems there will be a few million dollars in unlikely incentives.

12:57pm: Jamal Crawford and Chauncey Billups have agreed to sign with the Clippers, according to Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times. The agreements with the two guards will take the Clips out of the running for Ray Allen, says Turner.

Crawford, who opted out of his contract with the Blazers, is expected to sign a three-year deal for about $15.67MM. Billups, meanwhile, will likely sign a one-year deal that could pay him up to $4.3MM if he reaches certain incentives. Crawford's deal figures to use up the Clippers' full $5MM mid-level exception, while the team was able to to over the cap to re-sign Billups using his Bird Rights.

Billups' deal is good news for Chris Paul, who said last week that he considered bringing back Chauncey his "top priority" this offseason. Crawford will give the Clips the shooter they lacked for much of last season — before agreeing with L.A., he also considered the Timberwolves, Sixers, Grizzlies, and Suns.

The Clippers had been scheduled to meet with Allen on Friday, but cancelled the visit after reaching deals with Crawford and Billups. The pair of agreements also almost certainly means that Nick Young won't be re-signing with Los Angeles.

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Latest On Ray Allen

July 6th, 2012 at 2:47pm CST by Luke Adams

2:47pm: Allen left Miami without giving the Heat an answer on their offer and is "torn" on whether to leave the Celtics, says Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com. TNT's David Aldridge adds (via Twitter) that the Grizzlies and Timberwolves are still options, though Allen doesn't have plans to visit either team. I'd guess his decision comes down to Miami and Boston.

FRIDAY, 1:54pm: The Timberwolves are the "dark-horse" in the chase for Allen, tweets Ric Bucher of ESPN.com. As Bucher acknowledges though, Minnesota is an extreme long shot.

Clippers Rumors: Crawford, Allen, Billups, Hollins

July 4th, 2012 at 8:02am CST by Luke Adams

The Clippers had a "positive meeting" with Jamal Crawford in Los Angeles and made the former Blazer a contract offer, according to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). Crawford is still considering a handful of other teams, however, including the Timberwolves, 76ers, Grizzlies, and Suns. Here are a few more Wednesday morning Clippers items: