There is a swirl of themes surrounding the Clippers right now, many of which come into focus in a big win over a very good team Monday night, albeit the Clips almost blow the game in spectacular fashion over the final couple of minutes.
It’s clear that the Clippers aren’t a horrible team. If this core group remains healthy though the final quarter of the season, they won’t embarrass themselves on a regular basis, and they’ll probably pick up some solid wins at home (As it is, the Clippers have won 12 of their past 16 games on their home floor). They still have a couple of wings who can stretch the floor, a center who — when he makes good decisions — can put a lot of pressure on the opponent’s interior defense, and a point guard who — when he’s not preoccupied with trying to shoot his team to success — does a good job of finding those scorers. They also now have a power forward with a versatile enough game to keep the defense off-balance. None of these five guys is a complete player at his position and the team defense won’t be top-shelf, but there’s a cohesive unit out there that can score — the Clippers have racked up an offensive rating of 107.7 or greater in four of their past five games. Add to that starting five one of the better backup point guards in the league, a couple of intriguing talents, and an efficient, othersized power forward in Craig Smith (who’s dinged up right now). That’s a solid nine-man rotation — one that can tilt big or small, depending on need.
With Gooden in place, we’re seeing a half court offense that features rotating pick and rolls on both sides of the floor. This requires more of some players than they have been accustomed to contributing, especially Eric Gordon. Because he’s the ball man on more ball screens, Gordon is being asked to do more as a playmaker. He’s struggled with his handle this season, but tonight he looks a lot better, particularly in the second half.
My favorite offensive possession of the game comes at about the 4:25 mark of the fourth quarter. The Clippers demonstrate both patience and execution. It’s the kind of set that good offensive teams run on a regular basis:
Gooden and Chris Kaman offer Baron Davis an early stagger screen along the arc. Baron moves from right to left, but Deron Williams fights through the screens and Wesley Matthews is also waiting for Baron as he tries to turn the corner. Baron backs out as the Clippers reset. This time, Gordon curls around a back screen from Kaman, catches the pass from Baron in motion. As the Utah defense collapses on Eric, he dishes the ball in traffic out to an open Kaman, who drains the jumper from about 18 feet.
Eric Gordon has a massive fourth quarter, scoring 13 points. He goes 4-for-6 from the floor, 2-for-2 from the stripe, and hits all three attempts from beyond the arc. On the first two (4th, 10:54; 4th, 9:52), C.J. Miles drifts too far from the arc. On the final one (4th, 6:28), nobody picks up EJ in transition on a break initiated by a ridiculous swat of a Williams’ attempted layup by DeAndre Jodran, who swoops in from the weak side.
That 3-pointer by Gordon should be the dagger, as the Clippers go up 95-78 with just over six minutes to go in the game. The Clippers still lead by 12 with 2:29 remaining. The Clippers move themselves and the ball fairly well on the next two possessions (4th, 2:15; 4th, 1:50), but come away with only an off-balanced, fadeaway elbow jumper from Davis and a contested 25-foot Rasual Butler jumper from beyond the arc. Neither shot goes in. When the Clippers walk the ball up with a minute and a half remaining, their lead has been trimmed to five.
After that, the offense screeches to a halt:
- (4th, 1:30) Davis milks some clock, then gets a high screen from Kaman with :08 remaining on the shot clock. Everyone in the building knows that’s the call, including Williams and Carlos Boozer. Williams walls off the lane as Baron tries to penetrate, and ultimately strips Baron of the ball.
- (4th, 1:02) This time, the screen from Kaman doesn’t come until the :05 mark on the shot clock, but he pastes Williams (you argue it’s a moving screen as Chris seems to give Williams a little bit of a shove. Williams jaws about it with the official after he converts a layup on the other end + one.). Either way, it gets Baron the space he wants, as he drives to the foul line, pulls up and drains the jumper.
- (4th, 0:38) Yep. Again. Boozer practically leaves before Kaman does. As Davis dribbles left, he loses the ball. The only consolation is that he’s able to catch Williams in transition and foul before the Utah point guard can convert the layup. Williams misses both free throw attempts, a pair that would’ve tied the game.
During the Utah rally, the Clips give up a big bucket in transition to Andrei Kirilenko (4th, 1:05), but the other points are surrendered courtesy of slow reactions. Boozer beats Gooden off the dribble + one (4th, 2:01) to cut the Clippers lead to seven. On the next Jazz possession, Kaman loses track of Millsap, as the Utah power forward drifts out to about 17 feet along the baseline, where he catches a pass and buries an open jumper to cut the lead to five (4th, 1:31). Off the Davis made jumper, Deron Williams knives through the Clippers defense in about three seconds, drawing a foul on Kaman in the process (4th, 0:40). When Williams hits the free throw, the Jazz trail by only two. For about 40+ minutes, the Clippers play solid defense. They’re particularly sticky on the perimeter, and consistently effective against the pick-and-roll. If not for the pair of Williams’ misses, one of the more complete efforts of the season could’ve been squandered.
DeAndre Jordan’s line doesn’t look like much, but he plays one of his better games under the Hughes regime. The four blocks electrify the crowd, but it’s the humdrum part of the gig that impresses most. His screen/roll defense is decisive and, as the blocks suggest, he’s a help side menace against Utah’s inside attack.
As D.J. Foster noted last night, everyone on the Clippers’ roster has legitimate deficiencies and the Clippers can’t afford for each of them to surface on the same night if they want to win basketball games. But so long as some of the team’s worst habits are sublimated, the product on the floor might be good enough to steal some games and, as the very least, entertain.
28 Responses
If the guys all turn up and the will to win is there, they are a match for most teams, as tonight proved. Go Clipps!
Posted on March 2nd, 2010 at 1:46 am
Baron looked pretty good and that was a key shot he hit in the last minute.
Nice surprising win.
Patrick Reply:
March 2nd, 2010 at 8:03 am
That was a key shot, but I thought Baron looked only okay. Dude had 9 turnovers. NINE. Ralph and Mike kept touting how Baron outplayed Williams, but I’m not so sure he did:
Baron: 19 PTS, 12 AST, 9 TO, 1 STL
Williams: 13 PTS, 13 AST, 4 TO, 5 STL
Baron did get the win—which is awesome—but with the exception of that bucket, it seemed like he was running scared through those last few minutes.
Curtis Reply:
March 2nd, 2010 at 8:18 am
I agree, those 9 TOs are atrocious. If the Clips didn’t turn the ball over so much, this game would have been a blow out.
This is a complete team, Hughes just needs to keep pounding TO ratio into the players’ brains. Nonetheless, a great win against an excellent team.
Posted on March 2nd, 2010 at 3:14 am
Play hard every ONE game out of 10 games. Thats 8.2 games during the season. To be like rest of the NBA teams Clippers need to recruit players who come prepared to play 82 games. In this current roster only Eric Gordon, Steve Blake, Gooden and Outlaw could survive 82 games.
Baron Davis and Chris Kaman have been trying to survive by not playing hard. And they know how to keep their bodies fresh for their OFFSEASON activities.
Remove(trade)Baron & Kaman from this team without even thinking once. Spend that SUM to sign TWO ‘A’ list free agents.
IF this team under Baron & Kaman cannot WIN 20 of next 25 games, it’s not worth our dime to carry these 2 worthless players to next season.
Scrutinize carefully(Final 2 min. of the game last nite) You’ll see several indicators of boneheaded decision making by these 2 multimillion dollar Allstars.
Posted on March 2nd, 2010 at 10:45 am
Baron is the anti-Sam Cassell. Sam was at his best at the end of games;Baron is at his worst. That’s what separates winners from losers. Blake helped build the lead by his excellent floorplay,good decisions, & leadership. He should have been in the game at the end not Baron. It’s the same thing that happened the night before in Sacto. Kamen & Baron together at the end of games is a recipe for disaster.
Posted on March 2nd, 2010 at 12:58 pm
Just watched the doc film MORE THAN A GAME. First, awesome film. 2, I don’t believe LeBron will EVER leave Ohio. And after seeing the movie he shouldn’t.
Posted on March 2nd, 2010 at 1:56 pm
The main theme of the Clippers should be . . . how to get rid of Baron Davis.
Most of the games, Davis is terrible. Occcasional games, he’s mediocre. He never has games where he’s better than mediocre. He may sometimes seem to be better than mediocre, but that’s just because of comparisons to his usual awful games.
He’s a terrible shooter. He’s statistically the worst shooting point guard in the NBA . How much worse can a player get than that and still be in the league?
He’s a terrible defender.
He’s a terrible influence on the team and causes them to play down to his level.
If the Clippers could get rid of him, they’d have two max slots. Absolutely nobody in their right mind thinks Baron Davis is worth a max slot.
Does anybody have any clue as to how the Clippers could possibly get rid of him? I don’t. I think the Clippers are stuck with his horrible, rotting dead weight for another three years.
Sterlling may have to eat most of the contract to trade him . . . like the Angels did with Gary Matthews.
If that’s the only way to get rid of Davis, then that’s what should be done. Otherwise, he will ruin the team for the remainder of his five years contract.
Posted on March 2nd, 2010 at 3:17 pm
TN
Have you lived in Cleveland? Even the Browns left Cleveland.
Regarding trading Davis, I never thought the Clippers will be able to trade Z. Randolph and they did. There is always market. The only untradeable guy was the guard from NY, I forgot his name.
TNT57 Reply:
March 3rd, 2010 at 9:03 am
Home is home.
Posted on March 2nd, 2010 at 3:49 pm
Awfully tough in this economy to get anyone to bite on Baron at that price.
So instead of being all pissed about it, I’m just hopefull that we can find the mix and vibe that brings out his best going foward. I’d like to believe as things get better across the board in the future, B will get as positive and plugged in as possible.
Patrick Reply:
March 2nd, 2010 at 5:56 pm
I love this sentiment.
Baron, for what it’s worth, seems to be in rather good spirits in this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iu2W69tmjaE&feature=player_embedded
Posted on March 2nd, 2010 at 4:12 pm
Neil
Compare with Arenas contract, this is a picnic. I agree with your approach.
Posted on March 2nd, 2010 at 4:43 pm
I didn’t wanna watch this one because I thought we were gonna get murdered. This team is tough and has our number every time. Kirilenko started guarding gordon towards the end and williams got back in a groove and I thought we had lost it. What a crazy game, I liked baron’s elbow to D will’s face, that was a nice touch on all those blocked shots we got. We need to be this intense every night. Kaman threw off Boozer and leveled williams on a screen, Where has this been? Will it happen again? I don’t know but I like it, I like it, yes I do.
Posted on March 2nd, 2010 at 6:31 pm
This team showed heart. Gotta give Hughes some credit for pulling the team together and demanding more accoutability and effort. Gotta give MD credit for stepping down and pulling some deals while generating cap space. Good moves all the way around.
Bloggers, what are the odds that Hughes stick next year if the team plays over 500 the rest of the year?
Steady hand Reply:
March 2nd, 2010 at 9:49 pm
Chances are 99%.
Here’s why: 1. He’s gaining respect from his players. 2. No one can pinpoint any loopholes in his coaching style yet. 3. He’s a steady hand. 4. Sterling can save millions and still can get the job done.
jgroove Reply:
March 3rd, 2010 at 12:52 am
I would prefer we get a more experienced coach next season, but if they do play .500 the rest of the season (they will not) you can’t argue with him winning the job. For a premier free agent, however, we need a premiere coach. I will say Hughes demeanor is a refreshing change on the sidelines.
And everyone realizes Drew Gooden is gone after this season right? He’s playing for a good contract next year, nothing else.
Steady Hand Reply:
March 3rd, 2010 at 10:53 am
Alvin Gentry was replaced by Dunleavy with similar notion. Look who’s taking his team to playoffs this season!
During 8 years of Dunleavy’s coaching only once Clippers had a winning record.
Unfortunately that credit goes to Sam Cassell.
Posted on March 2nd, 2010 at 9:05 pm
lol Kaman was really fowling hard in the end….. he shoved Boozer out of his way and leveled Williams (both illegal but fun to watch)
Posted on March 2nd, 2010 at 9:24 pm
Even though I was initially against it, I have to applaud Dunleavy for making the recent moves. I still have a major mancrush on Camby, but Gooden is playing very well in the Clippers’ system. Much to my surprise, he is a much more skilled player than I originally thought. His offense has allowed the Clippers to be less Kaman-centric (good for the Clips, bad for my fantasy team). Addition of Blake and Outlaw have bolstered the Clippers’ bench. The team flows just as well when Blake comes into the game, which cannot be said when we had Bassy. Unlike Thornton, Outlaw seems to understand and accept his role – I haven’t seen him take a bad shot… yet.
The chances of these guys sticking with the team next year is slim to none, but management should give Blake, Outlaw, and especially Gooden long looks before letting them go sign with other teams. Would it be possible for the Clips to offer them multi-year contracts that are back-loaded, so that we can still offer a max contract to an A lister?
jgroove Reply:
March 3rd, 2010 at 12:53 am
No.
clippafan4life Reply:
March 3rd, 2010 at 6:10 am
These guys make us way better, not resigning them would be a damn shame.
Posted on March 2nd, 2010 at 10:57 pm
This team is like misfit toyland. Nobody seems to fit together and they all seem slightly confused about their roles and the overall mission. No chemistry, no super stars, no leader, no vision, no enthusiasm, no chance.
Posted on March 3rd, 2010 at 9:07 am
Plus, I think the only way to motivate a dog like Baron Davis is to humiliate him. Bench his ass and start Blake. See how fast he either starts playing hard or demands a trade. Either way we win.
Steady Hand Reply:
March 3rd, 2010 at 10:55 am
Agree. To win back fans, Clippers have to prove themselves before this season ends.
Posted on March 3rd, 2010 at 9:10 am
Baron picks up his game when called out as he was on this site before the Utah game. Pity that fans have to shame him into doing his job.
Posted on March 3rd, 2010 at 1:37 pm
When Baron was out those two games after the all-star break Gordon averaged 24 pts on 17-30 shooting. Kaman averaged 21.5 pts on 19-35 shooting…Baron Davis is the PG who makes his teammates worse.
Posted on March 3rd, 2010 at 3:38 pm
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