DeAndre Jordan DeCommitment

Just when you thought it was going to be easy, DeAndre Jordan pulls a 180. Last week, it looked as if DeAndre Jordan was going to make a move to leave Los Angeles and head for Dallas. He had made a verbal agreement to sign a four-year, $80-plus million max deal with Mavericks ownership that he would head to Dallas. But after meeting with some of his Clippers teammates in Dallas, it appears that Jordan may be backing off the deal and will re-sign a more lucrative contract to return to the West Coast and once again play for the Clippers. Jordan is back with the Clippers, signing a deal worth four years and $88 Million, with the player option to opt out after the third year of the deal.

This was a pretty big slap in the face to the Dallas Mavericks. Jordan had given a verbal agreement when free agency opened that he was going to sign a big deal with the Mavs. Dallas had put all its eggs in one basketl, planning to build the team around Dirk and DeAndre. Now that plan has blown up in Dallas face. Dallas thought they had a replacement for outgoing Tyson Chandler in the middle. They had their big man all lined up and ready to rock and roll. But the timing of this couldn't have been worse. The reason is because, since Jordan had verbally agreed to the Mavs, the other top 75 listed players on the free agent market had signed on with other teams. Now, with Jordan off the market, the best available free agent center is Kevin Seraphin, a 6'9 center whose played the last five seasons for the Wizards. No offense but I think its a huge downgrade if this guy signs with Dallas. The Mavs still have a decent starting lineup, which contains J.J. Barea, Monta Ellis, Chandler Parsons, Dirk Nowitzki and whoever is gonna play the middle. Plus throw in Raymond Felton, Rajon Rondo, Richard Jefferson and Charlie Villanueva coming off the bench, you got yourself a solid contender out in the West. That would have made the Mavericks a better team had DeAndre Jordan in the fold.

Now he heads back to a star studded team in the Clippers, a place where he has spent his entire career. Now LA has a pretty good lineup with DeAndre back in the mix, having him play alongside Chris Paul, J.J. Redick, Lance Stephenson and Blake Griffin. On paper, this team could be one of the big threats out in the Western Conference.

If you look at DeAndtre Jordan, this was a case of him getting cold feet. He had a golden opportunity to become his own man and really establish himself as an elite player. See playing with the Clippers, he is seen as the 3rd star, behind Chris Paul and Blake Griffin. He can be sort of a quite star in this league. Had he signed with Dallas, it would have been the perfect opportunity for Jordan to step out of that shadow and become his own star. I guess DeAndre really wasn't quite ready to become his own star. It takes a certain kind of player to really come into his own and take on the responsibility of being a big star on a team. It appears that Jordan wasn't ready to take on that role yet. He still seems content with playing the supporting role in LA, which isn't a bad thing by any means. It just goes to show that some aren't ready yet to take on that spotlight.