Los Angeles Clippers Blog – Page 41 – NBA Blog

Los Angeles Clippers waive Stephen Jackson

The Los Angeles Clippers announced today that they have waived forward Stephen Jackson, whose basketball career, which took him all around the globe as well as across the NBA, may not have much life left to it.

Jackson was originally signed on Dec. 10 by the Clippers and appeared in nine games with the team. The forward posted averages of 1.7 points and 1.1 rebounds in 11.9 minutes.

A veteran of 13 NBA seasons with eight teams, Jackson has appeared in 858 career games (676 starts) and has career averages of 15.1 points, 3.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 1.3 steals in 31.9 minutes per game.

The Clippers roster now stands at 14 players.

Clippers sign guard Darius Morris to a 10-day contract

The Los Angeles Clippers announced today that they have signed guard Darius Morris to a 10-day contract.

Morris started the season with the Philadelphia 76ers where he averaged 6.9 points and 2.6 assists in 12 games before being waived on Nov. 20. The third-year player has career averages of 4.1 points, 1.6 assists and 1.1 rebounds in 79 games (17 starts) with the 76ers and the Los Angeles Lakers. A Los Angeles native, Morris was the 41st overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft by the Lakers out of the University of Michigan.

The 6’4” point guard played two seasons for the Wolverines, earning third team All Big-Ten honors as a sophomore with averages of 15.0 points, 6.7 assists and 4.0 rebounds.

With Clippers start point guard Chris Paul out for up to six weeks, the Clippers were in need of some backcourt depth. If Morris performs well in games or even in practice, he could stick around longer.

Guard Manny Harris named D-League Performer of Week

Manny Harris of the Los Angeles D-Fenders was today named NBA Development League Performer of the Week for games played Monday, Dec. 30 – Sunday, Jan. 5.

Harris, a 6-5, 185 pound guard from Michigan, led Los Angeles to a 3-0 record last week and averaged 29.3 points, leading his team in scoring all three games. On Jan. 4, he recorded a double-double with 27 points and 12 rebounds in a 107-94 victory over Bakersfield. He followed that up scoring 31 points to go along with 10 rebounds, five assists and four steals in a 99-95 win at Reno.

This is the first Performer of the Week honors for Harris this season and the third of his career. He is second in the NBA D-League in scoring with 27.9 ppg. Harris has tallied at least 21 points in all nine of his games for Los Angeles this season.

Other top performers considered include Idaho’s Pierre Jackson, Maine’s MarShon Brooks, Santa Cruz’s Dewayne Dedmon, Sioux Falls’ DeAndre Liggins and Springfield’s Darius Johnson-Odom.

Chris Paul health update: CP3 is out up to six weeks

The Los Angeles Clippers announced that point guard Chris Paul underwent an MRI today and was reevaluated by team doctors.

Paul has been diagnosed with a Grade 3 AC joint separation and will be out up to six weeks. No surgery is required for Paul, who suffered the injury in the third quarter of the Clippers win over Dallas on Jan. 3.

The six-time NBA All-Star has appeared in 34 games this season, averaging 19.6 points, a league-high 11.2 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 2.4 steals per game.

Clippers waive guard Maalik Wayns

The Los Angeles Clippers announced today that they have waived guard Maalik Wayns.

Wayns, 22, did not appear in a game for the Clippers in 2013-14 after missing the first 33 games of the season due to a torn left meniscus.

The former Villanova stand-out appeared in six games with the Clippers last season and averaged 3.3 points and 1.2 assists. Overall, Wayns has played in 27 career NBA games with the Clippers and Philadelphia 76ers.

NBA says Blake Griffin should not have been ejected from Clippers vs Warriors game

Rod Thorn, NBA President, Basketball Operations, issued the following statement today regarding the ejection of Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin with 10:43 remaining in the fourth quarter of the Golden State Warriors’ 105-103 win over the Clippers on Dec. 25, at Oracle Arena:

“After a league review of the Clippers-Warriors game, we have come to the conclusion that Blake Griffin should not have been ejected from the game. A common foul should have been called on Griffin for initially attempting to dislodge the Warriors’ Andrew Bogut and a technical foul should have been assessed to Bogut for grabbing Griffin by the shirt and wrestling with him.”

According to the Associated Press, “With Griffin gone, the Clippers missed several key chances in the waning moments. “If you look at it, I didn’t do anything and I got thrown out of the game. It all boils down to they (referees) fell for it,” Griffin said after the game. “To me, it’s cowardly basketball. I don’t know their intentions, but it worked. … If I knew the answer I’d probably be in a different position. Tonight I got two technicals for nothing.”

Matt Barnes fined $25,000 for failing to leave court in timely manner after ejection

Los Angeles Clippers forward Matt Barnes has been fined $25,000 for failing to leave the court in a timely manner upon his ejection, it was announced today by Rod Thorn, President, Basketball Operations.

The incident, which was called a Flagrant Foul 2 on the floor and downgraded to a Flagrant Foul 1 upon league office review, occurred with 56.8 remaining in the third quarter of the Clippers’ 120-116 OT victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday Dec. 22, at Staples Center.

Barnes has gained a reputation as an intense player who also sometimes loses his cool, resulting in hard fouls, techs and ejections. His ultra-competitiveness generally helps his team, except when it results in the opposing squad getting to shoot some extra free throws.

Clippers give super-sub Jamal Crawford a start

Here’s the Los Angeles Times reporting on Clippers scoring guard Jamal Crawford making a rare appearance in the starting lineup:

To his surprise, Jamal Crawford started for the Clippers when they played the Washington Wizards on Saturday night at the Verizon Center.

Clippers Coach Doc Rivers said he started Crawford in place of Willie Green because he wanted more spacing for the first unit and to take some of the ball handling pressure off Chris Paul.

It worked out, as Crawford scored 17 points in the Clippers’ victory over the Wizards.

Crawford started his first game since April 9, 2012, when he was with the Portland Trail Blazers.

“You can be a lot more patient when you’re a starter, because you know you’re going to be out there some,” Crawford said. “When you come off the bench, you kind of have to make a positive impact immediately, whether it’s scoring or assisting. But as a starter, you can pick your spots a lot.”

Doc Rivers coaches in Boston as a visitor tonight

Here’s the Boston Herald on Doc Rivers, who returns to Boston as a visiting head coach tonight:

Nothing will be normal for Los Angeles Clippers head coach Doc Rivers today in his return to the Garden to face the Celtics, and that unfamiliarity started when he walked into the building this morning.

“It will be strange. I’m used to going in the other doors and through the other side,” joked Rivers, who met with the media for about 15 minutes before the Pacific Division-leading Clippers prepared for their one and only trip to Boston this year. “I’m not used to having shootaround. (It’s) maybe my first shootaround ever at the Garden in the last 10 years. This is strange already.”

Rivers arrived in Boston yesterday and met with some friends for dinner before sitting down and watching the Brooklyn Nets and the Celtics kick off what is being dubbed “Reunion Week” for the Celtics with Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and now Rivers all in different situations.

“It’s going to be a hard night,” Rivers said.

Los Angeles Clippers sign Stephen Jackson

The Los Angeles Clippers announced Tuesday that they have signed free agent forward Stephen Jackson.

Jackson, 35, joins the Clippers after spending the 2012-13 season with San Antonio, where he averaged 6.2 points 2.8 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 19.5 minutes per game in 55 games for the Spurs.

A veteran of 13 NBA seasons with New Jersey, San Antonio, Atlanta, Indiana, Golden State, Charlotte and Milwaukee, Jackson has appeared in 849 career games (676 starts) and brings career averages of 15.3 points, 3.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 1.3 steals in 32.1 minutes per game to the Clippers.

Jackson was a member of the 2003 NBA Champion Spurs and has appeared in 72 career playoff games, averaging 13.9 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 33.6 minutes per game.

Originally drafted by the Phoenix Suns with the 42nd overall pick in the second round of the 1997 NBA Draft, he made his NBA debut during the 2000-01 season with the New Jersey Nets where he appeared in 77 games (40 starts) and averaged 8.2 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 21.6 minutes per game.

A native of Port Arthur, TX, Jackson has been named NBA Player of the Week twice and was a recipient of the NBA’s Community Assist Award for the month of March.