Last night was the first of two preseason games between the Lakers and Clippers, and the Clippers came out firing on all cylinders, defeating the Lakers 114-95. Now it's easy to say that the Lakers are washed up and that the Clippers are the new dominant team in Southern California. It's also doesn't do justice for Lakers fans to shrug off the loss, claiming that it's merely the preseason and that the regular season will be completely different. Last night's game clearly showed fruits of the Clippers' off-season moves but believe it or not, the Lakers also have plenty of positives to take away from their loss. Let's begin with the Clippers.
No team in this short off-season made as much noise as the LA Clippers, who began their quest by landing arguably the best point guard in the league, Chris Paul. It's true that the Clippers had to give up their leading scorer from last season, Eric Gordon, and a solid presence in the middle, Chris Kaman, but there's no doubt that the move significantly improved their roster. Players like Paul come around once in a lifetime and teaming the 26 year-old dynamic point guard with the human highlight reel Blake Griffin will not only improve ticket sales but also make the Clippers a legitimate contender to challenge teams like the Mavericks, Thunder, and the team they share Staples Center with, the Los Angeles Lakers.
Wisely enough, the Clippers didn't stop with Paul. They also added forward Caron Butler and former all-star point guard Chauncey Billups. Combine Billups and Butler, with Paul, and the Clippers' already potent front court of Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan and you have a starting lineup that can challenge almost any team in the West, at least in terms of scoring. There are still questions, at least in my mind, about whether or not this team can play the type of defense needed to considered a legitimate title contender. By starting Billups at the 2, the Clippers do gain badly needed veteran experience to their young core but they also lose a defender. That's not to say that Billups is a bad defender. It's just that he is small for shooting guard standards and asking your big men to constantly provide help defense can put them into early foul trouble, taking away one of their advantages. The Lakers exposed some of this last night through Kobe Bryant getting to the free throw line fifteen times. It will be interesting to see how the Clippers handle their backcourt in the future and whether or not they will be willing to bring Chauncey Billups off the bench, sacrificing his offensive expertise for a better defensive presence. Also, Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan are not known for being premier one on one defenders and teams such as the Grizzlies, Mavericks, and Lakers, who have premier front courts, could expose this weakness and use it to their advantage.
Despite their possible defensive flaws, the Clippers showed that they deserve the hype and look for them to make some noise in the Western Conference this year.
The Lakers, on the other hand, are on the opposite end of the spectrum in terms of post-season success. They lost last year's Sixth Man of the Year, Lamar Odom, for a first-round draft pick and a trade exemption from the Dallas Mavericks, the same Dallas Mavericks who embarrassed this Lakers team in the second round of last year's NBA Playoffs. Lamar Odom's versatility makes him invaluable to any team and especially to the Lakers who have hadn't had a true point guard in years. His versatility also makes his trade value extremely high but Jim Buss made the fatal mistake of letting his pride get in the way of a business decision and Odom was shipped to the defending NBA Champions for basically nothing. To summarize, not only did the Lakers not get Chris Paul or Dwight Howard, they also lost best sixth man in the game to a team that is set up to win the West again. Seems like a recipe for failure, right?
Luckily, the Lakers still have a solid front court with one of the most skilled big men in the game, Pau Gasol, and Andrew Bynum, who has all the tools to be one of the most dominant centers in the game. Oh and they have this guy named Kobe Bryant playing the 2 for them. Sound familiar?
In a way, Phil Jackson's retirement may have been a blessing in disguise for the Lakers. Mike Brown, Phil's replacement, ran an offense in Cleveland that featured Lebron James at the center and everyone feeding off of him. Now it's true that Kobe has a much better supporting cast than Lebron did in Cleveland and that Kobe isn't 27 years old anymore, he still has the ability to score at will and hopefully, with Mike Brown coaching, Kobe will play more minutes and provide more offense for the Lakers than he did last year. Now you may say, how much more can Kobe really score? Well last season, Kobe had the highest average PPG for someone who only played 36 minutes in a game. Kobe may not be the player he was a couple of years ago but he still has the ability to help the Lakers win more games this year with increased scoring.
The Lakers didn't do all bad this off-season either, adding free agents Troy Murphy, Joshua McRoberts, and Jason Kapano. The Lakers addressed their back-up big man situation through Murphy and McRoberts, both of whom can provide solid minutes off the bench. Although neither of them are as versatile as Odom, they are valuable assets to the Lakers' bench.
Probably the most important addition to the Lakers this off-season was Jason Kapano, former Three Point Shootout Champion. He provides the Lakers with a consistent threat from the perimeter, something that the Lakers clearly lacked. Both Ron Artest and Matt Barnes are too inconsistent from the three-point line to be considered constant threats. Look for Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol to both find Kapano open since they both have the ability to demand double teams.
Overall, both the Clippers and the Lakers have alot to look forward to this season. The Clippers have young talent that they can build into a championship contender starting this season while the Lakers have a seasoned line-up that can easily get hot and win the games it needs to in order to win another championship. It's an exciting time to be a basketball fan.
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