The Clippers now pursuing Andre Iguodala and Luol Deng...

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

Clippers looking at Iggy and Deng.


LAS VEGAS -- We commemorate Day 2 of the NBA Summer League at UNLV with our first dispatch of chatter from the stands, culled from discussions with the many executives, coaches and agents in attendance:

Starting with a visit to Clipperland ...

Look for the Los Angeles Clippers' search to replace Elton Brand to generate headlines at a slightly slower pace than the back-and-forth frustrations volleyed all week between the Clippers and the Brand camp.

The Clips have a variety of options to consider with $12 million-plus in salary-cap space and figure they'll need up to a week to plot their course, although they did meet face-to-face with Atlanta Hawks restricted free agent Josh Smith in L.A. on the same day Brand was introduced as the newest member of the Philadelphia 76ers.

The most likely scenario, I'm told, is still signing one of the top "restricteds" (as the GMs and agents like to call them) to an offer sheet. According to NBA front-office sources, L.A. has expanded its list of restricted candidates beyond Smith and Charlotte's Emeka Okafor to Chicago's Luol Deng and, yes, Philadelphia's Andre Iguodala.

The Clips are now determining whether to schedule face-to-face meetings (potentially in Vegas) with the other three players in that quartet, knowing they need as much info as possible before committing to one of them and then waiting up to seven days to see whether their contract offer is matched.

Challenge No. 1, as always in the restricted game, is forecasting which offer would be most likely to go unmatched. (My unsolicited opinion: Okafor is the most gettable, then Smith.)

But there's another challenge here: L.A. has to determine who fits best stylewise, too.

The high-flying Smith has the best skill set to float between small forward and the power forward slot vacated by Brand.

Okafor certainly can't move like a small forward and will undoubtedly be dismissed by some as too similar to Chris Kaman, but he is one of the few players (along with the likes of Dwight Howard and Tim Duncan) to average a double-double in each of the past four seasons … and Charlotte's willingness to match a rich offer sheet -- just like Atlanta's -- will not be assumed until the historically thrifty Bobcats actually do it.

Iguodala, who happened to drop in Saturday night as an unexpected guest for the Denver-Philly game, strikes me as the most curious fit, since he clearly can't masquerade as a power forward. Yet you suspect that the Clips wouldn't mind driving up Iguodala's price at the very least.

Deng, meanwhile, is another interesting case because of his versatility. If the Clippers are ready to run, with a willing trio of pace-pushers (Baron Davis, Al Thornton and Eric Gordon) surrounding Kaman, Deng makes good sense.

Yet we repeat that the Clips, fearing an offer to any of them would be matched, might ultimately decide that it's better use their cap space to absorb a veteran's contract. New York's Zach Randolph has already been mentioned as a possibility, but there are more appealing names that could be available and have to be investigated first. Just to name two: Miami's Shawn Marion and Detroit's Rasheed Wallace, whom Dunleavy has coached before.



My guess is that they'll end up getting SOMEONE...I dunno who, but with all this pursuing, someone is going to the Clippers.

[Halu Sination]

while iguodala and deng would both be nice pick-ups, they dont necessarily bring anything new to the table. clips need to land josh smith or okafor.

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

while iguodala and deng would both be nice pick-ups, they dont necessarily bring anything new to the table. clips need to land josh smith or okafor.

I agree...it will only stunt Al Thornton...Unless they plan on going small and using them as fours. But Thornton DEFINITELY needs to be a starter next year.

[Halu Sination]

who do u think would be a better for clips between josh smith and okafor?

im goin with josh smith. okafor is almost like a poor man's elton brand so naturally, one would think he'd be a suitable fit. but do they need a poor man's brand at this point? especially if kaman picks up where he left off.

josh smith is a great help defender, hes not as good a post defender as okafor or brand but hes steadily improving in that area. he just needs to boost his FG%. he isn't as good a rebounder as okafor or brand, but with kaman evolving into the beast he was last season, i think he would make up for that.

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

who do u think would be a better for clips between josh smith and okafor?

im goin with josh smith. okafor is almost like a poor man's elton brand so naturally, one would think he'd be a suitable fit. but do they need a poor man's brand at this point? especially if kaman picks up where he left off.

josh smith is a great help defender, hes not as good a post defender as okafor or brand but hes steadily improving in that area. he just needs to boost his FG%. he isn't as good a rebounder as okafor or brand, but with kaman evolving into the beast he was last season, i think he would make up for that.

Josh Smith would be better if they wanna run a fast paced offense...Okafor would be better for a more traditional half court style. Honestly, they'd be good with either. I'd take Josh Smith, because he has more value and a higher upside. I hope they land one of them, cuz I really wanna see the Clipper-Laker rivalry renewed (I dunno if it was ever really a rivalry, considering it only lasted 1 season).

[white Boy]

i hope phil dont give up Iggy, hes got some time but he can do big things

[Don Jacob]

i doubt the sixers will let iguodala go , now that they've picked up brand. that's a good god damn tandem. however, i said the same thing about the clippers with Bdiddy/brand

[tempo2]

i think with josh smith he's already good but he can add so much to his game especially a deep jump shot and consistant 3pt range. i think he could average ten board per as well if he put his  mind to it. id go with josh smith to be honest instead of emeke. knowing josh smith i can see him jumping ship out of atlanta, one thing he does have is an atitude.

[GangstaBoogy]

that would suck for Brand if he went to Philly then they lost Iggy. Then again, what goes around comes around...

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

i doubt the sixers will let iguodala go , now that they've picked up brand. that's a good god damn tandem. however, i said the same thing about the clippers with Bdiddy/brand

The difference between Iggy and BD/Brand is that Philadelphia can match any offer Iguodala recieves.