Posts Tagged ‘Jamal Crawford’

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Hot List: Top 10 Unrestricted Free Agents

May 9, 2013  ·  11:07AM





HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – Only eight teams remain in the playoffs, meaning the fans of 22 other teams have turned much of their attention to the offseason and the free-agent summer of 2013 in particular.

We will encounter a familiar name there, one Dwight David Howard of the Los Angeles Lakers, who along with Chris Paul of the Los Angeles Clippers, will be at the center of all things come July 1 (when free agency kicks off in all of its usual craziness).

There are a dozen teams, most notably Dallas, Atlanta, Houston, Utah, Cleveland, New Orleans, Detroit, Charlotte and Washington, with the cash to spend and the flexibility to significantly tweak, and, in some cases, totally remake their rosters. All these teams need is a free agent willing to give them a chance to make the proper sales pitch.

For the top-level free agents — and this summer that list it two truly elite players deep, Howard and Paul — the list of potential suitors will be exclusive. Only those franchises with championship potential need bother.

But that’s what makes the summer, the scramble by a large number of teams for the same small group of big-time free agents. We have more than seven weeks to before free agency goes into complete crazy mode, but why wait until then to get the party started?

The full list of this summer’s available names is around, as always, courtesy of our Free Agent Tracker. And if you’re looking for the top restricted free-agent picks, they’re right here.

Here are our top 10 unrestricted free agents for the summer of 2013 …

Dwight Howard, C, Los Angeles Lakers

Status on July 1: Unrestricted free agent
What he’s selling: A three-time Kia Defensive Player of the Year and five-time rebounding champ, Howard is a seven-time All-Star and, when healthy, the NBA’s most dominant big man. When your down year sees you lead the league in rebounding and still help power the Lakers to a playoff spot in an absolute train wreck of a season, you’re worth every penny a team throws at you.
What he’s not saying: He still a putrid free throw shooter and has been known to struggle with decision-making.
What he’s worth: A max contract, worth approximately $118 million over five years.
Who might be buying: The Lakers have no choice but to beg him to stay, with Kobe Bryant on the mend from Achilles surgery and no one else on the roster capable of carrying the mantle as face of the franchise. Houston, Atlanta and Dallas will launch all-out assaults to sway him.
Likely landing spot(s): Lakers. They can offer $30 million more than anyone else. Howard will have a hard time walking away from that kind of cash.

Chris Paul, PG, Los Angeles Clippers

Status on July 1: Unrestricted free agent
What he’s selling: A six-time All-Star and culture-changer (see Clippers before and after his arrival), Paul is the best in the business at his position, a gold medal winner and an All-Star Game MVP. Toss in his work as a pitch man (Cliff Paul comes with the package) and it’s easy to see why he’s one of the most recognizable players in the game today.
What he’s not saying: He has to stay healthy. He’s not getting any younger and he has to get to winning in the postseason, the one glaring hole on his so-far sparkling NBA resume.
What he’s worth: A max contract, worth approximately $108 million over five years.
Who might be buying: The Clippers are desperate to hold on to him. But they have coaching issues to resolve before that can happen. Houston, Atlanta, Dallas will all make pitches in hopes of prying Paul away.
Likely landing spots: Clippers … depending on what happens with Vinny Del Negro. Like Howard, Paul would have to walk away from extra cash if he decides to go elsewhere. But he’s hungry for a title, wherever he goes.

Josh Smith, F, Atlanta Hawks

Status on July 1: Unrestricted free agent
What he’s selling: An absolute game-changer when he’s focused, Smith makes plays only a few players in the league are capable of on a given night. For all the drama and criticism thrown his way, he helped power the Hawks to six straight playoff appearances.
What he’s not saying: His shot selection and motor remain issues. After nine years in Atlanta, his next spot needs to be an ideal fit, because this is likely Smith’s last big deal. He has to make sure it’s in a place where he can thrive.
What he’s worth: A max contract of approximately $95 million over five years doesn’t fit here, not from the only team (the Hawks) that can offer him that much. But a deal worth approximately $75 million to $85 million over five years is doable. Smith turned down a $47 million extension offer from the Hawks, so he’s obviously looking for a starting salary of $16 million-plus.
Who might be buying: The Hawks say they are interested in keeping Smith, at the right price, of course. Houston, Boston, Phoenix, New Orleans, Philadelphia and the Lakers will all investigate this situation.
Likely landing spots: Houston is the frontrunner and is the ideal fit and a place Smith would be comfortable. (more…)

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Posted in Free Agency 2013 / Comments (256) /

CP3, Del Negro Top Disappointed Clips’ Summer To-Do List

May 4, 2013  ·  10:16AM

 

HANG TIME SOUTHWEST – California’s basketball hierarchy is on its head.

As the second round is set to begin, in is the All-Star-snubbed Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors; out are the two biggest superstars set to hit the free-agent market: Dwight Howard of the Los Angeles Lakers and Chris Paul of the Los Angeles Clippers.

In strange symmetry, Howard and Paul were both ejected in their final games of the season. Howard twice lost his cool and got the heave-ho early in the third quarter of the Kobe-less and totally injury-depleted Lakers’ Game 4 loss to the San Antonio Spurs. Referee Joey Crawford gave Paul a more controversial walk to the showers late in the fourth quarter of Friday’s Game 6 downer at the Memphis Grizzlies, the Clippers’ fourth consecutive defeat after taking a 2-0 series lead.

Both superstars will become free agents on July 1. While the smart money still says D12 and CP3 love L.A. and will stay, unceremonious endings to what were supposed to be storybook seasons for both franchises at least adds a layer of intrigue and speculation to the proceedings.

For the Clippers, 118-105 losers Friday, suddenly the celebrations of a franchise-best 56-win season and a first-ever Pacific Division title are being washed away by a tidal wave of disappointment and tough offseason decisions headlined by Paul’s choice of where next to take his talents.

“I got a lot of time to think about that,” Paul, wearing a Clipper red sports coat, told reporters after Friday’s game. “As I do with any decision I make, I consult with my wife, my parents, my brother, my family. I might even let little Chris chime in on this. We’ll see what happens.”

L.A.’s front office will wait on pins and needles for July 1 to get Paul’s answer, but they will likely move much quicker to determine the future of lame-duck coach Vinny Del Negro. When management assesses the job he’s done in leading the Clippers to the playoffs in consecutive seasons for just the second time in the franchise’s 29 years in L.A. and first time in 20 years, there will be two sides of the coin to each topic of debate.

Since being hired to lead Chicago with no previous coaching experience, Del Negro has been scrutinized, even ridiculed, like no other coach regarding his acumen of the X’s and O’s.

In this series, Del Negro’s team allowed a 2-0 lead to slip away. But how much of that is on the coach and how much is on a team that seemed to get outworked in the final four games? Did the coach not have his team prepared or did the players not show up? Did the coach fail to make proper adjustments or did the players fail to execute?

Paul averaged 22.8 points and 6.3 assists. He shot 53.3 percent and rarely turned the ball over. He didn’t get a lot of help from what was considered to be the deepest team in basketball. His All-Star teammate Blake Griffin sprained an ankle and played 24 minutes in the final two games. He finished the series with a well-below-average 13.2 ppg and 5.5 rpg while nemesis Zach Randolph dominated in the final four games.

Veteran point guard Chauncey Billups, who missed most of the season due to injury, played as if his head wasn’t in it, finishing the series with more turnovers (eight) than assists (six). After going 4-for-8 from the floor in Game 1, he went 7-for-28 the rest of the way.

Sixth Man of the Year runner-up Jamal Crawford was 7-for-21 in Games 3 and 4 and was benched in the second half of Game 6 after going 0-for-5. Matt Barnes, who threw in 30 points Friday night, was 9-for-24 in Games 2 through 5.

Caron Butler averaged 5.8 ppg in Games 2 through 5 and scored five points in 34 minutes of Games 4 and 5. Del Negro ripped center DeAndre Jordan‘s effort. Grant Hill, either injured or buried on the bench this season, was on the floor in the second half of Game 6.

The Clippers could look quite different next season. They have $45 million tied into Griffin, Jordan, Butler, Crawford, Hill and Eric Bledsoe. Two million could get returned if Hill retires as he speculated he might last month.

So let the introspection begin for a franchise that has scrapped bottom for decades and seemed to be headed for better days, if not glory days. Owner Donald Sterling in his later years has seemed to soften and to smartly open his wallet to make things happen. It’s resulted in two sensational seasons that have produced regular-season results like never before, two rare trips to the postseason while also rousing a fan base and creating a fun environment at Staples Center.

Yet the Clippers failed to accomplish Del Negro’s goal and that was go deeper in the playoffs that last season’s second-round sweep at the hands of the Spurs when Griffin was again hurt and unable to perform at a peak level.

So while Curry and the Warriors keep doing their thing, the mood is considerably darker today down in L.A.

 

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Posted in 2013 NBA Playoffs, HT News / Comments (140) /

Superb Sub Crawford Driving Clippers’ Game-Changing Reserves

April 23, 2013  ·  10:15AM

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LOS ANGELES – Jamal Crawford spent the first few minutes after Monday morning’s shootaround being as affable as ever while answering questions about the physical nature of the series, adjustments to be made and the importance of protecting home court.

Then came the one topic that visibly soured his mood. His smile disappeared, his shoulders slumped, his voice lowered.

While the Clippers were reviewing Monday night’s Game 2 strategy against the Memphis Grizzlies, the league was announcing New York Knicks gunner J.R. Smith as the Kia Sixth Man of the Year. An award Crawford owned for the first half of the season was swiped by Smith’s late hot streak that corresponded with the Knicks’ late-season 13-game win streak.

“Congrats to J.R.,” Crawford said softly. “You can’t worry about stuff you can’t control.”

It’s uncertain if Crawford was already aware of his fate or was just learning of it. Clearly, though, when it hit his ears, his mind reeled back to late January when the All-Star reserves were announced. Crawford, the 2010 Sixth Man of the Year with Atlanta, had hoped he’d be selected for his first All-Star team in his 13th NBA season. He was not.

“Going back to the All-Star team, I guess twice in a season,” Crawford said of getting the snub. “But congrats to J.R.”

So when Crawford came out on fire in the Los Angeles Clippers’ 93-91 Game 2 win over the Memphis Grizzlies for a 2-0 first-round series lead, it sure seemed like he had come out with a Big Apple-sized chip on his shoulder.

He canned his first six shots and put together an 11-point second quarter that changed the flow of the game and a 13-point first half as the Clippers’ bench again caused all kinds of problems for the Grizzlies.

Crawford led L.A.’s bench with 15 points, plus three steals and a single turnover in 33:30. Clippers coach Vinny Del Negro, as expected, backed his first-year sixth man who averaged 16.5 points in the regular season, his high mark since taking the Sixth Man award three seasons ago, while shooting 37.6 percent from beyond the arc.

“He’s [third] in the league in fourth-quarter scoring, he’s had 29 20-point-plus games off the bench,” Del Negro said. “He set the franchise record for free throws (58 in a row), set the franchise record for 3-pointers made (149 in the regular season). He’s been a huge catalyst for us all season from Day 1, the whole season, so it’s hard for me to look at it and say that Jamal didn’t deserve that. I think you’d be hard-pressed to find someone more deserving.”

With an All-Star snub in the rearview mirror and now the Sixth Man hardware in Smith’s hands, Crawford still has the biggest prize of all in his sights.

He’s the leader of easily the deepest (and arguably the most dangerous) bench in the league. During the regular season it was just one of four benches to average better than 40 ppg.

In the first two games of the first-round series against the Grizzlies, the Clippers’ bench has been superior and has forced the hand of Memphis coach Lionel Hollins.

In L.A.’s breathtaking 93-91 victory Monday in Game 2, the Clippers’ bench outscored their opponents’ reserves 30-11. In Game 1, Memphis got 19 points from Jerryd Bayless, who played 30 minutes because the Grizz were constantly playing catch-up, and that limited defensive-minded Tony Allen to  just 17 minutes. In that game, L.A.’s Eric Bledsoe went off for 13 points, four assists and six rebounds in the decisive fourth quarter.

Del Negro has pushed all the right buttons so far. In Game 1, he went to little-used power forward Ronny Turiaf instead of Ryan Hollins and it paid off. In Game 2, Crawford accounted for half the scoring, but the Clippers got five assists and 15 rebounds from the bench.

“I have confidence in all of our guys,” Del Negro said. “I have no hesitation putting them in if I feel they can help us.”

And that’s included Lamar Odom throughout the season. Although Odom’s 3-point and free throw shooting has been abysmal, he’s rewarded Del Negro in other ways. He had seven rebounds in Game 1, more than burly big men Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol combined. There was his fourth-quarter sequence in Game 2 that included a defensive rebound and long outlet to Matt Barnes, a leaping swat of Randolph and a terrific bounce pass to the slashing Bledsoe for a dunk.

An all-reserve second unit changed the momentum of Game 2 in the second quarter and opened the fourth quarter on an 8-0 to build a double-digit lead.

“With the depth of the Clippers’ bench, we have to match them offensively as well as do a decent job on them defensively,” Hollins said. “But we can’t go out there and not score and give up eight, 10 points in a row. Then they can’t be out there for long as a group.”

And they weren’t. Hollins got all five starters back out there early in the fourth quarter to battle, in a rare occurrence, the Clippers’ five subs.

It’s a predicament the Grizzlies must solve in a hurry.

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Incredible CP3 Finishes Off Team Win

April 23, 2013  ·  2:55AM

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LOS ANGELES – Seemingly the only person inside the 93rd consecutive sold-out house not overwhelmed by Chris Paul’s drive and impossible bank shot that dropped for the game-winner with one-tenth of a second left on the clock was Paul himself.

The super-clutch superstar of these burgeoning Los Angeles Clippers didn’t raise his arms, didn’t let go a primal scream. He beat Memphis’ tremendous defender Tony Allen, giving him a hitch at the corner of the key, a high-step to the right side and released a one-handed leaner that just out of the reach of helping defender Darrell Arthur.

Bank and ballgame, 93-91.

As Blake Griffin and Jamal Crawford were first to embrace him and then as his teammates mobbed him, realizing they’d just snuck out with one and will take a 2-0 series lead to Memphis for Thursday’s Game 3, CP3 stood firm, seemingly rising above the fray, his chest puffed out, his face unflinching as if to say, “Get used to this, folks.”

Paul scored eight points in the fourth quarter and they just happened to be the Clippers’ final eight after L.A.’s offense went stale and allowed the Grizzlies to scrap back from an 85-76 deficit with 6:53 to go.

From that point on, CP3 did it all. Delirium shook the Staples Center and 19,000-plus couldn’t decide on the chant as “C-P-3! C-P-3!” cross-channeled with “M-V-P! M-V-P!”

“Chris made the plays down the stretch,” Clippers coach Vinny Del Negro said. “He has a knack and a will and a desire to step up in those moments. That’s what star players do. That’s the best part of the game. If you’re competitive, that’s what you love, and Chris Paul loves that part.”

Memphis coach Lionel Hollins had Allen, his best on-ball defender, guarding Paul on the final sequence that started with 13.9 seconds on the clock and the game tied at 91. Allen was having a tremendous night with 16 points and 10 rebounds, while charged with holding down Clippers explosive sixth man Jamal Crawford after his 6-for-6 start in tearing up Jerryd Bayless (Crawford went 0-for-4 after that).

When Allen went toe-to-toe with Paul, he was deep into his 38th exhaustive minute. He might have expected Paul to go left, but instead the 6-foot, 175-pound whiz gave the hitch, stutter and poof.

“We tried to get Mike Conley to switch on me because we know Tony Allen is their best defender, but [Allen] did a great job staying on me,” Paul said. “Every time I went to go left, he took the space up.”

So this time, after that brief stop-and-go, Paul went right and created the space he needed to leave Allen a step behind.

“What can you do? The kid made a great shot,” Hollins said. “That’s what great players do and he’s a great player.”

Paul ruined a sensational bounce-back game from Conley, the Memphis point guard who doesn’t generate nearly the headlines he deserves. He finished with 28 points and nine assists, the final one coming as he patiently waited for the play to develop then drilled the cutting Marc Gasol with a pass for an uncontested dunk that tied the game.

Memphis has two days to figure out how to get back in this series on its home floor. Paul, with 47 points, 16 assists and just two turnovers in the series, is just one problem. The Clippers’ bench is whole other animal. Del Negro has made good on his promise to keep his rotation deep and to use players as he sees fit. He’s used six players off the bench in each of the first two games with stunning results.

Crawford, disappointed earlier in the day when he found out that he finished second in Kia Sixth Man of the Year voting to the New York Knicks’ J.R. Smith — comparing it to the slight he felt when passed over for the All-Star team — made his first six shots of the game. He finished with 15 points and three steals.

He led a second unit that should seriously alarm the Grizz. Five Clippers subs opened the second quarter with the score tied and Memphis using two starters and three subs. Seven minutes down and L.A.’s super subs had a three-point lead.

This kind of thing just doesn’t happen in the NBA playoffs. Five subs don’t take on five starters. Yet that was the case in the fourth quarter when the group of Crawford, Eric Bledsoe, Matt Barnes, Lamar Odom and Ronny Turiaf began the fourth quarter with an 8-0 spurt for an 83-71 lead.

That came with Conley and Zach Randolph playing with three subs. It didn’t last long, as Hollins quickly got his starting five back in there to keep from a second consecutive fourth-quarter blowout.

The Clippers’ razzle-dazzle second unit whips the ball around, finds cutters and slashers for dunks, make steals and chases down rebounds. 

“For us, when teams get tired or get weaker, we get stronger,” Crawford said. “That can be a huge advantage.”

When that group finally petered out and the proud Grizz made a charge, CP3 or MVP, whatever you want to call him, was there to finish the job.

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Round 2: Blake Vs. Z-Bo

April 22, 2013  ·  3:42PM

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LOS ANGELES – Where’s Vince McMahon when you need him?

When Blake Griffin and Zach Randolph get together it’s always a no-holds-barred (depending on what the refs actually allow) steel-cage match and tonight’s Game 2 at Staples Center (10:30 p.m. ET, TNT) should be no different.

In Saturday’s 112-91 victory for Blake’s Los Angeles Clippers, the opposing big fellas — who combine for at least 511 pounds — grabbed, pushed, bumped, used elbows, shoulders and whatever else to gain an ounce of traction against the other.

In the end, they effectively canceled each other out, combining for more fouls (11) than field goals (nine), free throw attempts (seven) and rebounds (nine). Both logged well below their season average for minutes played because of the constant whistles.

At one point they were handed the usually rare double-foul, only it’s not so rare for these two. It happened twice in four games during the regular season.

“It’s going to be a physical series that way,” Clippers coach Vinny Del Negro said. “It was last year, it was all of regular-season games and obviously the playoffs, with the energy in the building and just kind of what’s at stake, it’s going to be like that.”

No one needs to remind Griffin what he’s in for again tonight when he steps into the ring with Randolph.

“For anybody else, I feel like it’s not that much of a fight, because most of the time things get called no matter what,” Griffin said. “But that’s his game. Over time, people get used to that. So it’s not going to really work in my favor. I just have to make sure it’s even.”

It was in Game 1. Griffin fouled out with 10 points, just nine shot attempts, and five rebounds in under 26 minutes. Randolph had five fouls, picking up two in the first quarter that sent him to bench early. He had 13 points and four rebounds in less than 25 minutes.

It’s been the norm whenever Blake and Z-Bo lock up. In four regular-season games, Randolph has shot 37.3 percent, his second-lowest field-goal percentage against a team he played more than twice. Griffin averaged 13.8 points, more than four points below his season average, and seven rebounds, also below his season average.

“People might look at the box score and say, ‘Oh, he’s not contributing,’” said Griffin, who did acknowledge that he’d like to be more aggressive on the offensive end. “But watching the film (of Game 1), our coaches and our team felt like we did the job we were supposed to do. If you look at the final stats, it reflects that because we won the rebounding battle.”

In a huge way: 47-23 (and 14-4 on the offensive glass for a 25-5 advantage in second-chance points), a margin that surely won’t be repeated in Game 2.

But the larger point to tonight’s game and the series is that Memphis, dependent on running its offense through its two “bigs” — Randolph and Marc Gasol —  can’t count on Randolph to be a dominant force matched against Blake at both ends of the floor. If those two continue to cancel each other out, the deeper Clippers are better equipped to find other ways to win as they did with a tremendous bench effort to grab the 1-0 series lead.

It was their fourth win in five games against the Grizzlies this season.

Prior to Game 1, Jamal Crawford described the physical play to come as going to be a “bloodbath.” Prior to Game 2 he said, “I think it will get progressively more physical as the series goes on. I think the best is yet to come.”

Get the steel cage ready.

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CP3 Says Bledsoe’s Out, So Is He In?

April 21, 2013  ·  5:50PM

LOS ANGELES – In praising young guard Eric Bledsoe, did Chris Paul divulge his plan to be back in a Los Angeles Clippers uniform next season and beyond?

“Bled is one of the best guards in our league,” Paul said following Sunday’s Los Angeles Clippers practice. “I’ve said it all season long, I’m enjoying playing with him right now because there’s no way he can be here next year because we probably won’t have enough money to pay him. He should be a starting point guard.”

Bledsoe, 23, is under contract through next season for a bargain $2.6 million. However, if the Clips max-out Paul, who will become a free agent this summer, the franchise could look to move Bledsoe, the third-year talent out of Kentucky taken 18th by Oklahoma City and traded to the Clippers for a first-round draft pick.

He was a catalyst off the bench in Saturday’s 112-91 Clippers victory for a 1-0 lead in the first-round, best-of-7 series against the Memphis Grizzlies. Bledsoe came alive in the fourth quarter for 13 of his 15 points (on 7-for-7 shooting) and all of his four assists and six rebounds as he played the entire period and Paul watched on the bench for all but 3:12 of the fourth.

“For him, I’m just enjoying it and I love to sit back and watch him because he’s a game-changer,” Paul said. “And like I said [Saturday] night, he’s the key to our run.”

The 6-foot-1 Bledsoe is explosive off the dribble and a rugged 190 pounds. He averaged career-bests with 8.5 points and 3.0 rebounds to go with 3.1 assists this season in just 20.4 minutes. His numbers per-36 minutes, or the floor time a starter might typically play, were 14.9 ppg, 5.4 apg and 5.2 rpg. He shot 39.7 percent from beyond the arc.

Bledsoe, as expected, said he’s not focused on his future beyond this postseason. Still, finding ample minutes for a remarkable backcourt arsenal that includes Paul, Bledsoe and veterans Chauncey Billups and sixth man Jamal Crawford is not easy.

“We got one goal and that’s to win the championship and I think we got a pretty good team to do that,” Bledsoe said. “So I’m not focused on next season. I’m pretty going to worry about winning, learning how to, really, for the first time in my career to get a championship.”

Through three quarters Saturday night, Bledsoe had logged 6:19 and had two points. His spurt of relentless activity in the fourth quarter included stint with Paul and Billups.

“Everybody on the team went through it,” Bledsoe said of sacrificing minutes on a deep team that routinely goes 10 and 11 deep. “For right now, it’s whoever is playing good at the time. So we’re just going to cheer the next man on, that’s part of a team. So I really can’t focus on minutes. If I get them I get them, if I don’t, I don’t.”

According to Paul, Bledsoe should be getting more next season when he’s wearing a different uniform.

And that could very well suggest that Paul plans to stay in a Clippers uniform.

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Clips Want To Harness Emotions, Limit T’s

April 20, 2013  ·  3:52PM

LOS ANGELES – There’s plenty at stake for the Los Angeles Clippers as they begin a second consecutive postseason for only the second time in their 29-year history in the city.

For the first time, the franchise has a 50-win season and a Pacific Division crown. They have one All-Star, Blake Griffin, locked up under contract and another, Chris Paul, who they hope will sign this summer to stay long-term. Finally, this notoriously cheap and irrelevant organization is slowly finding a small spot in the city’s heart.

So wouldn’t it be terrible if the Clippers allowed all that to slip away by allowing their hot heads to get in the way?

“That’s been our Achilles heel all season is losing our temper and I think I kind of set the tone,” Matt Barnes said after Saturday morning’s shootaround in preparation for tonight’s Game 1 against the physical Memphis Grizzlies.

Barnes said the Clippers are ready for a tough, physical series, the kind of grinding play that can instantly flare emotions and result in quick-trigger reactions. Barnes said he hopes the referees will let them play, but L.A. can’t worry about chirping at the refs or committing silly retaliatory plays if calls aren’t going their way.

“I’ve been telling these guys it’s a whole new attitude and stop getting in so much trouble,” Barnes said. “There’s a lot at stake, but you really don’t want to give anything away, you want to make a team earn everything. That’s something we’ll probably address before the game, something we’ve already addressed, so we kind of have to police each other out there because we know we’re susceptible to that.”

The Clips are among the top teams at drawing technical fouls. Griffin tied for the second-most during the regular season with 14. Center DeAndre Jordan and Barnes both got nailed 10 times and Jamal Crawford nine times. Even Lamar Odom‘s been T’d up six times and Paul five times.

During a late March game at Dallas, Griffin picked up a T with seven seconds to go in the third quarter that allowed the Mavericks to take the lead. Then Crawford got one a minute into the fourth quarter. The Clippers went on to lose in overtime. Those kinds of shifts on a technical foul can sabotage a playoff game, and undermine a series.

So can flagrant fouls, and L.A. is no stranger to those either. Speaking of playing intelligently, Barnes leads the Clippers with three Flagrant One penalties and one Flagrant Two. And reserve forward Ryan Hollins, whose minutes might get reduced against the Grizzlies, has three Flagrant One fouls.

The Clippers matched the Lakers as the only teams with two players in the top 10 in that dubious category.

“I know nobody on this team is a bad guy, like Blake has, I don’t know how many technicals, and he’s one of the nicest guys in the league,” Jordan said. “I think it’s really just a heat-of-the-moment type of thing. We get so caught up into the game and how competitive it is and sometimes your emotions get the best of you and you may snap for two seconds.

“But those two seconds are going to cost you some points and potentially a game. So we really have to harness our emotions in this series.”

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Sixth Man Of The Year: J.R. Smith

April 16, 2013  ·  9:55AM

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The oddest part about this season’s race for the Sixth Man of the Year Award is that there are probably a half-dozen candidates worthy of consideration.

A voter could close his eyes and take a stab anywhere on a quite worthy list of J.R. Smith, Jamal Crawford, Jarrett Jack, Ryan Anderson, Nate Robinson and Kevin Martin.

So does that mean if we put an entire team of second unit standouts onto the court, somebody would have to get bumped to a starter?

In that case, we’re elevating and giving our vote to Smith, who has ridden in the shadow of Carmelo Anthony’s season-long brilliance, but has been no less vital to the Knicks winning their first Atlantic Division title since 1994.

How does that sync with the image of the mercurial guard who had taken his ready-to-shoot game from New Orleans to Denver to China before landing in New York 15 months ago?

How strangely does it stumble off the tongue to say that from the start to the finish of this regular season, Smith has become the Knicks most dependable player night in and night out?

For while you obviously give great credit to Anthony for the performance that will likely win the scoring title and earn him a high place on some MVP ballots, Smith has been the Knicks’ second-leading scorer, averaging 18.1 ppg and the player that coach Mike Woodson has been able to rely on at both ends of the court.

There is no questioning Crawford’s credentials as a big-time scorer off the Clippers’ bench and an ability to take over a game offensively whenever he steps out on the floor. For much of the season, the Sixth Man Award hardware seemed to be his for the taking. He helped the Clippers beat the Knicks to 50 wins as L.A. earned its first division title in the history of the franchise that dates back to its infancy in Buffalo.

The difference is that Crawford is a one-trick pony galloping behind Chris Paul who makes virtually no contribution at all on the nights when the ball is not going into the basket. While the Crawford lobby will point to a higher field goal percentage, it’s only slightly better, 43.6 to 42.2. The same goes for 3-point shooting, where Crawford has 37.0 to 35.6 edge.

At the other end of the floor, Smith has hardly become a stopper, but he tries and is credible, which is all that Woodson has asked. Crawford, meanwhile, couldn’t guard a cadaver.

At 27, Smith has finally inched closer to becoming the complete player that George Karl tried to squeeze out of him during four seasons in Denver and when the Knicks are winning, his assists and steals, as well as his shooting, are up. What’s more, he is literally the only player to show up every night, having played in every game this season, helping hold up the tent when Anthony was injured.

Oh, it’s not like J.R. has traded in his initials, his off-court silliness or his penchant for me-first offense. You still have to live with the times when he tries to win by himself and the can-you-believe-that shots. But they are part of a bigger package now, one that gives the Knicks a real reason to believe in the East.

The top contenders:

Jamal Crawford — He’s bounced back from a horrendous one-year stint in Portland to play a key role in the best Clippers season ever. Not many teams can back up a Chris Paul with another scorer this dangerous. But when it comes down to splitting hairs in a very close race, defense has to matter. You can make the argument that Crawford is the worst defender on the floor any time that he plays.

Jarrett Jack — The veteran has three games of 25 points and 10 assists off the bench, making him the first reserve in NBA history to do that in a single season. He’s provided leadership, defense and helped get the Warriors into the playoffs for only the second time in 19 seasons.

Kevin Martin — It was not an enviable task to step into the role of last year’s runaway Sixth Man winner (James Harden) on a team whose only goal is a return to The Finals. He doesn’t have all the skills of Harden and contributes nothing on defense, but is a high-efficiency scorer with a knack for getting to the foul line.

Ryan Anderson — He’s having the highest-scoring season — by a tick — of his career and has had to carry the offensive load plenty in the frequent absence of Eric Gordon. But it has to count against you when your team has spent the entire season floundering near the bottom of the West.

Nate Robinson — What is he? Who is he? When will he ever figure it out? He’s come off the Bulls’ bench to have his best year since his days in New York and certainly played a big part in ending the Miami win streak.

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Air Check: Where Bismack Biyombo Is Top 5

April 10, 2013  ·  10:40AM

HANG TIME NEW JERSEY – For NBA fans like us, there’s nothing better than League Pass. Having the ability to watch every game every night (and then again the next day) is heaven.

Of course, with local broadcasts, you get local broadcasters, which can be good and bad. It can be good, because these guys know their teams better than most national broadcasters. It can be bad, because these guys love their teams more than most national broadcasters. And they’re usually not afraid to show that love.

The national guys aren’t perfect either. And if they’re not careful, they may be featured here, where we highlight the best and worst of NBA broadcasts.

We’ve got a Clippers and Nets theme this week, so let’s start with the Clippers and Nets…

1. They don’t call him the Czar of the Telestrator for nothin’

Game: Brooklyn @ L.A. Clippers, March 23
Broadcast: Brooklyn


This is a great use of the telestrator by … you guessed it … Mike Fratello.

Late in the game, the Clippers try to get Brook Lopez (and his slow feet) to defend Chris Paul in a pick and roll. But, as Fratello explains, the Nets switch assignments as Blake Griffin goes to set the pick, having the more mobile Reggie Evans hedge the screen.

It’s a pretty simple concept, but something that many viewers wouldn’t have picked up on when watching the play live. And all it takes is a quick explanation from Fratello to make us all a little smarter.

2. Another one-liner from JVG

Game: L.A. Lakers @ L.A. Clippers, April 7
Broadcast: ESPN


Jeff Van Gundy always bring the coach’s perspective…

Mike Breen on Jamal Crawford: “He’s had 16 head coaches in his career, 16 in his 13 years in the league.”

Van Gundy: “Are you saying he’s got a lot of people fired?”

Classic JVG.

3. Is Tommy Heinsohn calling Kings games now?

Game: L.A. Clippers @ Sacramento, March 19
Broadcast: Sacramento


Kings color man Jerry Reynolds doesn’t like this foul call, even though the replay shows that Pizza Guy Isaiah Thomas was all in Chris Paul‘s space and hit him on the arm as he rose for the shot.

“Are you kidding me?,” Reynolds says. “What a bail out.”

And then he hits us with the big one: “I guarantee you if that had of been Isaiah Thomas shooting the ball and Chris Paul defending, that would not have been called that way. That is my take on it and I’m tired of it.”

But good for play-by-play guy Grant Napear for calling Reynolds out for going a little to far: “Jerry Heinsohn working with us today.”

Reynolds: “I know. I get carried away every now and then. I can’t match up to my man Tommy Heinsohn, though. I can’t do it.”

Napear: “I don’t think anybody can.”

4. Rolls off the tongue

Game: Charlotte @ Brooklyn, April 6
Broadcast: Brooklyn


Ian Eagle and Jim Spanarkel have been working together for almost 20 years. So Spanarkel knows how much Eagle likes calling the game’s most unique names. (If you ever meet Eagle in person, just ask him about that forward who played for Stanford from 2002 to 2006.)

Bismack Biyombo is clearly among Eagle’s favorites.

Eagle: “High-low … Bi-YOM-bo!”

Spanarkel: “Top-5 name for you, possibly?”

Eagle: “I enjoy it. I can’t deny it.”

Foul called.

Spanarkel: “Who was that foul on?”

Eagle: “That’s Bi-YOM-bo.”

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What’s Wrong With The Clippers?

April 2, 2013  ·  10:26AM





HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – That rant Vinny Del Negro unleashed on his team after Saturday night’s blowout loss to the Houston Rockets (sans James Harden) was not an elaborate pre-April Fool’s Day ruse. It was real.

“They played harder than we did,” Del Negro said. “We were terrible. Our effort was terrible, our attitude was terrible, our urgency was terrible. Very disappointed. I didn’t see the fight in us tonight, and we need guys to step up.”

“We’re fighting for a spot, and we come out with that second-half — pretty much the whole game — effort. It was poor.” Del Negro said. “I know it’s the fourth game in five nights, but that’s no excuse. We’ve got plenty of depth. No excuses. I don’t believe in that.”

The vitriol … the disappointment … all of it was real.

With seemingly everything to play for — a top-three seed in the Western Conference playoffs, home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs, simple professional pride — the Clippers cannot find the energy to finish the season the way they started (with a bang).

The Clippers have fallen off the mark in the second half of the season, squandering a league-best 32-9 start by stumbling their way to a .500 finish (17-17) with seven games remaining in the season. Chris Paul‘s MVP turn during All-Star weekend might very well serve as the lone highlight for the Clippers during the season’s stretch run if they can’t shake out of their funk.

They managed a 7-7 record in March and didn’t exactly get off to a rousing start to this final month of the regular season with Monday night’s home loss to the Indiana Pacers, a game that saw the Clippers trail by as many as 24 points before closing the gap late in a 109-106 loss.

Deciphering exactly what’s wrong with the Clippers from a schematic standpoint is basically a waste of time. They have certain deficiencies that cannot be cured this season unless both Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan magically locate reliable post moves overnight. That’s not meant as a slight to either of the talented young big men, it’s just a fact.

The Clippers are not capable of playing inside-out for long enough stretches to make other high-level teams uncomfortable. Kicking off a crucial, four-game home stand with a deflating loss to the Pacers is no way to inspire confidence. And when Paul, Jamal Crawford and the rest of the Clippers’ perimeter stars are taking turns struggling as well, it confirms all of the fears we’ve been expressing about this team since their second-half struggles began.

This is code red time for the Clippers. They’ve lost four of their last five games and the finger-pointing (direct and otherwise) has already begun. The effort and energy from the players seems to be lacking, suggesting an underlying issue between the players and the coach that is undefeated in terms of the final results (the coach always has to go).

Del Negro has taken a rather aggressive approach, tinkering with his rotations and even benching starters in an effort to jumpstart his team.

“It’s up to them,” Del Negro said of his players to ESPN.com‘s J.A. Adande after the loss to the Pacers. “All I can do is take them in and out of the games.”

For any of this to be said on a team with some of the best locker room leadership in the league (Paul, Caron Butler, Grant Hill and Chauncey Billups) is a bit startling.

Just as startling is Del Negro’s pointed criticism at his biggest stars, particularly his benching of Paul and Griffin recently, moves that are sure to erode the coach-player dynamic on a team that has always had issues in that regard under Del Negro. This madness is going on with a team that needs just one more win to clinch the franchise’s first 50-win season in history.

This puts the entire operation on alert for the postseason. If the Clippers slide in and then slide out just as quickly, then it’s anyone’s guess as to where the Clippers go from there in the offseason.

Start the playoffs on the road and suffer the fate then that you did during your recent tour through the Southwest Division, a 1-3 plank walk, and whatever is wrong with the Clippers will be someone else’s problem.

Del Negro won’t have to worry about it anymore!

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