Paul to the Rockets!

by **Ktronic1** Wed Jun 28, 2017 11:54 am

Chris Paul 1st shoe to drop!

https://www.sbnation.com/2017/6/28/15886774/chris-paul-trade-rockets-clippers-news-updates

by **cowens/oldschool** Wed Jun 28, 2017 12:06 pm

Chris Paul seems to always come up small in key playoff moments. This is a smart move by Jerry West, Doc hope you enjoy the rebuild....we got Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum.

I also don't think Paul and Harden can play all that well together as both need the ball, we'll see Harden loves playing point now, now your gonna turn him back into a catch and shoot 2...??

by **fierce** Wed Jun 28, 2017 12:08 pm

Looks like Blake Griffin is now in play.

by **bobheckler** Wed Jun 28, 2017 12:15 pm

fierce wrote:Looks like Blake Griffin is now in play.

DeAndre Jordan too.

bob

.

by **fierce** Wed Jun 28, 2017 12:17 pm

bobheckler wrote:
fierce wrote:Looks like Blake Griffin is now in play.

DeAndre Jordan too.

bob

.

True.

by **cowens/oldschool** Wed Jun 28, 2017 12:22 pm

Karma, have fun Doc

by **kdp59** Wed Jun 28, 2017 12:26 pm

West is blowing it up in LA now. Good deal to get return for a 32YO Paul.

Doc will be leaving town soon enough.

I wonder if West will try to do the same with Blake now or did he already opt out of his option year?

by **bobheckler** Wed Jun 28, 2017 12:28 pm

Adrian Wojnarowski‏Verified account
@WojVerticalNBA
Follow
More
After Chris Paul agreed to opt-in on contract, Clippers are trading All-Star guard to the Houston Rockets, league sources tell @TheVertical

bob
MY NOTE: I wonder if CP3 knew this would happen IF he opted in, or if he thought he was staying in LA and Doc used his contract opt in as a means to trade him?

.

by **red16russ11** Wed Jun 28, 2017 12:30 pm

I think it makes Blake LESS available, guys.........just my opinion

by **NYCelt** Wed Jun 28, 2017 12:31 pm

fierce wrote:
bobheckler wrote:
fierce wrote:Looks like Blake Griffin is now in play.

DeAndre Jordan too.

bob

.

True.

Either fill a serious need, despite some injury concerns with Griffin.

Both would take $/players/picks from us. Griffin, for example, pulled down $20 mil last season.

Any preference of one over the other? At what price?

by **cowens/oldschool** Wed Jun 28, 2017 12:33 pm

NYCelt wrote:
fierce wrote:
bobheckler wrote:
fierce wrote:Looks like Blake Griffin is now in play.

DeAndre Jordan too.

bob

.

True.

Either fill a serious need, despite some injury concerns with Griffin.

Both would take $/players/picks from us. Griffin, for example, pulled down $20 mil last season.

Any preference of one over the other? At what price?

I sure wouldn't give 20 mill to an injury prone player like Blake

by **NYCelt** Wed Jun 28, 2017 12:36 pm

cowens/oldschool wrote:
NYCelt wrote:
fierce wrote:
bobheckler wrote:
fierce wrote:Looks like Blake Griffin is now in play.

DeAndre Jordan too.

bob

.

True.

Either fill a serious need, despite some injury concerns with Griffin.

Both would take $/players/picks from us. Griffin, for example, pulled down $20 mil last season.

Any preference of one over the other? At what price?

I sure wouldn't give 20 mill to an injury prone player like Blake

Jordan? I think he might about 1 mil more.

by **kdp59** Wed Jun 28, 2017 1:04 pm

Looks like it would be possible to bring Jordan or Blake here in a trade with the Clippers.

we'd have to rnounce Amir and young to get us at the cap, then renounce Jerebko getting us about $9M under.

have to trade both Bradley and Zeller ($16.8M combined) to get Jordan ($22.5M i think).

leaving us under the cap a couple million.

we'd still have the rights under this type of move to re-sign Kelly and Green and go over the cap.

in this scenario we'd have:

D. Jordan or Blake
Horford
Zizic
Kelly
Yabusele
Mickey
Crowder
Tatum
Jaylen
Smart
IT
Rozier
Green
D. Jackson

Nader and our second round picks for camp.

by **fierce** Wed Jun 28, 2017 1:09 pm

kdp59 wrote:Looks like it would be possible to bring Jordan or Blake here in a trade with the Clippers.

we'd have to rnounce Amir and young to get us at the cap, then renounce Jerebko getting us about $9M under.

have to trade both Bradley and Zeller ($16.8M combined) to get Jordan ($22.5M i think).

leaving us under the cap a couple million.

we'd still have the rights under this type of move to re-sign Kelly and Green and go over the cap.

in this scenario we'd have:

D. Jordan or Blake
Horford
Zizic
Kelly
Yabusele
Mickey
Crowder
Tatum
Jaylen
Smart
IT
Rozier
Green
D. Jackson

Nader and our second round picks for camp.

For the Celts to beat the Cavs and get closer to beating the Warriors, it would have to be Blake or Jordan and Hayward or George.

Ainge needs to get 2 star players this summer.

Adding only Jordan or Blake only improves the Celts a little against the Cavs.

If you want to beat the Cavs and Warriors, you have to match their offensive firepower.

by **dboss** Wed Jun 28, 2017 1:13 pm

fierce wrote:Looks like Blake Griffin is now in play.

No doubt but with the Hayward/George pursuit heating up would the Celtics prefer BK instead of GH? Instead of PG?

by **fierce** Wed Jun 28, 2017 1:15 pm

dboss wrote:
fierce wrote:Looks like Blake Griffin is now in play.

No doubt but with the Hayward/George pursuit heating up would the Celtics prefer BK instead of GH? Instead of PG?

I prefer having George and Blake or Jordan.

by **red16russ11** Wed Jun 28, 2017 1:19 pm

Blake and Paul were not buddies. I think Blake stays in LA now. Hayward and George is fine with me

by **bobheckler** Wed Jun 28, 2017 2:38 pm

Clippers also get Montrezl Harris. He's a bit of a beast.

Houston Receives
Chris Paul

LA Clippers Receive
Montrezl Harris
Patrick Beverly
Sam Dekker
Lou Williams
2018 First Round pick

That's a lot of bodies heading west to LA. I don't see how Doc can keep them all.

bob

.

by **bobheckler** Wed Jun 28, 2017 5:03 pm

Jared Weiss @JaredWeissNBA
about 55 minutes ago
The 8 players Houston’s sending to LAC (including pick) for Chris Paul is most in NBA history for a single player, passing the ‘07 KG trade.
reply retweet like

bob
MY NOTE: I must have missed 3 players earlier. Now we know Doc will be dealing amd/or waiving players. No way the Clips can absorb all those bodies.

.

by **dboss** Wed Jun 28, 2017 5:08 pm

I am reading that the Clippers want to keep Blake.

by **steve3344** Thu Jun 29, 2017 12:09 am

https://www.yahoo.com/sports/report-favoritism-austin-rivers-led-194049049.html

by **wideclyde** Thu Jun 29, 2017 8:07 am

Bob,

The Cloppers cannot keep all of those guys they got yesterday for Chris Paul, but I doubt there are more than two of them who might be able to help the Cs even if they all get dumped out on waivers.

I like to think that I follow the NBA fairly well, but I do have to admit that I had not heard of some of these guys that were acquired by Houston and then traded to LA yesterday. I may need to hire another set of eyes/ears to assist me in being an NBA fan.

by **gyso** Thu Jun 29, 2017 8:14 am

Clippers agree to trade Chris Paul to Rockets

https://sports.yahoo.com/sources-clippers-agree-trade-chris-paul-rockets-154013456.html

Adrian Wojnarowski
The Vertical
Yahoo SportsJune 28, 2017

The Los Angeles Clippers have reached agreement on a trade to send All-Star point guard Chris Paul to the Houston Rockets, league sources told The Vertical.

Paul, 32, agreed to opt in to the final year of his $24.2 million contract, clearing the way for the Clippers to execute a trade with the Rockets and bring back assets for Paul, league sources said.

The Rockets will send the Clippers a package that includes guards Patrick Beverley and Lou Williams, forward Sam Dekker and a 2018 first-round pick (protected Nos. 1-3), league sources told The Vertical.

There are smaller parts to the deal, including non-guaranteed contracts, league sources said.

Paul had until Wednesday to opt out of the final year of his contract and become an unrestricted free agent.
Had Paul opted out of his contract, he could’ve signed a new deal that started at $34 million a year. Paul will now be eligible to sign a five-year, $205 million maximum extension with the Rockets.

Paul had a strong desire to play with Rockets All-Star guard James Harden, which led to the Clippers working out a trade with Houston, league sources said. Los Angeles was able to secure several tradable assets and a draft pick in the deal. The Clippers risked losing Paul for nothing in free agency.

Paul and Harden discussed the possibility of a partnership at length, believing they can find a way to thrive together, league sources said.

Paul is a nine-time All-Star, nine-time All-NBA player and a nine-time All-Defensive team member. He played six seasons with Los Angeles after six seasons with New Orleans. For his career, Paul has averaged 18.7 points, 9.9 assists and 2.3 steals per game.

My comments: Smaller parts to the deal? A couple guys are going to get signed to a non-guaranteed contract, get traded and eventually get released. That sounds like free money.

Where do I sign up for that?

gyso

by **gyso** Thu Jun 29, 2017 8:26 am

Can the Clippers stay relevant without Chris Paul?

https://sports.yahoo.com/can-clippers-stay-relevant-without-chris-paul-005656342.html

Eric Freeman
Ball Don't LieJune 28, 2017

Chris Paul’s trade from the Los Angeles Clippers to the Houston Rockets is the early frontrunner for the biggest deal of the NBA’s 2017 offseason. The nine-time All-Star and unofficial Point God brings new options (and potential problems, albeit manageable ones) to the high-powered Rockets, who now have the chance to make life much more difficult for the Golden State Warriors and the rest of the Western Conference. The Rockets are now big winners of this summer, and Daryl Morey might not be done just yet.

The Clippers are in a much different spot. Put bluntly, their future is now in considerable flux. At the same time, we can be reasonably sure that the club’s short-term prospects are far worse than they were several days ago. While yet another early-round postseason exit caused many analysts to argue (with plenty of cause) that the Clippers needed to break up their core, losing CP3 against the front office’s will portends a less-than-terrific 2017-18 season. It could get even worse if pending unrestricted free agent Blake Griffin decides he’s best served passing up a massive five-year contract and joining a more competitive squad elsewhere.

Griffin’s status will determine the Clippers’ course over the rest of this offseason and for several years to come. If he stays, then owner Steve Ballmer and coach-executive Doc Rivers can claim that the franchise still holds a chance at supplanting the Lakers as the premier team in Los Angeles. If Griffin leaves, then there’s a legitimate chance that the Clippers flounder and again become a laughingstock of the sports world. The absence of Donald Sterling ensures that things cannot possibly get bad as they once were, but optics and history matter. The stakes for the Clippers are high.

In a purely basketballular sense, it’s not clear that retaining Griffin keeps the Clippers relevant. The 28-year-old forward is a bona fide star and has shown flashes of an ability to lead a team as a ball-dominant scorer and facilitator. However, he has missed at least 15 games in each of the past three seasons (including 21 in 2016-17 and 47 in 2015-16) and has always looked secondary to Paul in the Clippers’ hierarchy, even if the duo attempted to present themselves to the public as complementary leaders. CP3 is not a minor personality to replace, and it’s not clear that Griffin is ready to step into the leadership vacuum.

Still, the Clippers would have good players. No matter his faults, Griffin is an excellent player who will understandably entertain many suitors when he hits the open market. Center DeAndre Jordan looks like a diminished weapon without CP3 around to throw him lobs, but he’s a formidable presence at both ends in any system.
Plus, the much-derided Clippers bench now looks significantly better after factoring in the haul from the Rockets.

Patrick Beverley just made the All-Defensive First Team. Lou Williams can pair with Jamal Crawford to earn 20 three-shot fouls per game. Sam Dekker is a promising wing now on a team in desperate need of depth at that spot, and Montrezl Harrell is a functional backup center. There’s a decent team in there somewhere.

The big question is if that collection of players makes any sense without Paul around to stitch them all together. Griffin and Jordan have always benefited from playing with such an effective distributor, and score-first role players such as Crawford and Williams can only maximize their worth if they’re coming off the bench as a change of pace. This roster needs more creators, and it’s not clear that any good ones are on the market in the Clippers’ price range. For that matter, Rivers does not have a sterling reputation as a salary-cap whiz. This process is going to take lots of work and attention to detail. Maybe this is where new consultant Jerry West earns his money.

Even in a best-case scenario, the Clippers might not be any better than a low-seed playoff participant likely to get eliminated from the playoffs in four or five games. Seven years ago, Clippers fans would have welcomed such a fate. After six-straight seasons with a winning percentage over .600, it looks like a step in the wrong direction.

At least it’s not a walk off a cliff. If Griffin opts to join another team this July, then the Clippers suddenly become a surefire lottery team with an offense built around Jordan and several career role players. The one saving grace would be the possibility of opening up an absurd $70 million in cap room for the star-laden 2018 free agent summer.

If Ballmer replaces Rivers with a rebuild-focused front office, then the Clippers would have a chance at salvaging something from Paul and Griffin’s departures and creating a freshly competitive squad.

Yet how many prospective free agents would want to join a Clippers squad fresh off a lottery appearance? For all the warranted talk of how this core underachieved, Paul and Griffin have been responsible for what’s easily the best stretch of seasons in franchise history. A franchise that had previously been known for a loathsome owner and a nightly spot in Jay Leno’s monologue finally had real cachet and, thanks in part to the Lakers’ downturn, a meaningful spot in the consciousness of Southern Calfiornia’s sports fans.

Without that success, do those dormant zingers about the Clippers return with a vengeance? And why would any stars choose the Clippers when the Lakers figure to have considerable cap room, as well?
Those concerns are likely to force the Clippers to do everything in their power to chase whatever relevance they can. When Ballmer bought the franchise for $2 billion three years ago, he did so with the intention of building one of the NBA’s biggest clubs. Add in the Clippers’ plans to build a new Lakers-less arena, and it seems unlikely that their brain trust would willfully submit to a rebuilding process. Every stated franchise goal demands that the Clippers try to be as competitive as possible over these next few seasons. Anything less could spell a return to life as a punchline. They cannot become the West’s answer to the Brooklyn Nets.

It’s become a cliche to say that no team wants to reside in the NBA’s middle. However, the Clippers could be the rare franchise that actively attempts to occupy that ground. Relevance can come later. For now, the Clippers need to focus on keeping themselves alive.

My note: It seems like Doc is dusting off his resume. Maybe he goes back to broadcasting.

gyso

by **bobheckler** Thu Jun 29, 2017 10:40 am

https://www.yahoo.com/sports/report-favoritism-austin-rivers-led-194049049.html

Report: Favoritism for Austin Rivers led Chris Paul to “despise” Doc Rivers

Kurt Helin,NBC Sports 18 hours ago

If Chris Paul trusted Doc Rivers to build and coach a contender with the Clippers, he would not have been laying the groundwork with other teams in advance of free agency, then ultimately telling the Clippers he was headed to the Rockets and they should make a trade to send him there. Which they did.

That distrust isn’t just that the Clippers never got out of the second round, it was about the perception of how Rivers managed the team — specifically his son Austin Rivers. I have been told by multiple players and people around the Clippers there was a real frustration with how the younger Rivers was treated, including Austin getting a three-year, $35 million contract seen as more than he deserved.

Long-time Los Angeles-based broadcaster and current ESPN anchor Michael Eaves — who used to do the Clippers pre- and post-games shows on Fox Sports in L.A. — gave up the details on his Facebook page.

Paul’s relationship with Doc Rivers started to deteriorate rapidly after the Clippers acquired Austin Rivers. Several members of the team felt Austin acted entitled because his dad was both the coach and the President of Basketball Operations. In the view of the tenured players, Austin Rivers never tried to fit in, and when players tried to address the situation with him, he still did not respond the way the core of the team wanted him to. It led to resentment within the locker room, which often played out during games. One of Paul’s biggest contentions with Doc was that Paul, and other players, felt Doc treated Austin more favorably than other players. He would yell at guys for certain things during games and practices, but not get on Austin in the same manner for similar transgressions. But what really solidified Paul’s dissatisfaction with Doc was a proposed trade involving Carmelo Anthony last season. New York offered Carmelo and Sasha Vujacic to the Clippers in exchange for Jamal Crawford, Paul Pierce and Austin Rivers, a deal to which Rivers ultimately said no. That event led Paul to feel that keeping his son on the roster was more important to Doc than improving the team. So, ultimately, Paul lost both trust and faith in Doc. As one league executive put it, “Chris despises Doc.”

Would having swapped out Crawford and Rivers for Carmelo Anthony really have changed the course of last season for the Clippers? No. They weren’t beating Houston, San Antonio, or Golden State because they had ‘Melo (can you imagine what Golden State would have done to him defensively in the pick-and-roll?). But whether or not saying no to the trade was the smart move by Doc Rivers, because of his previous moves it was seen by players through the prism of favoritism

Eaves goes on to point out this is a perfect option for CP3. If he and Harden can mesh in Houston — no sure thing, they are both used to being ball-dominant guards — he can re-sign next summer with them on a max contract, essentially giving himself a six-year deal with $230 million that takes him to age 38. If it doesn’t work out, he and his buddy LeBron James can team up anywhere that a team can swing cap space for two max salaries (both Los Angeles teams could qualify there, so long as Doc is gone from the Clippers).

There have been a lot of tea leaves to suggest — and more obvious signs recently such as bringing in Jerry West — that Doc Rivers’ era in L.A. may be coming to end. He’s still owed a lot of money, but power seems to be moving away from him.

bob
MY NOTE: The irony here is that it was Chris Paul who pushed for the Doc-to-Clippers trade, and they got Doc to make Paul happy because Paul was coming up for a new contract and they wanted to keep him happy. Now, to keep him happy (and get something for him), they traded him away from Doc. The next question is "is Austin Rivers gone too, or will it be Doc?". If Steve Ballmer is smart, and he sure as hell is, he'll see that as that continuing professional relationship as the root of the problem and will address it. The turning point might be what Blake Griffin has to say about it and that might impact his availability as a free agent.

.

by Sponsored content

Paul to the Rockets!

Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!

Re: Paul to the Rockets!