NBA Trade Deadline: Biggest Winners from a Quiet Day
Los Angeles Clippers
No team better utilized the 2016 NBA Trade Deadline than Doc Rivers and the Los Angeles Clippers. Not only did Los Angeles manage to move Lance Stephenson, but the return on the trade was a player who can fix the team’s remaining weaknesses.
According to Dan Woike of The Orange County Register, the the Clippers sent the embattled Stephenson to the Memphis Grizzlies.
Source: Lance Stephenson has been traded to Memphis
— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) February 18, 2016
Per Marc Stein of ESPN, the Clippers included a first-round draft pick in a package that will bring Jeff Green to Los Angeles.
ESPN sources say Clippers and Grizzlies managed to get trade in before 3 PM: Lance Stephenson and a future first-round pick for Jeff Green
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) February 18, 2016
Green is all but guaranteed to take over as the full-time starter at power forward in Blake Griffin‘s absence, and shift over to the 3-spot once he returns.
Green is a hybrid forward who can play full-time as a small forward or excel in the modern era as an undersized 4. That gives him the positional versatility to hold down the 3-spot in the starting lineup, and remain on the floor in relief of Griffin as a backup power forward.
The fact that he played with Paul Pierce and for Doc Rivers as a member of the Boston Celtics suggests he’ll be accommodated in the locker room.
Green in a featured role has bred mixed results, but he’s always excelled when asked to be more of a complementary contributor. That’s what he’ll be in Los Angeles with Chris Paul running the show and Blake Griffin serving as the No. 1 scoring option.
It’s all on paper right now, but if the Clippers can get and stay healthy, Green will make them legitimate championship contenders.
Next: Clearing Cap Space