Mike Dunleavy was on Tirico and Van Pelt this morning addressing the #1 pick. (Hat Tip: Tas Melas/Sports Radio Interviews):
Dunleavy doesn’t rule out playing Griffin as “a big 3.” I’m still very skeptical you can play him there, given that he has no shooting range. Quickness is essential to playing the small forward position — and Griffin has that — but the ability to leverage that quickness with the capacity to hit from beyond 12 feet is also crucial. I have no doubt that Griffin will expand his range, but right now he’s exclusively an inside threat.
42 Responses
I like and have been pushing for the big 3 idea, at least for a few stretches in a game:
1) gets Blake more PT
2) allows for Blake and ZBo to coexist
3) gives the Clips a very big lineup at 3 – 5 positions
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Posted on May 26th, 2009 at 11:35 am
He says Kaman was a good pick. I think Dunleavy really believes he’s done a great job with the Clippers.
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Stian Reply:
May 26th, 2009 at 1:38 pm
Kaman WAS a good pick. The problem is that Kaman has not progressed as a player, keeps getting injured every year (partly because he doesn’t work on his physical strength), has a lousy work ethic, and acquired a defeatist attitude, i.e. “this is the Clippers – we’re not supposed to be any good. So what do I care?” – That’s actually been one of the Clippers’ biggest faults – they’ve drafted talented players but never investigated their work ethic. A guy like Wilcox is way too gifted to be as completely mediocre as he is. But he is where he is because he has always been lazy. Even Brand called him out on it at the time. Kaman is the same way – lazy and a bad attitude to boot. That’s why having a guy like Eric Gordon is so refreshing. And Blake Griffin is from the same cloth. These are the type of guys that become franchise cornerstones.
Kaman needs to go – end of story. It’ll be good for him to get a clean slate and start fresh elsewhere, and we move on and transition to the Blake Griffin/DeAndre Jordan front court era with Marcus Camby serving as mentor. And we pick up either a starting SF or great backup PG/combo guard in the Kaman trade.
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Jax Reply:
May 26th, 2009 at 5:47 pm
Seems to me that with all those negatives only Dunleavy (and, apaprently, Stian) can assert that Kaman was a good pick.
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MC Reply:
May 26th, 2009 at 7:14 pm
Kaman’s great when he’s motivated and healthy… which has been a rare sight… He was a good pick, but Stian made some good points about what’s inhibiting Kaman.
Anyways, what standout players did we look over to get Kaman?
Kirk Hinrich, TJ Ford, David West, Boris Diaw, Leandro Barbosa, Josh Howard, and Mo Williams.
I’d say of all those players, Howard, West, and Williams are way ahead of Kaman, but they were pretty late draft picks, so it’s unfair to judge Kaman as a bad pick in comparison to these guys.
The rest of the players on that list, I’d argue, have had careers that are about on par with or slightly less stellar than Kaman’s. Hinrich is just as inconsistent as Kaman. TJ Ford would be amazing if it weren’t for injuries, Diaw’s wildly inconsistent also, and Barbosa’s had an off year. I mean, we’ve talked about this over and over. He is what he is. Top 5 center when healthy and motivated. Pretty terrible otherwise.
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FireDunleavy .com Reply:
May 27th, 2009 at 10:34 am
It wasn’t a very bad pick, but it for sure wasn’t a good pick.
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Posted on May 26th, 2009 at 12:39 pm
Defensively I think Blake could probably stay with most 3’s. Offensively though, spacing is paramount and having three post players with minimal range on the court at the same time just doesn’t work. K.A. has a great article about why Orlando’s offense is so effective. Ideally, this is the type of offense you’d like to run. http://myespn.go.com/blogs/truehoop/0-40-129/When-Orlando-Has-it-Going.html
I guess Dunleavy could try and run a Boston College type flex offense where the majority of the screening and cutting happens in the key. Zach Randolph would probably struggle to get on board with the whole screening and cutting thing though. Baron Davis gave his best Tyrese Rice impression last year, so we know he’s up to the task. Is Al Skinner available for hire? We might be on to something here.
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Posted on May 26th, 2009 at 1:49 pm
This kid is NOT a 3. Put him in as starting 4 and let Al continue to play the 3.
Z-Bo should only get 20-25 minutes a game until he shows he’s ready to be a contributing member of the team. Starters should be the guys who act the part. Zach should be proving to Dunleavy that he deserves the starters job based off his work ethic and play. no more shitty 3 pointers. no more trying to crossover your defender at the half-court line.
It’s an easy fix. Zach…grow the fuck up or lose your minutes.
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Andy Reply:
May 26th, 2009 at 2:44 pm
Regarding ZBo, there aren’t many 20-10 type guys in the L. Fact is, Zach’s got a great offensive game and deserves to be a starter until the rookie proves his worth. Unless they trade him away, I don’t see how you can give Zach less than 30 min/game at the 4 spot.
As for 3 pointers: Zach only averaged 1.9 threes with the Clips and converted 34% of them…that’s way better than Baron’s 5 attempts and only 30%! Also, it’s always a good thing to take a big man’s defender out to the perimeter with the threat of hitting a three ala Jamison, Okur and Sheed.
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Posted on May 26th, 2009 at 2:25 pm
I wish he sounded more enamored around Griffin. I know the league prob told the Clips to shut up to create some suspense, but it worries me now. Sigh.
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Q.D. Reply:
May 26th, 2009 at 5:22 pm
I don’t know, it sounded more glowing when he spoke about griffin. As for Rubio, he sounded like he thinks Rubio has talent but it wasn’t eye popping. Besides, Most coaches sound monotone.
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Posted on May 26th, 2009 at 4:55 pm
Since it’s obvious that Coach D. is not going anywhere for at least 2 years. Why not root for the guy?
Remember when everyone thought Doc Rivers was the worst coach in the NBA? Coach Mike Brown was almost fired last year before Lebron became All-World this year.
I propose we get off Dunleavy’s back and use that energy to root for this to work. Think about it…. He’s a hard-working and tough competitor. Yes, he has made several misguided decisions but he’s always been busting his ass since he got here. Yes, he’s a little bit of a whiner and not the best X’s and O’s coach… but that cant be that bad because he took us to Game 6 in 2006.
I just think it would be cool if he could get us to all shut up by finally winning something. It would make me feel good more so than if he failed miserably and somehow got fired. Plus the consequence of that would be that the Clippers would be playing well.
I think his shining moment came when the EB drama was unfolding and he went to war for the Clippers. He got on the radio and TV and ripped Brand for being a backstabber. Someone actually fought for the Clippers franchise.
Coach of the Year? Not out of the question. The players just have to play good, damnit. Avery Johnson won the award and was canned 2 years later. Shit, Elgin Baylor won Executive of the Year award!!!! (We all know that the award should have gone to Dunleavy for convincing Cassell that the Clippers would magically turn into legitimate playoff contenders).
But wouldnt it be nice for a Brooklyn guy who is probably in over his head to prove all the doubters wrong? If it’s good enough for a puff piece during the NBA Playoffs 45 minute half-time show, it’s good enough for me.
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MC Reply:
May 26th, 2009 at 6:58 pm
There’s always going to be haters. Many people will argue it was FElton and Sam Cassell that took us to the playoffs, and not MDSr. And even if they admit MDSr took us to the playoffs, they will argue that his terrible micromanaging skills cost us the series against Phoenix since he put Daniel Ewing on Raja Bell.
I’m personally neutral to Dunleavy. The injuries have been pretty terrible these past few years, but great teams play through injuries.
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brad Reply:
May 26th, 2009 at 7:11 pm
I agree!! wholeheartedly. Its absurd how so many people either think that they can do a better job themselves or he could be replaced by someone more talented at the drop of a dime. I think Dunleavy would admit that he has made some mistakes but so what, we werent gonna win a championship anyway. Now that we are starting to acquire some talented/character players so give it a chance.
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Ian Reply:
May 26th, 2009 at 11:21 pm
I actually think MDS is a decent to good coach, but EXTREMELY inflexible. He only wins when he has HIS guys — intelligent half-court players that care about defense. This team is most certainly NOT comprised of MDS guys. In fact, Camby and Gordon are really the only 2 that even come close to qualifying and they both have major chinks in their armor on D. He acquired ZBO because he does the kind of things that Dunleavy likes of his big men, but he absolutely doesn’t care about D…. negating any positives he bring to the table. The thing i like least about Dunleavy as a coach is that he’s incapable of making the best of a situation. Playing Livingston off of the ball, not letting Baron run, (the slightly more excusable) playing Camby at the 4, etc. If a guy doesn’t fit perfectly in his system MDS works his hardest to negate all of the good things that that guy brings to the table. He doesn’t have MDS guys on this team so he just can’t win with this group! Sorry….
As for the man’s ability as a GM… he’s is singularly awful when it comes to evaluating both talent and chemistry. He’s myopic, sabotages himself, and views guys in terms of how they relate to his system (in ideal terms) rather than their actual talent. He needs to be relieved of his GM duties immediately.
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Chris. Reply:
May 27th, 2009 at 5:48 am
“This team is most certainly NOT comprised of MDS guys.”
uh, sorry Ian, you must be a new fan, because they are all Dunleavy guys. He’s a terrible game time coach. He has no ability to get his players motivated, he is the worst half-time coach and lacks the ability to change his game plan when it isn’t working. Not sure where all this love for Dunleavy is coming from, but he has ruined teams in the past and he has ruined the Clippers right now. Dunleavy has got to go, he’s a moron.
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Brad Reply:
May 27th, 2009 at 6:58 am
I agree with your assesment that his adaptive qualities are lacking and maybe he should have turned to a faster pace of basketball. What I don’t get though is why he would pick up such players like Baron and Zach if they dont fit “the mold”. Maybe he was just trying to stay afloat and buy some time after brand bolted, I dont know. When Ben Howland came to ucla he was the same way, he had some real talent, (Ariza, farmar, and afflalo)and I believe they only won 14 games(Not completely sure) But westwood was getting all over howland trying to convince him to run and press. Howland stuck to his guns and now they are challenging for titles with maybe the exception of last season. Thats why Im a dissapointed in dunleavy for maybe folding into the pressure of winning now and sacrificing his vision of a solid defensive, efficient half court team. But I know the man can coach, I have never felt otherwise.
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Chris. Reply:
May 27th, 2009 at 9:41 am
I agree that he think he tried to “win now” and replace Brand with Randolph which was the biggest mistake. I like Randolph’s scoring, but his lack of D isn’t special. Baron was brought over to play with Brand, but Brand is not a runner, he’s a halfcourt guy and Baron is all run and gun. Those two styles don’t mix all that well, trying to slow down a guy and taking away his best attribute (i.e. Baron). I don’t think Dunleavy can change his own coaching style and sadly look at the mess he put us in. Who knows, Blake could be the 2nd coming and Dunleavy could be admired once again, but he burned a lot of bridges by thinking too much and not thinking properly. He should be a goner but was smart to get a new contract even when his old one wasn’t about to be up.
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Chris. Reply:
May 27th, 2009 at 9:42 am
one more thing, why tell the fans that the team will be more uptempo and run more next year and this past year when that never happened? why blame it all on injuries and never take any blame himself? why constantly wear ugly suits? why?
Posted on May 26th, 2009 at 5:41 pm
Dunleavy peaked 3 years ago. Time to move on
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Posted on May 26th, 2009 at 7:56 pm
i’d even rather take alvin gentry back; too bad he’s happy and locked up in phoenix now.
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Q.D. Reply:
May 27th, 2009 at 7:53 am
I rather be shot than have gentry on the bench. He’s a terrible coach
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Posted on May 26th, 2009 at 8:13 pm
Ranch dressing on a burger ? nasty
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Posted on May 26th, 2009 at 10:31 pm
Van Gundy is amazing, h is really smart and hilarious and he can get thrown around like a rag doll when theres a fight at center court. I dont see dunleavy biting Ewings ankles for his guys….
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Posted on May 26th, 2009 at 11:12 pm
Why are people defending Dunleavy? Look at his record. It’s simple, in the History of the League there has only been one coach who was worse than Dunleavy. I don’t really know how many coaches there’s been. I’d have to look that up. But whatever number it is – Dunleavy Is The Second Worst Coach Ever.
Really, enough said.
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Stian Reply:
May 27th, 2009 at 4:41 am
How is Dunleavy the second worst coach EVER when he is the 4th winningest Clipper coach of them all?
1) Larry Brown : 117 games / .547%
2) Mike Schuler: 127 games / .409%
3) Alvin Gentry: 222 games / .401%
4) Mike Dunleavy: 492 games / .394%
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Los_Angeles_Clippers_head_coaches
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eastie Rich Reply:
May 27th, 2009 at 8:10 am
I’d have to look up a previous post, and one was also posted on Clips Nation. But what I did was this, I checked Dunleavys six season record against coaches that coached at least six years for one team. I was curious to find out how many coaches had performed so badly and managed to keep their jobs after a six year period.
As I recall, only Bill Fitch had a worse record, but he was the first coach on an expansion team and increased the win totals every year – so I didn’t count his record because it was actually pretty good. So that would make Dunleavy the number one loser for a six year period.
As I recall, for the two year period, in the History of the League, only one coach has performed worse (record wise), and that’s Wes Unseld with the Washington Bullets.
I don’t know what was wrong with poor Wes’s team, but he actually finished below Dunleavy. No one else did.
I don’t know how to bring up old posts here, but one of my old posts breaks it all down.
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FireDunleavy .com Reply:
May 27th, 2009 at 11:27 am
People are defending Dunleavy because:
-Ned Flanderism
-Clipper fans like to do the opposite of popular opinion or logic. That’s why they’re not Laker fans.
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Brad Reply:
May 27th, 2009 at 7:11 pm
come to think of it, you might be right because I never liked dunleavy at all when he coached other teams but I always thought he was a decent coach. I started liking him more and more because of how he dealt with the media and how he responded to brand bolting. The reason why I dont like the lakers is because of their fairweather/bandwagoning fans.
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Posted on May 27th, 2009 at 12:40 am
trading away $15 million is expiring contracts in thomas and mobley for randolph should be enough for any GM to get fired…..
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Chris. Reply:
May 27th, 2009 at 9:43 am
agreed!
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Gordon for President Reply:
May 27th, 2009 at 12:17 pm
New York was openly shopping Randolph, there is no way he’d sit there till his contract expired three years later. If Dunleavy didn’t bite, someone else would have. If we didn’t make that move, where would we be without Randolph? If we tanked like we did, and fell to 4 like SAC, I’d much rather it be with a 20-10 guy, even without D, then have Tim Thomas continue to be the starting 4. People forget just how good Z-Bo is on offense, dude has AMAZING hands. Off the court antics aside, he hasn’t really had any major troubles since Portland.
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bootstrenf Reply:
May 27th, 2009 at 2:06 pm
and exactly what place did we finish in???
tied for second worst……
so because of zbo’s awesome talents, we were the second worst team in
nba, rather than dead last…..
awesome!!! he sure did make a huge difference!!!
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Stian Reply:
May 27th, 2009 at 6:00 pm
Clippers played ~.500 ball w/ Z-Bo before he went for 6 weeks. Our winning %is way worse without him. Z-Bo made a notable positive difference.
Ian Reply:
May 27th, 2009 at 6:56 pm
No doubt we were better w/ Zbo, but the trade off was unacceptable. I mean, i hated watching Cambyland play the 4 every night (Marcus very visibly hated it as well) but that doesn’t mean you take on a bad contract in a lost season…
Posted on May 27th, 2009 at 7:45 am
You know that Dunleavy is just happy to be relevant again. When was the last time people asked him to come on the air for interviews?
Great post today about if the NBA had an All NBA Junior Team:
http://therookiecontract.com/
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Posted on May 27th, 2009 at 9:57 am
For me, it’s not even about the debate of what’s MDsr’s fault or not. It’s just time for a change. Last few years have been awful. Leave him upstairs if need be, but let’s get a fresh voice on the floor and turn this s*%t around!
Especialy now that we’ve been gifted the Griff.
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Posted on May 29th, 2009 at 2:37 am
DUMBleavy deserves to be fired because of the way he stabbed Elgin Baylor in the back! The Clippers have so many injuries BECAUSE they know they’re not going anywhere under Dumby, so all of those little aches and pains hurt a little bit more. MD: We really need you out there, Baron. BD: Sorry, but I’d just be hurting the team more if I tried to play in this state. C’mon! The players want him gone, so they can try to see a future in this thing, but El Cheapo obviously isn’t going to eat what’s left on the contract. So we suffer on.
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Posted on May 29th, 2009 at 6:30 pm
I cancelled my season tickets, but I told my rep that I’d give him one-thousand dollars if he could convince Sterling to sell the team. He couldn’t pull it off. Too bad.
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eastie Rich Reply:
May 30th, 2009 at 9:52 pm
That’s funny. Last year I told my rep. I’d coach the team for 10k per win, then Sterling could afford to let Dunleav go – and we would have won at least another 10 games.
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Posted on May 30th, 2009 at 4:21 pm
Blake Griffin at the three? I think mentioning that as a possibility says a lot about how immovable Randolph’s contract is and how insane paying a guy 30 million to come off the bench for two years would be. Why not just make Blake your starting point guard- he’s a pretty good ball handler for a big. Makes as much sense as extended minutes at the three. Or maybe, you could trade the top pick for Rubio, another player or two who helps you now (Gay?Gasol?Green? Watson?)and a couple more first round picks. Both Memphis and OKC are likely to offer that much to move up to the top spot. Doesn’t that make a lot more sense than keeping a pick you have to play wildly out of position in order to get him sufficient minutes?
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Posted on May 30th, 2009 at 7:59 pm
Was up all my Clipper Fans glad I finally found a blog that talk about my favorite NBA team ( LETS GO CLIPPERS FOR LIFE )
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Posted on June 2nd, 2009 at 4:27 pm
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