I am writing this in the open rather than comment because I want everyone to read this. Mostly, because alot of people have the opinion of Maggette being a reaction signing, and Turiaf being a bad get.

Maggette was a good get. Was he Brand? Hell, NO! and he doesn't fill our major needs, rebounding ,defense and a post presence. Problem is, who does, especially in this free agent market. Brand WAS IT and there are only 10 guys in the league that can do everything we need. We haven't had a top Power Forward since the year we had C-Webb. We haven't had a great center since Big Nate. You get lucky, like the Blazers and draft one, or you are LA or NY and court one. Every great big has ended up in a major market through trade or free agency or stayed where he was drafted cause it was home or he loved it. We are NEVER, gonna sign a Shaq or a Kareem like player.I can run off every great center or every great big that left his original team through trade or free agency and they all went to a major market. Bill Russell, Wilt, Shaq, Moses Malone, Kareem,Parrish and even our own Nate Thurmond. We will never get a great big unless we purposely lose and end up in the lottery 14 years straight and pray we get the next Shaq, and it looks like the Blazers already did that.

So what do we do now? We build a team the best we can and hope we're onto something with this run and gun thing. We are (at my house at least) always complaining that Baron won't go to the rack. If he drove everytime he settled for a 3, he would be one of the 5 best point guards of all time. Instead Baron got lazy and settled, sometimes it worked out, quite often it didn't. We just got a guy who never settles in Maggette, he goes to the hoop everytime. We complain about not attacking the rim or getting to the free throw line and in Nellie's system he will do that alot, maybe even lead the league.We are always hearing Fitz talk about our need for a Paul Milsap type player. Defensive toughness and a rebouders mentality, and that is Turiaf to a "T". We didn't overpay for Turiaf and Magette's contract isn't a burden. These are building blocks, young and old, that can put us on the right track. Turiaf isn't gonna take all of Wright's minutes and Nellie was never gonna play Randolph any meaningful minutes this year. All that youth talk you can chalk up to the same sort of talk last year, when Nellie said" Belinelli, will be our starting SG and Monte will come off the bench". That was hype and him pushing Monte, Nellie knows talent and never once hesitated to start Monte but sure as hell hesitated to start Marco.

Don't get me wrong, I will miss Baron he was great and so much fun. His swagger is something we haven't had in a along time, not since Tim Hardaway. And I am disappointed in not getting Elton, he was exactly what we needed and what we may never have, a dominant BIG. But now, we trade for a PG (I like Hinrich's "D" and he is a great distributor but there is Josh Childress or taking a chance on Livningston) and we move Al's contract to free up space. We just added a hustle player and rebounder ( if the Lakers don't match, and all signs point to the no, but that's what they said about Baron and Brand too, right?) and a slasher and driver in Mag's. We lose no speed in Mags(very fast at his pisition and Baron had lost a step, he was pushing guys around rather than going around them) and get tougher in Turiaf. This looks like a team who will either add a star and be a contender or develop a star, if either of our last 2 picks grow like Monte did. I know we haven't  seen a guy develop and become a star, not since Richmond, who we lost anyways, but it happens. We got A.I. 2.0 and this one can shoot for percentage.

So buck up, we are on the right track finally, not crippling ourselves with a long term contract with Baron, mostly young guys with some real talent that will flourish in a Nelli-ball system and hope in Monte that we got a star for the future and it is starting to look like Mullin actually has a plan.

As far as I  can tell the longer it takes to hear from Brand, the better. I hope someone responds and tells me , intelligently, why I am wrong. I have become far too optimistic about this Brand deal. I have written mutliple times this week about all the talking heads having it a for gone conclusion that Brand will sign back with the Clippers. I have argued that the amount of money he would be leaving behind is enormous, and it would be a huge gamble to try and win with the Clippers who never will compete for a title as they are constituted now. Let alone, have no history of wining or building a winner or commitment ot building a winner. Add all this on top of the gamble that Baron is both motivated and healthy.

My point is this, reports have Brand in Philidelphia trying to bring the 76ers into the bidding. Now, there is no way in hell that the CLippers will match any offer. Sterling has spent more recently but has never and wil never go into the luxury tax. Why would Brand try and drive up the price if he is just gonna go to LA and take what they offered in the first place. And more to my point, If he is waiting until Wednesday to sign and not make a verbal agreement, one would think it is because he wants to not get anymore backlash fromt he media. He would take a double hit  both with a verbal agreement with the W's and then turn around 4 days later and  then sign officially. It only makes sense to wait and go through it once. If he was signing with the Clippers why wait, just do it now and stop all the questions and stress. He is obviously considering  the offer, and the longer he waits the more likely, in my mind, that the Warriors actually land a stud PF that will put us into contention and crush the hopes of Baron all at once. Baron got his $ so he isn't hurt, but finally we get the upper hand and wouldn't that be a great story.

Alright, amidst all this talk of an Elton Brand offer and of course Baron's departure, we need to get something straight. I have heard person after person say, Brand isn't coming and this is a PR move to "look" like we are being active, full well knowing there isn't a shot in hell we are getting Elton. But look at the fact that, the clips are offering $70 M for Elton and can only offer $75M for 5 years and stay under the cap. We have been reported to offer as much as $100M for 5 years and that means that Elton would be leaving $25M on the table. Let's say that again, " Elton Brand would rather throw $25M million dollars in to a black hole than play for us".

Now, the first point is this, Elton Brand is a max player but much like Duncan has little flash. He is worth the Money. Secondly, the talk that he will eventually end up with the Clippers , though with alot of relevance, is a disconnect over how much money that really is. He will literally give up $25 million dollars to play for the Clippers. Brand has the same chance at a title with the Warriors (that being slim) as he does with the Clippers. He is gonna bank his title hopes and give up $25M on Baron's knees and Chris Kaman? My point is, this whole thing isn't a for gone conclusion. Ultimately he will , more than likely, stay in LA. But to simply dismiss the notion of our offer as highly unlikely or a simple PR move is to discount how large an offer this is and how disfunctional the Clippers are.

In 2 years time, Baron will be as productive and as good as Derrick Fisher (without Fisher's touch from the free throw line or the 3pt line) and Monte will  almost be in leaguewith Iverson at his prime. Brand has alot of upside not the least of which is he is one of 5 big men in the league that fits our system. He can shoot from 20 feet in, he boards, plays D and can post almost anyone in the league up.Put that next to Monte and Andris and Jack and we got a playoff team next year. The Clippers on the other hand have Thornton Kaman and some old legs that cashed in on his most productive season. I don't see this as being so easy for Elton, maybe he doesn't win a title with us next year, but Elton isn't so foolish to think he can in LA. Why give up $25 M to end up in the same place ultimately with a shorter window to win? 

I know we all look at Baron as our saviour and he was. He gave us a championship feeling in a place where titles are few and far between. I love Baron and he is gonna be great for the Clippers, for 2 years.

That is where this whole thing gets real. We can't be mad at Baron, he made a whole lot of cash from a team that doesn't usually spend money. This is why the Clippers are the Clips. They are paying Baron $13 million a year, we would be insane to do that. We got 1 full year out of Baron the 3 years Baron was here. He ran out of gas at the end of the season, so he might as well have been hurt mid-season and came back healthy like he did last year. But I get off track, the truth is Baron will be 36 when his contract is up and he will have been through 3 teams by then. His bad knees and contract will wander the NBA in the last 3 years of his contract, much like caine in Kung-fu. He is a great player, but not top tier. He is a great finisher but he's not Kobe or even Arenas. He is gonna do well in LA if his knees hold up and that is a big if. His health is a question more now than 2 years ago and his heart is even more so.

It is obvious that Baron was playing last season as if it were a contract year. He knew where he wanted to go and what his plans were, don't let this
"I wanted to play in GS but they were disrespecting me with their offers" talk fool you. He had his sights set on Hollywood, he loves the limelight and wanted another $65 mil to spend on movies and movie star friends.We would've used him up and left him for dead next year if he stayed anyways. So tell Baron, we loved him, and respect that he had to get his $'s. However know, that he did us a favor in locking up some big bucks from a division rival on a player with bad knees , a hard head and a questionable shot selection. The Clippers will compete, but they aren't gonna be in the Conference finals let alone the finals next year and their chances get worse every year they bare down on those old tired knees.

So what does this mean for us? We got a team I thought had a great chance with an addition in the right position. I had been a proponent of trading Boom-Dizzle (I won't miss that stupid knick name) for a Power forward like Rasheed Wallace or going after a Brand. We Obviously aren't getting Brand and we could shoot for a vet like Sheed or overpay for Josh Smith. Those guys would make us competitive next season and Smith would help in the future, but we also got a big Free Agent market next season with a whole lot of people trying to clear space and save cash for 2010 with Bosh and Wade and of cousre the Lebron sweepstakes. That puts us in a place where we'll have cash and alot of guys to spend it on. So look up warrior fan, there is no way you can justify spending $13 mil a year on Baron and imprisoning our future for a year or 2 of a chance at the 7 or 8 seed, come on. Mullie is building us for the future, when only Chris Paul , Oden and Durant will be in our way and Baron will still be under contract to the Clips (though by that point they'll have traded that contract to the knicks who will be buying him out and re-building for the 12th straight year) and we will have some young stars ready to blossom and fighting for more than a #7 spot in the playoffs.