NBA Preview: Los Angeles Clippers

For the month of October, Mitch Pratt, Andrew Kasmarek and Charlie Tritschler will be previewing the NBA teams for the exciting 2013-2014 season. 

What I know
- This is a big year for Blake Griffin - I feel like this is a defining year for Blake Griffin. If he ends up having a huge year, he gets put into the star category, but if not, people will start believing he is one of the more overrated players in all of basketball (Right now, I would say more people think Griffin is overrated than they do a legit star player in the NBA). For me, Griffin showed some growth last year, but was inconsistent about it. My assumption is he will be better with Rivers riding him consistently. I do think Blake becomes a better player this year.

- Chris Paul makes a case for MVP - I know Mitch said in his Oklahoma City Thunder preview, he feels the Thunder will be the number one seed in the West, but there is a very good chance Los Angeles could be right there with a weak Pacific division. This is probably dependent on Chris Paul having a massive season. If CP3 turns in a magnificent season and gets the one seed for the Clips, does it mean we are talking about Paul grabbing the MVP from LeBron even if LBJ has a great year because voters are sick of giving LeBron the trophy? I think so. As always, the health of Paul is always a concern.

- Another year where Clippers are LA kings, not the hockey team though  - Weird times in Los Angeles. A couple weeks ago we talked about how UCLA football is now the new college football king with USC in turmoil and the same goes for the basketball world. Laker fans still outnumber Clipper fans without question, but the Lakeshow does not have the key to city right now. Imagine a world where the Los Angeles Clippers are in the Western Conference Finals and think how many fake Clipper fans start showing up to these games. It could happen this year.

Big Question: 
What will the Clippers look like with a real coach? - For those who follow SnoTap, I have not been a fan of Vinny Del Negro, I made that pretty clear in the last couple of years. He won despite being brainless as a head coach. The reason he won was due to the wealth of talent he had on past Los Angeles Clippers' team. Del Negro is gone and enters in Doc Rivers.  He is one of the best coaches in the NBA without question being a person that can be both a hardass and a player's coach. There are not many of those in both professional or collegiate sports. Rivers is not a post coach but he knows the goal of the season is an NBA Finals trophy first and second is the advancement of Griffin and DeAndre Jordan.

X-Factor 
Blake's defense - This is one of those things that can play into the Big Question about this team. Griffin is a great offensive player but he is frankly a worthless defender. Griffin gets up with the best of the them and makes some unreal blocks yet it is not worth jack shit if he lets a defender go by him for an easy two points. My biggest hope for Griffin under Rivers' umbrella is he starts to keep his feet more often and not flop when he knows at some point, this defender is going to beat me. Griffin can still be a great shot-blocker but also be a reliable defender by keeping himself on the ground once in awhile.

Key Additions: 
Head coach Doc Rivers, SF Jared Dudley, SG J.J. Redick, PG Darren Collison, PF Bryon Mullens, PF Antwan Jamison - Love what they did to the bench this year. Redick finally gives this team a 3-point shooting that they have been yearning for in the last couple of years. Dudley is a great locker room guy who can fill the bucket. Collison is a sneaky backup point guard to CP3. In a way, they bring the same toughness to the court meaning the Clips should not miss a beat.

Key Subtractions: 
PG Eric Bledsoe, SF Caron Butler, SF Grant Hill, PF Lamar Odom - They got rid of three old guys and another guy who could stir up some trouble as a sixth man. I am not saying Bledsoe would, but the young fella deserves to start somewhere instead of being on the bench which can piss off a player. They clipped dead weight and yes that was an intended pun.

Clippers Draft: 
SF Reggie Bullock - A guy who sometimes got lost in the shuffle at North Carolina. He is a good role player as a rookie and can probably come off the bench for this team. He was a good 3-point shooter in college so pair him up with Redick off the bench and it could be a 3-point assault off the bench.

Prediction
I showed my hand on this one, but I feel like the Clippers will get the one seed. I disagree with my partner Mitch who has the Oklahoma City Thunder slotted in that spot. If they do not get the one seed, they will get no lower than the three seed. If Golden State regresses, the Pacific is truly bad and the Clips could take advantage. They will drastically improve under Rivers and I would not be surprised if they are in the NBA Finals.