San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
West’s influence is paying big dividends for Clippers
People almost felt sorry for Jerry West when, in leaving the Warriors to return home to Los Angeles, he wound up as a consultant with the Clippers instead of the Lakers. Perhaps it was foolish to doubt his intentions. The Clippers finally have a legitimate blueprint for taking over the town.
It’s reasonable to believe the Lakers will always be a better draw at Staples Center, particularly with LeBron James the star attraction. That doesn’t bother the Clippers, who have a longterm plan to build an arena near the site of the NFL stadium that will house the Rams and Chargers. “The team will get there “come hell or high water,” promised billionaire owner Steve Ballmer.
More relevant to the present landscape is the notion of a Lakers powerhouse built around James. Is that actually going to happen? Kevin Durant cast doubts during the week as to whether freeagent superstars want to play with LeBron, and among NBA insiders, there is widespread opinion that Kawhi Leonard, Jimmy Butler, Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson and Durant won’t be interested. (Why people even mention Thompson’s name is a mystery; don’t they grasp his passion for the Warriors and the Bay Area?). Kemba Walker is magnificent, but he keeps saying he loves Charlotte and might re-sign for the long haul.
The list thins out drastically after that. Good players, yes, but the likes of Al Horford, Marc Gasol, Goran Dragic, Harrison Barnes and DeAndre Jordan wouldn’t turn the Lakers into a threat to Golden State. Chief executive Magic Johnson wants a big splash, and it may have to happen through trade, with such names as Bradley Beal and Anthony Davis coming to mind. Davis would be an absolute game-changer, but the Lakers would have to surrender a huge chunk of their young talent in that deal — and it would require Davis deciding to bypass the supermax deal for which he’s eligible in New Orleans next summer.
Meanwhile, West has already left a massive imprint on a Clippers team enjoying the upper echelon of the Western Conference. Nine days after West took the job in the summer of ’17, the Clippers traded Chris Paul to Houston for highenergy center Montrezl Harrell, defensive-minded guard Patrick Beverley and Lou Williams, the NBA’s best sixth man and coach Doc Rivers’ best option for a make-orbreak shot.
West didn’t see much future in Blake Griffin, either, strongly lending his support to the deal that sent Griffin to Detroit for solid guard Avery Bradley, center Boban Marjanovic (surprisingly good, and a crowd favorite) and the man who has become the Clippers’ best player, Tobias Harris. West was also largely responsible for this year’s draft-night deal that sent Miles Bridges’ rights to Charlotte for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who is starting for the Clippers and might become the best point guard in this rookie class.
Final thought on the subject: Let’s say DeMarcus Cousins returns at reasonably full strength for the Warriors, makes big contributions on a championship team but falls out of their price range for next season. The Lakers and Clippers both would be highly interested. As the wheels of speculation grind on. 鉔 It’s common knowledge that Stephen Curry changed the NBA with his brazen, astonishingly effective three-point shooting, spawning imitators bound to populate generations to come. Remember that this could have happened decades ago. Pete Maravich had every bit of Curry’s scoring skill and was an even fancier ballhandler. In three seasons at LSU, without the benefit of the three-point shot, he averaged 44.2 points per game. He always seemed to be in the wrong place in the NBA, never getting deep into the playoffs throughout the 1970s, but he was nevertheless a marvel, leading the league in scoring at 31.1 points per game in 1976-77. He was playing out the string in Utah when the NBA finally instituted the three-point shot in 1979. Such unfortunate timing.
鉔 After a long road swing through the Eastern Conference, the Warriors face new-look Minnesota, a bit of a mystery in the West, on Monday night at Oracle Arena. Karl-Anthony Towns is one of the most talented centers in the league, capable of doing big damage against Golden State, and he’s clearly a new man after Jimmy Butler’s departure to the 76ers. Andrew Wiggins, another young talent who’d been tormented by Butler’s pointed criticism, hasn’t taken the same step. His mid-range shooting has been disastrous, and the Timberwolves have grown exasperated with his on-court nonchalance. There’s still time for Wiggins, in the first season of a five-year, maxsalary deal, and the additions of Robert Covington and Dario Saric have bolstered this team’s potential.
鉔 Center Joel Embiid told Philly.com that he hasn’t been comfortable with his role since Butler joined the 76ers, saying, “I’m being used as a spacer, I guess, a stretch 5,” and that coach Brett Brown “always has me starting on the perimeter ... and it just really frustrates me.” Reaction: Embiid, a student of Hakeem Olajuwon’s game, is a decent three-point shooter but should spend most of his time around the basket. Brown had better figure that out; clearing the entire inside for Butler’s attack mode makes no sense. And as WNBA star Chiney Ogwumike said on ESPN, “Why don’t you talk to your coach about it? Not the media.”
鉔 Acquiring Nick Young last season was one of the Warriors’ rare misfires, and the rest of the NBA wasn’t terribly impressed, either. He appears to be out of the league, knowing he went out on top.
Bruce Jenkins is a San Francisco Chronicle columnist. Email: bjenkins@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @Bruce_Jenkins1