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Clippers sign Dahntay Jones to second 10-day contract

The Los Angeles Clippers have signed guard Dahntay Jones to a second 10-day contract.

Jones appeared in four games for the Clippers during his first 10-day deal, averaging 1.0 points and 0.3 rebounds in 5.8 minutes.

Jones, who was the 16th D-League-to-NBA “Call-up” of the 2014-15 season, appeared in 19 games (15 starts) for the Fort Wayne Mad Ants of the NBA Development League and averaged 14.4 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 29.2 minutes.

Jones, 34, is a 10-year NBA veteran who has appeared in 593 career games (157 starts) averaging 5.6 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 16.3 minutes with Memphis, Sacramento, Denver, Indiana, Dallas, Atlanta and Los Angeles.

Originally drafted by the Boston Celtics with the 20th overall pick in the first round of the 2003 NBA Draft, Jones was traded to Memphis on Draft Day and spent four seasons with the Grizzlies.

A New Jersey native, the 6-foot-6 inch guard/forward played two seasons at Rutgers before transferring to Duke for his junior and senior season, where he and Clippers guard J.J. Redick were teammates during the 2002-03 season.

Clippers sign Dahntay Jones to 10-day contract

The Los Angeles Clippers have signed free agent guard Dahntay Jones to a 10-day contract.

Jones, 34, is a 10-year NBA veteran who has appeared in 589 career games (157 starts) averaging 5.6 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 16.3 minutes with Memphis, Sacramento, Denver, Indiana, Dallas and Atlanta.

Jones has appeared in 19 games this season for the Fort Wayne Mad Ants of the NBA Development League and is the 16th call-up of the 2014-15 season.

Originally drafted by the Boston Celtics with the 20th overall pick in the first round of the 2003 NBA Draft, Jones was traded to Memphis on Draft Day and spent four seasons with the Grizzlies.

This season, Jones has played in 19 games (15 starts) for Fort Wayne averaging 14.4 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 29.2 minutes.

Jones averaged 13.3 points in 63 games for Rutgers and 14.3 points and 4.8 rebounds in 68 games for Duke. As a senior at Duke, he averaged 17.7 points and was named an Honorable Mention All-American by The Associated Press and to the All-ACC First Team.

Jabari Brown wins D-League Performer of Week through January 11

Los Angeles D-Fenders guard Jabari Brown was today named NBA Development League Performer of the Week for games played Monday, Jan. 5 – Sunday, Jan. 11. The award is the first of Brown’s career.

Brown (6-4, 202, Missouri) led Los Angeles to a 2-1 record last week, scoring an NBA D-League season high 50 points on 15-of-22 shooting in a 124-99 win in Sioux Falls over the Skyforce on Jan. 10. Earlier in the week, Brown scored a then-career high 35 points in a 133-121 win over the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. For the week, he averaged 32.7 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists.

For the season, Brown is averaging 21.9 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 21 games, seven as a starter.

Other top performers considered included Austin’s Jonathan Simmons, Bakersfield’s Joe Jackson, Oklahoma City’s Semaj Christon, Rio Grande Valley’s Chris Johnson and Reno’s Quincy Miller.

Jarvis Varnado now with Los Angeles D-Fenders in the D-League

The Los Angeles D-Fenders have acquired center Jarvis Varnado and a third round pick in the 2015 NBA Development League Draft from the Iowa Energy, in exchange for the D-Fenders’ first and second round picks, it was announced today by General Manager Nick Mazzella.

Varnado was drafted out of Mississippi State in the second round (41st overall) of the 2010 NBA Draft by the Miami Heat, before signing with Carmatic Pistoia of the Italian Lega Basket Serie A, where he averaged 15.4 points, 8.9 rebounds and 3.1 blocks per game. The 6’9” center split the 2012-13 season with the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat. From 2012-2014, Varnado appeared in 45 NBA D-League games for Sioux Falls and Iowa, making 44 starts and averaging 14.3 points, 10.4 rebounds and 4.0 blocks in 31.1 minutes per game. Varnado was selected as an NBA D-League All-Star in 2014, before earning an NBA Call-Up from the Philadelphia 76ers, where he appeared in 23 games with averages of 4.3 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game.

As a junior at Mississippi State, Varnado set the SEC single-season blocks record, passing Shaquille O’Neal with 170 blocks in 2008-09. Varnado was named SEC Defensive Player of the year in 3 consecutive seasons (2008, 2009, 2010), becoming the first player to do so. Finishing his career with 561 blocks, Varnado holds the record for most career blocks in NCAA Division 1 history. Varnado joins David Robinson as the only two players in NCAA history to tally 1,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and 500 blocks in a career. In his senior season at Mississippi State, Varnado averaged 13.8 points, 10.3 rebounds and 4.7 blocks in 31.5 minutes per game.

Jordan Farmar still trying to fully fit in with Clippers

Here’s ESPN Los Angeles reporting on backup Clippers guard Jordan Farmar:

Jordan Farmar had his best game as a Los Angeles Clipper on Monday night against the Detroit Pistons, but you wouldn’t know it by looking at him as he sat in the locker room after the game.

Farmar, who scored a season-high 15 points to go along with five assists in 23 minutes off the bench, thought nights like this would be more commonplace than aberrations when he signed a two-year, $4.2 million contract with the Clippers in the offseason.

But Farmar and the Clippers have yet to get fully comfortable with each other 24 games into the season…

Farmar’s biggest issue with the Clippers is getting inconsistent minutes and opportunities. While [head coach Doc] Rivers tells Farmar he’s going to get 20 minutes per night, Farmar has played 20 or more minutes just three times this season, including Monday’s game. On the season, he’s averaging 14.7 minutes per game, averaging 4.3 points, 1.8 assists and 1.2 rebounds. Each statistic represents a career low for the 28-year-old point guard.

Photo: Blake Griffin, during play stoppage

Los Angeles Clippers power forward Blake Griffin, who through Friday’s games is averaging 22.5 points, 7.6 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game this season.

Jamal Crawford starting for Clippers lately

Jamal Crawford starting for Clippers lately

Here’s the Los Angeles Daily News blog reporting on the Clippers, who are a modest 4-3 to start the 2014-15 NBA season. It’s an adjustment, for both Crawford and the team as a whole. As for if it’ll continue, we’ll have to wait and see:

The Clippers are 1-1 since coach Doc Rivers inserted two-time NBA Sixth Man of the Year Jamal Crawford into the starting lineup, replacing Matt Barnes.

Rivers told reporters ahead of Monday night’s 89-85 loss to San Antonio that he made the move for the team, and intimated it was to inject more offense into it.

Crawford scored 20 points on 7 of 16 shooting in Saturday’s 106-102 victory over Portland. But he scored just 10 points on 3 of 13 from the field – he was 1 of 7 from 3-point range – against San Antonio.

Clippers waive Joe Ingles

Clippers waive Joe Ingles

The Los Angeles Clippers have waived forward Joe Ingles, the team announced today. Ingles has talent, but the team’s roster was simply too crowded to keep him.

Originally signed on September 22, 2014, Ingles appeared in five preseason games (one start), averaging 1.2 points and 1.0 rebounds.

The Clippers roster now stands at 15, the maximum allowed in the regular season, which begins this coming Tuesday.

Doc Rivers not worried about Clippers preseason losses

Wins and losses don’t matter in NBA preseason. It’s a warmup period, designed to let stars stretch their legs, adjust to some teammates, and bench players to enjoy inflated minutes. The Los Angeles Clippers are 0-3. No big deal, we say. And head coach Doc Rivers appears to agree. Here’s the Orange County Register reporting:

The defense has struggled – allowing 111 points per game. The offense has been inconsistent. The Clippers have been beaten on the boards and have been auditioning small forwards on a nightly basis.

So obviously, Rivers would be concerned, right?

“I’m not that concerned right now. Honestly,” he said. “I just think we’re trying to try some things and do a lot of different things, and we’ll figure it all out.”

The Clippers, who didn’t practice Tuesday, have five exhibition games left, and Rivers said the team knew things could be rocky early.

“We told our guys at the beginning that we’ll see how it all works out,” he said.

Clippers re-sign Hedo Turkoglu

The Los Angeles Clippers announced today that they have re-signed free agent forward Hedo Turkoglu.

“We are happy to welcome Hedo back to the Clippers,” Clippers President of Basketball Operations and Head Coach Doc Rivers said. “Hedo is a versatile, veteran presence who contributed to the championship culture we are building in Los Angeles.”

Turkoglu, 35, appeared in 38 games for the Clippers last season after being signed on January 10. He averaged 3.0 points and 2.3 rebounds in 10.3 minutes of play. Turkoglu has appeared in 935 career games (569 starts) with Los Angeles, Orlando, Phoenix, Toronto, San Antonio and Sacramento. A 14-year NBA veteran, Turkoglu owns career averages of 11.5 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 27.8 minutes per game. The 6-foot-10 inch forward is a career 38.2 percent shooter from three-point range.

The NBA’s first Turkish born player, Turkoglu was named the NBA’s Most Improved Player in 2007-08 when he averaged a career-high 19.5 points, 5.7 rebounds and 5.0 assists. The Istanbul native was named the NBA’s Eastern Conference Player of the Week twice (periods ending Jan. 27, 2008 and Feb. 3, 2008) and was a key member of the Orlando Magic team that appeared in the 2009 NBA Finals.

Turkoglu has appeared in 98 career postseason games (72 starts) with averages of 10.7 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.9 assists.

Originally selected with the 16th overall pick in the 2000 NBA Draft by the Kings, Turkoglu played four seasons in the Turkish Professional League before coming to the NBA.