Not a very fond farewell

Let’s see. Elton Brand tells the Clippers he will sign for less money if the Clippers sign Baron Davis. The Clippers then sign Baron and offer less money to Elton. Elton then takes his business elsewhere because he is insulted by the offer of less money.

No witty tag line is necessary, is it?

Richard Raffalow

Valley Glen

Looks like Elton Brand just graduated from the Hollywood Producers School of Wheeling and Dealing:

E.B. “Hello, Elg? Yeah, this is Elton. You tell Mr. Deep Pockets to get me Baron Davis and I’ll sign for less moola, OK? Excelente!”

E.B. “Hey, B.D.? Yeah, E.B. here. The fix is in. You just sit tight.”

Don’t know if Elton Brand likes cigars – but talk about blowing smoke and gone with the wind.

Rick Solomon

Lake Balboa

The Elton Brand fiasco and the loss of Corey Maggette are probably crippling blows to any chances the Clippers have of making the playoffs next year. Whoever’s fault it is, there is certainly enough blame to go around.

But I do have a question no one has addressed:

Where in the world was Elgin Baylor throughout this? The website still lists him as Vice President of Basketball Operations. What operations? The man should be sued for malpractice.

Bill Morse

Palm Springs

Groucho Marx famously asked, “Who are you going to believe, me or your own eyes?” Should I believe Bill Plaschke who says “Boooo” to Elton Brand or what I have seen over the past seven years? Elton Brand is a great athlete, but what really sets him apart are his personal qualities. Brand won the NBA sportsmanship award given to the player whose ethical behavior, fair play and integrity best exemplify the ideals of sportsmanship on the court.

Whatever the circumstances of his leaving, Elton Brand as a player and a person has been a gift to every sports fan in Southern California. Let Plaschke boo. When Brand comes here with the 76ers I’ll stand and cheer to thank him for his years with the Clippers.

Jim Freed

Santa Monica

Poor Baron Davis! He is now stuck in the Black Hole that is the Clippers for making the tragic mistake of believing Elton Brand when he said he would re-sign with the Clips if Baron came to the team.

Elton, as we have found out in the last few days, is either a liar, just another mercenary player out for an extra buck or agent David Falk’s puppet. Good luck Baron, good riddance Elton.

Charlie Brissette

Glendale

I am not a Clippers fan by any stretch of the imagination, but I must ask this: What have they ever won with Brand? For that matter, what have they won with both him and Maggette? If people think that Tim Duncan is a boring player, Elton Brand is soccer, chess and paint drying wrapped into one. The biggest difference is Duncan has four rings and Brand has a lot of nothing.

Geno Apicella

Burbank

Kobe never wanted Shaq to stay in L.A. and basically made it clear, either him or me. Elton never wanted to continue to play with Corey Maggette, and sent the same message. The difference was that Kobe stayed and helped the Lakers return to relevance. Elton, on the other hand, made sure that Corey was gone, and walked over the ashes.

Philadelphia is about to experience a one-man wrecking machine. At games, they should hand out hard hats.

Howard J. Kern

Pacific Palisades

Frank talk

Why is it that whenever Frank McCourt talks about accountability and developing a winning culture [July 11] all I hear is the teacher talking to Charlie Brown – wonk, wonk, wonk.

Pete Russo

San Clemente

So Frank McCourt is getting frustrated, huh? Well, join the club, Frank. We’ve been frustrated with your erratic ownership since you purchased the club four years ago. You’re the one who allowed a winning team to be dismantled under Paul DePodesta in 2004. You’re also the one that’s been through three managers and two general managers in four years.

The history of Dodgers moves at the trading deadline is littered with mistakes, from John Tudor to Jeff Shaw to Hee-Seop Choi, so unless there is a free agent named Kirk Gibson out there, leave the team well enough alone and stick to what you do best, posing for photos.

Jim Patton

Manhattan Beach

So Bill Shaikin thinks the Dodgers should have given up Matt Kemp (and more) just to get CC Sabathia – for only three months yet, because the pitcher becomes a free agent next year.

You would think the Dodgers scribes like Shaikin, Plaschke and Simers would have learned from the Lasorda years that the only way to field a championship team is to build from within, show patience with their young players and not panic.

Can’t Shaikin see that the Blue Crew already has one of the best pitching staffs in baseball, and that Kemp, Loney, Ethier, DeWitt are only in their first full season in the majors, and doing quite well at that? It’s the aging veterans who are either hurt or underperforming – and that’s an understatement when referencing Andruw Jones.

Skip Usen

Santa Monica

Grass acts

It is utterly impossible to overstate the greatness that was the men’s Wimbledon final. Bill Dwyre [July 7] did a credible job in trying to convey the grace and dignity exhibited by reigning champion Roger Federer and charismatic young Rafael Nadal. Federer was as classy in defeat as Nadal was in his triumph. Simply put, Nadal and Federer reminded us what is great about sport, played at its highest level by true sportsmen.

David Perez

Pasadena

Both Roger Federer and Serena Williams are 26 years old. In that time, Roger has shown that he can be as gracious and classy as a loser as he is when he is a winner. Too bad Serena does not yet have the maturity to be the same.

Glenn M. Langdon

Garden Grove

The article on the front page of the Sunday sports section, “Victory for Venus leaves Serena sullen,” grossly minimizes what we saw on Centre Court at Wimbledon: a class act from the Williams sisters displaying grace under pressure time and time again. Perhaps television commentators and other media vultures ought to let the players catch a breath after their games before swooping in on them.

Prema Chari

Downey

Not a smart move

Brandon Jennings [July 10] is not a trend-setter, he ran out of options. To spin this as if he is helping mankind and pushing back at the NBA and the NCAA is almost laughable. He does not have a choice, because the choice he made was to work on his crossover while other kids did their homework.

Jeff Wolf

Encino

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