The playoffs are here and we should all be soaking up every minute of that. However, there are a few teams that have already entered their offseason — 14 lottery teams (that we’ve already covered) and 8 more teams that got sent packing in R1.
We’re going to be looking at the first of those now:
LA CLIPPERS
The Clippers find themselves in an interesting position.
You better believe that somewhere in Los Angeles right now — perhaps on the beaches of Malibu — Jennifer Lawrence is pacing around in a huff, bitching about the fact that the heater in her jacuzzi isn’t working properly.
That’s how people are — they get used to their new circumstances. Lawrence’s past, growing up poor in Kentucky, is a distant memory. She’s gotten used to being a multi-millionaire movie star, and she ought to have her fucking jacuzzi working right or else someone is going to lose their god damn job.
That’s the L.A. Clippers fanbase right now. The days of Donald Sterling and the lottery-bound past (when fans would only show up for the t-shirt gun) are behind them, and they can only remember the new era of Blake Griffin, Chris Paul, and annual trips to playoffs. And not making the second round? That’s unacceptable. Someone ought to lose their god damn job right now.
Let’s find out who to blame with these steps:
(1) Have a long, uncomfortable talk with Doc Rivers
Doc Rivers is a decorated coach with a title under his belt. As a result, he’s become deeply ingrained with this franchise and gotten his hooks into every layer of the operation; he’s not technically the GM, but his former assistant Lawrence Frank is. In terms of the basketball operation, Doc calls all the shots.
And unfortunately, that’s been a very bad thing for the Clippers. It’s stunning that this team, owners of a top 5 PG, top 5 PF, and top 5 C, can’t make the Western Conference Finals. Many can blame the “fit” of Chris Paul and Blake Griffin — and that’s part of it — but the primary problem has been Doc Rivers’ mismanagement of the rest of the roster.
In his long and fruitless search for a small forward, he’s whiffed on players like Joe Ingles, and even Jared Dudley, and instead brought in over-the-hill vets like Jeff Green and Paul Pierce. In this recent Game 7 playoff game against Utah, the Clippers trotted out a lineup that featured Pierce (age 39), Raymond Felton (an old 32), and Jamal Crawford (37). And we’re supposed to be surprised they lost?
It’s hard to blame Doc for this playoff loss — after all, the Clippers were going to have trouble beating a good Utah team without Blake Griffin — but we can blame him for all the playoff losses before and for his poor roster construction.
Steve Ballmer doesn’t want to fire Doc Rivers. I get that. After all, Ballmer’s a smart man who realizes he’s not a basketball professional. He realizes Doc is an experienced leader, and great with the media. But hopefully, he realizes that what Doc is doing is NOT working right now.
Ballmer needs to have a long, uncomfortable sit down with Doc Rivers to see if Rivers agrees. If Rivers shows some humility and admits that he’s made mistakes — and that he has a plan to correct that with better rotation players, more attention to analytics, and more of a focus on developing their younger talent (in favor of old broken down vets) — then it makes sense to keep him around.
If Doc does not agree, and bristles at the idea that he needs to improve and evolve his coaching, then it’s time to put him out to pasture. Allow him to leave gracefully, be it for the Orlando GM job or a TV job or whatever he wants the next step of his career to be.
If Doc Rivers does leave the Clippers, the team should look for a specific prototype in their next coach. This particular team doesn’t need a famous coach to bark at their stars; they need a young, low-ego coach to help manage them. I’d look at Stephen Silas (CHA), J.B. Bickerstaff (MEM), and Jay Larranaga (BOS) as examples of that. Although they’re all young, they’ve been around the game all their lives (all as the sons of coaches). Each would offer some new ideas, without the ego to rock the boat and create conflict. L.A. native Jarron Collins (GS) would be another example of that, if only because it’d be fun to see two Warriors assistants take over the L.A. franchises.
(2) Don’t “blow it up…”
Given the playoff disappointments, everyone is calling for the Clippers to “blow it up.” Clearly, the combination of Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, and DeAndre Jordan doesn’t work!
It’s an ideal time to make that argument, as Paul and Griffin will both be free agents (presuming they opt out of their options.) Personally, I disagree with that plan of attack. In fact, I would try my best to re-sign BOTH Paul and Griffin.
By all accounts, Chris Paul’s extension is a fait accompli — and that makes sense. While “the point god” is already 31 years old, he’s still a prudent investment. Paul’s efficiency is still great (and his advanced stats are among the best in the league) so even if he declines, there’s a lot of wiggle room before he’s a liability on the court. Paul’s primary skills — his vision, his leadership, and his basketball IQ — should age well. If the Spurs can still trot out Tony Parker (at age 34) for heavy minutes, the Clippers shouldn’t have to worry about CP3 for at least 3-4 more years.
Envisioning the future for Blake Griffin is a murkier proposition. Everyone presumes that his primary attribute (his athleticism) will continue to decline and make him even more ineffective.
But people who think that are selling Blake Griffin short. To be honest: Griffin hasn’t been a dominant athlete for a few years now. His primary attributes, at this stage, are his ability to handle the ball and play-make from a forward position. He averaged 4.9 assists this past season, and that’s with Chris Paul handing most possessions.
You can’t look at Blake Griffin like he’s Shawn Kemp. In fact, he’s more like a LeBron James or Jimmy Butler at this stage. He’d be best served as a “point forward,” surrounded by shooters. He’ll never quite maximize his potential on the Clippers with Paul around, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have value. The team should continue to stagger their minutes as much as possible, to allow Griffin to thrive as a secondary playmaker. The injuries, obviously, are a HUGE concern, but his upside and rare skills make me believe the team should re-sign him anyway.
Look, I know, the combination of Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, and DeAndre Jordan isn’t ideal from a “fit” perspective. Then again, neither was LeBron James and Dwyane Wade. The Clippers have too much bluechip talent to break up at this stage. Instead, I’d focus on the other areas of need.
(3) … but “break it up.”
By that, I mean the Clippers need to reassess the rest of the team around those three stars. Their depth is atrocious and has been for some time. To make matters worse, their 4th, 5th, and 6th best players (J.J. Redick, Austin Rivers, and Jamal Crawford) are all effectively the same position — undersized scoring shooting guards. The team needs to reshuffle those pieces to surround the stars with more diverse talent.
Given that, I’d start by allowing J.J. Redick to leave via free agency. Traditionally, shooting ages as well as any other basketball skill — but the Clippers need more than that. While Redick should continue to be an excellent shooter, there are other warning signs that suggest his overall game is in decline. Primarily: his defensive abilities. Redick worked hard to be a passable defender, but those skills are declining already. This past season, ESPN real +/- charted him as a -2.02 on the defensive end. Redick is only 6’4″ and has the shortest wingspan in the league (relative to height). His defensive struggles will only get worse as his foot speed declines. Already 32, Redick is not someone I’d trust with big money for more than 2-3 years; he’s going to be a defensive sieve before too long.
I’d also get rid of Jamal Crawford, some how, some way. For a while, I thought the problem was that Crawford and Austin Rivers were too redundant, but that’s not quite the case anymore. Rivers played a little better in 2017, while the 37-year-old Crawford continued to decline. Right now, it’s obvious that: Rivers is a MUCH better player than Crawford at this stage in their careers.
Crawford has quickly gone from a Sixth Man of the Year to a liability on the court. He’s bad on defense, and inefficient on offense. Part of that offensive issue is the way Doc uses him — basically throwing him out with a dog unit of backups and expecting him to create shots and jack up miracle jumpers every possession — but either way, he needs to go. Finding a taker for Crawford’s contract (he’s owed $14 million next year and the year after) will be difficult, but the team should go as far as to consider the “stretch” provision to get him off the books.
Meanwhile, Austin Rivers’ contract ($11.8 million and then a player option for $12.6) doesn’t look as bad in hindsight as it did at the time. If the team loses Redick, Austin Rivers may actually be more valuable as someone who can soak up some of those minutes.
Despite that, I’d STILL consider moving Rivers if the right situation presents itself. His solid year may make him a trade asset; if the team can bring in a bigger wing like Carmelo Anthony or Wilson Chandler in return, I’d make that deal. Having extra size on the court would help with their defense and rebounding. If you can’t find a legitimate asset for Rivers, then I’d keep him in house. If you lose Redick (and/or Crawford), Rivers will soak up a lot of those minutes at shooting guard. I’d still recommend keeping him as a scorer off the bench, though.
While the Clippers won’t have much money to play with in free agency, they still have a decent sales pitch to make. The team is going to be in the playoff picture (provided they don’t “blow it up”) and could attract some free agents to play a role for them on a discount.
For me, the dream fit would be Indiana SF C.J. Miles — who’s likely to opt out of his contract as well. Miles is a stellar shooter (36.1% career from three, 41.3% last year) with enough size at 6’6″ to be able to play a variety of positions on the perimeter. Miles would presumably want a bigger deal than the Clippers can offer, but if he has a strong year with the team (bombing open threes) then he may be able to recoup those losses on his next contract.
If the team can’t land him, there are other bargain free agents that they can target. Thabo Sefolosha would be a stellar defender, Gerald Green and Justin Holiday would be a reasonable 3-and-D fit, while Jodie Meeks and Anthony Morrow would be (admittedly undersized) replacements for Redick’s shooting.
There are plenty of options out there; even players who don’t even have NBA contracts right now like Hollis Thompson (6’8″) and Dorell Wright (6’9″) would provide size and shooting from the wing position. To me, those are the types of players that would be best suited to play next to the Clips’ “Big Three.”
Conclusion
I understand the inevitable criticism here: am I actually saying a team with Chris Paul, C.J. Miles, Blake Griffin, and DeAndre Jordan can win the title? That they can beat the Golden State Warriors? No.
But guess what? NO ONE can beat the Golden State Warriors right now. Their collection of shooting is unparalleled, and will continue to be head and shoulders above the rest of the league for some time.
Given that, every other team should have a reasonable goal: beat everybody else. I truly believe that with the right pieces around their superstars, the Clippers have a genuine shot at that.
Is heading to the Western Conference Finals (finally) not good enough for you? Are you that spoiled? Who are you, Jennifer Lawrence? Get over yourself.
