Clippers Discussed Trade With Wolves Involving Griffin and Towns

[saltlover]

The article made it clear that Minnesota didn't entertain any discussions at all, so none of the other financial assets were discussed.  It also didn't indicate when the discussions occurred.

This does mean that Blake Griffin is very much available, which has me a bit concerned about the Cavs or some other Eastern team acquiring him.  Obviously asking for Towns means the Clippers value him very highly, but they are clearly open to moving him, and the longer that lingers the more appealing Love + BKN might be (and I do think that is an upgrade for the Cavs).

That they want to trade Griffin for an up-and-coming superstar still on his rookie deal does not mean he’s very much available.  It means there are a handful of players they’d trade him for, and they’re willing to ask, because why not?  If a report came out that said Ainge had offered Tatum to Minnesota for Towns, would that mean Tatum is very much available?

The Clippers will trade Griffin if they can get back another franchise talent, especially one who makes less money or is younger.  But that’s not Kevin Love, it’s not Kyle Lowry, and it’s not Otto Porter.  It’s not likely that they’d make a top Eastern Conference team better, unless the fit with Griffin was better than the franchise player they trade for, and ultimately that’s unlikely unless you think Griffin is a better fit in Toronto than DeRozan (which is about the only trade I could see happening if both sides were interested).

And any trade like this, should it occur, is much more likely to happen in the offseason.

[kozlodoev]

I can understand the "proposal" but the "discussion" part of it seems pretty outlandish to me.

Yeah, it's rather bizarre. The Clippers are offering an older, worse, less healthy player whose salary is five times higher... and have no other desirable assets to add. The only "discussion" that would have occurred on this is the *click* of the phone in Minneapolis.

I agree about Griffin being older and more expensive. However, I wouldn't say Towns is a better player. To me, Griffin is the more impactful player of the two. Other than his rookie season, the Clippers have been a playoff team every year since. I don't think you can underestimate his impact on that Clippers organization, who have historically been one of the worst in all of sports. The drafting of Griffin changed all of that. If it wasn't for the acquisition of Jimmy Butler, I'm not so sure Minnesota would be anywhere near the playoff race. For me, Towns reminds me of the Greek Freak were both players put up great individual numbers, but they can't figure out how to translate their talent into team success.

If it wasn't for the acquisition of Chris Paul, the Clippers would have pretty much been in the same boat. Coincidentally, now that Paul is no longer on the team, the Clips appear poised to be mired in mediocrity for the observable future.

[Moranis]

The article made it clear that Minnesota didn't entertain any discussions at all, so none of the other financial assets were discussed.  It also didn't indicate when the discussions occurred.

This does mean that Blake Griffin is very much available, which has me a bit concerned about the Cavs or some other Eastern team acquiring him.  Obviously asking for Towns means the Clippers value him very highly, but they are clearly open to moving him, and the longer that lingers the more appealing Love + BKN might be (and I do think that is an upgrade for the Cavs).

That they want to trade Griffin for an up-and-coming superstar still on his rookie deal does not mean he’s very much available.  It means there are a handful of players they’d trade him for, and they’re willing to ask, because why not?  If a report came out that said Ainge had offered Tatum to Minnesota for Towns, would that mean Tatum is very much available?

The Clippers will trade Griffin if they can get back another franchise talent, especially one who makes less money or is younger.  But that’s not Kevin Love, it’s not Kyle Lowry, and it’s not Otto Porter.  It’s not likely that they’d make a top Eastern Conference team better, unless the fit with Griffin was better than the franchise player they trade for, and ultimately that’s unlikely unless you think Griffin is a better fit in Toronto than DeRozan (which is about the only trade I could see happening if both sides were interested).

And any trade like this, should it occur, is much more likely to happen in the offseason.

The Clippers just gave Griffin a max contract to be the face of their franchise and yet they are offering him up in trade.  That isn't a normal scenario. 

[saltlover]

I can understand the "proposal" but the "discussion" part of it seems pretty outlandish to me.

Yeah, it's rather bizarre. The Clippers are offering an older, worse, less healthy player whose salary is five times higher... and have no other desirable assets to add. The only "discussion" that would have occurred on this is the *click* of the phone in Minneapolis.

I agree about Griffin being older and more expensive. However, I wouldn't say Towns is a better player. To me, Griffin is the more impactful player of the two. Other than his rookie season, the Clippers have been a playoff team every year since. I don't think you can underestimate his impact on that Clippers organization, who have historically been one of the worst in all of sports. The drafting of Griffin changed all of that. If it wasn't for the acquisition of Jimmy Butler, I'm not so sure Minnesota would be anywhere near the playoff race. For me, Towns reminds me of the Greek Freak were both players put up great individual numbers, but they can't figure out how to translate their talent into team success.

If it wasn't for the acquisition of Chris Paul, the Clippers would have pretty much been in the same boat. Coincidentally, now that Paul is no longer on the team, the Clips appear poised to be mired in mediocrity for the observable future.

Depends how you define medoicrity.  They should still make the playoffs this year, barring any more injuries, and getting to the second round wouldn’t be completely shocking.  In 48 seasons, the Clippers have been to the playoffs only 13 times, have been to the second round 7 times, and have never gotten beyond that.  And that’s including 3 second round appearances in 8 years as the Buffalo Braves — it’s even worse if we only count their exploits as the “Clippers”.

A playoff appearance with a decent chance to get to the second round (getting the 5th seed this year is certainly possible) is a very good season by the Clippers’ standard.

[keevsnick]

The article made it clear that Minnesota didn't entertain any discussions at all, so none of the other financial assets were discussed.  It also didn't indicate when the discussions occurred.

This does mean that Blake Griffin is very much available, which has me a bit concerned about the Cavs or some other Eastern team acquiring him.  Obviously asking for Towns means the Clippers value him very highly, but they are clearly open to moving him, and the longer that lingers the more appealing Love + BKN might be (and I do think that is an upgrade for the Cavs).

That they want to trade Griffin for an up-and-coming superstar still on his rookie deal does not mean he’s very much available.  It means there are a handful of players they’d trade him for, and they’re willing to ask, because why not?  If a report came out that said Ainge had offered Tatum to Minnesota for Towns, would that mean Tatum is very much available?

The Clippers will trade Griffin if they can get back another franchise talent, especially one who makes less money or is younger.  But that’s not Kevin Love, it’s not Kyle Lowry, and it’s not Otto Porter.  It’s not likely that they’d make a top Eastern Conference team better, unless the fit with Griffin was better than the franchise player they trade for, and ultimately that’s unlikely unless you think Griffin is a better fit in Toronto than DeRozan (which is about the only trade I could see happening if both sides were interested).

And any trade like this, should it occur, is much more likely to happen in the offseason.

The Clippers just gave Griffin a max contract to be the face of their franchise and yet they are offering him up in trade.  That isn't a normal scenario.

i don't know about normal, but it actually isn't unexpected. There were people (Like Nate Duncan) speculating the Clippers may sign Blake only to trade him sometime this coming season. Its a matter of maintaining an asset, let him go for nothing or hope he still has value on his new contract and trade him later.