Los Angeles Clippers

May 21, 2013; San Antonio, TX, USA; Memphis Grizzlies forward Zach Randolph (50) reacts against the San Antonio Spurs in game two of the Western Conference finals of the 2013 NBA Playoffs at AT The playoffs have met the expectations so far, but there hasn’t been any major upsets. Without the upset factor, it just gets boring after a while. Right now, the Heat are up 1-0 to the Pacers after winning a toughly fought Game 1. Paul George hit an incredible 3-pointer to send the game to overtime, where he scored three crucial free throws to gain the lead. He played incredibly in crunch time, but LeBron James was just a little better. With just 2.2 seconds left, James broke free and scored the easy layup for the win. Now, however, the Pacers are going to comeback even stronger than ever. As for the other series, the Spurs have dominated the Grizzlies, despite being given a run for their money in game two. They haven’t, however, secured the series victory yet. Which teams have the best chance at getting the title? 1. Heat: No disputes here, right? Dwyane Wade is feeling pretty confident, as he’s already picked out his outfits for the finals. It may seem arrogant, but it could also just be a confidence level. His Heat are doing well right now, and looking unstoppable. Many think that the Pacers are the only team in the Eastern Conference that is capable of taking down the Heat. I tend to agree with that because they have so much depth, and an adequate center in Roy Hibbert. If they utilize him, they should do well. Still, however, the Heat have three of the best players in the NBA. That’s tough to deal with. 2. Spurs: The Spurs are up 2-0 to the Memphis Grizzlies after two games. It may seem odd, but they might actually be able to make it back to the NBA Finals. After everyone thought they were too old, and that their times were finished, they responded with yet another strong season, finishing at the 2nd seed, and were able to make a deep postseason run. They’re once again solid. Tony Parker is dealing with some injury, but it isn’t serious, and Tim Duncan knows how to take over games. Danny Green has been hitting every shot lately, and even Kawhi Leonard is looking like a veteran. This San Antonio team may be as unstoppable as the Heat. 3. Grizzlies: The Grizzlies are one of the best defensive teams in the NBA, but so far, have failed to show that against the Grizzlies. Last series, in the first round against the Clippers, however, the Grizzlies were able to win four straight after losing the first two. When their defense starts to click, it can get to be a very long night for the other team. They have a good shot at beating San Antonio, but they’re going to have to make some key adjustments when dealing with some of the Spurs bigs, who have played Zach Randolph very well. 4. Pacers: The Pacers are last on a rankings list. That could only happen in the Conference Finals. It’s going to be tough for the Pacers, who are playing the defending champions, to move one. They’re a very young team who is extremely good at times, but still is at the mercy of the King and the royalty of the Heat. When you have some of the best basketball players in the universe, you better be winning. The only way that the Pacers can jump this hurtle is for them to get Roy Hibbert back into the game. The Heat have nobody that can guard him. Lately, he’s been playing decently well, but will have to return to all-star ways.

Zack Lowe has a weill written, in my opinion, piece about VDN's coaching problems. I don't think there is anything in there we did not already know but I think it is worth the read. He points out the Clipper's problem of a "lack of a system" especially on offense under VDN. He also writes about what in his opnion are the four main reasons VDN was let go. 1. . Del Negro would still have this job if Chris Paul wanted him to have it. 2. Del Negro may well still have this job had Blake Griffin not suffered a serious ankle injury between Games 4 and 5 of the Clippers’ first-round series against the Grizzlies. 3. With Del Negro out, and probably unlikely to get one of the head-coaching jobs currently open (or soon to come open), there is a vacancy atop the “Best Coach at Screaming at Opposing Shooters and Stamping His Feet” rankings. Del Negro really redefined this skill. He was like a sixth defender on some possessions, and if you edited out the basketball game happening around him, he’d have looked at times like an adult going through a child’s tantrum. 4. Del Negro might still have this job if the Clippers played defense in the second half of the season, and in the playoffs, as they did over the first 30 games. I searched for this on ClipsNation before I wrote the Fan Post. Sorry if it has aleady been posted. Zack Lowe has a weill written, in my opinion, piece about VDN's coaching problems. I don't think there is anything in there we did not already know but I think it is worth the read. He points out the Clipper's problem of a "lack of a system" especially on offense under VDN. He also writes about what in his opnion are the four main reasons VDN was let go. 1. . Del Negro would still have this job if Chris Paul wanted him to have it. 2. Del Negro may well still have this job had Blake Griffin not suffered a serious ankle injury between Games 4 and 5 of the Clippers’ first-round series against the Grizzlies. 3. With Del Negro out, and probably unlikely to get one of the head-coaching jobs currently open (or soon to come open), there is a vacancy atop the “Best Coach at Screaming at Opposing Shooters and Stamping His Feet” rankings. Del Negro really redefined this skill. He was like a sixth defender on some possessions, and if you edited out the basketball game happening around him, he’d have looked at times like an adult going through a child’s tantrum. 4. Del Negro might still have this job if the Clippers played defense in the second half of the season, and in the playoffs, as they did over the first 30 games. I searched for this on ClipsNation before I wrote the Fan Post. Sorry if it has aleady been posted.

Mar 29, 2013; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers shooting guard C.J. Miles (0) reacts after knocking a ball out of bounds against the Philadelphia 76ers during the game at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Eric P. Mull-USA TODAY Sports The Clippers are poised to have a huge offseason, of course they’ve already fired Vinny Del Negro, and they’re looking to do more as well. When Blake Griffin went down with injury, I’m sure it got them thinking that they need even more depth to fill up their bench. If they do add more, fatigue will almost never be a factor, and the Clippers will be able to play some effective playoff basketball. Right now, the coaching slot remains to be opened, and that determines if Chris Paul re-signs or not, but the Clippers are going to need to have some magic, other than those to focuses. With that being said, there’s plenty of talented free agents that would bring a lot to a team to make them contenders. Many consider the Clippers to already be a dynasty, but they have yet to make a trip to the finals in their two years of royalty. Fortunately for them, that could all change this offseason. 1. CJ Miles: With Caron Butler getting a lot older, the Clippers are going to need some more options at the small forward spot. Butler, without a doubt, should continue to be a starter, but someone needs to back him up. Jamal Crawford is a true point guard, and the Clippers should let him thrive there. Miles is athletic, can dunk the basketball, plays defense with that long wingspan, but most importantly, knows how to shoot the ball. He’s got a lot to offer, talent-wise, and the Clippers should do what they can to get a deal with him. 2. Samuel Dalambert: Dalambert isn’t exactly a very appealing player, but for the Clippers, he would be a great fit. On some nights, he shows flashes of brilliance like when he scored 35 points mid-year. On other nights, he’s just a regular guy, but his hard work ethic never seems to fade. For the Clippers, that may be better than someone who just dunks the ball flashily. The Clippers need a rock at the center spot, and Dalambert, although not a superstar, is capable of being that guy. 3. Aaron Gray: While we’re on the topic of centers, let’s switch to another one. Gray is another one of those guys, who doesn’t play big minutes. When he does, however, he’s able to make a huge impact, and play like an all-star center. The Clippers could use his flashes of brilliance, again. He usually plays big minutes when Amir Johnson on the Raptors is injured, and he does a very good job fitting into the starting role. Maybe the Clippers should rejuvenate his career?

The plane is on autopilot right now. That’s fine. It’s in the middle of the flight. There’s no turbulence. It’s gliding through the smoothest air particles possible as it graces over the Pacific. But the plane is still on autopilot and it needs to land eventually. The Clippers have to find their pilot. As of now, there are too many candidates. How many names have we heard that are in the running? How many names have we heard that are out of the running? Somehow, Stan Van Gundy is in both of those categories. It’s countless. It’s confusion. Basically, it’s just a coaching search. A change is gonna come. The times they are a-changin’. A change will do you do you good. Other change-related song titles. It’s early in the search, but for the first time, the Clippers are a desirable coaching destination. This job used to be a castaway to Flynt, Michigan to go see the in-laws over your holiday break. Now it’s a two-week vacation to a resort in Antigua. Chris Paul (return-pending) and Blake Griffin have that sort of vacation-twisting effect on a franchise. Some of the coaches rumored to head to Antigua are fit for the job. Others, not so much. And some more are just rumored because Regina George thinks rumors are fun. So without further ado, here are the top candidates for the job, Clipper Coach Power Rankings: 12. David Blatt Blatt is currently the coach of Maccabi Tel Aviv and has as decorated a coaching pedigree as anyone overseas. He spent last summer as the coach of the Russian national team at the Olympics, helping lead his squad to a bronze medal. Blatt is smart (he played at Princeton), a good schemer, and seems like he should be able to coach in the NBA. But hiring a guy from over international waters will always be considered a risk. The Clippers hiring Blatt almost definitely wouldn’t happen – considering it would be relatively unprecedented to hire a coach who has spent his whole career overseas – but Blatt deserves an NBA job somewhere at some point. 11. Robert Pack Pack is gaining respect around the league and momentum for him to land a head coaching job is certainly building, but hiring him right out of the Clippers’ assistant ranks seems like it might be a lateral move. Staying consistent with the coaching staff would be odd to do after such a strangely coached past couple of seasons under Vinny Del Negro. 10. Byron Scott Scott will be enticing for the Clippers because of the offset in his contract. The Cavaliers still owe him $4 million for this season. That means if another team signs him, that team can offer a cheaper deal for that first year. It’s the same offset clause that led the Clippers to sign Vinny Del Negro after the Bulls fired him in 2010. Scott had strong defensive teams in New Jersey, but after losing his best defensive assistant, Lawrence Frank, his defenses have never really been the same. He’s not necessarily known for his X’s and O’s, but his history with Chris Paul in addition to that offset make him a realistic choice for the next Clippers head coach. 9. Brian Shaw How many offseasons in a row is this that Shaw has been a prime candidate for a head coaching position? 15? Are we at 20 years yet? It’s been a while and yet, Shaw still hasn’t landed a job he wants. (Charlotte offered him its head coaching position last year, but Shaw turned the Bobcats down.) He has the Los Angeles connection from all of that time with the Lakers and his former players seem to consistently show overwhelming support in his quest to become a leading man, but is Shaw the right guy for the Clippers? He has spent plenty of time running the triangle in his career. Would he want to do that in L.A.? Is a system that takes the ball out of the point guard’s hands best for a team that has Chris Paul? For Shaw and the Clippers, the biggest questions aren’t so much about qualifications as much as they are about fit. 8. Lionel Hollins Hollins is in the Del Negro category in some ways. He led the Grizzlies to a fra

The All-NBA teams were announced today, and Chris Paul and Blake Griffin were named to the first and second teams, respectively. This was Paul’s fifth time being named to the All-NBA team and third time making the first team (also made it in 2008 and 2012). Meanwhile, Griffin’s selection marked the second time he made an All-NBA team, as he also made the second team last season. Joining Paul on the first team were LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan. The second team comprised of Carmelo Anthony, Russell Westbrook, Tony Parker and Marc Gasol alongside Griffin. Here is the NBA.com press release on Paul making the All-NBA first team: Paul, an All-NBA First Team selection for the third time, had a league-best 4.26 assist-to-turnover ratio; he had 13 games in which he dished at least 11 assists while committing no more than one turnover. The 2013 All-Star Game MVP, Paul averaged 16.9 points, ranked second in assists with 9.7 apg and paced the league in steals with 2.41 spg. Paul is unanimously considered the best point guard in the league and his selection confirmed that notion. Griffin’s selection, however, implies that he was considered the best power forward in the league by the media — he was the only power forward to make the first or second team. Depending on whether you consider LeBron James or Carmelo Anthony a 4, those two would have the advantage over Griffin. And the voters put David Lee on the third team, which is a bit head-scratching and weakens the credence of Griffin’s argument slightly. Still, Griffin has as great of a case as anyone for top power forward honors and it’s great to see him get his proper due. None of this really matters, of course, but it’s fun to speculate and rank. Paul and Griffin’s selections continue the Clippers’ recognition in awards voting this postseason. Paul also finished fourth in MVP voting and made the All-Defense first team. VP of Basketball Operations Gary Sacks finished second in Executive of the Year. And, as we all remember, Jamal Crawford finished second in Sixth Man of the Year. While the Clippers didn’t advance in the postseason as they would have liked, they undoubtedly had a remarkable regular season, and all of their success (and near-success) in these postseason awards is just another sign of validation. Follow @jovanbuha

Per the Orlando Sentinel... Asked what if there's a chance he will never coach again, Van Gundy replied: "I guess there's a chance. ... The reason I say that is because I don't know when it will be a good time (to return). If I'm going to wait until everyone is out of high school, we're talking another four years. By then, I'd still be young enough, but I don't know if there would be any interest (from NBA teams). Every year, you're out of it, it gets harder and harder to get back in."

http://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/227811/Stan-Van-Gundy-It-Is-Possible-I-Dont-Coach-Ever-AgainI mean, either SVG is just trying to make DTS pony up or he's really out of it this year. Pretty stupid of him if you ask me. Anyway, with SVG happy eating donuts in Florida and Phil politely telling us to go screw ourselves, the only other established coach I want is Jerry Sloan.If we go the assistant route, it's either Mike and Mike. Very tough call. All have their pros and cons, except Budenholzer who might be con-free, I don't know. He's been coaching for the Spurs for 17 years. Like Thibs coached for 19 before the big call. That alone might make him preferable over Malone, whose only draw back is less experience.Who are we kidding. Hello, Byron Scott. :/ http://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/227811/Stan-Van-Gundy-It-Is-Possible-I-Dont-Coach-Ever-AgainI mean, either SVG is just trying to make DTS pony up or he's really out of it this year. Pretty stupid of him if you ask me. Anyway, with SVG happy eating donuts in Florida and Phil politely telling us to go screw ourselves, the only other established coach I want is Jerry Sloan.If we go the assistant route, it's either Mike and Mike. Very tough call. All have their pros and cons, except Budenholzer who might be con-free, I don't know. He's been coaching for the Spurs for 17 years. Like Thibs coached for 19 before the big call. That alone might make him preferable over Malone, whose only draw back is less experience.Who are we kidding. Hello, Byron Scott. :/

For the second consecutive season, the Los Angeles Clippers placed two players on the All-NBA teams, with Chris Paul being named to the first team and Blake Griffin being named to the second team. The honors are well deserved and not in the least surprising. For Paul it is his sixth All-NBA selection and the fourth time he's been named to the first team, including three years in a row. For Griffin it is his second straight second team selection. The Clippers were one of five teams to take up two of the fifteen All-NBA slots -- in fact, all five first team selections were joined by a teammate somewhere on the list. LeBron James, the only unanimous selection was joined by his Miami Heat teammate Dwyane Wade, who made the third team. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City made the first and second team respectively as did Tim Duncan and Tony Parker of the Spurs. The list of teams with multiple selections concludes with the Lakers, who placed Kobe Bryant on the first team and Dwight Howard on the third team. Also chosen to All-NBA were Marc Gasol of the Memphis Grizzlies and Carmelo Anthony of the Knicks on the second team, and David Lee of the Warriors, Paul George of the Pacers and James Harden of the Thunder on the third team. Paul was the leading vote-getter among guards, both in terms of first place votes and total points (five points are award for a first team vote, three for second and one for third, with the votes being cast by 119 sportswriters and broadcasters). Paul was third overall in voting, behind only James and Durant. Griffin was the only second team selection not to receive a single first team vote, but that's hardly surprising. He happens to play the same position as James, Durant and Anthony, who finished one-two-three in MVP voting this season. There simply weren't any more first place votes available at the forward spot. (In fact, James received the maximum 119 first place votes, Durant got 102 and Anthony 24, which exceeds the number of available votes for forwards, meaning that 17 voters actually fudged their ballots enough to vote for one of those players at either guard or center.) Griffin's point total suffered from the absence of first place votes, and in fact he had only the 12th highest point total among players, but made the second team at forward by being fourth among forwards. He was however the 'best' power forward in the NBA this season by this measure; James, Durant and Anthony all played plenty of four on the year, but they are all primarily perimeter players, making Griffin the highest vote getter among interior forwards. It helped Griffin that Kevin Love was injured most of the season of course, and Love as well as players like Lee, LaMarcus Aldridge and Zach Randolph can all stake a claim as the game's best power forward. But the All-NBA voters this season bestowed the honor on Griffin. Still, Griffin will need to continue to develop if he wishes to truly establish himself in that spot. Viewed in the context of the All-NBA voting, it's not difficult to see why the Clippers first round playoff exit was such a disappointment. Among the five teams featuring two All-NBA players, the Heat and the Spurs are currently competing in their respective Conference Finals and appear at this point to be headed towards a showdown in the NBA Finals. The Thunder and the Lakers had two All-NBA selections, but competed in the playoffs without one of them, as injuries sidelined Bryant and Westbrook. A sprained ankle for Griffin likewise played a role in the Clippers playoff exit, but it's nonetheless a let down for a team with such star power to fail to win a playoff series. But the good news is that stars win in the NBA, and the Clippers will almost certainly enter next season with their stars aligned for five more seasons. Griffin's contract extension begins next season and although Paul is a free agent, he is widely expected to sign a new deal with the Clippers. Talent gives you a ch

Name: Lamar Odom 2012-2013 Key Stats: 4.0 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 1.7 apgAge: 33Years in NBA: 14Years With Clippers: 12012-2013 Salary: $8,200,000Contract Status: Unrestricted Free AgentIn A Nutshell: Perhaps the most significant transaction in the reshaping of this year's Clippers from the prior squad was the late June trade that brought former Clipper Lamar Odom back to Los Angeles. In that trade the Clippers lost last season's sixth man Mo Williams. Williams had been a significant contributor on the best Clippers team in franchise history, but exchanging backcourt depth for front court depth seemed to make sense for the Clippers, justifying the trade. It was risky from the start. Odom had just completed by far the worst season of his career after being traded from the Lakers to Dallas. Odom was upset by the trade and never got into the proper mental state with the Mavericks. The situation deteriorated to the point where he was eventually dismissed from the team. That worst ever season had come on the heels of arguably the best season of his career in which he won the 2011 Sixth Man Award with the Lakers. Sixth-Man-Award-Lamar would clearly be a huge help to the Clippers; apathetic-Dallas-Lamar would be useless. At the time of the trade, no one knew which one the Clippers would get. When Odom should up to training camp out of shape most observers feared the worst. But he's never been an off-season workout fiend along the lines of Blake Griffin -- Odom has always played himself into shape, and slowly but surely that's what he did with the Clippers. He was saying all the right things, and working hard when he was on the court, and while he was clearly not at his best, he was just as clearly significantly better, especially mentally, than the guy who shuffled through a season in Dallas. In the end, the Clippers got a player somewhere between the two extremes that Odom had recently demonstrated. He played a more limited role than he ever had -- a career low 19.7 minutes per game -- but that still qualified him as the first big off the bench and a mainstay of one of the better second units in the NBA. Odom was good for the Clippers this season -- but also very limited.Strengths: Strengths and weaknesses are rarely as black and white as they were this season for Odom. His strengths were rebounding and defense; his weakness was offense, plain and simple. He was the team's best per minute rebounder, no mean feat on a roster featuring Griffin and DeAndre Jordan; in fact, on a per minute basis this was the second best performance of his 14 year career. Bear in mind also that 10.7 rebounds per 36 isn't just good for the Clippers or good for Lamar Odom -- it's a really high level of rebounding, period. Among qualified players, Lamar was the 19th best per minute rebounder in the NBA this season. Not bad. In addition to his rebounding, his all-around defense was tremendous all season. His length is a great asset on defense, he gets a large number of deflections and challenges every shot. He also happens to be in the right spot on almost every play. His rotations are terrific and his basketball instincts on defense are uncanny. I lost count of the times this season that Odom made multiple defensive plays on a single possession -- rotating to help on someone else's man, then recovering to his own man in time to challenge a shot. Weaknesses: Unfortunately, while Odom was providing solid rebounding and defense, he had completely forgotten how to score -- or maybe he'd simply lost interest. A career 13 point per game scorer who has twice averaged over 17 points for a full season, Odom averaged a career low 4 points per game for the Clippers while making less than 40 percent of his field goals. His lack of offensive punch was pretty astounding actually. In 82 games and over 1600 minutes, he took a TOTAL of 42 free throws -- the fewest free throws per minute of any interior player in the league. If he'd taken more free throws, one might have

Mar 26, 2013; Dallas, TX, USA; Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul (3) talks with forward Blake Griffin (32) in the second half against the Dallas Mavericks at the American Airlines Center. The Mavs beat the Clippers 109-102. in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports Los Angeles Clippers stars Chris Paul and Blake Griffin have been voted to All-NBA Teams. Both players were the spearhead to the Clippers winning a franchise best 56 games in 2012-13. This is Paul’s third first team selection (07-08, 11-12) and fifth overall. Paul averaged 16.9 points, 9.7 assists and 2.7 steals during the 2012-13 NBA season. He was also voted All-Star MVP and finished fourth in MVP voting. As for Blake Griffin, this is his second time making All-NBA Second team in his three-year career. He averaged 18 points, 8.3 rebounds and posted a PER of 22.4. All-NBA Teams: First Team: G Chris Paul, LAC G Kobe Bryant, LAL F Lebron James, MIA F Kevin Durant, OKC C Tim Duncan, SAS Second Team: G Tony Parker, SAS G Russell Westbrook, OKC F Carmelo Anthony, NYK F Blake Griffin, LAC C Marc Gasol, MEM Third Team: G Dwyane Wade G James Harden, HOU F Paul George, IND F David Lee, GSW C Dwight Howard, LAL