Fanshots

ESPN--Contender or pretender: Los Angeles Clippers

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3. Contender or pretender: Los Angeles Clippers (have won 12 of 14). Cavan: Pretender. Coach Vinny Del Negro's white-hot seat has cooled somewhat, but the Clippers' flaws -- inconsistent D, lack of wing punch and, well, coaching -- make them vulnerable to a first-round upset. If the season ended today, they'd be matched against sleeper darling Memphis, which probably won't be thinking too much about its 1-2 regular-season record against the Clips now that the Grizzlies are at full strength. Foster: Contender. We've seen this story before. A jump-shooting team catches fire in the playoffs as its closer wins a bunch of tight games. I'm not implying the Clippers play anywhere near the level of defense the Dallas Mavericks did last season, but they certainly have been making strides on that end lately. With Chris Paul, anything is possible. Haberstroh: Contender. For two reasons. Del Negro quietly has this team playing both sides of the floor lately; the Clippers own the NBA's sixth-most-stingiest defense in April. Secondly and more importantly, a guy named Christopher Emmanuel Paul runs the show. Vafa: Pretender. The Clippers have been impressive this season, particularly in their ability to rid the franchise of years of stigma. But when it comes to title contention, the coaching staff has to be as savvy as the roster is talented and deep. The Clippers clearly have solid talent, but depth and coaching need to be addressed before they can truly contend. Wade: Pretender. Their defense is a sieve way too often to believe that this team could reach the Finals even in a wide-open Western Conference. Plus, they are the Clippers.

ClipperBlog--What can Avery Bradley tell us about Eric Bledsoe?

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Posted by Charlie Widdoes on April 16, 2012 On March 23rd, the Celtics were three games above .500, grinding their way towards another postseason — perhaps the final one for this core group. They were still fantastic defensively, a cohesive unit well-practiced in Tom Thibodeau’s system, but age had permeated the rotation and a favorable seed was unlikely. Ray Allen had gone down the night before with an ankle injury, and Doc Rivers had a decision to make. Boston’s offense had struggled all season, but Allen’s ability to use screens and spread the floor was still a vital part of what they did well. Replacing the future Hall of Famer would be difficult. After a five-game losing streak in mid-February, they had begun to click, going 10-4 over their last 14. Rivers tried veteran wing Mickael Pietrus for one game for matchup purposes against Philadelphia’s bigger guards, then settled on second-year guard Avery Bradley. The move would have a profound impact on their season. Since Allen’s injury, the Celtics have managed to not only sustain their winning ways, but now lead the Atlantic Division, with a great chance for home court advantage in the first round. Bradley, who was legitimately one of the least productive players in the entire league before he entered the starting lineup, has been the key to their re-birth. What changed? And, what does this have to do with the Clippers?

Vinny Del Negro: I relished pressure

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Piece on VDN by Ramona Shelburne. Mr. Perrin punted out a fallacy in the title on the front page. favorite quote by VDN in the article: "I didn't miss a blink. I kept on my path," Del Negro said. "What has to be done has to be done. I'm Italian. Are you kidding me?"

Vinny Del Negro said he expects to face Memphis in the first round of the playoffs.

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Vinny Del Negro said he expects to face Memphis in the first round of the playoffs.

Dan Woike on Twitter https://mobile.twitter.com/#!/danwoikesports/status/192057126364004352 Looks like VDN doesn't want the three seed ...SMH.

Boston Herald: Clippers can make playoffs with win against Thunder

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Interesting point on the second unit: If — and seemingly when — the Clippers reach the playoffs, it’s unclear whether that second unit will play as a whole for long stretches as it did against Golden State. "If we play like we did (Saturday), then no," Del Negro said. "Those guys have to play better than that. They have to understand time and score and what’s going on."

Like Rose, Clippers’ Griffin fed up with hard fouls - Clippers blog : The Orange County Register

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Hard fouls are part of the game. Blake has to make the other teams suffer by making more than 50% of his FTs. Much like The Mailman's poor FT shooting at the start of his career, Blake has to make it a goal to get to the 80% level. He would be so dominant if this additional phase of his game got better.

Twitter / @AlexKennedyNBA: Finalists for the NBA's 20 ...

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Looks like CP3 is up for an award already. I assuming this is for his foundation in New Orleans. This leads to all the more justification for his acquisition being the biggest in team history. Here is the official link from citizen Hangtime81’s fanshot. He had it first. Good stuff! http://www.nba.com/clippers/news/paul-named-divisional-winner-2011-12-nba-sportsmanship-award-120416.html