The Dumb Waiter
by falconPUNCH on Jul 9, 2010 8:39 PM PDT
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I was a dumb waiter.
But I'm done now. Done waiting, as in waiting for this franchise to turn it around. I'm tired of being a Los Angeles Clippers fan. You should be tired too. So, join me and quit. Abandon ship, so to speak, because within the past week, the Clippers front office have done nothing to give me hope. In fact, they've done the opposite. They've forced me to give up. I'm out.
Let's recap how they've screwed all of us over.
First of all, they only met with LeBron James for an hour. Seriously. An Hour. The other teams went well over three hours with the King. And, at the time, the FO had not even hired a coach yet. So, Roeser and Olshey met with James not only coach-less, but they also failed to bring a vet who could better relate to James, like the Knicks and Heat did. The Knicks had Alan Houston join them while the Heat had Zo Mourning along side. I mean, c'mon, how could the FO be so stupid.
They should have brought Eric Piatkowski along with them to talk to Lebron. Fire power, you know. If not than Blake Griffin or Baron Davis should have been there. Understand, LeBron James probably had a hard time understanding the words coming from Roeser and Olshey. Griffin could have translated. He could have spelled everything out to James. You know, those two knuckleheads probably forgot to mention something important to James, like the young core, something that would have really sold LeBron on the Clippers. Griffin could have saved the day. I know it. Olshey really f'd up the LeBron thing.
Then there are the recent signings...
Ryan Gomes and Randy Foye. Oh my. I mean. Olshey really messed this one up. I mean, we could have traded for Loul Deng or Andre Iguodala. And, I know, they would cost nearly $10 million per season for the next five seasons or so. And sure, one of them would greatly disturb Farouq Aminu's development. But, Olshey should have known that a Deng or Iggy would put us over the top with the Heat and Lakers. One of those guys, an Iguodala, and we're getting multiple rings. Even Mike Miller or Kyle Korver would make us major players. And yes, I know they would comand more than the MLE for five or so years. But that shouldn't matter when we're talking about getting rings.
But no. Not the Clippers FO. They're just trying to ruin the team. They signed Gomes and Foye to inexpensive, short-term contracts. *Sure, they are both better 3-point shooters (for their careers) than Rasual Butler (in his best season). And, yeah they'll soon become valuable expiring contracts about the same time that our young core should be developed. But, they're not going to win us a title. Plus, they come from losing teams. We all know that a losing mentality is forever. Just look at Pau Gas... Just look at Kevin Gar... Well, they're not good examples. Let's look at role players. They're invaluable to a team. And we don't need negativity, losing personalities from our role players. I just know that the young kids will fall in line with a loser like Randy Foye instead of Blake and Baron.
And don't even get me started on the coach. Vinny Del Negro is a bum. We should have gone with Casey, the man with more head coaching experience... Experience, rather. He's been passed up a bunch of times, I know. But, I'm pretty confident that the teams who interviewed him those numerous times simply messed up. It's an easy answer really. And if not Casey, why not Byron Scott? I know there were reports about him playing golf instead of practicing with the Hornets. But how credible can those reports really be. It was probably just Laker-bashing, since he's an ex-Laker. What about Mike Brown? LeBron rode Brown's tailcoat's to success for some 5 or 6 years. He's an obvious choice. Or how about that guy who Atlanta hired? I can't think of his name right now, but I'm sure he's got to be good. I mean, the media has not bashed Atlanta like they have the Clippers, so the Hawks obviously signed the right guy.
I think Kelly Dwyer wrote something about the development of Blake Superior and Eric Gordon being in the "shaky hands" of Del Negro, and I could not agree more. I mean, some people are giving him way too much credit for Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah. Look at them now, after encountering Vinny. Their careers are doomed because of Del Negro and his shaky hands.
It's just a disaster. If only this team had a direction. Youth. A game changer. A smart FO. Something...
But, they're just the Clippers.
*Statistics were aquired from ClipperBlog. I don't want to plagiarize.
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I don't get it....
Btw, all this negative talk is getting out of control.
We don’t know how these players are going to play under their new coach until we see them play, and that is in 4 months.
Some of you guys act as if this team isn’t doing anything to get better.
Btw, just so everone knows. Lebron, Bosh, and Wade were going to play in Miami no matter what the other teams did this summer or last year. The three of them have been planning this since 2008. There is a reason Lebron announced he would be changing his jersey number to 6 after in a game @ Miami. Jordan’s jersey #23 is retired in Miami. Also, Bosh has pretty much been letting the cat out of the bag everytime he has been asked about it. Tonight he said he and the other two had been talking for months, yes I said months. How can that be when free agency started on July 1st? They have known about joining each other in South Beach since 2008.
Errr, evidently you don't get it
falconPUNCH is on your side. Read his post again, carefully.
"i know huh........freakin clippers man.....its like a wild ride rooting for this team....gotta love em....(sometimes) lol" In GrIfFin We TrUsT
haha
I often quote myself. It adds spice to my conversation
by LA's other fan! on Jul 9, 2010 10:42 PM PDT up reply actions
Clippers vs. Bobcats, 3050 Finals
"look, you can find any coach you want, bring him in here and run the situation. But I don't think they are going to do as good a job as I do." -Mike Dunleavy Sr.
by CLiPPz WeRD 12 on Jul 10, 2010 6:39 PM PDT up reply actions
Very clever post
But mired in mediocrity is not what I want as a fan. I have been a Clipper fan since 1987 and this organization just never gets it right. Sorry, but Gomes and Foye are not going to make this team a contender and it is more likely than not that when their contracts expire, those young players that are coming into their own will bolt for greener pastures.
Everyone has an opinion, and I respect what you said, but I simply don’t agree. Let’s look back in 4 years and see where we are. I hope you are right but fear that your are wrong.
"Gomes and Foye are not going to make this team a contender"
that’s accurate.
but those signings were not supposed to make the Clippers contenders.
this team has been in “win now” mode, trying to reload around whoever the best players were at that time. it was Brand and Cassel, then it was Brand and Kaman and Magette-kinda. the FO (GMMDSr) constantly looked for players to fit his system so that he could “win now.”
last year was the same. but Blake was hurt and it turned into Kaman’s team.
now, Olshey is finally leaving “win now” behind, and he’s rebuilding. this means that the Clippers will not be contenders until Blake and crew grow up, which is unlikely this year. the FO is not going to sign FAs just for the sake of signing them. and i appreciate that, mostly because i have incredible faith in Blake Griffin.
The fallacy in your thinking
is that Blake Griffin, EJ and Aminu will still be here in three years. Based on the history of the franchise, they will opt out and leave as unrestricted free agents because we will not acquire stars that can teach the youngsters, will will not will but continue to be a losing team and no one wants to stay on a losing team. It seems to be a vicious cycle that this team is locked into.
then we're doomed.
because the FO is finally building the right way,
but it’s going to amount to nothing, according to you.
so, we can’t sign big time players, and our own want to leave.
sounds like we should all find a new team, bud.
i’d rather be the optimist and keep rooting for the Clippers.
you know, it is possible that the team is competitive this year, and even more so next year. it’s possible that our young guys actually like each other and grow fond of VDN.
it’s possible that the Minny pick turns out to be another stud. good things can happen.
shoot, we got Blake Griffin. anything is possible.
I'm a believer
It’s also possible we pick up another guy in the coming days, and we end with an impressive hybrid between Win-Now and Young Development. Griffin looks like the embodiment of such a hybrid, a young guy who can also lead effectively. It will be especially powerful if Griffin and Baron see eye to eye. We should go from a 29 win team to somewhere in the 40’s. That’ll be more than enough to build camaraderie.
Of course, the additional guy I want is Childress. He can start on the wing and probably fill in at SG as needed. He can move to the bench as Aminu develops. If we front load the deal a little and give him 4 years, that would help with continuity… encourage the young guys to stick around. I’m hoping this happens, but either way I’m feeling bullish.
"i know huh........freakin clippers man.....its like a wild ride rooting for this team....gotta love em....(sometimes) lol" In GrIfFin We TrUsT
Again
I hope you’re right and I am wrong, but history seems to repeat itself. i hope in 4 years we are in the conference finals and I can eat crow. I wonder what crow tastes like and what the odds are that I will have to eat it?
I am not going to abandon ship after 23 years and i am not a band wagon jumper-oner or I would be rooting for the Lakers, which I don’t do. Fan loyalty is important to me (I consider myself a loyal fan), but so is the right of the fan to criticize management when it is perceived that they are doing something wrong.
You see the glass half full and I see it half empty because the glass historically has a small leak in it which prevents it from ever filling up. Let’s hope the leak has been plugged.
I do see (completely) what your worry is
I’m in favor of being moderately aggressive this off season, not because I want kick ass next season, but because I want the kind of hybrid I describe above. Our history is a phantom that weighs us down in real ways… If in three years, we’re still hanging out at or below .500, then yeah, it’s going to be plain difficult to resign anyone. That wouldn’t be as true with a lot of teams, but hey, it’s the Clippers.
I do think that Baron and Griffin can carry a good part of the leadership load. I’m also sure that we’d be better off were Camby still around. If not Childress, then I’d like us resign Rasual, or at least bring in another vet to help balance the roster. We could also sign another guy next year, but I’ve been pushing for us to make a move right now. We need a solid jump start.
"i know huh........freakin clippers man.....its like a wild ride rooting for this team....gotta love em....(sometimes) lol" In GrIfFin We TrUsT
How is that the history of the franchise?
What franchise changing player left as a restricted free agent? If you’re oging back to the Terry Cummings era than maybe I agree. But even The Donald was in diapers then.
The viscous cycle is that we haven’t had any RFA’s worth resigning. Griffin for example cannot opt for probably another 7 years. Griffin, EJ and AFA will NOT be unrestricted FAs in 3 years as you say.
i've come to terms that we will never land a big free agent.....
as long as donald sterling is still the owner… we can only get good to great players via the draft or through trades ( although some were known to kick and scream)…. i dont think you can blame olshey, he’s a GM not a miracle worker…the only thing we can do now is hope that eric gordon brings his game to an allstar level and blake grifin will live up to his hype… other then that i dont see a team going deep in the playoffs,
Very clever post
You hit the right notes and eviscerate the naysayers all at once.
"[Fans are] not technically a lot of times savvy. They don't understand and they don't weigh issues the way that [I] weigh them."
Mike Dunleavy, Sr.
good post
I just popped my Rec cherry on this one. It wasn’t as painful as I thought it would be.
by Handsome_B._Wonderful on Jul 10, 2010 12:01 AM PDT reply actions
Meh
I’m still gonna stick with
my crew. I bet you guys also want to start rootin for Miami and were just looking for an excuse to go snuggle up with bron bron
by snackbar on Jul 10, 2010 12:34 AM PDT via mobile reply actions
this post is meant to be sarcastic
took me a second…
by MagnusVonKilgore on Jul 10, 2010 3:21 AM PDT up reply actions
Great post!
I´m kind of disappointed by the negativity and loser mentality that’s been established here in this recent time, where everything that is done is wrong, or will be. At first I thought it was another post full of it. When I read it again, I can´t agree more with you.
LOL i fell for it like NBAfan8
good perspective on this team. Looking forward to summer league in 2 days!
Does anyone know someone that has passed away, that was a Clippers fan?
I often ponder what I will be thinking when I’m laying on my deathbed, and realizing that I wasted all those years following this team..
"look, you can find any coach you want, bring him in here and run the situation. But I don't think they are going to do as good a job as I do." -Mike Dunleavy Sr.
late to the party, but great post
i sighed thinking i was gonna read another clueless “i’m a real fan because i bitch and moan about every move and non-move this team does” , but once i saw “they should have brought eric piatkowski…”, the jig was up.
btw, lol that NBAFAN8 fell for it. shocker.
by Joe Wolf's Mullet on Jul 12, 2010 5:37 PM PDT reply actions
Excellent post.
Very well written and hits on almost every point extremely well. I really think signing a veteran small forward on a three year deal within our 10 mil cap space is the last piece of the puzzle. New guy’s contract would come off the books along with Baron right when Blake is entering his prime and EJ is big-time player.
Don’t know who that small forward is, maybe Gomes really IS all we need. A poor man’s Shane Battier.
"Buckle your seat belts, folks. This one's doing down to the wire." -The inimitable Ralph Lawler.
by Gordon for President on Jul 12, 2010 5:47 PM PDT reply actions
Waiter
This whole article makes me frustrated and confused at why you waited so long. After waiting through the years of the candy man and al thorntons per possesion unproductive years. Who wants to watch a man play uninspired defense and offense like a race horse with blinders on both eyes. I was motivated with that trade.
An hour with Lebron and you blame our FO?! Andy put foward what we had to offer. Try to throw forward a misguided judgement towards our Front office about not knowing what my team needed. I imagine a constructed game plane that was simple but to the plan. Better than the Clevelands idea of a cartoon luring the king of basketball back to a small town market. Mostly i concur that Eric Piatkowski is the last person i would want in a conference room with The King of basketball.
Next time your write an article spend the time to open up a new tab and look up Mike Browns name for the coach of the Hawks. Its the 21st century learn how to use your internet. Until then get excited about our lineup.
Baron Davis an unmotivated point guard that needs a rookie impact every game
Eric Gordon…..needs help
Farouq Aminu. Defense Stopper….Wait for the offensive game to mature (Clipper fans dont mind waiting)
Blake Griffen JUST WAIT
Chris Kaman ADHD
So until the season starts you can suck on Kobes whatever you want and Jerry Buss. But until then i will know the game of basketball and appreciate the different moves that every team makes and how it affects my team. WE are on the brink. please dont wait cause i love proving every ignorant laker fan that they dont realize how important ex clipper players mean to there team (lamar odom)
Until then
Darius miles up in smoke
D-Miles dont call it a come back
by Darius Miles Up In Smoke on Jul 12, 2010 10:00 PM PDT reply actions
my man, did you read it?
"Energizing the process, or turning it upside-down, fans now participate, writing blogs and posting comments and videos [...] the dialogue is to discourse what road rage is to driving." -Mark Heisler
by falconPUNCH on Jul 12, 2010 11:11 PM PDT up reply actions
haha, get falcon punched
….but I’m pretty sure the internets would say Mike Woodson’s was the coach for the Hawks and Mike Brown was for the Cavs…unless the internets lie.
My bad
I obviously should have opened a tab
Mike woodson
defiantly not
Mike Brown
D-Miles dont call it a come back
by Darius Miles Up In Smoke on Jul 13, 2010 12:59 PM PDT reply actions
yeah, bud.
you should have also read my piece,
the sarcasm, before you go around calling people
Lakers fans.
i forgive you.
"Energizing the process, or turning it upside-down, fans now participate, writing blogs and posting comments and videos [...] the dialogue is to discourse what road rage is to driving." -Mark Heisler
After tonight's game
maybe we should prepare to abandon ship. It does not look like this crew is going to rescue this organization.
i can't agree more.
BD, BG, CK, and Ej were completely destroyed in that summer league game.
"Energizing the process, or turning it upside-down, fans now participate, writing blogs and posting comments and videos [...] the dialogue is to discourse what road rage is to driving." -Mark Heisler
by falconPUNCH on Jul 15, 2010 10:20 AM PDT up reply actions
Yeah,
and we all saw how well they did last year with a more veteran supporting cast (albeit without BG) which included Camby. I am really optimistic about this year and the ability of this draft class and free agent signings to make us a 50 win team.
by daclipjoint on Jul 15, 2010 12:51 PM PDT up reply actions
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