After being amnestied by the New York Knicks last week, veteran point guard Chauncey Billups was furious. Little did he know, that in Los Angeles Clippers, he would find a perfect fit ...
Veteran point guard Chauncey Billups could extend stay at the Los Angeles Clippers beyond his current contract, which will end in 2012.
Billups had claimed just this month that he could retire from the game if his contract was taken by a team he didn’t want to represent. The claim was part of an angry reaction which came after being waived off by the New York Knicks, who had acquired him only in the middle of last season. The Knicks had pursued super star forward Carmelo Anthony for long and in order to get their hands on him they brought Billups to the franchise as well.
However, this time around the Knicks wanted Tyson Chandler and to get him, Billups was bounced off again at the beginning of free agency. Chauncey was not impressed at the treatment meted out to a player of his calibre and was angry enough to threaten a retirement. His comments scared off most teams from claiming him off the waiver, but Clippers persisted and won his contract with a cheeky bid around $2 million.
With the inclusion of Chris Paul, the Clippers are rejuvenated side now and after what Billups saw in the first warm up game against the Lakers, he seems to have found a perfect fit, perhaps even better than the Knicks.
“I’m not going to worry about that until the summer,” he said after practice at the team’s training facility in an interview published by NBA.
Billups said the most important thing for him was to be part of a side that had a genuine shot at winning the NBA World Championship. He saw that things were going in the right direction at Los Angeles and if the Clippers continued to grow he would love to stay and help out.
“But I want to be in a situation where guys are ready to win. Not just win the regular season, but win in the playoffs. We’ll see how this thing shapes up, but if we continue with the mentality that we have and players keep getting better, this may be the opportunity that’s best for me.”
With Paul also on the team, Billups primary role of a playmaker has been usurped, but the veteran is enjoying playing with a guy he believes is on the same wavelength as him.
“Chris and I have been two players that have pretty much dominated and had a lot of success in our careers at that position,” Billups said. “For us now to be here together is a little strange, but at the same is a delight for me to be able to have somebody on the floor that’s the same cerebral player that I am.”
Chauncey has been a dominant point guard throughout his career and always made a team better just by being on the court with them. He is also a former NBA World Champion with the Detroit Pistons, when he won the NBA Finals MVP award in 2004.
A player of his pedigree and experience could prove vital to the Clippers in their quest for building a successful NBA franchise.
Tags: