Ryan Anderson (Photo : NBAE via Getty Images)
The NBA free agency rumors continue as teams prepare to pursue the coveted free agencies.
The hottest commodities in the NBA are three point shooting points guards, "3 and D wings, stretch fours and rim protectors. Players in these categories will earn a ton of money courtesy of the rising salary cap, and Ryan Anderson will finally grab his long-awaited windfall.
The New Orleans Pelicans power forward is one of the league's earliest stretch fours. He can rebound and defend like a big man but he stretches the floor with his shooting range extending all the way out to the three point line.
Just how high has the stretch four stock risen? As high as a legitimate MVP contender, if rumors that the LA Clippers would be willing to trade Blake Griffin to have a shot at Ryan Anderson hold true.
The report by Fansided did not connect the two incidents, but it is possible that the Clippers trade Blake Griffin and pursue Ryan Anderson this summer. The Clippers pursued Anderson via trade but did not have enough assets to convince the Pelicans (no one did succeed).
"All year the talk is that the shooting four is in, and Griffin and Jordan were clogging at times and that a team sucha s the Golden State Warriors would expose that. If the Clippers do not get to see it firsthand they may just cut ties in an urge to win with Chris Paul now."
A Clippers - Warriors matchup will be tough for Chris Paul's crew. They were shutout by their Pacific Division rivals this season, 4-0. In their search for a stretch four, they wound up with Jeff Green, but he did not fill the role that they envisioned for Anderson.
The report mentioned that the Clippers could sign Anderson with the rising salary cap and if they renounce Paul Pierce and Jeff Green. However, they would place too much salary at the power forward position, just like the Cleveland Cavaliers (with Love and Tristan Thompson).
If they acquire Anderson, they could trade Griffin for other team needs, like 3 and D wingmen. Besides, even the fans at LA Sports Hub consider Blake as "overrated."
That assertion was made by Damon Taylor who reasoned that "Griffin doesn't have a go-to post move offensively, and at the age of 27, that's frightening due to the deficiency of aging knees in basketball players."
Also, he pointed out that "defensively, for his athletic ability, he should be at least averaging a block per game" but he has fallen short. He does not get double figures in rebounds as well (something Kevin Love consistently did before moving to Cleveland).
Griffin already has an elite point guard assisting him but he has not played to his full potential and Clippers fans have noticed.
