The Clippers and 2010

24 Dec 2008

2010 Free Agency, Zach Randolph

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I have a post up at TrueHoop that lays out what I believe is a fair characterization of the debate over the Randolph acquisition:

When considering ‘desirability of location,’ we might also want to look at the organization itself. When the Clippers traded Cuttino Mobley and Tim Thomas (both of whose contracts expire in 2010) for Zach Randolph (whose contract expires in 2011), a debate ensued in Clipper Naçión. Some felt that the Clippers, as a traditionally dysfunctional franchise, would never attract a top-tier free agent in 2010. That being the case, wasn’t it smarter for the Clips to give up the fantasy, and instead acquire one of the league’s only 20-10 guys for a couple of spare parts?

Others felt that the Clippers forfeited a golden opportunity to get themselves in prime position for 2010. The Clips might not attract LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, or even Amare Stoudemire, but there’s only so much cash to go around. Los Angeles is still Los Angeles, and that might just be enough to entice a Joe Johnson when the music stops and everyone in the robust free agent class is trying to find a chair.

ACD

Kevin

I just cant see the Clippers ever being relevant for an extended period of time. Even if they score a Lebron type in the draft (once in a lifetime), i am confident that things would get screwed up somehow. It’s not that Dunleavy isnt trying. It’s amazing that shit just doesnt work no matter what.

I’m starting to believe that there is no way to reverse course and make this team a perennial contender for anything. Everything always looks good on paper, and then the team shows up to play and it’s a disaster.

There are always excuses. This guy got hurt, that guy is not playing up to his potential…blah blah blah…

Where is the hope? Does this happen to other teams? Not really. Here are just a few points that keep me unfaithful from the last 8 years or so.

a) Michael Olowakandi
b) Letting Odom walk for nothing
c) Picking Wicox over Amare
d) Picking Livingston
e) Not trading Livinston for Iverson
f) Livingston injury
g) Brand injury
h) Raja Bell’s 3
i) Donald Sterling
j) Elgin Baylor
k) Yaroslav Koralev
l) Marco Jaric
m) Brad J
n) Getting the 6th pick in the 2003 draft
o) Andre Miller
p) Wang Zhi Zhi
q) Kobe’s cocktease
r) Baron’s limitations
s) Q Ross’ offense
t) Tyrone Nesby
u) Any game vs Jazz or Spurs
v) Stoudemire’s dunk over Olowakandi
w) Brand’s All Star snubs
x) Devin Harris
y) 1 playoff appearance
z) Alvin Gentry
- http://Interesting Jax
  
  There must be two ACDs posting on this board. This sounds more like tw.
  - JM
    
    Really? Did he he result to personal attacks and shrill hyperbole? Because the tw I’ve read was more like that.
    
    ACD, I tend to agree with your posts, and this time is no different. It seems futility just clouds this team. It transcends someone like Dunleavy or Baylor. The team can be good on paper, but by season’s end, all we’re usually left with is excuses.
    
    Hope? Well, Sterling is spending money on the team. This should be a given, but its novelty hasn’t worn off after a mere six years. And Gordon doesn’t look like a total bust. There seems to be a market for Kaman’s services in the trade market. And neither Brand or Maggette are exactlly thriving in their new settings.
    
    Lastly, LOL @ P and V.
    - http://Interesting Jax
      
      Really? I would disagree. He didn’t personally attack anyone IMO. He just simply set forth his opinions, which in many cases were strong opinions. Don’t mistake opinion for attack.
    - http://Interesting Jax
      
      Disagree on your opinion regarding tw’s posts. He had strong opinions, but I don’t recall personal attacks from him. Others, yes.
    - http://Interesting Jax
      
      Um, no. Why would “futility,” whatever that is, transcend anything? All many of us have been saying is the sentiment expressed in my post below.
      - http://Interesting Jax
        
        Sorry about the multiple posts. I must have accidentally pressed the submit button or something.
- Lifting Weight
  
  ACD…you did not mention DARIUS MILES trade which ended one of the most exciting seasons in LA Clippers history.
- Cliptakular
  
  You can’t really blam anyone on drafting… A lot of people passed on Brandon Roy too. A lot of people passed on Amare as well because of his off the court issues.
  
  One thing is certain though, the draft is always a gamble.
http://Interesting Jax

It’s very simple. The team needs a management structure and a competent management team. MDSr should not be the GM of this team. That requires commitment from Sterling. He’s done some good things, but it is very difficult to get him to do something which would increase the chances of winning but that would cost him profits. There are some things already in place, such as the location, the venue, and the practice facility. But none of that will matter until the team gets good management.

Competent management would address the incompetent coaching situation. First things first.
neiljphx

I don’t mind MDsr’s GM moves. After the Brand thing, I’m happy to have come up with BD, EJ, Camby/Kaman, Al T and Zach. The weak bench is a problem that can be addressed going foward. The bigger issue for me is the inability of MDsr as coach to get this crew to produce results. I don’t know if it’s Baron just sucking right now despite anything MDsr tries or if it’s MDsr sucking by not working out the best gameplan/moves for the guys he has to work with. But either way, the result is that Baron is not able to ‘quaterback’ this team to wins as we need him to. I’d be real pleased to see MDsr relegated to GM and bring in a coach that can work better to bring out Baron’s best. Cause he isn’t going anywhere so we better learn to try to make it work with him.
E Jordan, Avery, S Mitchell, Theus…. one of those guys would probably be willing to take a pay cut from where they were at to get back to work. And Come on Sterling. Do the right thing!
Danny Manning’s Knee

I think a complete logo/uniform change could be a good first step. Maybe if they don’t LOOK like the Clippers, they won’t play/coach/draft/suffer a career-ending injury like the Clippers are prone to do?
- Q.D.
  
  I want a new owner
kirbs

If you want a new logo/uniform, then go support another team
http://firedunleavy.com FireDunleavy.com

Sunday’s excuse will be the team had to much time off and wasn’t focused. Basically, they’ll all be partying over the break. What happened to 50 wins ACD?
http://www.sytable.com Stick

Yes but we’re not the Hawks, or the knicks, or even the nets. Everyone hates the clippers. we’re notoriously the worst team in all of sports. When you mention losers you dont think about the KC royals you think about the clips. That being said there was a time when the Rangers sucked and the Islanders were the best. But the only way that turnaround happened is when a team owner did what he had to do to make his team good. which is SPEND THE MONEY. Sterling is the worst owner this side of Al Davis, and im just afraid Zach and Baron are just the new duo of dissapointed stars on the clippers.

Bottom line is no stars want to subject themselves to no popularity and a losing franchise. Our only hope is to draft early and get a real star. But i dont even know if we can do that effectivley. Want to read a real tear-jerker? check out the clipper number one draft picks over the last 20 years, the guys we passed on and the flashes in the pans will chap your hide. (Olawakandi? Korolev? Livingston?) we dont DESERVE to win.
- http://hitfix.com jgroove
  
  No bench. No wins. The starting five is intriguing. Would be nice if they had ONE player to help them off the bench.
  - Sideshow
    
    Let Al Thornton come off the bench. Start Mardy Collins at point and Baron at SG.
Stian

Clippers ain’t gonna get diddly squat on the FA market until they’ve put in at least 3 consecutive winning seasons and playoffs.

No FA of note in his right mind would ever sign with this team as is. L.A. is nice but it doesn’t make up for playing on the Clippers if you want more than simply collect a paycheck.

Zach Randolph is 10 times better than any player the Clippers could’ve hoped to attract in the summer of 2010. Christmas came early for the Clippers when Santa delivered Z-Bo.

Let’s be grateful for that.

Now if we could only turn Baron from a rotten pumpkin into the sort of basketball royalty is name suggests he is we just might become that Cinderella team we’ve waiting for forever and a day to happen.

Merry Christmas, ClipperBlog-gers.
Dj

I don’t think you realize the amount of players that are going to hit the market in 2010.

Joe Johnson
Manu Ginobili
Stephen Jackson
Rip Hamilton
Josh Howard
Tyson Chandler
Michael Redd
T-Mac

Of course that isn’t including Bosh, Wade, Lebron, Dirk, and Amare.

There are definitely some guys on that first list I would much rather have than Zach Randolph. Even if we have no shot at a guy like Amare, wouldn’t have been nice to at least been in the running for him? How many teams are going to be under cap in 2010. 8 or 9 maybe? If that? I’ll take my chances that some guys would rather play in L.A. than New Jersey.

The point is it would have been nice to at least be a player, to see what maybe we could have found. Maybe Amare wants to be “the guy” and so he comes to L.A.? Maybe Dirk isn’t getting a max offer from anyone else so he signs with us?

Having the chance would have been nice, that’s all I’m saying.
Sideshow

Bucks stop at DTS’s desk. For years he ignored NBA. Treated Clippers as a sideshow. He doesn’t have true passion for the game. For him it’s just an investment.

Rest of the NBA resist this kind of approach. That’s why they ignore Clippers.

Why can’t DTS go out of the way & approach true Basketball minds and get help? He kept Baylor for years even if he didn’t produce anything.

DTS must be a great employer. He is not into firing people even if they are born losers.
Dan S.

Randolph is outplaying everyone on that first list right now except possibly Joe Johnson. He also has more good years left than most if not all of them. T-Mac will be even more worthless in 2010 than he is now.
- Dj
  
  A shot at Amare or Dirk would have been nice.
  
  Zach Randolph is still young, but he’s got a lot more miles on him than Joe Johnson, Josh Howard, Amare, or Dirk. We would have had enough cap to offer someon a max contract, while Howard isn’t worth it the others certainly are. JJ, Amare or Dirk make us an immediate NBA finals contender. Randolph does not.
Sideshow

Build this team around Randolph & Eric Gordon. Keep Camby,Collins, DeAndre, & Taylor.

Trade Baron, Kaman, and Ricky.
Marbury Effect

How about not using BARON DAVIS? Tell him not to come to the practice nor be at STAPLES during game time?

Eliminate him ASAP. We don’t need his ASSIST to tank this season.
Aaron

If nothing changes between now and 2010, the Clippers are in line to have about $9-$11 million of cap space. Sure, that wouldn’t attract LeBron, D-Wade, and Amare, but they aren’t coming to Clipperland anyway. This way, they’ll have enough cap space to attract a more realistic FA, and I am of the opinion that there will be plenty of good players that won’t mind a seat at the Clippers’ table as the 2010 offseason progresses. Joe Johnson, arguably one of the most underrated stars in that class, would be a major coup at that price, so maybe a sharpshooter like Michael Redd could come to the Clips instead.

Maybe I’m just a shamelessly deluded, “glass half full” Clipper fan, but I think the Clippers will manage to make their own little splash in the 2010 FA market.
http://hitfix.com jgroove

All these players are worth it?

Joe Johnson
*Top tier. Either the Knicks, Brooklyn Nets or ATL will get him
Manu Ginobili
*Old. Why would anyone sign him to a big deal two years from now?
Stephen Jackson
*Only at a discount.
Rip Hamilton
*Has to be in the right system. Best year probably behind him.
Josh Howard
*Maybe, if he can turn it around.
Tyson Chandler
*Unless he’s got someone like Paul around him, he’s not a premier player.
Michael Redd
*He’ll want too much money for the amount of years left on his legs.
T-Mac
*Seriously? For 40 games a season?

I’m not seeing how any of these guys would either (A) help us or (B) even sign with us.
- Dj
  
  You’re crazy if you don’t think a Josh Howard or a Joe Johnson or even a Stephen Jackson would help us. I could very easily see any of those guys coming to L.A.
  
  I agree with not wanting T-Mac, but if the salaries are even I’d take JJ, Howard, Captain Jack, Rip and Manu all before Randolph.
  
  I personally haven’t given up on Baron or Kaman yet, and think that a lineup of Baron, Gordon, *Howard, JJ, Jack*, Thornton and Kaman with a new coach who let Baron freewheel and push the ball would be a dangerous playoff team. It’s an admitted pipe dream though.
Invest In-house

Invest In house.

Make Randolph & Gordon leaders of this club. Add additional players according to their needs. If players don’t play together, this club will never achieve anything.

Just don’t sign anyone who play to boost stats and sign somewhere else.
- Dj
  
  A calling for Zach Randolph to be a leader of our club? What has the world come to?
andrewexd

You guys forget that they can sign with their own teams… I promise that the list of 2010 free agents will be cut in half when extensions can be signed.
- Dj
  
  Valid point. The list won’t look nearly as good once some of these guys sign.
Cliptakular

Start the change from the top, starting with Sterling. That’s the only way the Clippers image could be changed.
Jambir

honestly the only way we get a fairly good player would be to overpay to the point others wouldnt consider matching… you can imagine how clip nation would respond-well we actually just did that and i dont think i need to start a poll to find out how the vast majority feel about Baron. Getting Z-BO was a great move…not all deals can be as great as the Camby deal
Dj

Zach Randolph will betray all of you believers. It’s only a matter of time. He looks good now, but just wait til those losses keep piling up and he comes in next season 40 pounds overweight.

I hope I’m wrong. But I’d surely bet against Randolph before I bet on him.
ACD

Thanks for all the feedback fellas… 50 wins looked good on paper. I was an eternal optimist when it came to the Clippers. I think i’ve finally turned to the Dark Side. All this yapping wont help a thing. The Clippers are a joke.

Going back to dunleavy.. I really dont think you could have expected a better face for this organization. He gave us some balls. He put it together and went out and won (one year). He defended the Clippers bad legacy. He went to war for the Clippers when EB pulled his backstab. He did everything he could possibly do to get Kobe here. Whatever– ya it hasnt worked out. I’m upset about that. At this point i dont think he can coach this particular team to success. But i still like having him on my side. Tough firey dudes that bust their asses for your organization are hard to find.

Scarface: “you get a guy like that, he’ll break his back for you”

They should keep him in the GM role where he belongs.
.
.
Best thing to come out of this post is the suggestion of NEW UNIFORMS! I love the current ones (less the ugly blue alternates).

The team needs a new identity. Oh, and Somebody get Clipper Darryl a girlfriend.
- Aaron
  
  Haha, Clipper Darryl’s girlfriend would always come second to the Clips.
waughtang

let’s be honest here… this guy’s right. there was no way the clippers were going to attract any talent better than zbo in 2010… all moaning aside… can we be realistic about who our team is and how they’re perceived in the league. zbo works… now lets try to get a wing guy. i didnt think 2010 factored in at all. there’s no way we’d ever be in a lebron or wade race… forget about it.
EricGordonsAnkleBrace

I wonder how Randolphs knee is after that Voskhuling he got early this week. Anyone hear if he’s playing tomorrow?
2010 with Z-Bo

Knicks traded Randolph to lure LeBron to NY. Fine. We should build our team around Z-Bo/Gordon and make a decent run.

Better than Knicks record would do just fine.
2010 with Z-Bo

Baron Davis running this team is like watching a horror movie. Atleast horror movies can be fun watching.

2 Andre Millers. First came on MD’s debut season. Maybe this one for his send-off?
http://myspace.com/axockinrecords Axockin

c’mon guys, this site has turned into a wynner fest. We got a legitimate team that needs another low post present which we also have in Kaman. YES, we do need another solid wing player maybe a qross type(should have kept) but with a little more offensive attitude. That is our only weakness right now but as for a couple of years from now we are probably going to need another reliable big that can contribute defense because of camby’s age. I don’t think camby is going anywhere but he is getting old.
Dj

Who is even to say that Randolph will want to stay with us after 2011? Are you guys prepared to have Randolph for close to max if not max money? I doubt he’ll take a serious paycut off his current contract to remain a Clipper.

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