In his first season as coach of the Clippers, you could say Vinny Del Negro was exactly what we expected him to be. His perceived ability to develop players and to “get” his team to play hard through the last whistle were the reasons the Clippers hired him over Dwane Casey, who came with high praise for his tactical acumen and leadership. The Clipper Organization believed in the results they saw from Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson under Del Negro in Chicago, and Neil Olshey said as much on the day they introduced him as coach: “We wanted someone who had a history of developing and being willing to play young players, which when you look at [the Bulls'] starting lineup, they certainly did [in Chicago].” As was the case in his last situation, it’s unclear just how much impact he had on the progress of his young players.  More...

The Clippers dropped their final clash of the season with the Lakers 112-104 in an entertaining but sloppy game last night at the Staples Center. Watching the game, it was hard to figure out how the Clippers kept it as close as they did. Leading scorer Eric Gordon suffered through his worst shooting night of the season, missing his first 11 shots without managing to earn a single trip to the line. By the time he finally made three shots in the final minutes, the game was pretty much decided.

If it wasn’t for Mo Williams, the game wouldn’t have been close at all. The Clippers started the second half down 9, and managed to achieve a rare 3rd quarter victory (32-28) thanks mostly to a 14 point quarter from Williams, including two circus threes. Williams had his best game as a Clipper tonight, scoring a team high 30 points on 11-16 shooting, including 4-7 from beyond the arc.  (The more you watch Mo Williams play, the more he reveals himself as a gunner – if he’s feeling it, he won’t hesitate to call his own number. A lot of the shots he made tonight, particularly in the third quarter, ranked high on degree of difficulty. Only time will tell if Williams can sink enough step back threes and reverse lay-ups to justify such difficult attempts, but for a guy who was supposed to be a soothing antidote to the inconsistency of Baron Davis’ razzle-dazzle, Mo scores pretty high on the “Noooo, nooooo, nooooo….. YESSSSSSSSS!!!” scale himself.)

Still, despite Mo’s efforts, it was hard to figure out how the Clippers were still within a basket midway through the fourth quarter. They turned the ball over more than the Lakers, shot worse, grabbed fewer offensive rebounds, and got to the free throw line less (a whopping 39-18 discrepancy). Besides a solid effort from Blake (22 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals), the Clippers didn’t get much from remaining starters Ryan Gomes or Chris Kaman.

But as sloppy as the Clippers were, the Lakers were often sloppier. Much has been made of the Lakers hot play since the All-Star break, but their play tonight was punctuated throughout by moments of inattention or flat out goofiness. Matt Barnes let two defensive rebounds bounce off his face, and tapped in a third for a Clippers basket. Andrew Bynum threw an outlet pass so accurate that Phil Jackson didn’t have to move to catch it. And Ron Artest set the NBA record for most missed breakaway slams to start a quarter in the third, first getting rejected by the rim and then, thirty seconds later, losing control of the ball on his way up and hurling it wildly against the backboard. Often, the Lakers -particularly the starting unit – were slow to get back on transition after missed shots; the Clippers 21-12 advantage in the fast break helped keep them in the game.

Another reason the Clippers were able to keep it close was that the bench made a rare appearance, outscoring the Lakers’ bench 34-14. Randy Foye and Al-Farouq Aminu were particularly good. Foye did it in his usual way, getting hot from outside in the fourth quarter, and scoring 8 of his 12 points in quick succession on tough jumpers just inside the arc. Aminu had one of those tantalizing games that he and fellow rookie Eric Bledsoe seem to specialize in. On bad nights, it sometimes seems that Farouq has trouble getting into the flow of the game — but then on good nights his play makes you throw around crazy, made up adjectives and adverbs like “Pippin-esque” and “Dengly.”

Two plays in particular stuck out for me. On the first, Aminu grabbed a rebound, surveyed the floor, dribbled past mid-court, realized that no one was stopping him, and attacked the basket with three giant bounds, flushing the ball through the hoop before the D realized he was driving. The rare combination of rebounding instincts, ball handling, aggression, and athleticism you need to pull off this play is rare – almost Blake-like. Having two forwards who can turn rebounds into lay-ups is a scary thing. The second play was as much about Blake Griffin’s growing basketball IQ as it is about Aminu’s skills, but whatever. Midway through the fourth, Blake had the ball on the left block, guarded by Lamar Odom. Griffin shifted the ball away from the basket as if he was considering a turn around jumper, which forced Odom to come a half step out of the lane. That space created an alley for Aminu to streak down, and Blake hit him in stride, whipping the pass past Odom’s face. It would have been a masterful play no matter who was running it, but for two rookies to pull it off is extremely encouraging.

(And while we’re on specific plays, tonight’s game provided two more entries for the “Blake Griffin: Don’t Start Taking Me For Granted Yet Please” file. First, Randy Foye found Blake on an alley-oop from a good ¾ of the way down the court – a good 70 feet – possibly the season’s most impressive long range hookup. Later, Mo Williams failed to pass the ball early enough on a botched fast break and ended up trapped underneath the basket. As a last resort, he threw the ball up in the air about three feet behind a leaping Griffin. Blake – already in the air – managed to reach his right arm back over his head like Plastic Man, corral the ball a good two feet behind his neck and then somehow maintain control of the ball as he windmilled it home.)

Turnovers continue to be a problem. There were “only” 16 tonight (compared to, say, the 25 against the Wizards earlier in the week), but many came off wholly unforced errors and led to 12 momentum killing fast break points for the Lakers. I admit I didn’t know Mo Williams’ game that well before he came to the Clippers. It’s natural that Mo would be compared to Baron, and just as natural to contrast the point guards in an easy, binary way. Williams can stroke it consistently from deep; Baron couldn’t. Williams prefers to run a pick and roll; Baron was more comfortable throwing the ball inside. But as a distributor, Mo shares some of Baron’s most aggravating qualities. He often tries too hard to force tough passes through impossibly small openings, and seems to have the same over-confidence in his ability to keep his dribble alive while slaloming through defenders. Williams had 5 turnovers last night, and he has a higher TO% (% of possessions that end in a turn over) than Baron Davis, both this season and over his career. It’s worth noting, because the assumption has seemed to be that Mo Williams’ arrival would lead to a more careful brand of basketball. Instead, you’re left to wonder what the Clippers can do about the fact that their top four scorers (Kaman, Williams, Gordon, and Griffin) are all prone to giving the ball away.

If Ron Artest continues to play with the defensive intensity he brought tonight, it significantly increases the Lakers’ chances for a third consecutive title. Tonight, Artest had 3 turnovers to go along with 3 blocks (all 3, somewhat unusually, came off close-outs on the perimeter), 15 points, and a game high +/- +21. The last turn over Artest forced was the game clincher. Down 5 with under 4 minutes to play in the game, the Clippers had a fast break opportunity off a DeAndre Jordan blocked shot. Blake took one dribble in the paint and attempted to rise past Artest, who somehow managed to artfully poke the ball out of Blake’s hands before he could elevate. Blake wanted a call but didn’t deserve one, and that was basically that.

And in the end, the Clippers just couldn’t get a stop when they needed one. There was Kobe being Kobe in the fourth quarter again, scoring 12 of his game high 37 points, and basically driving poor Eric Gordon out of his mind. Remember how Eric Gordon and Kobe Bryant had essentially identical statistics after the first two Lakers-Clips game? Not tonight. In addition to his offensive woes, Eric Gordon was manhandled by Kobe, who not only made his usual handful of late-MJ-style midrange jumpers but also got to the charity stripe an amazing 17 times. (I know this is typical Laker-hater bile, but… seriously, does any player get the “respect” from refs that Kobe does? Randy Foye fouled out of the game guarding him for less than 15 minutes – and on replay it looked like Foye didn’t even touch Kobe on two of the fouls.)

The downside to the Clippers (finally) playing at full strength is that it’s a lot harder to make excuses. With either Kaman or EJ on the bench for the majority of the season, Clipper fans have been quick to blame many of the season’s losses on a lack of firepower due to injury. Of course, the Clippers are stronger with their stars on the court, but games like this are reminders of the Clips’ struggles early in the season, when the question wasn’t firepower, but finding a balanced scheme to maximize the talent. There have been times since EJs return – most obviously against the Wizards – when he has been visibly frustrated by his lack of touches. Assuming the team doesn’t trade Kaman over the summer, the Clippers are going to enter next season with at least four players who probably consider themselves primary or (at the least) secondary scorers. Figuring out how to make that work should be the focus of Vinny and his team over the final 10 games.

For a meaningless Mid-March game between two lottery-bound squads, there was no shortage of interesting story lines surrounding today’s game against the Cavs: 1. Eric Gordon’s second attempt to return from his wrist injury. 2. Baron Davis’ return to the Staples Center. 3. The Clippers attempt not to be swept by the league’s worst team, a month after becoming the answer to future Jeopardy question Who did the moribund 2011 Cleveland Cavaliers beat, finally ending a league record 26 game losing streak? (Most people won’t know the answer but will guess the Clippers anyway). Then, far lower on the list: 4. Blake Griffin “Hitting the Rookie Wall” watch. 5. Trying to figure out whatever there is to figure out from watching the team finally play at full strength.

Oh, and also an hour before the game a man charged out of the stands wielding a steak knife, after which, according to the Clippers Post Game radio show, he was surrounded by a joint task force of police men and Staples Center Security elite and subdued with rubber bullets. So there was a lot going on.

Maybe the knife really shook people, because what followed was an uneven game, not unlike the one the Clips lost to the Cavaliers last month. The Cavaliers never led after the second quarter – but the Clippers never put together the 8 minute stretch of energetic error-free basketball that would have put the Cavs away.

For me, at this point in the season the answers to certain individual questions (How will Mo Williams work with Eric Gordon? Could Kaman be a Sixth Man for an entire season?) have become as important as wins and losses. It seems natural that players also sense it when that barrier has been crossed. These Clippers are definitely still playing hard (unlike, say, last March’s contract hunters, Travis Outlaw and Drew Goodon… which, by the way, worked for both of them) but there were signs of inattention scattered between spurts of good play – the kind of foolish mistakes there seemed to be fewer of when the team was still “in contention.”

There were quarters that ended on possessions when the Clippers failed to get off a final shot. There were total defensive breakdowns, where everyone would simultaneously abandon the paint – at one point allowing a man named Alonzo Gee to streak untouched down the paint and rise for a full 360 slam like he was auditioning for the dunk contest. There were multiple lane violations. Little signs of a team with wavering attention.

But in the end, the Cavs were just worse. I mean, I know piling on bad play is pure hubris for a Clippers fan, but aside from JJ Hickson (who, if you’ve only seen him play against the Clippers you must think is one of the ten best players in the NBA) these Cavs played some ugly basketball. There was one inexplicable stretch early in the fourth quarter when – down 2, and on the verge of taking the lead – the Cavs burned three consective possessions on Lake Harangody jump shots, the first of which was one of the ugliest shots you will ever see in an NBA game. Or any basketball game, for that matter. The fact that epitomizes the Cavs play today: In their 6 possessions in the final 2 minutes the Cavs managed a total of three shot attempts. The Clippers didn’t play particularly well, but they did just enough to put away a weak team.

So that was the game. What about those storylines?

How’s Eric Gordon look?

Plenty of people realize Eric Gordon “took a step” this year, but I think to some extent Blake Griffin’s All-World rookie season (in addition, obviously, to EJ’s recent injuries) have overshadowed how dramatic that leap has been. There’s a short list of guys in the NBA who can roll off an injury and drop 29 points, guys who – judging from their blasé reactions – expect to walk in and drop 29. Eric Gordon is on that list.

Last year, Eric Gordon’s poor performances in “return” games were blamed on a lack of confidence. He would look tentative, as if each time he came back he was readjusting all over again – to his shot, his legs, the speed of the game, the flow of the team. What happened to that Eric Gordon? He came out gunning two weeks ago coming off the Wrist Part I, and tonight he did the same. It was a showcase of his confidence this year. On his first touch, he knifed to the basket, split two defenders, forced contact, and made a tough shot as he went to the floor. After jacking up a couple ugly looking contested 3s in the first half, Gordon found the range in the fourth quarter, knocking down 3 in 4 possessions. He was 6 for 10 from three and completely without that hesitations we saw from Eric as recently as past November. I really don’t know how to explain it. (It would pain me to credit the magic of Coach K even a little). But I can’t ever remember watching another player so fully going from a guy who seemed a little shaky in the confidence department to being a cold blooded scorer who always wants to take his shot.

Also, he still has that Demolition Man haircut.

Baron’s Return

There really wasn’t one. Baron sat this one out with back spasms. It’s hard not to feel for Baron who, according to reports, learned that his grandmother had to check into the hospital the same day he was traded for Cleveland. I’ve already waxed poetic about Baron plenty, but it’s depressing to imagine Baron freezing away his final productive years in Cleveland. (Is there still buyout talk? Is the idea of Baron coordinating the circus in Miami crazy?)

Is Blake Griffin hitting the “Rookie Wall?”

Blake had his best game in a month, scoring 30 points along with 9 rebounds and 8 assists. It was a good day for youtube curators of Blake Griffin highlight reels, who have suffered through a slow month. Surprisingly, Cleveland chose to play Blake one-on-one for much of the game, despite not really having a player in their front court capable of matching up with him physically. Samardo Samuels drew the unenviable assignment the most often, and was victimized accordingly, first with a down-the-lane reverse jam, and later with a stumbling upside down prayer that was first called a travel, then a basket with a foul, and finally a foul before the act. Whatever. It was pretty spectacular.

The huge stats, of course, don’t necessarily disprove the idea that Blake Griffin might be hitting the dreaded “Rookie Wall.” It would be strange if Griffin wasn’t tired. He’s played starter’s minutes for 60 games, didn’t have an All-Star break, and was forced to become the primary offensive weapon at the same time that coaches were beginning to game plan for him anyway. That takes a toll. Blake had room tonight, a rare commodity during Eric Gordon’s absence, in addition to relatively weak opposition. On the East Coast trip, teams were using two guys to force Blake to make plays 12-18 feet from the basket. Today, Blake got whatever position he wanted with a power dribble and a few backward jolts. Luckily, the Clippers next two opponents – Phoenix and Washington – aren’t strong inside either so… undecided. He clearly has plenty left, but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t lost a little pop. (The decrease in rebounds the past two weeks might be a better indicator of this than points, which I think had a lot to do with opponent’s ability to double Blake without consequences in the absence of Eric Gordon).

(By the way: Blake’s quote on the pre-game knife-wilder:  “That was crazy man. There aren’t too many stand offs in Oklahoma. Not that I can remember.” Wait – does that mean he is leaving for the Thunder?)

What do we learn about the team flow with everyone playing?

Simple. To steal a word from Mike Smith, Eric Gordon changes the entire “geometry” of the team. His slashing ability makes it impossible for defenses to smother Blake with unvarying double teams. On defense, his ability to keep perimeter scorers out of the lane creates far fewer easy layups and/or situations where DeAndre or Blake have to foul. How many times in the past month have Blake and DeAndre been left alone to stop a streaking shooter? In short, the next time Eric Gordon gets injured I probably shouldn’t write that “Randy Foye can be Eric Gordon lite – at least for a few weeks.” Eric Gordon is a star. Mike borrowed a little flair from Clyde, noting that EJ “alleviates and facilitates.” And if Eric Gordon, it turns out, is as essential to this team’s success as any player, then is it time to start worrying about his propensity to injury? He missed 20 games last year, and he’ll miss almost 30 this year. With such a small sample size it’s hard to separate a few unrelated humps and bruises from a pattern. Time will tell obviously.

(Also – and I know this should be its own post – but in terms of “what the team needs going forward” take a look at the list of free agents that went up on ESPN. Pretty uninspiring group of small forwards (the Clippers most obvious need). Fliers on Caron Butler or Tayshaun Prince, or maybe Vlad Rad, CJ Miles. And down from there. Last off season, Neil Olshey showed admirable restraint in staying away from overpaying a free agent just to get a free agent. It will be interesting to see if that means he is more likely to try to trade than give, say, Prince 3 years 18 million dollars)

More proof that Kaman would make a good sixth man

I’m fully in this camp. I’m convinced Chris Kaman could win the sixth man of year. I know it’s not traditional, but there are so many things I like about Kaman as a sixth man (this is all assuming DeAndre and Kaman are still on the team next year.) 1. The mismatches. No back up 5 in the West could guard him. 2. As the sub he’ll often be in when the team is in the penalty, minimizing DJs foul shots. 3. He’s a guy who needs to get into a rhythm. You need to get Kaman his shots, but not at the expense of Blake, EJ, and Mo Williams. I love the lineups where Vinny plays Kaman with an energy unit (Aminu, Bledsoe, Moon, Smith, say) and just features Kaman in the post, play after play. Today, we saw the equally important corollary: When Kaman is off, the damage is limited. Sabermatricians can argue over the myth of the hot hand, but Chris Kaman is the streakiest guy I’ve ever seen. Today was one of those days for Chris – missed shots, sloppy fouls on defense, a few ungainly looking turnovers. But it’s effect on the flow of Eric Gordon and Blake Griffin was limited – and the rest of the second unit still continued to play hard defense and crash the boards.

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

Two months ago, when the Clippers met the Indiana Pacers, their season was careening toward disaster. After getting blown out by 27 points in Indianapolis to begin the season 1-12, when even Blake Griffin looked lethargic and scored a quiet 12 points, there was a growing fear that the malaise which hung over the Clippers franchise would eventually sap the enthusiasm of their young nucleus before they have a chance to bloom. Even Eric Gordon, the one constant Clippers bright spot in the young season, had one of his worst games of the year, making only 5 out of 17 shots for 19 points.  More...