I can tell we are all worn down by the incessent losing from a team that should by all indications be winning impressively. We need a change and I have a solution.

Quite simply, I suggest that Dunleavy continue coaching the team for the first half of games and then appoint John Lucas to take the reins for the second half of the game. This arrangement would allow Dunleavy to keep his job in addition to keeping the salaries fixed at their present level to appease Stirling.

From what I can tell, the Clippers seem to start games strong and then fade into insignificance during the second half. I think that by changing coaches midway through the game our players will regain their missing focus and intensity. No longer would they be so predictable at the closing moments of games. We address our focus problems late in games and throw a curveball to the opposition to keep them guessing. Seems like a winning formula to me.

The time has come for a change. As a fan, I could really get behind a dual coach system. It would be exciting and dynamic plus it would give Dunleavy a chance to prove to us that he is doing everything in his power to get  us wins - even if that means giving some control of the team to another coach. This is a way for Dunleavy to prove that the team comes before his ego. If we keep losing, we can start to put the blame on the players instead of always making Dunleavy a scapegoat for our losing ways.

We have the advantage of having two head coaches currently on our staff - now is the time to make the most of this advantage.

What do you guys think?

This guy along with Gordon were the two shining stars for the Clippers last year. He has phenominal offensive production and amazing hands. I can't believe we would even consider trading him for expiring contracts. That idiot Hollinger thinks that the Clippers will have a firesale. I highly doubt that. Intitially, Zach will start and Griffin will back him up. Once he gets comfortable, he can start and Zach will provide us with one of the most talented sixth men in the league.

Baron is also someone who wont get traded. His value is rock bottom and so is his pride. He is in the gym twice a day and looks likely to play in the Summer League. I say we give him another chance. Either way, we have Mike Taylor and Mardy Collins - both who can start. Baron off the bench would be another major addition and help us out tremendously. This year our bench stunk up the joint - lets hope next years is much improved.

The truth of the matter is than none of us are Donald Stirling and who really cares what profit margin he makes on the franchise. He is a cheap bastard that was tricked in investing big in Baron and Zach due to their names - lets not give him a way out of those deals. Why should we have to endure crappy expiring contracts so Stirling can make us the cheapest team in the league as opposed to the third cheapest. I don't care what he spends - do you?

The only trade I would make in the offseason would be for Rudio (Oklahoma or Memphis = Kaman or Camby plus next years unprotected pick for Rubio and filler). Both of these teams desperately need veteran big men to compliment their backup quality young centers. I doubt these trades would go through but I like the idea of getting Rubio even if it also costs us Thornton - but no chance on Griffin.

Lets see how this team develops after a solid training camp. Hopefully Dunleavy will try and run more to utilize Griffins athleticism. I can't wait to see some alley-oop passes next season between Griffin and BD. Our fast break points were nonexistant last year. We have a really good team we just need motivation and leadership. Having a new young gun with a crazy workout attitude is just what this team needs. I hope he turns out to be a Shane Battier with a better offensive game in a Power Forwards body. That no-nonsense attitude does wonders for a team.

Next years makeup should be:

PG = Baron / Taylor / Collins (If BD is too slow to work in this fast starting squad, I would bring him off the bench and replace him with Taylor)

SG = Gordon / Jones / R Davis (hopefully waived)

SF = Thornton / Collins / Novak (only if he demonstrates ability to play SF - any free agent acquisitions should focus on a defensive SF)

PF = Griffin / Randolph / Skinner (If Sofo makes the team then Skinner could be waived)

C = Camby / Kaman / Jordan (I would move Kaman to backup until he earns the starting spot. Easier opponents will help his confidence)

By the way - before people make comments that we have too much salary on the bench, I think that is a wonderful problem to have.

What is wrong with Baron? I saw a clip of him shooting 3's and he is awesome. A guy just doesn't forget how to shoot. Most of the time, an injury changes their routine and although the mind tells them to do something, their bodies just don't respond. Could this be the problem with Baron?

I watched the other night Baron dribble the ball up the court and he was moving to the left and the right, spin moves, post up's - he was unstoppable on the dribble. I have seen him make passes, no Clipper point guard has ever been able to make. As a point guard, he is incredible - until it comes time to shoot. Shots that rookies are expected to make clang off the rim for him. Let's face it, Baron knows how to shoot, we have all seen him do it. Just not on this team. Not consistently anyway.

So why is this phenominum occuring? Is it because Baron is injured? Is it related to Dunleavy's style of play? Is the teams players not compatible with Baron's skillset? Maybe Baron is more interested in movies and refuses to train. It is an enigma.

The point of this article is to discuss Baron's upside. Sure if Elton didn't lie to us, Baron would probably not be a Clipper. But we have him now and nobody else wants him - so expect to see a lot more of Baron in the future. I for one am going to cut him a break. As a passing and ball moving PG, Baron has more skills than any prior Clipper. He just needs to attack the basket more and reduce the difficulty on his shot selection (at least till he is healthy). It is hard for a top level PG to play with a crappy team that loses all the time. It is humiliating and saps your motivation. This year is a write-off anyway due to injuries.

Dunleavy needs to hand this team over to Baron for the rest of the year and see what happens, His style has been unsuccessful every year but one. In that year we were defensive monsters. With Baron, Thornton and Randolph, we will never again be defensive monsters. We need to work to our strengths and those strengths mesh well with Barons style. He likes it fast, PG dominated and unstructured. Even he doesnt know where the ball with go most of the time. With all the shooters on our team, we need to average over 100 to be winners. Dunleavy likes to score 80-90 points per game and that wont cut it with this team.

What do we have to lose? I think the team needs to have a meeting and create an agreed upon playbook. Dunleavy is having a rough year - if he is going to stay he needs to make some adjustments. Otherwise, we need someone else leading our team next year.

http://www.ibeatyou.com/competition/dace17/most-3-pointers-in-a-minute-ibeatyou-nba-allstar/entry/3dd9a3/can-you-beat-steve-nash

I know Dunleavy is stating that no further trades will take place this year, and I understand his very logical reasoning. We cannot, however, allow a potential difference maker to get traded and not even make an attempt to bring him over here. The difference maker I am referring to is Amare Stoudemire. We have all seen this guy dominate the Clippers – kind of like the way Chris Webber dominated the Clippers. Phoenix is tanking badly and looking to jettison players (including Stoudemire) for a combination of young studs, high draft picks and a replacement starter big man. We all know they are going to get lowballed from every team in the NBA. Let’s hope the Clippers offer fair value and win the race. The trade would probably be:

Chris Kaman + Al Thornton + the worse of our two 2011 first rounders to Phoenix in exchange for Amare Stoudemire and Alando Tucker.

Phoenix gets a starting center to replace Stoudemire and hold them over until Lopez matures and Shaq retires. They also get a young stud in Al Thornton who can become a go to scorer similar to Grant Hill in his prime (but not as good). The draft picks are negotiable but in order to get Amare I personally would be very flexible (including this year’s high draft pick).

I am not saying we should act foolishly and/or hastily, I am just saying that a front line of Amare and Randolph, backed up by Camby and Skinner seems very imposing to me. Once Thornton is gone, Novak can become the starter and be backed up by Ricky Davis. When Novak is on the floor he gets lots of attention and still seems to find a way of getting his shots. With a starting lineup featuring Amare, Zach, Eric and Baron – Novak will instantly become the most ignored guy in all of basketball. He is going to rain down the three balls. Our bench is weaker offensively than most (not including the rookie we get this year) but defensively we will be great – spearheaded by Camby, Taylor, Collins, Davis and Skinner. Our team will be complete and we will finally have a chance of winning a Championship. We need to be in it to win it and I think our bid is stronger than any others in the Amare Sweepstakes. Please Mike bring in Amare.

Boy is it quiet here on Clips Nation. Things are stabilizing in the NBA and it seems the Clippers roster is set for the year. Nevertheless, NBA.com is reporting that Dirk Nowitski may actually be on the trading block. If this is true, the Clippers should definitely bid on him as he is a perennial all star, MVP candidate and all round superstar. The Clippers also have the trade pieces that Dallas covets.

To replace Dirk, I would offer Randolph. Yes I love this guy as much as the next Clipper fan, but lets be realistic – Dirk is an all round better player. To match salaries, we would also need to throw in Baron Davis (a franchise player to replace Jason Kidd) and also throw in Al Thornton to give them some young talent. In return we would get Dirk, Josh Howard and JJ Barrera.

Clippers Out: Zach Randolph, Baron Davis (or Marcus Camby), Al Thornton

Clippers In: Dirk Nowitski, JJ Barera, Josh Howard

Would anybody on this forum take this deal if it was offered?

http://www.nba.com/2009/news/features/art_garcia/01/21//dirkfuture.western.insider.20090121/index.html 

On paper, the Clippers are so talented this year they should have been far more successful - even given the injuries. There is talk about speeding up the game but with our lineup I think that would just play to our opponent’s strengths. With a healthy group of starters we could do some damage – but there is also a real concern from what I have seen that the team will struggle as our starters have no defined roles and our bench has very little offensive punch. What is the solution? – I think the solution is to play Novak as starting SF and move Thornton off the bench.

Obviously Thornton is a better all round player than Novak. They both have defense vulnerabilities – Novak is a step slow and Thornton forgets his assignments. From what I have seen though, I think Novak is slightly more reliable. He seems to take control of his section in a zone and keep close to his man when Dunleavy calls other plays. He also never rebounds on either end but brings a huge advantage of having a tall guy first back on the missed shot. Next time he plays pay special attention to how many fast breaks the other team completes. It is not his defense that has me intrigued though.

Offensively, Novak has the range on his 3ball that is very valuable when partnered with Gordon and Davis. Has anybody else noticed how much attention he gets on offense? Did Dunleavy notice that Detroit put Prince on Novak much of the game? As a Clipper fan I have made many comments about spacing and our lack of ability to create the kind of spacing that wins games. When you have a big team it makes sense to take it slow and focus on ground & pounding your way to victory. The key to a solid ground & pound offense is spacing. Dunleavy always preaches that his style wins Championships but the reality is that his defensive style combined with solid 3 point shooting and a starter off the bench wins championships – aka San Antonio.

Thornton loves the midrange shot – I don’t think this helps our spacing at all. Better that he moves to the bench to be the spark Ricky never was. He will still get his time, but like Maggette when he does not have the ball he is useless and when he does have the ball you can be sure it is going up. Playing against weaker defenders and being the focal point on offense will play to Thornton’s strengths – off the bench. He is a major talent and will be an all star one day. He is just too good at getting his own shot to start on such a talented team.

I know I am a stubborn bastard but I think we need to discuss the Steve Nash trade I proposed recently. I mentioned the trade to my wife (not a Clipper fan) and she mentioned that this might be just the thing she needs to watch the games with me. Steve Nash is not just a phenomenal PG, he is also a very popular person. He represents all the underdogs in this world and tells them that anyone can be the best with effort and determination. As a player, captain and representative of the Clippers he might actually get the fans back in their seats. Without crowd energy the Clippers will never get over the hump. Barons unprofessional attitude is losing us fans every day. We need Nash and we should do whatever it takes to get him.

As a player, Steve will allow us to effectively evaluate Dunleavy. Lets face facts – who here can blame Dunleavy for a complex style when Baron is unable to run it? Who can blame Baron, when Dunleavys style is so complex? If Steve Nash is unable to fulfill Dunleavys vision, we can safely place the blame on Dunleavys shoulders.

He will also bring us clutch plays and solid passes to actually bring out the best in our talented team. A true leader both on the floor and in the locker room. A guy that just doesn’t understand how to slack off – or lose for that matter. Think about the effect Chauncey Billups has had on Denver. We need that.

With Jason Richardson now on Phoenix, we will have some serious support to make this trade. If Phoenix really wants to move Nash, who better to replace him than Baron?  It is a trade where everybody wins. Furthermore, Phoenix is in luxury tax territory about $4M over the threshold. A trade of Nash ($12.2M) and Barbosa ($6.1M) for Baron Davis ($11.3M), Jason Hart ($2.5M), Brian Skinner ($1.3M) and a pick would probably work for both teams. It would also bring Phoenix within spitting distance of the luxury tax and could save them millions. I think they would pull the trigger on this one. Give Nash the rest of the year to understand the team and see what we can do next year. If it works, we resign Nash and if not he expires at the end of next year and can be traded or left to walk. Truly a trade that helps both teams. Let’s make it happen.

I have been scanning a few other blog sites and I have come across two trades that I personally would go for if the opportunity presents itself. As we all know this site has the smartest basketball minds, I am curious to see what Clipper Nation thinks of these trades (and for a change it does not involve Kaman).

Option 1: Baron Davis for Steve Nash.

Option 2: Baron Davis for Rafer Alston and Shane Battier.

Personally, I would go with Steve Nash. Apparently he is very unhappy that Phoenix traded his mate Raja Bell and sent away Mike Dantoni. Nash would be a perfect fit for us. He may be one of the few PG’s that can understand Dunleavy’s system. He may not want to stay after his contract expires, but this will only give us cap flexibility in 2010. It was almost unanimous on the Phoenix blog site that their fans would go with this trade. It reunites Baron with Jason Richardson and gives Phoenix a real boost in morale. The benefit for the Clippers is obvious.

Option 2 would also be desirable. Alston is a good PG and Battier is a solid backup SF/SG. This would solve our problems at PG and finally give our bench some depth.

What does everybody else think?

I don’t care for Kaman and do not think he is a good fit for our team. I wanted to trade him in the offseason and I still want to trade him today. Unlike some of the blog-bashers on this site, I like to backup my assertions with logical evidence. So let’s look at some of his faults:

1. He misses lay-ups that any journeyman NBA player can make consistently.
2. He has no idea how to pass the ball. 95% of the time he touches the ball he shoots.
3. He cannot handle the double team effectively. How many years do we have to suffer with his inability to understand this strategy?
4. He gets lazy of defense regularly. He fails to box out, rebound or switch in a timely manner on defensive sets. Sometimes he rebounds, but generally only when our next big man is Tim Thomas or Al Thornton.
5. He is not a vocal leader – yet he is a veteran presence making millions per year.
6. He cannot pull off a well timed screen - ever. Brian Skinner and Puld Davis are way better at screening for Baron. How can a true center not understand how to deliver an effective screen?
7. He is injured no less than 75% of the time and plays hurt another 25%.
8. He is not the defender of the paint that most of the other centers in the league are capable of doing. He gets some blocks, but also gets caught out of position far more often.
9. He is dominated by almost every legitimate center in league – see Bynum, Ming, Howard, Brad Miller, Dalemburt… I can’t think of a legitimate center that gets dominated by Kaman.
10. He is not consistent. Some days he is Kaman 1.0 others he is Kaman 2.0 and others he is Kaman 0.5. Think about this naming convention – we gave it to Kaman because we wanted to know which Kaman we would be watching on any given night. How many other players have been given this kind of moniker?

The list could go on and on and on. He has potential, but ultimately he is a disaster for the Clippers. For those that disagree, please refer to the Clippers record since he arrived.

I do not understand the ridiculous love affair some Clippers fans have with this journeyman center. Maybe it’s his potential, maybe its your pride. Right now we need a change and Kaman’s potential is the only thing that we are willing to sacrifice as a team. Camby is a better player in every aspect of the game except for scoring. Randolph is so much better than Kaman it is not even funny. I consider that Randolph has some of the very best hands in the business while Kaman has some of the very worst.

Regarding Eric Gordon, an article on ESPN today lists the top 20 rookies for this year. Guess what? Gordon does not make the list and he is a starter on a team that is desperate for scoring. He may become great, but right now he is a major liability at the SG position. We need to address this much more urgently than our backup C position – even if it means getting less than top dollar for Kaman. By the way, can any of the great Clipper minds remember a single offer we have received for Kaman that was not junk? I didn’t think so. His value is not even high with teams that know nothing other than mediocrity. No decent teams ever make trade offers for him that does not involve junk players. The market has determined the value and we need to accept this. Yes – even the most stubborn Clips fans need to accept this.

For those of you without the brain capacity to understand this concept – I think your strategy of waiting for Cleveland to offer Lebron for Kaman is incredibly short sighted. Nobody will ever offer an elite player for Kaman. EVER!! Now that his numbers are destined to spiral downwards, we are going to be offered even less in the future. If we had other players to trade, I would love to have such a big front court, but we don’t. So if we are going to compete next year, we need a final team now. Then by next year, we may have some chemistry.

I will happily take some quasi Clipper fan attacks because the stats prove my points. We suck and have sucked every year since Kaman arrived. Outside of one lucky appearance to the post-season (due to Cassell and Brand – not Kaman) we have not had the ability to execute on offense or defense. I blame that on Kaman and the facts back me up. One stupid starting player can destroy a coach’s strategy. Guess what guys – Kaman is that stupid player. Now, from what I have read by some people (CS, JR, Jax, Zhiv and CTOAGN excluded) on this blog site, I am starting to think that birds of a feather flock together.