Mike Dunleavy being let go from his duties as General Manager is obviously shocking. Poor Kim Hughes found out about it after the game through Dain Blanton, the sideline reporter for Fox Sports Prime Ticket. According to an agent that spoke with Adrian Wojnarowski, Dunleavy himself may have had no idea he was being released up until just recently. The whole move feels a bit impulsive. Early conclusions would lead one to believe this was fully a Sterling orchestrated firing, right down to it being announced during a game broadcast.
News of Dunleavy’s release leads to a bunch of questions that will soon be answered. What does this mean financially for Dunleavy and the Clippers? Was there some sort of buyout involved, or will Dunleavy get paid the full remainder of his contract? Does Donald Sterling have someone in mind to replace Dunleavy? Why do this now and not a month ago? Were Dunleavy’s trade deadline deals, where he seemingly improved the outlook for the Clippers’ future and netted Sterling a few million in the process, deemed “bad” moves by ownership?
Regardless of whether or not Dunleavy deserved to be let go for his performance as GM, one thing remains clear: This is a step in the right direction, and that has plenty more to do with Sterling than it does with Dunleavy. For years Sterling was reluctant to open up his wallet and build a winner. He wouldn’t sign free agents. He wouldn’t buy players or coaches out of contracts. He’d basically do nothing that didn’t make perfect sense financially for him. Well, this move doesn’t make a whole lot of sense financially for him, but Sterling did it anyway for what he believes to be the betterment of the franchise. That’s progress.
It will be interesting to see if the Clippers shy away from their follies of the past. Having one man be both Head Coach and General Manager clearly didn’t work out the first time, and though some will blame that solely on Dunleavy, it’s hard to argue that the sharing of those titles in today’s NBA is ideal.
We’ll have plenty of more reaction, analysis, and updates on this situation as more details unfold. Stay tuned.
24 Responses
I heard Elgin baylor may come back with bill fitch
loyalclip Reply:
March 9th, 2010 at 8:32 pm
Bill fitch lol!
Posted on March 9th, 2010 at 8:22 pm
As a LONG suffering Cliipper fan I at least want to thank Dunleavy for the credibility he brought to the organization back when he arrived. Add a little Sammy – an actual player with heart and swagger and I had my one true memorable season with the team.
While I will admit that I didn’t always favor his rotations/dog house, who the hell am I to doubt them as I’ve never played nor coached the game. I’m a bit shocked by this.. I was shocked when he resigned as coach but quickly realized that it was best for the team and that he could make a great GM as evident by the deadline deals – although he was called an idiot by the local press when the deals went down.
I don’t know how to feel about this. Kind of bummed that he quit if that is what happened but I should be used to this junk by now.
Posted on March 9th, 2010 at 8:51 pm
Well, there are some good young, bright enough GM’s out there.
On the other hand, we ought to see Bill Simmons submit his candidacy soon.
James H Reply:
March 9th, 2010 at 9:07 pm
Please keep the words Bill + Simmons out of any real Clipper fans vocabulary.
Posted on March 9th, 2010 at 9:00 pm
Next to go… Baron Davis. I don’t know how… but it will happen.
James H Reply:
March 9th, 2010 at 9:08 pm
No way. But then again… who friggin knows.
Posted on March 9th, 2010 at 9:06 pm
This is your not dad’s Clippers. When Dunleavy came in, he changed the culture of what the Clippers were. I mean, we resigned free agents, went to the playoffs, fired Elgin, built a training facility (which they never had before), and… big money on a coach!!
Times are a changen, lets hope it’s all for the better.
bongstradamus Reply:
March 9th, 2010 at 11:07 pm
He drove Elton out of town, couldnt win without him in the lineup. Put Corey in the doghouse and then let him go for nothing. Traded Marcus Camby for 2 guys we have to let go to get salary cap to make offers on free agents who wouldnt dare come to our team and he took us to the playoffs and sported a winning record in 1 season which was largely due to Sam and Elton in the first place. He resigned Kaman to a ridiculous deal and after 7 seasons Chris still cant pass out of a double team to save his life.
I’m sorry, we were much more legit when Gentry was coach and we had Darius, Q, Lamar, Elton and Corey. That squad and those years were the best. Dunleavy was lucky we got Sam Cassell and went to the playoffs. People dog on Elgin, but given the chains he was operating in he made some masterful trades and built a large portion of the squad Dunleavy rode to the playoffs with.
Dun got Sterling to build a training center, he can have that credit. He also stabbed Elgin in the back and forced him out. And he got Kaman extended. And he took a gamble by signing Baron to an insane deal. He deserves credit for those things, but I’m just happy he’s gone.
Maybe now we can actually get some traction and start moving towards winning a championship.
jgroove Reply:
March 10th, 2010 at 1:47 am
Dude, Corey is not a winner. Have you seen him in Golden State? He’s a numbers guy, nothing more.
bongstradamus Reply:
March 10th, 2010 at 2:15 am
Where did I say in that sentence that Corey was a winner? I said our winning season was largely due to Elton and Sam.
Regardless, Corey put it all on the court when he did play.
Posted on March 9th, 2010 at 9:08 pm
Not your dad’s Clippers, SHIT!
Posted on March 9th, 2010 at 9:09 pm
Throughout Dunleavy’s tenure, I’m a bit sad to seem him go. It hasn’t been the best of circumstances. Nonetheless, I hope whoever comes in as coach, GM, or whatever can cultivate this team to make the playoffs next season. So tired of the unrest and inconsistency this organization has fronted.
Posted on March 9th, 2010 at 9:43 pm
New Clippers Head coach Phil Jackson w/Kobe opting out to sign close to max.
JM Reply:
March 9th, 2010 at 10:50 pm
Thankfully, the team doesn’t have nearly enough to offer Bryant close to his max.
Posted on March 9th, 2010 at 9:52 pm
The Clippers ticket reps called me 5 minutes after it happened. I think they have a list of people who will buy tickets after Dunleavy is gone. I might buy a small package deal for next year.
Posted on March 9th, 2010 at 10:25 pm
Something tells me they are gonna pick someone worst as full time GM. I’m actually a bit worried. The whole way this was handled seems ridiculously unprofessional.
Posted on March 9th, 2010 at 10:48 pm
Hire Jerry Tarkanian. (if he’s still alive) we can all chew towels in section 108 woot woot
hiretarktheshark.com
Posted on March 9th, 2010 at 10:57 pm
From Lisa Dillman’s Twitter: Reference to earlier tweet about the man himself being stunned. Mike Dunleavy, via email to reallisa at LAT,about his ouster:”Had no clue!”
Posted on March 9th, 2010 at 11:01 pm
Potential GM Candidates? Let the speculation begin!
Rod Thorn (Assuming he gets canned by NJ)
Kiki Vandeweghe (i hate spelling his last name)
Pat Croce
Doug Moe
Larry Brown
Del Harris
Bill Knight
Bernie Bickerstaff
Rudy Tomjanovich
Out of the box (former players with high IQ’s):
Dr. J
Jeff Hornacek
John Stockton
Christian Laettner
Dan Majerle
Michael Cooper
Brent Barry (former Clipper!)
Tark is a good idea. Dude rocked. But he’s like 80 years old.
jgroove Reply:
March 10th, 2010 at 1:46 am
Rod Thorn (Assuming he gets canned by NJ) – Smart guy, got NJ to finals twice. Got my vote.
Kiki Vandeweghe (i hate spelling his last name) – Set up Denver, but continually wears out his welcome.
Pat Croce – honestly, cheerleader, nothing more.
Doug Moe – old, old, old
Larry Brown – With MJ in Charlotte and a potential second round in the playoffs not going anywhere.
Del Harris – Dear god no.
Bill Knight – Eh
Bernie Bickerstaff – Dear god no, part 2
Rudy Tomjanovich – Word was he was overrated as a coach, but he’d be a breath of fresh air. Gets my vote.
Out of the box (former players with high IQ’s):
Dr. J – Was set up a potential GM job for him in Orlando in the early 90s. He couldn’t cut it and eventually left.
Jeff Hornacek – Utah or Phoenix only.
John Stockton – Utah only.
Christian Laettner – What, you don’t want Bill Lambeer?
Dan Majerle – Yawn. All he’s proved is that he can open restaurants and stay fit in his 40s.
Michael Cooper – Under contract at USC and diehard Laker. Not gonna happen.
Brent Barry (former Clipper!) – Love the guy (he’s much funnier than his brother), but he does everything he can t0 diminish his few years in LAC. He wants to forget it ever happened. He’d go to Chicago first (where they treated him like crap).
Posted on March 9th, 2010 at 11:29 pm
“SAM I AM” The peoples choice for coach.
loyalclip Reply:
March 10th, 2010 at 12:19 pm
Hell yeah bring sam here…we need a new point guard get rid of baron please..
Raymond In Clipperland Reply:
March 10th, 2010 at 12:53 pm
Two different ways I think about Sam coming back:
A. Sam comes back to join our coaching staff, taking Baron under his wing, showing him how to be a real winner.
B. Sam comes in as a coach, and we live or die giving a man his first NBA team.
Scenario A sounds mentally comforting (teaching Baron), and would probably bring the spirits of the fans up. See Wikipedia’s entry for “Nostalgia”.
Scenario B is banking 110% on a bigger version of Scenario A. Giving Sam his first NBA team is risky, but has a big payoff if Sam coaches as well as we all believe he can.
Scenario B is also assuming Sam has had anything to do with Washington this season. I personally have not kept up on his participation with the Wizards, but if he thinks he can do better, maybe we take a chance on each other.
Posted on March 10th, 2010 at 9:31 am
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