Clippers Make a Trade, Waive Two Players

By BRETT POLLAKOFF

Updated 3:51 PM PST, Mon, Jan 5, 2009

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There was speculation out of New York that the Clippers' Marcus Camby may be on his way out of town, a rumor which we eagerly dismissed at the time. After the recent roster moves that L.A. made today though, it's possible that they might be setting the stage for something bigger in the not-so-distant future.

The Clippers acquired Cheikh Samb from the Denver Nuggets today, in exchange for a conditional second round draft pick. L.A. also got some cash as part of the deal, and to make room for Samb, they opened up a couple of roster spots by waiving Paul Davis and Fred Jones.

You have to wonder if Dunleavy was showcasing Davis to be included in a possible deal, when he completely randomly started him and played him 39 minutes last week in Sacramento. Davis had played just four minutes the game before, and a combined 28 minutes total over the three games that followed. Fred Jones was likely just a victim of bad timing, as the Clippers couldn't afford to keep him on the roster after he went down against Detroit, when so many other players at his position were already on the sidelines with injuries.

Cheikh Samb has been polishing his game in the D-League, and has been doing pretty well there recently. He's averaged 12.4 points, 7.1 rebounds and 3.8 blocks in his last 10 games. But acquiring him seems a bit odd, considering the fact that the Clippers need healthy players at the guard spot, not necessarily to fortify their front line.

This move, along with the one that saw the team waive an additional player to leave an extra roster spot open, makes you think that the Clippers aren't done tinkering with their roster. Whether it's to simply sign a healthy player to a 10-day contract or to make a larger change -- like the rumored one involving Marcus Camby -- remains to be seen.