Lance Stephenson to LAC

[D.o.s.]

I really hope they find a way to make Austin part of the deal.

Why would you trade away the Future MVP (and Timofey Mozgov's personal inspiration*) like that if you're the Clippers?


*We all saw him fall over trying to dribble the ball, an obvious homage to A. Rivers

[Geo123]

GM Doc thinning out that team depth even more.

Doc is a poor GM and should stick to coaching....

[biggs]

Not a bad deal for either team. The Clippers are still going to end up woefully, short on depth.

How is that good for CHA? Lance's stock may have dropped, but the return is pathetic imo.

[tazzmaniac]

Maybe for a team like the Boston Celtics this would be a chance to take on Stephenson, but losing two rotation players for a chance on Stephenson for LA?

Stephenson needs the ball in his hands to be effective, but so does Paul and to a lesser extent Griffin. That team needs a wing who can shoot and spread the floor around the non-spacing bigs of Griffin and Jordan. Hell, Stephenson might be a worse shooter than Barnes. Adding another high-paid, non-shooting, ball-dominant guy and losing decently paid depth is not the direction they should be heading.

The Clippers aren't winning the west with Hawes and Barnes.  If Stephenson gets back close to his Indiana production, this trade would be a steal.  With his last year being a team option, there is not much risk.  With their cap situation, they don't have a lot of options. 

[Rondo9]

Maybe for a team like the Boston Celtics this would be a chance to take on Stephenson, but losing two rotation players for a chance on Stephenson for LA?

Stephenson needs the ball in his hands to be effective, but so does Paul and to a lesser extent Griffin. That team needs a wing who can shoot and spread the floor around the non-spacing bigs of Griffin and Jordan. Hell, Stephenson might be a worse shooter than Barnes. Adding another high-paid, non-shooting, ball-dominant guy and losing decently paid depth is not the direction they should be heading.

The Clippers aren't winning the west with Hawes and Barnes.  If Stephenson gets back close to his Indiana production, this trade would be a steal.  With his last year being a team option, there is not much risk.  With their cap situation, they don't have a lot of options.

With Stepheson an erratic shooter who needs the ball in his hands to be effective and combined with his unpredictable personality, this could hurt the Clippers.

[crimson_stallion]

GM Doc thinning out that team depth even more.

Doc is a poor GM and should stick to coaching....

I'm a big fan of Doc (regardless of the hate he gets from others) but I think I have to agree - love his ability to coach and motivate, really not liking his personnel choices.

[MJohnnyboy]

There's really not much depth the Clippers are taking out to get Stephenson. Hawes was awful and out of the rotation before the playoffs even began and they'll have Stephenson play Barnes' position. What stands out to me about this hypothetical deal is that the Hornets are so desperate to get rid of Stephenson that they are willing to take Hawes' longer deal (which costs 80% as much as Lance's does) just to take Stephenson off the team.

I honestly can't blame the Clippers for doing this because they are taking the Rockets' approach of "Talent will gel no matter what". Even if Stephenson is toxic, he's shown in the past that he is a talented player. I'm not saying it's going to work but it's something worth trying out. Stephenson is still young and perhaps a fresh start with Doc will get him back to where he was back in his Pacer days.

Some are saying that Stephenson may not be able to spread the floor, and I'm not disagreeing, but remember when Josh Smith had abominable stats taking 3s in Detroit and then all the sudden started nailing them again and again in Houston? I could see the Clippers trying to do the same thing with Stephenson.

As far as adding depth goes, I see the Clippers adding Wesley Johnson as their back-up wing and giving Javale Mcgee (or Larry Sanders) a look as their back-up 5 for veterans minimum deals.

Of course all this is futile of Deandre Jordan doesn't come back.

[CelticSooner]

This would be a good deal for the Clippers regardless of Stephenson's attitude because he has a team option after next season. Don't see why the Hornets are doing it tho?

[mahonedog88]

Given the way Stephenson worked out in Charlotte, it's no guarantee it'll work in LA.  But if Lance can duplicate his play from Indiana, I actually think it's a solid trade for the Clippers.  They get Hawes and that awful contract off the books which is a win in itself.  And then if Doc can tap into what Frank Vogel was able to get out of him, that's a pretty solid piece to add.

If it goes through, it'll be interesting to see how Doc uses him...whether he just simply replaces Barnes as the new starting small forward, or he puts him at the 2 guard spot and moves Redick to the bench.  But if he does that, he'll still have to search for a starting 3.

[Endless Paradise]

I like this deal for the Clippers much better than I do for the Hornets.

[jpotter33]

If they're desperate enough to take Barnes and Hawes for him, I wonder if we could get him and #9 for Bradley while keeping #16.

[LarBrd33]

I feel like the Hornets are the worst-managed team in the league.  I'm really interested to see what MKG and Biyombo look like if they ever find themselves on a better managed team.  I also suspect Kemba Walker will be exposed at some point in his career... dude is pretty brutally inefficient.

I'd take a risk on Lance, btw.  Good move for the Clips if this happens.   Doc can keep him in line.

[Kane3387]

Lance needs the ball. He sucks off ball. Chris Paul and Jamal Crawford will have the ball. Lance will fail in LA.

[Denis998]

GM Doc thinning out that team depth even more.

Who's going to be their backup if they resign Deandre Jordan?

Big Baby of course.

[CelticSooner]

Deal done

@WojYahooNBA 7m7 minutes ago
The Clippers have acquired Lance Stephenson in a trade that sends Spencer Hawes and Matt Barnes to Charlotte, league sources tell Yahoo.