If you were Ballmer, what do you do? My thoughts: 1. Re-sign DeAndre Jordan to whatever contract that he wants. Offer him the 5 year max, or a shorter term deal if he prefers that. He is an asset even at the max salary given his production and the rising cap trends. 2. Hire a legit GM to work alongside Doc Rivers. There is too much work involved (cap management, scouting pros and college players, etc.) in the GM job for Doc to both be a GM and work through the coaching grind. You also need someone to think a little bit long-term rather than worry primarily about the next game. 3. Take chances are some younger guys who may be undervalued, and hope that it works out.
I did not follow the Clips so I have been dismissive about the fact that he is both a GM and a head coach Friggin hire someone there....
They need to go hard after Aminu. That 3 spot is disastrous. Keep the Blake, Paul, Griffin core. They aren't the issue.
I don't know, but I heard they are more talented and better than the Rockets, so I guess they should be fine.
They wasted their MLE on Spencer Hawes in the off season. They need some depth. This is where a good GM would help them a lot. The Clippers were head and shoulders better than us last season and what closed the gap this season all has to do with Morey being a zillion times better as a GM as Doc.
Meant the DJ, Paul, Griffin core. Obviously. Also...yeah not caring too much. They should all go East.
they are the bestest and the talenter team so no changes necessary, except for maybe trading for patrick patterson
They have a very well constructed team on paper, it's hard to say where they went wrong. Depth seems like their biggest problem, they just need more impact players off the bench, more energy and focus.
Hire a GM. Keep Paul / Griffin / Jordan. Get some role players. They are not far from being a contender.
lol not only that. Doc ended up trading : Bledsoe + 2017 pick=>Reddick They only have a pick in 2016. None in 2015 or 2017. Even the Nuggets GM who doesn't know the CBA is better than Doc. He's only behind Billy King. They should fire him from GM first and foremost. But I hope not because Doc is the gift that keeps on giving.
I doubt they want him back. He's a very limited player that can't shoot worth a dime (except for playoff series against the Rockets). Blazers fans are sooo glad Hawes visited Portland and left without a contract. At the time it was a downer for them to settle for the Caveman, who turned out quite well for them.
1- Signing Deandre is not even a question 2- Too many two-guards that dont offer anything outside of offense - Rivers, Crawford, Reddick. I would look to move one of them alongside Barnes and get a legit SF that can defend. Problem for them is they have no draft picks and no cap space with all the money they have tied up in CP3, Griffin, and Jordan. Offensively they arent a bad team, but defensively they really struggle outside of Jordan and Reddick/Crawford/Austin dont help the cause. Not sure how much teams will be willing to give up for their 'extra' guys, but you'd have to hope somethings out there. And like OP said, maybe you start scouring the D League, etc. hoping to land somebody because you just cant go into a season again banking on 7 guys to run your postseason and that three of them will virtually do the same thing, i.e. shoot whenever they get it to try and score. If I'm the clips I also look for veteran talent that has been deep to the playoffs and can give me solid moments in the playoffs a la Terry, Pierce, Miller, etc. Who knows, maybe an Elton Brand? Tayshaun Prince? I really dont know who they'll look for, but that's the general genre I'd be looking for if I was them... Last note: if I were the GM, out of the 3 I mentioned, I'd probably lean towards trading Austin Rivers. You're not going to get much for Reddick I imagine, Crawford will not return what he's worth as he's much better than ppl give credit for, and Rivers being the youngest and showcasing his skills in the playoffs will likely warrant some interest. Also, I personally would have some issues with a father-son coach-player relationship, but thats just me.
That backcourt of Barnes and reddick is terrible so improve that. Sign deandre to the max but not sure what to do after that without high draft picks
They could turn this around by convincing a contributor to come for the MLE, and trading Hawes for someone that can contribute.
Don't worry about the Clips capspace. The new cap rise will come to the rescue. Their problem is how much will be Paul's gradual downfall because he will be what? 31 next season?