1st things 1st, if you’ve been on here since Reggie became a Clipper, you’d know I was always a Reggie guy! Even after the bubble & all the bullshit, but I’m not gonna get into that. Simply brought it up to say that it sucks losing him after he gave so much the past few years, especially when the stars were out. We should never forget his contributions to the WCF run. Had Kawhi not gotten hurt, he would’ve been the teams 3rd best player on a Championship team!

I was also a big fan of Luke from his Pistons days & had high hopes for him here but he just never took that next step. Whether it was Ty or simply Luke’s lack of aggression, things just didn’t work out. & even though I was a Luke fan, I had gotten tired of his lack of aggression & wanted him gone! I was hoping for a 1st Rd pick in return but I guess his value wasn’t high enough & I don’t disagree.

When it comes to Wall, it gets tricky. Yes he wasn’t great but there was just a lot of factors that played a role in him not succeeding here. 1st, he was playing for the 1st time in nearly 2 years. He was being asked to play a different style than he was accustomed to while being limited by this bullshit “medical staff”. The stars were constantly out of the lineup but perhaps the most important thing to his failure as a Clipper were the lineups he was forced to play with. Some of that is on the front office, for not signing an actual C & the other is on Ty for throwing out lineups that were destined to fail! Had the Clips had Dwight or a big who was actually a good roller out of PNR, I’m sure Wall would’ve found success! Shit, Plumlee would’ve been the perfect fit alongside Wall (& someone else I’ll talk about later), nonetheless, things didn’t work out.

Now for the guys we did get!

What’s been said about Bones is more than I can say, so I’ll leave it at that.

Initially, I didn’t know what to think of the Gordon trade, it didn’t make sense. Perhaps cuz I was expecting a pg trade & cuz I was waiting on a center trade. But once the deadline ended, I loved the addition! (I actually wanted Terry but I like this addition better, atleast for this season.) Not only do I agree with what Lucas said on the pod but I’ll take it a step further. He becomes our best (rotational) guard with playmaking ability & someone I see closing. Yes, he’s very similar to Norm, so I’m not sure how they’d fit together, but he’s a much better playmaker & defender, yes he’s a very good defender! ALOT, if not most, aren’t gonna like this but he’s also a better player than Mann, on all levels! I’m a fan of the positives that Mann brings to the table but in clutch situations, his flaws outweigh his positives, which is why I like Gordon closing over both he & Norm. Now, that’s not to say that he should be playing more, but I do think that he should start & end games over them. 18-22 min a game, in 5-6 min stints should bode well.

As for Plumlee, this is someone I’ve wanted for a few months now! He’s not great at one thing but he’s very good at pretty much everything, outside of shooting, but he knows his limitations. He can pass, put the ball on the floor, rebound, finish, & perhaps most importantly, defend out on the perimeter! He doesn’t have the quickest feet but he still moves well. What’s even better, we don’t have to see him getting abused & picked on in drop coverage! Because he’s quicker on his feet, they can now do what they do best (or worst with lil guards) & that’s switch PNRs! He’s not the greatest shot blocker but he’s a smart defender & uses his athleticism well, on both ends. Zu is a better post defender & post threat offensively (doesn’t really matter since they don’t post him, & yes I HATE that they don’t) but outside of that, Plumlee is a better overall player. Folks ain’t gonna like that either lol he’s not that much better but his game is better suited for today’s game & I think he’ll fit in perfectly in any lineup, due to his versatility. Because of this, I see him closing games if Clips go/stay big. I just love everything he brings to the table, but more than anything, fills a HUGE void this team has been missing, an athletic big! No he’s not gonna space the floor or isn’t the athlete Collins is, not many are, but he gives the team a different look at the center position. + it doesn’t hurt that he knows Joker & the Nuggets well! That’s not to say that he’s going to stop him but it helps, which was something that was talked about on the pod also.

Now, onto the guy that no one seems to want, RUSS! I’ll be the 1st to admit that I’ve always been a fan of his, flaws & all. I appreciate players who always play hard, even if it results in dumbass decisions. I mean, heart & hustle is the biggest reason why Pat Bev is my fav Clipper not named Blake or Q Rich! (Yes I’d LOVE to have Bev back over anyone!) All the talk about Russ & his unwillingness to accept roles & attitude/locker room disrupter or whatever clearly haven’t been watching laker games! He’s a BIG reason why they started playing better & why they competed every night! Bev was also huge reason behind that. All while playing the majority of his min with a bunch of G leaguers who can’t shoot! So yes, put him on this Clipper team with much better shooters & competent nba players & he’d succeed! But the main reason why I think this is because of the guy I just talked about, Mason Plumlee! As I mentioned above, if Wall had Plumlee to play off of, Wall would still be a Clipper & thriving. So all that talk about he’s another Wall, it wouldn’t work, is NOT true! The situations would be completely different + he’d be sharing the floor (potentially) with 3 guys he had success with, PG, EG & Roco! Rockets fell apart in the bubble (cuz they lost 3-4 core guys) but right before that, that team was rolling with Russ in that small ball unit surrounded by shooters & defenders. Speaking of, Russ can still defend at an all nba level when he wants to & needs to, he showed it across the hall, so don’t let the “he doesn’t play defense” narrative fool you. He will have some mental lapses though but he’s no different from anyone already on the team, pay attention to PG! Anyway, I’m not saying he should be starting or playing 30+ min, or even finishing games, but he can def give you 18-22 good min of relentless energy, playmaking & defense. (This is something Lucas kinda touched on also, which I believe Russ can & would do for this team.) More than ever before, he has something to play for & prove! With all of the pros that I think he can bring, you must accept the cons as well though, & he has plenty of bad ones! That same energy gets him into trouble alot & we know about his lack of shooting & finishing but I just feel he brings a different dynamic that we’re all looking for & team NEEDS! Shit, that’s the reason why we love Mann so much. He’s the only one who plays with constant energy & has athleticism, Norm to a lesser extent. We’re hoping Bones can provide that, & maybe he does in these next 5 games before the March deadline, but he also has huge red flags, on top of being young. Regardless, he’s a project for the future. The bigger issue with Russ would be the min distribution that he’d cause though! As it is, there’s not many to go around, but by having Russ, you can limit 213s min, especially Kawhi. He’s the one guy I wouldn’t want sharing the court much with Russ since he’s not necessarily a spot up guy & needs the ball + Russ would clog the lane for him even more than Mann & Zu do. But any combo of Russ, any of the 3 guards, PG, RICO & Plumlee would work. Again, he’s not someone I’d lean on to close but he’d be a great transition guy to end 1st/3rd qtrs & start 2nd/4th qtrs when Kawhi sits, which is when the Clips STRUGGLE the most! The same would apply in the playoffs but you’d obviously go off of feel & needs. I’m not gonna lie, the playoffs fit does get tricky & worrisome but I’d still risk signing Russ!

EG 16, PG 32, Kawhi 32, Sr 20, Zu 24
RW 20, NP 24, TM 20, Nico 20, MP 24
Roco 8

This is how I’d try to distribute the min during most nights, when everyone is healthy, during the reg season. Roco is the one who may stand out but I wanna play Sr & Nico less so I’m playing Roco + he’s more than good enough to warrant min. Obviously, we know how Ty is but atleast you get enough min for everyone to see who fits with who. The biggest beneficiary would be PG since the majority of his min would be as the actual SG with EG & Russ handling the majority of the play making duties. Bones would get some run but sparingly or when a guy or 2 is out. Sadly, there’s no Coffey in here who is also deserving of min. Personally, I like him more than Mann since he has some play making skills, is longer & is equally defensively, if not better. Mann does have a bit more pop & is a better finisher at the rim though & that matters.

Min distribution gets tricky in the playoffs but atleast everyone would be fresh to play extended min. Again, if Bones gets a shot & the team succeeds, then the Russ talk goes away. Until that happens though, it’ll be there & I’m all for it!

On a 2nd note, watching the Celts-Grizzlies game, Kennard was the same for Memphis as he was for the Clips. Luke stands around the 3-point line and if he isn’t wide open he passes it back. Didn’t put the ball on the floor. No drives. He refuses to shoot with a hand in his face. He is solely one-dimensional. No loss on our part.