Interview: ClipsNation.com

The good news on a ruptured Achilles is that players tend to make a full recovery.  Dominique Wilkins averaged 30 the season after his ruptured Achilles.  Brand's rehab has gone without a hitch, so there's every reason to believe that he'll be back in full force next season - in fact, in his first non-contact practice, he said he was jumping as high as he did before the injury.  Kaman and Thornton have exceeded expectations this season and Brand will be Brand, so there's reason for hope.  

I think this team can compete for a playoff spot in the West if they play well.  If Livingston can fulfill some of his promise, the prospects get better (see below).  But the West is monstrously good, as you well know.  I think Phoenix and Dallas just did a huge favor for the Blazers and Clippers of the conference by hastening their own demise with trades for some superstars of the 90s, but the Lakers and Jazz and Hornets (and maybe even the Blazers) all seem to be in line ahead of the Clippers.  So competing for a Western Conference title?  That's another story.  A lot of things would have to go right.

It's an interesting question.  Do you blow up a team that can have a winning season, that can make the playoffs but probably can't get out of the first round?  After all, only one team actually wins the title each year.  Are the other 29 teams failures?  I'm not ready to start over.  Maybe it's because the Clippers have tasted so little success, but I think I'd be content to be semi-competitive with this group.  And who knows, the Brand-Kaman duo could be the best pair of bigs since Parrish and McHale.  We have to at least see Brand on the court with new Kaman for a season.  If those two are healthy and the team makes another trip to the lottery next season, then it may be time to get out the dynamite.  But not yet.

I asked him to lunch next week but haven't heard back.  Oh, you were probably referring to the team's plans I guess.

Livingston returned to practice for non-contact drills last week, a couple of days after Brand.  He has another meeting with his surgeon the first week in March, so we'll know more then .  But on the whole, the news has been very, very positive.  Every indication at this point is that he will make a full recovery.  The big difference here is that, while thousands of athletes have suffered a ruptured Achilles, Livingston's injury (three torn ligaments, not too mention a dislocation and meniscus damage) is pretty unusual, not to mention more severe.   So I expect the Clippers to go more slowly with Livingston than with Brand, even though they are ostensibly at the same point right now.

If you believe the 'full recovery' talk, then I think Shaun Livingston is the starting point guard next season.  Although he has never really fulfilled the promise he exhibits, he was already a very good player before his injury.  He's a terrific defender and a great passer.  I could see him having a long NBA career as a steady, defense-oriented point guard.  And he may yet develop the jump shot and more importantly the aggressiveness to be an offensive force as well.  He's still only 22, and he's had a lot of time to work on his J lately.  He'll be a restricted free agent this summer and I expect him to be a Clipper next year.  

Perhaps the bigger question than his recovery from this injury is the question of future injuries.  In four NBA seasons he's played 145 out of 300 possible games so far, and never more than 61 in a season.  The way he's built, it's possible that he'll just never be able to avoid getting hurt.

I'm very impressed.  Everything you said to me after Summer League is true and then some.  Back in June, there were some who said he could be the second best scorer in the draft after Durant.  Well, lo and behold, he's second among rookies in scoring, and that's after getting very little opportunity prior to the new year.  But I think those June statements were factoring in his age and the fact that he would be ready to help now.  I'm here to tell you, he may be the second best scorer in this draft, period.  Conley, Wright, Young, Young, Yi... obviously those guys are all young and may turn out to be great.  And Oden will be Oden.  But Al Thornton can flat score the ball.  He can shoot.  His first step is lightning quick.  He's a freak of an athlete.  And he can create his own shot.  He will definitely be a starter (as early as next season if the Clippers don't keep Maggette).  He will be a 20 point per game scorer at some point in the not too distant future.

He needs to work on his rebounding.  He needs to work on his defensive rotations.  And most importantly, he needs to work on sharing the ball.  He's been incredibly good in isolations this season, especially for a rookie.  But he tends to get pretty focused on the rim, and forces some bad shots.  He's also starting to see some double teams, and even then he tends to try to get the shot up.  When he learns some patience and to better utilize his teammates, he's going to be very, very good.

When I'm asked questions about the Clippers, I usually pretend I know something.  But let's face it, I'm just some schlub fan who follows the team closely; I don't really know what they plan to do with, for instance Shaun Livingston - I just know what the current situation is and have an opinion about what makes the most sense.  But in the case of Corey Maggette, I don't even pretend to know.  

Corey is having his best season as a pro.  As I write this, he's averaging 22 per game which is 13th in the league, and given that he's averaging over 24 in 2008, he seems to be headed into the top 10.  And of course he does it on fewer shot attempts than almost anyone else, since he gets to the free throw line so frequently.  He will definitely opt out of the final year of his contract this summer, and you would think there would be teams lined up to pay a guy scoring 22 points per game on 14 shots.

But when you get specific about the teams that figure to have enough cap room this summer to pay him what he's looking for, it's not so clear.  I don't see teams like Memphis, Philadelphia or Charlotte making him a big offer, given their current rosters.  Nor would Corey necessarily want to play for those teams.  The entire situation is complicated by the fact that coach Mike Dunleavy Sr. (you may remember him) has never been a fan, and in fact has tried to trade Corey on at least three occasions.  Meanwhile, owner Donald T. Sterling loves Maggette, and wants him to be a Clipper for life.  Some of this was at the center of the ugly row between the owner and the coach last month.  

So like I said, I don't know what is going to happen with Corey.  I think a lot of people assume he'll be gone next season (and with Thornton waiting to step in, the Clippers could certainly let it happen), but I'm not convinced.  I don't want to overpay for him, but a front line of Kaman, Brand and Maggette with Thornton coming off the bench could be a lot of fun to watch.

What's especially sad is that the Clippers have been one of the better rebounding teams in the NBA for several seasons.  But replace Elton Brand in the lineup with Tim Thomas, and this is what you get.  Offensive rebounding is particular painful - the Brand Clippers have always been near the top of the league in offensive rebounding.  The Generic Clippers (no Brand) are 29th.  So I guess we can look for a lot of jump balls.