Former Clippers forward Matt Barnes traded to Memphis Grizzlies

Matt Barnes

Matt Barnes/Photo courtesy of Los Angels Clippers, NBA.com

 

Former Clippers small forward Matt Barnes on Thursday was traded from the Charlotte Hornets to the Memphis Grizzlies for guard Luke Ridnour. Charlotte then traded Ridnour and a conditional 2016 draft pick to Oklahoma City for guard Jeremy Lamb, Charlotte general manager Rich Cho announced.

Barnes, along with post Spencer Hawes, was recently traded to Charlotte for wing Lance Stephenson.

Broadcaster Ralph Lawler to get a star on Hollywood Walk of Fame

Ralph Lawler To Get Star On Walk Of Fame

Ralph Lawler/Photo by Anwar Torres, Clippers.com

Longtime broadcaster Ralph Lawler will receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the team announced Monday.

Lawler just completed his 36th season with the Clippers

“This is one of the great thrills of a very long and rewarding career,” Lawler said in a statement. “I think it is also a further indication of the Clippers’ ascending position in the community. It’s a great day for my family and me.”

Doc Rivers, coach and president of basketball operations, was stoked to hear the news.

“Ralph loves this game and the Clippers,” Rivers said. “We are lucky to experience his enthusiasm and knowledge every night. I’m excited for him to broadcast Clippers games for many years to come.”

A date for Lawler’s big day has yet to be set.

Doc Rivers says he has a lot more work to do to spruce up his roster

Lance Stephenson at Thursday’s news conference/Staff photo by Scott Varley

 

Doc Rivers, coach and president of basketball operations, on Thursday wanted to make sure everyone knew he is by no means done trying to spruce up his roster. Rivers played host to a news conference to introduce Lance Stephenson, acquired in a trade Monday that saw the Clippers ship Matt Barnes and Spencer Hawes to Charlotte.

Speaking to a large group of reporters at the team’s headquarters in Playa Vista, Rivers – though a bit vague – indicated as much.

“Well, we need to add players,” Rivers said. “Obviously, we just gave two for one, so that means one more. We still have a lot of work to do. I don’t want to say what
positions, I think it’s pretty easy to figure out. But we’re going to look for the best players. We don’t really care about the position as much as others. We feel like we have to get deeper, we have to get more athletic, we have to add toughness, we have to be a better defensive team.

“Offensively, we were not broke last year. Defensively, we were in the middle of the pack, even though in the second half we were really good. But we want to be a consistent defensive rebounding team that can score.”

The Clippers allowed 100.1 points this past season, 16th in the league.

Five things to know about Lance Stephenson: New Clippers player

Lance Stephenson is introduced as the newest Clippers on Thursday, Jun 18, 2015. (Photo by Scott Varley/Daily Breeze)

Lance Stephenson is introduced as the newest Clippers on Thursday, Jun 18, 2015. (Photo by Scott Varley/Daily Breeze)

Sure, you know Lance Stephenson as the guy who did this.
Yes, we all remember the 2014 NBA Eastern Conference Finals, when he would creep into the Heat’s huddle and, of course, blew into LeBron’s ear.

But what should Clipper fans except the former Indiana Pacer? Here are five things L.A. fans should know about Lance Stephenson, who was introduced today by the team after acquiring him in a trade with the Hornets on Monday.

Lance Stephenson, standing next to Clippers coach Doc Rivers, is introduced to L.A. media. (Photo by Alex Nieves/Daily News)

Lance Stephenson, standing next to Clippers coach Doc Rivers, is introduced to L.A. media. (Photo by Alex Nieves/Daily News)

1 – Lance Stephenson is not expected to be a starter
In an interview with The Beast 980, Doc Rivers made it very clear he did not bring in Stephenson to bolster the starting lineup. “I look at him really more to be a utility player that can come in and play literally three different positions for us,” Rivers said in the interview. “In the worst case and it’s not a bad case [Lance starts], and I still think that Lance is an upgrade at that position even if we wanted to start him. But I’m planning on doing more things this summer without saying much. We’re not done, clearly.”

2- Stephenson hails from same H.S. program as Marbury and Telfair
A native of Brooklyn, Stephenson was a High School star at Abraham Lincoln High School in Coney Island, a school also known for producing NBA point guards Stephon Marbury and Sebastian Telfair. While at Lincoln, Stephenson led his team to three city championships, winning two titles, and was named N.Y. Daily News player of the year twice.

3- Lakers showed some interest in him last year
After 13.8 points, 7.2 rebounds and 4.6 assist per-game and helping the Pacers reach the Eastern Conference Finals, the Lakers were inquiring about his services, according to Stephenson. In an interview with Grantland.com, Stephenson said of the Lakers: “They called me a couple of times, but they never followed through.” He eventually signed a three-year deal with Charlotte.

4 – Lance Stephenson raps

Stephenson will fit in with the L.A. crowd. Other L.A. ballers who have rapped on the side include Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal and Ron Artest, a.k.a. Meta World Peace.

5- He has a rap sheet
When he was in high school, Stephenson was accused of sexual assault. He was arrested and pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct. As part of the plea deal, Stephenson underwent counseling. However, two years later, after being drafted by the Pacers, he was involved in a domestic dispute in which he was accused of “slamming” his girlfriend’s head onto some stairs. We has arrested, again, but charges were dismissed later. Stephenson owned up to his mistakes in an interview with the Indy Star, and you would hope he has better ways to channel his emotions. “My mistakes were really bad and I regret it. At the same time, I learned from them. I learned to keep my distance from things that could get me in trouble and sacrifice my career.”

Ballmer on Conan: Clippers past “is not a happy history”; logo part of “new Clippers”


Clippers owner Steve Ballmer revealed last night on Conan that he is moving past the Donalt Sterling era.
“Let’s face facts, you look back at the history of the Clippers … it’s not a happy history,” Ballmer, who took over the franchise last year, explains in the video above. “We said, something’s happened here. No. 1, this may have been a nutty thing, but the people know who the Clippers are. But people want a new Clippers, they want a happy ending to the story.”
And, if you pay attention to what Ballmer says, the new logo and uniform could just be the beginning of the NEW Clippers.
“I bought the team so late we couldn’t do much, but now we’re introducing the new Clippers– the new Clippers logo, for example,” he says while holding up a t-shirt.
Ballmer, who also talked about the origin of his hyper behavior with Conan, and other Clipper officials will talk about the new logo at a press conference later today, where the team will also introduce new forward Lance Stephenson.
Let us know what you think. Did the Clippers need to change their logo? If so, do you like the crest? Also, what was wrong with their old logo?