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E-News Sign UpClippers Sign Chris Kaman - Press Conference Quotes
Clippers Vice President of Basketball Operations Elgin Baylor
On signing Chris Kaman
“Ever since the Bulls won championships with Michael Jordan, every championship team has had a good big man, so it was very important for us to re-sign him. He had a great year last season and he is getting better and better. We’re very happy about this. Chris is an important part of the future of this team.”
On contract negotiations
“There was no question about getting him signed. We just had to work out some details.”
On the future of the Clippers
“We are in good shape for the future. We’ve got a lot of guys signed. It’s a good group of unselfish players who all like each other. But we have to stay healthy.
On Chris Kaman’s health
“He looks good in practice and he should play on Wednesday.”
Clippers Head Coach Mike Dunleavy
On signing Chris Kaman
“It’s very exciting. We’re putting all the pieces into place. Kaman is on the rise and has years of improvement ahead of him. It’s nice to know that he’ll be in L.A. for another 6 years.”
“It’s very positive to take care of this before the season starts. It takes the pressure off and we don’t have to worrying about teams approaching him every time we’re on the road, saying ‘do you want to come and play here’”
On contract negotiations with Kaman
“The negotiations were handled very professionally by both sides.”
On the future of the Clippers
“It’s really nice knowing that you have a team that can go deep into the playoffs and maybe even win a championship.”
On team health and conditioning
“I don’t know if we’re exactly ready yet. We have a rough stretch of games to start the season. We’re playing a lot of playoff teams like Dallas, Phoenix and Denver. We’ll need to improve by Wednesday. The injured guys have to play catch up and we are behind in out conditioning.”
On Chris Kaman playing opening night
“We want to see how he progresses.”
Clippers Center Chris Kaman
On signing a new contract
“I’m really excited to be in L.A. for 5 more years. It’s been a great three years and I’m really looking forward to this season. I’m glad I got it done; I don’t want to worry about it anymore. It’s a blessing that I’ve been able to play basketball for so long, hopefully I can win a championship.”
On his reasons for signing
“The main reason for signing the contract was because of my relationship with my teammates and coaches.”
On his health
“My hamstring felt good in practice today. I’ll see how it feels tomorrow in practice.”
On playing on opening night
“I’m hoping to play on Wednesday. I will try and get out there. I’m going to be up and down when I start because I’ve been out for about 10 or 11 days.”
