Baron Davis A Clipper

[pearljammer10]

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Mullin was offering him a 3/37 extension. Also, he goes back to LA and plays for a contender.
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LA a contender?!! Since when is 23-59 a contender? I know they were without Brand but the year before that when Brand was healthy they werent even .500 going 40 - 42... Davis will be a big addition but they loose Maggette who has been their high energy scorer for quite sometime...Brand and Davis will make some noise, Kaman is legit at the center but wont have as good a year as last year and who rounds out the rest of the starting lineup? They wont have any money left. Im not worried about a lineup of Davis, Mobley, a young Al Thorton, Brand, Kaman and no bench.

[Who]

Mullin was offering him a 3/37 extension. Also, he goes back to LA and plays for a contender.

LA a contender?!! Since when is 23-59 a contender? I know they were without Brand but the year before that when Brand was healthy they werent even .500 going 40 - 42... Davis will be a big addition but they loose Maggette who has been their high energy scorer for quite sometime...Brand and Davis will make some noise, Kaman is legit at the center but wont have as good a year as last year and who rounds out the rest of the starting lineup? They wont have any money left. Im not worried about a lineup of Davis, Mobley, a young Al Thorton, Brand, Kaman and no bench.

I'm not sold the Clippers are contenders either. I don't think they have the depth off the bench for it. They can only offer minimum contracts from now on right? It'll be difficult to address that with so many competitors out there trying to do the same thing.

Kaman is an All-Star caliber player
Brand is an All-Pro level player
Thornton is a quality starter who can fill a good chunk of Corey's void
Gordon is a very talented scoring/shooting rookie
Baron is an All-Pro level player

That's nice. Those starters are very good and Thornton is capable of taking a very big step next season (roughly 16/6 a night over last 40 games). That said, I'm not secure in that possibility ... and I'm a little concerned about how he uses space when Brand gets back because he's best on the post or midpost and with two big men taking up room he could be in for some difficulty. Thornton does have a solid perimeter game but I'm not sure he's a go-to scorer if he has to stay on the perimeter.

Gordon is a guy I'm very comfortable with. Playing off two big men, a top three point guard in the league, and being the fifth scoring option on the court ... this guy is going to be a weapon.

But the bench drags out pretty quickly .... Brevin Knight and Cuttino Mobley isn't half bad but the frontcourt is weak. Their only NBA level player is Tim Thomas. Very weak situation that likely will kill them come playoff time. They have to add some time of temporary band aid like Elson or Skinner to this.

If they manage to strengthen their bench I'll have more time for them as a legit contenders.

All eyes on their next move

[Mad Hatter]

You know what? I'm happy that Baron went to the Clippers. I think he'll do great, epsecially against Kobe.

[D Dub]

You know what? I'm happy that Baron went to the Clippers. I think he'll do great, epsecially against Kobe.

First kobe gets smoked by LA legend Paul Pierce in the Finals, then all next season by LA legend Baron Davis?
how sweet it is!

[cordobes]

Mullin was offering him a 3/37 extension. Also, he goes back to LA and plays for a contender.
[/quote]

LA a contender?!! Since when is 23-59 a contender? I know they were without Brand but the year before that when Brand was healthy they werent even .500 going 40 - 42... Davis will be a big addition but they loose Maggette who has been their high energy scorer for quite sometime...Brand and Davis will make some noise, Kaman is legit at the center but wont have as good a year as last year and who rounds out the rest of the starting lineup? They wont have any money left. Im not worried about a lineup of Davis, Mobley, a young Al Thorton, Brand, Kaman and no bench.
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They won't contend this season because they have to renounce to their exceptions, but they'll be a strong team in years to come: Davis, Gordon, Thornton, Brand, Kaman, picks and $16M in expirings to move.

[The Walker Wiggle]

A lot of people questioning the Clippers' bench. But Celtics' bench coming off last season's 24 wins was roundly dismissed in similar fashion. I actually think at first glance, Knight, Gordon, Thomas, Josh Powell, DeAndre Jordan, Nick Fazekas, have both more upside and more proven talent than T.A., Powe, Scalabrine, Davis, Pruitt, Brandon Wallace circa '06-'07. Right? (And I say this as a someone who has no use for Tim Thomas and the two months total of great basketball that he's played over his career.)

Re-signing Ross ought to be the priority - great perimeter defender, plenty of heart, can hit the 15 footer from either corner or the open 3 pointer (43.3% last season), rarely turns the ball over. Their Posey.

[Who]

A lot of people questioning the Clippers' bench. But Celtics' bench coming off last season's 24 wins was roundly dismissed in similar fashion. I actually think at first glance, Knight, Gordon, Thomas, Josh Powell, DeAndre Jordan, Nick Fazekas, have both more upside and more proven talent than T.A., Powe, Scalabrine, Davis, Pruitt, Brandon Wallace circa '06-'07. Right? (And I say this as a someone who has no use for Tim Thomas and the two months total of great basketball that's he played over his career.

Re-signing Ross ought to be the priority - great perimeter defender, plenty of heart, can hit the 15 footer from either corner or the open 3 pointer (43.3% last season), rarely turns the ball over. Their Posey.

Difference is that the Celtics had their MLE and LLE still to spend. The Clippers are down to minimum contracts so they can't add their James Posey and their Eddie House. Harder to build quality onto your bench when you don't have the money.

What the Clippers can do is make their bench respectable and that for their sake will hopefully be enough not to cost them in the playoffs.

[The Walker Wiggle]

Fair enough. But couldn't Clippers still re-sign Ross? And House signed for only 400K over the 1.1 million veteran's minimum; I wouldn't entirely rule out Clippers adding another veteran guard on that basis (anyway, I'm not sure they need one).

We agree Eric Gordon ought to have a field day as the 5th option or first guard off the bench. Knight and Thomas have both been NBA starters, and fill niches. I like Fazekas as a back up big. He was consistently a positive on the court for the Clippers, shot a high percentage (56%) and scored points outside the offense. And he rebounded well (roughly 16 rebounds per 48). Behind him, Jordan is physically gifted, and was once projected as an end of the lottery/mid-first round pick, not bad for a third-string center. Even Powell had his moments while Brand was out.

Now, I don't foresee the Clippers subs buying into Ubuntu team defense the way our guys did, which is, of course, going to be a problem come the playoffs. Still I like this L.A. step-child Clippers' bench as much as last season's vaunted Lakers' one.

[action781]

A lot of people questioning the Clippers' bench. But Celtics' bench coming off last season's 24 wins was roundly dismissed in similar fashion. I actually think at first glance, Knight, Gordon, Thomas, Josh Powell, DeAndre Jordan, Nick Fazekas, have both more upside and more proven talent than T.A., Powe, Scalabrine, Davis, Pruitt, Brandon Wallace circa '06-'07. Right? (And I say this as a someone who has no use for Tim Thomas and the two months total of great basketball that he's played over his career.)

Re-signing Ross ought to be the priority - great perimeter defender, plenty of heart, can hit the 15 footer from either corner or the open 3 pointer (43.3% last season), rarely turns the ball over. Their Posey.

I had been waiting for somebody to bring up Ross or I was going to.  The man doesn't get much publicity, but is a heck of a defender!!  He really is like our Posey (minus the leadership).  He's a guy I'd definitely like to target if we can't get Posey back.  He will be a great sixth man for them.

Don't forget to throw in Shaun Livingston as a guy in there off the bench with upside!

I think the Clipps are going to be dangerous.  Another poster commented on the strength of the West; I'm glad, more teams to beat up on eachother before they meet us in the Finals.   

[Brendan]

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Don't forget to throw in Shaun Livingston as a guy in there off the bench with upside!
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No - I think they have to renounce Livingston and Maggette to sign Davis. Not to say they might not get Livingston back for the minimum, but we'll see.

So let's assume Mobley starts over Gordon: Kaman, Brand, Thorton, Mobley, Davis - very nice group of starters, although the back court D is suspect. They have Gordon off the bench as a starter - what about old friend TA as a defensive wing bench player. Knight is a solid reserve point guard. As for bigs, they are in a bit of a bind. Tim Thomas is soft, but he expires at the right time for teams that want 2010 cap space (as does Thomas), so he could possibly be moved to shore up their depth. It's always easier to build a bench than a starting 5.

Injuries are also a big concern IMO when looking at that team. Not having an adequate player behind Kaman and Brand is the biggest concern. I think they can manage without Davis for the usual 10-20 games.

[Who]

Shaun Livingston is in play all of a sudden too. The Clippers can't resign him on a 2-3mil contract which leaves a lot of space for other teams to take a chance on him. Add in Baron Davis and there isn't a huge future for him in La-La land anymore. He'll be a lot more interested listening to other offers now.

Rolling back the Clippers bench ....

DeAndre Jordan is likely 2 years away from making a meaningful contribution. I don't think Josh Powell is even an NBA player talent wise, they're really scraping the barrel there. Nick Fazekas is an interesting one and I'm not sure what to make of him but I'm not relying on him either. He put up nice numbers in his minutes but I'm not sure the impact is really there because of his defense. We'll see how he does next year. That leaves Tim Thomas who doesn't play enough defense, doesn't rebound, regularly forgets plays on offense. I'm not wild about Thomas.

Cuttino Mobley will be a good 6th man. Combo guard can play either slot. Gives them some defense and scoring. Brevin Knight is a decent backup point guard who played some good basketball for the Clips last season.

Quentin Ross could be a big swing factor in all of this. I don't know why somebody else just wouldn't give him 3mil per but he's flying very low under radar. He's barely being mentioned these days. They could could hang on to him. That would shore up their perimeter in a big way.

Add a solid minimum contract big man like Brian Skinner and you're bigs look passable and you're bench becomes respectable. That's good enough to compete and would leave the starter's quality as the decisive factor.

[action781]

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Don't forget to throw in Shaun Livingston as a guy in there off the bench with upside!
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No - I think they have to renounce Livingston and Maggette to sign Davis. Not to say they might not get Livingston back for the minimum, but we'll see.

So let's assume Mobley starts over Gordon: Kaman, Brand, Thorton, Mobley, Davis - very nice group of starters, although the back court D is suspect. They have Gordon off the bench as a starter - what about old friend TA as a defensive wing bench player. Knight is a solid reserve point guard. As for bigs, they are in a bit of a bind. Tim Thomas is soft, but he expires at the right time for teams that want 2010 cap space (as does Thomas), so he could possibly be moved to shore up their depth. It's always easier to build a bench than a starting 5.

Injuries are also a big concern IMO when looking at that team. Not having an adequate player behind Kaman and Brand is the biggest concern. I think they can manage without Davis for the usual 10-20 games.

Baron Davis is a great defender, one of the top 5 pg defenders in the league

[Big Ticket]

I live in the Bay Area and this is definitely the talk around the office right now.  For the most part, Warriors fans are sad to see them go, but acknowledge that locking him up for 5 years would not have been smart and that he made the right decision for his best interests.