Clippers coach and GM Mike Dunleavy was quick to say that the team would be taking Griffin with the No. 1 pick.
But there is some maneuvering here. One source in Los Angeles estimated there is a 70 percent chance they'll keep the pick. In other words, the Clippers aren't completely averse to trading the pick. So Dunleavy's pronouncement also served to let teams know that the Clippers (A) are the team to deal with for those teams that want Griffin and (B) wouldn't be eager to give away the pick; the price will be high. Still, a number of teams will try to put together a package that will tempt the Clippers.
As it stands now, L.A.'s best move is to keep the pick and figure out how to get rid of Zach Randolph or Chris Kaman.
over 2 years ago
Steve Perrin
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Kevin Pritchard said, when the Blazers got the number one pick, that 20 GMs called him and made an offer for it.
Dunleavy will have options.
Exactly...
It’s the nature of having a clear #1 player in the draft. Other GM’s will call and make offers…but the offers will by and large fall extremely short of what the Clippers want in return. Nature of the beast…and a good thing too.
Do or do not. There is no try.
KP said one GM offered him a 'first ballot hall of famer'
We speculated it was Duncan.
by Sabonis4Ever on May 27, 2009 3:03 PM PDT up reply actions
Might have been Pierce
Evil Cowtown Inc: Screwin' Suckaz over since Nineteen Eighty-Five.....
No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. Simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get all tangled up, you just tango on.....
He said west coast
And Pierce was not a first ballot hof before the Oden draft.
by Sabonis4Ever on May 27, 2009 3:35 PM PDT up reply actions
Hmmm
Not saying you’re wrong or anything like that. Hell I think it was Duncan. Just that it was possible that it could have been another player like Pierce.
Evil Cowtown Inc: Screwin' Suckaz over since Nineteen Eighty-Five.....
No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. Simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get all tangled up, you just tango on.....
Love Duncan but he's nearly maxed out.
He’s an amazing player but he’s already 33. Trade a 20 year old with huge potential for a 33 over the hill player?
by dulciusEXasperis on May 27, 2009 3:37 PM PDT up reply actions
And then the Spurs vehemently denied it
It was so funny
Evil Cowtown Inc: Screwin' Suckaz over since Nineteen Eighty-Five.....
No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. Simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get all tangled up, you just tango on.....
Why on God's Green Earth (even if Alanis Morisette is God)
would the Clippers even considering trading Griffin unless you’re getting a player who is clearly better than Griffin right now? Like, say, Amare Stoudemire? The Clippers would have to consider that I think. While I’m not a huge Amare fan, I think the Clippers would be enticed. If it was me, and I would have the choice between Griffin and Stoudemire, I would take Griffin every time.
Even though I don’t think Griffin is a real franchise player, I do think he’s the kind of player who will make the Clippers a popular franchise with fans who can’t get excited about the Lakers, and keep the Clipper faithful coming back.
I would be shocked, despite all the posturing and the pessimism, that the Clippers trade away a shot at a player like Griffin. Griffin had a lot to do with the popularity of the Oklahoma program, and why can’t he do the same thing in LA? Plus, being in LA means marketing opportunities for him.
Evil Cowtown Inc: Screwin' Suckaz over since Nineteen Eighty-Five.....
No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. Simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get all tangled up, you just tango on.....
isn't Stoudemire a 2010 free agent guy?
that would suck to trade away blake griffin for a guy who’s going to be gone in a year.
by cantthinkofagoodname on May 27, 2009 3:06 PM PDT up reply actions
Agreed
'Cause how you play, is how you'll be remembered. PLAY LOUD!
by CLiPPz WeRD 12 on May 27, 2009 3:10 PM PDT up reply actions
Griffin can only be traded for a YOUNG star that is on an All Star trajectory
Kevin Durant and Derrick Rose are the only players I would take straight up, and the Bulls ain’t giving up Rose.
Rudy Gay and the #2 would be acceptable. Otherwise, no deal.
F-Elton!
Excellent point mikey
I don’t think Griffin is in the class of either Durant or Rose, but what he could mean for the Clipper fanbase in terms of being one of “the faces of the franchise” is not something that can be overlooked.
Evil Cowtown Inc: Screwin' Suckaz over since Nineteen Eighty-Five.....
No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. Simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get all tangled up, you just tango on.....
Bulls would be smart to trade Rose for Griffin
They have Hinrich and have needed a post player forever.
by Sabonis4Ever on May 27, 2009 3:36 PM PDT up reply actions
Have you posed that very scenario on Blog a Bull?
Evil Cowtown Inc: Screwin' Suckaz over since Nineteen Eighty-Five.....
No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. Simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get all tangled up, you just tango on.....
I'll think about it.
You know how they go gaga over Tyrus though.
by Sabonis4Ever on May 27, 2009 3:38 PM PDT up reply actions
Yes
But my point is this: you’re talking about trading a kid who has franchise player all over him, and who is likely going to be quite a bit better than Ricky Rubio, as opposed to Blake Griffin whom more than a few people think isn’t better than Rubio.
I don’t see why Chicago would consider that deal. I really don’t.
Evil Cowtown Inc: Screwin' Suckaz over since Nineteen Eighty-Five.....
No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. Simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get all tangled up, you just tango on.....
I know absolutely nothing about Griffin
Quite a bit about Rubio and a lot about Rose. I would take both of those PGs over Blake (Steve and Griffin).
by Sabonis4Ever on May 27, 2009 3:44 PM PDT up reply actions
Oh man
I’m going to agree with Sabonis. Feels kind of weird.
by Michael White on May 27, 2009 3:57 PM PDT up reply actions
No way would they trade Rose
maybe for anyone.
F-Elton!
LeBron?
Evil Cowtown Inc: Screwin' Suckaz over since Nineteen Eighty-Five.....
No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. Simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get all tangled up, you just tango on.....
I don't think there was any reason to post those names
Those guys are untradable. So is Rose.
F-Elton!
If it was me, and I would have the choice between Griffin and Stoudemire, I would take Griffin every time.
Talk about a straw man argument. I don’t think I’m going out on a limb by saying that every member of Clips Nation would choose Griffin every time. Holding that trade up as the argument to not make a trade is silly. The dude had microfracture surgery! There are good trades out there that should be considered. Blow you away type trades. Would you trade Griffin for Rubio and Gay? Maybe, maybe not. Trade Griffin for Rubio, Gay and next years 1? Ya, you do that trade. And with Rubio pulling a Yi, the Clippers are negotiating here from a clear position of strength.
Even though I don’t think Griffin is a real franchise player, I do think he’s the kind of player who will make the Clippers a popular franchise with fans who can’t get excited about the Lakers, and keep the Clipper faithful coming back.
This would not be a smart way of evaluating the first pick. The objective of the team should be (and probably is) trying to construct the best team possible. If Griffin is not a franchise player, nobody will care about the team any more than they do now. If you believe Rubio is a better pick, there are options. If you think Griffin is a franchise player, select him. If he is not a real franchise player, actively seek a trade.
by Michael White on May 27, 2009 3:29 PM PDT up reply actions
Zach Randolph had microfracture surgery too dude
Does that mean that he no longer can score 20 points or grab 10 boards? Please, let’s take this a different way.
I don’t think Griffin is a franchise player. Go to my own blog. You will read why I don’t think he is. That doesn’t mean, however, I don’t think he would be a very valuable pick for the Clippers more so than what they could get in a trade barring, what Mikey said, a player like Durant or Rose in return.
Griffin may not be that ultimate player, but there are always ways to acquire those. It may not even matter in the grand scheme of things because I think Griffin’s success will come in part from what the Clippers ask him to do on the court, and the system they are running with him on it.
There are plenty of drafts where there aren’t a real franchise player, and there have been some drafts without a 3 or 4 time all-star. (Those are really rare. So are the drafts with more than 5 players in that category.)
The point I’m making is that even if Griffin isn’t a franchise player, I think the Clippers would be hard pressed to find a player in this draft who could make their team better.
Evil Cowtown Inc: Screwin' Suckaz over since Nineteen Eighty-Five.....
No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. Simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get all tangled up, you just tango on.....
I don’t like leaving Clips nation.
Simply speaking, if you don’t think Griffin is a franchise player, the smart move (in my opinion) would be to trade the pick to stockpile other assets. Rose or Durant, yup those are no-brainers. Rubio and Rudy Gay, works for me. I’m sure there are others that haven’t been brought up. I guess I just got thrown back by your bombastic question (beginning with Why on god’s green earth) about getting somebody better than Griffin now. You are saying the Clippers shouldn’t trade for a current player unless they were getting more value in return—- isn’t that kind of obvious?
by Michael White on May 27, 2009 4:03 PM PDT up reply actions
Amare Stoudemire brings more potential value to the Clippers than Blake Griffin can?
How is that possible given he can opt out, and most likely will, in 2010? At least the Clippers would have, at least, 4 to 5 years of Blake Griffin at a bare minimum.
Evil Cowtown Inc: Screwin' Suckaz over since Nineteen Eighty-Five.....
No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. Simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get all tangled up, you just tango on.....
You are confused
I never said Amare Stoudemire brings more value to the Clippers than Blake Griffin. In fact, I said above that every single person on this blog would take Griffin over Stoudemire
by Michael White on May 27, 2009 4:33 PM PDT up reply actions
Okay my mistake (of which I make many)
What kind of asset’s would the Clippers realistically get? That’s what I guess I’m really confused with. But, that’s me. My point is rather simple: Sometimes there are franchise players in the draft, and sometimes not. Taking the player who fits best on your team matters for the Clippers, who unlike the Kings (my team if you aren’t aware of it), have a good deal of talent and can compete next year with Griffin, and presumably the next 10.
You don’t get a choice of when you got a top pick in the draft; luck does that for you. However, you mention getting asset’s out of the deal. I’m curious as to what those assets be, because I can’t simply understand why any team would break the bank for Griffin since he is probably not a franchise player like Duncan or Howard. Still, why wouldn’t the Clippers take Griffin? That’s what I guess I don’t understand. And what I still don’t understand is how having the #2 pick to take Rubio and having Rudy Gay (who isn’t much more well rounded than Al Thornton IMO) makes the Clippers that much better.
Evil Cowtown Inc: Screwin' Suckaz over since Nineteen Eighty-Five.....
No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. Simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get all tangled up, you just tango on.....
Deals are hard to come by
Someone like Amare or Bosh are a problem because the Clippers would have to re-up whoever they get for a second max contract and I’m not sure Sterling would go for that.
Maybe the Clippers could go with something involving the #1 and Camby for #5 and Caron Butler but I think the haggling over the final pieces would probably kill it.
And financially, Blake makes the most sense as he’s on a rookie deal for years and then when he only becomes an RFA.
I like Amare Stoudamire but I would stay away.
1. The eye injury is supposedly really serious and hes probably wearing a mask for the rest of his career.
2. Hes a free agent soon
3. If he doesn’t thikn PHX is good enough, I doubt he’ll love it here
4. other injury history
I don't like Amare Stoudemire either
When Tom Ziller even mentioned that back in February, I literally had a tourettes & conniption fit all at once. Needlessly to say, I have never liked Stoudemire much. He’s a talented player, but for the Clippers, it would be a dumb move.
Evil Cowtown Inc: Screwin' Suckaz over since Nineteen Eighty-Five.....
No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. Simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get all tangled up, you just tango on.....
even being an avid suns fan...
…I would take Griffin over STAT anyday. Amare’s work ethic and attitude has been suspect for the last couple of seasons. I’m at the point where I’ll give him one more season to turn it on and shut up or I’m done supporting him. If we could get griffin to Amare’s level of play with Eric Gordan’s work ethic we’ll be set.
As it stands now, L.A.'s best move is to keep the pick and figure out how to get rid of Zach Randolph or Chris Kaman.
I’ve argued here several times that the Clippers should not just try and “get rid” of Zach Randolph. That being said, the idea that the Clippers should “get rid” of Chris Kaman makes even less sense to me. Assuming the author means that if you move Kaman you keep Randolph— I fail to see what moving Kaman accomplishes. Neither Griffin nor Randolph is a true center, and it leaves you with Camby starting at center with DJ backing up. I can handle DJ as the reserve, but it leaves you pretty thin at the position. I think Kaman is more valuable than Camby anyway, but even if you don’t, you are leaving yourself in a position where you are hoping Jordan works out, because Camby will be gone at the end of the year (plus he’s old now anyway) so it will be DJ’s job full time. That’s a bit scary.
Its definitely strange
Griffin is your Randolph replacement. If you move Kaman, who replaces him? Camby days as a Clippers are surely numbered and LOLJordan.
Even in a vacuum, its easier to replace Randolph than Kaman. Some day very soon the Clippers would need to come up with a viable seven footer, and they just don’t fall out of the sky every day.
"So what are the odds that the Clippers can compete next season given their limited flexibility? Slim and none."
its simple...
keep everything how it is….but start griffin at pf and randolph and C, and have kaman n camby come in to relief both of them
Not a fan of defense?
Camby or Kaman has to start at center. I’d open the season with Griffin coming off the pine and easing him into things (and also you hope that Zach puts up some numbers and boosts his trade value).
Keeping the pick
I just feel it’s the right move to keep the pick here, because if the Clippers trade it away and Griffin turns out to be all he’s made out to be, we’re going to regret it big time.
No one’s gonna trade a Rose or Durant for Griffin…there’s way too much risk there for too little reward.
Was definitely geeked on Rubio there for a while, but Griffin’s the type of player who can really change the attitude of the team and demand effort all accross the board, which is something this team sorely needs.
On the other hand, you certainly can’t fault the Clippers for sitting back and listening to what teams have to offer. The thing is though, any future 1st round picks should be looked at as sweetners only. Blake Griffin is already a basketball machine, and you need to get more attractive goods in return, not just solid players and future maybe’s.
In other words, we’re not going to trade this pick.
Just do the smart thing
I do not know if BG is going to be the “next Duncan” or what have you. I do not know if he fits the criteria of “franchise player.” But what I do know is that he is the safest of the top picks. And given our history, this is the time to make the safe pick. We need a successful draft and BG assures us of that right off the bat.
At a minimum, Griffin is certainly going to be a contributor in the NBA for a long time. As long as he stays healthy, he’ll be a solid NBA player. He has significant upside, obviously, so he could also turn out to be something special. So those factors alone make him worthy of consideration at #1. But Blake brings a competitive fire and work ethic that a) make it likely that he will maximize his potential, b) are desperately needed on a team that was busting apart at the seams last year and has shown a remarkable tendency to do that in other lean years, c) restores the kind of attitude and leadership that was lost when Brand bolted.
So in short, the guy has skills, potential and the kind of intangibles that this franchise needs to turn the corner, even if he’s nothing more in terms of overall production than Shane Battier. Rubio might end up being the better player, but he is more of an unknown player and I am not sure whether he brings the intangibles. Rudy Gay doesn’t. Durant and CP3 aren’t going anywhere.
Stop the madness. Stop looking a gift horse in the mouth. If anyone can screw this up, we can. But for once, let’s just not make any noise and do the obvious thing.
A serious question
If player A is better at basketball than player B, but player B has better “intangibles” do you select player B?
by Michael White on May 28, 2009 12:52 PM PDT up reply actions
Reasonable question, but I think the generic answer to the hypothetical is no. Now, let’s fill in some of your variables:
You- Clippers
Player A: Ricky Rubio
Player B: Blake Griffin
First off, the “better than” descriptor would be very debatable here. But let’s assume that Clipper scouting suggests Rubio has more upside (defined as unrealized potential) but that Griffin is the better baller today (Griffin is seen as more polished.)
Then the answer, I believe, is yes. Why? In the short run, the Clippers get a better player. Also, as a franchise “on the brink” we are in NO position to roll the dice. To do so is akin to swinging for the fences down 5 runs in the ninth. We need baserunners to get back into the game. If we were a different franchise in a different scenario then I think maybe you approach this issue differently. But we need a solid player and Griffin is undisputably that insofar as he’s the surest thing in the draft. So in the short run we do well.
But what of the long run? Let’s say Rubio maxes out on his potential, which may be considered higher than Blake’s. Is that a failure for the Clippers? No. So long as Blake is a strong contributor I think we made the right choice for our situation. The other piece to this is that Griffin is such a hardworker that we can be sure he will do everything to reach his potential, no matter how high that might end up being. Five years from now you might trade Griffin for Rubio in a heartbeat. Or you might not if Blake continues his current trajectory.
But bottom line, this team needs stability, fire and competitiveness in addition to a really good basketball player. We’re going to get one of those, regardless. The question is will we fill our biggest need? With a history of knuckleheads on our team, I would argue that’s in fact the question we need to ask. And the answer is that we will if indeed if we select Blake Griffin.
by JPinOKC on May 29, 2009 11:25 AM PDT up reply actions 1 recs
Completly Agree with the subject
You have stuck with kaman long enough,I like zach but temper can get in the way.
We've stuck with Dunleavy long enough
Kaman still can be a very solid center for a long time.
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