NBA Rumors: Earl Clark Weighs Denver Nuggets Offer, Wants to Re-Sign with Orlando Magic
by Evan Dunlap on Dec 14, 2011 10:02 AM EST
in NBA Rumors
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Free-agent combo forward Earl Clark strongly wishes to return to the Orlando Magic, but until the team sorts out the future of star center Dwight Howard, he may have to look elsewhere, Alex Kennedy of HOOPSWORLD reported Tuesday. Clark has an offer from the Denver Nuggets. "He is considering [the Magic]," Happy Walters, his agent, told the Orlando Sentinel's Josh Robbins. "However, he is also considering other offers."
Clark prefers Orlando to all other options, if his locked Twitter account and recent comments are fair indications. "all i wanna do iz put my white and blue on and go to work......damn," he wrote Monday. In recent days he's also taken to re-tweeting several comments from fans urging the Magic to re-sign him. And late last month, he told HOOPSWORLD "I don't want to play anywhere else."
The Howard drama isn't the only factor holding up a possible re-signing of Clark; with the regular season set to start in less than two weeks, the team is already five days into training camp, which includes 15 players, of which 12 have guaranteed contracts. There's probably room for a sixth big man--fifth, if one puts Clark ahead of rookie Justin Harper--on the team, especially considering Howard's lone backup at center is rookie Daniel Orton, still recovering from knee surgeries.
Clark, the No. 14 pick in the 2009 NBA Draft, averaged 4.1 points and 2.5 rebounds in 33 games for Orlando since joining the team via trade last December. His energy, athleticism, defensive potential, and willingness to work hard earned him praise from coach Stan Van Gundy and his teammates. Though raw, he's still a month away from his 24th birthday, so he's yet to reach his peak, and he's shown flashes of being rotation-player material in the past. It's possible the Phoenix Suns were onto something when they took the unusual step of not exercising the third-year option on Clark's contract, which is almost unheard of for lottery picks.
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I like Clark and would like to keep him if possible
but I have a feeling he’s gone. In any case he’d be the last brick in the wall.
Yugly.
I like that 'big man' rotation too.
Howard, Anderson, Davis, Clark, Harper, Orton…
Evan mentioned 6…who am I forgetting?
by The BBQ Chicken Madness on Dec 14, 2011 12:04 PM EST up reply actions
Yeah, but does Orton really count?
I mean, really?
I should really change my signature because this one no longer applies: "If the Magic must trade Dwight to the Lakers, the trade better include Gilbert Arenas as well. I want the Lakers to suffer."
by funny80sguy on Dec 14, 2011 12:13 PM EST up reply actions
Don't know how I feel about Clark.
I think we all saw his energy and his love for being here and that makes us love him in return. I just don’t know how skilled he is.
Hey, I know! Let’s just ask Dwight. Here’s his chance to be more involved.
The intensity has to go up, up! Not down...UP! -Stan Van Gundy
Excellent suggestion. Let him play the GM role, and be happy about it at a - presumably - low cost.
Seriously, Clark is not going to break the bank, and a contract around $2M is moveable.
Plus he is kind of a combo forward.. sign him
With the 15th pick, the Miami Dolphins select John Stamos....'s brother
I probably know Judo! How many of you can make the same boast?
by Souwantmyname on Dec 14, 2011 5:08 PM EST up reply actions
I think we should sign Earl..
He’s young, athletic, strong, big (6’10) and can guard positions 3-5, has sky-high potential, and most importantly..wants to be here.
He and Harper are 2 totally different players..
With these 2 on the roster there won’t be duplicate talent..from what I’ve seen of Harper..he’s more of a Rashard Lewis clone (a true 3 guard in a PF body…and kind of a finesse player) whereas Earl is more of a PF whose got enough bulk to him to guard the 5, athletic enough to guard the 3 and not afraid to bang and get on the boards
A potential defender to throw at forwards in the East?
Otis Smith: NOT ON MY WATCH!
I hope we resign him
The deal that we could ink him to would be very minimal and I like his chances for improvement. This Dwight drama is going to continue to drag out. The Magic just need to let him know if they want him back or not and let him make his own decision from there.
How does Howard's uncertainy effect re-signing Clark?
His contract will likely be pretty cheap, so I can’t imagine his contract would make it impossible to sign Howard. And if Howard leaves, he’s a decent trade chip to include in a package to round out salaries.
by The BBQ Chicken Madness on Dec 14, 2011 12:01 PM EST reply actions
I don't think Earl's all that good,
but he’d be incredibly cheap to sign, and the fact that he wants to be in Orlando SO BADLY is a plus. It’d be nice if the whole team had that kind of desire. So if we’re gonna throw $25 million at aging nobodies like J-Rich, the least we could do is find something close to the minimum to sign Earl.
I like to watch.
by MoveThoseChains on Dec 14, 2011 2:13 PM EST reply actions 1 recs
I'd rather save the money...
and wait for something else to present itself. Orlando’s front office keep things really quiet, so I would like to think they too are holding off on spending money on another roster-filler and work on something better
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