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| You're crazy man. I like you, but you're crazy. |
2009-10 Record: 29-53
Additions: Vinny Del Negro (Coach), Blake Griffin (Injury), Al-Farouq Aminu (Draft), Eric Bledsoe (Draft), Willie Warren (Draft), Ryan Gomes (FA), Randy Foye (FA), Brian Cook (FA)
Subtractions: Kim Hughes (Coach), Drew Gooden, Steve Blake, Travis Outlaw, Brian Skinner, Steve Novak, Bobby Brown
It's one thing or another with the Clippers. Last year they were the talk of the pre-season as they had the unanimous #1 pick in Blake Griffin, and expectations were high for him and the team, especially as he electrified crowds with his explosiveness in Summer League and Pre-Season. His posterization of D.J. Mbenga was especially memorable. Alas, it was one one such dunk that Griffin came down and broke his knee cap costing him his season and costing Clippers fans hope for a memorable season.
The Clippers also went into the offseason hoping to land a big name with the lure of Los Angeles and all their cap space. Instead they were spurned on all fronts, and used their cap space on role players in Ryan Gomes and Randy Foye. Both are decent, but when you go into the summer thinking LeBron or even just Rudy Gay, this hurts a bit. It doesn't help the Clippers that owner Donald Sterling has such a horrible reputation with just about everyone.
In the draft the Clippers did alright in my opinion, drafting the raw but extremely athletic Al-Farouq Aminu, trading a future first round pick for Eric Bledsoe (a player I believe would have been chosen higher had he not have to defer to Wall in Kentucky) and also drafting Willie Warren in the late 2nd round, a player that was projected as a lottery pick at one point.
The Clippers look to have one of the deeper frontcourts in the league right now, with Chris Kaman coming off of an All-Star caliber year, and his backup DeAndre Jordan still with a lot of potential, especially defensively. At Power Forward the Clippers will probably start Griffin from Day One, with the very capable Craig Smith as his backup. Ryan Gomes can play either the 3 or the 4, as can Aminu, who played a lot of 4 in college. Rasual Butler provides some much needed shooting for this team as well.
The backcourt is pretty good as well, with the extremely underrated and efficient Eric Gordon at Shooting Guard. I think he's the future star of this team and he could be poised for a breakout year. Baron Davis has had an off couple of years, but he's still capable of having big nights, and if he can be motivated and return to his old self, that combination of Davis and Gordon will be extremely dangerous. Bledsoe is probably more comfortable as a shooting guard right now, but with some development he'll be able to play either guard position.
In a bit of a head scratcher to me, the Clips hired Vinny Del Negro to coach the team. He's a good motivator, but I feel that he lacks a strategic mind for the game and sometimes looses control of his team. Still, at least the Clippers have separated themselves from the Mike Dunleavy era once and for all. I'm not sure Del Negro will be much better, but we'll see.
The Clippers have the potential to be a very exciting up-and-down team. I really want to see a lineup of Bledsoe-Gordon-Aminu-Griffin-Jordan sometime this season, as I think that's the most explosive lineup any team in the league could put on the floor. But this team is also the Clippers and anything that can go wrong seemingly does. If healthy and motivated though, I could see some good things, and I do expect Blake Griffin to be in the hunt for Rookie of the Year. This team probably shouldn't be talking playoffs yet, but they're finally on the rise.
Projected Win Range: 30-35
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