SL on YouTube

It’s really hard to tell where Liv would fit on the new Clips. Taylor’s roster spot is there, and Liv could easily take it and get paid and see how things go.

Before the deluge of new players, the idea was that Liv could slide, with low expectations, into the QRoss slot as a solid wing defender. His ball-handling and passing would obviously be greatly superior to Ross, and his shot and ability to penetrate could come along as he gets comfortable playing.

Interestingly, the wing defender spot was never really filled. And KA at Clipperblog points this out in his most recent post. The Clips have added a lot of offensive firepower, but there’s still a big remaining question about who is going to slow down the elite offensive players who will be showing up on a regular basis.

But, with the above in mind, let’s run down the new players that Liv has to compete with:

PG: Baron Davis. Jasons Williams and Hart.
The best case scenario is that Liv is on the roster as a 4th string PG, but he becomes healthy and effective—and that makes him the backup to Baron Davis. Williams and Hart wouldn’t get in his way, but they do set the bar a lot higher in terms of how healthy and effective he would need to be to get minutes. With Baron Davis and his big deal, however, the original scenario of Liv as the Clipper PG was blown apart just like Liv’s knee. He would need to find a different way to fit. But there are a lot of teams that don’t have Baron Davis or an elite PG, where Liv might find a clearer road.

SG: Mobley, Eric Gordon, (Ricky Davis)

The Blanket abides, and the Clips are counting that he will be their best wing defender. The Club Optimism view is that people are undervaluing Eric Gordon, who is going to be a young rookie, but with regards to Liv, at least both of his legs work. And he can shoot, he’s strong, and he’s athletic. Liv’s length, defensive ability and instincts, and ball-handling could get him minutes, but they might be more limited than before with the addition of Gordon. Gordon presents an option that just didn’t exist on the Clips in previous seasons, and it’s one which could mesh with the offensive energy of BDavis and inside play and rebounding of Kaman/Camby—guys who can hit shots will be valuable to this new group. Bruce Bowen’s defensive ability is greatly enhanced by the fact that he can knock down the wide open 3 pointer. Ross couldn’t do that, or hit open shots, and there’s nothing to suggest that Liv can do it, although his ball-handling is a big upgrade.

SF: Thornton, RDavis (Tim Thomas, Steve Novak)

Let’s say that Liv has some potential to be a poor man’s Tayshaun Prince-type player (who again, can hit the open 3, and do other things on offense as well)—how does that guy fit on the Clips? Thornton is now the definite starter and a key man on the BDavis Clips, but he may have some sophomore growing pains, and it’s hard to say how his defense will evolve (see KA/Clipperblog). So there were some big minutes out there and a major role for a backup wing, and the Clips made a nice offer to Azubuike (which GSW matched a few weeks before the Monta Ellis injury), and then grabbed Ricky Davis. Good for the Clippers, but not good if you’re a QRoss-version of Liv. Davis represents a major addition on the depth chart and takes away a substantial portion of the backup minutes at the wing. And that’s before you give a shot to one of the best shooters in the league (Novak) or… that other guy, who can also play some backup minutes behind Thornton.

It would have been so easy to fit this type of player in last year. But the Clips didn’t just make minor nips and tucks this offseason; they went for the full changing of the guard. Yes, there’s still a tiny chance that Liv takes Mike Taylor’s roster spot. But if he does, there are some major obstacles for him to get on the floor at all, and it’s really hard to see him as a starter, even in the future. He would have to be as good as we hoped he might be, and play consistently at a very high level. That’s not a bad thing, that he would have to earn the time and the spot in the rotation, and that the bar is set very high. But it does make it all the more unlikely.