Part 2 of 6 Summer Plans - What will YOU take to south beach?

New Jersey 24-58 (I heard once they had a Russian owner or something?)

Notable free agents - Dan Gadzuric's &7.2 million dollar contract, Sasha Vujacic, Kris Humphries
Core players still on contract - Deron Williams, Brook Lopez, Anthony Morrow, Travis Outlaw, Jordan Farmar

Recap: Well they improved from their historic 13 win season last year, but did make some questionable signings. After they missed out on LeBron, Bosh, Wade, and Stoudemire, they felt the next best thing was getting Travis Outlaw, Jordan Farmar and Anthony Morrow. All three's contracts are about the same as a max contract that they would have signed those big names for. So they have that core which isn't very nice.

But in the middle of the season, after they lost out on Carmelo, they traded for Deron Williams who's on contract for one more year, and then has a player option NEXT summer. So they have one season to convince Deron Williams to stay.

Another trade was a 3-team deal that got them Houston's first round pick (lotto protected), and LA Lakers' first round pick. They also got Sasha Vujacic's expiring contract.

Expect them to: 1. Re-sign Kris Humphries. 2. Not Re-sign Sasha Vujacic. 3. Build depth with the draft. 4. Make a play for Dwight Howard.

Yes. There are rumors that the Nets want Dwight Howard (who doesn't?) and a trade they'd have to do would be their big men of Kris Humphries and Brook Lopez. So that's two reasons they'd re-sign Kris Humphries, he's a great rebounder who had a break out year, and he's a trade asset for Dwight.

Sasha will not be re-signed. He was the catch in the trade that netted them 2 first rounders with the Lakers and Rockets. It should be noted that the Jazz have the Nets' first round pick.

Check out the article regarding the Nets going for Dwight Howard here.

Detroit Pistons 30-52 (I remember when everyone was jumping all up on the Detroit bandwagon when they signed Charlie V and Ben Gordon a couple summers ago...)

Notable free agents - TAYSHAUN PRINCE, Tracy McGrady, Chris Wilcox
Core players still on contract - Rodney Stuckey, Greg Monroe, Richard Hamilton, Ben Gordon, Charlie Villanueva, Jason Maxiell, Ben Wallace,

Recap: The Pistons had high hopes after Greg Monroe fell to them in the 2010 draft, but this team went nowhere fast. Included in this season was the benching of Richard Hamilton, a player revolt where T-Mac, Chris Wilcox, Richard Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince didn't show up for a shootaround because they were unhappy with coach Kuester. Needless to say, the team only won 30 games.

Expect them to: 1. Not re-sign Tracy McGrady. 2. Try and fail to re-sign Tayshaun Prince (leading them to put . 3. Trade Richard Hamilton. 4. Sign Rodney Stuckey to an extension. 5. Draft high and build around Rodney Stuckey and Greg Monroe.

They gave Tracy a chance and it didn't quite work out. It was only a one year contract so they'll move their separate ways. Tayshaun Prince has no reason to stay. He's a veteran now and a great defender/all around player that a championship contending team could offer some good money to (Heat comes to mind-speculation). I fully expect Tayshaun to skip town. And with that I expect them to trade Richard Hamilton (2 more years on contract for about 12.5 mil) for expiring contracts so they can re-sign Rodney Stuckey.

I also expect them to shop Charlie V. and/or Ben Gordon but will have a lot of trouble doing so because they are not that good and they are being paid way too much (both for 3 more years - BG for 11.5, 12 and 13 million, CV for 7.5, 8, 8.5 million - WOW!) But other teams would watch Richard Hamilton, he's still a good defender with a great shot.

This team is all about Greg Monroe and Rodney Stuckey now and they will build around them through said trades and draft. These aren't the best players but it's all they have to work with.

Los Angeles Clippers 32-50 (I thought this team would make the playoffs this year- LOL)

Notable free agents - DeAndre Jordan
Core players still on contract - Blake Griffin, Eric Gordon, Mo Williams, Chris Kaman, Al-Farouq Aminu, Eric Bledsoe

Recap: New Coach Vinny Del Negro had a team that wasn't ready in the beginning of the season but started coming together near the end. Blake Griffin finally had a rookie season and won himself Rookie Of The Year. Eric Gordon improved his stats but did little to improve his ball handling skills after helping Team USA win gold in Turkey. Baron Davis started the year hurt, and ended the year a Cavalier. In return the Clippers got less a play maker, but a better shooter in Mo Williams and athletic dude Jamario Moon. Chris Kaman also started the year hurt, which gave DeAndre Jordan playing time and he shine shine shined his way into an upcoming big pay day this summer.

Expect them to: (Check out my previous post where I got to hear Donald Sterling divulge some goods about what the Clippers plans are) 1. Re-Sign DeAndre Jordan. 2. Trade Chris Kaman. 3. Decide whether or not they want to sign Jamario Moon his team option (if they can trade Kaman for a SF, then no). 4. NOT draft (Cleveland has their pick through Baron trade).

No huge changes here, unless Chris Kaman can get the Clippers a nice player. The Clippers are the first lottery team I've talked about that has a not only a really good player, but a really good core (Wizards have John Wall and Rashard Lewis, not much to really build around). A starting lineup of Mo Williams, Eric Gordon, Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan and some SF that Chris Kaman could yield (if not, Jamario Moon or Ryan Gomes) is a potentially lethal starting lineup. Could THIS be the year that the Clippers finally put it together? They better because I just got another season's worth of tickets.

It will be very interesting to see what they can get for Chris Kaman though.

Charlotte Bobcats 34-48 (Team blown up, let's see where the bits fall)

Notable free agents - Joel Przybilla's 7.5 mil contract, Morris Peterson's 6.5 mil contract, Kwame Brown
Core players still on contract - Boris Diaw, Stephen Jackson, DJ Augustin, Tyrus Thomas

Recap: They. Traded. Gerald. Wallace. They also traded Nazr Mohammed. For expiring contracts of course. Michael Jordan the owner decided this team wasn't gonna get it done with Gerald Wallace as the best player so to Portland he went. And the team played out the season. And that's pretty much it.

Expect them to: 1. Draft twice (their pick and New Orleans'). 2. Potentially trade Boris Diaw's expiring 9 mil contract. 3. Play with free agency and try and sign a top talent.

And that's pretty much it. They don't have a lot of pieces except for DJ Augustin to build around so they're gonna have to see where they end up in the draft and then go from there. This team will lose a lot of games next season if they don't sign a top talent and go strictly with young draftees.

Milwaukee Bucks 35-47 (The Michael Redd era is ova)

Notable free agents - Michael Redd, Luc Mbah a Moute
Core players still on contract - Andrew Bogut, Brandon Jennings, Corey Maggette, John Salmons, Drew Gooden

Recap: If the Milwaukee Bucks plays a game but no one is around to hear it, do they make a noise? The crazy thing is that they were only 2 games behind in the east to make the playoffs! The thing is, this core group of guys is on contract for a lot of years and they're just not that good. I mean Corey Maggette? He's a bench player these days. John Salmons is good and Drew Gooden is solid but as for starting lineup quality in the East? Which all of a sudden is the dominant conference almost over night? Not gonna get much done.

As all star quality as Andrew Bogut can be and as flashy as Brandon Jennings is, this team is still a couple pieces away from being a borderline 8th seed to a solid 7th seed.

Expect them to: 1. Not re-sign Michael Redd. 2. Use that $18 mil from Michael Redd's contract to sign a big name or two tier 2 or 3 guys. 3. Draft near the middle of the draft for some OK talent at best.

Like I said, they can use that $18 mil to really bolster this lineup with some solid offensive punch. Unfortunately, Milwaukee isn't a big name city, but this is an attractive lineup for the right player. Great center who can play defense and a scoring point guard with John Salmons on the wing? See who they can sign...

A Mini Chat With Clipper Owner Donald Sterling March 5, 2011

Photo taken with Blackberry - No he is not smoking a cigarette, he is trying to answer someone from far away.

A quick intro: I am a season ticket holder for the Los Angeles Clippers. The month of March is considered "MVP month," which means season ticket holders get some cool prizes and access that non season ticket holders cannot get or attend. These include: Autograph night, Voucher giveaways, Team photo giveaways, Dessert Night (Yum!), a coach's chalk talk (talk with the coaches and team president) and photo night, which was tonight.

So after tonight's game against the Denver Nuggets (a win), season ticket holders lined up outside one of the doors and were ushered towards the seats a couple rows behind courtside seats where we would wait to take pictures with a random Clipper. We were split into three groups and luckily, my group was very close to where Donald Sterling was talking with some Clipper employees. He walked by and said "did you enjoy the game!?" To which we responded with cheers and applause because they won. He then came around the courtside seats and chatted with us. There were about 50 of us, I was in the third row so I got to hear a lot of it.

THIS IS WHAT HE SAID: (DISCLAIMER: I'm going to paraphrase as I did not have a tape recorder handy so these are paraphrases and not actual quotes)

• "Now do you want to talk with me, or read what the newspapers have to say?"
• Regarding Heckling Baron Davis - "I noticed he was taking three pointers and missing so I said, 'Why don't you drive it to the basket instead?'"
• Regarding Baron Davis trade - "We had to give up a #1 draft pick with Baron! I was told that Mo Williams REALLY wants to come to LA. I was told that Mo Williams' WIFE really wants to come to LA. I was told Jamario Moon is a great player and defender and he'll work hard for us."
• Regarding Blake Griffin - After explaining what a restricted contract is, where the Clippers can match any offer any other team gives him - "Blake is a $20 million dollar player, and we're not going to give up the best player in (he either said America or the world, but yes, he did say Blake was the best in either America or the world). Now some of these journey men are trying to get paid $20 million dollars too, which is something we're not going to do, but Blake is worth it."
• Regarding Elgin Baylor - "Elgin Baylor was our GM for 22 years and I respect him a lot, but every time we'd talk he'd let it be known that who we had on the Clippers was the best talent we could get." Followed by a shrug.
• Regarding fan jeers of Chris Kaman - "Look I can't tell you who but we are playing some guys to pad their stats in an effort to trade them. I can't tell you who, but you can figure it out. We're trying to land a superstar player to give Blake some help." *Crowd responds in a resounding cheer*
  

He then left to go talk with some other Clipper employees.

THAT IS IT. Those are the paraphrases of what Donald Sterling said- Let me break it down for you, and give you one way to analyze what he's saying. This is no longer Donald Sterling talking. This is MY take on what is going on with the Clippers based on what Sterling said.

• Regarding heckling Baron Davis - Not really much to look into here. I didn't hear him say anything, my seats aren't close to his. But my personal opinion, owners should never disrespect their players. I don't even think owners should be that CLOSE to the players. Exception Mark Cuban.
• Regarding Baron Davis trade - Baron Davis is on contract for A LOT of money: $13 mil this year, $14 mil next year, $15 mil the year after that. Cleveland needs to rebuild so they want draft picks. The only way they'd take on that expensive Baron contract is if they got a draft pick as well. So Clippers, already neck deep in young talent decide they don't need draft picks and send it over to Cleveland to take on Jamario Moon ($3 million this year, team option of $3 million next year AKA Clips can let him go if they want next summer) and Mo Williams ($9 mil this year, and 2 years of player options at $8.5 mil, which even if he takes, is still millions less than they'd be paying Baron Davis). OK That's a lot of writing. What does it mean? They're cutting payroll so they can pay DeAndre Jordan a lot more money than the $850 thousand he's making this year, because he's a free agent this summer.
• Regarding Blake Griffin - I totally agree with Sterling, I think they should re sign Blake to some max money no matter what and Donald Sterling better keep his word or he'll have to rebuild a team AGAIN, after getting so lucky at getting that #1 pick in the draft and got a once in a decade type player. If he doesn't, he'll continue to be LA's other team, and Sacramento Kings might come to Anaheim and they might push the Clippers to be LA's THIRD team.
  
• Regarding Elgin Baylor - Again, I have no idea what really went on in the Clippers front office. All I know is Elgin tried to make a team but got a lot of bad luck with Shaun Livingston's freak injury and Elton Brand skipping town AFTER Baron signed with LA, not getting Kobe in 04 and settling for Sam Cassell and Cuttino Mobley (which did get them to the playoffs). But that's not the point. Sterling said that Baylor said that who the Clippers had was the best they could do. Of course they're a lot better now because they made the no brainer decision to draft Blake Griffin. But I also know that Elgin Baylor hasn't been hired as a GM anywhere else so... no more comment.
  
• Regarding Chris Kaman possibly being traded - Again Sterling NEVER called out Kaman by name saying the Clippers were padding his stats to make him look good for a possible trade. But he did say these comments after someone yelled out something about Chris Kaman. Chris Kaman is on contract for this year and next year so it is very likely the Clippers are padding his stats to trade him this summer as an expiring contract with talent to either shed more payroll to pay their youngsters or to get a high quality superstar which Sterling DID say. Personally, I think Sterling is cheap and won't want to pay 2 superstar salaries. I think he's happy with the Clippers selling out games JUST to see Blake Griffin. They don't need 2 superstars to sell out games, but that's just me. And if the Clips do get a 2nd superstar, GREAT!
  

That's all folks, hope you enjoyed reading. Sorry for the lack of posts :(

(Photo from Clippers Top Buzz)

It takes a big man to admit he was wrong. And I am that big man. 10 games ago when every team was undefeated, I predicted that the Clippers would contend-nay BE the 8th seed in the playoffs by season's end. I was naive. I thought Baron was gonna turn his life around. I thought Chris Kaman was gonna be a back up all star quality player again. I thought Eric Gordon was going to work on his dribbling. And I thought Blake Griffin was going to have energy for 48 minutes a game.

I WAS WRONG.

It took Baron 3 games to get hurt. THREE GAMES. At least it gave the team PG responsibilities to rookie Eric Bledsoe who is good, but still a rookie who has hesitation issues.

Chris Kaman is shooting 36% from the field this season and after 8 games, he is also injured.

Eric Gordon is good. He can shoot and drive to the basket and run a fast break. But he is no point guard. He does what makes every high school basketball coach tear his hair out; jump in the air and not know whether he's shooting or passing, which leads to turnovers, or horrible horrible shots. He has no left hand. I have no idea why opposing coaches don't tell their players to force him left. He will lose the ball. He didn't go left at the end of regulation last night against the fourth but at a tie game with 9 seconds left, he dribbled it off his foot and Richard Hamilton scooped it up and almost hit a game winning shot, but instead went to overtime.

Blake Griffin. I love Blake Griffin. I love his hard work and his willingness to go after rebounds. But this hustle simply stops in the middle of the game when he gasses himself out. All the energy he had in the first quarter dwindles quickly in the 3rd and 4th. Last night's game, he slovenly took 10 seconds to run up the court after inbounding the ball to Bledsoe, then got lazy on the offense end and did what we all do at the park when we're lazy. Not call for the ball and set screens for the point guard to get him an open look. Perhaps that's what the coach told them to do because every possession was a pick and roll situation with Blake and Gordon.



HE DOESN'T GO THIS HARD AT THE END OF GAMES AND IT ANNOYS.

This Clipper team is not ready. Baron Davis is on contract for a few more years and trading him will take a lot of work. It's no secret that he's fat and takes bad shots. It's no secret he has a huge contract. And also, no team really NEEDS a point guard right now. This will be another long year for the Clippers. I admit it. I was WRONG in my pre season bold prediction post.

Here's to another season of fail.

Revenge Games - Marcus Camby vs Clippers, Steve Blake vs Blazers

(Photo from Yahoo)
First off, I love revenge games. There are a couple different kinds of revenge games - There's the Championship Finals Rematch the following season (Lakers vs Boston- Christmas Day 2008), A team that knocked off another team out of the playoffs (Washington vs Cleveland 06-07 first round of the playoffs, 07-08 first round of the playoffs after the 05-06 first round of the playoffs - this of course lost its steam when it was concluded that the Cavs had the Wizards' number, and forever would). But my personal favorite is the "Take a look at what you traded away" revenge game, one game of which I saw personally at tonight's Clipper game when Marcus Camby took on his old team, the Clippers and Steve Blake went up against his old team, the Blazers.

As far as revenge games go however, this wasn't as noteworthy as others, given the fact that (1) the Clippers are playing for nothing, (2) the Blazers are obviously the superior team, (3) Steve Blake and Marcus Camby don't dominate the ball/ball hog to really exact revenge on their former teams, and (4) Blake can Camby aren't killer instinct players. But let's go through a brief rundown of the game:

Marcus Camby: Pre game introductions, when Marcus Camby is announced, the crowd gave him a well deserved applause and cheer. Before tipoff, Camby exchanged high fives with the starting lineup of players he'd played with on the Clippers (Butler, Davis, Kaman, Gordon). During the opening minutes, he fouls Kaman who falls to the floor and Camby lends a hand to help him up. Later on during the game, coming out of a timeout, he shares a laugh with DeAndre Jordan. And that's pretty much it! He got 2 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, a steal and 2 blocks in 26 minutes, which is pretty much, give or take, his Portland averages.

(Photo from Yahoo)
Steve Blake: I have a totally rational fascination and admiration of Blake's play with the Clippers, and he was looking for his shot a little more than usual tonight while bodying up Andre Miller's fat ass on defense when he tried to post up (I counted 3 post ups by Miller, one resulted in a Blake foul, one in a 3 second violation on Miller, and one missed jump shot by Miller. Steve Blake is going to make whatever team he signs with very happy this summer). Blake ended with 14 points on 6-10 shooting, 2 three pointers, 1 rebound, 6 assists, a steal and a block in 28 minutes. His Clipper season averages are: 6 points, 6 assists, 2 rebounds, less than a steal, less than a block in 24 minutes.

Fun Fact - Andre Miller, Steve Blake and Marcus Camby have all played for the Clippers, Blazers and Nuggets!

And the Clippers made a little run at the end to make things interesting but the Blazers pulled away. It's been a long season for Clipper fans. But it was nice to see Baron Davis hustle back on defense not once but TWICE: one time he forced a missed layup, and later on in the game, he drew a charge on Andre Miller! I was stunned!

Here's a bonus video of more reason why I love Steve Blake:



Homie don't play dat!

EXCLUSIVE: Inside the convo between Clippers season ticket holders and head coach Kim Hughes and Team President Andy Roeser

Crap, I gotta talk to the season ticket holders after this loss?

(Photo from LA Times)
As you may or may not know, I am lucky enough to have season tickets to the Clippers this season and March is known as MVP month where season ticket holders get all kinds of cool offers such as autograph sessions with the team, free jerseys, and what I went to on Friday night after a loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Coach's Chalk Talk, a Q n A with head coach Kim Hughes and team president Andy Roeser. TV color analyst Ralph Lawler was asking both of them PRE SELECTED questions from me and my fellow season ticket holders.

Now I know what you're thinking.

Pre selected questions?! I thought the same thing. I was expecting questions such as: who is your favorite Clipper? What was it like becoming a head coach? What do you work on in practice? And all the other BS you hear TV interviewers ask. But alas, this wasn't TV. The cameras were gone. President and head coach were faced with nothing but pissed off Clipper fans who have little to no reason to renew their season tickets. Here's a rundown of what happened.

A spokesman welcomes us with, "Hey, how's everyone doing?!" which was followed with moans and groans and sputtered applause. Spokesman responds to that by saying, "Yes, I know, it was a tough loss but better times are ahead, I promise." He proceeds to thank all of us for our support and introduces Ralph Lawler who also thanks us for all of our continued support but also shared with us in our frustration. He said something along the lines of, [paraphrase quote] "We have to wait for results and if you're not sick of hearing that, well then you're probably not a Clipper fan" [end paraphrase quote].

He proceeds to ask Kim Hughes those pre selected questions, here are those highlights:

Question: People see you as a defensive coach, what exactly does that mean?
Answer paraphrased: Yes I'm a defensive coach. I believe that defensive rebounds are key to winning games. The offense will come. These guys know how to score. But defense is key. [My thoughts - well get at least some offensive game! Current offense = if we don't score a fast break, feed Kaman in the post and everyone stand at the 3 point line in case they double team him.]

Question: What are three goals for this summer?
Answer paraphrased: To find a leader. Kaman is a good player but he's not a leader, he's too quiet. [My thoughts - excellent point. Plus no one seems to respond to Davis, and Eric Gordon is a little too young to be a leader.] He also said he wants Eric Gordon to work on his dribbling, specifically dribbling with his left hand.

Question: How do you motivate your players?
Answer paraphrased: You can't. You can only control playing time. [My thoughts - another excellent point. He elaborated more on this answer in a very well thought out response, but the main point of it was that these guys get paid millions of dollars, you can't really motivate them beyond that. All you can do is control their playing time. If they don't do what he (Hughes) asks (get defensive boards), they get benched].

Question: Is the team opposed to trading Baron Davis? (Followed by a surprising amount of clapping and cheer in favor of trading Baron)
Answer paraphrased: We're building this team around Blake Griffin and Eric Gordon. Anyone can be traded, this is a business. [Read between those baselines].

These next questions were for team president, Andy Roeser.

Question: What are your plans with Travis Outlaw?
Answer: The team's left for the plane right? Look, we made moves before the deadline and it all depends on what we do over the summer. If we get a big name, we'll have less money to spend on role players. If we don't get a big name, we'll have more money to retain some of our FAs that we want to keep. [My thoughts - hey, he's keepin it real. I hope they do get a big name and don't go out of their way to overpay guys like Outlaw and Craig Smith].

Question: Why should we renew our season tickets?
Answer paraphrased: Building memories are important and that a lot of memories will come from Staples Center. This team is going to turn it around. We're in a good position with regards to cap space and draft position. This team will be good etc. [My thoughts - I think I might get a portion season tickets next season].

Question: What's more important, operating income or winning?
Answer: Winning. [My thoughts, as well as many people around me - HA!]

After Monday's game against the Bobcats, Steve Blake still runs a better offense than Davis

(Photo from Yahoo)
First off, I'm not going to write about Steve Blake and Baron Davis after every single Clipper game. This is just a follow up to yesterday's post where I argued that Steve Blake runs a better offense than Baron Davis (note: running a better offense DOES NOT EQUAL better player).

I just came back from the Clipper game where they beat the Charlotte Bobcats for their 2nd win in a row. And to my surprise, Baron Davis suited up! Equipped with my little notebook and a pen, I took notes throughout the game on pretty much every possession where Baron Davis and/or Steve Blake touched the ball. My conclusion after the game stands firm: Steve Blake runs a better offense than Baron Davis.

Baron Davis started the game. He ended with 10 points, 10 assists, shot 3-8 from the field in 36 minutes. Per quarter:

First quarter: 5 assists, 2 points, 10 minutes
Second quarter: 0 assists, 2 points, 6 minutes
Third quarter: 3 assists, 2 points, 12 minutes
Fourth quarter: 2 assists, 4 points, 8 and a half minutes

Steve Blake subbed for him. He ended with 3 points, 7 assists, shot 1-2 from the field in 16 minutes. Per quarter:

First quarter: 1 assist, 0 points, 2 minutes
Second quarter: 3 assists, 0 points, 6 minutes
Third quarter: 0 minutes
Fourth quarter: 3 assists, 3 points, 7 and a half minutes

That's for the stat heads. 10 assists in 36 minutes and 7 assists in 16 minutes. But of course that doesn't tell the whole story. Let me bring you into my world of notes.

Steve Blake is a pure PG: Last post, I claimed that Steve Blake never tried to go one on five and take a bad shot and implied that Baron did. I have examples. At the 3:23 mark in the first quarter, Baron goes one on one with Stephen Jackson and gets a bucket about a step in from the free throw line. Hey, if you can take your man and get a shot that close, I say go for it. I'm not faulting Baron here. But at the 2:32 mark, he tried it again, only this time Stephen Jackson blocked him and the Bobcats get the ball.

At the 3:50 mark in the 2nd quarter, he got an open layup, good possession. But at the 2:26 mark, on a fast break, Davis pulls up from a step inside the free throw line extended- right side (I hope I'm describing this well enough) with no other Clipper under the basket for a rebound and being defended with 3 other Bobcats under the basket in case he drove- Bad possession.

At the 11:42 mark of the third, Baron goes on one one with Stephen Jackson and takes a fadeaway jumper from the right baseline. It goes in, it's an OK possession. Again, if you can take your man, go for it. But a fadeaway from the baseline? Eh...

At the 7:14 mark in the third, Baron steals the ball and takes a wide open 3 pointer that misses. I don't mind this possession. Free look at a 3 pointer, sometimes if you're feeling it, you gotta take it.

BUT HEY. Let's look at the shots he didn't take - Baron drives and kicks, he passed up shots to find Rasual and Eric Gordon for threes. He lobbed to DeAndre. He found Gooden on cuts. Hey, this guy IS a good basketball player!

But I still stand by my points from last post:

Steve Blake is a good teammate: Baron sulks. He sulks when he's losing and is cheerful when he's winning. Again, I have specific examples. Clippers are up 24-17 in the first and Craig Smith gets an offensive rebound, gets it to Davis who passes to Gordon who airballs a 3 pointer. It goes out of bounds and Charlotte calls a time out. Davis laughs it off and teases EG about it and high fives him.

Fast Forward to 5:45 mark in the 4th: Clippers are down 83-79 in the midst of a collapse. Tyrus Thomas blocks Craig Smith's layup and Travis Outlaw commits a foul. LAC calls a time out and Baron does that eye roll with a whole head roll like he's saying "ugghh!!!" I've seen this before and I'll see it again and I have yet to see Blake do it.

Steve Blake doesn't take plays off: 8:59 mark in first quarter, Kaman and Rasual Butler are fumbling the ball out of their hands and almost out of bounds while Baron is on the opposite wing, standing. 9:43 mark in the fourth, Craig Smith is chasing down an offensive rebound going out of bounds, Blake is right there behind him, giving Smith a target to save the ball to. Steve Blake is always... just, ON. He always seems to know what to do.

The Bobcats must've done their scouting report because when Steve Blake was in, they full court pressed him to stop his fast pace push the ball up the court style. DJ Augustin tried to prevent the ball from being inbounded to him and stayed with him tight to slow him down so that when Blake finally crossed the half court line, the shot clock was at 19ish rather than 22ish like the Kings let him do. Last play of the first quarter, Augustin is playing tight D on Blake and but when the ball is finally inbounded, Blake finds an opening and turns the inbounds play into a fast break where he finds Outlaw for an open 3 but he's right next to Clipper coach Kim Hughes who tells him to get the last shot, so he pulls it back out. Steve Blake, always working hard. I love this guy.

He moves without the ball. I counted three times when Baron Davis made the first pass in the half court set, and then drift along the 3 point line. When Blake makes that first pass, he sets a down screen, which on one possession, (first play of the 2nd quarter, 11:43 mark), he set the screen for Travis Outlaw who popped up to the freethrow line for a WIDE OPEN jumper which he swished. When he moves without the basketball, OTHER players move without the basketball and it sets up open lanes to drive and cut. It's simple basketball and Steve Blake gets it.

What it all comes down to: Blake and Davis are two different players. Neither is better or worse. You need a player who can drive to the basket, draw fouls, or kick the ball out to open shooters or cutters. That's Baron Davis. But when that happens, there is no movement. Four Clippers stand and watch Baron go one on one and wait for their man to help on defense and then they get the pass from Baron.

Steve Blake gets involved with the offense. He can't break his defender down but he can use screens well and if the screener rolls, he'll get the ball right in his hands for an easy layup. Blake makes crisp passes that comes with a two handed pass while Baron's passes (sometimes no looks, sometimes catches the fellow Clipper off guard) aren't quite where the player wants it but they're open enough to recover and set up their shot.

I like the screen aways for open shots and pushing the ball on offense. I stand by by conclusion that Steve Blake runs a better offense, but a team needs a player like Baron who can break a defender down one on one. I just wish he wouldn't take some of his shots trying to do too much.

Again, this blog isn't going to turn into a Steve Blake love fest, but I had to explain my thoughts after another game and lucky for me, I got to compare Davis and Blake in the same game.

(Official time marks from nba.com)

Steve Blake runs a better offense than Baron Davis

(Photo from yahoo)
I went to last night's Clipper game, a win against the Kings, one of the few teams with a worse record than the Clippers. With Baron Davis out with a "sore back," which I'm hypothesizing is, "We, the Clippers, are in official tank mode for a higher draft pick," Steve Blake is starting at PG. Based on watching most Clipper games live this season, I'm going out on a limb and saying it: Steve Blake runs a better offense than Baron Davis. I'll explain right... NOW: (Disclaimer: yes, this is against the Kings, not a team like the Hawks who they lost to the previous game. Disclaimer2: Steve Blake is in a contract year).

Steve Blake is a pure PG. He's always looking to set up other shooters, lobbing for dunks, and pushing the ball on fast breaks. He never went one-on-five looking to be bailed out by a foul or take an off balanced jump shot. Case in point: he had 2 points in the first quarter, 0 points in the 2nd, 7 in the third, and 2 in the 4th. Those 7 in the third - 2 free throws, a 3 pointer when Eric Gordon was trapped on the baseline and passes along the baseline to the opposite corner for a wide open Blake 3, and a jump shot at the free throw line extended off a nice screen where I believe it was Casspi who went under the screen, leaving Blake with a wide open jumpshot.

Assists by quarter - 2 in the first, 6 in the 2nd, 1 in the 3rd, 3 in the 4th - 12 total (stats per quarter source: nba.com). Again, he was lobbing to Deandre and Gordon, setting up Rasual Butler and Gordon for 3 pointers, and doing some nice pick-and-pops with Chris Kaman. And by the way, he would have had 15 assists if DeAndre Jordan hand't gotten a case of the Kwame and had the ball slip out of his hands on 3 wide open slam dunk opportunities, which leads me to my next point about Blake...

Steve Blake is a good teammate - When the Kings were making a run, cutting the Clippers' 11 point lead down to about 5, there was a possession when Blake was double teamed and made a solid bounce pass to DeAndre right underneath the basket where all he had to do was rise up and slam it on NOBODY because he was left open, the ball some how slipped out of his hands and went out of bounds, to which the crowd reacted with "AAAAAARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!" As the Clippers ran down the court to play defense while the Kings were inbounding, and DeAndre sulking with his head down, embarrassed, Steve Blake went up to him, smacked his ass and said something along the lines of, "Don't worry about it, get it back on defense," "Get it next time," "Keep your head up," etc.

From DeAndre's Twitter: I couldn't catch a cold butt naked in Alaska last night. Will be better tomorrow, promise!!

I've seen Baron Davis set up DeAndre before where he's missed scoring opportunities, where it's lead to Baron rolling his eyes, rolling his whole head, joining the crowd in a not so loud - "arrrghh!" Blake is a good teammate and knows that getting mad at a young teammate just for the sake of being mad at him is not going to help. OF COURSE, there's a time when a player must yell at his teammate, but there's a time and a place, and it's not in the midst of a lead almost lost when the team just needs to settle down.

Steve Blake doesn't take plays off - Defensive or offensive. I've seen Baron, on an offensive possession, stay in the backcourt to complain to a ref or to sulk about a blown defensive sequence. Case in point:

Defensive possessions: on a turnover that led to a fast break wide open layup, Steve Blake was sprinting his ASS off to try and swat the ball. He didn't, but that didn't stop him from getting the ball inbounded and running the offense to try to answer with a Clipper bucket. In half court defensive sequences, he's rotating to open guys, directing Chris Kaman to rotate to an open spot, it's mind boggling how high his basketball IQ is. Another example, on a turnover caused by Blake when he passed from the top of the key to the right wing, it was stolen and the Kings were off to a fast break. All of the Clippers hadn't gotten down the court yet (Steve is always pushing), so when it was stolen, it wasn't a clear path. Knowing this, Blake wrapped up the Kings player which led to an inbounds play rather than a layup, or free throws for a clear path foul. So smart.

Offensive possessions - Steve Blake is always running and pushing. Even on made baskets. He doesn't seem to lose any energy, he's pushing the ball up like it's a fast break. In half court sets, he's NOT one of those PGs that stays at the top of the key after the first pass is made. He's cutting to the basket, setting screens (however useless they might be - he's really skinny), and always looking to make the right pass. It's fun, it's exciting, and it produces results.

Steve Blake knows his role: At the end of the game, the ball was in Eric Gordon's hands. Blake wasn't trying to win it all. He knew who his scorers were and who had the hot hand and boy did Eric Gordon have the hot hand last night. He was driving to the basket, kicking the ball out, hitting the 3 pointer; he saved the Clippers last night when they almost gave up their 11 point lead, but it was Blake who got them that lead in the first 3 and a half quarters.

So what does this all mean? The Clippers got a really good PG, who I believe runs a better offense and plays better defense than one of the Clippers' so called "saviors," Baron Davis. Back to my disclaimer, these are the KINGS we're talking about, but are the Clippers that much better? Well, yeah I guess they are. The Kings had Tyreke and solid role players in Casspi and newcomer Landry. But it was a team the Clippers were supposed to beat, and they beat them (like they should have beat the Nets after beating the Lakers and Celtics earlier in the year).

So if and/or when Baron comes back, he'll start again. He'll run the offense for the Clippers. They've invested way too much money in him to bench him for Steve Blake who's gonna be a FA this summer anyway. But I stand by my point that Steve Blake runs a better offense and plays better defense than Baron Davis, at least for one game. I'm going to the Charlotte game on Monday, so we'll see how he does against a better team.

But the REAL question of the night? Where can I buy Blake Griffin's sports jacket. Stylish.
(Photo from yahoo)

Cavs Clips Wiz Trade Analysis - Sorry LA and WAS fans :(

Can't say this year's trade deadline is a bore. The Washington Wizards, Los Angeles Clippers and Cleveland Cavaliers were all involved in the trade that brings Antawn Jamison and Sebastian Telfiar to the Cavs, Drew Gooden to the Clips and Al Thornton, Brian Skinner and Zydrunas Ilgauskas to the Wizards.

What are teams trying to do?

Cavaliers - Win a championship, keep LeBron in Cleveland.

Clippers - Save money, shed contracts, sign a big name this summer.

Wizards - Save money, shed contracts, rebuild this team.

CAVALIERS!!!!

(Photo from isportsweb)
The Cavaliers get Jamison, a SF/PF who can score from the post and hit a 3 pointer. He does OK on defense. He won the 6th man award for the Mavericks. He's averaging 20 points and 9 rebounds on 45% shooting this year (just about on point for his career averages) for a losing Wizards team. What makes this league crazyis that he left the Wizards arena before their game tonight after not wanting to deal with all the questions and press. Honestly though, this guy was JUST ABOUT TO PLAY A GAME and then he gets traded! Players still on the trading block must be on pins and needles.

For the Cavs, it's definitely an upgrade, especially if the Wizards buy out Ilgauskas's contract and he resigns with the Cavs. Until then though, the lineup should feature Jamison at PF, with Shaq at C, Lebron at SF, and Anthony Parker and Daniel Gibson at the guard spots until Mo Williams return from injury. JJ Hickson will probably go to the bench with Varejao, Delonte, and Jamario Moon, possibly Zydrunas Ilgauskas, and newbie Sebastian Telfair as a little Mo Williams insurance? This team has a lot of guards so it might be hard for him to crack the rotation. Don't forget this team also has Leon Powe who should be coming back soon from injury that's kept him out all year.

*siiiiiiigh

(Photo from socalsportshub)
The Clippers lose Al Thornton, the 14th pick in the 2007 draft who slipped that far due to his age (aged 24 when drafted). He was solid averaging 13 points his rookie year, and 17 points last year. Except these were bad teams with losing records. This year he started the first couple months, then was sent to the bench due to his lack of defense and great production from Rasual Butler. He wasn't a first or second option when he was in the game because the team went to Kaman all the time and Baron and Eric Gordon were scoring from the outside and driving. They weren't going to resign him and didn't want to pay him $2.8 million next year. Brian Skinner sucks and doesn't play so they got rid of him to match the contracts with Drew Gooden who's making $4.5 million this year and will probably be bought out soon. Clippers save 2.8 million dollars next year clearing space for some FAs (Contract info from HoopsHype).

Teammates!

(Photo from espn)
The Wizards lose Antawn Jamison and his $13.3 millon next year and $15 million the year after that. This team has cleared SO MUCH MONEY from next year's payroll, they're looking like the Knicks. You question though why they took on Al Thornton who's due $2.8 million next year, but that's still a net saving of $10.5 million. They're still stuck with Gilbert Arenas but they'll only be responsible for about $30 million in payroll next year, which is a lot of money available to sign some FAs.

So who do we feel sorry for? Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison were saved from basketball hell to play for title contenders. The Wizards and Clippers are saving millions of dollars to sign some potential big names this summer. Lebron is getting all the help he can plus the best record in the NBA so far. I'll tell you who we feel sorry for. The Clippers and Wizards fans. Both teams' fan bases had high hopes for this year and 50 games in and both are throwing in the towel. Blake Griffin's injury and Gilbert Arenas' gun incident seemed to derail their respective teams and now the Clippers have lost fan favorite Marcus Camby and are literally selling out their players for money. The Wizards are getting rid of their fan favorites when it was Gilbert Arenas and his fat contract they'd most like to get rid of but simply can't.

The Clippers at least have a core and cap space to build on. The Wizards have a lone star PG in Arenas, Andray Blatch, JaVale McGee, and Nick Young plus around $40 million to spend. Compare that to the Clippers' Blake Griffin, Eric Gordon, Chris Kaman and Baron Davis plus around $33 million to spend. Neither are probably going to get Lebron, Wade, Bosh or Amare but Joe Johnson, Ray Allen, Manu, Mike Miller, Stephen Jackson, Jermaine O'Neal would undoubtedly find the Clippers more appealing than the Wizards (all other things equal like contracts, and if they are in it to win).

I'd also feel bad for the Cleveland Cavaliers' GM Danny Ferry who will lose sleep after after any loss this season and in the playoffs (if he didn't make so much more money than I do). This is his all-in. Win a championship or lose LeBron James.

So to the Wizards and Clippers fan base, ebay is a great place to sell this season's unwanted tickets and hopefully you sign the right players this summer. And to Fantasy Ballers, hope you held onto Mike Miller because he looks to be the best player on the Wizards right now.

Make way for the other players! (Camby for Steve Blake trade)

Kaboommmm!!!

(Photo from YouGotDunkedOn)
Marcus Camby's expiring contract was traded for Steve Blake's expiring contract, Travis Outlaw's expiring contract and $3 million dollars cash. Not a lot to read between the baselines here: The Clippers aren't making the playoffs and cashed in on $3 million bucks due to the expiring contracts canceling each other out. The Blazers needed a big man for a playoff push with Greg Oden and Joel Pryzbilla out with injuries and Juwan Howard as their only big man besides Lamarcus Aldridge.

So Portland filled a hole in their lineup and the Clippers got $3 million and two back up players and all three players are free agents in the summer.

So what else can we read into besides the obvious? This trade opens the door for some other players. Let's start with the Clippers:

The Clippers had a lot of big men. Kaman and Camby, Blake Griffin, and DeAndre Jordan (and Brian Skinner). Moving Camby out now means that DeAndre Jordan can get some solid minutes. Although he's a raw talent mainly getting his points off of putbacks and lobs, he does play good help defense (like Camby did) and can rebound well. Tonight's game in Portland (a loss) DeAndre put up 14/11 on 7-8 shooting, 6 offensive boards, and 3 blocks in 27 minutes. Take it with a grain of salt: as mentioned, the Blazers have a 6'9'' PF playing as a Center and the Blazers crushed the Clippers. We'll have to wait and see how DeAndre responds to more playing time but the in game experience will only benefit him.

And for the Blazers:

Spin move!

(Photo from Zimbio)
With Brandon Roy out due to injuries, Steve Blake and Andre Miller were starting together. If you remember to the beginning of the season, Andre Miller was coming off the bench in favor of Blake. Miller was getting 25-28 minutes a game and the Blazers started 2-3. Nate McMillan wised up and put him in the starting lineup which resulted in the Blazers going on a six game win streak. He was getting 30-35 minutes a game (this after a season in Philadelphia where he was averaging 36 minutes a game). When Roy went out with injury, Miller and Blake were getting big minutes as being the only playmaking point guards. But with Roy coming back from injury, Steve Blake would again take minutes away from Miller from the bench. Now that he's gone, Miller will get those 36-40 minutes a game where he can really run the offense efficiently.

The Blazers did lose a good 3 pt shooter and a good play maker in Blake but the lack of size in the middle was too overbearing and they would be exposed quite easily in the playoffs (if they had made it). If they do make it, Camby fills that void with some solid help defense, rebounding and outlet passing.

Mike Dunleavy - Bad Luck, Mate

(Photo from SportsReport)

News - Mike Dunleavy resigns as head coach of the Los Angeles Clippers, assistant coach Kim Hughes takes over

Coaches don’t win basketball games. Players win basketball games. It’s up to the coach to command respect and get all those players who win the basketball games on the same page. On a losing team, such as the Clippers, there are only so many times a coach can say “we need to get more rebounds” or “we need to play harder defense” or “we need to pass to Chris Kaman more.” At a certain point, a team just stops responding to a coach and the team forms a habit of losing. A habit of losing is a dangerous habit because then a team doesn’t have anything to live up to, is expected to lose, and players just can’t wait to leave the loser team to play somewhere else (Lamar Odom, Elton Brand, Corey Maggette, Andre Miller, Bobby Simmons, Vladamir Radmanovic all signed elsewhere - respectively Miami, Philadelphia, Golden State, Denver, Milwaukee and the Los Angeles Lakers ALL AFTER LOSING SEASONS).


And so Dunleavy had heard the “Fire Dunleavy” chants at home games and has been berated all over the internet. But at the same time, he hasn’t had all his pieces and he has said in the past, “let me lose with my whole team.” That’s the least Donald Sterling could do, right? Well, that’s what he did. Last year, Eric Gordon, Camby and Kaman were often injured. This year, Blake Griffin hasn’t played a single game and Eric Gordon started off hurt as well. They’ve already surpassed their win total from last season, but there’s still something missing. A new coach is the best move for the Clippers.


The Clippers need a fresh mindset or new schemes and someone who doesn’t hold the weight of all those Clipper losses on his shoulders. They need someone who will command respect and can really shape these young players into a team that can contend for the playoffs (at least). Sterling can’t let the young raw talents of Eric Gordon and Blake Griffin and the prime years of Chris Kaman and Baron Davis go to waste due to this habit of losing (barring any trades that may happen).

The Clippers this seasons has the most upside in recent memory (2006 playoff team was lead by an aged Sam Cassell, Cuttino Mobley and an almost aged Elton Brand).


But if this 2009-2010 team gets complacent with losing and then are expected to lose, the Clippers core (Kaman, Davis, Griffin, Gordon) will wait until their contract expires and sign somewhere else and the vicious cycle will continue: Clippers will win 15-25 games, get a lottery pick, not build a winning team and a winning ATTITUDE around him, and they won’t make the playoffs. Five years later, said lottery pick will leave and the Clippers will win 15-25 games, get a lottery pick…


It looks as if there won’t be a new coach hiring this season and the team will roll with Kim Hughes, one of Dunleavy’s assistants, for the rest of the season and start fresh next season with a hopefully, fully recovered Blake Griffin, and a healthy Eric Gordon, Baron Davis, Chris Kaman, solid role players like Al Thornton and Deandre Jordan, a possible top 10 draft pick in the 2010 draft, and a WHOLE LOT OF MONEY when free agents Marcus Camby ($7.6 million), Rasual Butler ($3.9 million), Mark Madsen ($2.8 million), Craig Smith and Ricky Davis ($2.5 million each), and Brian Skinner ($1.3 million) come off the books that can make the Clippers big players in next year's 2010 free agent class.


With this hopefully healthy team, the Clippers will hire a new head coach and the consensus seems to be that it will be one of Byron Scott, Avery Johnson, or Jeff Van Gundy. Take note that there is bad blood between Byron Scott and Baron Davis from their years together on the Hornets.

All three instill winning attitudes and command respect from their players and get everyone on the same page. They have the resumes of making the finals and consistently making the playoffs. Young players will benefit from being coached by them, veterans will respect and respond to them.


Based on my observations this season: Baron Davis takes plays off and takes bad shots, Marcus Camby hardly ever cuts to the basket without the ball for an easy layup and takes those long baseline jumpers or from two feet further than the free throw line. When the ball goes into the post with Chris Kaman, four other players stand around and no one cuts to the basket (See video, however, Rasual Butler has started cutting to the freethrow line to get an open jumper from Kaman).

Note these aren’t knocks on the players abilities, Baron Davis is a good player and a good shooter, Camby can knock down the long jumper, Kaman can score in the post. But the team could get off much easier shots if people moved without the basketball (something I KNOW Blake Griffin will do).If a coach can come in and get these guys motivated and expect wins, this team will win. You hear it every damn year, but next year is the year for the Clippers. They've got the pieces, they just need to get a coach who will put those pieces to play together on the court.

Until next year, Blake Griffin

How many days you out?
10, you?
Season.
Dang...

(Photo from msg.com)
If you're the Clippers, a Clipper fan, or have even a little bit of pity for the Clippers, you seriously have to be saying, "You gotta be kidding me." Blake Griffin, who was supposed to be playing his first game of the season next week, will instead undergo season ending knee surgery to repair his broken knee.

Of course this reminds you of Greg Oden. Of course you think of a Clipper curse. But here are some things Clipper fans can look at to fill that half empty glass to half full:

1. Blake Griffin broke his knee on a monster dunk after blocking a shot, getting the rebound and outletting to Sebastian Telfair for a nice fast break play.



Fun Fact - I was (un?)lucky enough to go to this game and this play had the crowd roaring.

He didn't hurt himself moving boxes in his house, or wrestling with an old teammate, or snowboarding and lying about it later (Artest, Glen Davis, Radmanovic). Blake Griffin works hard, lifts weights, and stays in shape. He's 6'10'' 251 lbs. To compare, Karl Malone was 6'9" 250 pounds, and he was a big PF. Blake Griffin, as big as he is, was still being considered to play Small Forward as well as Power Forward by Mike Dunleavy. I'm thinking of a reverse Lamar Odom (referring to weight) where he can out-run and cut through slower power forwards and post up smaller small forwards.

-Couple examples: Against the Miami Heat, he could post up Michael Beasley and Quentin Richardson. Against the Phoenix Suns, he could post up Grant Hill and can more than likely get around Amare's defense.

2. With said work out regime, if I'm betting on someone to take rehab seriously and work hard to come back, it's Blake Griffin.

3. The Clippers didn't have Blake Griffin last year and have still improved record wise so far this season. In 37 games last year, they were 8-29. Through 37 games this year, they are 17-20 with impressive wins over the Celtics and Lakers (the latter in which they really took advantage of their height, FINALLY). Although I stand by my post in that they were/are a good team but got riddled with injuries last year. Disclaimer - Telfair and Craig Smith have been nice additions to the team, despite their per game numbers. Rasual Butler has been an awesome addition, per game numbers and all.

But Blake Griffin is a game changer. He has a chance to be a star and much more than the supposed comparisons to Carlos Boozer. If I'm the Clippers, I'm not making any drastic moves as far as a Forward spot to replace Griffin. Cut your losses this year and if you make the playoffs great, if not, draft again and let Griffin come back and let this team finally start getting some winning seasons. Are we talking championships? Hell no. Are we talking about a new era starting at the grassroots? Yes. Clippers, please don't panic!

By the way, I have a lot to say about the Clippers as I am lucky enough to have season tickets. Buy low on those Blake Griffin rookie cards and jerseys my friends.

Recent quick hits of the NBA off season you might want to be aware of:

(Photo from lowposts)

Orlando Magic sign Jason Williams out of retirement for one year and $1.3 million. After trading away Rafer Alston, Courtney Lee and Tony Battie to the Nets for Vince Carter, the Magic were left with their PG position players at the start of last season with all star Jameer Nelson and Anthony Johnson. Between the baseline reason why the Magic felt they needed a playmaker in Jason Williams? Nelson and Johnson were the PGs before Rafer came. But when Nelson went down, Alston helped them get to the finals. Perhaps a playmaking guard off the bench is VITAL to the team's success when Nelson is on the bench. But if Nelson goes down and Williams leads them to the Finals... maybe Stan Van Gundy sticks with what gets him there this time around.

Quentin Richardson traded for the fourth time to the Miami Heat for Mark Blount from Twolves. Q Rich isn’t good. Isn’t going to be the sole reason Wade stays in Miami. With a PER rating of 11.6 and averages of 10.2/4.4/1.6 and 1.7 3ptm (4.6 3ptA), Q Rich isn't the Ying to Wade's Yang. Which is why you read between the baselines. Q Rich is in the last year of his contract and in the Free Agent class of 2010, the Heat will have $9.35 million off of their plate to get Wade some REAL help. Mark Blount is also in the last year of his contract but owed $7.9 million. So with Q Rich, they have more money to get rid of (?) for the FA class of 2010.

And what’s the deal with writers reporting that because two players are good friends, they will automatically be happy and have a good season? This happened two years ago when Kevin Garnett was almost a Laker and one of the selling points was that 3^rd team pg bench warmer Shammond Williams was his cousin. Just because they are cousins, that will be the deal maker? (By the way, KG didn't go to the Lakers even when his COUSIN WAS THERE, who got cut from the team that year, anyway).

Leon Powe signed with Cleveland Cavaliers. Of course he won’t be able to play until after the All Star break. But this is a very nice addition if and only if Powe is able to play at the level he played at during the 2008 Finals. Powe provides energy and skill and can create problems for other teams. But he also has a knee issue. He signed for 2 years for the minimum a 3 year player can get. His reasoning, trying to get his knee back in shape and sign for more money in 2 years. This is probably why the Celtics didn't re-sign him. They’ll probably put a lot of money toward retaining Rajon Rondo and Kendrick Perkins anyway and they'll need the roster space and can't afford (playing wise) to have a player take up roster space to sit on the bench. Cavaliers are thinking they need all the help they can get at a price they can afford for a playoff run to please King James.

The Clippers waived Mark Madsen. And if you read RBTB’s previous post regarding the Clippers, you’ll see that although Madsen is a “good locker room guy” (whatever that means), he was due 2.8 million that came off the books next year. If they could get him off the books sooner, even better for the Clippers. Good for Mark too because I doubt he'd get much playing time (even though he hasn't had decent playing time for almost his entire career) behind Griffin, Camby, Kaman and Deandre Jordan. But these are the fragile fragile big men of the Clippers we're talking about...

Amare Stoudemire is 50/50 about returning to the Suns next year. Can you blame him? The Suns aren’t good anymore. Steve Nash, Amare, Grant Hill and Jason Richardson is not greater than or equal to Steve Nash, Amare, Grant Hill, Boris Diaw, Raja Bell and one of Shawn Marion or Shaq. Amare hasn’t cemented anything about his legacy other than All Star appearances and a rookie of the year award. His future in Phoenix looks dim.

The Atlanta Hawks signed Joe Smith (his 10th team). Terms weren't disclosed but it would be safe to assume it's the league's veteran minimum like Jason Williams of the Magic ($1.3 million/1 year). Joe Smith is ol' reliable and averaged 6.6/4.6 last season for the Thunder and Cavaliers. He'll likely average the same in Atlanta behind Al Horford and Zaza Pachulia.

Those are the facts. And that's a couple ways to read between the [base]lines.

Clippers off season so far, on the way up?

(Photo from Washington Post)
The Clippers, who have been the butt of most NBA related jokes seem to be maturing in front office decision making with some trades and of course, their number one draft pick. Could this be a turnaround season for them?

FACTS:

• Clippers draft Blake Griffin
• Clippers traded Zach Randolph to the Memphis Grizzlies for ex-Clipper, Quentin Richardson.
• Clippers then trade Quentin Richardson to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Mark Madsen, Sebastian Telfair, and Craig Smith
• Clippers waive back up PG, Mike Taylor
• Clippers in talks with Iverson July 23, 2009
• It's now August 3rd, 2009 and still no Iverson signing with Yahoo Sports reporting that the Clippers' interest is fading.

Read between the baselines:

The Clippers had a good starting lineup last year. Baron Davis, Rookie Eric Gordon, Al Thornton, Zach Randolph, and Marcus Camby/Chris Kaman.

Injuries: Baron Davis missed 17 games, Marcus Camby missed 20 games, Chris Kaman missed 51 games, after Zach Randolph joined the team from the Tim Thomas/Cuttino Mobley trade 11 games into the season, he missed 34 games.

Compared to the top teams in the NBA, this isn't the greatest lineup, but it's serviceable and worth at least a little better than the 19 win season they put forward last year. But on those rare nights when they did have everyone healthy and able to play, their bench was nothing to brag about:

PG Mike Taylor (now waived), PF/C Brian Skinner (yikes), F Steve Novak (nice 3 pt shooter), F Mardy Collins (missed 32 games), SF Ricky Davis (missed 46 games) C Deandre Jordan (good pickup last year in 2nd round).

(Photo from Binary Basketball)
But they've made some moves. They got a lucky bounce and won the Blake Griffin sweepstakes and now have a star to build around and already some nice complimentary young players in SG Eric Gordon (16.1 pts, 2.8 ast, 1.7 3PTM), Al Thornton (16.8 pts, 5.2 reb), and Deandre Jordan who produced well enough numbers for only 15 minutes a game (for 53 games). Add to that Baron Davis for four more years, Camby and Kaman playing Center, and finally...


(Photo from Yahoo Sports)
A BENCH in PG Sebastian Telfair (9.8 pts, 4.6 ast) and F/C Craig Smith (10.1 pts, 3.8 reb, 56% FG).

Let's look at the salaries for these new additions:

Sebastian Telfair: Owed $2.5 million in 2009-2010 season, player option for $2.7 million in 2010-2011
Craig Smith: Owed $2.5 million in 2009-2010 season, FA in 2010
Mark Madsen: Owed $2.84 million in 2009-2010 season, FA in 2010

So the Clippers are off the hook for about 5 to 8 million dollars next year which is money they would probably use to help pay for Al Thornton's predicted long term contract (Team Option for 2010 and then will probably sign an extension). But that doesn't take away the fact that Telfair and Smith can PLAY. Madsen, although it's known he's a good locker room presence, you just don't trade for that kind of player who can't do much on the court. The $2.84 million off of the books for the Clippers will benefit them in 2010 and they will have a banger who can provide energy should they need it in "Mad Dog" Mark Madsen.

Other contract notes: Marcus Camby and Ricky Davis are FAs in 2010, good for another $10 million they can spend on another FA in the grand 2010 FA class.

Regarding Allen Iverson:
(Photo from National Basketblog Association)

Fact: The clippers were interested in Iverson and it was widely speculated that Donald Sterling, the Clippers' owner, wanted to sign him to sell tickets. It would have done so. Allen Iverson is fun to watch and an awesome player (and a future hall of famer), but it's just not what the Clippers need right now. Signing Iverson would stunt the growth of Eric Gordon who needs to play to become a better player, not watch Iverson try and take over games. The Clippers don't need Iverson. Dunleavy reportedly talked to Iverson about coming off the bench, a position he was insulted by in Detroit. Iverson wants to be a star, and Iverson as the star on the Clippers is not what the Clippers need.

The Clippers so far have not signed Iverson and if Yahoo Sports reporter Marc J. Spears is correct, their interest is fading. Donald Sterling has respectable team that if healthy should definitely win more than the 19 games they won last year. Blake Griffin and Baron Davis can sell tickets. This isn't the old Elton Brand led Clippers anymore. These Clippers can run up and down the court and slam the ball like an in game dunk contest.



The decision to go away from Iverson (if it holds up) shows the Clippers' maturity and patience for a team that for the first time in a long time, has a future. No, the Clippers will probably not make the playoffs this year. But if healthy, can win more than 19 games.

Probable starting line up/bench:

PG: Baron Davis/Sebastian Telfair
SG: Eric Gordon/Mardy Collins/Ricky Davis
SF: Al Thornton/Craig Smith/Steve Novak
PF: Blake Griffin/Chris Kaman/Craig Smith
C: Marcus Camby/Chris Kaman/Deandre Jordan

Probable Coach: The Clippers should probably give Dunleavy two season to work with this young core. They've been patient, drafted wisely and added some good pieces. They just may need to wait a little bit more for Dunleavy to really bring out the best in this team, which may come in the 2010 season. But the 2009/2010 season sure has gotten off to a good start for the butt of most if not all NBA jokes.

Those are the facts. And that's one way to read between the [base]lines.