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Hawks sign-and-trade Willie Green to Clippers

Hawks sign-and-trade Willie Green to Clippers

The Atlanta Hawks today completed a sign-and-trade transaction that sends Willie Green to the Los Angeles Clippers in exchange for the rights to Sofoklis Schortsanitis, it was announced by President of Basketball Operations/GM Danny Ferry.  The move also creates a trade exception for the Hawks.

A nine-year NBA veteran, Green has averaged 9.1 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.5 assists over his career.  In 53 games played for the Atlanta Hawks last season, Green tallied 7.6 points in 17.4 minutes per game.

Green was originally drafted by the Seattle Super Sonics with the 41st overall selection in the 2003 NBA Draft out of the University of Detroit Mercy.  He was traded on draft night to the Philadelphia 76ers where he would play for seven seasons before being traded to the New Orleans Hornets prior to the start of the 2010 season.  Green spent one season in New Orleans teaming up with Clippers’ point guard Chris Paul before signing with Atlanta as a free agent prior to the start of the 2011-12 NBA season.

Schortsanitis  was drafted by the Clippers with the 34th pick of the 2003 NBA Draft but never played for the team. Schortsanitis  most recently played for Panathinaikos Athens in Greece and Maccabi Tel Aviv in Israel.

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Rapper The Game breaks hand playing at Drew League

The Game chalked up two points … and two broken bones … during a basketball game in L.A. this weekend … when a slam dunk went terribly wrong.

TMZ has learned … Game broke a bone in his thumb and his wrist during a playoff game in the famous Drew League in Los Angeles.

According to our sources, Game fell after a slam dunk … and while he was on the ground, somebody accidentally stomped on his right hand … crushing the bones.

— Reported by TMZ

Clippers hire Bob Ociepka as assistant coach

The Los Angeles Clippers today announced that they have hired long-time NBA coach Bob Ociepka to serve as an assistant coach on Vinny Del Negro’s staff for the 2012-13 season.

Ociepka, 63, has worked in the NBA for 22 years and brings over 30 years of coaching experience to the Clippers sideline. The Chicago native returns to Los Angeles for his second stint with the Clippers after serving as an assistant coach from 1993-96 under Bob Weiss and Bill Fitch. Ociepka was an assistant coach for Del Negro with the Chicago Bulls from 2008-10.

For the past two seasons, Ociepka was an assistant coach on the staff of Nate McMillan and Kaleb Canales in Portland. In his 22 year NBA coaching career, Ociepka has worked for a total of nine teams, also spending time with the Minnesota Timberwolves (2006-08), Milwaukee Bucks (2003-04 – 2005-06), Detroit Pistons (1998-99, 2001-03), Cleveland Cavaliers (1999-2001), Philadelphia 76ers (1996-97) and Indiana Pacers (1989-90 – 1992-93).

Ociepka began his NBA career working as a part-time volunteer scout for the Detroit Pistons in the 1980’s and also worked as an advance scout for the Orlando Magic during the 1997-98 season.

One of the most decorated prep coaches in Chicago history, Ociepka was inducted into the Chicago Catholic League Hall of Fame on May 4, 2000 for his success at Gordon Tech and York High Schools. He played basketball in college at Quincy College in Illinois and is the author of two books on the game of basketball, “Basketball Playbook: Plays from the Pros,” published in 1995 and “Basketball Playbook 2: More Plays from the Pros,” published in 2001.

Clippers sign Ronny Turiaf

Clippers sign Ronny Turiaf

The Los Angeles Clippers today signed free agent forward/center Ronny Turiaf.

A seven-year NBA veteran and native of the Caribbean island of Martinique, Turiaf is currently playing in the 2012 London Olympics for the French National Team. Turiaf, 29, appeared in a total of 17 regular season games last season with the Washington Wizards and Miami Heat. He played in 12 playoff games while helping the Heat to the NBA Championship.

The 6-foot-10 inch Turiaf has appeared in a total of 375 career NBA games, averaging 5.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.4 blocks while shooting 53 percent from the field in 17.9 minutes. Originally drafted by the Lakers with the 37thoverall selection of the 2005 NBA Draft after a stand-out career at Gonzaga University, Turiaf was the West Coast Conference Player of the Year in 2004-05 and left Gonzaga as the fourth leading scorer in school history.

In the NBA, Turiaf has also played for the Golden State Warriors and New York Knicks and grabbed a career-high 4.6 rebounds per game in 2008-09 with the Warriors while starting 26 of the 79 games he appeared in.

Clippers, Ronny Turiaf agree to a deal

Clippers, Ronny Turiaf agree to a deal

The Clippers and free-agent Ronny Turiaf have agreed to a one-year, veteran’s minimum contract worth $1.146 million, said NBA executives who were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.

Turiaf, a 6-10, 245-pounder, will be a backup power forward and center for the Clippers.

He becomes the fifth big man for the Clippers – behind starters DeAndre Jordan, Blake Griffin and reserves Lamar Odom and Ryan Hollins – the 13th player on the roster.

— Reported by Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times

Clippers sign center Ryan Hollins

Clippers sign center Ryan Hollins

The Los Angeles Clippers today signed free agent center Ryan Hollins.

The six-year NBA veteran averaged 3.4 points and 2.1 rebounds in 39 games played last season for the Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics. In 17 games played during the Celtics’ 2012 Playoff run, Hollins tallied 1.5 points and 1.6 rebounds per contest.

Hollins spent his most productive NBA season in Minnesota in 2009, tallying 6.1 points and 2.8 rebounds in 73 games played for the Timberwolves.

Selected by the Charlotte Bobcats with the 50th overall selection in the 2006 NBA Draft, Hollins averaged 5.7 points and 4.0 rebounds over his four-year collegiate career at UCLA. Hollins finished his time with the Bruins as the fourth all-time leading shot blocker in UCLA history (101 career blocked shots).

Center Ryan Hollins agrees to deal with Clippers

Center Ryan Hollins agrees to deal with Clippers

Continuing in their push to build a solid team for next season, the Clippers on Thursday reached an agreement with free-agent center Ryan Hollins.

Hollins is expected to sign a one-year contract for the veteran’s minimum of $1.065 million.

He made $2.48 million last season playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics, but views coming to the Clippers as a good opportunity despite the pay cut.

“Ryan is happy to be a Clipper,” Hollins’ agent, Todd Ramasar, said. “He’s happy to be back in L.A. and he’s looking forward to helping the Clippers.”

— Reported by Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times

Clippers have interest in Darko Milicic

Clippers have interest in Darko Milicic

The Los Angeles Clippers signed Grant Hill to a two-year contract Wednesday night to bolster their small forward spot, and the team also reached out to free-agent centers Darko Milicic and Ryan Hollins.

Hill agreed to join the team under the biannual exception, taking a two-year deal that starts at $1.9 million in the first year and has a raise of 4.5 percent in the second.

Hill, who will be 40 in October, is expected to back up Caron Butler at small forward.

The Clippers are expected to hold a news conference next week to formally announce the signing.

— Reported by Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times

Clippers sign Grant Hill

Clippers sign Grant Hill

The Los Angeles Clippers today signed seven-time NBA All-Star forward Grant Hill. According to the Arizona Republic, it’s a two-year, $4 million deal.

An 18-year NBA veteran, Hill brings career averages of 17.1 points, 6.1 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.2 steals and 34.4 minutes to Los Angeles. In addition, he has played in 997 games (972 starts) and connected on 48.4 percent of his field goals, 31.5 percent from behind the three-point line and 77 percent of his free throws over his career.

Hill spent the last five seasons with the Phoenix Suns, tallying 10.2 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 28.1 minutes in 49 games played during the 2011-12 campaign in which he also received five All-NBA Defensive Team votes and received multiple Defensive Player of the Year votes. In 2010-11, Hill became the seventh player in NBA history to average 13 or more points at the age of 38 or older.

Prior to his time in Phoenix, Hill spent seven seasons with the Orlando Magic in which he was limited to just 200 games due to injuries to his left ankle.

The third overall selection in the 1994 NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons, Hill was named Co-Rookie of the Year (Jason Kidd – Dallas Mavericks) after posting averages of 19.9 points, 6.4 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 1.8 steals and 38.3 minutes in 70 games played during the 1994-95 season. He was also named to the NBA’s All-Rookie First Team that season and made history by becoming the first rookie to lead the NBA in All-Star fan balloting, narrowly defeating Shaquille O’Neal. During his time with the Pistons, Hill averaged 20+ points, 6.6+ rebounds, 5.2+ assists and 1.2+ steals in five consecutive seasons.

Hill was named to the All-NBA First Team in 1997 and the All-NBA Second Team in 1996, 1998, 1999 and 2000. He also won the NBA’s Sportsmanship Award in 2005, 2008 and 2010.

A member of the 1996 United States Olympic Team, Hill helped lead the U.S. to the gold medal. He was also selected to the 2000 Olympic Team but did not play due to injury.

Hill entered the NBA after a prolific four-year collegiate career at Duke University (1991-1994), where he helped lead the Blue Devils to back-to-back National Championships in 1991 and 1992. Hill was named the nation’s top defensive player in 1993 and was named ACC Player of the Year in 1994.