The Los Angeles Clippers had a fantastic season that saw the team win a record amount of games and their division, but after dismissing coach Vinny Del Negro the franchise has some big questions to answer and after rumors came up that the team is looking to trade for Doc Rivers, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce, if that falls through they will need a Plan B option for the summer.
The Clippers deal so far has been obstructed by the fact that Los Angeles does not want to include Eric Bledsoe in the deal, as the team wants to hold onto him for a possible deal with the Lakers that would be a sign and trade for Dwight Howard. That deal would be a long ways off anyway since Howard isn't a free agent until July 1, but reports say that the sign and trade has many moving parts and is an unlikely option. According to ESPN.com, the main deal with Boston and Clippers would include DeAndre Jordan and draft picks and there have been hangups in compensation for Rivers, who is still under contract with the team.
The deal has a lot that needs to go right and if that falls through, the team could look to some other free agents or possible trade options instead, including a sign and trade deal with the Atlanta Hawks, as they are angling to get Dwight Howard and are extremely likely to lose Josh Smith as an unrestricted free agent. Another option for the team, according to ESPN.com, is to swing a trade with the Indiana Pacers for Danny Granger, as the team played extremely well without him this past season without him and made it to the Eastern Conference finals.
The Pacers pushed the Miami Heat to seven games without Granger and with young star Lance Stephenson coming into his own in the playoffs, Granger could be expendable. Head coach Frank Vogel already gave the non-guarantee about Granger getting his job back next season and since his salary is $14 million and ends after next season, he could be a target that ends up on the move. Smith had a great season while averaging 17 points, eight rebounds, four assists and 1.5 blocks per game and that could be a perfect fit for the team.
The Garnett and Rivers deal with the Celtics is the first domino to fall in all of this anyway, because whatever the Clippers will do after that depends on if they can make the deal happen. The team could be scrambling a bit since reports have come out that Howard and Paul want to play together and with the team still having Blake Griffin and others, they may want to get a deal for Howard in place to secure Paul. It has a ton of moving parts and if the team can swing the deal with the Celtics and then another move for Howard, which could entice Paul to stay in LA long term.
