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New York Knicks News: DeAndre Jordan Will Visit Knicks

By Kenneth Teape

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New York Knicks News: Los Angeles Clippers center DeAndre Jordan Plans To Visit Knicks

With the 2015 NBA Free Agency set to begin Wednesday, rumors will undoubtedly begin swirling in the coming days. One person who we will hear a lot about is Los Angeles Clippers center DeAndre Jordan. Jordan will have a number of suitors this offseason, as he is expected to land a max or near max contract. Until he puts pen to paper on a new contract though, everything we hear can be considered a rumor. One thing that we do know for sure though, is that the New York Knicks will be one of the teams that Jordan visits beginning Wednesday.

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That news comes via Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv and TheKnicksBlog.com. Jordan will meet with the Knicks once the free agency period commences Wednesday, July 1st. Along with the Knicks, Jordan is expected to have meetings with the Los Angeles Lakers, Milwaukee Bucks and Dallas Mavericks. Of course, his original team, the Clippers, will be in the running as well, as head coach and general manager Doc Rivers has already said he plans to offer Jordan a max contract offer.

While the Clippers and Mavericks remain the frontrunners to sign Jordan, it is still intriguing that he plans to meet with the Knicks. It shows that the Knicks will be aggressive in free agency, looking to continue rounding out their roster after adding three players in the NBA Draft Thursday night. While the Knicks may be a long shot now, at least getting Jordan in for a meeting will give them a fighting chance.

While the Clippers can offer Jordan the most money, at five years and $108 million, there are some things that people think could lead to him leaving Los Angeles. For one, there was reportedly a rift between Jordan and point guard Chris Paul. That rift is supposedly real, and could hurt the Clippers chances in retaining the big man.

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The same people who said the rift between the two is real, also indicates that Jordan wishes to become more involved on the offensive side of the ball and become an All-Star, things that would seem to go hand-in-hand as scoring the ball usually results in more exposure and All-Star appearances than defending it. Those are two things that Jordan is unsure can happen with the Clippers, as they already have All-Stars in Paul and Blake Griffin.

If Jordan in fact leaves the Clippers, the team signing him can offer a deal up to four years in length worth $80 million with an opt-out clause after the third season.

It can be argued if Jordan is worth a max-contract because he has not yet shown he is a capable contributor offensively outside of putback dunks. Also, his woeful free throwing shooting is tough to overcome. But, it is hard to ignore the impact he has in the paint. Offensively he is always capable of a highlight dunk to get the crowd going. Defensively is where he makes his worth though, averaging 15.0 rebounds, 2.2 blocks and 1.0 steals per game.

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While the 39.7 percent free throw shooting from last season, and 41.2 percent for his career, will undoubtedly scare some people, he makes up for it with his defense. That alone will make him worth a max deal in some team’s eyes. Whoever lands Jordan will be banking on the impact he has defensively, and if his offense ever comes around it will just be icing on the cake. Could he be the defensive anchor Phil Jackson has said the Knicks will be looking to add?

It is fair to question if Jordan can fit into the scheme the Knicks use offensively, as he is extremely limited on that side of the ball. But, if Jackson was interested in adding the similarly limited Willie Cauley-Stein in the draft this past Thursday, could Jordan become a legitimate option when free agency begins?

Next: Is David West a target in free agency?

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