Top NBA teams turn on charm to woo Clippers' DeAndre Jordan
Highly-rated youngster is the hottest signature on the market as the NBA free agent period begins
Doc Rivers tapped into Hollywood in his pursuit of DeAndre Jordan, inviting Academy Award-winning actor Jamie Foxx to a recent dinner with the unrestricted free agent at a swanky Malibu restaurant.
It was just the start of the drama surrounding Jordan’s decision about where to spend next season.
This place (Los Angeles) has been great to me
Jordan, 26, has also been wooed by a star-laden cast, including the Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant, the New York Knicks’ Carmelo Anthony and the Dallas Mavericks’ Chandler Parsons, each of whom has pitched the centre on the idea of joining their respective teams.
The Clippers have made it clear that retaining Jordan will be their top priority once the NBA’s free-agency period starts today. Rivers and team owner Steve Ballmer are among a contingent of Clippers officials scheduled to meet with Jordan tomorrow in the Beverly Hills office of his agents.
Their presentation is expected to include a video touting Jordan’s career with the Clippers and the benefits of staying with the only NBA franchise he has known in his seven professional seasons.
It will hardly be the only pitch Jordan will hear this week. He is also scheduled to meet with the Lakers, Mavericks and Knicks, all of whom could offer Jordan a more prominent role in their offences than a Clippers team heavily reliant on All-Stars Chris Paul and Blake Griffin.
