The Clippers currently hold their mid-level exception, as well as a traded player exception worth between $7-8M. Clipperblog spoke to a source inside the Clippers organization who offered the following:
- The Clippers are in no hurry to use their trade exception. They feel that the exception will only increase in value between now and the trade deadline. “If there’s a great value out there this summer, that’s one thing,” said the source. “But there’s a much better chance of our picking up a very good piece down the road closer to the trading deadline, as teams get squeezed by the tax, or fall out of [playoff contention].”
- The team likes the progress Mike Taylor is making, but wants to find a prototypical point guard this offseason to backup Baron Davis, considering Baron’s injury history. “We’re really happy with Mike as a third guy right now,” the source said. “He’s doing all the right things, but it’s not something we’re ready to hang our hat on yet.”
- The Clippers recognize that depth on the perimeter remains their most pressing issue, particularly defensively. They see Mardy Collins as a versatile utility man who does nothing exceptionally, but a lot of different things fairly well. Q is regarded as a guy who can play the 2 or 3, and Ricky Davis as a big question mark because of the tendinitis in his knee. If the Clippers make a splash — an unlikely event — it will probably be at the 3.
- What about the Clippers’ MLE? The Clippers are putting out feelers, but are cautious. “Everyone has an inflated opinion of their value right now,” the source said, alluding to Shawn Marion’s rejection of a multi-year deal worth $8M/per from Toronto. The Clippers see the MLE as an opportunity to maneuver within the confines of the cap, but not as an excuse to pay a $3M player almost $6M/per. “If there’s someone who makes sense and is a value, sure. But right now, the market is unsettled.”
68 Responses
Bring on Grant Hill….A cheap vet that could bring some experience to the young core!!
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Q.D. Reply:
July 6th, 2009 at 8:45 pm
I like it but is he going to take a 2 year deal for the MLE
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andrew Reply:
July 6th, 2009 at 11:03 pm
hes going to the Celtics and if not another contender, def. not here.
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Posted on July 6th, 2009 at 7:40 pm
Get Matt Barnes on a 1-2 year deal. He’s the type of SF we could use, on the cheap.
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Sam K Reply:
July 6th, 2009 at 10:00 pm
Great call. Would love to see him backing up Thornton. I wonder how much he’ll command in the open market.
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kenji Reply:
July 6th, 2009 at 10:20 pm
i’d be happy to get matt barnes. i’d start him at the 3 spot because he can knock down the 3, and gives a strong effort on defense. he’s not a selfish player. thornton is better off as the 6th man to give a offensive spark off the bench.
there’s no way grant hill will go to clippers. he wants to contend for a title before he has to retire in a year or two.
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BoomDizzleisaCipp Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 10:19 am
exactly right kenji…barnes would be a great starter for us and thorton would be money off the bench for a scoring punch
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Posted on July 6th, 2009 at 9:54 pm
I wonder if we could convince Grant to come over.
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Posted on July 6th, 2009 at 9:58 pm
what if we sign shawn marion toa 1 year deal ? He’s obviously not getting too much attention and barley anyone has the space to give him more than the MLE. I would think he would rather just take less this year and bank on getting paid next year, where a lot more teams will have cap space and when all the stars are gone players like Marion will still be around.
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Posted on July 6th, 2009 at 11:05 pm
Go after Gerald Green. He can be had for cheap and still has plenty of potential since he’s still young.
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bootstrenf Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 8:15 am
if it’s defense we are after at the 3 spot, gerald green is the last player we need…..
thornton is no great defender, but he is still better than green…..
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BoomDizzleisaCipp Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 10:19 am
green is garbage…kid has ups but has no idea how to play the game
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kenji Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 2:08 pm
i agree green is garbage. the kid has had enough time to develop, but just hasn’t got it. he’s no more than a roster filler who you put in during garbage time. thats the only reason he has stats that make him look like a decent role player…he gets everything during garbage time when nobody on the floor is putting down effort either.
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Posted on July 7th, 2009 at 12:00 am
Im all for getting Marion now. We still got Camby as an ace in the hole come trade deadline and we may not even have to use both exceptions to get Marion.
Question is, would Marion play for us? I know he wants to win. But maybe he wants to just get paid.
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bootstrenf Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 12:52 pm
the clippers would be better off standing pat with thornton than acquiring marion….
we would undoubtedly overpay for his services, and he is an aging veteran on the wrong side of 30, with diminishing skills who absolutely doesn’t fit in dunleavy’s system…..
marion is no doubt better than thornton in almost every way, except in passing where they equally suck, but consider their prices…..
marion wants close to 10 million per, whereas thornton is still on his rookie contract……think cost/benfit ratio……
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bootstrenf Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 1:00 pm
and just to consider:
clipper fans are still celebrating the departure of zach randolph and his horrible contract…….this move gave the clippers a legitimate chance to sign a difference maker in 2010 FA bonanza…….
it would be like a kick in the nuts if they turned around and signed marion, effectively removing us from the 2010 FA class, ONCE AGAIN…….
i assume that marion wants around 9-10 million per year because he rejected a deal that would give him 8 million per year……
and if we were to pay him 10, then that would leave us with only 10 million in capspace for 2010……not nearly enough to sign a marquee name in 2010…..
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John Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 3:20 pm
I agree that we don’t need Marion. He had a Me-over-the-team attitude in Phoenix, and his production has fallen way off over the last couple of years. He would be a great rebounding and defensive addition, for a couple of years anyway, but like you said he’s never been a good passer, and he is not a good 3-point shooter, thus lacking the ability to stretch the floor.
If the Clips want to pick him up this year to stay competitive and have an outisde shot at 40 wins then fine…but don’t sign him to a multiyear deal.
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bongstradamus Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 3:23 pm
Im counting at least 17.5M to be used for FA’s next summer. I might be totally wrong, Im not an expert on all the financial mechanics. Im looking at the 10M from Cambys expiry, the 2.5M from Tricky Davis, then the two exceptions totaling close to 16M on their own. Assuming we play awesome ball this season and stay out of the lottery, we’ll get a rookie at around 800k next year. If we could work a sign and trade using one exception and Ricky Davis expiring deal we’re really only using about 2.5-3M in space to sign Marion to a 10M deal. We should offer him a 3 year, $30M deal with a team option for second and third year so we can weasel out of next year if we need to.
And the passing is a problem, i agree, but man the guy plays great D and knows how to board. He also calls out slackers, which I love. Hed be an asset to Blake and Eric. Even though his shot is uglier than my ex g/f, he still makes them pretty much at will and can finish on the break.
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Posted on July 7th, 2009 at 3:32 am
we should be going after marvin williams…..
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BoomDizzleisaClipp Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 10:21 am
good call, wonder what that would cost though…itd be interesting if we could make a big offer to him to force atlanta to match and then turn around and sign josh childress cus atlanta wouldn’t be able to afford him at that point…i think childress makes more sense than almost anyone for us
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bootstrenf Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 1:05 pm
ariza signed for 5 years/33 million, right?
how does williams compare to ariza?
i think that their cost should be very similar…..williams has a better pedigree because of his lottery selection, but in terms of performance, williams only had a slight statistical edge…..i’m really not sure what kind of money williams would command in today’s market…..
i am very open to suggestions…
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kenji Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 2:12 pm
i think marvin williams would command a higher price than he’s worth. i doubt he’s interesting in the MLE. but thats pretty much i’d be willing to give him. all the free agents that draw any attention have an inflated idea of what they’re worth. i still lobby for matt barnes. i think he will provide the most bang for the buck.
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VH Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 7:28 pm
marvin williams would be awesome. he is a player who has gotten better every year. we probably cant afford him but i think he would be a great fit.
bootstrenf Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 3:52 pm
i really wish we could’ve signed kelenna azuibuke when we had the chance…
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adadhs Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 6:35 pm
i agree
Posted on July 7th, 2009 at 8:28 am
This post says everything I like to hear…don’t throw money for the sake of throwing money…sounds like the Clips are going about things the right way at the moment.
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Posted on July 7th, 2009 at 8:43 am
Lets face it fellas, the Clippers are cheap! They aren’t going to spend that money, it’s going right into Sterlings pocket. If they were serious why not go after Mike Bibby? He was available and would be the perfect blend of experience and talent. Once again we get burned.
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Wow Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 12:27 pm
Bibby signed with Atlanta already and is regarded as the worst defensive starting PG in the NBA.
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SamMays Reply:
July 8th, 2009 at 8:22 am
Uh, that would be Baron.
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bootstrenf Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 12:41 pm
i know we need a backup at the 1 spot, but bibby?
we’d have to pay him too much money for him to be a backup and we couldn’t realistically play both baron and bibby in the backcourt…..
we need someone like tyron lue, or maybe even try to bring livingston back….
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Posted on July 7th, 2009 at 9:01 am
For once i am pleased with the Clippers brass keeping their hands in their pockets. Using the MLE for a player like Bibby(3yr 18m) is silly. when it doesnt even fit a need. I think once the everything settles down its possible we may get a backup PG for the vet min, but it wont be a name worth getting excited about
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TNT57 Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 12:50 pm
I’ll remind you when we end up with Jason Hart again. I hope you’re right.
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Posted on July 7th, 2009 at 9:45 am
The Clippers are in no need to change their starters right now which is why they should hold tight on the trade exemption until he trade dead-line at least. James Singleton can be had for cheaper than the MLE and could be a defensive spark off the bench at the 3 if Thorton is getting burned. He always played with so much energy and heart and was a great addition to the bench and locker room mentality and I would love to see him back, on the cheap of course.
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jon y Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 10:07 am
james singleton returning would be a dream come true, but i really doubt it could happen given his beef with dunleavy.
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BoomDizzleisaClipp Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 10:23 am
you know i liked him alot when he was on the clippers…but last year on the mavericks he failed to impress me much…i think all these past years barely getting any run has hurt his confidence a little, he still hustles his butt off but he can’t shoot a lick anymore
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Chris. Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 10:33 am
fortunately we don’t need the best shooter at the 3, we need a defensive hustler. think of singleton as a lesser rodman, hustler with not so great of scoring (yes, not as good defense or rebounding at all, but for cheap).
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Lawler's Law Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 10:21 pm
uh it could be his reconstructed ACL…tore it in Italy before signing with the Mavs last season.
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Posted on July 7th, 2009 at 9:57 am
I agree with the source’s take on the current roster and the approach going forward. Josh Childress?
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BoomDizzleisaClipp Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 10:24 am
j child would be number one on my wish list right now if i were the dunce
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Ian Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 6:15 pm
Agreed! I’d take either Barnes or Childress. Only thing is…. J.C is getting paid pretty well right now.
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Clipper Speakeasy Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 6:47 pm
Childress’ Olympiakos contract is for $20M over 3 years, of which he has played 1, and he can opt-out after each season. Of course, Childress could opt-in to the 2nd year of his contract with Olympiakos, but if he’s making a trip to see the Bucks, as he already did, he has to be at least exploring the idea of coming back. Maybe the rioting bothered him more than he let on in his public comments. If he took the full MLE, he’d be making less in season 1 here than he would if he stayed in Greece. FWIW, Chad Ford says Childress is looking for $4M-$6M per year, which the Clips could do.
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Posted on July 7th, 2009 at 9:58 am
off topic sorta, but if we do nothing and have more than max to offer players in the summer of 2010, who do you think the Clips should go for?
I’m liking Joe Johnson at the 3, but think Battier could be a better glue guy fit for less money at the 3. I don’t think Lebron or Wayde or those superstars are coming to Clipperland so I did not even going there (but who knows, if we surprise this year maybe they do). Just curious as to what others think of next summer’s FA targets for the Clips?
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Posted on July 7th, 2009 at 10:44 am
how about anthony parker for half the MLE? he’s a team player that started parts of last year and has played the 1,2, and 3. he provides a lot of the same things as childress but will be cheaper, imo.
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Posted on July 7th, 2009 at 11:01 am
None of it is going to matter without a quarterback to run the show. Baron can figure to miss at least a third of the season with injuries and then what? What good are Singleton and Childress and Battier going to do us without a seasoned floor general? I think this is going to be a disaster unless some type of crazy trade gets done. Did anybody see Livingston’s injury happen?? I was there. He will never come all the way back. Andre Miller is out there but I’d rather have one of the Clipper girls than that malcontent. I guess time will tell.
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Clipper Speakeasy Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 1:27 pm
Aside from Andre Miller, a quick scan of currently available free agent pgs: (1) R. Felton (restricted); (2) R. Sessions (restricted); (3) J. Jack (restricted); (4) S. Marbury; (5) D. Jones; (6) Flip Murray; and (7) T. Lue. There are probably others I missed. Felton, Sessions or Jack would fit the bill, but would probably take the entire MLE, if not more, to get one of them because they are all restricted. I’m not interested in any of the unrestricted names I listed.
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bongstradamus Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 3:40 pm
Of that list, the only guy I would target would be Ramon Sessions. Flip is old, Raymond is inconsistant, Jarret wont be leaving Orlando if Otis Smith has anything to say (and especially since they traded Rafer Alston), Marbury is about as appealing as leukemia, im assuming youre talking about Damon Jones, and, no thanks.
Sessions has the best upside for his price range.
Rubio is still on the fence in Minnesota too. I’d be trying to trade with Minny for one of the point guards they drafted. We have so many options available to us in trading right now and getting a young guy that can grow with our core is probably where the focus should be.
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bongstradamus Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 3:42 pm
Brain Fart: I just realized Jarret Jack is a Pacer not a Magic, but i remember Larry saying he wants to keep him.
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Clipper Speakeasy Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 4:24 pm
Not sure any of the restricted guys are obtainable without overpaying, as each of their clubs is on record as wanting to keep them. I agree that Sessions is the most attractive. Felton isn’t much of a shooter, but he’s a good distributor and would seem to fit the “prototypical point guard” that the source references, albeit at a higher price than Sessions. Jack is really more of a combo guard than a pure point.
How realistic is trading with Minnesota – what do we have that they would want? There’s a post up on Truehoop speaking with Kahn, Minnesota’s GM, doesn’t seem too eager to trade Rubio or Flynn.
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RL Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 6:25 pm
What’s wrong with having Mike Taylor as the 2nd stringer? We need to give the kid a chance to blossom. If he fails, we can still plug in Mardy Collins at the PG… which he played very well last year considering the circumstances.
I think the Clippers are playing their cards right. Sit tight, and let the NBA free agency play out. The only move I’d consider now is to bolster the 3 spot – I love Al, but he’s no starter. Portland’s loaded at the 3 and they are ironically trying to land a big name for the 3 (Turkoglu, Lee, Odom, etc)… so that means either Batum, Outlaw, Fernandez or Webster is out. I do hope it’s Fernandez… he has all star potential, IMO, and would fit the Clippers run-n-gun style very well (that is, of course, assuming that Dunleavy the Coach can figure out the team created by Dunleavy the GM is meant for the run-n-gun style).
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Clipper Speakeasy Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 6:54 pm
I like Taylor too, but Kevin’s source says the Clips aren’t comfortable with him as the backup point. And it appears they are counting on Mardy to be a jack of all trades guy who can fill-in as needed, but not as backup point. Kevin’s source also seems to indicate there are low expectations for Q-Rich and Ricky Davis making meaningful contributions, making Mardy needed more at the 2 and 3 spots. Hence, the discussion of who else could be brought in to backup Baron.
Fernandez would be great if he becomes available.
RL Reply:
July 8th, 2009 at 12:11 am
Bah humbug to his source!
SamMays Reply:
July 8th, 2009 at 8:28 am
Taylor just isn’t a PG despite the fact that he’s small and quick. His whole mentality is about him scoring… He just doesn’t see the floor or pass the ball like a PG should… And we already have Baron to dominate the ball and make bad decisions. We don’t need his backup to play the same way.
Get a real, solid, distributor to back him up.
bongstradamus Reply:
July 8th, 2009 at 5:05 pm
I love the energy Mike brings too, but I see the same things Sam sees. I want to see more Stockton, less Starbury.
Posted on July 7th, 2009 at 12:57 pm
Would you guys take the chance on signing someone like Childress ever though it means losing money in next years free agent bonanza? It only makes sense to sign Childress if we’re willing to make other moves for the long term. We’ve got great expiring contracts in Q-Rich and Camby, and if we’re willing to sign Childress we should be willing to move the expiring contracts.
Bibby signing today with the Hawks and the Hawks trading for Crawford probably makes it less likely that the Hawks would match us offering a MLE deal. We could offer a deal to Childress and if the Hawks match it we turn around and offer the same deal to Marvin Williams. I doubt they match both of those deals.
We could also go the cheap way and just sign Barnes to a 1 year deal for a portion of the MLE. We then use the TPE on someone like Ridnour to fill the backup PG roll. Both of these deals keep us 2010 friendly.
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Clipper Speakeasy Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 3:03 pm
Yes, I would take Childress over having max cap space in 2010. Wade and Lebron aren’t coming to the Clips. Rather than overpay for Joe Johnson in 2010, I’d rather see the Clips add a younger guy like Childress and stay flexible to make other moves as needed.
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Posted on July 7th, 2009 at 2:15 pm
What would you guys think of getting Earl Watson (led the league in assists off the bench) and one of the Thunder’s two 2010 first round picks for Camby?
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Posted on July 7th, 2009 at 2:43 pm
i would actually welcome this move….
although the thunder have talent, i don;t think they have the experience to make the playoffs next year…..which means they will be in the lottery…..
if the thunder’s 2010 first rounder is unprotected, then i would go ahead with that trade……including our own pick and possibly minnesota’s pick, we could have up to 3 first round picks in a fairly deep draft……
the more chances at john wall, the better……even if we miss out on wall, there are plenty of bigmen in the draft that could round out our froncourt….favors, cousins, davis…….
the trade would also be perfect for the thunder…..it would give them a great veteran presence who still plays great defense and rebounds at their position of weakness……
this would be a trade that could benfit both teams…
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Wow Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 4:41 pm
HAHAHA… you really think the thunder would give up an unprotected top 10 pick for marcus camby and his expiring deal? You must be nuts!
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bootstrenf Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 4:45 pm
i’m not the one who proposed this idea…..it was steveH above me…..
i’m just on record to say that i would like this trade if were to happen….
but personally, i do not think that the thunder would go fot it…
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Ian Reply:
July 7th, 2009 at 6:19 pm
No man, i have a better idea. Let’s offer Camby for Lebron James and the Cav’s unprotected 1st round pick. We’ll throw in Mardy Collins’s contract to make the numbers work. What do you think guys?
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Posted on July 7th, 2009 at 4:05 pm
So, all this talk sets up one reality…WHICH BARON DAVIS WILL SHOW UP THIS YEAR? Going through the motions this guy was something like 5th in assists last season. If he can become a pass first, Jason Kidd type player we might have a chance. If he continues to go 4 for 22 every night we’re cooked.
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Posted on July 7th, 2009 at 4:53 pm
With all the talk of marion, why not throw some money at lamar odom or find a way to get battier. I’m suprised no one is talking about odom, hell be able to get 9mil at most(likely more in the range that marion wants) Last season Raymond Felton averaged 6.7 to 2.8(assist to turnover) playing 38minutes without missing a game so hes someone to think about, especially since he’s better playing up tempo, something he cant do with the lowest scoring theam in the league.
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bongstradamus Reply:
July 8th, 2009 at 7:06 pm
Id love to see Lamar come back, but he had such a terrible experience that he begged the team not to match his deal with Miami. I dont see him wanting to sign, especially after just winning a championship. But i still have irrational feelings watching him play just because he was a Clipper, somewhere in my house I have a Lamar Odom rookie poster rolled up and a #7 jersey in the bottom of some drawer.
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Posted on July 7th, 2009 at 7:02 pm
do we have the money to offer two max deals in 2010? if we are savvy with the exceptions we would have a better young core than new york.
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bootstrenf Reply:
July 8th, 2009 at 9:18 am
funny you mention that….
with a few smart moves, i think we may be able to free up enough space for two max contracts……
imagine our sales pitch to either lebron or wade…..
“hey, how would you like to win 5 chips in the next 10 years playing alongside ________(wade or lebron)”
“you mean you can sign both of us????”
“it’s already being worked”
“where do i sign???”
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Posted on July 7th, 2009 at 7:35 pm
Suns declined to extend Barnes , Maybe take a look at him. He hustles and can knock down the occasional three.
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Posted on July 8th, 2009 at 7:25 am
Matt Barnes??? Why is anyone mentioning Matt Barnes the guy only managed 10ppg and 5rpg…playing 27 mpg on a team that has who at the 4 and 3?? Amare Stoudemire who missed 29 games Grant Hill who is a Solid bench player at best, and Louis Amundson. There was plenty of time at either the 4 and 5 and Matt Barnes made the best of his opportunity but what makes you think he would get any minutes when we have Blake Griffin, Al Thornton, Ricky Davis, Quentin Richardson, DeAndre Jordan and more than likely Steve Novak all capable of playing those spots. I feel the Clips have played it smart if anything they should try to get a trade midway through the season for someone like Shane Battier or maybe even a Tayshun Prince type, a defensive player that is so good at defense he demands a starting role just imagine Chris Kaman, Blake Griffin, Tayshun Prince or Shane Battier, Eric Gordon and Baron Davis as our starters, Marcus Camby, Deandre Jordan, Al Thornton, Mike Taylor and Steve Novak as our bench?? Since Shane Battiers deal ends soon the Clips could roll the dice and let go of some future draft picks something Houston would definitely like and give up the expiring contract of Ricky Davis and Q. If it doesnt work out the Clips would still have plenty of cap space for the 2010 FA pool. Rather than signing anybody right now and thereby limiting their flexibility.
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Posted on July 8th, 2009 at 8:47 pm
DAVID LEE! Make it happen. Everyone has forgotten about him.
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Posted on July 10th, 2009 at 12:23 pm
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