The AP reports: Jose Barea hit the go-ahead 3-pointer in the final minute, Dirk Nowitzki scored 29 points and the Dallas Mavericks rallied from a 15-point deficit to beat the Los Angeles Clippers 100-98 Tuesday night. Barea capped Dallas’ closing 18-4 run with a long-range jumper with 50.2 seconds left that gave Dallas its only lead of the game. After the teams exchanged empty possessions, the Clippers had a chance to win. Baron Davis missed a 3-pointer with just over a second left and Nowitzki grabbed the rebound as time expired… Jason Terry scored 26 points for the Mavericks, who moved over .500 for the first time this season. Barea chipped in with a season-high 15 points, and Brandon Bass added 14. Zach Randolph had 27 points and 10 rebounds, Al Thornton had 23 points and Davis added 22 points for the Clippers, who didn’t score in final 2:55.
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Chris Kaman out
The Los Angeles Daily News (Ramona Shelburne) reports: Clippers center Chris Kaman sat out Saturday’s game and could miss all of next week with a strained left arch. A team spokesman said it was unlikely Kaman would travel with the team on its upcoming three-game road trip. Kaman had a cortisone shot to help relieve the pain after Wednesday’s game against the Nuggets, but said he’s only experienced “minimal relief.” “Right now I’m feeling pretty sore so I don’t know what’s going to happen,” he said. “Hopefully it’ll calm down next week and I can get back out there.”
Nov 29: Clippers 97, Heat 96
The AP reports: Zach Randolph needed only two games to make an impact with the Los Angeles Clippers. The former New York Knicks forward had 27 points and 13 rebounds, and helped fuel a pivotal fourth-quarter run with eight consecutive points, leading the Clippers to a 97-96 victory over the Miami Heat on Saturday night. Al Thornton also had 27 points and grabbed eight rebounds to help Los Angeles snap a four-game losing streak… Baron Davis, playing despite a stomach virus, had 15 points, nine assists and five rebounds… Dwyane Wade had 26 points, 11 assists and six rebounds for Miami, but the NBA scoring leader missed a desperation a 3-pointer as time expired.
Zach Randolph says he is as good as Elton Brand
The New York Knicks recently traded power forward Zach Randolph to the Los Angeles Clippers. Randolph is an excellent scorer and rebounder, but the rest of his game often gets criticized as not being particularly effective. Meanwhile, Philadelphia 76ers power forward Elton Brand has an excellent reputation, though like Randolph, Elton’s teams in the NBA haven’t been particularly successful. The Los Angeles Daily News (Ramona Shelburne) reports:
Zach Randolph seemed generally pleased to be in Los Angeles and playing with the Clippers, despite their woeful start to the season, and even more tumultuous offseason. Asked whether he was comfortable trying to fill the shoes left by Elton Brand, Randolph laughed, then confidently said, “Shoot, he ain’t better than me. He ain’t better than me.” The Clippers certainly could have used Randolph on Monday night. Hornets power forward David West went off for 27 points on 12-of-21 shooting and point guard Chris Paul had a triple-double with 14 points, 10 rebounds and 17 assists. The loss, and uncertainty surrounding the trade, overshadowed what ended up being a breakout game for Clippers rookie Eric Gordon who scored 25 points in his first career start.
Randolph was playing well with the Knicks this season under new coach Mike D’Antoni. He’ll be worth watching on the Clippers, at least initially to see how he plays alongside the mess of big men (Chris Kaman and Marcus Camby) and star point guard Baron Davis.
Nov 24: Hornets 99, Clippers 87
The AP reports: Chris Paul recorded his sixth career triple-double, getting 17 assists, 14 points and 10 rebounds for the New Orleans Hornets, in a 99-87 victory on Monday night. West scored 27 points, including a pair of jumpers that diffused a rally by the Clippers midway through the fourth quarter… Peja Stojakovic had 13 points and nine rebounds for the Hornets, who won their third straight following a home-and-home sweep of Oklahoma City. Forward Morris Peterson did not play because of pain in his right knee, but backup point guard Devin Brown was back in the lineup, scoring 11 points after spraining his right ankle in Saturday’s 109-97 win. Eric Gordon scored 25 points to lead the Clippers despite spraining his ankle early in the first quarter. Baron Davis had 19 points against his former team and Chris Kaman added 14 points for the Clippers, who have lost seven straight to the Hornets and four in a row against them at Staples Center.
Players in Clippers-Knicks trade not active yet
Zach Randolph and Mardy Collins will not be in uniform for Monday night’s game between the Clippers and New Orleans Hornets.
None of the four players in Friday’s trade between the Clippers and New York Knicks are eligible to play for their new teams until the results of all physicals are known.
There’s no word that anything is wrong.
Zach Randolph OK with trade
Former Knick Zach Randolph is now with the Clippers. Although Randolph was mentioned in NBA trade rumors fairly regularly, it’s still often a shock when a deal actually happens. But he seems cool with it. The Newark Star-Ledger (Dave D’Alessandro) reports:
This deal also means it’s worth watching the next few Clippers games, to see how Baron Davis continues to adjust to his new teammates, and how the Clippers handle having Randolph, Chris Kaman and Marcus Camby on the roster together. Who starts, who sits? Randolph absolutely can’t pretend to be a small forward, because whoever he guards at the position would go right past him. It’ll be an interesting frontcourt to watch, at least for the next few days as they sort things out.
Nov 22: Nets 112, Clippers 95
The AP reports: Yi Jianlian had a season-high 27 points, and Vince Carter added 26 to help the New Jersey Nets beat the short-handed Los Angeles Clippers 112-95 on Saturday night. Devin Harris had 18 points and 10 assists, and Brook Lopez finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Bobby Simmons had 11 points as every Nets starter hit for double figures and New Jersey got its fourth win in the last five games. It was an odd shooting night for the Nets, who went 11-for-19 from 3-point range but were only 25-for-39 from the free-throw line. Baron Davis had 30 points and 10 assists for the Clippers (2-11). Marcus Camby added 18 points and 13 rebounds, and Al Thornton had 18 points.
Mobley not happy being traded
The Knicks and Clippers made a trade today that sent Zach Randolph and Mardy Collins to Los Angeles, and Tim Thomas and Cuttino Mobley to New York.
Mobley, an old shooting guard who can still play but whose career is winding down, isn’t happy about it.
Mobley today said the following to the Los Angeles Times (Lisa Dillman) “I’m a little upset… It was a surprise. I mean, I liked our team. I didn’t give up on our team. I don’t know what the owner was thinking, and don’t know what anyone was thinking… I thought we were going to come around. It’s hard. It’s hard because I like all the guys a lot. It’s tough.”
Knicks trade Zach Randolph to Clippers
The Los Angeles Clippers acquired forward Zach Randolph and guard Mardy Collins from the New York Knicks today in exchange for forward Tim Thomas and guard Cuttino Mobley Clippers General Manager and head coach Mike Dunleavy announced today.
“In an attempt to make our team more competitive, we are excited about the acquisition of Zach Randolph,” Dunleavy said. “He is a 27-year old highly-skilled scorer and rebounder. Getting a player like Zach cost us two highly skilled veterans in Cuttino Mobley and Tim Thomas, but we feel that the move will help us both now and in the future. We wish nothing but the best of success for Cuttino and Tim with their new team.”
The six-foot-nine Randolph is known as one of the NBA’s most effective young post players, bringing a career 16.4 points per game scoring average and 8.2 rebounds in 467 career games to the Clippers. Randolph is a career 46 percent shooter from the field and averaged 17.6 points, a team-leading 10.3 rebounds in 69 games for the Knicks in 2007-08 while finishing 10th in the NBA with 40 double-doubles. Randolph is averaging 20.5 points and 12.5 rebounds in the first 11 games of the 2008-09 season.
The Michigan State product was drafted by the Portland Trailblazers in the first round (19th overall pick) of the 2001 NBA Draft. Randolph, 27, played six seasons in Portland, enjoying a break-out year in 2003-04 when he averaged 20.1 points and 10.5 rebounds for the Trailblazer en route to being named the NBA Most Improved Player of the Year. Randolph joined the Knicks prior to the 2007-08 season in a trade.
In his third pro season, the six-foot-six Collins is averaging 2.2 points and 1.7 assists in nine games this season. A former standout at Temple University, Collins was drafted by New York with the 29th overall pick in the first round of the 2006 NBA Draft. Collins has appeared in 107 career NBA games, with career averages of 3.7 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game.
Cuttino Mobley joined the Clippers as a free agent on August 4, 2005 and was a key member of the club’s run to the 2005-06 Western Conference Semifinals, averaging 14.9 points that season and 13.3 points in 12 playoff games. A 10-year NBA veteran, Mobley is the Clippers third-leading scorer this season, averaging 13.7 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 2008-09.
“Cuttino and Tim are two veteran players that will help us work towards our joint goal of remaining competitive this season while also improving our long-term cap flexibility,” said New York Knickerbockers President of Basketball Operations Donnie Walsh. “Zach is an extremely talented player who produces numbers that few players can and we thank him, and Mardy, for their efforts as Knickerbockers.”
Thomas, 6-10, 240-pounds, was selected by the New Jersey Nets with the seventh overall selection in the 1997 NBA Draft and enters his second tour with the Knicks. The Paterson, NJ-native has career averages of 11.8 points and 4.2 rebounds in 752 career games over 12 NBA seasons with Philadelphia, Milwaukee, New York, Chicago, Phoenix and L.A. Clippers. The Villanova product was acquired by New York during the 2003-04 season and averaged 12.9 points and 3.7 rebound in 95 games with the Knickerbockers before being traded to Chicago prior to the 2005-06 season. Last season with the L.A. Clippers, Thomas averaged 12.4 points and 5.1 rebounds in 63 games. In 10 games this season, Thomas is averaging 9.5 points and 4.6 rebounds per game.
“Tim enjoyed a lot of success in our system a few years ago in Phoenix when he was a key part of a run to the Western Conference Finals,” Knicks Head Coach Mike D’Antoni said. “I am also very familiar with Cuttino and his knowledge of the game, and his ability to spread the floor and defend.”
With this transaction, the Clippers roster now stands at a total of 14 players, with three players (Chris Kaman, Al Thornton, Paul Davis) remaining from the team that finished the 2007-08 season.