I went trolling through the comments section of several previous ClipperBlog posts looking for loose ends to tie up. Some we answered but are reposting here in case anyone missed it. Some didn’t get answered and I’m taking the time to do that now.
Would the Platelette enhancement surgery Kobe and Grant Hill had in Germany be something that would also be of benefit to CP3 ? – Bobb Marley
Best as I can tell, no. Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) Therapy and Orthokine (Kobe/Grant Hill procedure in Germany) are more about recovery than regeneration. Think of it as basically if you’re body had a bruise or a tear, especially in places where blood flow isn’t prominent, then PRP or Orthokine would aid in healing those injuries.
In the case of Chris Paul, his lateral meniscus was completely removed so there would be nothing for the PRP/Orthokine to repair. Ironically, PRP/Orthokine would probably help Caron Butler’s injuries and Chauncey Billups’ Achilles. Of course, PRP/Orthokine are relatively new procedures in sports medicine and no one actually knows how legitimately effective they are.
PRP therapy is basically the act of taking a patient’s blood, spinning it in a centrifuge to separate the platelet-rich plasma, then injecting it back into the site of the injury. The theory being platelet-rich plasma is the body’s natural way of healing injuries, so more PRP heals things faster.
Orthokine sounds like some kind of modified version of PRP therapy, developed by Dr. Peter Wehling of Germany (hence, everyone going to Germany for the procedure). They take interleukin-1 from the patient’s body and inject it into the injury to try and prevent inflammation and cartilage degeneration. Again, how effective this actually is, no one knows.
Just so we’re clear, I’m not a doctor. A lot of the above info could be inaccurate, but that’s the best I could find.
Is there any possibility of doing a sign and trade for Courtney Lee, or using some of the amnesty money to get him? – Tim
Is Brian Cooks trade exemption the only thing will have midseason ,Cook’s trade seems 2 keep helping us thanks exe.its 1.75 – @apostol74131889
Obviously, the Courtney Lee part no longer applies (he was sign-and-traded to the Celtics), but the amnesty bit has some relevance. The Clippers currently have three means acquiring players: 1. The Veterans’ Minimum Exception (amount varies by years of experience), 2. The Aminu/Cook Trade Player Exceptions (TPE), 3. A sign-and-trade involving Kenyon Martin.
The Aminu TPE is for $2.755m and expires 12/14/12. The Cook TPE is for $1.223m and expires 3/15/13. The Clippers also have a TPE from the Reggie Evans trade, but that most likely was used for the Willie Green deal. Kenyon Martin can be sign-and-traded for up to $3m.
Keep in mind the Clippers’ current payroll is $69.012m and the luxury tax starts at $70.307m. This means the Clippers cannot spend more than $1.295m total if they are trying to avoid the luxury tax.
Some have mentioned waiving Travis Leslie’s partially guaranteed contract to free up $512K more in space. But unless the Clippers have already quietly cut him or Leslie agreed to move back his guarantee deadline (August 1), this is no longer an option.
If the 4 years @ $25 million [for Jamal Crawford] is true, isn’t that more than the MLE? How can we afford that? And does that mean we still have our MLE available? – Garrett Lerner
Not all the details are officially out for the Crawford deal but here’s what we do know: Jamal Crawford got the full MLE with the standard 4.5% raise per year making the deal a total of 4 years, $21.35m. Mark Deeks of Shamsports reported that the final 2 years of Crawford’s contract is only partially guaranteed for $1.5m each. This means that Crawford’s third and fourth year can be waived for $3m total (The Clippers can use this themselves if it doesn’t work out or they can use it in a trade much like Washington did with Rashard Lewis’ contract).
Since the Hill signing was with the BiAnnual, we should still have the Mini-MLE available right? – Bongstradamus
Nope. The technical name mini-MLE is the Taxpayer’s Mid-Level Exception. If a team has used the Non-Taxpayer’s Mid-Level Exception (full MLE) or the Bi-Annual Exception (BAE), then they cannot use the mini-MLE.
how come kenyon martin hasn’t been picked up by the clippers yet? – LojikReazon
It seems like KMart is looking for more playing time and/or money. It’s also possible that he still views himself as a starter in the league. Several fans in attendance for Game 4 v. San Antonio also noted that Martin and Del Negro got into a heated disagreement late in the game. Take your pick, but signs point to KMart not coming back to the Clippers.
another “locker room guy” i guess (re: Turiaf) – #sixseasonsandamovie
I just stuck this in because of the username. “Community” references are always encouraged.
Some basic housekeeping updates:
- Eric Pincus of Hoopsworld is reporting Willie Green’s deal to be $1.375m in the first year. Green’s deal was required to be 3 years to fit under the rules of the CBA but the second and third year are non-guaranteed.
- The Clippers lost the majority their designated deep threats from last season, but here are some numbers to allay those concerns (using players’ last full, regular season stats):
Chauncey Billups: 35% from corner-3, 41% from above the break
Jamal Crawford: 46% from corner-3, 25% from above the break
Willie Green: 54% from corner-3, 37% from above the break
Grant Hill: 30% from corner-3, 13% from above the breakAnd just for some context (last full, regular season BEFORE Chris Paul):
Mo Williams: 33% from corner-3, 33% from above the break
Randy Foye: 34% from corner-3, 33% from above the break
Nick Young: 43% from corner-3, 36% from above the break
Foye & Williams saw large upticks in their 3-point shooting percentage (as much as 7% from above the break and 3-7% from the corner-3) after the Chris Paul trade. At least some of this can be attributed Foye/Williams own hard work and health, but Paul’s playmaking ability likely affected it as well. It will be interesting to see what kind of effect Chris Paul will have on his new deep threats.
One Last Thing (Long Way Down)
For all you PC video gamers, I found a user-created roster update for NBA 2K12 that has about 95% of all the roster moves that have happened so far this offseason, including most of the draft picks.
I think the only changes that had to be made for the Clippers were to change Jamal Crawford’s number to 11 and add Willie Green to the roster. I ran the full season simulator a couple of times (at the behest of Timmythetooth) and the computer seems to peg the Clippers in the mid-to-high 40s in wins, slotting the new look team anywhere from the 4 to 7 seed. I’d take that with a huge grain of salt though, the season simulator also really loved the Mavericks & the Timberwolves (putting them as high as a 2 seed in one instance).
But when you just sit down and play as the new look Clippers? They’re pretty scary, you guys. That’s mostly based on the fact that I’m terrible at the game and can still beat most teams.
