SB Nation User Blog: Jax

K Durant and Thunder go off last night

Jax — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 17:57:43 -0000

K Durant and Thunder go off last night

They are an exciting young team. Kevin Durant goes off for 30 on 10-16 shooting, 5-5 threes, 2 blocks, in 31 minutes. Westbrook flirts with a triple double. Jeff Green and young Harden looking good.

Durant is already special. The sky is the limit for him.

Clippers Waive Mark Madsen

Jax — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 22:28:18 -0000

Clippers Waive Mark Madsen

I wonder if this means they are getting ready to sign someone. How much money is saved?

Knicks trying to get Rubio

Jax — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 16:39:32 -0000

Knicks trying to get Rubio

If this happens, so long as we can outbid the Bucks, seems like we would have the inside track on Sessions.

Some Questions About Sessions' Fit

Jax — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 17:54:36 -0000

The more I think about it, the more I wonder whether Sessions is a good long term fit for the Clippers if the eventual goal is for him to be a starter, particularly at a relatively high salary.

You really need your pg to be a good shooter with range, unless you have two other legit three point shooters on the floor at that time. Sessions is not a good shooter, particularly at range. He doesn't shoot the three ball. At best, he'd be an Andre Miller type, I suppose.

I personally don't think a lineup of Sessions, Gordon, Thornton, Griffin and Kaman / Camby will be as good as a lineup that would feature a pg that shoots threes. However, if Butler were the starter, or Thornton found three point range, that would be better.

Perhaps it's better to wait and spend the money on a pg who can hit the three. Even a Rafer Alston type. Maybe even Telfair, who can shoot the three, is better for us at this point even though he's not as good a pass-first pg as Sessions. I'm not saying that this is what they should do, just that these are some concerns that I have that I'm raising here.

I suppose that these are concerns that a number of teams have, which is why they aren't throwing out huge offers to Sessions.

Discuss.

I want this guy

Jax — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 05:09:06 -0000

I want this guy

John Wall sick cross-over and nice dunk (on old man Jerry Stackhouse). Figures next year we'd play ourselves out of a chance to get him.

Knicks and Sessions Reach Impasse

Jax — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 23:42:41 -0000

Knicks and Sessions Reach Impasse

Looks like it's not over yet. I wonder what our offier is (if any).

A good GM at work

Jax — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 22:32:13 -0000

A good GM at work

This article discusses Colangelo's recent efforts in Toroto. This is how a good GM does his job.

Coaches Matter, Reason No. 1,456,789

Jax — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 17:51:06 -0000

We know this already, but Kevin Arnovitz at True Hoop on Friday (in the Friday Bullets) discusses a key reason why Matt Barnes chose to sign with the Magic. The reason? Barnes' perception of the coach, Stan Van Gundy.

Here's the quote:

"Third Quarter Collapse notes that Matt Barnes listed Stan Van Gundy as one of the primary reasons he chose Orlando: "Are you hearing this? Are you believing this? Van Gundy, the man whom some Magic fans wanted fired after his team blew a 14-point, 4th-quarter lead to the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, is now almost a big a draw for free-agents as Dwight freakin' Howard is." Whatever unfair stigma Van Gundy carried into the late spring, it's fair to say that label has expired. As Ben Q. Rock states in the post, Van Gundy has joined the ranks of elite coaches in the league, and a difference-maker for guys exploring their options around the league."

Now, I'm not suggesting that Stan Van Gundy is actually an elite coach, but Barnes' statement is helpful because it shows that the coach is an important factor for getting free agents to sign (and is probably a factor for someone like Sessions). MDSr is obviously not an elite coach, and unless he starts consistently leading the team deep into the playoffs, he never will be. As most of you know, I'm very skeptical of his coaching abilities, and I find it very difficult to believe that most NBA players think he's a good coach, enjoy playing for him, or respect his coaching acumen.

This continues to be a big problem for the Clippers, in part because with MDSr as the GM and DTS as the owner, it doesn't seem likely that things are going to turn around in the near future, and I don't believe that the team should be focusing on the 2010 free agent class, but rather should be taking advantage of other teams' desire to focus on that class. I dont' like being in this position, and at the end of the day it probably won't make much difference in terms of winning because MDSr remains the coach, but there is a chance we can get some more good young talent in here, and MDSr steps away from his coaching duties, we could have a good chance at going deep in the playoffs in a couple of years.

Sterling Wants AI

Jax — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 18:27:18 -0000

Sterling Wants AI

This is interesting from the Daily News - Sterling wants AI but others within Clipper management do not.

NY Times / J Abrams article on Elgin Baylor lawsuit

Jax — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 18:41:55 -0000

NY Times / J Abrams article on Elgin Baylor lawsuit

Very sad for all concerned