Sources: After Chris Paul's nudge, Clips seek ownership approval for K.G.-Rivers trade

ADRIAN WOJNAROWSKI

YAHOO! EXPERT

Sources: After Chris Paul's nudge, Clips seek ownership approval for K.G.-Rivers trade

After superstar Chris Paul injected his influence to accelerate talks, the Los Angeles Clippers are searching for ownership approval to complete a blockbuster deal to bring Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers and forward Kevin Garnett to L.A., league sources told Yahoo! Sports. 

 Clippers management planned to huddle with owner Donald Sterling on Wednesday night in Los Angeles to get his approval and move on Thursday to finalize an agreement with the Celtics, sources said. Sterling met with Clippers coaching candidate Brian Shaw, an Indiana Pacers assistant coach, on Wednesday night.
The Clippers' trade talks with the Celtics appears to be coming down to Donald Sterling. …
The Clippers will send center DeAndre Jordan and two first-round draft picks to the Celtics in the deal, league sources said.

 Under league rules, Rivers can't officially be traded, but the draft picks are compensation for a release of the coach's contractual obligations to the Celtics. Garnett and Jordan can be exchanged for each other. In the eyes of the NBA, these have to be executed as two different deals.
The Clippers haven't pushed Paul for a firm commitment to re-sign based on the completion of the deal, but Rivers is accepting the job with a belief that the All-Star point guard has decided to stay and play for him, sources told Yahoo! Sports.

"Doc is taking the job to coach Chris Paul," a league source told Yahoo! Sports on Wednesday. "This isn't happening if Chris planned to leave."

After the talks stalled on Tuesday morning, Paul communicated to the Clippers that the hiring of Rivers and acquisition of Garnett would be essential to his re-signing as a free agent in July, sources said.
Garnett, 37, will waive his no-trade clause to join Rivers with the Clippers. The Clippers have to pay a $3.5 million trade kicker on Jordan's contract.

The Clippers walked away from the talks on Tuesday morning, insisting that Boston's asking price of Jordan and two first-round picks was too steep for Garnett and Rivers.
Clippers management believed that the Celtics would eventually come back to them out of an assumption that the Celtics-Rivers relationship would be difficult to repair, but Paul's pushing behind the scenes accelerated the Clippers' move back to talks with Boston, sources said.
The Clippers negotiated a five-year, $35 million deal with Rivers that could be worth as much as $8 million a year with bonus incentives, sources said. Rivers has arrangements to bring some Celtics support staff – including assistants coaches Tyronn Lue and Kevin Eastman, and possibly others – with him to Los Angeles, sources said.

Only one Celtics assistant coach – Jay Larranaga – has a contract for next season with Boston.

The thing I dont get here - is what happened to Bledsoe?

KG for Jordan straight up is a TERRIBLE deal for the Celtics.
Doc for 2 draft picks - doesnt seem favorable either.

The Celtics seem to have gone from a position of strength to taking whatever the Clippers want to offer.  When did that happen?

I don't think getting a young Jordan compared to one or two years of declining KG is a bad deal. Jordan is overpaid, and despite my cautions about his limitations, he is young, athletic, and far more productive than Fab Melo, who may very well never make it in the NBA. Jordan could fit in well with a young, running, remade Celtics team, and changing teams may spark him into making another step up in his game.

The trade also looks good compared to the alternative of no deal. In that situation, Doc is perceived as damaged goods here and may have to walk away, and KG stays for a year or two (or maybe even just retires because Doc is gone). KG may spend any remaining time in the league nursing injuries, like Shaq did when he came here. What did you get for KG and Doc then?

The Celtics do have some advantage in the negotiations -- the Clippers apparently need to do something to keep Chris Paul from signing elsewhere, and their options for that are limited. Also, talks broke down because Ainge wouldn't cave and/or Sterling wouldn't pony up the cash, but now that Chris Paul is exerting pressure to get this done, the Clippers have come back to the table -- they're the ones who restarted talks. Neither party is in a completely advantageous position, but the Clippers are desperate to do something so that Chris Paul will stay, which is to the Celtics' advantage.

MrKleen,

I don't think including Bledsoe was ever a reasonable expectation.  That was Danny's asking price.

I love KG and I'm going to miss him, but we all know he had 1, maybe 2, years left in him.  On a team that was entering that twilight period when good teams are forced to rebuild.

I am not a big fan of Jordan, I must confess, but he is big and tough and we haven't been either in a while.  I'm going to have to move all breakable objects out of reach when he goes to the line.  This is assuming that he's still on the team come November.  I don't know when the earliest he can be traded again, but my gut tells me Trader Danny isn't done yet.

I think two first round draft choices for a coach is very fair, if that's how you want to divvy it up, especially so depending upon what years they are.  Next year is supposed to be a good draft year.  Two years from now might not be so good, but 3 years from now KG will be gone and the Clips will suffer from his loss, not us, and that draft pick will rise.      

If you say it was KG + one draft choice for Jordan and one draft choice for Doc, that balances it out a bit.   A player with a maximum 2 years left and a coach that wants to leave for a bonafide NBA center and 2 first rounders?  Doesn't sound tooooo bad to me.

When was the last time, if ever, a coach has been traded, period?

Danny turned lemons into lemonade.  If lemonade isn't what you like it's understandable if you don't like the taste, but turning lemons into orange juice isn't going to happen.  You have to work with what you have.


bob


.

MrKleen,

Although I agree with you, having 2 first rounders especially 1 in a deep draft next year can be used in an additional trade. This deal maybe expanded to include other clubs and players as well so stay tuned!

Also Celtics get $3M back in cash to offset Jordan's salary.

The Tampa Bay Bucs traded two first rounders and two second round picks to the Oakland Raiders for Coach Jon Gruden.

There could be a glitch that kills this deal and that glitch is Dictator Stern.

Under league rules, coaches cannot be traded.  Therefore, for the league to approve this deal, they have to be convinced that the deal is KG for Jordan and 2 first round picks.  Period.  No Doc involved.

Does anybody think that KG, at this point in his career, is worth DeAndre Jordan, 2 first rounders and $3M cash?

Could this be Stern's final spit-in-the-eye-of-Red?


bob


.

BOB,

It is just that but it will be contractually structured that for letting Doc out of a personal service contract to coach the compensation is 2X draft picks.

Then the trade for KG/Jordan is straight up. No way can Stern block this legally unless he wants law suites from the Celtics and Clippers and tarnish the NBA.

112288

There must be a way to put a pretty bow on it and call it KG for Jordan and a pick or two.  It could be we either settle for one pick less or have to include a player.

Perhaps there ends up being an understanding where Doc steps down and the Celtics fail to enforce his non-compete rather than us granting him an outright release from his obligations.  There is nothing binding a party to enforce a non-compete clause; they can go un-exercised and the new contract is not necessarily void just because the clause exists.  Trust me, I know all about that one.

Somehow I think it gets done.  The leagues vested interest is having another major market team build its stature as a championship contender and competitive drawing card while a legacy team rebuilds quickly in order to remain a playoff presence.  Not a bad thing for the league if both teams walk away happy and in better shape financially and on the floor.

Bob,

Ya, it is legit compensation for loss of services to the Celtics that has a direct impact on the Celtics ...their coach.

If there was a stumbling block, Stern quietly would have nixed the compensation already. Stern wants this thing to be over with and out of the news. Besides, both legal staffs for the teams already know that this can be done or they would never entertain Doc leaving.

112288

After the smoke clears we will all have a better perspective on all that has happened.
 
As i see the current situation unfolding, it looks like we get Jordan and 2 first rounders.  We save a little over $500k on the KG for Jordan swap but that still mesns that Paul Pierce will probably be amnestied unless he can be package before june 30th.
 
I think the hang up now is probbaly related to Butler and either lee or terry.  If we get butler we will take back a bigger hit the first year but save money since he has an expiring contract.  that contract would also be of use in the middle of the season.
 
Adding Jordan and losing the offense that KG provides is a big issue and since none of the first round big men out there are likely to scratch the surface of KG's production i expect another big time trade to get a low post scorer and rebounder.  If we did that we could use our 16th pick to go after a 1, 2 or 3 provided all can put the ball in the hole.  or we could go ahead and add a PF or center to add some depth allbeit, a developmental type player.
 
DA has a lot of options and I think he will have enough flexinity to put a solid team on the court.  We have 4 pretty good players in Rondo, Green, Bradley and Sullinger.  Green is ready to be our # 1 scorer and we need to add a # 2 scorer as well.
 
Lastly, I sure hope DA hires a coach that can make this team run, play defense, rebound and share the basketball.
 
dboss

DBOSS

There is a $3.5M trade kicker as well of Jordan that Clippers must pay according to above article.

112288

Hi,
Speaking about PP. I think he's a quiet part of the deal: he'll be released, becomes a FA and signs with LAC. Just my opinion, not based on any source or rumor.

AK

Here's how the trade bonus (also called a trade kicker) works.

http://www.cbafaq.com/salarycap.htm#Q96

What I take from this is that it's a one-time bonus paid to the player. Because Jordan signed his contract under the new CBA, it's paid by the Clippers.

BOB HECKLER

BOB, HERE IS AN ANSWER TO YOUR STATEMENT ABOUT THE LEAGUE. YOU DID RAISE A GOOD ISSUE AND AS I STATED THE TEAMS WERE AWARE OF THIS BEFORE TALKS BEGAN.

As the Los Angeles Clippers and Boston Celtics seemingly inched closer to an agreement that would bring an end to their on-again, off-again negotiations and finally send both Celtics star forward Kevin Garnett and coach Doc Rivers to Los Angeles, sources close to the process said Thursday that a hurdle at league level threatens to scuttle the talks yet again.

Sources told ESPN.com that it has been communicated to both teams by the league office that the NBA has questions about the proposed transactions involving Garnett and Rivers and the appearance that they are connected.

The teams awoke Thursday, sources said, close to an agreement on separate transactions that would land Garnett and Rivers in Los Angeles. The first is a proposed one-for-one player swap that would send Clippers center DeAndre Jordan to Boston for Garnett, who would waive his no-trade clause to clinch the deal. The second move would require the Clippers to convey two first-round picks to Boston as compensation for the Celtics agreeing to let Rivers out of the three years and $21 million left on his contract.

League rules not only prohibit coaches from being formally "traded" but likewise prevent teams from making any trade or free-agent signing with contingencies or side deals attached. So it is incumbent on the Celtics and Clippers to convince the league office that these transactions would be made independently.


"I would say in the language of diplomacy that the teams are aware that the collective bargaining agreement doesn't authorize trades involving coaches contracts," NBA commissioner David Stern said on the "Stephen A. Smith Show" on ESPN Radio on Thursday. "The only consideration that can be done here in players transactions are other players, draft picks and a very limited amount of cash. But, coaches contracts don't qualify as extra consideration or acceptable consideration in player transactions. The teams know that ... it has been confirmed to them. What we wouldn't prohibit ... what the rules wouldn't prohibit ... Let me start again ... what the rules won't allow ... it can't be gotten around by breaking it up into two transactions."

One source with knowledge of the talks told ESPN.com on Thursday that the Celtics and Clippers have been negotiating for days knowing that league rules could well prohibit the transactions from going through.

Another source connected to the talks said Thursday that the Celtics and the Clippers, in the wake of ESPN.com's report about the league's concerns, have begun discussing alternative trade constructions to address any potential misgivings from the NBA.

112288

Thanks 112288,

They are aware of it, he says.  That doesn't mean he won't kill it.  This deal is considerably less straight-forward than the Chris-Paul to-the-Lakers deal and he killed that "just because".  Still, it does mean that Danny and the Clips know where the chalk outlines are and, hopefully, know better than to lie down inside them.

If Danny pulls this off, packaging a coach in a trade, it will be another NBA first.  Not that this is the first time that Danny has thought outside the lines and then forced the NBA to re-draw the lines.  Remember the Gary Payton deal, where he traded him to Atlanta with Jiri Welsch for 'Toine, the Hawks said right upfront they were going to release him, Danny let him clear waivers and then picked him up for a song and in doing so netted 'Toine and Payton for Welsch?  I believe the new CBA says you can't trade a player and then take him back off waivers or as a free agent for a year.  That was put in because Danny likes to paint outside the lines.

http://www.rantsports.com/nba/2013/05/30/boston-celtics-flashback-antoine-walker-gary-payton-trade/


Speaking of The Glove, here's some bonus video of Payton preparing T-Will for the NBA draft back in 2009.  Too bad Payton couldn't teach Williams about being mentally strong too, he might have saved the kid from having to eat a lot of lo mein over the past year or two:







bob


.

Stern was able to kill the Chris Paul trade because the league was the Hornets' owner at the time. That doesn't mean he wasn't a jerk about it, but he was allowed to kill the trade.

Well,

They never mentioned cash not being allowed...so the $3.5 million cash consideration to off set Jordan's as proposed could be shifted to buy Doc out of his contract. No breaking rules there.

Then the trade for the players.......probably more players involved and perhaps more teams..............I am sure Paul Pierce has been thrown into this as well. I thinking multi team...multi player block buster deal.

112288