LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Clippers traded guard Lance Stephenson just before the NBA trade deadline on Thursday ridding themselves of two of their most coveted offseason free agents.
Stephenson was traded to the Memphis Grizzlies in exchange for forward Jeff Green the team announced Thursday afternoon. Memphis will also receive a future first-round pick in the deal.
"Lance was a true professional and we appreciate all that he did for us," Clippers President and Head Coach Doc Rivers said in a statement released by the organization. "In the short time he was here, he had a good impact on our team."
However, Stephenson's impact while with the team was more strenuous than "good" according to sources close to the situation. Stephenson was acquired by the Clippers in the offseason from the Charlotte Hornets in a trade for Matt Barnes and Spencer Hawes.
Shortly thereafter, the Clippers signed forward Josh Smith as a free-agent on a one-year deal, making them big winners in the offseason as it appeared on paper that they had improved the team tremendously.
However, Stephenson and Smith never quite gelled with the team and reportedly were bad teammates in the locker room. After just a month into the season, numerous media outlets were reporting that Rivers was trying to trade one or both of his prized free agents.
Rivers denied the rumors at the time, but now, just a couple months later, both players are off the team, making it ever the more likely that both players were not popular within the locker room. Smith was traded back to the Houston Rockets in January.
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Meanwhile, the Clippers acquisition of Green reunites the veteran forward with his head coach during his short time in Boston. Rivers acquired Green while he was coach of the Celtics from the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for Kendrick Perkins in 2011.
"We are excited to add Jeff to the Clippers and I am looking forward to coaching him again," Rivers added.
Green is averaging 12.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 53 games with the Grizzlies. Stephenson averaged 4.7 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 43 games with the Clippers. Stephenson will join a highly controversial and emotional team in Memphis flanked alongside the likes of Barnes, Zach Randolph and Tony Allen.
