Doc Rivers: Clippers Won’t Be Trading Chris Paul, Blake Grifin Or DeAndre Jordan
The Los Angeles Clippers headed into the NBA playoffs with high hopes of making a deep run and potentially being the team to knocked out the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors or the dominant San Antonio Spurs. Los Angeles appeared to have a shot at making it a competitive series with the Warriors if able to advance, but then injuries struck and the postseason came to an end quickly.
After superstars Chris Paul and Blake Griffin went down with season-ending injuries, the Clippers stood no chance against the upstart Portland Trail Blazers led by Damian Lillard. The Blazers advanced to the second round of the playoffs with relative ease leaving Los Angeles with a lot of questions about the immediate future of the team.
The consensus has been that the Clippers would be forced to break the team up if they had an unsuccessful playoff run. Obviously, things didn’t go as planned in the postseason and now the trade rumors are expected to swirl, but head coach and team president, Doc Rivers, denies the team will be breaking on the team’s core this summer, via ESPN:
Doc Rivers said Monday that he would not break up the Los Angeles Clippers’ big three of Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan during the offseason — regardless of any trade offers that may arise.
Despite Rivers’ stance to stand pat with the current roster intact, rumors are bound to surface in the coming weeks about potential trade offers or scenarios. Even when the Clippers were healthy with Paul and Griffin leading the way, the team was still considered to be a second-tier squad in comparison to the Warriors, Spurs and possibly even the Oklahoma City Thunder.
That being said, changes do need to take place in Los Angeles for the Clippers to finally reach legitimate title contender status under Rivers. Paul may be the player mentioned most in potential trades with the veteran point guard on the verge of turning 31 on May 6.
Although over 30 and having dealt with a number of injury issues over the years, Paul is still considered an elite point guard in the NBA and would be a hot commodity on the trade market. A contender like the Cleveland Cavaliers could be a potential trade suitor if they don’t win the title this year with Kyrie Irving possibly an intriguing piece for the Clippers if they consider parting ways with Paul.
