• Saturday was a busy day in Playa Vista. Sofo Schortsanitis was at the facility in the morning working out, then Mike Miller paid a three-hour visit.  Prototypically, Miller is precisely what the Clippers are looking for — a floor-spacing shooter who won’t kill them on the boards. He’s a guy who can assume the starting slot at the 3 while Al-Farouq Aminu develops, then move to bench as the Clips’ gunslinger at 32.
  
  Here’s the problem: The market has gone insane. In a world where Rudy Gay is a max player, where Amir Johnson can score a 5-year/$34 million deal and Darko Milicic is valued at 4 years and $20 million, a guy like Miller can command a big number — larger than the Clippers are comfortable committing to a middle-age SF whose skills are likely to fall off during the back end of his deal.
• Will Sofo play for the Clippers this season? That all depends on what kind of cash the Clippers have left after the free agency season. They could slot him into the frontcourt rotation if the price is right, but probably aren’t prepared to allocate significant resources before they take care of more pressing needs on the wing.
• Kyle Korver also fits the description of what the Clippers want on the wing, and sources say that the team will be reaching out to Korver’s camps in the coming days. Anthony Morrow is a less likely target because the maximum he can be offered under the Gilbert Arenas rule is a no greater than the mid-level exception. Morrow also falls into the “2 disguised as a 3″ pattern the Clippers are looking to end. A quick glimpse at the Warriors’ unit grid from 2009-10 shows that the Warriors were effective with Morrow at the 2, but abysmal when he played the 3.
• What about Josh Childress? Unfortunately, he’s not a proficient shooter (low-30s from the shorter, international 3-point line). The Clippers are tired of teams sagging defensively on them. Baron Davis is statistically the worst high-volume, long-distance shooter in the game. Blake Griffin and Chris Kaman aren’t stretchy beyond 17-feet. That leaves Eric Gordon as the only threat from long range on the floor with that lineup. Childress is a smart, dogged defender and a nice energy guy, but he’s also a hot commodity right now who’s probably going to be overcompensated. The Clips don’t want to spend that kind of money on a player who doesn’t address their top need on the wing.
• The Clippers won’t land LeBron James. They’ve received a steady stream of ridicule about being “honored” by the invitation to meet with James and the brevity of the one-hour meeting.  But the Clippers’ confab with James wasn’t about 2010 — it was about 2013. Few on earth have an inkling what James will decide over the next few days, but there’s a reasonable possibility that he opts for a 3-year deal with Cleveland. If that scenario prevails, this public spectacle will play out again in 2013.
  
  What if three years from now Blake Griffin is a rebounding, defending Amare Stoudemire, Eric Gordon boasts a true shooting percentage of 60 percent and the Clippers have progressed from a punch line to a viable young squad? With Baron Davis and Chris Kaman off the books, what if the Clippers are one of a select group of teams with room for two max players? If Friday’s meeting did nothing more than plant that seed, then it was worth a day’s commute by the brass from Los Angeles to Cleveland.

With Joe Johnson and Rudy Gay both off the table, it’s an increasingly likely scenario that the Clippers fill out their remaining roster spots with affordable guys who won’t jeopardize the development of the young core or squander the club’s future financial flexibility. While there are many free agents still up for grabs, here are four players who could fit snugly into the Clippers’ plans next season.

Kyle Korver
“It’s just a matter of reading the defense,” Korver said after his strong Game 1 and 2 performances in Utah’s first-round series against Denver. In Game 1, Korver took most of his shots from the top of the floor, but in Game 2, he darted off curls and baseline screens to set up shop in the corner. “They were chasing me in Game 1 on the down screens, but in Game 2 they were sort of cutting over the top, so I just flared toward the corner,” Korver said.

The 6-foot-7 sharpshooter is one of a few players in the league (though one of many on the Jazz) who will not only field a question about x’s and o’s, but build on the conversation. His 62 percent true shooting percentage can be attributed not only to his quick release and good size, but his court vision and intelligence. As we’ve seen with Ray Allen, long-range shooters with Korver’s proficiency aren’t frequently left open on the perimeter. They must work tirelessly for their looks and when those opportunities present themselves, there’s rarely more than a narrow window of daylight through which to get off a shot.

There’s a tendency to assume that spot-up specialists like Korver must be poor defenders. Some — like Steve Novak — are. But some — like Korver — aren’t. Watch him body up on the perimeter against opposing small forwards and you’ll see a strong, physical defender who yields very little and knows how to funnel his assignment to the right spots on the floor. As a help defender, Korver rarely makes a bad tactical decision. The data backs this up. In three straight seasons, the Jazz have not only been a better defensive team with Korver on the floor, but decisively better (3,94, 3.75, 2.49). He also posts solid rebounding numbers and an impressive assist rate for a guy whose primary responsibility is to shoot. While the Clips sculpt Al-Farouq Aminu into their small forward of the future, Korver’s range of attributes — from his ability to space the floor to his basketball IQ — would come in very handy.
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Anthony Morrow
There’s an old saying in basketball: If you can shoot, you can play. It wasn’t always clear if Morrow, an undrafted free agent out of Georgia Tech, could hack it in the NBA, but after two years of scorching the nets in Golden State, it’s pretty obvious he belongs.

Just how good of a shooter is Morrow? He’s an elite one. Morrow ranked fifth in the league last season in overall three-point shooting percentage, but first out of those who attempted more than four threes a game at 45.6 percent. In spot-up situations, Morrow was second in the league in points produced per possession at 1.37. Morrow’s true shooting percentage of 59.7 was fifth best among all shooting guards and just a hair behind one of the greatest shooters of all-time in Ray Allen. Pure shooters usually face an adjustment period in the NBA, but at age 24 and just two seasons into his career, Morrow has already vaulted himself into the upper echelon of snipers.

You’d expect Morrow to be awful defensively, but he’s not an absolute sieve. The Warriors were actually worse defensively last season when Morrow was off the court, despite the fact Morrow often played out of position at small forward. At 6-foot-5 with not a heck of a whole lot going for him athletically, Morrow isn’t a very good rebounder either. Still, he was decisively better at pitching in on the glass than both Rasual Butler and Eric Gordon last season in less minutes.

Morrow was truly one of Don Nelson’s guys — a player who could get shots up quick and knock a lot of them down. It’s been rumored that Warriors GM Larry Riley wants more defensive-minded guys on the floor and would be hesitant to match a substantial offer for Morrow. Teams can offer Morrow up to the mid-level exception, and as an restricted free agent the Warriors would have seven days to match that offer.

It’s not difficult to manufacture points when Morrow is on the floor. Run him off screens, plant him on the ball-side for post entries … the possibilities are endless. If you’re working under the assumption that Blake Griffin is a double-team drawing force on the block, there’s far worse basketball strategies than pairing him with one of the game’s purest outside shooters.

Although he’s one-dimensional, Morrow would give the next coach of the Clippers a legitimate offensive weapon to utilize.
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Ronnie Brewer
Throughout the playoffs, when Jazz point guard Deron Williams was asked to comment on a heady play by one of his young wings, Wesley Matthews or C.J. Miles, Williams would reference former teammate Ronnie Brewer. For example, when Miles made a brilliant off-ball dive to the hoop during a crucial possession of Game 2, Williams commented, “It was a Ronnie Brewer read … He used to run that baseline.”

Williams was irate when the Jazz dealt the 6-foot-7 Brewer mid-season in a salary dump and you can’t blame him. In an offense that relies on sharp instincts and good decision-making, Brewer was a master. We often discuss how awareness of one’s limitations is such a valuable commodity for an NBA player. Brewer is a prime example. Though he can’t shoot very well from distance, Brewer is one of the strongest finishers in the league at the basket, which is how he’s been able to compile a career Player Efficiency Rating of 15.8 despite that iffy stroke.

As Williams says, Brewer has a knack for being in the right place at the right time on the court. He has an intuitive ability to make smart reads aside and work off the ball. Brewer isn’t a defensive stopper, but he can guard three positions with his length, quicks and intelligence and has improved each season as he’s matured.

In their successful attempt to make Rudy Gay one of the most generously compensated athletes in the world, the Memphis Grizzlies had to let Brewer walk as an unrestricted free agent. Memphis’ loss is the league’s gain. For a team trying to get more creative offensively, the Clippers could use a guy like Brewer with whom Baron Davis would have a field day (as Williams did) finding the speedy guard on basket dives. Although he’d be an unlikely starter in Los Angeles, he could be a valuable first-wing-off-the-bench for the Clippers.
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Lou Amundson
Hockey and basketball don’t coincide a whole lot, but something to embrace about hockey is the defined roles players have on the ice. Teams are led by their playmakers and snipers, but after those guys there’s a lot of grinders and enforcers out there — guys to do the dirty work. In fact, hockey teams have whole units dedicated solely to hitting people. Obviously you can’t do that in basketball, but every team needs a guy who can go in and muck up the game a bit.

There’s no doubting Lou Amundson is one of those guys. During the playoffs Amundson stayed in the jersey of opposing star big-men, crashed the offensive boards with reckless abandon, and did his fair share of agitating along the way. To wit, Amundson is most noted for provoking Zach Randolph into punching him in the face. He’s pretty good at that sort of thing.

Amundson isn’t skilled by any means, but he’s a dogged offensive rebounder (fifth among centers in offensive rebounding rate) and a pretty good shotblocker at nearly 2.5 blocks per 40 minutes. Almost all of Amundson’s shot attempts (3.5 a game) come on putback attempts or cuts directly to the hole. If it’s not at the rim, Amundson is probably not shooting it.

Perhaps the best quality about Amundson is that he knows his role, and he’s hungry to fill it every single night. He’ll scrap to the final bell, and often times he’ll swing a game with his hustle plays if the opposing bigs don’t match his energy level. He’s not pretty, but he’s consistent, he’ll come cheap, he’ll work hard every day and push the other guys, and he’ll add a little nastiness to a big man rotation at the 4 or 5 spot.
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First off, I hope everyone is out of harm’s way.  Best to you and your families.

A game against Golden State always presents challenges and opportunities.  For Mike Dunleavy, who prefers a set halfcourt offense, Don Nelson’s ability to force a frenetic pace can take the Clippers out of their game.   But in doing so, Nelson sacrifices size, which often results in advantageous mismatches for his opponent.

None of that matters after the early stage of the first quarter this afternoon.

For the second consecutive game, the Clippers get rolled by a peripheral NBA player, this time by undrafted rookie Anthony Morrow.  Morrow goes for 37 points on 15-20 from the field, and collects 11 rebounds.

I saw Morrow live on a few occasions back in Atlanta.  At Tech, he was a natural shooter who had a knack for darting to an open space on the perimeter, where Javaris Crittenton would find him for a spot-up jumper.   The best game I saw Morrow play was a Saturday evening matchup against Florida State a couple winters ago [It was actually the first time I saw Al Thornton in all of his freakiness, as well.]  The most impressive thing about Morrow that night was his gorgeous release and his ability to get open.  He went 3-3 from beyond the arc, and finished with 17 off the bench.  Can’t say I had any sense he’d ever play meaningful minutes in the Association.  But he gave the Jackets a big lift that night.

But enough of Anthony Morrow’s collegiate heroics.  The pressing question is how do the Clippers let a guy like that — or Beno Udrih — get off?

If Don Nelson decides to go with a natural PG, chances are Morrow doesn’t even get the start.  But Nelson seems to be getting increasingly comfortable with Stephen Jackson running the offense — to the extent the Golden State offense gets run by anyone.

Cuttino Mobley starts out on Morrow, who misses his first shot from the field about two minutes into the game.  One thing you notice about Morrow is that he has a Hamiltonian tendency to never stop moving off the ball.  He gets that first FGA coming off a fade cut.  Mobley closes quickly, and Morrow misses the shot.

Morrow’s first make comes on a transition play.  He slips past the Clippers transition D, and Azubuike finds him for an easy layup that caps off that jackrabbit 13-2 start for Golden State.  Morrow’s first FGM from the perimeter comes about a minute later when Mobley and Thornton get completely crossed up, leaving Morrow wide open on the left wing for a 3PM.  His third FGM of the period is a post-up on Mobley.  I don’t know that I’ve ever seen Morrow with his back to the basket — certainly not much at Tech — and he doesn’t work himself much of a shot here.  It’s a fade-away jumper that falls…but probably shouldn’t  Not a great shot.

Morrow doesn’t return until about midway through the second quarter, and we still have no inkling that he’s going to take over the game.  He drains his second 3PM when Ricky Davis doubles Stephen Jackson, leaving Morrow free to dart to the most vacant spot on the arc.

How does Morrow find that space?  When CJ Watson cuts to the basket from the arc, it prompts both Al Thornton and Eric Gordon — who’s covering the weak side — to trail him.  So now this leaves a vacuum outside.   Now you can’t fault Thornton and EJ, because you want someone to pick up that cutter.  But this is the difference between teams like Detroit or Boston and a team like the Clippers.  The good teams?  They almost telepathically know which guy is going to move with the cutter in that situation.  That’s why they’re playing in May.  It’s tough to expect a rookie and a second-year player to have that kind of mutual awareness…yet.

Jackson immediately spots Morrow all alone and heaves the ball to the arc.  3PM.

Morrow’s next basket is an open 10-footer in the lane.  How does a guy like Morrow get an open shot like that in a halfcourt set?  Because Ronny Turiaf, for all his limitations, knows how to screen a defender as gullible as Al Thornton.  That’s why Turiaf is useful.

To close out the half, Morrow gets an easy layup on a break, beats Eric Gordon off the dribble for a pull-up jumper from the foul stripe, then earns a trip to the line when he gets fouled by Baron Davis on a jumper. He finishes the half with 18 points.

How do the Clippers adjust in the second half?

Al Thornton clearly gets orders to stay at home on Morrow at all times, and Morrow doesn’t touch the ball much in the first half of the 3rd quarter.  Then at [3rd, 6:03] there’s a strange defensive breakdown.  Jackson has the ball out on the left wing.  Kaman, whose man, Biedrins, is hanging out on the weak side of the basket, straddles the lane — possibly positioning himself to double-team and/or cut off the baseline to Jackson.  Morrow is in the far corner, but since Kaman has cheated, Thornton does too — and now he’s straddling between Biedrins and Morrow.  Jackson makes this play.  He recognizes the Clippers’ cheating and lasers a pretty cross-court pass to Morrow.  Thornton is late.  3PM.

I know it seems counter-intuitive…but Stephen Jackson is one of the smartest players in the game.

It wasn’t all silky jumpers for Morrow.  His next basket comes when he destroys Baron Davis underneath off a Warrior miss.  He goes up for an easy tip-in.

Morrow finishes with 11 rebounds, which tells you a little something about the Clippers’ wings.  An athlete like Al Thornton needs to rack up more than two rebounds in 33 minutes.  Ricky Davis recorded zero rebounds.  Cat Mobley, three.  Only Gordon exerts his strength on the glass — 5 boards in 19 minutes.

Morrow takes over in the 4th quarter.  He shreds the Clipper zone on the first possession of the period for an open 20-footer.   Not sure of Dunleavy’s strategy.  Is his sense that a lineup of Camby-Thornton-R. Davis-Gordon-B. Davis is susceptible to the mismatch against Turaif-Maggette-Azubuike-Morrow-Watson?  The Clippers are getting beat on jump shots and offensive rebounds, not dribble-penetration.

At any rate, Morrow finds the soft spot, and as Ricky Davis inexplicably leaves Morrow on the perimeter to converge on Watson, Watson finds him. His next make is a layup off an inbounds.  The Clippers are in a coma.  The next?  Beating Ricky Davis off the dribble with a drive down the lane.  In some respects, I don’t fault Davis for overplaying Morrow and making him put it on the floor, but good defenders can play tight on a guy’s body and still react to defend him off the dribble.  Once Morrow gets loose, Camby is late. He fouls Morrow on the little running layup.  Morrow sinks the FT.  The Warriors are up 11 with 8:12.   Morrow has 33.

On the next possession, why not let Morrow bring the ball upcourt?    He gives the ball to Touriaf, then curls around a solid Stephen Jackson screen, which trips up Ricky Davis.   Think he’s going to miss an open 15-footer?  Not today.  He gets his final bucket of the game in transition [It's not like you wanna pick up a guy who's hit 14 shots from the floor on the break or anything].  By the time Baron Davis closes, Morrow’s 36th and 37th point are en route.

The Clippers have plenty of offensive problems as well.   That S/R that Baron and Kaman had working about a week ago has vanished. Thornton is generally playing a low-IQ brand of basketball, not recognizing good opportunities on the weak side or, hell, the strong side, even.  And even when Al does recognize them,  he can’t make a crisp pass.  There was a moment — I think toward the end of the first half — where he had Eric Gordon wide open just behind him beyond the arc.  All Al has to do is hit EJ in the chest.  But the pass is high, and by the time Gordon goes up for the shot — the clock is about the expire — the defender closes.

Meanwhile, Tim Thomas is giving them nothing on either end, and it’s only a matter of time before Paul Davis starts picking up some more PF minutes.   He’s inactive today, and I can assume only that the Clips feel that they need a smaller bench.

How much solace can you take knowing you’re the best 1-8 team in basketball?

ADDENDUM: Good interview with Anthony Morrow by Matt Steinmetz.   He killed the Clippers today, but it’s a nice story nonetheless.