Clippers Trade Rumors: L.A. linked to Rudy Gay

Clippers Trade Rumors: Per Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee, Los Angeles has been linked to the reportedly-available forward Rudy Gay.

Trade rumor season is among us, and there are new Los Angeles Clippers trade rumors, too.

Slow it is and the “this will put us over the top” trade for a panic team hasn’t happened, but the rumors are swirling. As sellers, we know what the Clippers are offering, or at least we know from what has been reported. Jamal Crawford‘s name remains a constant, Lance Stephenson and Josh Smith have gone from offseason hopefuls to benched and available for suitors, and second-year shooting guard C.J. Wilcox is reportedly available.

But as buyers? With the numerous “available” players on the trade market, the Clippers haven’t been a frequent mention as suitor but if Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee is correct, you can add their names to the pot of teams who’ve been linked to forward Rudy Gay.

"Gay has been linked to several teams in rumors during the season, the latest being the Kings reaching out to New Orleans for forward Ryan Anderson, according to Sheridan Hoops.Gay also has been linked to Chicago and the Los Angeles Clippers."

There’s nothing more to this supposed link between the Clippers and Gay so we’re just going to speculate and discuss as if there’s concrete evidence to support Jones’ claim (and this isn’t to say Jones isn’t a reliable figure; we just know how this rumors thing can work).

In theory, Gay is the wing the Clippers need to bunch themselves into the same category — or close — as the Thunder, Spurs, Cavaliers, and Warriors. Rudy’s presence allows the burden of carrying the offense to drop completely off the shoulders of Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, and J.J. Redick, and would be an immediate improvement from whichever body Doc Rivers is employing at small forward on a game-by-game basis, from Luc Mbah a Moute to Wesley Johnson to the banished Lance Stephenson, etc.

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But with Gay in the picture, you’d have to wonder about his presence screwing with the flow of the option, which asks do the positives outweigh the negative — we could cite Gay’s time in Memphis and Toronto as proof of such. More Gay takes away from the highly efficient Paul and Redick, as well as less Griffin, the team’s centerpiece in the half court. And it can’t be ignored that Gay isn’t much of an intangible player, doing the little things Mbah a Moute has made a career out of — rebounds, defense, hustle plays, etc.

It’s a tricky scenario given the pros and cons, but it’s surely one Doc Rivers would take a look at — that guy surely loves adding more offense to the already-elite offensive unit he has.

The real issue in this scenario would be what the King want in return for Gay. The Clippers don’t have a lot to offer the Kings, or anyone else for that matter, outside of expiring contracts. If that’s the way Vivek Ranadive and company want to go, clearing the books in an attempt to make a splash next summer, something like Stephenson ($9 million, team option next summer), Crawford ($5.6 million, UFA next summer), Smith (<$1 million, UFA next summer), and a low-end pick (maybe the team’s BK second) for Gay and Caron Butler works out financially.

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If the Kings are looking for immediate value to maintain their attempt to make the playoffs and be blown out in the first round by the Spurs, Warriors, or Thunder, the Clippers won’t have a shot as teams across the league looking to add a scorer like guy have much more to offer as Rivers has pissed away all of Los Angeles’ trade value.

It’s fun to think over and surely a move — and if not this one, one very similar involving a small forward that can create some on offense — would push the Clippers further in the direction they hope to be. There’s a lot of baggage that comes with Gay but you could argue getting Gay at his current salary would be them acquiring a forward better than any of the same position the team could snag the following summer in free agency. Or the reverse could happen and the Clippers would be their usual selves, just with a high-priced offense-only forward slotted into the lineup.

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There’s been reason enough to think the Clippers will do something before the deadline post-All-Star break. Could be for Gay. Could be moves that’d help Smith and Stephenson escape the dungeons of Doc Rivers’ cellar. Or a small move to add depth.

We’ll see.