S58 Clippering Conference

[MexicanMamba]

65 wins



No Finals Appearance



Failure



That sums up the important parts of last season, yeah? That won’t quite due will it? Alright, well, all through last season we felt like we had a good shot. We saw a window to make a push, right in the middle Karlo Pearson finally needing a big contract and Dong Bone getting prepared for his 3rd deal. We had some tradeable salary to make things work and brought in Dort and Campbell. No regrets there as they both played like the superstars that they are. Ultimately, it was difficult to see us (or anyone) beating Detroit last season, however the massive disappointment is that we didn’t even give ourselves the opportunity to try, losing to the Spurs in the conference finals. Congratulations to those guys for sure, however we felt we were the better team and proved it all season until it really mattered. That’s a coaching failure and one we’ll try to correct this season.



Honestly, I had mixed emotions coming into this off-season. Part of me wanted to stick to my original plan and go back hard at trying to win a championship in this 2-year window that Dort/DC game me. However, there was another side that was ready to let them move on because I had a difficult time seeing how a team with an older set of top 2 players could do any better than last season. No legit offers came in for those two guys and we did not aggressive pursue any ourselves, so we’re going to give it our best shot again.



Camp and age have certainly taken its toll on Dort and Campbell, but they stayed very strong pieces and should still be capable of leading a top team. Karlo Pearson and Dong Bone both looked fantastic in camp and I believe are primed to take on a bigger share of the load this season. Both guys made big jumps on defense, which I love. Karlo in particular looks like he could soon find himself in DPOTY conversations. Gray honed more of his offensive arsenal and should take more pressure off of Campbell in the front court.



Free agency brought a few interesting additions as well. Charles Johnson should be a nice depth piece in the front court, Foley and Hawk could find some loose change minutes on the wing, and Zack Keller came aboard to add some much-needed veteran leadership to the bench unit. It also allowed us to ship Corey Kispert to Houston for future assets, giving him an opportunity to get more touches as he has wanted. We believed that Levi Mata was a great pick-up initially, but his camp performance left much to be desired, so he has some work to do to gain trust as a legit member of the rotation.



I think we’ll be a great team again. I believe that another 65-win season is very much in the cards. With the Pistons likely being even stronger this season, that means toppling them may be a near impossible task in the end, but we are going to do our best not to give them an easy road. Of course, before worrying about them we must conquer our own demons and find a way to stop Genaro Montoya and his Spurs. It should be a fun season, with a few new contenders rising up as well, such as the Jazz and Suns and perhaps the Pacers. To combat all of that, I'll be open to wheeling and dealing all season. So, call if you've got fun ideas!



I’m ready to get to it.




Any questions?





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[garbageman]

Sham Smith, Bulls.com: With Safo's ceiling so high, even if he continues to have really productive camps and extra trainings, it's going to be a long time after he's productive in one area to be proficient in every area. What position are you hoping he settles into first?

[MexicanMamba]

Sham Smith, Bulls.com: With Safo's ceiling so high, even if he continues to have really productive camps and extra trainings, it's going to be a long time after he's productive in one area to be proficient in every area. What position are you hoping he settles into first?

I think the first role he's going to be able to comfortably fill is a scoring wing, particularly at SF considering he is never going to be the most athletic guy in the room. In fact, after this off-season, he's pretty close to being very valuable in that role now, just off the bench. I don't think he's quite ready though so it's very likely another redshirt season before letting him really get into the grind next year. Eventually, I really hope he can be the starting PG for a future Clippers squad. As you said though, hes still very raw and much more work is to come. Kid is working hard and I look forward to the day he gets his shot to shine.

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[greepleairport]

Safi is clearly the future, but he does seem at least three years behind Karlo in more than just age. Do you see the two of them as the future core? Will Dong Bone still be around then? What kind of player would you like to see rounding out a trifecta of Clipper superstardom?

[MexicanMamba]

Safi is clearly the future, but he does seem at least three years behind Karlo in more than just age. Do you see the two of them as the future core? Will Dong Bone still be around then? What kind of player would you like to see rounding out a trifecta of Clipper superstardom?

It's difficult to answer questions about Safi's place with current players until I get him playing with the current players. I do think there's a chance he is starting to hit a stride just as Karlo is peaking, but with TC being so volatile, you never can bank on the kind of constant growth he's been having to this point. Bone most certainly will be gone or close to it by the time Safi emerges.

If I could find a 3rd superstar on the same trajectory as Bone and Pearson, I'd love it to be someone who has some position flexibility, defense and size. Pearson and Bone aren't small players by any stretch (6'6 and 6'8 respectively) but the perfect complementary player would be someone who can play in the front court. Pie in the sky comparisons for the type of guy I mean? Gerry Folse, Genaro Montoya, Kai Jones.

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[K-100]

I'd ask this to the other GMs but frankly, you are probably going to be the only one who does a presser on time

There have been a handful of players who have either won MVP or DPOY (Dort, Hayes, Wade, and Fang Shuo) yet they have not gotten a ring so where did they go wrong in their respective careers?

And if none of them ever win a title, can you make a claim that at least one of them is the greatest player to never win a ring? And where would you rank that player amongst the all-time greats?

[MexicanMamba]

I'd ask this to the other GMs but frankly, you are probably going to be the only one who does a presser on time

There have been a handful of players who have either won MVP or DPOY (Dort, Hayes, Wade, and Fang Shuo) yet they have not gotten a ring so where did they go wrong in their respective careers?

And if none of them ever win a title, can you make a claim that at least one of them is the greatest player to never win a ring? And where would you rank that player amongst the all-time greats?

First thing is that I have a very limited view on any GOAT discussions. I've heard of Anthony Davis in his prime, for example, but I was not around when he was dominating. I showed up at the peak of the Boban Era, so that's probably the most dominant player I've seen in the game to this point. Or just my favorite since he won me my championship.

As for why some recent great players haven't gotten the opportunity to hold the trophy, it's probably unique for each one. Dort and Hayes have a similar story, in that when they were at the height of their powers they were being broken in by GMs who were (are?) learning the game and had no real idea how to put the right pieces around him. The Kings have recently just been taking the old, about to break down pieces that Charlie sends them. Oh, and my damn eye twitches every time I see a lineup without Hayes playing PG

I thought I had a shot at giving Dort an opportunity but the Spurs, andcertainly the Pistons would have too, put an end to all that noise last season. Sometimes it happens that way too. No matter how well you build a roster, someone else's is just stronger. I could have 4 or 5 championships based on some of the rosters I've built but, it didn't work out that way. Same with Zaire Wade. Charlie put a lot of effort into getting him a championship and built strong teams around him but it simply was topped about another. Same thing happened to Wade in Milwaukee. Not a lack of trying, just being beaten to the punch.

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[ballsohard]

You mentioned building at opportune times in order to rise to give yourself a chance to win it all. What have you done different with this build with timing and what have been your biggest lessons so far?

[MexicanMamba]

You mentioned building at opportune times in order to rise to give yourself a chance to win it all. What have you done different with this build with timing and what have been your biggest lessons so far?

The start of this current build happened the same way most others do I suppose. I took my swings with Loredo and Jordan Johnson, barely missed, but it was time to shed them. Out of those trades of established veterans and a couple 'meh' seasons came Dong Bone, Karlo Pearson, Raiquan Gray and Safi Fino-A-Laself. The final pieces of the build, Dort and Campbell happened more out of necessity than anything else. In a perfect world I'd have much rather waited until this season to go all-in, when Bone and Pearson were close to their peaks. But, couldn't wait long since Pearson was about to leave rookie contract prices behind and I had Dangerfield and Heard's contracts to salary match. Obviously it didn't quite work out but it was (and is) a fun team. I guess all that is different from my other major builds because : The first one I had no clue what I was doing and the Loredo build happened just because he became available.

Biggest lesson ...

Probably learning exactly how to navigate the differences between players of the same color. When I started I knew color and obviously had an understanding of the traits. Understanding which ones were most important (and which arent) for particular players and positions really helps in identifying what your team needs to succeed.

Though right behind that is understanding the way the league values players so that you don't get robbed blind in trades would be right behind that.

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[IamQuailman]

What's the point of it all? Like literally... you could shut this shit down.

[MexicanMamba]

What's the point of it all? Like literally... you could shut this shit down.

None of this would have happened if you'd just traded me Blakeney. Somehow.

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[Xist2Inspire]

Random Reporter: Will Safi see playing time before his rookie contract is up?

On a more serious note, what exactly do you think your team is missing that would give you the clear advantage over the rest of the conference?

[MexicanMamba]

Random Reporter: Will Safi see playing time before his rookie contract is up?

On a more serious note, what exactly do you think your team is missing that would give you the clear advantage over the rest of the conference?

Though you jokingly ask that first question, I'll give it a legit answer: Probably. It won't be this season though. Safi came in incredibly raw, so even though his first season ended up on an average team there was no way he could be useful. This season and last season are teams with Finals aspirations so even if he saw the floor, minutes would be scarce. I have figured that there's no point in playing him until he's capable of handling a key role. Next season could be a bit of a transition season. Dort, Campbell, Gray are all hitting UFA and we all know how strange a place that can be when trying to bring guys back. So, if Safi has yet another league leading camp and can be a viable G/B or perhaps even B/B, next season is when he could slide into a 6th man or even starting role.

And question 2, I just wish we had more size and physicality in the front court. Gray played Center for us last season but he is much more natural as a PF, but we had Campbell there. DC is a great, great player and can bang downlow but he's undersized as well, and having more beef up front would be something I'd love.

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