The Los Angeles Daily News (Ramona Shelburne) reports: New Clipper Baron Davis, disappointed after the team’s season-opening 117-79 loss to the Lakers on Oct. 29, tried to keep things in perspective during postgame interviews. The Clippers, after all, were playing together for basically the first time that night, against one of the best teams in the league. “Did I expect to lose like that? No. Do I expect us to go 0-7? No,” Davis said… “A win would help,” Davis said. “A win would defintely help lift our spirits. We need to figure out what a win feels like as a unit. “We’re a work in progress, so it’s going to take some patience. No one is in panic mode yet.” True, but there is a sense of urgency. Davis himself felt that Monday night against Utah, when he decided to play on his badly bruised hip about five minutes before tipoff.
Category: Los Angeles Clippers Blog
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Nov 3: Jazz 89, Clippers 73
The AP reports: Paul Millsap scored 15 of his 24 points during a decisive 17-3 run in the fourth quarter, and the unbeaten Utah Jazz beat the winless Los Angeles Clippers 89-73 Monday night. A 3-pointer by Cuttino Mobley trimmed Utah’s lead to 67-64 before Millsap began his tear by making a pair of foul shots with 8:47 remaining. He finished it with a dunk with 4:37 left, giving the Jazz an 84-67 advantage. Mehmet Okur scored 16 points, Andrei Kirilenko had 15 points and 11 rebounds, and Carlos Boozer added 13 points and eight rebounds for the Jazz (3-0). Millsap also had nine rebounds, leading the Jazz to a 44-38 advantage in that department… Chris Kaman led the Clippers (0-4) with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Baron Davis, returning to action after missing two games because of a sore left hip, had 14 points and nine assists. He shot just 5-of-15, including 1-of-8 in the first half. Marcus Camby had five points and nine rebounds in his debut with the Clippers.
Nov 1: Jazz 101, Clippers 79
The AP reports: With Deron Williams on the bench in street clothes recovering from a sprained left ankle he injured in the preseason, newcomer Brevin Knight had six assists and Ronnie Price had seven assists as the Jazz beat the winless Clippers with a commanding second half. “Those guys are playing great. We’re holding it down without D-Will,” said Carlos Boozer, who had his second double-double of the season with 25 points and 10 rebounds… Cuttino Mobley scored 20 points and Chris Kaman had 11 points and 12 rebounds for the winless Clippers, who host the Jazz in a rematch Monday night… Andrei Kirilenko added 11 points, nine rebounds, three blocks and four assists. Mehmet Okur had 10 rebounds and nine points and Ronnie Brewer scored 12 of his 16 points in the second half for Utah.
Oct 31: Nuggets 113, Clippers 103 OT
The AP reports: Allen Iverson scored nine of his 25 points in the final 3:35 of overtime and the Denver Nuggets overcame an 18-point halftime deficit to beat the Los Angeles Clippers 113-103 on Friday night. Nene added 22 points and 11 rebounds for the Nuggets before fouling out for the second time in two games. Kenyon Martin missed nine of his first 10 shots and finished with 13 points. But he also grabbed 13 rebounds, made a key defensive stop to send the game into OT and made a 3-pointer in the final minute of the game to secure the victory. Al Thornton had 30 points and 11 rebounds for the Clippers. Tim Thomas added 20 points and Chris Kaman had 15 points and 15 rebounds.
Oct 29: Lakers 117, Clippers 79
The AP reports: Kobe Bryant had 16 points and eight rebounds, Andrew Bynum added 12 points and nine rebounds, and the Lakers spoiled the Clippers season opener with a 117-79 rout Wednesday night… Derek Fisher scored 15 in the victory, including going 3-of-6 as the Lakers finished 10-of-19 from 3-point range. Pau Gasol added 13 points, Jordan Farmar 15, and Trevor Ariza had 11 points and six rebounds. Chris Mims scored most of his 10 points during mop-up time… Baron Davis had 11 points on 4-of-13 shooting in his Clippers’ debut, with seven assists. Al Thornton scored 16, and Cuttino Mobley and Tim Thomas each had 11.
NBA opening night rosters
The NBA’s opening day rosters are official, and now posted on InsideHoops.com.
This evening was the deadline for NBA teams to trim their rosters down to 15 players or less.
The 2008-09 regular season starts Tuesday, October 28. InsideHoops is your online basketball home. We’re pumping out more content this season than ever.
Enjoy the season!
Oct 24: Nuggets 106, Clippers 92
The AP reports: J.R. Smith scored 19 points and Linas Kleiza had five of his 18 points in the final 68 seconds, leading the Denver Nuggets to a 106-92 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday night in the preseason finale for both teams. Kenyon Martin had 10 points on 3-for-8 shooting after the Nuggets’ victory in Toronto on Tuesday night because of a sprained left (non-shooting) wrist. Allen Iverson played 32 minutes and finished with seven points… Cuttino Mobley scored 21 points for the Clippers, who finished their exhibition schedule 3-4—not counting a 114-109 victory over FC Barcelona.
Camby gets over pain of trade
Marcus Camby appears to have gotten over the pain that comes from having to make almost $1 million per month in Los Angeles instead of making it in Denver. The Rocky Mountain News (Aaron J. Lopez) reports:
Whatever the reason, former Nuggets center Marcus Camby no longer openly harbors the bitterness that came over him when Denver traded him to the Los Angeles Clippers in a cost-cutting move July 13. Sure, Camby still believes the Nuggets could have handled the situation better, but he appears to have moved on from the days when he felt “blindsided, distraught, disrespected.” “I was upset at the time, how things transpired out there in Denver, but after being out here, that is like a thing of the past right now,” Camby said during a telephone interview from Los Angeles. “I’m enjoying my new situation. I’m enjoying this new chapter of my career. I’m going to try to make the best of the situation, but I think the situation can be a great one and a promising one.”
To be serious, I realize that my opening line is a bit off, in that it wasn’t about the money for Camby. It was personal. He really enjoyed being in Denver. Still, I think he’ll be OK. It’ll be interesting seeing how Camby fits alongside Chris Kaman. And anything Baron Davis does is worth watching.
Clippers waive Jelani McCoy
The Los Angeles Clippers today waived forward Jelani McCoy. McCoy appeared in six preseason games for the Clippers and averaged 3.5 points and 2.7 rebounds in 10.0 minutes per game. The former UCLA star signed with the Clippers on Sept. 23, 2008.
The Clippers roster now stands at 14 players.
Oct 22: Blazers 87, Clippers 75
The AP reports: Brandon Roy scored 17 points, rookie Greg Oden had 12 points and 13 rebounds, and the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Los Angeles Clippers 87-75 on Wednesday night… Al Thornton had 16 points and eight rebounds for the Clippers. Steve Novak scored nine points, going 3-for-4 from 3-point range. All 29 of his field goal attempts during the preseason have been from behind the arc, and he has made 14 of them… Travis Outlaw and Jerryd Bayless led the way in the fourth. Outlaw scored all of his nine points in the final 9:13 after missing his first six shots, and Bayless contributed eight of his 12 points down the stretch. Los Angeles got no closer than 12 in the final quarter after Rudy Fernandez hit a 3-pointer to give Portland its biggest lead, 77-60, with 7:58 to play.