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J.J. Redick changes Clippers’ grade from ‘F’ to ‘A’ after they sign DeAndre Jordan

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Turns out all he needed was a little TLC. That or being held hostage in his own home.

DeAndre Jordan backed out of his verbal commitment with the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday evening to sign with the Clippers after a contingent from the L.A. team stayed with him in his home in Houston until was officially able to sign at 12:01 a.m. EDT, or 9:01 p.m. PDT.

Clippers Coach Doc Rivers, team owner Steve Ballmer, Blake Griffin, Chris Paul, J.J. Redick and Paul Pierce were among the recruitment squad.

After the news became official that Jordan would remain a Clipper, Redick tweeted a ‘A+’, among other emojis, referring to his comments to Bleacher Report Radio on Tuesday in which he said the Clippers deserved an ‘F-’ grade for initially losing Jordan during free agency.

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Griffin tweeted out photos of a chair in front of what was presumably Jordan’s door and of a tent, indicating that he was going to do whatever it took to make sure the center remained his teammate.

Paul tweeted a picture of him and Jordan hugging, along with an Edgar Allan Poe quote that read: “Believe only half of what you see, and nothing that you hear.” Paul was apparently referring to the reports that he and Jordan had a strained relationship.

Pierce tweeted out a photo of Jordan signing the papers, alongside Jordan’s mother and Rivers.

The Clippers’ support came after Jordan had agreed Friday to sign a four-year, $80-million contract with the Mavericks. That commitment, however, could not become official until the NBA’s free-agent moratorium ended.

Jordan’s teammates were not present at the Clippers’ initial meeting with Jordan on Thursday. The Mavericks, on the other hand, had put out a huge recruitment effort for Jordan, which included Chandler Parsons wooing him, and Dirk Nowitzki leaving a family vacation early to attend his team’s meeting with the center.

At the eleventh hour, the Clippers made up for their earlier actions with the strong showing. The fight began Wednesday morning when Parsons tweeted out an emoji of an airplane, hinting that he was going to fly to Jordan’s home to persuade him to keep his commitment to the Mavericks.

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Redick responded with a car emoji. Griffin, who was returning from a Hawaiian vacation, tweeted emojis of an airplane, a helicopter and a car. Paul chimed in with emojis of a banana and a boat (he was reportedly on vacation on a banana boat when Jordan verbally committed to the Mavericks). Clippers assistant coach Mike Woodson then tweeted a swimming emoji, and Pierce, who was apparently unsure how to attach an emoji, instead inserted a picture of a rocket ship.

Jordan, who had been with the Clippers his entire seven-season career, led the NBA in rebounding (15 per game) and field-goal percentage (71%) last season, and also averaged a career-high 11.5 points a game. He had four 20-20 performances -- games with at least 20 points and 20 rebounds -- throughout last season.

The 26-year-old most recently helped the Clippers get one win away from reaching the Western Conference finals for the first time in their 45-year existence.

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