The Clippers, now with more BOOM, are kinda good

EBrand was apparently moved to tears (not really) when he witnessed the Celtics' big three dominate the NBA finals. A light bulb went off inside the New York native's head: "I have a ton of money in the bank! Maybe I can opt out, make less millions of dollars this year, and play for a contender! Wait, maybe I'll call up BD and see if he wants to make a movie, I mean, do the same thing! Then we can both stay in LA to ball and make movies and things like that. This is definitely best." All this speculation of EB going elsewhere and not restructuring his deal with the Clippers makes less than no sense. It does not seem to be a secret that Brand was instrumental in getting BD to opt out and sign with LAC for less money. He and Boom are good friends, both have made bank so far playing in the NBA, and both are hungry to win. Brand will re-sign with the Clippers, he wants to win now, period. Why the media is speculating that he will take a max deal with a crappy team (Philly, GS) is beyond me. This isn't Ron Artest we are dealing with. Brand opted out, convinced Boom to sign with the Clips, and he will restructure his deal to remain in LA. EB and BD will play together and things will be fun and the Clips will be relevant again.

Now that the Clippers have Baron Davis, are they good? The short answer is, yes. But why? How? The Clippers won 23 games last year. Fact. They were a joke. Also, fact. There were, however, two bright spots on their lost season: the maturation of Chris Kaman and the potency of Al Thornton to be a big time wing player in this league. More Clipper madness below: defense (good, maybe), bench (very good), and Boom (the bestest). This team can be really good this year.

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On Kaman: Kaman was a beast last season. He played more aggressive basketball with Brand out understanding it was on his shoulders to clean the glass and patrol the lane. He averaged a career highs in points (15.7) rebs (12.7)and blks (2.8). The one question mark which looms, however, is how and if he will be able to effectively mesh with Brand. He never put up these kinds of numbers having played his entire career with EB. Last year, with EB out, he produces these gaudy, career-year, numbers. EB routinely averaged 20+ppg/10rpg/2+bpg every single year he has played with the Clippers while Kaman has taken his time figuring out how to play. I believe that last year was simply his coming out party. Kaman showed flashes of brilliance on both ends of the court throughout the season and because of how bad the Clippers were, his season was very much overlooked. Kaman and Brand down low will be an absolute force both defensively and offensively; they love to bang and they love to play physical ball. They are two terrific rebounders with a good nose for the ball and are both capable of averaging upwards of two blocks per game. They will be a very imposing duo on the Western Conference this year.

On Thornton: Thornton, like mostly all rookies, had a very inconsistent season. He started 36 games and in those games averaged 31 minutes per to go with 16 and 6. He can get to the line and he can stretch the floor with his developing three point range. He is super athletic and has very good size; he has good lateral movement, is a very good perimeter defender, and is very active on the defensive end. He also showed that he can put up some huge offensive lines when he is feeling it. But most importantly, on nights where he's struggling on the offensive end, he has the capability of playing above average defense to keep himself on the floor. With Corey Maggette all but gone, Thornton will be relied upon to take on a greater role this season for the Clips. Now entering his second year, I think that the influence Brand and Boom have on him will be monumental. Thornton's consistency and focus will improve dramatically as he is around two of the leagues best players all season long. He will have some guys in the locker room who are proven all-stars and the team will not be in the doldrums of the Western Conference. This is EB's team, he is the leader, and he is a smart guy. He will understand the importance of Thornton's play to the success of the team and do everything in his power to see him flourish.

Guard defense will suck, interior D, not so much: Eric Gordon will be a below average defender at the 2 guard for probably his entire career. He is not very quick and is a bit undersized. Biddy is maybe an average defender at the point guard position. He has lost much of the quickness he once had due to injury and age and his better defending days are behind him. Gordon is penciled in as their starter at the 2 but I think the correct choice is Quinton Ross to start for them at the 2. Yes, Quinton Ross, hear me out. After so many games of Quinton Ross starting for the Clippers leaving you scratching your head (me too), it actually makes sense for them to start him this year. But they won't. He is a Bruce Bowen type that, when surrounded with very good offensive players, can flourish in a defensive oriented role. This year will be the first year for the Clips where that environment will exist. EB and Boom will put up 20+ each, Thornton can score, and Kaman can score. They do not need a shoot first, poor defensive (rookie!) 2 guard in Gordon starting and playing 30+ minutes. In the Clips teams of the past, Ross made no sense starting or even sniffing the floor as their teams were bad and their offense equally bad. They needed as much offense as they could get. His minutes seem insanely unproductive when you look at his numbers but the things that Ross excels in do not end up on the stat sheet. This is the first year that these intangibles and defensive intensity can make a significant difference for the team. I am unsure just how much the poor defense of Gordon and BD will affect the team. They will have Kaman and Brand patrolling the paint, at least. They both block shots, are very active, and can flat out rebound the basketball. Kaman is also very, very ugly; I am convinced this has some type of adverse affect on the opposition. Coach Dunleavy will be forced to have Gordon and BD playing up on the ball and sort of funneling the opposing guards down low, which might not be a bad thing. But then you look at the Nuggets with Iverson ridiculously (!) undersized at the 2 and Chucky Atkins a small 1 with Camby down low they are among one of the league's worst defensive teams. I believe that Ross starting over Gordon would make the Clippers a better team. I also do not believe this will happen, and as such, their guard defense will be quite poor. But I am mildly, tentatively, sort of convinced that their overall defense will end up ok this year. I think they have the ingredients to be a solid defensive team so long as Dunleavy can play off of certain players strengths, find out lineups that work well together, and distributes minutes correctly. A big if.

The Bench: I love the Clippers bench this year. Yes Cuttino is old, but, he will be relied upon to play less minutes than in the past and he will be able to provide an offensive boost off the bench when called upon. Tim Thomas gives the Clips versatility with his inside-outside game. He also has tremendous size and when he plays hard, sometimes, - ok, rarely- he is a very tough match up. He has also had a penchant for being on losing teams, maybe this year he will put together a more focused year. Powell is a good rebounder and is a very serviceable big that I feel like Dunleavy can rely on when giving EB or Kaman a blow. DeAndre Jordan was a steal, er, highway robbery, at 35th overall in this year's draft. Though he is pretty raw, some projections saw him going late lottery / mid-first round. He will have a chip on his shoulder and he should enter the league with a tremendous amount of energy and motivation to play hard. He is the most unknown commodity coming off the Clippers bench who could really prove to be an elite talent. And then there is Ross, who I have mentioned, who will be able to bring hard-nosed perimeter defense off the bench to which I believe will be valued highly by Dunleavy. I also love Smush Parker backing up Boom. He began to get some run in the final two months of the season for the Clips and while he wasn't very good, he is a more than capable backup. Also, assuming Smush can stay in Dunleavy's good graces, he will end the Knight/Dickau era of seeing the floor in a Clipper uniform. Rejoice Clipper fans.

Baron's impact: The point guard play of LAC last season was an absolutely mockery. I am absolutely astonished that Dan Dickau is still in the league. I have also decided that Brevin Knight is made not of bone but glass. Biddy is an all-star and dominating point guard. He can carry a team on his back (Dallas learns the hard way) and is a point guard with unique ability. Everyone knows BD is very good, he will fix the Clips abysmal PG play, yay.

Are the Clippers a playoff team? Yes. Absolutely. Definitely. I think. Maybe. The West is hard. The Clippers won 23 games last year. If they double that win total they are still not going to make it in. They would have to have a Celtic-like turnaround to make it in at the 7 or 8 spot, which would not surprise me, but it is also much harder to have such a turnaround in the West. Looking at the West, it looks like the same teams, minus Denver, will be in the playoffs again this year, in different order. Denver's 8th spot will be contested by the Blazers or LAC. Provided EB returns, this is the best Clipper team that they have fielded in recent memory. However, they will need to learn how to play with each other. Brand has not played with Kaman down low since Kaman was bad. Gordon, a rookie, factors in to get a significant amount of playing time. Thornton will be relied upon a lot in his second year while he played inconsistent minutes and basketball last year. This learning curve, while it may only be 20 or so games, it could take enough of a toll on their record to force them out of the playoffs. I will drink the kool-aid though, and say the Clips make the playoffs this year, barring significant injury. I just love their team this year. If they can sneak in they will be a very tough draw as their best basketball will be played in the second half of the season.