Ekpe Udoh, Chris Douglas Roberts were good pick-ups for Los Angeles Clippers
When the Los Angeles Clippers dealt veteran Jared Dudley to the Milwaukee Bucks last week, they clearly had a free agent in mind. Turns out, they had two – the Clippers signed Charlotte Hornets’ free agent guard Chris Douglas Roberts and Milwaukee Bucks’ free agent big man Ekpe Udoh this week.
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Kevin Pelton of ESPN.com believes the recent signings of Udoh and Douglas-Roberts were solid moves.
"Like both of them for the price. I was surprised Douglas-Roberts didn’t get more attention after a solid season in Charlotte, and Udoh has long been a favor of adjusted plus-minus. I doubt he’ll play much with the Clippers’ frontcourt depth, but he’s a better insurance policy than Big Baby."
Neither player will make much of an impact if the Clippers stay healthy – Douglas-Roberts is stuck behind J.J. Redick and Jamal Crawford while Udoh is behind one of the best power forward-center duos in the league in Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan. However, both should provide valuable depth.
Douglas-Roberts averaged 6.9 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 20.7 minutes per game while playing in 49 games last season. He shot 44.0% from the field, 38.6% from beyond the arc and 80.5% from the free throw line. In his five-year career, the former Memphis Tiger has put up 7.4 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game while shooting 44.2% from the floor, 33.5% from three and 82.8% from the charity stripe. Last season, Udoh averaged 3.4 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.0 block per game while shooting 39.9% from the field and 63.8% from the free throw line. He played in 41 games. In his four-year NBA career, the former Baylor Bear has put up 4.4 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game while shooting 42.8% from the field and 71.8% free throw line. The Golden State Warriors selected Udoh with the sixth-overall pick in the first round of 2010 NBA Draft. After two a year-and-a-half in Golden State, the former Baylor Bear was dealt to the Bucks in the Andrew Bogut/Monta Ellis deal.
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