The Clippers are doing whatever they can to get Doc Rivers to come coach and as you would assume it's a total disaster. (Credits: Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images) |
There's something about being the little brother in a sports city that brings out the absolute worst in teams, in organizations. The Mets always disappoint. The Islanders play in a dump. The Jets are a circus. The Nets were from New Jersey. Aside from the White Sox, who have had more success then their cursed big brothers lately, the little brother effect is usually a disastrous one for the lesser of the two halves. But for all the little brothers who have once failed or still continue to fail, the Los Angeles Clippers take the absolute cake.
The original Buffalo Braves franchise, which actually was a decently successful one in Buffalo, has taken on three forms. The Braves, the San Diego Clippers and then finally the latest disaster, the Los Angeles Clippers. Moving to Los Angeles in the 1984-'85 season, the Clippers looked to turn the page on a six-year tenure in San Diego that produced exactly zero playoff appearances. But, the move up I-5 did very little for the franchise's misfortunate. They didn't make the playoffs until '91-'92, which is one of the only six playoff appearances in the team's history. Los Angeles' second squad has only made the second round twice, twice in 29 seasons in Los Angeles.
Yet, for all the organization's misfortune and their owner's basketball ignorance they were able to pull off a franchise changing deal (with a little help form David Stern) by acquiring Chris Paul. The move instantaneously altered the franchise. Adding CP3 to the young up and comers like Blake Griffin, DeAndre Jordan and Eric Bledsoe signaled that this team had the potential to be a contender in years to come. Despite the strike shortened season last year, the Clippers made the playoffs for the first time since the '05-'06 campaign and advanced to conference semis for only the second time in team history. Chris Paul's emergence had really vaulted the Clippers into the national spotlight (though they couldn't overtake the spotlight on the struggling Lakers), but as the befuddling organization has always done it has tried to turn a quality situation into a disaster.
After L.A.C. was bounced in six games against the Grizzlies in the first round this season, they fired coach Vinny Del Negro. It wasn't a surprise. First off he was a terrible coach and no one understood why he was even there in the first place. Second, Chris Paul hated him (for good reason). This is a player's league and as a player's league goes, the superstar isn't necessarily the coach but he can be a pseudo GM. So off goes Del Negro and then there's this hole that the Clippers need to fill. Actually there's two holes to fill, one is the head coach and two deals with CP3. Paul's contract is up and while it seems like a lock for him to stay in the beautiful confines of Hollywood, it isn't a guarantee. Not how the Clippers organization runs it ship. Not how Donald Sterling has proceeded over the years.
Of course the first attempt at filling both holes became a dramatic one. There's been rumors flying about every single player on the Clippers (except for Paul) being traded to the Celtics for Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Doc Rivers, who has strangely requested a departure from his digs in Boston. Of all of the supposed trade proposals, some involving draft picks, some involving the taking on of brutal contracts like Jason Terry's, none of them have favored the Clippers. Absolutely none of them. One of the original offers was something of the effect of DeAndre Jordan, Eric Bledsoe and a first round pick for Garnett, Pierce and Rivers. Like what? Why in the world should the Clippers do that? Garnett looked run down all year and Pierce isn't getting any younger. And why are you trading for a coach? This isn't the 1920s when coaches were traded, as if that was ever a good idea.
For Boston, this is an absolute steal. Anything they can get in return for Rivers (At this point it's supposedly Rivers and Garnett for DeAndre Jordan and TWO PICKS) is a steal. Again when's the last time you heard of a coach getting dealt. If Rivers is really ready for a "change of scenery" then I'd trade the guy for basically any in the league that didn't have a brutal contract (which is actually a lot of guys in the NBA, but not as many as it used to be). The Celtics have the upper hand in this deal, not only because the Clippers are desperate for a coach that Paul would play under, but also because the Clippers are...and always will be...the Clippers. It's like dealing with a third world country that just hit a raw material gold mine and now they don't know what to do with it, trying to trade all their best young researchers and business people to get a president like Bill Clinton. It just doesn't make any sense.
Fortunately for the small triumvirate that makes up the Clippers fanbase, the NBA isn't letting any of these ridiculous lopsided deals go through. They just can't let Sterling's own stupidity ruin what is an interesting two-headed monster in Los Angeles. But the Clippers will keep trying to run, what is a nice looking little yacht, into the ground and do so with fervor. The post-Big Three Era in Boston could be hitting the restart button a lot more quickly than people thought.
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