When Baron Davis arrived in Los Angeles almost three years ago, he was supposed to be the harbinger of a new era for the Clippers. He had just taken the almost equally pathetic Golden State Warriors to consecutive winning seasons and with a real big man in Elton Brand, he would be the bearded and smiling face of that change. People would be able to look back in the annals of Clipper history and pinpoint exactly when it was that the Clippers turned it around. Baron still may be able to be that marker, that Black Swan event that everyone rationalizes post-facto, but it won’t be in the way that he initially hoped.  More...

Over the past four seasons, neither the Clippers nor the Knicks have won more than 32 games in any of them. During the losing, they have shared such players as Zach Randolph, Tim Thomas, Mardy Collins and Cuttino Mobley (kind of). Yet while both struggled to win, even to put together consistent lineups at many points, they have managed to produce some of the most entertaining basketball moments of that time when they got together. Two years ago, they played not one, , but two overtime thrillers, including a 35-point, eight rebound(!) outburst by Mike Taylor that had the fans at the Garden going crazy. Both games, somehow, were heavily influenced by Al Harrington getting called for hanging on the rim down the stretch.

Their first meeting this season was an instant classic and a turning point for the young Clips. The Knicks won, 124-115, behind 39 points from Amar’e Staudemire, but it marked the end of a 1-13 start for the Clippers and gave promise for good things to come. Blake Griffin had the best game of his career (to that point), with 44 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists and a whole collection of highlight dunks in his breakout performance. It propelled the team to win three of its next five games, including New Orleans and San Antonio while they owned the league’s best records. Since that game, the Clippers are 18-19, with wins over the Lakers, Heat, Nuggets, and Bulls. They are coming off of four consecutive losses (including the first three games of the current 11-game roadtrip), though, and as you would expect, are struggling to replace Eric Gordon.

The Knicks come in at 26-24, good enough for the sixth best record in the Eastern Conference. Their play has been streaky; at one point they rattled off 13 wins in 14 games, but only two of those came against teams with records above .500. They have had success at times behind Raymond Felton and Amar’e, but have struggled to sustain a consistent level of play without a legitimate starting center or any depth in the backcourt.

When these two teams meet again, it will be a battle of tempo and the ability to play to each one’s strengths. The Knicks play at the 2nd fastest pace in the league and will look to push the ball up the floor to Amar’e and open shooters. The Clippers will attempt to defend the perimeter better than they have recently, limit turnovers (they commit the 2nd most turnovers per game, 16.1) and control the glass if they hope to get their first win of the road trip.

Keys to the Game

-The 2008 Draft. The Knicks had the sixth pick in Donnie Walsh’s first draft as G.M., and with it, they took 6’10” forward Danilo Gallinari. With the next pick, Mike Dunleavy took a player he never expected would be available, Eric Gordon. The two are different as players, and the Clippers may have wound up with the better player, but the Knicks are still high on the hilarious Italian. At the time, Walsh said he envisioned Gallo becoming a superstar a la Dirk Nowitzki, with his mix of size, shooting touch, feel for the game, and of, course, European-ness. These two will always be connected in the eyes on many Knicks and Clippers fans, and though they have taken different paths, they remain integral parts of their respective teams. Gallo may not ever become Dirk, but he is still 22 and shows flashes of being very difficult to stop. He ranks eighth among forwards who qualify in True Shooting Percentage (60.8%), and many Knicks fans would like to see him featured more prominently in the team’s offense. As a secondary option behind the Felton-Amar’e pick-and-roll, he tends to get lost standing around on the perimeter at times, but he is deadly from three and has improved his game going to the basket – according to Hoopdata, he is converting 70% of his shots at the rim this season, up from 59.4% last year.

For Gordon, his significance is felt as much in his absence as when he’s playing. Not many teams have a player like him, and even fewer would be prepared to account for losing him. The Clippers have won two of eight games since Gordon went out, with both wins coming against mediocre Eastern Conference teams. Randy Foye has assumed his starting spot, but the team has been unable to provide enough balance on the perimeter to prevent teams from clogging up the lane and swarming Griffin. As Blake said to Kevin Arnovitz a couple games ago, “it changes the game with Eric Gordon out.” Foye had another poor shooting night on Tuesday against Orlando (3-13), his third stinker in the last four games, a problem for the team that suddenly lacks depth at guard.

-Battle of the Bigs. The Knicks have had some success doing what they do, but they have also shown a glaring weakness on defense and on the glass. Amar’e is the main event for New York, but they have yet to find him a viable post partner, someone who can make up for his shortcomings in those areas. Rookie Timofey Mozgov (the pinnacle of Blake posterization) has seen a bump in playing time over the last four games, and he has shown promise, including a 23-point, 14-rebound performance in almost 40 minutes against Detroit. He has intriguing athleticism for someone his size (7’1”), and may prove to be a nice piece of their rotation, but this is a matchup against the Knicks bigs that should be a big advantage for the Clippers. The Knicks have been awful on the boards (26th in the league with a -3.7 number against their opponents), while the Clippers have found their strength there (4th in the league, +3.7).

Griffin managed to get the best of Amar’e last time they met, and by many measures, has been better all season, believe it or not. While Amar’e has generated impressive scoring numbers (26ppg), he has done so with the most touches of any power forward in the league (31.42 % of possessions used). Blake, on the other hand, scores slightly less (22.9 ppg, third among power forwards), but with a smaller Usage Rate (27.81). At this point, Amar’e is better equipped to operate on offense thanks to the shooters that surround him, whereas Blake will need to get used to constant double- and triple-teams until Gordon returns – as evidenced by his 4-12 shooting performance against the Magic. What separates these two elite power forwards, though, is their rebounding ability. Blake ranks sixth (19.8) among power forwards in Total Rebound Rate, while Amar’e comes in 31st, with 13.1. It’s a staggering difference, one that should give the Clippers a real edge. If Blake and DeAndre Jordan cannot establish a strong advantage on the glass, they could be in real trouble.

-Baron against Felton. When the Knicks have won, they have generally done so on the strength of strong point guard play from Felton. He is averaging 17 points and nearly nine assists a game, mostly from thriving in D’Antoni’s system. He has arguably the best scoring big man in Stoudemire, and the two have become a dangerous pick-and-roll pair. While he has proven to be a savvy pickup by Walsh, Felton’s early numbers may be slightly misleading and his play has cooled off after a hot start way above his career levels. His field goal percentage (42%) and three point percentage (33%) are actually down from last season in Charlotte, and despite calls for an All-Star spot, his Adjusted PER (18.9), puts him in the middle of the pack among point guards. Despite his ups-and-downs, he remains a dangerous threat to shoot from three and is capable of finding open shooters off the pick-and-roll.

Baron, meanwhile, has seen his Adjusted PER (17.9) rise as he has worked himself into shape and into sync with his high-flying teammates. Once trailing way behind Felton among point guards this season, Baron enters this game as a key for the Clippers, coming off an impressive performance against Orlando (25 points, eight rebounds, eight assists). He may have a great opportunity to get in the lane against the defensively-challenged Knicks, and if he does so, he should find open looks for himself and dump-offs to Griffin and Jordan. It should be an uptempo night, in which case it will be Baron’s responsibility to control the ball and limit turnovers. If he can do that, the Clippers have a good chance to beat the Knicks at their own game.

Injury Report

Chris Kaman: left ankle, out
Craig Smith: herniated disc, out
Eric Gordon: wrist/back, day to day (out) (note on Gordon: Lisa Dillman tweeted that Eric Gordon saw the doctor and the original timetable is unchanged)

Kelenna Azubuike: left knee, out
Eddy Curry: left hamstring, out
Ronny Turiaf: sprained right ankle, doubtful

Note: Breene will be at ESPN’s Daily Dime Live if you want to stop by and chat with him

Despite a weak performance from Blake Griffin, the Clippers found themselves tied with the Magic 70-70 with 9:41 left in the fourth quarter. They weathered the storm through the third, surged back after an 11 point run from the Magic and the Clippers were poised to sneak away a win from the stumbling Magic. But then the Magic went on a 12-0 run, highlighted by an Earl Clark dunk and a Gilbert Arenas three, and the Clippers were just about done.

After three quarters of floundering around, the Magic finally found their rhythm in the fourth quarter. Their three point shooters warmed up as they made 5 of their 10 three pointers in the last quarter and their defense maintained its efficacy, holding the Clippers to 20 points. The Clippers really didn’t have much going on tonight, and would have been completely blown out had Baron Davis not played like it was 2007 again. It was Baron’s best game by far this year, but there wasn’t the support around him to get the job done. Usually, it’s Blake that needs the help.

Blake found himself double and triple teamed tonight without the help of Eric Gordon. We’re all accustomed to him rushing out to hot starts and then cooling, but he only had 5 points through the first half. That’s normally what Blake scores in the first two minutes. Literally. But the Magic dared the other Clippers to beat them. And while Baron played very well, Randy Foye had nothing going for him at all.

Foye never managed to get good looks, forcing bad shots that didn’t help his already cold shooting. He finished with 7 points on 13 shots. Yes, you read that correctly. He just hucked up brick after brick, failing to attack the rim enough (no free throws attempted). The lack of attacking the rim hurt, too, because Dwight Howard drew his fourth foul mid way through the third and the Magic didn’t take him out of the game. Had Randy attacked the rim to compensate for his awful shooting (what Eric Gordon does when he’s having an off night), the Clippers could have put Dwight out of the game for a longer stretch and altered the complexion of the game. He did drew a foul on Dwight once in the third quarter, but once wasn’t nearly enough.

Back to Baron. He played fantastic tonight. He shot 6 threes, which usually is a bad sign, but he shot them all with his feet set and made four of them. When he wasn’t shooting threes, he attacked the rim, and when the defense swarmed him, he kicked out for 8 assists. He even rebounded the ball, pulling down 8 rebounds. Had the other Clipper players been shooting better, Baron would have had a double double. He found Blake when he could, including a tricky pass in the first quarter when the Clippers were on the break. Baron was in traffic when he flipped it to Blake for the bucket and the foul. Then there was the long distance lob (captured up top) at the end of the third quarter that gave the Clippers the energy to come back from the Magic’s first big run, an 11-0 run from 6:31 to 3:01 in the third. Baron was all over the place this game and had the Clippers continued their tough defense down the stretch, and not given up 30 points in the last 9:41, he might have willed him to the win.

The only player that really showed up, other than Baron, was Ike Diogu. Ike only had 5 rebounds, but four of them were on the offensive end, where he created his own shot. He basically was the janitor for the rest of the team, cleaning up as much as he could, and finishing with a highly efficient 7 for 10 shooting. He even drew a charge on Dwight in the third quarter that gave the Clippers some lift. It’s amazing what he’s been doing since he signed with the Clippers, but it’s becoming clear that the NBA cast him off too early.

However, against teams like Orlando, the Clippers have such a high degree of difficulty that they can’t have two great games from supporting players and expect to win. Blake needs to have great games for them to win. Whether or not that’s fair is beside the point, other players have done it (look at LeBron and Cleveland) and it’s what’s necessary for the Clippers going forward.

Some notes:

• After seeming to have broken out in early January, DeAndre Jordan played poorly again. In the last four games, he’s averaged 4 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in 24.5 minutes per game. Part of his poor play is just the normal step back for the two steps forward, but there is two things that I want to address: 1) opposing teams are more aware of his movements around the basket because he’s such a good target for alley-oops, and 2) he seems to be hesitating when he gets the ball. DeAndre isn’t the most skilled big, so when he gets the ball close in the post, he can’t take a dribble and go to the hoop. He just needs to put it up. His confidence is not where it was when he was playing so well in January. If the Clippers want to play better, especially with Kaman out, they need DeAndre to be at least half as mentally strong as he is physically.

• Al-Farouq Aminu. His outside shot isn’t nearly what it was earlier in the year, but from what I see, he shows some signs of improving. He had three steals, a block and one of his “Farouq pass it! Pass it! Oh, oh! Great layup” fast breaks. I don’t want to gloss over his two turnovers and his 5 fouls, he’s still a long ways away. But I continue to think that he might fit in better with veterans around him. If he and Gomes switched places, and not necessarily minutes, I think there’s a chance that the Clippers could see more growth from Aminu while getting Gomes’ basketball I.Q. working with the second unit. Look at that Baron-Gordon-Aminu-Blake-Jordan line-up, it’s the best unit the Clips have given more than 20 minutes of run over the course of the season, with Aminu running with the “vets.”

• Bledsoe isn’t using his speed to get enough good shots. He only shot twice tonight despite having the speed to blow by every player on the Magic team. In his last five games, he’s averaged 19.4 minutes per game, and yet in all that time, he’s only shot the ball 17 times total. I like that he’s taking the role of distributor seriously, but he’ll be more effective if he gets his own shot and becomes a legitimate threat himself.

• Some stats on Dwight’s impact for the Magic (courtesy of ESPN Stats and Information):

The Clippers shot 75 percent on 9 for 12 shooting when Dwight was off the court, and 12 for 21 when Dwight was on the court.

Dwight out-dunked Blake tonight, 4-2, increasing his lead on the most dunks for the season, 135-118.

Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day!

Back in November the Clippers turned in their biggest stinker of the season, getting run off the Pacers home floor 107-80. They shot poorly from the field (33 percent, 22 percent from three) and they defended poorly (Pacers shot 50 percent from the field and 54 percent from the beyond the arc). But that Clippers team looked so different from the one that lost to the Pacers.

Some Changes:

- Blake Griffin has had a double double in every game since that Pacers game. He logged 12 points and 8 rebounds then, but has averaged 24.6 points and 13.8 rebounds since. (Even if the steadiness of that production isn’t as even.)

- Eric Gordon has found his shot. He was largely going to the rim for his shots, but now, he’s shooting threes like everyone remembers, 14-33 in his last 5 games (42 percent).

- Return of Baron Davis, the good one. Since coming back Baron has turned into the table setter for the team, improving his shot selection (still not perfect) and even becoming feisty on occasion, just look at the game against the Lakers when Baron jumped in to scuffle with Lamar Odom and when Baron stood up to Zydrunas in the Heat game, Baron’s alive and kicking.

- DeAndre Jordan’s emergence. At the time of the first game against the Pacers, DeAndre was a center by default, but now he’s been playing really well of late, anchoring the defense and dunking all over opposing centers.

- Bledsoe and Aminu’s return to the bench combined with the decrease in minutes for Rasual Butler. ‘Sual played 20 minutes in the game against the Pacers but he hasn’t gotten off the pine recently, sitting in the last 7 games. He’s been largely inefficient and a reason for the Clippers then-stagnant offense. While Aminu isn’t shooting quite at the same clip that he was earlier in the year, the bench is stronger now.

All combined together and it’s no wonder that the Clippers are in a completely different place than the last matchup. Instead of 1-11 in recent play, the Clippers are 9-4 and learning, forming a unit and breaking bad habits. The next one to break: having let-down games.

Keys to the Game:

- Danny Granger v. Gordon. Not only is Granger a very good offensive option but his defense has improved mightily. In the last meeting, Eric Gordon lit up the Pacers for 11 first quarter points before Granger switched off of his natural matchup with Aminu and on to Gordon. EJ did finish with 19 points, but it was on 5 for 17 shooting, a large reason the Clippers were run off the floor. And then Granger’s the top option on offense, playing at a position that the Clippers have had a hard time guarding.

- Roy Hibbert. Like the Lakers’ Bynum, Hibbert is a strong low post presence with good shot-blocking capabilities. DJ is slightly shorter but he has the reach and athleticism to bother Hibbert. Being one of the only interior threats, stopping Hibbert is the best way to throw their offense off balance.

- Keep up the Intensity. The Clippers are 3-3 after big wins (Thunder, Hornets, Spurs, Bulls, Nuggets, Heat) and they just beat their in-house rivals for a huge win. It’s conceivable that the Clippers could let down for a 12:30 game the day after a big victory, but if they continue to learn from their mistakes over the course of the year, then they’ll play a focused game today.

Injury Report:
Brian Cook right ankle, doubtful
Craig Smith herniated disc, out
Chris Kaman left ankle, out

The Clippers raced out to an early lead, paced by a great first half from Blake and DeAndre and then Nuggets started chipping away. First it was a long J.R. Smith three, then it was Chauncey Billups’ four point play and the Nuggets brought a fifteen point lead down to 8 to close the second quarter. Then the Nuggets came out of break, the Clippers gave up five straight points on three free throws from Chauncey Billups and an easy Nene Hilario steal that lead to a fast break where Blake, again looked confused on transition defense. Considering the recent history, it would be easy to expect the Clippers to get away from Blake, start hoisting bad shots and letting their offensive missteps transfer into a paranoid and lackadaisical defense. However, that wasn’t the case tonight as the Clippers even extended their first half lead and won by thirteen.

The disturbing trend of the opponents shooting a high percentage from three continued, and the Nuggets even got within 3 within three minutes of the third quarter, but there was a spurt from Eric Bledsoe that put the Nuggets back on their heels. He started the run with a right handed floater on the right side of the lane, then he nailed a three and then went back to the rim for another deuce and the foul (although he didn’t convert). Bledsoe benefitted from the zippy Nuggets guard Ty Lawson’s absence, but his play still required the gumption to make those shots, even if the shots were more open than normal because he had the slower Chauncey Billups guarding him. It’s been what the Clippers have been missing in the recent losses to Utah and Atlanta, that resilient ability to stare down a charging foe and make a steely move. They have harnessed this ability in certain spots, like the wins against the Hornets, Spurs and Bulls, but the win over the Nuggets felt different. It wasn’t like the Clippers survived the game, but that they actually won it.

DeAndre Jordan provided a surprisingly big lift on the interior and his play, beyond the Nuggets game, begs more attention. Yes, he turned in a Camby-esque 14 point, 20 rebound, 6 block performance in a win, but even in the recent losses he’s had a positive effect. In the last 3 games, he’s had 19 blocks. Yes, that’s right, 19 blocks. He’s still swatting at some of the shots like little kid exploding harmless soap bubbles, but there are some that lead to fast breaks. It’s no coincidence that the Clippers highlight of the game (a fast break, give-and-go alley-oop between Blake and Baron) started from a DeAndre block to his teammates. Granted, it was a mistake, as he clearly out-jumped the shot and swatted it off of his forearm, but it worked. That potential of defensive awareness will vastly improve his effectiveness. What’s most crucial is that he’s learning, becoming that low usage defensive anchor that compliments his front court partner and friend Blake Griffin.

Speaking of Blake, he again had a monster game, coming close to his first 20-20 game as he racked up 22 points, 18 rebounds and 7 assists (capped by a beautiful lob thrown to DeAndre), those assists a testament to his quick ability to adapt to the competition. His second half let downs, let downs at least in comparison to his first halves, continue to beguile. Maybe it’s just the teams figuring how to deal with his energy and bring Blake down to earth, even if his 7 points and 8 rebounds in the second half are what some centers average for a game, but he needs to figure out how to maintain his effectiveness. It’s crazy to pick the nits of a player that has the potential to be historically great (I had an argument with Daily Dime Live Host Zach Harper whether Blake could has the potential to be a Top-50 all time player), but if Blake wants to improve beyond a great player on a bad team, then he’s going to have to continually address his faults. I’m not even saying that he’s resting on his laurels, obviously he’s a hard worker, but his current situation is extremely difficult. Beyond just being on a bad team, he has to deal with the consistent negative stigmas associated with the owner and the franchise. Unfair or not, there is the extra push that he’ll have to endure to overcome the trivialities of an anomalous highlight machine on a bad team.

Watching this game, I began to wonder how closely Blake’s first half dominance is related to Baron Davis’ play. In the first half, Baron already had amassed his 8 assists, but in the second? None. It potentially provides a template for the answer to Jordan Heimer’s question brought up the other day, if Baron is healthy, then why isn’t he getting big minutes? This may be the answer, that he’s not able to sustain his play in the second half and those minutes need to go to Bledsoe in order to provide Baron with whatever rest is needed for him to finish out the ball game. Maybe Baron the facilitator requires a certain equilibrium, not too much playing time before he searches for his own shot rather than serving up passes to the rest of his teammates. It may just be something Baron needs to simply focus on, but the correlation and the trend is at least worthy of addressing.

Good news is that it didn’t have an effect on Eric Gordon who played another quietly impressive game. If Blake, DeAndre, Baron and Bledsoe are taking a chunk of the highlights, it’s largely because Eric Gordon allows them to be there. I’d bet that if you asked the casual NBA fan who was the scoring leader on the Clippers, few would answer Eric Gordon. And it’s not like he doesn’t contribute to the “big” plays. In the third, when the Nuggets were still fighting, Eric drove strong to the hole for a decisive lay-up and the foul. It was stabilizing, even if it didn’t completely prevent the slide that allowed for Bledsoe’s hot streak. Instead, Gordon has become a wonder in spite of his excellence, his handle down the stretch rightly questioned even though he has displayed the propensity to take over games (see November Jazz game in Utah and the second matchup with the Kings). He clearly hasn’t finished his development, which will involve the steadying of his handle so that he’s jerky dribble penetrations doesn’t fool himself more than the defenders.

But for now, Clippers fans should enjoy the solace of the win over the Nuggets. The two games prior showed that the Clippers are not going to make constant improvements, there will be setbacks against good teams, but they are learning enough where they can continue to bounce back and show very real progress.