Los Angeles Clippers Blog – Page 23 – NBA Blog

Clippers waive Branden Dawson

The Clippers have waived forward Branden Dawson.

According to the Orange County Register, “Dawson’s $874,636 contract for the upcoming season wasn’t guaranteed, and waiving him saves the Clippers’ tax dollars they owe the NBA.”

Dawson, 23, was selected with the 56th overall pick of the 2015 NBA Draft by the New Orleans Pelicans and acquired by the Clippers in a draft night trade in exchange for cash considerations.

The former Michigan State standout appeared in six games with the Clippers in 2015-16, averaging 0.8 points and 0.7 rebounds in 4.8 minutes.

Dawson also spent time in the NBA Development League and played in a total of 29 games for the Erie Bayhawks, Bakersfield Jam and Grand Rapids Drive averaging 10.3 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 21.1 minutes.

Clippers trade for, then waive Devyn Marble

The L.A. Clippers today acquired forward Devyn Marble and a 2020 second round pick from the Orlando Magic in exchange for guard CJ Wilcox and cash considerations. The trade also creates a $1.2 million trade exception for the Clippers.

And then, the Clippers waived Marble. Today.

And with that, the Devyn Marble Clippers era has ended.

Wilcox, 25, was selected by the Clippers with the 28th overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft out of the University of Washington and appeared in 44 games with the Clippers over two seasons, averaging 2.5 points, 0.4 rebounds and 0.4 assists in 6.1 minutes. The 6-foot-5-inch guard averaged 17.6 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists in five D-League stints with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, Bakersfield Jam and Canton Charge.

Marble, selected with the 56th overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, averaged 2.1 points, 1.4 rebounds and 0.4 assists last season with Orlando. In 44 career games (seven starts) over two years, Marble holds career averages of 2.2 points, 1.6 rebounds and 0.7 assists. He was acquired by the Magic, along with Evan Fournier, from Denver in exchange for Arron Afflalo on June 26, 2014.

Clippers sign rookie Diamond Stone

The Clippers have signed center Diamond Stone.

And yes, that is an excellent name.

Stone, selected with the 40th overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, averaged 12.5 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in his lone season at Maryland. Named AP Big Ten Newcomer of the Year, the 6-foot-11 inch center established the Maryland freshman record and all-time XFinity Center mark with 39 points vs. Penn State on 12/30/15. Stone was a member of the gold-medal winning 2014 USA U-17 World Championship Team and was chosen to the FIBA U-17 World Championship All-Tournament Team after averaging 13.4 points and 9.7 rebounds over seven games. He earned a gold medal at the 2014 FIBA Americas U16 Championship and led the USA U-16 Team to a 5-0 record.

In five games with the Clippers Summer League team, Stone averaged 10.4 points and 5.6 rebounds.

Clippers sign rookie Brice Johnson

The Clippers have signed rookie forward Brice Johnson.

All players selected in the first round of the draft are guaranteed to receive a contract, assuming they want to begin their NBA career right away. So, this signing is standard and was expected.

Johnson, selected with the 25th overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, was a consensus First Team All-American at the University of North Carolina his senior season. The 6-foot-10 inch Johnson averaged 17.0 points, 10.4 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in 40 games (all starts), helping lead the Tar Heels to the NCAA National Championship Game. He led the ACC and was fifth in the nation with a UNC-record 23 double-doubles. Johnson had career averages of 11.6 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 148 career games (80 starts) in his four years in Chapel Hill.

The South Carolina native averaged 15.4 points and 6.8 rebounds for the Clippers Summer League team in Orlando over five games.

Clippers sign Marreese Speights

The Clippers have signed free agent center/power forward Marreese Speights.

Nicknamed “Mo Buckets,” Speights is useful as a scorer in limited minutes.

Speights, 28, averaged 7.1 points and 3.3 rebounds in 11.6 minutes of play over 72 games for the Golden State Warriors while connecting on a career-high 24 three-pointers last season. Speights was a key member of the Warriors’ 2014-15 NBA Championship team, averaging a career-high 10.4 points and 4.3 rebounds. The former 16th overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers has career averages of 7.8 points and 4.1 rebounds over 571 games (73 starts) with Philadelphia, Memphis, Cleveland and Golden State.

Speights, 6-foot-10 inches, spent two years at the University of Florida, helping lead the Gators to the 2007-08 NCAA Championship. The St. Petersburg, Florida native is one of 42 players in basketball history to win both an NCAA Championship and an NBA Championship.

Clippers re-sign Jamal Crawford, Wesley Johnson, Luc Mbah A Moute and Austin Rivers

The L.A. Clippers have re-signed free agents Jamal Crawford, Wesley Johnson, Luc Mbah A Moute and Austin Rivers.

Crawford’s deal is reportedly a $42 million dollar contract over three years.

Johnson’s deal is reportedly an $18 million dollar contract over three years.

Crawford, the reigning NBA Sixth Man of the Year, averaged 14.2 points and 2.3 assists last season for the Clippers in 79 games (five starts). In his fourth season with the Clippers, he ranked second in the NBA in free throw shooting (.904) and scored in double figures 58 times. One of the most explosive bench scorers in NBA history and the only three-time winner of the Sixth Man of the Year award, Crawford ranks 89th on the NBA’s all-time scoring list (17,076 points) and is 7th on the NBA’s all-time three-pointers list (1,933 three-pointers). Crawford, 36, has averaged 15.5 points and 3.6 assists in 1,100 career games (432 starts) with Chicago, New York, Golden State, Atlanta, Portland and the Clippers.

Clippers will keep Luc Mbah a Moute

Mbah a Moute started a lot yet played few minutes last season

Forward Luc Mbah a Moute played five season for the Bucks, then played for the Timberwolves, Kings, Sixers, then the Clippers last season. He started 61 of the 75 games he played for LAC, but that’s deceptive — he played a mere 17.0 minutes per game, averaging 3.1 points an 2.3 rebounds. Still, the Clippers like him enough to bring him back for 2016-17. Here’s the OC Register:

The Clippers and free agent Luc Mbah a Moute have agreed to a deal to bring back the versatile, veteran forward for the next two seasons.

According to The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the deal is worth $4.5 million with Mbah a Moute having an option for the second year. The Clippers were able to keep him by using their bi-annual exception.

Four days into free agency and the Clippers seem to be mostly wrapped up, with a replacement for departed center Cole Aldrich the only glaring item on the agenda.

Jamal Crawford returning to Clippers

Jamal Crawford is 36 years old, past his prime and in the golden years of his career, but still able to score. This past regular season for the Clippers he averaged 14.2 ppg on 40.4% shooting. The squad apparently thinks he has enough game left to bring him back on a multi-year deal.

According to Sam Amick of USA Today, the deal is for $42 million over three years, with the third year a partial guarantee. Overall, that’s $14 million per season.

That’s a bigger and longer contract than we expected Crawford to receive at this point in his career. Even with the new cap and higher salaries taken into account. It seemed more likely that he’s receive a one or at most two-year deal. But, people like having Jamal around. So, he’ll remain with the LAC.

Clippers trying hard to land Kevin Durant

Kevin Durant’s Thunder were one win away from reaching the 2016 NBA Finals. This offseason, they traded their starting power forward Serge Ibaka away for a starting shooting guard (Victor Oladipo) and some depth. So, Durant should stick with OKC, right? That’s what’s expected to happen. But Durant is taking meetings with other squads. Here’s ESPN.com reporting:

Kevin Durant and the Los Angeles Clippers met for approximately four hours Friday night in the Hamptons, and sources close to the situation say Durant was “blown away” by the Clippers’ presentation.

Clippers owner Steve Ballmer, president Doc Rivers, executive vice president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank, Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan were present at the meeting.

According to a source, Durant was incredibly impressed by the vision and direction of the Clippers and made a strong connection with those at the meeting.

Chris Paul did not make it to the meeting but spoke to Durant beforehand and made his pitch over the phone; the two have talked throughout the process, including last week, sources told ESPN.

Coach Kevin Eastman retires

Eastman has 31 years of combined pro and college basketball experience

The Clippers have announced the retirement of assistant coach Kevin Eastman, who served as a Clippers coach for two seasons and was an assistant under Clippers President of Basketball Operations and Head Coach Doc Rivers in Boston for eight years.

“Kevin has one of the best basketball minds I have ever been around,” Rivers said. “After much deliberation, he has decided to move forward with his goals and aspirations to impact the game through speaking and consulting at all levels. Kevin has been an integral part of the Clippers success and culture, and his unparalleled loyalty will be greatly missed. We are thankful for his time and commitment and I am confident he will continue to excel both on and off the court.”

Eastman spent the 2014-15 season as the Clippers Vice President of Basketball Operations and has been involved in college and professional basketball for a combined 31 years.