If this was five years ago, having a coach like Del Negro wouldn’t be a problem. He is, at the very least, not Mike Dunleavy.
However, this is not five years ago. In 2013, Clippers expectations begin at making the conference finals, while many on the team would consider nothing less than a championship a lost season.
So, while Del Negro won 60 percent of his games last year including a trip to the second round of the playoffs, similar results will certainly not meet current expectations (no matter how unrealistic). Compounding lofty expectations is the simple fact that nearly everything regarding the franchise’s future is riding on this season.
Unfortunately, when things get tight, Del Negro has shown an unsettling habit of acting dazed and confused.
The future of the franchise is at stake because Chris Paul, who opted to not sign an extension this summer (the difference being an additional two years and over $40 million if he signs next summer), holds the ability to walk if the season goes awry.
While Blake Griffin sells tickets to fans, it’s Paul who sells franchises to players. Three years ago it would be unimaginable for sought-after free agents and still-productive veterans to sign on with the Clippers seeking a shot at an NBA title. Just typing that sentence still feels odd. And yet, because Paul is on board, players like Jamal Crawford, Grant Hill, and Chauncey Billups wanted to come to LA’s other team.
Paul is the difference between little brother run-and-fun status, and legitimate NBA franchise contender.
Take last season for example. With a team full of wide-eyed youth (DeAndre Jordan and to some extent Griffin), and the only veterans on the team either injured (Billups, Caron Butler) or offensive liabilities (Reggie Evans, Kenyon Martin), Paul carried the team on his back during the playoffs.
You can never discount the “Chris Paul effect.” The CPE went to work during the Clippers’ first round matchup against a Grizzlies team that was bigger, more talented, and had already been through their own impressive playoff run the season before. While everyone made contributions from Nick Young to Evans to Eric Bledsoe, it was Paul who orchestrated everything, made the decisive plays, and elevated the team when no one else believed they could win.
To lighten the Atlas-like burden on Paul's shoulders, this offseason the Clippers brought in veterans with 377 games of playoff experience on their collective resumes.
Billups, who was a quasi-assistant coach last season while he was rehabbing his torn Achilles, will be back on the court this year (hopefully during the season's first month). He's Paul's security blanket, an older veteran who has won a championship, whom Paul can trust to make the right decisions. Hill is another well-traveled veteran who will add professionalism both on and off the court, and who is the consummate teammate. No matter how you might feel about Lamar Odom, the fact remains he was the glue guy for two Lakers championship teams. Matt Barnes, the Lakers best reserve last year, brings toughness, a nasty edge, and the hustle plays that are synonymous with winning. And then there's Willie Green, who might not seem like that big of an addition, but who has 28 playoff games under his belt and played with Paul during the 10-11 season when the Hornets nearly upset the Lakers in the first round.
That being said, all of these players have Riddler-sized questions marks plastered to their baggage.
The 36-year-old Billups, whose athleticism and overall production have been in decline for the past several seasons, is trying to come back from the aforementioned torn left Achilles. No one knows how much, if anything, "Mr. Big Shot" has left, and it remains to be seen if a Billups/Paul backcourt can defend well enough for an 82-game season.
I've watched a lot of Odom over the years and am of the belief that he will not regain his Sixth Man of the Year form. Consistency and a lack of motivation have plagued the 32-year-old during a career where he has waffled between MVP- and D League-level play from game to game. The fact Odom came into camp looking like he spent his offseason on a Hershey's white chocolate cookies and cream diet, only a few short months after he shamefully quit on the Dallas Mavericks, solidifies my belief. He'll most certainly be better, because, frankly, he couldn't play much worse. But, I'm not sure he'll be the type of dynamic game changer the Clippers need him to be.
The same can be said about the 32-year-old Crawford, who has a rep as a me-first, second, and third-type gunner who is wholly uncommitted to defense. He found success as a sixth man in Atlanta, and thus far has been saying all the right things about teamsmanship, but I think re-signing Nick Young would have been the better move. Young is five years Crawford's junior, just as dangerous as a microwave scorer off the bench, and would have come much cheaper seeing as how he signed with the Sixers on a one year deal that pays him the same $5 million that Crawford will make each of the next three seasons. While that's neither here nor there, shooting guards that rely on athleticism and quickness tend to not age well as they journey into their mid-30s. Why am I worried? Crawford shot 38 percent from the field, the worst percentage since his rookie campaign 12 years ago.
Barnes has an asshole-edginess and garbage man game that typically rubs people the wrong way. But I'm a big fan because of all of the intangibles that he brings to the court. However, misdemeanor charges filed against him this summer (justified or not) only add to the wild card gamble that Barnes brings to the table. There's a reason that he's been on eight different teams over his nine-year career.
So, while Del Negro won 60 percent of his games last year including a trip to the second round of the playoffs, similar results will certainly not meet current expectations (no matter how unrealistic). Compounding lofty expectations is the simple fact that nearly everything regarding the franchise’s future is riding on this season.
Unfortunately, when things get tight, Del Negro has shown an unsettling habit of acting dazed and confused.
The future of the franchise is at stake because Chris Paul, who opted to not sign an extension this summer (the difference being an additional two years and over $40 million if he signs next summer), holds the ability to walk if the season goes awry.
While Blake Griffin sells tickets to fans, it’s Paul who sells franchises to players. Three years ago it would be unimaginable for sought-after free agents and still-productive veterans to sign on with the Clippers seeking a shot at an NBA title. Just typing that sentence still feels odd. And yet, because Paul is on board, players like Jamal Crawford, Grant Hill, and Chauncey Billups wanted to come to LA’s other team.
Paul is the difference between little brother run-and-fun status, and legitimate NBA franchise contender.
Take last season for example. With a team full of wide-eyed youth (DeAndre Jordan and to some extent Griffin), and the only veterans on the team either injured (Billups, Caron Butler) or offensive liabilities (Reggie Evans, Kenyon Martin), Paul carried the team on his back during the playoffs.
You can never discount the “Chris Paul effect.” The CPE went to work during the Clippers’ first round matchup against a Grizzlies team that was bigger, more talented, and had already been through their own impressive playoff run the season before. While everyone made contributions from Nick Young to Evans to Eric Bledsoe, it was Paul who orchestrated everything, made the decisive plays, and elevated the team when no one else believed they could win.
To lighten the Atlas-like burden on Paul's shoulders, this offseason the Clippers brought in veterans with 377 games of playoff experience on their collective resumes.
Billups, who was a quasi-assistant coach last season while he was rehabbing his torn Achilles, will be back on the court this year (hopefully during the season's first month). He's Paul's security blanket, an older veteran who has won a championship, whom Paul can trust to make the right decisions. Hill is another well-traveled veteran who will add professionalism both on and off the court, and who is the consummate teammate. No matter how you might feel about Lamar Odom, the fact remains he was the glue guy for two Lakers championship teams. Matt Barnes, the Lakers best reserve last year, brings toughness, a nasty edge, and the hustle plays that are synonymous with winning. And then there's Willie Green, who might not seem like that big of an addition, but who has 28 playoff games under his belt and played with Paul during the 10-11 season when the Hornets nearly upset the Lakers in the first round.
That being said, all of these players have Riddler-sized questions marks plastered to their baggage.
The 36-year-old Billups, whose athleticism and overall production have been in decline for the past several seasons, is trying to come back from the aforementioned torn left Achilles. No one knows how much, if anything, "Mr. Big Shot" has left, and it remains to be seen if a Billups/Paul backcourt can defend well enough for an 82-game season.
I've watched a lot of Odom over the years and am of the belief that he will not regain his Sixth Man of the Year form. Consistency and a lack of motivation have plagued the 32-year-old during a career where he has waffled between MVP- and D League-level play from game to game. The fact Odom came into camp looking like he spent his offseason on a Hershey's white chocolate cookies and cream diet, only a few short months after he shamefully quit on the Dallas Mavericks, solidifies my belief. He'll most certainly be better, because, frankly, he couldn't play much worse. But, I'm not sure he'll be the type of dynamic game changer the Clippers need him to be.
The same can be said about the 32-year-old Crawford, who has a rep as a me-first, second, and third-type gunner who is wholly uncommitted to defense. He found success as a sixth man in Atlanta, and thus far has been saying all the right things about teamsmanship, but I think re-signing Nick Young would have been the better move. Young is five years Crawford's junior, just as dangerous as a microwave scorer off the bench, and would have come much cheaper seeing as how he signed with the Sixers on a one year deal that pays him the same $5 million that Crawford will make each of the next three seasons. While that's neither here nor there, shooting guards that rely on athleticism and quickness tend to not age well as they journey into their mid-30s. Why am I worried? Crawford shot 38 percent from the field, the worst percentage since his rookie campaign 12 years ago.
Barnes has an asshole-edginess and garbage man game that typically rubs people the wrong way. But I'm a big fan because of all of the intangibles that he brings to the court. However, misdemeanor charges filed against him this summer (justified or not) only add to the wild card gamble that Barnes brings to the table. There's a reason that he's been on eight different teams over his nine-year career.
While the offseason additions without doubt added veteran leadership and experience to a team that was sorely lacking both last season, they bring an equal amount of questions to the table.
Pt. II
Pt. II
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