<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<rss version="2.0"
	xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"
	xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/"
	xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"
	xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
	xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/"
	xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/"
	>

<channel>
	<title>Los Angeles Clippers Blog - News, Commentary for NBA Clipper Fans</title>
	<atom:link href="http://clipperblog.com/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
	<link>http://clipperblog.com</link>
	<description>The trusted source for breaking Los Angeles Clippers Basketball news, trades, trends, analysis, stats, and scores</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Wed, 19 Jun 2013 23:07:49 +0000</lastBuildDate>
	<language>en-US</language>
	<sy:updatePeriod>hourly</sy:updatePeriod>
	<sy:updateFrequency>1</sy:updateFrequency>
	<generator>http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1</generator>
		<item>
		<title>Clippers and Celtics Resume Trade Talks</title>
		<link>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/19/clippers-and-celtics-resume-trade-talks/</link>
		<comments>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/19/clippers-and-celtics-resume-trade-talks/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:24:57 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Jovan Buha</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Found Objects]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Boston Celtics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Doc Rivers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kevin Garnett]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://clipperblog.com/?p=20030</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, the Clippers have reached out to the Boston Celtics to resume their discussions about the potential Doc Rivers and Kevin Garnett trade. So much for this deal being dead &#8212; that lasted a mere 24 hours. Here are Woj&#8217;s tweets: The Clippers reached out to the Celtics this afternoon to resume dialogue on a possible deal, league sources tell Y! Sports. &#8212; Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) June 19, 2013 The Celtics and Clippers have started talks again on the Doc Rivers-Kevin Garnett deal, league sources tell Y! Sports. &#8212; Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) June 19, 2013 Update: Here is an excerpt of Woj&#8217;s story: With a full understanding that free agent Chris Paul wants this deal completed, the Los Angeles Clippers re-engaged the Boston Celtics on the Kevin Garnett-Doc Rivers negotiations on Wednesday afternoon, league sources told Yahoo! Sports. *** The Clippers have negotiated a five-year, $35 million deal with Rivers that could be worth as much as $8 million annually with incentives, sources said. Garnett will waive his no-trade clause to be a part of the deal. The Clippers would have to pay a $3.5 million trade kicker on Jordan&#8217;s contract. Behind the scenes, there have been several factions trying to restart the talks, and everyone involved – the Clippers, Celtics and Rivers – have been waiting for someone to make the first move, sources said. &#8220;The money is not a hang-up in this right now,&#8221; a league source told Yahoo! Sports. &#8220;It&#8217;s about the draft pick.&#8221; *** Privately, Clippers officials are expressing a stronger optimism about getting a deal complete, sources said. As Kevin Arnovitz explained on TrueHoop, the Clippers have the leverage in the talks and, if they&#8217;re patient, can wait out the situation until the Celtics decide on the future of Paul Pierce and the rest of the dominos begin to fall into place. There isn&#8217;t another team that could stand to inherit Rivers, Garnett and Pierce, so the Clippers deal makes the most sense from a Boston perspective. They&#8217;d get assets &#8212; DeAndre Jordan and a first round pick (maybe two) &#8212; and rid themselves of hefty and cumbersome contracts, thus expediting their inevitable rebuilding process. For the Clippers, meanwhile, trading Jordan and a first round draft pick for Garnett and Rivers is still the right move in theory, as it bolsters their current chances to win a championship (even at 37, Garnett is better than Jordan) and puts one of the league&#8217;s three best coaches in charge of the Clippers for the next half-decade or longer. If that doesn&#8217;t entice Paul to re-sign, he probably wasn&#8217;t going to stay to begin with. Will anything come of the talks this time? Or will the talks stall once again and then ultimately die? What about after July 1? Who knows. All we can be sure of is as long as the Clippers haven&#8217;t hired a new coach, there&#8217;s still a strong possibility that this trade can happen, regardless if the talks are &#8220;dead&#8221; or not. Stay tuned, we&#8217;ll keep you updated.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/19/clippers-and-celtics-resume-trade-talks/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>18</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>The Alienating Clippers</title>
		<link>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/18/the-alienating-clippers/</link>
		<comments>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/18/the-alienating-clippers/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:47:40 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Fred Katz</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Blake Griffin]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Celtics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Chris Paul]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DeAndre Jordan]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Doc Rivers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Eric Bledsoe]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Fred Katz]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kevin Garnett]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Trade]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://clipperblog.com/?p=19999</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[If you alienate all of your friends, eventually you&#8217;re left on an island all alone. Someone needs to relay that prognosis to the Los Angeles Clippers, because alienation has become their go-to move. First, there was the Chris Paul-Vinny Del Negro debacle, in which the Clippers indirectly pinned the &#8220;firing&#8221; of their former coach on their star player. That never needed to happen. Donald Sterling never needed to mention that Paul&#8217;s preference was not to bring back the man who had coached him for two years. Ultimately, the organization has control over the decision, but Sterling made his comments anyway &#8211; because the Clippers alienate. Second, there&#8217;s the trade with Boston &#8211; or should I say, &#8220;the non-trade with Boston&#8221;. Want to make a trade for Kevin Garnett and Doc Rivers? Great. DeAndre Jordan and a first-round pick for an all-time great, who is still a high-quality contributor, and a championship-caliber coach is one heck of a deal. But here&#8217;s the problem: The Clippers aired out their dirty laundry all too much. The best organizations keep information internal. If they&#8217;re making a trade, the public doesn&#8217;t know every detail before it even happens. But with this Clippers-Celtics deal, we heard everything. When the Clips and Celts were talking about a similar Kevin Garnett deal back at the trade deadline, we heard everything. Even during the Chris Paul deal, we heard everything. Sure, some of the leaks probably came from Boston sources (that makes sense considering some of the first reported deals had the Clippers parting with Jordan, Eric Bledsoe, and two first rounders, the ideal package for the Celtics), but this is becoming a theme in an organization that wants to prove that it is capable of contending. Now, DeAndre Jordan returns to the Clippers knowing he&#8217;s not particularly wanted after that same organization spent the past year taking him out of games upon every mistake he made, forcing him to sit during fourth quarters, and all along killing his confidence. The trade rumors won&#8217;t help. The detachment won&#8217;t help &#8211; and it&#8217;s because the Clippers alienate. Third, there is the reason that the Clippers reportedly want to hold onto Eric Bledsoe. According to reports, it&#8217;s not because Doc Rivers could turn him into Avery Bradley 2.0 and it&#8217;s only partially because the Clips want to hold onto Bledsoe until Chris Paul officially puts pen to paper. Those reports say that in actuality, it&#8217;s because the Clippers would like to float a sign-and-trade to the Lakers: Blake Griffin and Eric Bledsoe for Dwight Howard. Seriously? There&#8217;s this strange public attitude toward Blake Griffin, one that assumes that a 24-year-old athletic mutant, who has improved vastly since his rookie year, can&#8217;t improve. It&#8217;s curious how or why that logic prevails in so many circles, but it does. Has that seed infected the Clippers&#8217; front office? Because that&#8217;s the only explanation for a trade that would bring them a declining, unhealthy center, who would turn 28 at the start of next season for a young, consistent All-Star, who is on the rise. The reasoning, though, isn&#8217;t even the worst part of the saga. The lowest low is that the Clippers let that information get out. They let the media report that their franchise player might be on the block. They let the media tell Blake Griffin that there are other players out there they would rather have than him. Why push away someone who is one of the main reasons for digging the Clippers out of a 30-year hole? Why publicly degrade a superstar? Because the Clippers alienate. The Clippers have put themselves in as poor of a situation as they possibly could have. The death of the Celtics trade allows fans (and players) to speculate even further into the Clippers&#8217; allegedly cheap culture. The trade could still happen (remember that the Chris Paul trade was declared dead the day before it actually happened), but the perception has already been warped. Publicly, the Clippers turned down the Celtics because DeAndre Jordan and two first-round picks was just too big a package. They didn&#8217;t want to give up that second pick. That&#8217;s fine, but the Clippers have allowed so much information to get out that it gives fans (and players) the ability to read between the lines. No organization wants that. Did you hear the Clippers killed the Doc Rivers deal because Sterling doesn&#8217;t want to pay Doc $35 million? You don&#8217;t want your fans to say that. And mostly, you don&#8217;t want your star, free-agent point guard to think that. The Clips kept Mike Dunleavy because of money. They hired Vinny Del Negro because of money. Heck, they sued Bill Fitch after they fired him because he &#8220;failed to seek employment&#8221;. Not wanting to pay Doc Rivers could be complete rumor, total untruth, but the Clippers&#8217; history allows for that speculation. Not completing this Celtics deal only further pushes the cliché that the Clippers are a cheap organization and a star, free-agent point guard has to feel alienated because of that.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/18/the-alienating-clippers/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>21</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>How the Clippers could walk away</title>
		<link>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/18/how-the-clippers-could-walk-away/</link>
		<comments>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/18/how-the-clippers-could-walk-away/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:31:10 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Fred Katz</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Celtics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DeAndre Jordan]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Doc Rivers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kevin Arnovitz]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kevin Garnett]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Trade]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://clipperblog.com/?p=20005</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Over at ESPN.com, Kevin Arnovitz writes about how the Clippers halted the trade with the Celtics. Click here to read the full story. What’s the hurry? The Celtics’ situation is in flux and they’ve signaled to the world that they’re ready to pursue the wise course of rebuilding. If they buy out Paul Pierce’s contract on or before June 30, where does that leave Garnett and Rivers? Neither is wild about the idea of being part of the reconstruction process without their comrade, and both would prefer they join forces with a team driving for a title, a team like the Los Angeles Clippers. In other words, if the Clippers want to acquire Kevin Garnett for DeAndre Jordan, they can do so after July 1. The only complication there is the report that Garnett isn’t interested in playing for any coach other than Rivers, a primary reason this whole drama started. That’s why if I’m the Clippers, I hold off on hiring a coach until after the Pierce situation is resolved. Apart from the Clippers, the only remaining coaching vacancies are Memphis, Philadelphia and Denver. There’s virtually no overlap between the Clippers’ short list and that of 76ers president of basketball operations and general manager Sam Hinkie. Memphis will likely hire current assistant Dave Joerger. At worst, the Clippers lose one of their top three choices (most likely Lionel Hollins or Brian Shaw) to Denver while they wait. In exchange, they maintain the possibility that Rivers could join them after July 1. Boston will have no more impetus to pay Rivers $7 million to coach a bubble team than they do now. Ditto for Garnett’s $18 million guaranteed, assuming KG would return to a Pierce-less Celtics team. Click here to continue reading.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/18/how-the-clippers-could-walk-away/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>More on the Celtics-Clippers deal</title>
		<link>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/18/more-on-the-celtics-clippers-deal/</link>
		<comments>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/18/more-on-the-celtics-clippers-deal/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:42:37 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>D.J. Foster</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://clipperblog.com/?p=19994</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Apologies for the lack of content the last few days. This whole thing is a lot to take in, but now is a good time to remind everyone to follow us on Twitter, as our instant and sometimes regrettable analysis usually ends up there. You can find all our Twitter handles down to the lower right of the home page. While everything simmers and we accept the deal as &#8220;dead, dead, dead&#8221; or &#8220;stalled&#8221; or whatever it may be, I&#8217;ll be going on ESPN 1420 in Honolulu today to discuss the failed trade at 2:30pm PT. Here&#8217;s the link to that so you can listen live on the interwebs. Now if you want to hear someone who actually knows how to talk, here&#8217;s a clip of Kevin Arnovitz on ESPN 92.9 in Memphis on the Chris Vernon show from earlier today: http://www.espn929.com/topic/play_window.php?audioType=Episode&#38;audioId=6423671 We&#8217;ll have more analysis to follow &#8212; thanks for your patience.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/18/more-on-the-celtics-clippers-deal/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Eric Bledsoe&#8217;s Change of Culture</title>
		<link>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/17/eric-bledsoes-change-of-culture/</link>
		<comments>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/17/eric-bledsoes-change-of-culture/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 17 Jun 2013 18:39:37 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Fred Katz</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Celtics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Doc Rivers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Eric Bledsoe]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Fred Katz]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kevin Garnett]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Trade]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://clipperblog.com/?p=19978</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[So many big names have been thrown around in Clippers-Celtics trade rumors over the past few days, it’s hard to keep track of who’s in and who’s out. Doc Rivers, Kevin Garnett, DeAndre Jordan, Paul Piece, Caron Butler, Eric Bledsoe, first-round draft picks – all we need is a “player to be named later”  and a third team involved and we’ve got everything a good trade should have. But all the Clips need to do is to keep playing it smart and everything will be all right. That’s because L.A.’s resistance to include Eric Bledsoe in this deal might be what puts them over the top. Even a few weeks ago, it seemed like Bledsoe may have been the Clippers’ only real trade chip. Though there were teams out there who might want DeAndre Jordan, his stock is not as high as it has been in the past. And as for draft picks, consistently picking in the 20s doesn’t exactly make someone want to take your first rounder off your hands for you. But in this Celtics trade, the Clippers actually do have non-Bledsoe assets. That’s because Boston is high on DeAndre Jordan. Add in an expiring Butler deal and the Celtics are at least thinking of dreamy scenarios that would bring Doc and KG to the West Coast. Leverage Bledsoe in another deal and the Clips can take care of some serious renovating. Except there is one big elephant in Eric Bledsoe’s room that we are, for the most part, completely overlooking: The Clippers don’t have to (or don’t necessarily need to) trade Bledsoe. In fact, Bledsoe never needed to be traded. What he&#8217;s needed all along is for someone to believe that he is actually a shooting guard. Then the game changes. A consistent Eric Bledsoe-Chris Paul backcourt would surely be a change in philosophy, considering Bledsoe isn’t exactly a spot-up shooter. But he doesn’t need to camp out in the corner to be effective. Bledsoe is a strong off-ball cutter, which is something a team needs in its shooting guard. It’s no coincidence that he shot 65.2 percent off cuts this past season. Get him moving off the ball and he’s an effective offensive player. Paul and Bledsoe barely got to play together last season. So few times did we see that duo get extended court time. They compiled only 185 minutes on the floor together, but those Paul-Bledsoe lineups had an offensive efficiency of 115.9 (which would lead the league) and a net rating of 11.1 points per 100 possessions. It was a duo that the numbers (and even the eyes) say deserved more of a look than it received. So maybe Bledsoe can play shooting guard. We know he can guard there. We know how pesky a Paul-Bledsoe backcourt, which would harbor the players who were No. 2 and No. 3 in the NBA in steal percentage, would be. Bledsoe might even get to shoot a little better. Only 20 of his 78 three-point attempts this year came from the corner, where he made 10 of those shots. If he played off the ball, well over a quarter of his three-point attempts would come from the corner. Just check Iman Shumpert for proof of that. If the Clippers do pull off this Celtics trade and big names travel from place to place, city to city, they’re hoping they can keep Bledsoe. And it’s not just so they can swing him for another piece. Look at what Doc Rivers did in Boston. He decided Avery Bradley was no longer a point guard, took him out of Rajon Rondo’s backup spot, made him a 2, and turned him into an excellent defensive starting shooting guard. That can happen with Bledsoe. Those players are of similar mental makeups and style. Bledsoe just needs to be in the right situation for that to happen. And maybe this trade can bring him just that.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/17/eric-bledsoes-change-of-culture/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>27</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Clippers and Celtics Trade Rumors</title>
		<link>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/15/clippers-and-celtics-trade-rumors/</link>
		<comments>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/15/clippers-and-celtics-trade-rumors/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 16 Jun 2013 05:09:17 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>D.J. Foster</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://clipperblog.com/?p=19969</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In 1978, the owner of the Boston Celtics and the owner of the Buffalo Braves swapped franchises. In 2013, the Clippers and Celtics want to do it again. Let me explain. No, there is no time. Let me sum up. The Clippers are (were?) interested in Doc Rivers. They&#8217;re also interested in Kevin Garnett, as we found out around the All-Star break of this year, which is good because Doc and KG are apparently a package deal. The Celtics like DeAndre Jordan. The Clippers are willing to trade DeAndre Jordan to get Doc and KG. Danny Ainge and the Celtics also like Eric Bledsoe. Doc Rivers also likes Eric Bledsoe. The Clippers like Eric Bledsoe, too! The only person who doesn&#8217;t like Eric Bledsoe &#8212; at least not enough to play him regularly &#8212; was Vinny Del Negro&#8230;who has been mentioned as a potential replacement for Doc in Boston. Because VDN used Bledsoe and Jordan so well the first time? Sounds like some agent appeasing (VDN just hired Doc&#8217;s agent) going on there, but let&#8217;s move past that. Okay, so Ainge wants Bledsoe and Jordan. The Clippers want to keep Bledsoe, though, because Doc likes him, but also because he&#8217;s a huge trade asset. Because apparently the Clippers want to move Bledsoe and Blake Griffin (!) to the Lakers for Dwight Howard. (Deep breath) But the Lakers don&#8217;t want to do that. Which seems weird. The Clippers might not actually want to do that either, depending on who you talk to. But the main trade with Boston that was &#8220;very real&#8221; is now &#8220;stalled&#8221;. The Chris Paul trade was once stalled as well, mind you, and stalled is slightly more optimistic than dead. This could still happen. So to recap: DeAndre Jordan and one first round draft pick are in the proposed deal for Rivers and Garnett. That&#8217;s what the Clippers are pushing for. Ainge is pushing for an additional first round pick and Bledsoe, but according to reports, the Celtics would do it for Jordan, only one first round pick, and Bledsoe. The sticking point is Bledsoe. What do you think? Should the Clippers part with Jordan, Bledsoe and a pick for Rivers and Garnett? Let&#8217;s hear it. We&#8217;ll have more as the situation develops.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/15/clippers-and-celtics-trade-rumors/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>45</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Found Objects: Chauncey Billups, Teammate of the Year and Blake Griffin</title>
		<link>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/10/found-objects-chauncey-billups-teammate-of-the-year-and-blake-griffin/</link>
		<comments>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/10/found-objects-chauncey-billups-teammate-of-the-year-and-blake-griffin/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 10 Jun 2013 20:36:44 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Jovan Buha</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Found Objects]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Chauncey Billups]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Clippers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Teammate of the Year Award]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://clipperblog.com/?p=19948</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[•  Chauncey Billups was named the recipient of the inaugural Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year Award yesterday, according to the NBA. Here is part of the press release: As part of its support for the Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year Award, the NBA will make a $25K donation to the charity of Billups’ choice. A panel of NBA Legends nominated six players from each conference for the award, which recognizes the NBA player deemed the best teammate based on selfless play, on and off-court leadership as a mentor and role model to other NBA players, and his commitment and dedication to his team. A five-time NBA All-Star selection, Billups led the Detroit Pistons to the 2004 title, garnering Finals Most Valuable Player honors. The 16-year NBA veteran owns career averages of 15.4 points and 5.5 assists. He completed his second season with the Clippers in 2012-13, returning from a torn left Achilles tendon and overcoming various injuries to appear in 28 games, including all six postseason games. &#8220;Chauncey Billups defines what this award was designed to recognize, a player committed to his club, his teammates and his community,” said NBA Commissioner David Stern, who presented Billups with the award Sunday prior to Game 2 of the NBA Finals in Miami. “He has mentored and guided countless young players to adopt his selfless attitude, dedication, passion for our game and to respect the history and example of players like Jack Twyman and Maurice Stokes.” *** In this year’s award voting, Billups totaled 1,543 total points, including 64 first-place votes. Miami Heat forward Shane Battier finished second with 1,324 points (79 first-place votes), and New York Knicks guard Jason Kidd placed third with 1,048 points (42 first-place votes). •  Today, however, Billups went on the ESPN show First Take and had some choice words to say about teammate Blake Griffin, per ESPN.com (video below): &#8220;I don&#8217;t agree that Blake Griffin is soft. But what I will say about Blake is that he&#8217;s maybe too nice of a guy,&#8221; Billups said. &#8220;Because there&#8217;s been times in games where people take shots at Blake. And I tell him if that&#8217;s me, you&#8217;re going to have to take this two- or three-game suspension, and I&#8217;m going to punish somebody. &#8220;That&#8217;s just how I&#8217;m built. Blake is not really built like that. He&#8217;s &#8230; too soft of a guy inside for him to be like, &#8216;All right, I&#8217;m just going to hurt somebody.&#8217; He just won&#8217;t do it. I wish he would, and I think that people would look at him a lot different if he did that. But he&#8217;s just not that kind of person.&#8221; Billups said &#8220;there&#8217;s nobody that works harder&#8221; than Griffin, but the three-time All-Star would benefit if the Clippers were able to add &#8220;a veteran down low to help him &#8230; to push him along a little faster.&#8221; While I don&#8217;t think Billups meant to publicly criticize Griffin, it&#8217;s ironic that less than 24 hours after winning Teammate of the Year, he goes on national television and says Griffin is &#8220;too nice of a guy&#8221; and &#8220;too soft of a guy inside&#8221;. He didn&#8217;t explicitly blast Griffin, and denied the &#8220;soft&#8221; label, but it&#8217;s not as if he was exactly singing his praises outside of the work ethic compliment. It&#8217;ll be interesting to see what the ramifications will be, especially considering Billups&#8217; pending free agency and the hesitance with which he spoke about returning to the Clippers. If anything, it seems the reported locker room divide is a little more clear (just look at the last line). •  Billups is reportedly interested in joining the Heat, according to Fox Sports Florida. •  Over at ESPN Los Angeles, I wrote about the Clippers&#8217; coaching search and who I feel the three best candidates are. •  Jimmy Kimmel has a segment on his show called &#8220;Mean Tweets.&#8221; Below is his &#8220;Mean Tweets &#8212; NBA Edition&#8221;, featuring some hilarious segments from Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, Matt and DeAndre Jordan. •  The Rockets, along with the Mavericks, have plans of pursuing Chris Paul this offseason. •  Speaking of Paul, he played golf over the weekend with President Bill Clinton. Follow @jovanbuha]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/10/found-objects-chauncey-billups-teammate-of-the-year-and-blake-griffin/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>45</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Karl Intrigued by Clippers</title>
		<link>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/06/karl-intrigued-by-clippers/</link>
		<comments>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/06/karl-intrigued-by-clippers/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 06 Jun 2013 22:38:20 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Andrew Han</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Found Objects]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Coaching search]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[George Karl]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://clipperblog.com/?p=19943</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[A new name materialized on the coaching front today. George Karl, newly minted Coach of the Year was let go from the Denver Nuggets as that organization continues to overhaul its staff. Sources told Ramona Shelburne of ESPN Los Angeles that Karl is &#8220;very intrigued&#8221; by the open position with the Clippers. What was thought to be a coaching race lead by Brian Shaw and Lionel Hollins (with Alvin Gentry and Byron Scott not far behind) could be expanded to include the now available Karl. George Karl has only coached sub .500 teams three times in his 25 year coaching career, the last time in 1987-88. Check out Zach Lowe&#8217;s brief history of Karl for a terrific glance at his strengths and weaknesses.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/06/karl-intrigued-by-clippers/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>50</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>DeAndre Jordan invited to Team USA camp</title>
		<link>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/05/deandre-jordan-invited-to-team-usa-camp/</link>
		<comments>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/05/deandre-jordan-invited-to-team-usa-camp/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 05 Jun 2013 23:32:11 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Andrew Han</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Found Objects]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DeAndre Jordan]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Team USA]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://clipperblog.com/?p=19939</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[We interrupt Los Angeles&#8217; coaching search to bring this message: On Wednesday, Adrian Wojnarowski tweeted that DeAndre Jordan has been invited to Las Vegas for Team USA camp. Clippers center DeAndre Jordan has been invited to the USA Basketball national team camp in Las Vegas, league source tells Y! &#8212; Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) June 5, 2013 Whether this is as a member of the Select team, comprised of young, rising star talents to train with and eventually succeed to the national team, or as a prospective applicant for the 2014 World Championship team is still unclear. One thing it does express, though, is that Jordan&#8217;s value around the league is well regarded. Only players in the upper echelon of their skills or positions are given invitations to the national team camp. And, while Jordan is by no means a finished product, the Team USA committee must feel that he&#8217;s realized enough of his development to add the still untapped potential to the pool of participants.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/05/deandre-jordan-invited-to-team-usa-camp/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>19</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Clippers Courting Hollins, Shaw</title>
		<link>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/04/clippers-courting-hollins/</link>
		<comments>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/04/clippers-courting-hollins/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 05 Jun 2013 04:59:09 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Fred Katz</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Coaching search]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Fred Katz]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Lionel Hollins]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://clipperblog.com/?p=19929</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The Clippers have asked for and received permission to speak to Memphis Grizzlies&#8217; coach Lionel Hollins, according to ESPNLA&#8217;s Ramona Shelburne. Clippers have officially asked for and recieved permission to speak to Lionel Hollins — Ramona Shelburne (@ramonashelburne) June 5, 2013 Shelburne later noted in a tweet that Pacers&#8217; assistant &#8220;Brian Shaw is still seen as the front runner for the Clippers job&#8221;. Earlier this week, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reported that the Clippers&#8217; talks with Jeff Van Gundy had become &#8220;dormant&#8221; and that he was more than likely out of the picture. That most likely leaves five candidates potentially vying for the Clipper job: Hollins, Shaw, Byron Scott, Alvin Gentry, and George Karl. While Scott and Gentry remain without a contract, Karl is still officially the coach in Denver. The Clippers have not yet requested permission to speak with him about filling their vacant coaching position. As for Hollins, it looks like his time in Memphis is more than likely over. Hollins took over as an interim coach in Memphis in the 2008-09 season and led the Grizzlies to a 13-26 record after taking over. Memphis improved its winning percentage each year under Hollins from .333 in year one to .488 in &#8217;09-&#8217;10 to .561 in &#8217;10-&#8217;11 to .621 in &#8217;11-&#8217;12 to .683 and a Western Conference Finals appearance this past season. But even with that progression, a conflict of philosophies with the Grizzlies&#8217; front office might be responsible for ending his tenure in Memphis. Hollins is a fiery personality that is generally touted as a leader and locker room general. However, it is his aversion to analytics in an organization that is quite analytics-driven that has pushed him out the door. There is a reason the Grizzlies gave Hollins permission to speak with other teams before he even requested it: he is not their priority. And mainly, that&#8217;s because he doesn&#8217;t fit in with their long-term plan. Though there were questions throughout the season about Hollins&#8217; substitution rotations, the coach helped put together the No. 2 ranked defense in the NBA and the No. 1 ranked defense in the Western Conference. He has overseen the vast improvement of Marc Gasol &#8211; from second-round scrub to Defensive Player of the Year &#8211; and has helped to mold Mike Conley into one of the best two-way point guards in the NBA. He did all of that while watching Zach Randolph develop from an underachieving, talented player to a grinding, physical post player who is one of the more feared players in the game. Hollins&#8217; season ended after the Spurs swept the Grizzlies in the Western Conference Finals. &#160; UPDATE: Dan Woike of the OC Register confirms via Twitter that the Clippers have also asked for and received permission to speak with Brian Shaw. I can confirm reports that the Clippers asked and received permission to speak with Brian Shaw. — Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) June 5, 2013 Shaw was a Lakers assistant coach from the 2004-05 season until the 2010-11 season. During the summer of 2011, he signed with the Pacers to act as lead assistant for Indiana head coach Frank Vogel. He is generally associated with running the triangle offense, a style he learned under Phil Jackson, though the Pacers don&#8217;t employ that strategy. Shaw has been a highly respected assistant for some time now and has found himself as a contender for multiple coaching jobs in the past. He turned down the Bobcats job last summer after Charlotte offered him the chance to fill their coaching vacancy. NBA players have in the past been vocal about Shaw getting a head coaching gig, namely Kobe Bryant, who stated that he preferred Shaw to be Phil Jackson&#8217;s successor in Los Angeles after Jackson&#8217;s retirement in 2011.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://clipperblog.com/2013/06/04/clippers-courting-hollins/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>20</slash:comments>
		</item>
	</channel>
</rss>

<!-- Dynamic page generated in 0.483 seconds. -->
<!-- Cached page generated by WP-Super-Cache on 2013-06-19 23:32:19 -->

<!-- Compression = gzip -->