Lance Stephenson Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Clippers Gauge Interest In Stephenson, Smith?

December 9th, 2015 at 7:56am CST by Chuck Myron

WEDNESDAY, 7:56am: Rivers denies that he’s reached out to anyone about Stephenson and Smith. The coach/executive addressed the issue in an appearance on “The Fred Roggin Show” on The Beast 980 radio in Los Angeles.

“Not true,” Rivers said of the initial report. “It’s amazing how silly this stuff is. I don’t comment on it much obviously but I can tell you, I think I’m the president of basketball and I’ve yet to have a conversation with any team about anyone right now. These reports come out and there’s nothing you can do about it.

An NBA executive told Ben Bolch of the Los Angeles Times that the Clippers indeed placed calls about Stephenson and Smith but that they were exploratory and routine for this time of year (Twitter link).

TUESDAY, 8:30am: The Clippers measured the trade market for Lance Stephenson and Josh Smith last month, league sources told Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports, but they’ve withdrawn from that effort more recently amid a spate of injuries, Spears adds. The team doesn’t have anyone on its injury report currently, but it’s unclear if trade talks will resume. Spears also suggests the Clippers remain open to trading Jamal Crawford, a frequent subject of trade rumors in the offseason, though coach/executive Doc Rivers said in September that he’d be “very surprised” if Crawford doesn’t remain a Clipper throughout the season. Smith becomes eligible for inclusion in trades a week from today, while Stephenson and Crawford are already trade-eligible.

Two NBA executives indicated to Spears that the Clippers probably found a weak market for the pair. One exec suggested that the two are more likely to work buyouts than end up in trades, further speculating that Stephenson ends up back on the Pacers, his original team. The other executive who spoke with Spears alleged that Stephenson and Smith have negatively affected team chemistry in L.A. Smith recently shouted back and forth with assistant coach Mike Woodson following a loss, Spears reports. The second executive also said he believes it’ll be tough for the Clippers to find trade partners for either Smith or Stephenson since few had interest in either before they joined the team, Spears adds.

Still, the Kings, Mavs and Rockets were reportedly interested in signing Smith as a free agent this past summer, when he took a discount and joined the Clippers on a one-year, minimum-salary deal. The Nets apparently talked about trading for Stephenson on two different occasions last season, when he was with the Hornets, and the Heat were apparently among the teams with interest last year, too. It’s unclear if those teams were still eyeing him when the Clippers struck a deal to acquire him in June. He’s making $9MM this season and has a $9.405MM team option for next season.

What teams do you think would be strong fits for Stephenson, Smith and Crawford? Leave a comment to share your thoughts.

Western Notes: Stephenson, Chalmers, Kanter

November 14th, 2015 at 9:55pm CST by Arthur Hill

Clippers coach Doc Rivers cautions not to read too much into Lance Stephenson‘s brief cameo during today’s win over the Pistons, writes Justin Verrier of ESPN.com. Even with Chris Paul and J.J. Redick sitting out with injuries, Stephenson saw the court for just 1 minute and 42 seconds. Rivers said it was a “spacing” issue and he wasn’t convinced that Stephenson was “ready” during his brief appearance. Stephenson was dealt to L.A. in June after a disappointing season in Charlotte. He had started the Clippers’ first nine games, averaging 6.2 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists. Rivers said Stephenson handled today’s demotion well. “Lance has been great,” Rivers said. “He’s been in great spirit. He really has. Obviously, he wants to play. We want to play him. And tonight we chose not to. I thought he was the pro’s pro.”

There’s more news from the Western Conference:

Mario Chalmers came to the Grizzlies in a bad mood, according to Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal. After seven seasons in Miami, the Heat traded Chalmers to Memphis this week in a deal aimed at reducing their luxury tax payment. Chalmers is upset about being involved in trade rumors all summer, then having his playing time cut to 20 minutes per game this season. “I’m definitely playing with a chip on my shoulder, especially with the way everything went down in Miami,” he said. “I’m just licking my chops at this new opportunity and I’m ready to help the Grizzlies start winning.”
After matching Enes Kanter‘s hefty offer from the Blazers, the Thunder are happy with the early returns, writes Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman. Even though Kanter is being used as a backup, he’s justifying his four-year, $70MM deal with some impressive rebounding numbers. Kanter ranks sixth in the league in offensive rebounds and is third in rebounds per 48 minutes. He also provides scoring punch. With 27.5 points per 48 minutes, he trails just Jahlil Okafor and Brook Lopez among centers.
The Spurs recalled forward Jonathon Simmons from their D-League team in Austin today. He made his first appearance of the season in tonight’s game against the Sixers.

And-Ones: Morris, Stephenson, D-League, Stretch

October 30th, 2015 at 8:58am CST by Chuck Myron

Markieff Morris didn’t have a lot to say when asked about playing apart from his brother, notes Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. Morris seemingly vacated an offseason trade demand when he arrived at Suns camp in September, nearly three months after Phoenix irked him with the trade that sent his twin to Detroit.

“It is what it is. He’s at work. I’m at work. Same thing,” Morris said.

He also expressed no surprise that Marcus Morris is off to a strong start with the Pistons, Coro notes. See more from around the league:

Lance Stephenson has pleasantly surprised the Clippers so far, unexpectedly winning a starting job and rewarding the team for its extra diligence during the vetting process for the trade that brought him to L.A., as USA Today’s Sam Amick details. Clippers GM Dave Wohl made 61 calls to people who know Stephenson instead of the standard 20, according to Amick. “I don’t think we’ve ever made more [background] calls for a player in my life,” Clippers coach and president of basketball operations Doc Rivers said before Thursday’s game. “We had to make sure, but I’ve got to tell you that I’m really excited.”
Cartier Martin, whom the Pistons waived last week despite a fully guaranteed salary of nearly $1.271MM, and eight-year NBA veteran Ronnie Brewer are among the players signing D-League contracts that will funnel them to Saturday’s D-League draft, league sources tell Adam Johnson of D-League Digest (Twitter links). In Martin’s case, that means the Pistons elected not to claim his D-League rights. Hornets camp cut Sam Thompson is also signing with the D-League and heading to the D-League draft, a source tells Chris Reichert of Upside & Motor (Twitter link). Charlotte won’t have an affiliate until next year and thus couldn’t claim his rights.
The use of the stretch provision is down this year after a surge in 2014, but a Western Conference GM who spoke with Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com believes that over time, teams will more frequently use the mechanism to spread out the payment schedule for money owed to players. “The stretch provision was something that was really being underutilized until pretty recently. I don’t think some teams understood how it could be used as a benefit,” the GM said. “I think we’ll see it more in the future because with the salary cap going up, it will be easier to fit into your planning.”

And-Ones: Popovich, Stephenson, Schröder

October 21st, 2015 at 8:59am CST by Chuck Myron

NBA coaches would like to see one of their own succeed Mike Krzyzewski as Team USA coach after he steps away following the 2016 Olympics, and Gregg Popovich is the No. 1 choice for that gig, a coaching source tells Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. Rick Carlisle appears to have a shot, too, and University of Kentucky coach John Calipari has a strong desire for the job, Berger also hears. See more from around basketball:

Lance Stephenson first targeted his hometown Nets when he found out the Hornets were exploring the idea of trading him last season, but he’s excited about his opportunity with the Clippers, as he tells Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports.
Dennis Schröder‘s rookie scale contract runs through 2016/17, and he likes playing in Atlanta, but he tells Sport Bild magazine that he wants to start and will look elsewhere if the Hawks don’t give him an opportunity, as Sport1.de relays (hat tip to Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia, and special thanks to Alan Maimon for the translation). “My goal is the starting job,” Schröder said. “If there’s no progress next season, then I’ll have to talk to my people and explore other possibilities.”
Players on NBA rosters last season have begun receiving checks related to a leaguewide salary shortfall, reports Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today. The NBA is obligated to distribute $57,298,826, the difference between total team salaries and the 50.39% of basketball-related income that the collective bargaining agreement mandates the players are entitled to. So, players who were on a team’s active or inactive list for 41 or more games get $124,023, while those on one of those lists for 20-40 games see $62,011, and players on one of those lists for one to 19 games receive $31,005, as Zillgitt details.
Amerileague president Jonathan Jordan has resigned and some agents have their expressed their doubts about the viability of the startup minor league, as Adam Johnson of D-League Digest details in a pair of pieces. Marcus Bass, the league’s director of basketball operations, tells Johnson that concerns are “getting a little overblown,” pledged to maintain a consistent flow of information, and said the league’s draft will go forward as planned Thursday.

California Notes: Stephenson, Hibbert, Warriors

October 12th, 2015 at 12:56pm CST by Chuck Myron

Many around the league believe the Lakers can quickly return to the NBA elite, with one executive telling Baxter Holmes of ESPNLosAngeles.com that they’re just “one big deal” from a favorable position. Still, Holmes heard pessimism from many others, including an agent who called them “hopeless” and “the West Coast Knicks,” and those who had pointed criticism for Mitch Kupchak, Nick Young and especially Byron Scott. Legendary Laker Shaquille O’Neal, now a Kings part-owner, pointed to the roster as a whole.

“They need to do the same thing Sacramento did — get new players,” O’Neal said to Holmes.

Little can be done about the top of the roster this time of the year, but the Lakers and other Pacific rivals face multiple decisions about how to fill out their bench, as I examined earlier. See more from California’s NBA teams:

Clippers trade acquisition Lance Stephenson believes Doc Rivers and the Clippers are giving him a better chance at success than he had in Charlotte, where he didn’t feel the team used him properly last season, as he tells Dan Woike of The Orange County Register. “I was just sitting in the corner. That’s not trying to be a star. A star normally gets the ball,” Stephenson said.
Roy Hibbert, set for free agency at season’s end, has impressed in his first action since the offseason trade that took him to the Lakers, observes fellow Orange County Register scribe Bill Oram. “He’s been absolutely solid,” Kobe Bryant said of Hibbert. “Defensively he’s been great. Offensively he’s been great and he’s another great passer on this team. We look forward to playing off him a lot.”
The Warriors purchased the land for their new privately funded arena in San Francisco, the team announced. The purchase price wasn’t disclosed, but team indicated the entire project will cost in excess of $1 billion. “We’ve been the Bay Area’s team for more than 50 years, and this plan keeps us in the Bay Area for the next 50 and beyond,” Warriors president and COO Rick Welts said. “If there were any lingering doubts about our commitment to Mission Bay, purchasing this land should put them to rest. We love this neighborhood – nobody else is getting this land.”

Western Notes: Thunder, Booker, Stephenson

October 5th, 2015 at 10:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Center Steven Adams and shooting guard Andre Roberson are working with the Thunder’s first unit, Anthony Slater of NewsOK.com reports. That puts two other prominent players, center Enes Kanter and shooting guard Dion Waiters, on the team’s second unit, Slater continues. New head coach Billy Donovan confirms that it’s no accident Adams and Roberson are playing alongside Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka in training camp practices and scrimmages, Slater adds.

In other news around the Western Conference:

Rookie Devin Booker has shown maturity beyond his age in the early stages of the Suns’ training camp, according to Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. “The kid knows how to play,” Suns coach Jeff Hornacek told Coro. “Most of the time defensively, he’s in the right spot. Offensively, he makes the little plays. Eighteen-year-olds sometimes get sped up and the game comes at them fast and the speed of these pro guys is a big adjustment for them. But when you watch him play, he’s in control.” Booker, the No. 13 overall pick from Kentucky, is battling Sonny Weems and Archie Goodwin for the backup shooting guard spot, Coro adds.
Lance Stephenson is off to a slow start with the Clippers, Ben Bolch of the Los Angeles Times reports. Stephenson went scoreless Sunday during the Clippers’ 93-73 exhibition loss to the Raptors and has made two of 14 shots in two games. The second unit has no chemistry right now and that’s part of the problem, Bolch adds. “We’re struggling right now and we’re just getting to know each other and get in a groove,” Stephenson said to the team’s beat reporters. “I just have to take it slow, figure out my place and we all will figure out each other and I think everything will fall in place.”
Mavericks forward Chandler Parsons is entering a pivotal season in his career, Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News opines. Sefko believes that Parsons must show that he’s capable of making his teammates better as well as himself. Parsons will either take that step forward or settle in as a 15-point, 5-rebound role player, Sefko adds, with Parsons’ health being the determining factor. Parsons underwent a microfracture procedure on his right knee during the offseason.

Clippers Notes: Rivers, Stephenson, Smith

September 30th, 2015 at 1:39pm CST by Chuck Myron

The specter of the Donald Sterling saga hurt the Clippers in free agency last summer, Doc Rivers says, but after this past offseason, one in which Rivers had owner Steve Ballmer behind him, the onus is on Rivers the coach to deliver on what Rivers the executive set up, writes Helene Elliott of the Los Angeles Times.

“The first summer was tough. We didn’t have an owner in place. Recruiting was near-impossible,” Rivers said. “You go in and talk to free agents and their agent would say, ‘Well, we don’t even know who’s going to own your team. Why would we commit to you guys?’ That was a hard summer for us.”

Ballmer’s riches didn’t play too much of a role this year, since Paul Pierce taxpayer’s mid-level exception deal was the only outside signing for more than the minimum that salary cap rules allowed the Clippers to make, but Rivers also made noise via trade, as we examine more closely amid the latest on the Clips:

Rivers still held out hope that his Spencer Hawes signing from 2014 would pan out and didn’t want to mess with his team’s strong play at the time when he passed on a deal that would have brought in Lance Stephenson midway through last season, according to Dan Woike of the Orange County Register. Rivers ultimately traded Hawes in this summer’s deal for Stephenson.
Clippers offseason signee Josh Smith is enthusiastic about what Stephenson can do for the team, calling him a “walking triple-double” who was simply misplaced in Charlotte, as Woike notes in the same piece. “I think it was the wrong fit,” Smith said of Stephenson on the Hornets. “It’s all about a player being comfortable and happy in a situation. Me in Detroit, it was kind of a similar situation. I think he looks at this as a breath of fresh air.”
The Clippers were the first team to contact Smith in free agency this summer, and that helped impress upon him that the Clippers wanted him more than the Rockets, who also made an offer, Smith said, according to Rowan Kavner of Clippers.com. Persistence from GM Dave Wohl also paid dividends, according to Rivers. “I give Dave credit,” Rivers said. “He didn’t stop. He called every single day, like 21 days in a row. He kept calling, and Josh called Dave and said, ‘I’m coming.’ Then Dave called me. That’s how we got the news. I just think the opportunity, he looked at our team and what we had, and I think that’s what sold him.”

And-Ones: Morris, Richardson, Draft

August 19th, 2015 at 9:33pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Darius Morris, who was waived by the Nets at the end of June, has received contract offers from NBA teams and clubs overseas, but thanks to a foot injury suffered during training, he’ll be out of action for a few months, Morris’ agent, Brian Dyke, told international journalist David Pick (Twitter link). The 24-year-old made 38 appearances for Brooklyn during the 2014/15 campaign, logging averages of 2.2 points, 0.7 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 7.9 minutes per contest.

Here’s more from around the league:

Joel Brigham of Basketball Insiders tabs new L.A. arrivals Roy Hibbert and Lance Stephenson as two of six players who appear likely to benefit from having changed teams this summer.
Jason Richardson‘s deal with the Hawks is a one-year minimum-salary arrangement and is without any guaranteed money, reports Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). It has limited injury protection, Pincus also says, so it appears to be an Exhibit 9 contract. Richardson will see $1,499,187 if he sticks for the entire season, but since the deal only covers one season, it would cost the Hawks no more than $947,276, the equivalent of the two-year veteran’s minimum. The league picks up the rest of the tab.
Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress peered into his crystal ball and released his first mock draft for 2017’s big event. The current top three players on Givony’s draft board are forwards Harry Giles and Jayson Tatum, with point guard Dennis Smith rounding out the top-ranked trio.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Pacific Notes: Lee, Stephenson, Pierce

July 23rd, 2015 at 8:15pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Celtics agreed to take David Lee from the Warriors in exchange for Gerald Wallace more than two weeks ago, but the move has still yet to officially take place. That should change by Monday, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com hears (Twitter link), and the Celtics sent a press release detailing an introduction of “offseason additions” scheduled for that day. While we continue to wait for the formal trade, here’s more from around the Pacific Division:

Duje Dukan‘s deal with the Kings is for two years, with the first season being fully guaranteed and year two carrying a partial guarantee, Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com tweets.
Clippers swingman Lance Stephenson said that nagging injuries and his game being too similar to Kemba Walker‘s were contributing factors to his down season with the Hornets last year, and led to him being dealt to Los Angeles, Jared Zwerling of BleacherReport writes. When asked why he was traded, Stephenson told Zwerling, “It just didn’t work. I felt like me and Kemba do the same type of stuff, and it just didn’t click. Kemba is like a smaller me. He dominates the ball and he’s a playmaker. And then my jump shot wasn’t falling, so it was a tough season. I had toe and groin injuries. I’m telling you, this was worse than my rookie year when I didn’t even play. I was really mentally down. I was trying everything to try to figure out what I can do to help this squad.“
Veteran forward Paul Pierce said he chose to sign with the Clippers because he wanted another shot at winning a title, and wants to end his career playing in Los Angeles, Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post relays. “I’m at the point in my career where it’s winding down,” said Pierce. “I see the light at the end of the tunnel. I wanted another opportunity to win a championship. I thought just being here would be a great fit. I’m a veteran. I could be another voice in the locker room and I can just pretty much fill any role that they need me to play. If I didn’t think the Clippers were close then, no matter home or not, I probably wouldn’t have made this decision. “

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Clippers Explore Potential Jamal Crawford Trades

June 22nd, 2015 at 4:33pm CST by Chuck Myron

MONDAY, 4:33pm: Chandler is indeed an object of the Clippers’ interest, Markazi clarifies via Twitter. He’s on a lengthy list of Clippers small forward targets that includes soon-to-be free agents Pierce, Mike Dunleavy and Al-Farouq Aminu, according to Dan Woike of the Orange County Register (Twitter link).

THURSDAY, 12:10pm: The Clippers are investigating the possibility of trading Jamal Crawford, sources tell Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com, who writes amid a story about the impact of Monday trade acquisition Lance Stephenson. One option would be to trade Crawford and C.J. Wilcox to the Nuggets for Wilson Chandler, according to Markazi, though it’s unclear from the report which side, if either, has interest in such a deal.

Crawford’s salary of $5.675MM is only guaranteed for $1.5MM if he’s waived by the end of June 30th, though he remains a productive player who doesn’t seem like a candidate for a purely salary-clearing move. Still, the arrival of Stephenson, who plays Crawford’s positions, would appear to give L.A. less of a need for the two-time Sixth Man of the Year award winner.

Clippers coach/executive Doc Rivers told Fred Roggin of The Beat 980 this week that he’s looking for a starting small forward to replace Matt Barnes, whom the team sent out in the Stephenson trade, as Ben Bolch of the Los Angeles Times relayed via Twitter. The team is reportedly interested in Paul Pierce should he opt out from the Wizards. Chandler, who’ll make nearly $7.172MM on an expiring contract next season after the Nuggets let his partial guarantee date pass this spring, would probably fit that bill, too, though this past season was only the second in his eight-year NBA career in which he started at least 70 games.

Crawford switched agents recently, joining the Wasserman Media Group, and while his contract runs through next season, it’s perhaps a sign that he anticipated change in the nearer future. Wilcox, last year’s 28th overall pick, saw only 101 total minutes this past season, and while he has a guaranteed salary of nearly $1.16MM coming his way for 2015/16, a decision is due by October 31st on the $1.2MM-plus third-year team option attached to his rookie scale contract.