2008-09 LA Clippers Season Review.
Even by the low standards of this franchise's cursed history, 2008-09 was an especially forgettable campaign. Expected to challenge for a playoff spot in the West, the Clippers were plagued by injuries and in-fighting and won only 19 games; amazingly, this was only their seventh-worst record in 25 seasons in Los Angeles.
The focal point for much of the disappointment was free-agent pickup Baron Davis. Inked to a five-year, $65 million deal and expected to be the catalyst for the offense, he showed up out of shape, feuded with head coach Mike Dunleavy, and stubbornly hoisted ill-chosen jumpers despite converting just 37.0 percent from the floor.
Other moves to shore up the backcourt didn't work out any better. Although swingman Ricky Davis was supposed to provide scoring as a sixth man, he performed abominably thanks to a knee injury and spent most of the year on the sidelines. At least he showed up -- the Clippers signed Jason Williams to be their backup point guard, only to have him retire before the season ended. Dunleavy, in his role as general manager, further diminished his wings by trading Cuttino Mobley and Tim Thomas to New York for Zach Randolph.
As a result, the perimeter rotation was a shambles. The Clippers relied on castoffs like Mardy Collins, Fred Jones, Alex Acker, Jason Hart, and Mike Taylor for 3,572 minutes, or more than 40 a game. Only rookie guard Eric Gordon provided a bandage, as well as one of the few positive stories from the Clippers' season, by averaging 16.1 points per game.
Up front, the Clippers were ravaged by injuries, as the theoretically potent trio of Randolph, Chris Kaman, and Marcus Camby combined to play only 132 games. The reserves here didn't fare quite as poorly, as DeAndre Jordan had a solid rookie season and Steve Novak established himself as a rotation player, but the injuries still left the Clips devoid of star talent.
Between the injuries and the off year by Baron Davis, the Clips had little to work with at the offensive end, a fact reinforced by their league-worst ratio of free throw attempts to turnovers. The two stats are normally strongly correlated at the team level, so generally it takes a bad offense to generate lots of turnovers without getting to the line much. The Clippers were one such offense -- they posted the league's fifth-lowest free throw rate, but its ninth-highest turnover rate. No other team could claim membership in the bottom 10 in the former and the top 10 in the latter.
It's no surprise, then, that the Clippers were the worst offensive team in captivity. L.A. also captured the title of worst in field goal percentage and true shooting percentage while also falling well below the league average in every offensive category except one: 3-point attempts per field goal attempt. Thanks to Baron Davis, they attempted slightly more than the league average … and thanks to Davis again, they finished 23rd in accuracy.
Defensively the Clippers were a bit better, although this is damning with faint praise -- they were run-of-the-mill awful rather than exceptionally horrid, so it doesn't merit as much comment. Even with the injuries, however, the Clippers had the talent to do much better. Alas, it appeared some of the vets -- notably the Davises -- tuned out Dunleavy early on, and things deteriorated from there.
In Dunleavy's defense, it's hard to overstate just how harshly injuries decimated the roster. Some of this was inevitable -- if a team invests in Marcus Camby, Baron Davis, and Zach Randolph, it can't expect to get 82 games of health from the starters. On the other hand, they couldn't possibly have expected things to get this bad. Ricky Davis, for instance, averaged 80 games a year the previous seven seasons but was damaged goods from opening day, while Kaman's 41 games played were a crushing blow after he'd averaged a double-double the year before.
In a move many saw coming, the Los Angeles Clippers announced the firing of head coach Mike Dunleavy after a disastrous season. With only 19 wins to their name and plagued by injuries and internal strife, the decision was inevitable. New GM Mike Hobbs, hired in March 2009, decided to cut ties with Dunleavy to start fresh.
Kim Hughes served as interim head coach for the remaining three games. Hughes, who has been with the organization for several years, hoped to bring stability to a team in disarray, but didn't seem to make much head way.
While this season has been a wash, there have been a few bright spots. Rookie Eric Gordon has been a revelation, averaging 16.1 points per game and showing flashes of brilliance. DeAndre Jordan also finished the season strong, establishing himself as a promising young player. Maybe making it more palatable to move on some overpaid oft injured stars such as Randolph, Camby and Kaman.
Hobbs and owner Steve Ballmer have a challenging offseason ahead as they look to rebuild the team. Rumors are already swirling about long-term head coaching targets, including Celtics assistant Tom Thibodeau and former Rockets head coach Jeff Van Gundy. The Clippers are determined to turn the page on this disastrous season and start building a competitive team for the future. They just need a lucky bounce of the ping pong balls in the draft lottery to get things rolling.
