What offers were on the table for DeAndre?
It seemed like a foregone conclusion that DeAndre Jordan would be traded. The Clippers started an apparent rebuild by moving on from Blake Griffin, and the general consensus was that their All-Star center would also be shown the door.
But the trade deadline has passed, and Jordan remains in LA. It’s not like the team didn’t try to trade him; according to a Yahoo Sports report, they thought they were close to a deal with Cleveland shortly before the deadline.
So if the Clippers were indeed trying to move Jordan, what were the offers they turned down? It’s hard to know for sure, but there has been a variety of reports speculating.
ESPN’s Zach Lowe (H/T SB Nation) said that Cleveland were unwilling to part with their 2018 Brooklyn Nets pick, instead offering their own first-round pick, JR Smith and Tristan Thompson. I probably can’t blame them for turning that one down.
The Bucks were also interested, but according to Milwaukee journalist Gary Woelfel they refused to trade any major players like Malcolm Brogdon, Khris Middleton or Jabari Parker. Without any of them involved, it would have likely been a fairly bare-bones offer.
The Wizards, Raptors and Rockets were all reportedly inquiring about Jordan, but no proposed deals have surfaced from these teams.
Maybe the Clippers made the right move, even if they plan to part ways with Jordan. While a first-round pick from Cleveland would have been nice, the long-term contracts they would have taken on board were probably not worth it.
There’s a growing belief that Jordan will decline his player option for next year and seek a bigger contract. If that’s what happens, the Clippers may prefer to simply let him walk for nothing, or re-sign him and test the trade market again next season.
Wizards’ interest in @DeAndre, like almost every other team—maybe not the Cavs—would be predicated on him opting in for 2018-19 ($24.1M) rather than opting out to become UFA. From what I’ve heard thus far, Jordan has given no indication to anyone that he’d be willing to do that. https://t.co/vEcaKj3mEV
— David Aldridge (@davidaldridgedc) February 6, 2018
Still, it would be great to know if any other offers were tabled for Jordan. As a Lakers fan, I’d love to find out about a blockbuster deal the cross-town Clippers might’ve blown. Here’s hoping for some leaks in the coming weeks.