Who Would Pick the Clippers for an NBA Dynasty?

RonnieDobbs · 05-01-2003, 12:50 AM

I would.

This is a dynasty using Fast Break Basketball. I had elaborate plans of simming 50 years of NBA history, but my machine soured on that idea around Year Nine. My machine, she is not so good, but we'll do with a truncated history. I simmed 5 years prior to the starting point to give some personality and statistics to the players and teams, and then decided to pick one of the worse teams. I decided on the Clippers, and my goal is that one day not only do we win the trophy, but we beat the Lakers down on the way there.

The house rules I'll be using are pretty simple. If I don't think it would happen in the NBA, I won't do it. That's pretty much it, except that I won't allow myself more than ten million dollars over the salary cap, and I can't start anyone I sign after the offical free agent period to limit the effectiveness of good players going unsigned (usually only a problem with PGs).

I may coach a few games, but I'm more going to let the computer handle that. I will control the Los Angeles Clippers and allow them to be THE L.A. team for once.

But first, reviews and preview of all the divisions.

RonnieDobbs · 05-01-2003, 01:52 AM

Atlantic Division

Boston Celtics
The Celtics have been quite the pedestrian team since 1996. They've made the playoffs once, but were swept out in the first round. They're a team that has traditionally played tough defense, holding the league mark for least points allowed in a season. This season, like many previously, they don't have much scoring punch.

They'll be relying on their first round draft pick (#23 in the draft) Mason Ratliff, a 6' 10" SF who has a good inside game but little else, to contribute points immediately. 10 Year Vet PF Cory Drew could be good for a consisent double double if given adequate minutes, though he's not that talented. This team really doesn't look all that good, though it will be gritty on defense.

Miami Heat
Consisently good but never great, the Heat hope to break through this season. They've been to the playoffs all four years that this league has been running, and even have an above .500 postseason record. They've never made the finals, though.

This veteran team is led by one-time All-Star SG Dylan McCutchan, a 34 year old with a career 24.3 ppg scoring average. C Earvin Madarang will contribute about 19 ppg and 9 rpg. Three time All-Star SF Scoonie Curry has a deadly outside shot, and could be good for 18 ppg 6 rpg and 4 apg. The time is now for the Heat. Can they rise to the challenge?

New Jersey Nets
The Nets have been one of the worst NBA squads over the past four years, although they did exit from the first round of the playoffs once. They still look to be aways from respectablity.

The past two years they've had the first pick in the draft, first picking up a SG who they immediately shipped to the Magic, and this past draft they drafted PF Maxwell Parker, a bruiser who can tough it out in the paint. He's a good, not great, scorer right now, but has ample room to grow. He should end up a good pro. Parker's frontcourt mate C DeeAndre Hoiberg will be good for 14 ppg 10 rpg. Another lottery finish is in the cards for the Nets.

New York Knicks
1997 NBA Champions, this team has been consisently good, only missing the playoffs once in the last four years. Four out of their five starters could potentially average over 15 ppg, but it will have to been seen if they can play nice together.

No one on the team could really be called a "star", although PF Brendan Zimmerman and SG Phillip Rayburn have both been named All-Stars once. The big question mark is the starting PG Bob Griffey, who in three seasons has managed only 112 minutes on the court. This team will make the playoffs, but just doesn't have the star or playmaker to win it all again.

Orlando Magic
This could be a team on the rise. Until last year, the Magic stunk. Then David Stern said the magical words "With the second pick in the draft, the Orlando Magic select South Flordia center Jerod Brady." That next season, led by Brady, the Magic stormed all the way to the finals, losing to the Jazz in six.

Last season, Brady got 22.1 ppg 9.6 rpg on his way to Rookie of the Year, All-Star, and All-League Third Team honors. He still has room to grow as well. Another young gun is SG Ricky Steitz , who is entering his third season out of high school looking to build on a 19.3 ppg career average. This is a young team with some more solid players, a team that could be a force in the future.

Philadelphia 76ers
Much like the Heat, the 76ers have been good, but not great. Only once have they missed the playoffs, but never have the gotten to the second round.

SG Devon Marion is entering the third year of a big money deal. 3 time All-Star, 3 time First Team All-NBA, he is coming off a 24 ppg season. He is now 31, so it's time to produce. He's backed up by SF Tim Mikan and Luis Szczerbiak, who look to average 17 and 13 ppg respectively. This team will again make the playoffs, and maybe Marion can will them to a title, but probably not.

Washington Wizards
Two first round exits from the playoffs, and a sub-500 winning percentage hound the Wizards.

Three time All-Star C Bryan Nystrom, 29, leads the attack. He's coming off a 21.8 ppg 9.8 rpg season, and is definitely the main scoring option of the Wizards. The cast around him, however, is a bunch of underachievers and guys who are getting their first chance to start. It's a transition year for the Wiz, a transition year that will end them up in the lottery.

Ragone · 05-01-2003, 05:14 AM

The house rules I'll be using are pretty simple. If I don't think it would happen in the NBA, I won't do it..

Don't plan on winning much with the clippers then?

Good luck

RonnieDobbs · 05-01-2003, 12:51 PM

Central Division

Atlanta Hawks
Another Eastern Conference team that has played well enough, but all it has to show for it is two first-round exits. They're coming off a lottery campaign.

They are led by 36 year old tank C Hahn Abdur-Rahim who will be good for 18 ppg 10 rpg. PG Courtney Abbot has all the skills along with a deadly shot from three, put hasn't been able to put up numbers better than 16.3 ppg 7.8 apg. If the Hawks want to passively watch the lottery next year, he'll have to step up.

New Orleans Hornets
This team has a .500 record over the last four seasons, but three playoff appearences, including one series win. However, they too are coming off a lottery campaign and hope to right the ship this season.

SF Trenton Perkins, 29, is a balanced threat who can do a good amount of everything. His career average of 23.3 ppg 7.0 rpg is great, but last season he took a downturn in all categories, though he still appears to have the skills. 32 year old PG Kenyon Patterson is not a stereotypical point guard, but more of a scorer. If the Hornets hope to return to the playoffs, Perkins will have to be a great playmaker as well as scorer/rebounder, because Patterson ain't getting it done.

Chicago Bulls
The Bulls have been one of the best teams in the league these past four years. They only have one finals appearance to show for it, losing to the Utah Jazz two years ago in 1998.

Three time All-Star, multiple time All League Team SF Micah Bullard is the heart of this team. The whole backcourt is strong, with SG Larry Springer both an inside and outside threat and PG Aaron Benjamin nailing threes and dishing the ball around. This is a dangerous team, who didn't finish as strongly last season, but looks to challenge again in 2000.

Cleveland Cavaliers
This is a team that has had mixed results. They've made some decent pushes into the postseason twice, but last season they were a lottery team

They're hoping that the no. 7 pick this season, SF Cody Lewis and his sharpshooting can help the team get back to their former glories. 33 year old SG Jessie Mann is a two-time All-Star and is good for over 20 ppg. If Lewis turns out to be a gamer, they could be back in the playoffs.

Detroit Pistons
Terrible, terrible team. Four straight lottery years, and little to show for it in terms of good young players. They have drafted poorly, it would seem. There isn't even anyone worth mentioning individually on this team. They're headed back to the front of the lottery.

Indiana Pacers
Another team that hasn't yet seen the playoffs, SF Nick Kim hpoes to lead his Pacers to the promised land. Kim, 29, is a threat from inside and out who avered 23.3 ppg last year in a year cut short by injury. SG Javier Lovellette, 34, was signed to a mid-level exception last season and could put up 17 ppg. In a weak East, they may have enough to go to the playoffs.

Milwaukee Bucks
This is beginning to get repetitive. A poor team that left in the first round the only time it made the playoffs, this team looks to be on the downswing. SG Frank Holman is 32 and only signed for one more season, though he could put up 17 ppg. C Gavin Storm is an assured double double but is also only signed for one more season. Things don't look good for the Bucks.

Toronto Raptors
A traditionally strong team that made the finals four years ago and the playoffs every year since, Toronto continues to look strong.

The leader is obviously PG Jay Cheaney, one of the leagues elite players. He's a perennial All-Star, and he won the MVP award in 1996. He's 30 and has two seasons left on his deal, so the time for the Raptors is now. Cheney could realistically put up 25 ppg and 7 apg. C Devon Outlaw was 1996's Rookie of the Year, and a two time Defensive Player of the Year. He's a beast on the boards and in the paint. Finally, PF Trenton Cann has a nice outside touch and is no slouch on the boards either. To me, this is the most impressive team in the East.

MylesKnight · 05-01-2003, 01:57 PM

Very Solid idea for a Dynasty, RonnieD.. Good Luck to you & the Clips..

RonnieDobbs · 05-01-2003, 02:06 PM

Unfortunetly, it's on hold until Sunday night at the earliest, as I'm going up to Maine w/ my buds until then.

But next will be a preview of the West, and predictions for the new season.

RonnieDobbs · 05-01-2003, 06:52 PM

One more preview before I go.

Midwest Division

Dallas Mavericks
The Mavs, unfortunately, have been the worst team in the NBA the past four years. Things don't look to be getting much better.

28 year old SG Levi Holloway is the main scoring threat, and a three time All-Star. He leads a bunch of youth to the court, including the inside punch of C Lavar McAdoo and last years #2 pick, SF Thomas Tobey. Tobey starts on the bench, but right now his shot is up there with the best of them and he has unlimited potential according to league scouts. This team isn't there yet.

Denver Nuggets
The Nuggets are one of those teams that have a winning % in the middle of the pack, and lost in the first round the one season they did make the playoffs. They don't look like they have much direction right now.

Their leader is veteran PF Grant Cardinal, a 20 ppg 9 rpg threat. 30 year old SG Alfonso McGuire had a breakout year last year, doubling his scoring average to 20 ppg. The ninth pick of last years draft, SG Chris Achterberg has been a disappointment in preseason workouts. He will be riding the bench until he can display more than a good jumper.

Houston Rockets
The Rockets have always done well during the regular season but folded like a deck of cards during the playoffs. They're coming off a good campaign, and figure to be in the shuffle again this year.

SF Philip Yong, 25, is a rising star. He made his first All-Star Game last season, and had his first 20+ scoring season. He will be helped by 35 year old C Drew Hepbron, a three time All-Star and three time Defensive Player of the Year, who will contribute 11 ppg 12 rpg 4 bpg 3 apg. This team will be very competitive.

Minnesota Timberwolves
This is going to sound familiar: 4 years a good team, 4 years in the playoffs, 4 first round exits.

The team rests all of its hopes on the shoulders of one man, 32 year old SF Alan Whitney. Whitney is a superstar. A 4 time All-Star and holder of the record scoring title, Whitney will put up 30 ppg 7 rpg 4 apg. After him, however, the team falls off quite a bit. They're going to need to find a way to get Whitney some help, or else the pattern will continue.

San Antonio Spurs
The Spurs are another of those teams that regularly make the playoffs but go nowhere once there. 3 trips, 3 first round losses.

They rely on outside shooting, with SG Julio Church getting 20 ppg. The rest of the team are relatively unproven or proven to be poor scorers. I don't like this team's chances this season.

Utah Jazz
The Jazz are currently the class of the NBA, having won the 1998 and 1999 NBA Titles. Is there a dynasty brewing here? Could be.

4 time All-Star, 1996 MVP PG Jordan Malone (heh!) is just now entering his prime. He'll be good for 25 ppg and 10 apg. The Jazz offense obviously runs through him primarily, but SG Trevor Goodrich is no slouch with his passing either, and consistently scores double digits. PF Evan Radejevic is the main presence in the paint, an assured double double each game. This is the team to beat.

Memphis Grizzlies
The Grizzlies are a change of pace: one trip to the playoffs, one series win! The appear to be a team on the rise, but their coach seems wedded to the idea of bringing their young guys along slowly, starting mainly veterans.

28 year old SF Kareem Diaz-Miguel had a breakout year last year, getting 14 ppg and being named to the All League Third Team, mainly for his defensive efforts. 12th pick in the draft Stephen Blazejowski will start on the bench but looks to be a good outside shooter on a team lacking talent. The Grizzlies will have another chance to add a good youngster next year, as they are lottery bound.

CHEMICAL SOLDIER · 05-02-2003, 01:04 AM

Looking forward to this dynasty . Hope it stays onn for a while .

RonnieDobbs · 05-04-2003, 10:33 PM

Pacific Division
Golden State Warriors
The 1996 NBA Champions, the Warriors have tumbled since then to being a lottery team for two years running. That ends here and now.

This is a young and talented team. Led by 2-Time All-Star SF Kristopher Rouseau, a 25 year old who just signed a fat contract to stay with the Warriors. He's an all-around threat who could score in the low 20s. Last year's #5 pick, C Dominic Ellis, is a big-time scorer and defender. SG Ernest Meanwell does everything well, and is a great ball-handler. He'll put up 17 ppg, but that's not a lot considering his max-money contract. This team has some series cap issues, so they'll have to make do with what they've got, and what they've got it pretty good.

Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers have twice made the playoffs and made decent pushes both times. However, they're coming off a pretty terrible season and don't seem to have great prospects for this season, especially in the tough West. They're an outside shooting team that lives and dies by the 3.

23 year old SG Hayden Sedram is an interesting story. The first pick of the second round draft of 1997, he proved to be a great prospect from Northwestern State. He just signed a max contract with the Lakers, coming over from the Hawks. Unfortunaetly (or not

), he's not worth the bucks. His best season was only 17 ppg, and you need to get more than that from your stars. The Lakers, while not terrible, won't be a playoff team.

Phoenix Suns
The Suns are another top team in the scary west. They've made the playoffs all four years and once made it to the finals, losing to the Knicks in 1997.

The heart of the Suns is 27 year old PG Nick Stockton. Stockton is coming off back-to-back MVP Awards and is a three-time All-Star. He could put up 30 points and 8 assists up every game. He is a superstar, notching 7 Triple Doubles in four seasons. His main partner in crime is veteran PF Vincent Kennedy, three time All-Star and double double stud. No signs of the Suns slowing down at all.

Portland Trailblazers
The Trailblazers have been a mediocre team, only making the playoffs once, but securing a first round upset. They're a team lacking a main scoring threat, but they do have many good role players and up-and-comers.

1998 #1 pick C Luis Schell will be coming off the bench for the third straight year. His sophomore year was much better than his rookie year, and he could break out to get 13 ppg 7 rpg off the bench. 3 year vet PG Stephan Fisher won Rookie of the Year in '97, and is a three year starter, but has to be considered a disappointment as he struggles for 10 ppg 7 apg. The Trailblazers won't survive in this West.

Sacramento Kings
The Kings have been a good playoff level team, but never a Championship threat. I'm not sold that they'll be there at the end of this season.

There really is no star/main scoring threat, although SF Tim Mullin has had two really solid seasons and two pedestrian ones. Which Mullin will show up? The bench is led by SF/SG Ronald Kelly, who will put up double digits coming off the bench for this team. In the East, they're a playoff team. But not here in the West.

Seattle Supersonics
The Sonics are another good but far from great team. They've been in the postseason 3 times in the last 4 years, but never doing much of anything.

C Chad Daly is the leader and is a One-Time All-Star. He has the potential to put up monster numbers, like 23 ppg 10 rpg. He's still in the early years of a big contract, but he justifies the money he gets. SG Andre Delessio won the Sixth Man of the Year Award his rookie year, and his role has only increased. He could break out this year, but 16 ppg is safe to assume. I think this team has the talent to make it to the postseason.

Next: Your Los Angeles Clippers

RonnieDobbs · 05-04-2003, 11:11 PM

After going through the West, I'm scared for my team. They haven't done very well in the past, and the West is stacked with good teams. The Clipper's sordid past:

1996: 37-45
1997: 33-49
1998: 33-49
1999: 44-38 Made Playoffs

So, this appears to be a team on the rise. I haven't even looked at the players yet, so allow me to introduce to you and myself the 12 angry men that will be the 2000 Los Angeles Clippers:

At Center, from Milwaukee Public High School, 6 foot 10 inches tall, Zack Horry!

At 20, Horry is very young, but doesn't have a whole lot of upside. He will play above average defense and get his share of boards. Predicted stats: 10 ppg, 9 rpg

At Forward, 6' 9" from Loyola-Chicago, Caleb Hammonds!

Caleb is the unquestioned star of this team. Only named to the All-Star team once, he is also a 3 time All-League team member. He has two years remaining on his max contract. Luckily, this man is the consummate professional, a community leader, and a man who wants to stay and help the Clippers become the cream of the NBA. I'll probably resign him to a max contract in two years. Predicted stats: 24 ppg 10 rpg

From Western Kentucky, a 6 foot 7 inch Forward, Isaac St. John!

Isaac is in the third year of a five year, $30 million contact. The past two seasons he's been a solid starter, and a great role player who plays tough defense. His career so far hasn't been spectacular, but he's getting good money to play an important role in a team that could make the playoffs. Predicted stats: 13 ppg 3 apg

6' 8", from Stanford, at Guard, Kenyon Haskins!

At 34, Haskins is the cagey vet of this team. He's got a great outside shot, but his skills are deteriorating. I've got him under contract for two more years at 7 million per year, not too terrible. Maybe he can help provide the leadership needed to take this team to the playoffs this season and next. Predicted stats: 10 ppg.

From Murray State, a 6 foot 8 inch Guard, Alejandro Cleaves!

Alejandro is a converted SG, but he passes the ball well enough for me to trust him to run our offense. He'll also be a scoring threat, as he's got a decent outside shot and has a track record of putting points on the board. At 29, this is his final year in his current 3 million dollar contract. Predicted stats: 15 ppg 8 apg. I'd like to resign him if it's for cheap.

The Bench
David Fabrizio will be the sixth man. This is his first year in the league as we picked him up with the 19th pick. I think we got a good deal for that pick, as Fabrizio can score both inside and outside pretty effectively, as well as dish the ball out pretty well. He will spell both Cleaves and Haskins.

Cs Nate Krauss and Owen Drake are big men who play good defense, but that's about it. They won't be much of a threat to score, but Drake could potentially dominate the boards.

PF Mark Baker can put up some points from inside or out, but plays no defense and is a non-threat on the boards. We're hoping that Hammonds plays the bulk of the minutes here anyway.

SG Gary Patterson was the fourth pick in the draft in 1999, but had a noneventful rookie season. He can shoot from deep, and has a decent amount of potential, but won't be seeing a massive amount of minutes.

PG Albie Borgman has a great outside shot as well, and can dish the ball out adequately. He's third on the depth chart behind Fabrizio, though, so his minutes will most likely be limited.

Those are the 11 players who have a chance at playing in a game. Realistically, we have a 8 or 9 man rotation, as Patterson, Borgman, and possibly Drake will see their minutes limited.

We've got some good defenders, so I'm going to Coach an aggressive, trapping defense. I'm hoping we can create a lot of turnovers while not having many ourselves. We will press now and then, but won't overdo it. We'll probably play a half-court offense as we've got some age in the lineup and don't want our starters to tucker out too early. We'll look to score from both inside and outside, as we can get it done from both.

Our primary scoring threat is definitely Hammonds. He's our star. Next, I'm going to tell Haskins and Cleaves not to be afraid to shoot the ball. We'll hope that Hammonds draws double teams and can kick it back to the sharpshooters.

If Hammonds has the monster season I think he's capable of, we could make the playoffs.

RonnieDobbs · 05-04-2003, 11:33 PM

Predictions for the 2000 Season

Playoff Teams from the East
1. Toronto Raptors
2. Chicago Bulls
3. New York Knicks
4. Orlando Magic
5. Philadelphia 76ers
6. Miami Heat
7. New Orleans Hornets
8. Indiana Pacers

Playoff Teams from the West
1. Utah Jazz
2. Phoenix Suns
3. Golden State Warriors
4. Houston Rockets
5. Seattle Supersonics
6. Los Angeles Clippers
7. Minnesota Timberwolves
8. Sacramento Kings

East Finals
Raptors over Bulls, 4-2

West Finals
Suns over Jazz, 4-3

Finals
Suns over Raptors, 4-2

MVP Award
Nick Stockton [or Alan Whitney, Jordan Malone, Micah Bullard, Jerod Brady]

Defensive Player of the Year
Drew Hepbron [or Devon Outlaw, Jake Barkley]

Rookie of the Year
Cody Lewis [or Thomas Tobey, Isaac Quigly, Antonio Mourning]

Well, that's it for preseason activities. I'm going to go a week at a time, I think. I won't actively coach the games, just putting in the settings and watching. Hopefully, this will be a good seasons for the Clippers.

RonnieDobbs · 05-05-2003, 12:12 AM

Week One

I've decided I'm going to do an in-depth look at one game a week. What better game than opening night?

Clippers @ Bulls

We start by travelling to one of the better teams in the NBA.

1st Quarter - Bulls 29, Clippers 24
Not a bad quarter at all. We shot the ball extremely well at 58%. Kenyon Haskins hit two three pointers to lead the team with 6 points. It's been a real even effort for us overall, but both Hammonds and Curry picked up 2 fouls. For the Bulls, Micah Bullard took 11 shots and made 5 for 11 points. He's a real gamer. Hopefully we can shut him down and take the lead.

At the Half - Clippers 49, Bulls 41
We came out shooting very well to start the second quarter, but Chris Hammonds quickly picked up his third foul. This is not good, as he's the man on this team and he'll enter the half having clocked only 9 minutes. Rookie David Fabrizio has had a great game, with 11 points at the half from the bench. Owen Drake has 9 boards, while the Bulls are led by 13 points from PG Aaron Benjamin and 14 boards (!) by PF Marvin Williamson.

3rd Quarter - Bulls 71, Clippers 71
The Bulls came out on a 17-8 run to take the lead, but the Clippers came back to tie it. Fabrizio went ice cold, going 0 for 4 during the quarter. Kenyon Haskins has 12 and Owen Drake has 10 points and 12 rebounds. The Bulls have five players in double figures, with both Bullard and Benjamin scoring 19 so far.

Final - Bulls 108, Clippers 97
The Bulls came out in the 4th with guns blazing, and the Clippers could never catch up. The Bulls scoring was just too much for the Clips. Hammond was never really a factor in this game, with foul trouble and poor shooting. He finished with 10 points on 3-of-10 shooting.

Clippers Leaders
SF Isaac St. John - 17 points
SG Kenyon Haskins - 14 points
C Owen Drake - 10 points, 14 rebounds

Bulls Leaders
PG Aaron Benjamin - 27 points, 8 assists - PLAYER OF THE GAME
PF Albie Griffin - 26 points
PF Marvin Williamson - 12 points, 23 boards

Rest of the Week
Jazz 94, Clippers 89
A tough home loss where we actually hung with the great Jazz for all game except the last three minutes. Jordan Malone killed up with 20 points and 10 assists. David Fabrizio has a solid game, leading the team with 18 points. If we continue to struggle, I may have to find a way to insert him into the lineup.

Nets 104, Clippers 78
Ugh. Hammonds finally has a good game, 30 points and 10 rebounds, but no one else does anything. For the Nets, PG Tyson Rice (who was a Clippers backup last season) is off to a scorching start and rang us up for 27 points in 45 minutes. Impressive.

Record After this Week: 0-3

Clippers Leaders
Caleb Hammonds - 17.7 ppg 5.7 rpg
Isaac St. John - 13.7 ppg
David Fabrizio - 12.7 ppg

Summary
This team is shooting terribly. The game against the good teams were good, we played tough. The Nets game was an embarassment. This team isn't going to the playoffs at this rate. I need guys to start stepping up like Hammonds did during the New Jersey game, or else it's going to be a long season.

NBA Player of the Week
Magic C Jerod Brody takes it, averaging 28.8 ppg 10.3 rpg. Looks like the next huge star is making his prescence known.

RonnieDobbs · 05-05-2003, 11:33 AM

Week Two

Week Two starts with what will become the best rivalry in basketball.

Clippers @ Lakers

1st Quarter - Lakers 27, Clippers 16

The Clips come out shooting terribly in the first quarter, only getting 27% of their shots. Alejandro Cleaves leads the team with 6 points, and Caleb Hammonds goes 0 for 4 from the field. Lakers PG Omar Swift (8 pts) and SF Cole Kukoc (6 pts) lead their attack.

At the Half - Lakers 56, Clippers 38

We play a marginally better second quarter. No one on this team is stepping up though. Cleaves now has 8 points to lead the team, and Hammonds is now 0 for 6 from the field. For the Lakers it's the Swift and Kukoc show, as they've put in 17 and 15 points respectively.

3rd Quarter - Lakers 94, Clippers 71

Our best quarter yet, but also the best one for the Lakers. Hammonds, Borgman, and Cleaves all have 10 points. Omar Swift leads the Lakers with 20.

Final Lakers 115, Clippers 93
Cleaves leads the team with 16. Hammonds finishes with 15 on 25% shooting. This is getting bad. PG Omar Swift leads the Lakers with 25, including three three-pointers.

Clippers Leaders
PG Alejandro Cleaves - 16 points
PF Chris Hammonds - 15 points, 10 boards, 5 assists
SF Isaac St. John - 14 points, 7 boards

Lakers Leaders
PG Omar Swift - 25 points PLAYER OF THE GAME
SG Hayden Sedran - 20 points, 8 boards
SF Cole Kukoc - 19 points, 11 boards

Rest of the Week
Rockets 98, Clippers 84
We blew a lead in the fourth quarter here. Hammonds, still shooting poorly, puts in 21 points and 12 rebounds. Isaac St. John adds 15 points as well. For the Rockets, Philip Yong scored 27 while Drew Hepbron gets 11 points 10 rebounds 3 blocks.

Raptors 103, Clippers 100
Chris Hammonds continues to stink it up, getting 14 points on 19 shots. The Raptors are led by Devon Outlaw, who puts up 19 points 15 rebounds, and Jay Cheaney who added 15 points 11 assists.

Record After the Week: 0-6

Clippers Leaders
PF Chris Hammonds - 17 ppg 8.5 rpg
SF Isaac St. John - 13.3 ppg
PG David Fabrizio 11.3 ppg

Summary
Well, I've got to do what I can to stanch the bleeding. Alejandro Cleaves is benched and will be the new sixth man. David Fabrizio will be the starting PG. Also, I tell Fabrizio and Isaac St. John to shoot the ball a little more. Also, I work during the practices on our post game, as I want to slow the game down and give Hammond some high percentage shots. Maybe he'll start making some.

NBA Player of the Week
This weeks winner is Suns PG Nick Stockton. He had games of 34, 9, 34, 29, and 42 while consistently getting around 10 assists.

RonnieDobbs · 05-05-2003, 12:16 PM

Week 3

Hoping to get that first win against the lowly Mavs, who have been doing well this season.

Mavericks @ Clippers

1st Quarter - Clippers 25, Mavs 21

Hammonds does what he does best, picking up 2 fouls in the first three minutes. Argh. The Clippers started well, hitting their first 5 shots. Isaac St. John responds to my changes to get him more involved, putting up 14 first quarter points and playing all 12 minutes. For the Mavs, Levi Holloway has 7 points and rookie SF Thomas Tobey has 5 points in 5 minutes off the bench.

At the Half - Clippers 50 Mavs 43
This was the quarter of Zack Horry. He was huge this quarter, going into the half with 11 points, 12 rebounds, and 4 blocks. He was dominant in the paint. Fabrizio hasn't been shooting as much as I'd like but he does have 5 assists. For the Mavs, Tobey is now up to 10 points to lead the team off the bench, including two three pointers.

3rd Quarter - Clippers 73, Clippers 63
Caleb Hammonds has a good third quarter, as he now has 12 points and 7 boards. Fabrizio is also shooting better, as now he's got 11 points. Mavs C Lavar McAdoo was about all they had going for them that quarter, as he's now got 20 points and 8 boards for the game.

Final - Clippers 86, Mavericks 85
Whew, we almost blew this one. We were actually down one with 45 seconds left, but rookie David Fabrizio drove to the paint and laid it in. A last second shot by the Mavs Donald Rubini failed to find the net.

Clippers Leaders
SF Isaac St. John - 18 points
C Zack Horry - 16 points, 15 rebounds, 4 blocks
PG David Fabrizio - 13 points, 7 assists

Mavs Leaders
C Lavar McAdoo - 26 points, 11 boards, 6 assists PLAYER OF THE GAME
SG Levi Holloway - 13 points

Rest of the Week
Clippers 99, Nuggets 98
Hey, it's a winning streak! Hammonds has another good game, putting up 33 points and 14 boards. C Nate Krause comes off the bench for 18 points in 18 minutes. Fabrizio gets 9 assists but only 5 points. The Nuggets were led by PF Grant Cardinal, who is having a smashing year so far. He put up 35 points on my guys.

Clippers 96, Spurs 82
Hammonds puts up 21, but Fabrizio comes through with 20 points and 9 assists. C Nate Krause again comes through when Horry gets into foul trouble, as Krause scores 19 points and grabs 18 rebounds. Spurs SG Julio Church scored 14 points on 30% shooting.

Clippers 98, Sonics 91
Sweet, that's four straight! Hammonds has a 31 pts/11 boards game, and Fabrizio, who is solidifying my decision to start him, adds 15 points and 8 assists. The Sonics' Delessio and Daly had good games, putting up 23 and 21 respectively, but it wasn't enough.

Record after the Week: 4-6

Clippers Leaders
PF Hammonds - 19.9 ppg 9.3 rpg
SF St. John - 14.1 ppg
PG Fabrizio 12.1 ppg 4.9 apg

Summary
That's more like it. Good defense, and Hammonds is starting to play like the potential All-Star he is. I'd like to see more scoring, but a 4-0 week is fine by me.

NBA Player of the Week
This week it goes to Jazz PG Jordan Malone. He scored 47, 30, 39, and 26 points this week while dishing the ball out well.

RonnieDobbs · 05-05-2003, 03:34 PM

Week Four

Clippers @ Timberwolves

1st Quarter - Clippers 33, Timberwolves 28
Hammonds comes out of the gate hot, scoring ten points in the first four minutes of the game without missing a shot. He finishes the quarter with 15 points, going 6-for-6 from the field and 3-for-3 from the line. Fabrizio has five first quarter assists. Alan Whitney was "held" to only 7 points in the first quarter, but managed to get four assists, showing how valuable a player he is.

At the Half - Clippers 60, Timberwolves 58
Now this is a good game. Both teams are playing excellent basketball. "Fabrizio to Hammonds" seems to be the order of the day today. Hammonds goes into the lockerroom with 21 points, missing only once from the field. Fabrizio, who is 1-of-3 from the field, has ten assists at the half. Isaac St. John, with 11 points 5 rebounds 3 assists is also having a solid game. It's still the Alan Whitney show for the T-wolves, although his 14 points at the half is good, but not great for him.

3rd Quarter - Clippers 82, Timberwolves 70
A good quarter for Fabrizio, who ignited an 8-0 run to help solidify the lead. He now has 8 points and 12 assists, while Hammonds had a bad quarter, finishing with 26 points 6 boards. T-Wolves PG Jake Barkley has 14 points to go with Whitney's 16.

Final - Clippers 101, Timberwolves 98
A nice victory that we almost lost out on in the last minute, but clutch free throw shooting won out. A good road win against a good team.

Clippers Leaders
PF Hammonds - 29 points, 11 rebounds
SF St. John - 21 points
PG Fabrizio - 10 points, 16 assists

Timberwolves Leaders
SF Whitney - 29 points, 9 rebounds, 9 assists PLAYER OF THE GAME
PG Barkley - 14 points, 6 assists

Rest of the Week

Clippers 100, Mavericks 98
Hammonds puts in 26 points and 13 boards, while St. John continues to be an excellent #2 scorer with 21 points. For the Mavs, Levi Holloway scored 18 but Lavar McAdoo was shut down by my big men, and not a prescence in the game.

Clippers 96, Kings 71
Hammond is the man. 34 points, 15 rebounds. Fabrizio didn't shoot well from the field, but got 9 assists. Zack Horry got a double double. For the Kings, Ronald Kelly led the team with 14 points off the bench. He's going to be a free agent this summer, and is only 23. He will be a breakout star next season I'm predicting, once he gets a chance to start.

Record After the Week: 7-6

Clippers Leaders
PF Hammonds 22.2 ppg 10.2 rpg
SF St. John - 15.2 ppg
PG Fabrizio - 11.7 ppg 6.2 apg

Summary
This team is finally clicking. Hammond is playing like the stud he is, and we're riding a league-high seven game win streak.

NBA Player of the Week
C Jerry Carr of the Portland Trailblazers. A solid player but not considered a star, he had four double doubles, averaging about 19 ppg 15 rpg for the week.

RonnieDobbs · 05-05-2003, 04:54 PM

Monthly Review

Eastern Conference Playoff Standings
*New Orleans Hornets 9-4 .692 -
*Philadelphia 76ers 9-7 .563 1.5
*Toronto Raptors 9-4 .692 0.0
*Cleveland Cavaliers 9-6 .600 1.0
*Washington Wizards 8-8 .500 2.5
*Chicago Bulls 9-9 .500 2.5
*New Jersey Nets 8-9 .471 3.0
*Atlanta Hawks 7-9 .438 3.5
Milwaukee Bucks 6-8 .429 3.5
Orlando Magic 8-10 .444 3.5
Detroit Pistons 6-10 .375 4.5
Boston Celtics 5-11 .313 5.5
Miami Heat 5-11 .313 5.5
New York Knicks 5-11 .313 5.5
Indiana Pacers 2-10 .167 6.5

This has been a pretty tight conference thus far. Many of the good teams here (Raptors, Bulls) haven't separated themselves from the pack. Surprises includ the Cavs start, and the Knicks and Heat starts. I would expect things to change in the future though for those two teams.

Western Conference
*Utah Jazz 11-4 .733 -
*Phoenix Suns 11-4 .733 0.0
*Los Angeles Lakers 10-5 .667 1.0
*Houston Rockets 10-6 .625 1.5
*San Antonio Spurs 12-8 .600 1.5
*Golden State Warriors 8-5 .615 2.0
*Sacramento Kings 8-6 .571 2.5
*Los Angeles Clippers 7-6 .538 3.0
Dallas Mavericks 10-10 .500 3.5
Minnesota Timberwolves 7-7 .500 3.5
Portland Trailblazers 6-7 .462 4.0
Memphis Grizzlies 7-9 .438 4.5
Seattle Sonics 5-9 .357 5.5
Denver Nuggets 5-9 .357 5.5

I'm surprised by the Lakers start. I don't think they'll have the legs to continue that high in the standings, but they may be good enough to be a playoff team. I think we'll see the Kings and Spurs fall off, with the Timberwolves and Sonics getting a little better.

League Leaders

Scoring
1. Alan Whitney SF Timberwolves 30.5
2. Jordan Malone PG Jazz 29.1
3. Nick Stockton PG Suns 29.0
4. Eric Macauley PG Cavaliers 26.1
5. Jessie Mann SG Cavaliers 26.0
6. Trenton Perkins SF Hornets 25.4
7. Tim Langhi SG Pistons 25.4
8. Micah Bullard SF Bulls 24.5
9. Grant Cardinal PF Nuggets 24.3
10. Phillip Yong SF Rockets 24.2

Rebounding
1. Alfonso Posey PF Mavericks 13.5
2. Caleb Hammond PF Cavaliers 13.2
3 Marvin Williamson PF Bulls 12.8
4 Evan Radejevic PF Jazz 12.6
5 Manuel Lapchick C Pistons 12.4
6 Carlos Boykins PF Wizards 12.2
7 Isidoro Peeler C Hornets 12.1
8 Jerry Carr C Trailblazers 12.0
9 Renato Boykins C Kings 12.0
10 Ivan Longley C Spurs 11.8

Assists
1. Aaron Benjamin PG Bulls 9.9
2. Nick Stockton PG Suns 9.3
3. Jesus Roberson PG Magic 9.1
4. Corey Shireman PG Celtics 9.0
5. Jay Cheaney PG Raptors 8.5
6. Jim Oneal PG Warriors 8.5
7. Jordan Malone PG Jazz 8.0
8. Donovon Thurmond PG Sonics 7.6
9. Jake Barkley PG Timberwolves 7.6
10. Colin Childs PG Knicks 7.5

Other Clippers
Isaac St. John is third in steals with 2.4 per game.
Caleb Hammond is second in FT attempts, with 8 per game.
Kenyon Haskins is ninth in 3-point %, with .542.

Major Injuries
Kings SF Tim Mullin is out for 3 weeks with a broken jaw.
Magic PG Ricky Steitz is out for 2 weeks with a broken collarbone.

Transactions
No major transactions.

NBA Player of the Month - Nick Stockton, PG Suns
Stockton certainly played like a superstar for the first month of the season. He's been averagine 29 ppg, 9.3 apg, and 5.4 rpg. He had two triple doubles this month, raising his total in the last five years to nine. He led his team to a tie for the conference lead. Other players being considered were the Jazz's PG Jordan Malone and Timberwolves SF Alan Whitney.

NBA Rookie of the Month - Mason Ratliff, SF Celtics
Ratliff is the only rookie who is truly been a star for his team. He is averaging 18.7 points a game and notched one double double. Other rookies in consideration were the Clippers' PG David Fabrizio and the Lakers' C Isaac Quigly.

RonnieDobbs · 05-05-2003, 09:57 PM

Week Five

Clippers @ Warriors

1st Quarter - Warriors 25, Clippers 23
We've played them pretty even so far, no team really playing poorly or well. My big men have been collecting fouls, with Horry getting 2 and the three others each getting one. Zack Horry got 4 points and 3 boards and Fabrizio dished out four assists. For the Warriors, second-year man Dominic Ellis has been a beast, getting 14 points on fantastic shooting and getting to the line alot, hence my foul trouble.

At the Half - Clippers 54, Warriors 50
The Warriors played the first half of the quarter tough, but we came roaring back at the end to take the lead. Caleb Hammonds (I'll get the name right from now on) leads with 14 points, but only 2 boards. The rebounding slack has been picked up by Horry and reserved PF Mark Baker, who each have 5. Fabrizio has six assists and four points. Horry also shut down Ellis in the second quarter, holding him to 2 additional points. Meanwhile, Ernsest Meanwell added 12 points this half.

Third Quarter - Clippers 79, Warriors 79
This is shaping up to be a real battle. Fabrizio was a little shaky this quarter; he scored six points, but he had three costly turnovers. The Warriors were hot this quarter, and took advantage of every opportunity they had. Warriors C Dominic Ellis is sick. He's got 28 points - 9 of 12 from the field, 10 of 12 from the line. I'm hoping Caleb Hammonds will push through this quarter and improve on his (so far) sub-par performance.

Final Warriors 106, Clippers 97
Alas, it was not to be, no matter how hard Isaac St. John tried. He had 11 points in the fourth and seemed to be the only Clipper who knew his ass from a hole in the ground. Hammonds and Fabrizio were like ghosts this quarter, and we got destroyed on the rebounding. They must have gotten literally fifteen more rebounds than we did that quarter, many of them offensive. I'm not a hampy camper with this performance.

Clippers Leaders
SF St. John - 21 points
PF Hammonds - 20 points
C Horry - 19 points 11 boards

Warriors Leaders
C Ellis - 33 points, 9 boards
SG Meanwell - 19 points
PG Oneal - 12 points 11 assists

Rest of the Week
Clippers 99, Heat 93
A good win for us over a pretty decent team. Hammonds scored 31 with 8 rebounds and Fabrizio put up a solid 15 with 12 assists. Once he becomes consistent, he'll be a great PG. Zack Horry got an double double with 16 rebounds, and he is really making me feel good about my decision to start the previously backup center. For the Heat, C Earvin Madarang was huge, scoring 35 and grabbing 10 boards, but the rest of the team didn't help him out enough.

Clippers 95, Celtics 88
This game was tied going into the fourth, so I'm glad we played some clutch basketball to get a good win. Isaac St. John leads the team with 21, but suffers a concussion in a collision with Celtics SF Mason Ratliff in the fourth quarter that will have him out for four days. Caleb Hammonds adds 17 points and 11 boards. For the Celtics, SF Ratliff scored 19 and continues to impress as a rookie. Unfortunately for Boston, it doesn't look like he's got too much upside.

Record After the Week: 9-7

As the scoring averages have begun to stabilize, I will no longer post statistical leaders by week, now only by month for the team.

NBA Player of the Week
Los Angeles Clippers PF Caleb Hammonds in a surprising move. Perhaps they were just compensating for the great games he'd had before and didn't win it. This is the second PoW Award in Hammonds's career.

RonnieDobbs · 05-05-2003, 10:10 PM

If anyone reading this would like to include anything else, go in to detail on anything else, please let me know. I'd be more than willing to. I'm very open to constructive criticism, although I don't think I'll be making this less detailed. I'm extremely immersed and enjoying it.

RonnieDobbs · 05-05-2003, 11:51 PM

Week Six

Clippers @ Jazz

This was at the end of the week, so Isaac St. John is back in the lineup.

1st Quarter - Jazz 28, Clippers 17
This was a physical quarter which saw the Clippers shoot sub-30% and both teams backup and starting centers collect 2 fouls. You couldn't say any Clipper had a good quarter, although Hammonds leads the team with 8 points on 1-8 shooting from the field. Jazz PF Evan Radejevic has 6 points and 5 boards, while Jordan Malone is having an effective game.

At the Half - Jazz 46, Clippers 45
Jazz C Nick Stoudamire collected his third foul after two minutes, and by the end they fouled 11 times this quarter. At the half, four of their players, including Stoudamire and Radejevic, had three fouls. Malone had two. The Jazz were handcuffed this quarter, and we went to the line a lot. Hammonds goes into the half with 22 points, 10 on free throws, and 7 boards.

3rd Quarter - Clippers 74, Jazz 68
You could tell that the Jazz's defense was restrained this quarter, as the Clippers kept pounding it in a getting good looks. The Hack-a-Caleb defense isn't working too well. He's got 30 points and 11 boards and is 16 of 17 from the line. Zack Horry has 15 points 5 rebounds as well. Jordan Malone was pretty much the Jazz's only option, and he's got 12 points 5 assists.

Final - Clippers 99, Jazz 98
Evan Radejevic foulded out with two minutes left and his team down one. After that, no one scored. The Jazz played really well as you would expect the two-time defending champs to do, but we played tougher. A great game for the boys, beating a great team on the road.

Clippers Leaders
PF Caleb Hammonds - 34 points 15 boards PLAYER OF THE GAME
C Zack Horry - 15 points 7 boards

Jazz Leaders
PG Jordan Malone - 18 points 7 rebounds 7 assists
PF Evan Radejevic - 17 points 10 rebounds

Rest of the Week
Clippers 86, Rockets 85
The Rockets were without their star Philip Yong for this game, and we escaped with one. Hammonds put up 21 and 10, while SG Kenyon Haskins had a good game with 17. Rockets C Drew Hepbron scored 20, grabbed 10 boards, and shut down Zack Horry, but it wasn't enough.

Knicks 118, Clippers 83
Caleb Hammonds injures his foot in the second quarter and was out for two days. It showed, as we had little punch here. PF Mark Baker scored a career high of 23 starting for St. John. Haskins also added 15 for two solid games in a row. Knicks SF Omar Alston explodes for a career high of 36 as well.

Suns 105, Clippers 102
Again we were without Hammonds and St. John, against one of the best teams in the league. Fabrizio showed flashes of brilliance here, carrying the load and scoring 38 points and 7 assists. PF Owen Drake added 17 points and 11 boards in Hammonds's abscence. For the Suns, Nick Stockton scored 29 and PF Jamie Case added 17 points and 14 rebounds.

Clippers 80, Mavericks 78
Ugly, ugly game. Hammonds scores 22 and grabs 18 rebounds, but no other Clipper has any luck today. Luckily we played the Clippers who were led by C Lavar McAdoo with 13 points.

Record After the Week: 12-9

NBA Player of the Week
Jordan Malone, PG of the Utah Jazz, takes his second PoW Award for the season. While the Clippers managed to contain him, other teams weren't so lucky, as he had games of 31p/13a, 37p/10a, and 31p/13a,.

RonnieDobbs · 05-06-2003, 02:18 PM

Week 7

Grizzlies @ Clippers

I wanted to do a blow out for one of these, and I thought this would suffice.

1st Quarter - Clippers 26, Grizzlies 24
This was the quarter of Caleb Hammonds, especially in the final six minutes. He finishes the quarter with 10 points 8 rebounds and 2 assists. C Nate Krauss, subbing for a foul-plagued Zack Horry, finished with 11 points and 5 rebounds. The Grizzlies were led by 8 points and 5 rebounds by PF Chuck McKie.

At the Half - Clippers 40, Grizzlies 39
Not really pretty. All their big men got in foul trouble, by my team couldn't take advantage. Hammonds is leading with 15 points 11 boards and 3 assists. For the Grizzlies, journeyman PG Justin Olsen is making a name for himself this season, and has 13 points at the half.

3rd Quarter - Clippers 73, Grizzlies 70
This was a good quarter for both teams, although the Grizzlies starting C and PF both leave with 4 fouls. Hammonds continues to dominate, with 19 points 13 rebounds and 7 assists. Fabrizio had a good quarter, and now has 13 points 6 assists. It's all Olsen for the Grizzlies, as he has 25 points 5 assists.

Final Grizzlies 96, Clippers 95
Man, we blew that one. They took charge when a lot of our starters were resting, and then we couldn't grab it back. C Zack Horry missed a last second shot for the win.

Clippers Leaders
PF Hammonds - 19 points, 14 rebounds, 8 assists
C - Krauss 18 points, 13 boards
PG - Fabrizio 13 points, 8 assists

Grizzlies Leaders
PG Olsen - 31 points, 9 assists PLAYER OF THE GAME
PF McKie - 17 points, 11 rebounds

Rest of the Week
Clippers 91, Pacers 87
Hammonds, Horry, and St. John all had double doubles, led by Hammonds's 28 points. The Pacers were led by PF Jalen McAdoo's 22 points 8 rebounds.

Spurs 123, Clippers 75
Ugh. Just terrible. Hammonds getting a double double the only remote positive. He still didn't shoot well. Three Spurs scored over 20 points - PG Dominic Zimmerman (24), SG Julio Church (22), and C Ivan Longley (22 with 11 rebounds). I'd like to forget this one, against a team I didn't think would do well this season.

Clippers 103, Trailblazers 89
Nice to see we can rebound from a horrible loss. Hammonds gets his obligatory double double (24 and 11), Fabrizio adds 17 points and 9 assists, and SG Cleaves comes off the bench for 13. 1998 1st overall pick C Luis Schell has 18 points in 16 minutes, a good case for a starting shot.

Spurs 93, Clippers 70.
Damn, our second 20+ point loss to the Spurs in three days. Hammonds has 19 points and 14 rebounds, but no one else did all that well. Rookie PG David Fabrizio is becoming maddeningly inconsistent. Spurs C Ivan Longley torches us for 32 points and 15 rebounds.

Record After the Week: 14-12

NBA Player of the Week
In the ultimate slap to the face of Clippers fans, Spurs C Ivan Longely is given the awards mainly for going to school of Zack Horry and Nate Krauss. He really only scored a lot against us, but he's a beastly rebounder, also having games of 18 and 19 boards this week.

Radii · 05-06-2003, 03:30 PM

I'm reading! I don't have any of the NBA games so I don't know how they play really, but a good read so far

RonnieDobbs · 05-06-2003, 08:23 PM

Thanks, Radii. I'm having a great time doing this.

Week 8

I had this all written out but then my machine crashed, so I lost my post. Therefore, no detailed look this week.

Mavericks 84, Clippers 79
Ugly, ugly game where neither team seemed able to buy a bucket. The lowly Mavs got the better of me here, although Hammonds pulled his double double and St. John had 17 with 11 rebounds. The Mavs were led by SG Levi Holloway's 24 points and 19 rebounds.

Wizards 90, Clippers 72
Stratch everything I said about the last game, as this was even worse. The team is in a rut, and they barely scratched 30 percent shooting. Wizards C Xavier Cronin had a rare scoring outburst, putting up 18, twice his season average.

Clippers 92, Warriors 91
Hm. This is starting to worry me. We lose to the terrible teams and get a great victory over the Warriors one game later. Caleb Hammonds disappeared this game, although Isaac St. John (21 points) and David Fabrizio (20 points 11 assists) picked up the slack. Warriors C Dominic Ellis scored 29 in the losing effort.

Nets 104, Clippers 92
When it rains it pours. One game away from beating the Warriors, we lose to the Nets. Hammonds essentially had his typical game, including 10 of 11 from the stripe, but no other Clippers bothered to show up. Nets PG Tyson Rice, a backup Clipper last season, is quickly becoming a star at 29 as he gets 27 points 9 rebounds 8 assists on the Clips. SG Jerry Maggette added 28 as well.

Record after the Week: 15-15

NBA Player of the Week
Timberwolves SF Alan Whitney grabs the award for the 11th time in his career. He average 31 ppg this week, although his team struggled to a 1-4 record.

RonnieDobbs · 05-06-2003, 09:04 PM

Monthly Review

Eastern Conference Playoff Standings

*Toronto Raptors 19-9 .679 GB -
*New Jersey Nets 16-12 .571 GB 3.0
*New Orleans Hornets 16-8 .667 GB 1.0
*Cleveland Cavaliers 13-10 .565 GB 3.5
*Washington Wizards 15 13 .536 GB 4.0
*Philadelphia 76ers 12-12 .500 GB 5.0
*Milwaukee Bucks 12-12 .500 GB 5.0
*Chicago Bulls 13-15 .464 GB 6.0
Boston Celtics 10-14 .417 GB 7.0
Orlando Magic 14-19 .424 GB 7.5
Detroit Pistons 9-15 .375 GB 8.0
New York Knicks 11-18 .379 GB 8.5
Atlanta Hawks 10-17 .370 GB 8.5
Miami Heat 8-20 .286 GB11.0
Indiana Pacers 5-18 .217 GB 11.5

Well, maybe I'm not the best judge of which teams are going to be good here. The Nets, while in a weak division, are a big surprise to me and obviously a surprise to my team when they thromped us. Things haven't changed drastically since last month, so perhaps this is the natural order of things.

Western Conference Playoff Standings

*Utah Jazz 19-9 .679 GB -
*Golden State Warriors18-8 .692 GB 0.0
*Phoenix Suns18-8 .692 GB 0.0
*Los Angeles Lakers17-8 .680 GB 0.5
*San Antonio Spurs22-14 .611GB 1.0
*Memphis Grizzlies15-12 .556 GB 3.5
*Los Angeles Clippers 15-15 .500 GB 5.0
*Houston Rockets12-12 .500GB 5.0
Sacramento Kings13-13 .500 GB 5.0
Portland Trailblazers 13-13 .500 GB 5.0
Dallas Mavericks 15-15 .500 GB 5.0
Minnesota Timberwolves 13-18 .419 GB 7.5
Seattle Sonics 11-19 .368 GB 9.0
Denver Nuggets 19-7 .346 GB9.0

Man, what a tough conference. Note that we are currently in a five-way tie for the last two playoff spots. It's only going to get tougher from here on out as well, as we still see the teams at the top many more times.

League Leaders

Scoring
1 Alan Whitney SF Timberwolves 30.5
2 Nick Stockton PG Suns 28.8
3 Jordan Malone PG Jazz 27.3
4 Tyson Rice PG Nets 26.4
5 Eric Macauley PG Cavaliers 25.6
6 Jerod Brady C Magic 25.5
7 Jessie Mann SG Cavaliers 25.3
8 Tim Langhi SG Pistons 24.8
9 Phillip Yong SF Rockets 24.0
10 Trenton Perkins SF Hornets 24.0

Rebounding
1 Alfonso Posey PF Mavericks 13.5
2 Ivan Longley C Spurs 13.0
3 Caleb Coleman PF Cavaliers 12.9
4 Marvin Williamson PF Bulls 12.9
5 Isidoro Peeler C Hornets 12.5
6 Renato Boykins C Kings 12.5
7 Devon Outlaw C Raptors 12.4
8 Carlos Boykins PF Wizards 12.2
9 Manuel Lapchick C Pistons 12.2
10 Drew Hepbron C Rockets 11.9

Assists
1 Jesus Roberson PG Magic 9.5
2 Aaron Benjamin PG Bulls 9.5
3 Jordan Malone PG Jazz 9.3
4 Corey Shireman PG Celtics 9.2
5 Nick Stockton PG Suns 9.0
6 Jake Barkley PG Timberwolves 8.5
7 Dustin Olsen PG Grizzlies 8.4
8 Jay Cheaney PG Raptors 7.9
9 Courtney Abbott PG Hawks 7.9
10 Donnell Rubini PG Mavericks 7.8

Other Clippers
Isaac St John is 9th with 1.9 steals per game.
Kenyon Haskins is 10th with a .503 field goal percentage.
Caleb Hammonds is 3rd with 8.4 free throw attempts per game.
Kenyon Haskins leads the league in 3 point percentage with .583.
David Fabrizio is 3rd in turnovers per game with 3.5.

Major Injuries
Cavs rookie SF Cody Lewis will miss the rest of the season with a ruptured achilles. It is possible but unlikely that he would be back for the playoffs.

Transactions
No major transactions.

NBA Player of the Month
Spurs C Ivan Longley wins the award this month. He is currently averaging 16.5 points per game and 13.7 rebounds per game. I don't think he really is deserving of this award, whereas Nets PG Tyson Rice really had an unbelievably solid month. He went from a 5 ppg backup to scoring 26 ppg while leading a bad team to a good record.

NBA Rookie of the Month
Los Angeles Clippers PG David Fabrizio takes the award this month, and I think he deserves it. He had that 38 point outburst against the Suns and has overall shown signs of being a quality point guard for many years in this league.

Coffee Warlord · 05-06-2003, 09:08 PM

This is really the first I even knew of the FBB game.

Worth the 20 bucks? Play well? Blah blah blah?

RonnieDobbs · 05-06-2003, 09:15 PM

L.A. Clippers Leaders

PF Caleb Hammonds - 21.3 ppg, 10.8 rpg, 2.9 apg

The unquestioned leader of this team. He's also the most consistent, and shows a great ability to get to the line and get other teams' players in foul trouble. Missed a couple of games, but I think will get better as the season goes on.

SF Isaac St. John - 14.1 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 1.9 spg

A good role player, St. John can occasionally score into the 20s when needed. I hope to have a better second option in the future, but for now he will do. He also plays great defense.

PG David Fabrizio - 12.3 ppg, 6.8 apg, 1.6 spg

He has done pretty much all I could hope for upon promotion to the starting lineup. His flashes of brilliance are great, but he's got to become consistent and stop turning the ball over. He'll have patches of terrible play where he hands the ball to the other team a few times in any quarter.

C Zack Horry - 10.6 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 1.1 bpg

He's a role player, and he's filling that role perfectly. He provides tough defense, can dominate on the boards, and is a capable scoring threat. I like Zack a lot, and unless we can find a star C somewhere he's my long-term plan.

C Nate Krauss - 8.1 ppg, 4.9 rpg

Nate's done a good job subbing for Zack and Caleb.

SG Kenyon Haskins - 6.9 ppg

Haskins is hurting from my inside game, which neglects his only skill - his outside shot. I may look to switch things up and start Cleaves instead.

SG Alejandro Cleaves - 5.7 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 2.4 ppg

Alejandro has done well in limited time. He may be an upgrade over Haskins, but I'm not expecting much. I'll give Haskins a little more time.

PF Mark Baker - 5.5 ppg, 3.1 rpg

Mark is entirely adequate as a backup PF/SF.

The rest of the Clippers were not common enough contributors for me to write about (essentially garbage time guys).

RonnieDobbs · 05-06-2003, 09:20 PM

CW, my basic feelings on the game:

I generally like it a lot. It's got enough depth for me, and I really have no problem "making up depth" when I find it to be a little lacking. However, I think for a lot of people here they may be disappointed in the depth when compared to OOTP or CM. I think it's more in line with FOF2001 (don't have FOF4) in terms of depth.

The guys at the OOTP boards would have a field day with this, as the AI can sometimes be suspect. Great players sit on the bench, no. 1 overall picks see 2 minutes a game. Like the Nets PG Tyson Rice in my game. Last season, he played 6.9 minutes a game for me, now is averaging 26.4 ppg for the Nets. It wouldn't happen in the NBA.

However, the bottom line for me is fun. And I've had fun with this the whole time I've had it, but especially with this diary. Also, something I don't know much about, the online league stuff is apparently quite good. Plus, if you have Coaching a Dynasty, you can import college draft files. Not sure how this would translate to TDCB, although I imagine they don't jive.

MrBug708 · 05-07-2003, 01:07 AM

Its a good program, I've always liked it as well

RPI-Fan · 05-07-2003, 09:23 PM

I'm a big fan - I even did a dynasty (Sacramento Emperors!), a ways back.

RonnieDobbs · 05-08-2003, 04:59 PM

Week 9

Lakers @ Clippers

1st Quarter - Clippers 30, Lakers 26
A good offensive quarter from both teams, but 3 Clippers and 2 Lakers picked up 2 fouls each in the first quarter. Caleb Hammonds has 9 points and Kenyon Haskins has 8 with two 3-pointers. The Lakers have had a very balanced effort, led by SG Heydan Sedran with 7.

At the Half - Clippers 50, Lakers 45
Both teams went ice-cold halfway through the second quarter, and barely scored for six minutes. The Clippers were led by Caleb Hammonds with 17 points 5 boards and 3 assists. David Fabrizio has 11 points and 5 assists, and only 3 turnovers (which is an improvement, I guess). For the Lakers, Sedran has 13 at the half.

3rd Quarter - Clippers 68, Lakers 68
A pretty ugly quarter for us which saw our free throw percentage, a usual strength, drop dramatically. Hammonds continued to play well with 21 and 8 boards, and Fabrizio has 14 points and 6 assists. The Lakers outside shooters continue to do well, with Sedran, PG Swift, and SF Kukoc all in double figures.

Final - Clippers 91, Lakers 84
We get one back on the Lakers to go to 1-1 for the season. A good game where we held on at the end. The gane was actually only a one point game with a minute left, and we took them to town.

Clippers Leaders
PF Hammonds 28 points, 14 rebounds
PG Fabrizio 18 points, 6 assists

Lakers Leaders
SG Sedran 24 points
PG Swift 15 points, 6 assists

Rest of Week
Kings 91, Clippers 80
Caleb Hammonds disappeared this game, and shot under 20%. That makes it tough to win. St. John came through with 21, but that's not nearly enough. Kings C Renato Boykins had 20 and 14 boards, and PF Quincy Morgenweck had 20 and 12 rebounds.

Clippers 108, Pistons 96
David Fabrizio has another big game, scoring 27 and adding 9 assists. Most of those were to Hammonds, who put up 30 points and 16 rebounds. The Pistons were led by C Trenton Martin with 17 points and 6 rebounds.

Trailblazers 101, Clippers 85
We never led in this one. Hammonds led the way with 22 and 7 assists, but only 2 rebounds as we got killed on the boards. Fabrizio had 15 points and 10 assists. Blazers C Jerry Carr had 22 points 15 rebounds 7 assists, and PG Stephen Fischer scored a season-high 23.

Record After the Week: 17-17

We're playing very mediocre ball right now. We'll have good games, but our consistency is way too low. I wish Fabrizio would stop turning the ball over and become a good number 2 option, but I don't know if he's got it in him right now.

NBA Player of the Week
Knicks SG Phillip Rayburn is this week's winner. He averaged 22 ppg this week, and is shooting 45% from three point land this season.

RonnieDobbs · 05-13-2003, 12:02 PM

Week 10

Forgot to mention this in the last post, but Isaac St. John will miss this week with a broken finger.

Sonics @ Clippers

1st Quarter - Clippers 21, Sonics 17
Ugly first quarter, with both Hammonds and Horry, as well as two Sonics, picking up 2 fouls. Luckily we go 11-11 from the line, and hench our lead. C Zack Horry got 5 points and 4 rebounds before getting into foul trouble. The Sonics are led by SF Liebman, giving them 7 points from the bench.

At the Half - Clippers 50, Sonics 41
A good quarter where we draw a ton of fouls, and 4 Sonics have 3 fouls at the half. I really like this offensive switch I made, as it just wears teams down. Hammonds has 12 points and 6 boards, including 8 for 8 from the line. PF Mark Baker, starting for St. John, has 7 points and 5 boards. SF Liebman has put in 10 points off the bench for the Sonics.

3rd Quarter - Clippers 72, Sonics 72
A 13-3 run at the start puts the Sonics ahead. The Sonics were just hitting everything this quarter en route to putting up 31 points. Sonics PG Thurmond now has 15 points and 6 assists. For the Clippers, Caleb Hammonds had a big quarter and now has 22 points 8 boards. Fabrizio has 15 points 4 assists 3 steals.

Final - Sonics 99, Clippers 90
Ugh, what a terrible fourth quarter for us. The Sonics continued shooting hot, while Hammonds was throwing up bricks left and right.

Clippers Leaders
PF Hammonds - 25 points 11 rebounds
PF Baker - 16 points 9 rebounds

Sonics Leaders
C Daly - 19 points, 6 boards, 4 blocks PLAYER OF THE GAME
SF Tarlac - 17 points, 5 rebounds

Rest of the Week
Clippers 86, Timberwolves 84
PF Hammonds shot the ball 29 times, and made 10 for 24 points. The Clippers were down by 12 to start the fourth, so this was a good comeback. We also "held" T-wolves SF Whitney to 26 points.

Grizzlies 111, Clippers 95
Caleb Hammonds disappeared this game, and Fabrizio stepped up with 27 points, but it wasn't nearly enough. The Grizzlies brought a very balanced attack, led by PF Chuck McKie's 19 points and 12 rebounds.

Record After the Week: 18-19

NBA Player of the Week
Grizzlies PG Dustin Olsen is this week's winner. He put up 17 points and got 9 assists against the Clippers. So far this season, he has 22.4 ppg 8.4 apg. This is his first time winning the award.

RonnieDobbs · 05-13-2003, 05:54 PM

Week 11

Clippers @ Wizards

1st Quarter - Clippers 24, Wizards 23
I'm surprised we're doing as well as we are, considering we got destroying on the rebounding this quarter. They had so many second shots, even a handful of third and fourth shots. Hammonds was hot, netting 11 while Wizards SG Hahn Fuller put up 7.

At the Half - Clippers 50, Wizards 46
Pretty much a continuation of the first quarter. We're shooting very well, but they're getting many more shots due to offensive rebounds and Clippers' turnovers. Hammonds has 14 and Fabrizio has 7 with 4 assists. Hahn Fuller now has 13 to lead the Wizards.

3rd Quarter - Wizards 68, Clippers 64
Terrible quarter where we can't even buy a bucket. Hammonds leads with 22 and 6 boards, but also has 5 turnovers. Isaac St. John had a strong 3rd Quarter, ending up with 10 points 4 rebounds 4 assists. Wizards C Xavier Cronin has 11 points and 8 rebounds.

Final - Wizards 93, Clippers 86
We just ran out of steam here. We had them within 3 with 4 minutes left, but then let it slip away. We're certainly losing a lot more than were winning now, and the playoffs are looking to be a lot less certain.

Clippers Leaders
PF Hammonds - 37 points, 9 rebounds
PG Fabrizio - 6 points, 7 rebounds, 10 assists

Wizards Leaders
SG Fuller - 19 points
C Cronin - 12 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists PLAYER OF THE GAME

Rest of the Week
Hornets 99, Clippers 97
We actually played really well this game, just short of well enough. SF St. John led with 26 points and Hammonds got 18 while shooting well. PF Samuel Bing of the Hornets got 16 points and 11 rebounds to lead the balanced Hornets attack.

Timberwolves 76, Clippers 71
I'm glad I didn't have tickets to this one. Isaac St. John got 19, while Hammonds added 17 and 18 rebounds. The leader for the Timberwolves, of course, was SF Alan Whitney who scored 31.

Clippers 98, Timberwolves 94
We return the favor to the T-wolves at their place. Hammonds had 21 points and Horry added 16 and 9 rebounds. Whitney disappeared for the T-wolves, who were instead led by SG Brandon Garrett's 17 points.

Record After the Week: 19-22

NBA Player of the Week
Rockets C Drew Hepbron is this weeks' PoW Award winner. The defensive threat played well in all 5 games this week, getting 4 double doubles and menacing the paint for the Rockets' opponents.

RonnieDobbs · 05-13-2003, 06:20 PM

Week 12

Clippers @ Lakers

1st Quarter - Clippers 25, Lakers 19
This was the quarter of Caleb Hammonds, as he got 13 points and 6 rebounds. Isaac St. John played tough defense and came up with 3 steals and 6 points. The Lakers outside shooters were hot for the first half of the quarter, and are led by SF Cole Kukoc with 7 points and 4 boards.

At the Half - Clippers 41, Lakers 35
Atrocious shooting from both teams this quarter. Hammonds has 18 and 11 boards, while St. John is now at 11 points 6 rebounds. For the Lakers, Swift, Sedran, and Kukoc, their starting shooters, all have 8 points.

3rd Quarter - Lakers 57, Clippers 56
Eeeeeeeew. Man, this Clipper team is really starting to stink it up. At the half, we're shooting 38 percent. Luckily, the Lakers are shooting even worse. Hammonds has 22 points and 12 rebounds, while PG Swift leads the Lakers with 14. Neither team is getting many assists, though, as a total of 20 have been made so far this game.

Final - Lakers 80, Clippers 71
Once again, the Clippers just run out of gas before the game is over. Today's game was an offensive nightmare. Bricks, turnovers, and terrible defense were the story of the fourth.

Clippers Leaders
PF Hammonds - 28 points 16 rebounds
SF St. John - 16 points

Lakers Leaders
PG Swift - 19 points
SG Sedran - 18 points

Rest of the Week
Warriors 103, Clippers 96
Probably PG David Fabrizio's best complete game yet, with 24 points and 14 assists. Caleb Hammonds added 24 and 10 boards. Warriors PF Malik Douglas had 24 points 19 rebounds, SG Ernest Meanwell added 23.

Clippers 124, Pacers 101
An increasingly rare game where pretty much everything seems to go right. Hammonds put up 35 and 10, while Fabrizio scored 22 for his second straight good game. C Nate Kraus came off the bench for 19. The Pacers were led by SF Nick Kim's 24 points.

Hornets 106, Clippers 99
We go into the All-Star Break on a sour note. Hammonds muscling up 38 points and grabbing 14 rebounds wasn't enough to stop the Hornets, led by SF Trenton Perkins's 40 points.

Record After the Week: 20-25

NBA Player of the Week
For the second time this year, Los Angeles Clippers PF Caleb Hammonds is named the winner. He averaged over 31 points and 12.5 boards per game this week.

RonnieDobbs · 05-13-2003, 06:53 PM

Monthly Review

Eastern Conference Playoff Standings

*New Orleans Hornets 25-12 .676 GB -
*Washintgon Wizards23-17 .575 GB 3.5
*Toronto Raptors 25-14 .641 GB 1.0
*Chicago Bulls25-18 .581 GB 3.0
*Cleveland Cavaliers20-16 .556 GB 4.5
*New Jersey Nets 20-20 .500 GB 6.5
*Philadelphia 76ers 16-18 .471 GB 7.5
*Boston Celtics 17-19 .472 GB 7.5
Orlando Magic 20-24 .455 GB 8.5
Milwaukee Bucks 16-23 .410 GB 10.0
New York Knicks 17-26 .395 GB 11.0
Atlanta Hawks 15-24 .385 GB 11.0
Miami Heat 15-27 .357 GB 12.5
Indiana Pacers 10-24 .294 GB13.5
Detroit Pistons 12-27 .308 GB 14.0

This month, it's the Washington Wizards that I'm surprised about. My L.A. Clippers was one of the teams they ran through this month. The Bulls and Magic have been playing better recently, and could make good 2nd half pushes.

Western Conference Playoff Standings

*Phoenix Suns 28-10 .737 GB -
*Utah Jazz 27-13 .675 GB 2.0
*Golden State Warriors 27-14 .659 GB 2.5
*San Antonio Spurs 31-18 .633 GB 2.5
*Sacramento Kings 23-17 .575 GB 6.0
*Los Angeles Lakers 21-18 .538 GB 7.5
*Memphis Grizzlies 22-21 .512 GB 8.5
*Dallas Mavericks 22-21 .512 GB 8.5
Houston Rockets 19-22 .463 GB 10.5
Portland Trailblazers 18-21 .462 GB 10.5
Los Angeles Clippers 20-25 .444 GB 11.5
Seattle Sonics 19-25 .432 GB 12.0
Minnesota Timberwolves 18-27 .400 GB 13.5
Denver Nuggets 14-24 .368 GB 14.0

The Clippers are falling my friends. 3 games out of the playoffs at the halfway point. It's still pretty much anyone's season, although the Suns, Jazz, and Warriors are the obvious cream of the crop here.

League Leaders

Scoring
1 Alan Whitney SF Timberwolves 29.4
2 Nick Stockton PG Suns 29.1
3 Jordan Malone PG Jazz 26.0
4 Tyson Rice PG Nets 25.7
5 Jerod Brady C Magic 25.3
6 Micah Bullard SF Bulls 25.0
7 Jessie Mann SG Cavaliers 24.5
8 Phillip Yong SF Rockets 24.1
9 Eric Macauley PG Cavaliers 24.0
10 Trenton Perkins SF Hornets 23.9

Rebounding
1 Ivan Longley C Spurs 13.3
2 Alfonso Posey PF Mavericks 13.3
3 Marvin Williamson PF Bulls 13.1
4 Devon Outlaw C Raptors 12.5
5 Caleb Coleman PF Cavaliers 12.5
6 Renato Boykins C Kings 12.2
7 Carlos Boykins PF Wizards 12.0
8 Drew Hepbron C Rockets 12.0
9 Malik Douglas PF Warriors 11.9
10 Manuel Lapchick C Pistons 11.6

Assists
1 Jesus Roberson PG Magic 9.7
2 Nick Stockton PG Suns 9.0
3 Aaron Benjamin PG Bulls 8.8
4 Corey Shireman PG Celtics 8.8
5 Jordan Malone PG Jazz 8.6
6 Jake Barkley PG Timberwolves 8.5
7 Dustin Olsen PG Grizzlies 8.2
8 Courtney Abbott PG Hawks 7.9
9 Jim Oneal PG Warriors 7.9
10 Jay Cheaney PG Raptors 7.7

Other Clippers
Isaac St John is 9th with 2.0 steals per game.
Caleb Hammonds is 3rd with 7.8 free throw attempts per game.
Kenyon Haskins leads the league in 3 point percentage with .589.
David Fabrizio is 2nd in turnovers per game with 3.7.
Zack Horry is 5th in Fouls-per-game with 3.1.

Major Injuries
Cavs rookie SF Cody Lewis will miss the rest of the season with a ruptured achilles.

Transactions
Jazz Trade SG Damian Perdue to the Grizzlies for C Alejandro Montana. A trade of no real consequence, although both are very young.

NBA Player of the Month
This month's winner is Bulls PG Aaron Benjamin, as he led the team to a great month. This is the first time Benjamin has ever won this award. He is averagine 15.2 ppg and 8.8 apg.

NBA Rookie of the Month
Los Angeles Clippers PG David Fabrizio takes the award for the second consecutive month. As his coach, I can vouch for his performance. He's pretty much my second best scoring threat, and to get someone like that as a rookie out of the 18th pick is great. He's averaging 13.9 ppg 6.9 apg.

RonnieDobbs · 05-13-2003, 06:56 PM

Clippers Team Stats

I'm going to alternate this with individual stats as neither change too much over the course of one month.

Points Per Game: 91.0 (28th)
Points Allowed Per Game: 95.0 (9th)
Rebounds Per Game: 47.6 (29th)
Assists Per Game: 21.8 (25th)
Blocks Per Game: 5.2 (29th)
Steals Per Game: 9.0 (11th)
Turnovers Per Game: 14.2 (20th)
Field Goal %: .434 (17th)

RonnieDobbs · 05-14-2003, 01:25 AM

All-Star Weekend!!!

Rookie All-Star Game

Sophomores 109, Rookies 105

Rookies
Brian Bibby C Wizards
Mason Ratliff SF Celtics
David Fabrizio PG Clippers
Maxwell Parker SF Nets
Joshua Baker PF Kings
Cameron Kelly PG Jazz
Isaac Quigley PF Lakers
Joseph Rupp SG Nets
Eddie Walton C Clippers
Antonio Mourning SG Hornets

Sophomores

Julio Cone PF Cavaliers
Jerod Brady C Magic
Jordan Schenk SF Jazz
Jonathon Crum SF Raptors
Edwin Potapenko PG Kings Rookie-Sophomore Game MVP
Kody Kemp PF Trailblazers
Gary Patterson SG
Jalen Schwartz C Raptors
Alexander Aridge SG Heat
Donnell Rubini PG Mavericks

3-Point Shootout

First Round
Alan Whitney SF Timberwolves
Nick Stockton PG Suns
Earnest Meanwell SG Warriors
Jordon Malone PG Jazz
Eric Macualey PG Cavaliers
Micah Bullard SF Bulls
Julio Church SG Spurs
Alexis Crotty SG Grizzlies

Round Two
Macualey
Stockton
Malone
Whitney

Final
Macauley - 11
Stockton - 9

Slam Dunk Contest
Won by Daniel Ilgauskus, PF of the Spurs.

RonnieDobbs · 05-14-2003, 01:49 AM

THE 2000 NBA ALL-STAR GAME

Western Conferences All-Stars

Starters
C Jerry Carr, Trailblazers
The 29 year old Carr is attending his second All-Star game, having previously been selected in 1998. He is currently averaging a career high 17.9 ppg, along with 10.1 rebounds and 3.5 blocks. He is also shooting the best he has in his career by far, although still only at .454.

PF Malik Douglas, Warriors
Malik has been named two his second straight All-Star game at the age of 31. Douglas is part of the brusing frontcourt of the Warriors, averaging 18 points a game, 11.8 boards and 3.4 blocks. He too has raised his shooting this season a noticably amount to .475.

SF Alan Whitney, Timberwolves
5-Time All-Star starter Alan Whitney is showing few signs of slowing down, except for the team he is trying to drag through the season. He's doing it all this season, scoring 29.4 a game and getting a great number of rebounds, assists, and steals. Were he on a winning team people would be calling him an MVP candidate, but unfortunetly the T-wolves are headed to the lottery.

SG Andre Dalessio, Sonics
Delessio will be starting in his first ever All-Star appearance at 26. A former Sixth Man of the Year, he's starting with the Sonics and averaging a career-best 17.1 ppg. He has also shown the ability to rebound well for a 2-guard. He has, though, shown himself this season to be kind of lazy on the defensive end.

PG Nick Stockton, Suns
The 27 year old Stockton is enjoying his fourth straight All-Star appearence, and could be well on his way to his third straight MVP award. He is putting up 29.1 ppg, 9.0 apg, and 5.5 rpg. And he's doing this all in the final year of his contract. Stockton will be a huge free agent this offseason, and has pushed all contract talk until after the season. His eyes are set on the ring.

Bench
C Dominic Ellis, Warriors
Ellis joins teammate Douglas on the 2000 All-Star team. This 23 year old young turk has been taking the Western Conference by storm in his sophomore year, and gets his first All-Star nod in return. He's averaging 20.4 ppg and 9.4 rpg.

PF Caleb Hammonds, Clippers
The way he's carried this team, he certainly deserves it. Hammonds, 27, hasn't been to the All-Star game since 1996, but his 22.3 ppg and 10.9 rpg is enough to make the cut this year.

SF Philip Yong, Rockets
At 25 Yong is headed to his second straight All-Star Game. He has truly had a break-out season this year, catapulting himsef into the upper echelon of players in the NBA. He is scoring 24.1 ppg, and at 6'9" has the versatility and defensive acumen to shut down the best scorer on the other team, no matter what position.

SG Heyden Sedran, Lakers
The 23 year old former second round pick is in his first All-Star Game in his first season of many with the Lakers. He has a sweet outside shot, and is scoring a career high 20 ppg this season.

PG Jordan Malone, Jazz
Of course Malone is the other point guard. The 28 year old Malone is having his most prolific season yet, scoring 26 ppg and adding 8.6 apg.

Eastern Conference All-Stars

Starters
C Jerod Brody, Magic
Two seasons, two times starting in the All-Star Game for Brody. He's getting better by the week it seems, and this season he is leading a young Magic team into a fight to get into the playoffs. His numbers this season include 25.3 ppg and 11.6 rebounds per game, and he will probably increase these as the season goes on. He's an incredible talent.

PF Carlos Boykins, Wizards
The 32 year old veteran Boykins, signed for the mid-level exception this offseason by the Wizards, is playing in his third All-Star Game. 18.8 ppg and 12.0 rpg are his numbers, but what makes him special is that his veteran leadership and will to win are pushing a less than talented Wizards team towards the playoffs, and possibly even a division crown.

SF Trenton Perkins, Hornets
The 11-year vet is playing in now a 2-time All-Star. He's a great scorer, at 23.9 ppg, and a good rebounder for his position, with 6.8 rpg. He's an extremely versatile player as he can score from inside and out, can dish the ball and also play defense. He's also a minute eater, averaging 36 mpg this season.

SG Jessie Mann, Cavaliers
The 33 year old Texas A&M graduate is playing great in his veteran days. He's averaging 24.5 points and 7.1 rebounds and is the glue that holds the Cavaliers together. On paper, they don't look like much, but in a weak East they're putting together wins, and may end up in the post season once again this year.

PG Aaron Benjamin, Bulls
It's a bunch of firsts for the 30 year old veteran, as he got his first career PoM Award this month and now will appear in his first All-Star Game. Benjamin has been the quarterback for a team that has underachieved a bit this season, but appears to have gotten things together recently and is poised to get a cushy seed for the postseason. His stats aren't unbelievable: 15.2 ppg, 8.8 apg, 5.5 rpg. However, his heart and leadership are what got him into this starting spot in the All-Star Game.

The Bench
C Devon Outlaw, Raptors
Former Defensive Player of the Year Outlaw is invited to his second straight All-Star game. The man isn't much of a scoring threat, only getting 13.9 ppg this season. However, he also gets 12.5 rpg and 3.3 bpg and is a huge defensive force in the paint. The man has three career triples doubles, but never has he gotten more that 7 assists. That's blocking ability.

PF Samuel Bing, Hornets
First time honoree Bing is, at 29, a steady double double man. The Hornets have got to be happy, as they have him for 3 more years for only 14.2 million dollars. This season, he's averaging 15.9 ppg 10.3 rpg.

SF Micah Bullard, Bulls
Bullard gets his fourth All-Star nod in five seasons, leading a potent Bulls offense with 25 ppg. Surprisingly for such a consistenly excellent players, he has never won a PoW Award.

SG Devon Marion, 76ers
A somewhat surprising pick for his fourth straight All-Star Game, the league's conventional wisdom says that at 31 Marion is past his peak. His numbers are down this season, only getting 17.6 ppg and 4.5 apg, both career lows.

PG Tyson Rice, Nets
The feel-good story of this All-Star Game. This 29 year old struggled to find garbage time minutes with the Clippers the last three seasons, but apparently the Nets saw something in him that the previous ownership didn't; he's having a great season. He's getting 25.7 ppg and 7.1 apg. I think if he were doing that for us we wouldn't be worried about playoffs right now.

The Game
East 123 - West 114

MVP: PG Aaron Benjamin (23 points, 14 assists)

RonnieDobbs · 05-14-2003, 02:39 AM

Week 13

Nuggets @ Clippers

1st Quarter - Nuggets 25, Clippers 17
A great start to the second half, huh? We got killed on the glass this quarter, and managed to make only 35% of our shots. No one on the Clips deserves individual mention here. For the Nuggets, PF Grant Cardinal is off to a hot start, with 9 points and 4 rebounds.

At the Half - Nuggets 49, Clippers 38
We continue to shoot poorly and give the ball over too much. Recipes for disaster. At least Hammonds came on strong, and now has 15 points 4 rebounds at the half. PF Cardinal has 13 and SG Alfonso McGuire has 12 for the Nuggets.

3rd Quarter - Nuggets 64, Clippers 62
The crowd grew steadily louder throughout the third as the Clippers started making shots and creating turnovers. The Clippers leaders this quarter were Mark Baker, who how has 13 bench points, and Alejandro Cleaves who hit two big jumpers to end the quarter.

Final - Clippers 87, Nuggets 81
Hey, we didn't blow one in the fourth!!! We actually put together a good quarter, and got a good win against a crappy team. But we've got to start somewhere, right?

Clippers Leaders
PF Hammonds - 23 points, 10 rebounds
PF Baker - 15 points, 13 minutes
PG Fabrizio - 8 points, 10 boards, 8 assists

Nuggets Leaders
SG McGuire - 24 points, 10 rebounds PLAYER OF THE GAME
PF Cardinal - 23 points, 9 rebounds

Rest of the Week
Clippers 93, Jazz 91
A huge away win against one of the class of the West. Hammonds led with 31 points and 8 rebounds, while Fabrizio added 21 and 11 assists. PG Jordan Malone had 17 points and 14 assists in the losing effort.

Nuggets 96, Clippers 72
Fantastic way to end any optimism I was gathering about this season. Another piss-poor shooting game, led by Hammonds with 19 and Fabrizio with 18. SG Alfonso McGuire lit us up for 34. A blowout loss to a bad, bad team.

Clippers 103, Hawks 97
A good win, and a good little string of games here. Hammonds, of course, led the way with 28 and 10 boards, while Fabrizio notched 21 points. He's been scoring well since the All-Star break; I like it. SG Ian Panariello led the Hawks with 20, and C Hahn Abdur-Rahim added 19.

Record After the Week: 23-26

NBA Player of the Week
For the 2nd time this season and the 12th time in his career, Timberwolves SF Alan Whitney wins the Award. He had games of 32, 35, and 51 this week.

RonnieDobbs · 05-14-2003, 12:32 PM

Week 14

Bulls @ Clippers

Before this game, I decided to replace Kenyon Haskins in the starting lineup with Gary Patterson. Patterson, the 1999 no. 4 overall pick, has a good outside shot but not a whole lot more. I'm hoping maybe he can show me something and outplay Haskins.

1st Quarter - Clippers 31, Bulls 24
This was a great quarter for us, as we played well in just about every facet of the game. Caleb Hammonds put both their starting and backup PF in foul trouble en route to 11 points, 6 boards, and 4 assists in the first quarter. Kenyon Haskins responds to his benching with 8 points in 7 minutes off it. SF Micah Bullard leads the Bulls with 10.

At the Half - Clippers 49, Bulls 38
We've held the Bulls to 33% shooting thus far, but had a bad 2nd Quarter ourselves. Still, it's hard not to like beating a good team at the half. Hammonds leads with 15 and 9 rebounds. Fabrizio has only 4 points, has missed 7 shots, and has no assists. Micah Bullard still leads the Bulls, although he failed to score one of their 14 points in the 2nd Quarter, so he's stuck at 10.

3rd Quarter - Bulls 65, Clippers 62
The Bulls must have gotten a good talking to at the half, because they came out hot. An 11-2 run to start the quarter whittled the Clipper lead down to 2. We have an atrocious quarter, with 6 turnovers in the quarter and we only score 13 points. Ugly. Hammonds goes scoreless, but Fabrizio gets up to 11 ponits, with no assists still. Bullard leads for the Bulls with 12, while PG Aaron Benjamin has 10.

Final - Clippers 93, Bulls 91
A Nate Kraus left hook tied the game with 4 minutes left, and the ensuing foul shot gave the Clippers the lead. That lead was never lost as the Clippers play really tough down the stretch and get to the foul line a lot in the final three minutes.

Clippers Leaders
PF Hammonds - 29 points, 12 rebounds, 6 assists PLAYER OF THE GAME
PG Fabrizio - 15 points
C Horry - 10 points, 12 rebounds

Bulls Leaders
SF Bullard - 25 points, 10 rebounds
PF Williamson - 13 points, 10 rebounds

Rest of the Week
Sonics 102, Clippers 80
Pretty much your average Clippers loss. Hammonds put in 24 and 11, and St. John supported that with 14. Sonics C Chad Daly led a team that was without All-Star SG Dalessio with 24.

Clippers 100, Nuggets 95
Now that's more like it. We're good at beating up on the terrible teams. Hammonds scored 37 and grabbed 11 rebounds, while Fabrizio added 23 points and 8 assists. Grant Cardinal spearheaded the losing effort with 22 points and 11 rebounds.

Record After the Week: 25-27, 1 game out of playoffs

NBA Player of the Week
For the second time this season, Suns PG Nick Stockton is named the NBA's Player of the Week. He showed his ability to take over games, having games of 47 and 50 this week.

RonnieDobbs · 05-14-2003, 01:42 PM

Week 15

Clippers @ Suns

1st Quarter - Suns 29, Clippers 23
We actually did a pretty good job hanging with the best team in the league. Once again, our turnovers are killing us. Hammonds has six points and Fabrizio got 3 assists. For the Suns, PF Vincent Kennedy and SG Nicholas Bing have 8 points.

At the Half - Suns 57, Clippers 45
The second quarter saw the Suns start to pull away. We've given the ball away 12 times this half. That essentially gives us no chance. Caleb Hammonds has 11 points and Fabrizio has 8 with 5 assists. For the Suns, Bing has 13 points 6 assists, and Stockton has 12 points 3 assists.

3rd Quarter - Suns 79, Cliippers 73
A really good quarter that gives us a fighting shot in the fourth. Hammonds now has 16 points 7 rebounds 6 assists, and Fabrizio is at 12 points 8 assists. PF Kennedy now leads the Suns with 17 points and 11 rebounds.

Final - Suns 103, Clippers 96
Well, we never really had that fourth quarter push. We played them even down the stretch, and that wasn't enough.

Clippers Leaders
PF Hammonds - 23 points, 9 rebounds, 8 assists PLAYER OF THE GAME
SF St. John - 21 points, 9 assists
PG Fabrizio - 10 points, 12 assists

Suns Leaders
PG Stockton - 23 points
PF Kennedy - 17 points, 11 rebounds

Rest of the Week
Clippers 99, Sonics 84
Fabrizio, St. John, and Hammonds all score over 20 here, and Hammonds adds 17 rebounds. The Sonics are led by C Chad Daly's 15 points and 12 boards.

Record After the Week: 26-28, 1 game out of the playoffs

NBA Player of the Week
Hornets SG Kenyon Patterson wins the award for the second time in his veteran career. This week he averaged 27 ppg and is leading his team into the playoffs.

RonnieDobbs · 05-14-2003, 04:44 PM

Week 16

I revert to my old starting lineup and put Kenyon Haskins back in. Patterson just wasn't really getting involved in the offense, and Haskins can hit the clutch three when I need it.

Clippers @ Kings

1st Quarter - Clippers 29, Kings 22
We had the hot hand in the first quarter, shooting 57%. Hammonds had 11 points and 5 rebounds while Fabrizio added 4 points and 3 assists. The Kings had 11 fouls in the quarter, and are led by C Renato Boykins with 6.

At the Half - Clippers 59, Kings 50
Another big offensive quarter as we continue to shoot well for a change. Hammonds is the leader at the break with 17 and 7 boards. C Horry has 11 and 5, and Fabrizio has 8 points 6 assists. The Kings are having serious foul problems (3 with 3 at the half, many with 2) and thus most of their scoring has come off the bench.

3rd Quarter - Clippers 91, Kings 72
We continue to nail a ton of shots, and we go to the line a ton again. 3 Kings have 4 fouls at this point, two of them starters. Backup C Nate Kraus went down with an inury during the quarter. He dislocated is finger and will be out about a week. Hammonds now has 26 and 12, Zack Horry has 17 and 12, and Fabrizio has 12 assists while also getting 10 points. Kings SG Brennan McInnis has 18 points.

Final Clippers 121, Kings 100
A nice win where we finally start looking like a good team again. It had been a while. Granted, the Kings aren't that great, but so far I'm pleased with the Clippers since the All-Star Break.

Clippers Leaders
PF Hammonds - 34 points, 13 rebounds PLAYER OF THE GAME
PG Fabrizio - 20 points, 12 assists
C Horry - 19 points, 14 rebounds

Kings Leaders
SG McInnis - 23 points

Rest of the Week
Clippers 107, Cavaliers 91
Another good win over a playoff-caliber team. Hammonds goes for 34 and Fabrizio adds 17. SG Marques Malone of the Cavaliers puts up 24 in the loss.

Celtics 103, Clippers 72
Nothing like a blowout to a not-so-talented team to cut my confidence short. The defensive talents of the Celtics shut down Caleb Hammonds, who was also plagued by foul trouble. He finished with 13 points. The Celtics were led by 3rd year C Walter Bowen with 29.

Hawks 106, Clippers 101
Hammonds has 30 and Fabrizio gets 16 and 12 assists, but we fail to play much defense and lose. Hawks PF Justin Lambert leads their balanced attack with 17 points 8 rebounds.

Record After the Week: 28-30, .5 games out of playoffs

NBA Player of the Week
Nick Stockton, PG of the Suns, wins for the third time this season. He averaged 29.7 ppg and 9.4 apg this week. Truly a star player.

RonnieDobbs · 05-14-2003, 05:14 PM

Monthly Review

Eastern Conference Playoff Standings

*New Orleans Hornets 36-17 .679 GB -
*Washintgon Wizards 28-23 .549 GB 7.0
*Toronto Raptors 31-20 .608 GB 4.0
*Chicago Bulls 32-23 .582 GB 5.0
*Cleveland Cavaliers26-22 .542 GB 7.5
*New Jersey Nets 26-28 .481 GB 10.5
*Orlando Magic 25-28 .472 GB 11.0
*Philadelphia 76ers 22-26 .458 GB 11.5
Boston Celtics 23-27 .460 GB 11.5
New York Knicks 25-32 .439 GB 13.0
Milwaukee Bucks 22-33 .400 GB 15.0
Atlanta Hawks 19-31 .380 GB 15.5
Miami Heat 20-33 .377 GB 16.0
Detroit Pistons 20-34 .370 GB16.5
Indiana Pacers 17-35 .327 GB 18.5

The Magic, as expected, have begun to make a charge into the playoffs. The Hornets continue to be very strong, and look to further increase their lead next month en route to home court advantage in the playoffs.

Western Conference Playoff Standings

*Phoenix Suns 37-17 .685 GB -
*Utah Jazz 35-17 .673 GB 1.0
*Golden State Warriors 37-21 .638 GB 2.0
*San Antonio Spurs 36-24 .600 GB 4.0
*Sacramento Kings 31-23 .574 GB 6.0
*Dallas Mavericks 29-26 .527 GB 8.5
*Los Angeles Lakers 29-27 .518 GB 9.0
*Houston Rockets 26-27 .491 GB 10.5
Memphis Grizzlies 25-27 .481 GB 11.0
Los Angeles Clippers 28-30 .483 GB 11.0
Portland Trailblazers25-28 .472 GB 11.5
Seattle Sonics 24-32 .429 GB 14.0
Minnesota Timberwolves 26-37 .413 GB 15.5
Denver Nuggets 22-34 .393 GB 16.0

The West is still pretty much anyone's game, with a lot of competition at the top and at the bottom of the playoff ladder. The Rockets are a hot team, while the Lakers appear to be falling off a bit.

League Leaders

Scoring
1 Alan Whitney SF Timberwolves 30.4
2 Nick Stockton PG Suns 29.6
3 Tyson Rice PG Nets 26.1
4 Jordan Malone PG Jazz 25.8
5 Micah Bullard SF Bulls 25.8
6 Jessie Mann SG Cavaliers 25.0
7 Jerod Brady C Magic 24.4
8 Eric Macauley PG Cavaliers 24.0
9 Phillip Yong SF Rockets 23.4
10 Caleb Hammonds PF Clippers 23.3

Rebounding
1 Alfonso Posey PF Mavericks 13.3
2 Ivan Longley C Spurs 13.1
3 Marvin Williamson PF Bulls 12.9
4 Devon Outlaw C Raptors 12.6
5 Carlos Boykins PF Wizards 12.1
6 Malik Douglas C Warriors 12.1
7 Renato Boykins C Kings 12.0
8 Caleb Coleman PF Cavaliers 11.7
9 Isidoro Peeler C Hornets 11.6
10 Drew Hepbron C Rockets 11.5

Assists
1 Jesus Roberson PG Magic 9.6
2 Aaron Benjamin PG Bulls 8.8
3 Corey Shireman PG Celtics 8.7
4 Jordan Malone PG Jazz 8.6
5 Nick Stockton PG Suns 8.6
6 Jake Barkley PG Timberwolves 8.2
7 Courtney Abbott PG Hawks 8.0
8 Jay Cheaney PG Raptors 7.8
9 Dustin Olsen PG Grizzlies 7.7
10 Jim Oneal PG Warriors 7.7

Other Clippers
Caleb Hammonds is 2nd with 7.8 free throw attempts per game.
Kenyon Haskins leads the league in 3 point percentage with .580.
David Fabrizio is 2nd in turnovers per game with 3.7.
Caleb Hammonds is 10th is turnovers per game with 3.1.
Zack Horry is 4th in Fouls-per-game with 3.1.

Major Injuries
Cavs rookie SF Cody Lewis will miss the rest of the season with a ruptured achilles.
Sonics C Chad Daly will miss the rest of the season with a broken skull.
Warriors C Dominic Ellis is out for two weeks with a torn abdominal muscle.

Transactions
None.

NBA Player of the Month
Timberwolves SF Alan Whitney wins the award for the third time in his career. So far this season, he is averaging 30.4 ppg 7.3 rpg 4.5 apg, but his team is destined for the lottery.

NBA Rookie of the Month
Los Angeles Clippers PG David Fabrizio takes the award for the third consecutive month. This month he really showed the ability to score well, increasing his scoring to 14.4 ppg and his passing to 7.2 apg. He may well be on the way to the Rookie of the Year Award.

RonnieDobbs · 05-14-2003, 05:27 PM

L.A. Clippers Leaders

PF Caleb Hammonds - 23.3 ppg, 11.0 rpg, 3.1 topg

Caleb has managed to even improve upon his previous efforts the past month. He's capable of taking a game over and scoring 35+ on any given night. I'm very glad to have him on my team.

SF Isaac St. John - 13.9 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 1.9 spg

Isaac has been a little more quiet this past month as Fabrizio has really solidified his role as the #2 scoring threat. He's still a great role player, plays great defense, and gives me what I want in a SF.

PG David Fabrizio - 14.4 ppg, 7.2 apg, 1.5 spg

Fabrizio has raised his game in the past two months. On Hammonds's off-nights, Fabrizio can function as the number one threat. He'll be my point guard for the next four seasons at least.

C Zack Horry - 9.9 ppg, 9.2 rpg

Horry's scoring has gone down, and I've noticed fewer big games from him. However, he's still an adequate C.

C Nate Krauss - 8.1 ppg, 5.3 rpg

He's doing his job as bench big man perfectly well.

SG Kenyon Haskins - 6.3 ppg

During the past two months he's been benched and then put back in the starting lineup. I'll probably look into getting a new SG this offseason, as Haskins should be scoring more even with my inside offensive bent.

SG Alejandro Cleaves - 4.8 ppg

I guess I should learn not too expect much from these SG. They can hit from outside, but don't really seem to be fitting into my offense.

PF Mark Baker - 5.8 ppg, 3.3 rpg

I've been noticing the play of Mark Baker a lot more recently, as he filled in well for an injured St. John and can provide a good spark off the bench.

PF Owen Drake - 4.3 ppg, 4.4 rpg

He's in the rotation, playing C-PF-SF. He does hit the boards very well, and is a good bench player.

SG Gary Patterson - 2.8 ppg, 1.4 apg

He's not see a whole lot of time, and when he was given more time he did nothing with it. A disappointing draft pick (#4 overall two years ago).

The rest of the Clippers were not common enough contributors for me to write about (essentially garbage time guys).

RonnieDobbs · 05-14-2003, 08:21 PM

Week 17

Clippers @ Trailblazers

1st Quarter - Clippers 26, Trailblazers 25
Both teams had a good quarter here. Caleb Hammonds left after four minutes with a slight injury but will return. Fabrizio leads with 8 points, and PF Owen Drake, subbing for Hammonds, has 6. C Jerry Carr leads the Trailblazers with 7 points and 6 rebounds.

At the Half - Trailblazers 55, Clippers 47
The Trailblazers ripped off a 14-2 run to start the quarter, and held that lead throughout. Turnovers, turnovers, turnovers as we have 9 at the half. Fabrizio is leading the team with 14 points and 4 assists. Carr now has 20 points 8 boards for the Blazers, as he had a huge second quarter.

3rd Quarter - Trailblazers 82, Clippers 71
We were kind of running in place here, as everytime the Blazers were hot we were hot but when they went ice-cold in the middle of the quarter we followed suit. Fabrizio has 25 points and 5 assists, and Owen Drake has 12 points 9 rebounds. Caleb Hammonds has only 14 points this game between injury and then foul trouble. He is 1-11 from the field. Blazers C Jerry Carr has 32 and 1998 #1 overall C Luis Schell has 17 in 15 minutes. This season, he's averaging 15.7 in 23.7 minutes. This man needs to be starting.

4th Quarter - Trailblazers 107, Clippers 89
We never really got started here in the fourth, and this quickly became a blow out. It's almost like my guys are lacking in stamina.

Clippers Leaders
PG Fabrizio - 26 points, 8 assists
PF Drake - 12 points, 10 rebounds

Trailblazers Leaders
C Carr - 34 points, 10 rebounds PLAYER OF THE GAME
C Schell - 24 points

Rest of the Week
Clippers 105, Bucks 89
Zack Horry goes for a career high 32 points here and grabs 9 rebounds, as we shoot over 50%. Isaac St. John netted 20 points as well. For the Bucks, C Gavin Storm led the way with 18 points 9 rebounds.

Record After the Week: 29-31, 1 game out of the playoffs

NBA Player of the Week
Jazz PG Jordan Malone wins the PoW Award for the third time this season. Malone had a very solid week, averaging about 30 points and 10 assists per game.

RonnieDobbs · 05-14-2003, 09:03 PM

Week 18

Isaac St. John hurt himself earlier in the week, and missed the majority of these games. He dislocated his finger, but will be back for next week.

Magic @ Clippers

1st Quarter - Magic 21, Clippers 20
Both teams are shooting terribly, what else is new. Fabrizio is the only one executing, he's got 7 points and 2 assists. Hammonds is ice cold again, going 1-5 this quarter. Magic SG Ricky Steitz is leading the way with 10 points.

At the Half - Magic 46, Clippers 42
Hammonds got a hot hand in the second half of the quarter, finishing with 14 points and 5 rebounds for the half. Fabrizio now has 11 points and 4 assists. Steitz now has 14 for the magic and C Jerod Brady has 8 and 5 rebounds.

3rd Quarter - Magic 65, Clippers 62
This has been a remarkably even game so far, as the Magic haven't been able to put us away at all. Hammonds has 18 points 7 boards, Horry has 13 points 7 boards, and Fabrizio now has 13 points and 8 assists. Jerod Brady had a big quarter, as he and Steitz both have 17 now.

Final - Magic 95, Clippers 92
We actually managed to take the lead in the middle of the quarter, but couldn't hold it and lost. A good game, but a win wouldn't been a lot nicer.

Clippers Leaders
PF Hammonds - 27 points, 8 rebounds PLAYER OF THE GAME
C Horry - 15 points, 11 rebounds
PG Fabrizio - 13 points, 8 assists

Magic Leaders
C Brady - 23 points, 11 rebounds
SG Steitz - 21 points
PF Malone - 16 points, 9 rebounds

Rest of the Week
Kings 103, Clippers 84
This was the game in which St. John was injured. Hammonds put up a solid 21 and 11 boards, but Fabrizio was completely missing this game. Kings SF Tim Mullin led his team with 19 points and 11 rebounds.

Cavaliers 115, Clippers 101
Cavs SG Jessie Mann had 6 three pointers en route to 29 to lead the Cavs. Hammonds tried to will the team to victory with 35 points, 11 rebounds, but it wasn't enough. Zack Horry had 20 and Fabrizio added 19 in the loss.

Clippers 104, Raptors 91
A good victory over a good team. Hammonds led the way with 22 and 11 boards, and Mark Baker scored 17 in lieu of Isaac St. John. PF Trenton Cann led the Raptors with 24 points and 11 rebounds.

Record After the Week: 30-34, 1.5 games out of the playoffs

NBA Player of the Week
Suns PG Nick Stockton wins for the fourth time this season, and the twelfth time in his career. He averaged 38 ppg this week, including a 57 point outburst against the Warriors which the Warriors won 144-142. That ties his career best and ties that same career best for 2nd most points in a game in the past 5 years. Timberwolves SF Alan Whitney holds the record with 64.

RonnieDobbs · 05-14-2003, 09:56 PM

Week 19

This will be a very telling stretch of games for us as we play at some of the better teams around the league.

Clippers @ Lakers

1st Quarter - Lakers 25, Clippers 24
We shoot terribly but are still in the middle of this thing. Fabrizio has 7 and Hammonds has 6 so far. Lakers SF Cole Kukoc has 8 and PG Omar Swift has 7.

At the Half - Lakers 51, Clippers 47
We're stratching and clawing with them, but I can't help but get the feeling that we're always on the verge of getting blow out here. Hammonds goes into the half with 9 points and 5 boards, and Owen Drake has supplied 8 bench point for us. Kukoc has 11 for the Lakers, and Swift has 9 points and 5 rebounds.

3rd Quarter - Lakers 79, Clippers 67
A 10-0 run by the Lakers starts off the 3rd, and we never get it back. We're shooting a less than respectable 41% from the field. Drake and Fabrizio each have 11 to "lead" the Clippers. SF LaDon James has 18 to lead the Lakers.

Final - Lakers 102, Clippers 97
We actually got to within 2 points twice, but couldn't break through. A tough loss that I think we could've won. A great fourth quarter effort by the guys, though.

Clippers Leaders
PG Fabrizio - 16 points, 5 assists
PF Hammonds - 15 points, 11 rebounds

Lakers Leaders
SF James - 20 points
PF Quigley - 19 points
SF Kukoc - 15 points

Rest of the Week

Suns 122, Clippers 102
Nick Stockton lit us up for 33 points and 11 assists. Fabrizio is quickly becoming my lone bright spot, as he hits for 26. St. John also adds 19 points.

Knicks 95, Clippers 91
Well, just after I type those nice words for Fabrizio, he goes and has a game where he has more turnovers (9) than points (7). Isaac St. John gets 18 and Hammonds adds 16 and 10 boards, but the balanced Knickerbocker attack led by PF Brennan Zimmerman's 20 points and 11 rebounds was too much for us today.

Spurs 107, Clippers 72
Oh god. We're nosediving our way down the standings quickly here. Hammonds has a decent game, scoring 19, but the Spurs combo of SG Julio Church (25 points, 11 rebounds) and PF Justin Lynch (24 points) blew us away.

Rockets 96, Clippers 77
Yikes. Well, there goes the season as we completely choke down the stretch. Hammonds scores 31 and grabs 11 rebounds, but no one else shows up to the game. SF Phillip Yong rips us for 35 points and 11 rebounds.

Record After the Week: 30-39, 5 games out of the playoffs

NBA Player of the Week
Utah PG Jordan Malone wins the PoW Award for the fourth time this season. He and Nick Stockton have been trading this off for four weeks now. He had games of 47 and 43 this week.

RonnieDobbs · 05-14-2003, 10:21 PM

Week 20

Jazz @ Clippers

Just what we need to break the losing streak.

1st Quarter - Jazz 29, Clippers 27
We did a pretty good job of hanging with the 2-time defending champions in the first quarter. Hammonds has 8, Fabrizio 5 with 3 assists. St. John also has 6 points. SG Logan Causwell leads the Jazz with 7 points, and PF Evan Radejevic has 6 with 4 boards.

At the Half - Jazz 63, Clippers 50
The Jazz are shooting incredibly this half, at 64%. We are playing pretty well to be able to not get completely destroyed here. SG Trevor Goodrich had a massive quarter, as he goes into the half with 18 points. For the Clippers, Hammonds has 13 and St. John 12, but I don't see us sticking with them for much longer.

3rd Quarter - Jazz 97, Clippers 69
Ugh. Well, we couldn't hang with them. They are just scoring an unbeliable amount of points. I guess we've decided defense is overrated. Trevor Goodrich has 24, Radejevic has 15, and Causwell has 14. Jordan Malone doesn't even need to score, but instead has 9 assists. Caleb Hammonds is having a good game, with 22 points, 6 rebounds, but also he has 4 fouls.

Final - Jazz 123, Clippers 89
No comment.

Clippers Leaders
PF Hammonds - 31 points, 9 rebounds
SF St. John - 17 points
PG Fabrizio - 9 points, 14 assists

Jazz Leaders
SG Goodrich - 28 points PLAYER OF THE GAME
C Stoudamire - 20 points, 10 rebounds
PF Radejevic - 19 points, 17 rebounds

Rest of the Week
Grizzlies 98, Clippers 82
In what is becoming an annoying trend, Isaac St. John will miss the week with a fractured nose. Hammonds scored 19, and Fabrizio added 16. Grizzlies C Nate Voskuhl scored 23, and PG Dustin Olson had 16 with 13 assists.

Grizzlies 116, Clippers 89
Oh god. An eight game losing streak, with the last two to a team we should beat. Hammonds had a big game with 33 points and 17 rebounds, but no one else really got there. And our defence is terrible. Voskuhl again led the way with 21 points.

Record After the Week: 30-42, 6 games out of the playoffs

NBA Player of the Week
Raptors PG Jay Cheaney takes the Award for the fourth time in his career. He didn't really have that spectacular a week, averaging about 21 ppg and 9 apg.

RonnieDobbs · 05-14-2003, 10:49 PM

Monthly Review

Eastern Conference Playoff Standings

*Toronto Raptors 43-26 .623 GB -
*Washintgon Wizards 38-29 .567 GB 4.0
*New Orleans Hornets 41-25 .621 GB 0.5
*Cleveland Cavaliers 40-25 .615 GB 1.0
*Chicago Bulls 36-32 .529 GB 6.5
*Orlando Magic 35-33 .515 GB 7.5
*Boston Celtics 31-32 .492 GB 9.0
*New Jersey Nets 34-37 .479 GB 10.0
Philadelphia 76ers 29-35 .453 GB 11.5
New York Knicks 30-37 .448 GB 12.0
Milwaukee Bucks 27-42 .391 GB 16.0
Miami Heat 24-40 .375 GB 16.5
Detroit Pistons 26-42 .382 GB 16.5
Atlanta Hawks 25-45 .370 GB17.0
Indiana Pacers 25-43 .368 GB 17.5

The Orlando Magic and the Boston Celtics have had a big month in the crucial period. The New Orleans Hornets have fallen off a bit.

Western Conference Playoff Standings

*Utah Jazz 45-22 .672 GB -
*Phoenix Suns 44-26 .629 GB 2.5
*Golden State Warriors 43-31 .581 GB 5.5
*San Antonio Spurs 41-29 .586 GB 5.5
*Los Angeles Lakers 38-34 .528 GB 9.5
*Houston Rockets 35-32 .522 GB 10.0
*Sacremento Kings 35-32 .522 GB 10.0
*Memphis Grizzlies 34-34 .500 GB 11.5
Dallas Mavericks 34-34 .500 GB 11.5
Portland Trailblazers34-35 .493 GB 12.0
Denver Nuggets 29-36 .446 GB 15.0
Seattle Sonics 30-39 .435 GB 16.0
Minnesota Timberwolves 30-40 .429 GB 16.5
Los Angeles Clippers 30-42 .417 GB 17.5

Well, obviously the Clippers' drop off is the biggest story here. However, the Nuggets have been playing some fantastic basketball; will it be enough to make the playoffs?

League Leaders

Scoring
1 Alan Whitney SF Timberwolves 31.3
2 Nick Stockton PG Suns 30.0
3 Jordan Malone PG Jazz 26.6
4 Tyson Rice PG Nets 26.3
5 Micah Bullard SF Bulls 25.4
6 Jessie Mann SG Cavaliers 25.0
7 Jerod Brady C Magic 24.1
8 Eric Macauley PG Cavaliers 23.8
9 Phillip Yong SF Rockets 23.6
10 Caleb Hammonds PF Clippers 23.1

Rebounding
1 Alfonso Posey PF Mavericks 13.4
2 Ivan Longley C Spurs 12.8
3 Marvin Williamson PF Bulls 12.5
4 Devon Outlaw C Raptors 12.3
5 Carlos Boykins PF Wizards 12.1
6 Malik Douglas PF Warriors 12.1
7 Renato Boykins C Kings 12.0
8 Evan Radejevic PF Jazz 11.5
9 Jerod Brady C Magic 11.3
10 Caleb Coleman PF Cavaliers 11.3

Assists
1 Jesus Roberson PG Magic 9.4
2 Jordan Malone PG Jazz 8.7
3 Nick Stockton PG Suns 8.6
4 Corey Shireman PG Celtics 8.6
5 Aaron Benjamin PG Bulls 8.6
6 Courtney Abbott PG Hawks 8.4
7 Jake Barkley PG Timberwolves 8.0
8 Dustin Olsen PG Grizzlies 7.9
9 Donnell Rubini PG Mavericks 7.9
10 Jim Oneal PG Warriors 7.8

Other Clippers
Caleb Hammonds is 3rd with 7.5 free throw attempts per game.
Kenyon Haskins leads the league in 3 point percentage with .552.
David Fabrizio leads the league in turnovers per game with 3.9.
Zack Horry is 3rd in Fouls-per-game with 3.1.

Major Injuries
Cavs rookie SF Cody Lewis may return from his ruptured achilles in time for the playoffs.
Sonics C Chad Daly will miss the rest of the season with a broken skull.

Transactions
None.

NBA Player of the Month
Suns PG Nick Stockton wins the PoM Award for the 7th time in his career, and second time this season. The early leader for MVP voting, Stockton is averaging 30.0 ppg, 5.7 rpg, and 8.6 apg. He's gotten 3 triple doubles this season so far.

NBA Rookie of the Month
Los Angeles Lakers PF Isaac Quigly breaks Fabrizio's hold on the Rookie of the Month Award. The starting PF for a team headed to the playoffs, he is averaging 13.1 ppg, and 7.4 rpg. He also has a good amount of potential, and could be a solid player in the years to come.

RonnieDobbs · 05-14-2003, 10:54 PM

Clippers Team Stats

Points Per Game: 91.5 (27th)
Points Allowed Per Game: 96.9 (14th)
Rebounds Per Game: 47.5 (29th)
Assists Per Game: 22.3 (23th)
Steals Per Game: 8.8 (16th)
Blocks Per Game: 5.3 (28th)
Turnovers Per Game: 13.9 (21st)
Field Goal %: .432 (18th)

Not very good.

RonnieDobbs · 05-15-2003, 12:07 AM

Week 21

Suns @ Clippers

Might we get a nine game losing streak?

1st Quarter - Suns 36, Clippers 27
Jesus, could we please play some defense!?!?!!? Hammonds has 8 points but 2 fouls, and Zack Horry has 6 with 3 boards. For the Suns, Nick Stockton lit us up like a Christmas Tree to start the quarter. He finished the quarter with 12, and C Hayden Mottola scored 7 with 5 rebounds.

At the Half - Clippers 53, Suns 48
A 12-2 run by the Clippers closes the gap to start the 2nd Quarter. And we play some defense! My prayers have been answered! Zack Horry leads the team with 13 points and 5 rebounds, while Kenyon Haskins has added 12. Nick Stockton was injured at the start of the quarter, and is out for six days. We feasted upon that.

3rd Quarter - Suns 77, Clippers 73
Well, there went that. The Suns regrouped from losing their leader pretty fast. PG Kristopher Oneal, who saw few minutes behind Stockton, now leads the team with 19 points. The Clippers are having a very balanced effort, led by Hammonds with 14 and 8 rebounds.

Final - Suns 93, Clippers 92
Both teams started out extremely cold this quarter, but the Clippers pulled within one with 5 minutes left. It was close all the way down, but we just ran out of time. Nine games in a row.

Clippers Leaders
PF Hammonds - 21 points, 11 rebounds PLAYER OF THE GAME
C Horry - 15 points, 10 rebounds

Suns Leaders
PG Oneal - 21 points, 7 assists
PF Kennedy - 15 points, 10 rebounds

Rest of the Week
Warriors 109, Clippers 61
Oh. My. God. We just lost by 48 points. And we've now got a ten game losing streak. At least we're improving our lottery chances. Hammonds scores 19, but the Warriors big men were too much. PF Malik Douglas had 21 points 16 rebounds, and C Dominic Ellis added 17 points and 15 boards.

76ers 105, Clippers 99
It's sad if I'm just happy we weren't blown out. 11 straight. We actually played very well in this one, led of course by Hammonds with 24 points 11 boards and Fabrizio with 19 points 8 assists. 76ers SG Devon Marion torched us for 34.

Record After the Week: 30-45, 9 games out of the playoffs

NBA Player of the Week
Cavaliers SG Jessie Mann takes the award for the 3rd time in his career. He averaged 25.4 ppg this week.

RonnieDobbs · 05-15-2003, 12:30 AM

Week 22

76ers @ Clippers

11 straight losses and counting.

1st Quarter - Clippers 27, 76ers 22
An excellent first quarter considering that Hammonds picked up his 2nd foul after 4 minutes. Fabrizio led the way with 6 points and 5 assists. Owen Drake filled in well for Hammond, getting 5 points and 5 rebounds. 76ers PG Shane Norris leads them with 7 points.

At the Half - Clippers 51, 76ers 51
We're still playing well, they just brought their game up. Caleb Hammonds has 13, and St. John and Horry both had 10. 76ers SG Devon Marion is leading their attack with 13.

3rd Quarter - Clippers 78, 76ers 76
This was a real back-and-forth quarter. Is it possible we'll break the losing streak? We are notorious for folding in the 4th. Hammonds has 19 points and 11 rebounds, and Fabrizio has 11 points with 8 assists. Marion leads the 76ers with 15 and Norris has 13.

Final - Clippers 102, 76ers 98
The game was tied with 3:43 left to play. We took the lead and never gave it back. The streak is over! The monkey is off our backs, too bad it already dragged us out of the playoffs.

Clippers Leaders
PG Fabrizio - 11 points, 12 assistsPLAYER OF THE GAME
PF Hammonds - 25 points, 11 rebounds
SF St. John - 17 points
C Horry - 14 points, 14 rebounds

76ers Leaders
SG Marion - 20 points, 9 rebounds
SF Mikan - 17 points

Rest of the Week
Clippers 97, Pistons 83
Two in a row. This game was tied headed into the fourth, but they collapsed and we excelled. Hammonds leads with 29 and 14 rebounds, and Fabrizio notches 23 and 9 assists. Pistons SG Langhi leads his team with 24 points.

Record After the Week: 32-45, 7 games out of the playoffs

NBA Player of the Week
Jazz PG Jordan Malone has won the award for a fifth time. He may be solidifying his hold on the MVP Award.

05-01-2003, 02:06 PM	#6
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Unfortunetly, it's on hold until Sunday night at the earliest, as I'm going up to Maine w/ my buds until then. But next will be a preview of the West, and predictions for the new season. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers

05-01-2003, 06:52 PM	#7
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	One more preview before I go. Midwest Division Dallas Mavericks The Mavs, unfortunately, have been the worst team in the NBA the past four years. Things don't look to be getting much better. 28 year old SG Levi Holloway is the main scoring threat, and a three time All-Star. He leads a bunch of youth to the court, including the inside punch of C Lavar McAdoo and last years #2 pick, SF Thomas Tobey. Tobey starts on the bench, but right now his shot is up there with the best of them and he has unlimited potential according to league scouts. This team isn't there yet. Denver Nuggets The Nuggets are one of those teams that have a winning % in the middle of the pack, and lost in the first round the one season they did make the playoffs. They don't look like they have much direction right now. Their leader is veteran PF Grant Cardinal, a 20 ppg 9 rpg threat. 30 year old SG Alfonso McGuire had a breakout year last year, doubling his scoring average to 20 ppg. The ninth pick of last years draft, SG Chris Achterberg has been a disappointment in preseason workouts. He will be riding the bench until he can display more than a good jumper. Houston Rockets The Rockets have always done well during the regular season but folded like a deck of cards during the playoffs. They're coming off a good campaign, and figure to be in the shuffle again this year. SF Philip Yong, 25, is a rising star. He made his first All-Star Game last season, and had his first 20+ scoring season. He will be helped by 35 year old C Drew Hepbron, a three time All-Star and three time Defensive Player of the Year, who will contribute 11 ppg 12 rpg 4 bpg 3 apg. This team will be very competitive. Minnesota Timberwolves This is going to sound familiar: 4 years a good team, 4 years in the playoffs, 4 first round exits. The team rests all of its hopes on the shoulders of one man, 32 year old SF Alan Whitney. Whitney is a superstar. A 4 time All-Star and holder of the record scoring title, Whitney will put up 30 ppg 7 rpg 4 apg. After him, however, the team falls off quite a bit. They're going to need to find a way to get Whitney some help, or else the pattern will continue. San Antonio Spurs The Spurs are another of those teams that regularly make the playoffs but go nowhere once there. 3 trips, 3 first round losses. They rely on outside shooting, with SG Julio Church getting 20 ppg. The rest of the team are relatively unproven or proven to be poor scorers. I don't like this team's chances this season. Utah Jazz The Jazz are currently the class of the NBA, having won the 1998 and 1999 NBA Titles. Is there a dynasty brewing here? Could be. 4 time All-Star, 1996 MVP PG Jordan Malone (heh!) is just now entering his prime. He'll be good for 25 ppg and 10 apg. The Jazz offense obviously runs through him primarily, but SG Trevor Goodrich is no slouch with his passing either, and consistently scores double digits. PF Evan Radejevic is the main presence in the paint, an assured double double each game. This is the team to beat. Memphis Grizzlies The Grizzlies are a change of pace: one trip to the playoffs, one series win! The appear to be a team on the rise, but their coach seems wedded to the idea of bringing their young guys along slowly, starting mainly veterans. 28 year old SF Kareem Diaz-Miguel had a breakout year last year, getting 14 ppg and being named to the All League Third Team, mainly for his defensive efforts. 12th pick in the draft Stephen Blazejowski will start on the bench but looks to be a good outside shooter on a team lacking talent. The Grizzlies will have another chance to add a good youngster next year, as they are lottery bound. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers

05-02-2003, 01:04 AM	#8
CHEMICAL SOLDIER College Starter Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Henderson, Nevada	Looking forward to this dynasty . Hope it stays onn for a while . __________________ Toujour Pret

05-04-2003, 10:33 PM	#9
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Pacific Division Golden State Warriors The 1996 NBA Champions, the Warriors have tumbled since then to being a lottery team for two years running. That ends here and now. This is a young and talented team. Led by 2-Time All-Star SF Kristopher Rouseau, a 25 year old who just signed a fat contract to stay with the Warriors. He's an all-around threat who could score in the low 20s. Last year's #5 pick, C Dominic Ellis, is a big-time scorer and defender. SG Ernest Meanwell does everything well, and is a great ball-handler. He'll put up 17 ppg, but that's not a lot considering his max-money contract. This team has some series cap issues, so they'll have to make do with what they've got, and what they've got it pretty good. Los Angeles Lakers The Lakers have twice made the playoffs and made decent pushes both times. However, they're coming off a pretty terrible season and don't seem to have great prospects for this season, especially in the tough West. They're an outside shooting team that lives and dies by the 3. 23 year old SG Hayden Sedram is an interesting story. The first pick of the second round draft of 1997, he proved to be a great prospect from Northwestern State. He just signed a max contract with the Lakers, coming over from the Hawks. Unfortunaetly (or not ), he's not worth the bucks. His best season was only 17 ppg, and you need to get more than that from your stars. The Lakers, while not terrible, won't be a playoff team. Phoenix Suns The Suns are another top team in the scary west. They've made the playoffs all four years and once made it to the finals, losing to the Knicks in 1997. The heart of the Suns is 27 year old PG Nick Stockton. Stockton is coming off back-to-back MVP Awards and is a three-time All-Star. He could put up 30 points and 8 assists up every game. He is a superstar, notching 7 Triple Doubles in four seasons. His main partner in crime is veteran PF Vincent Kennedy, three time All-Star and double double stud. No signs of the Suns slowing down at all. Portland Trailblazers The Trailblazers have been a mediocre team, only making the playoffs once, but securing a first round upset. They're a team lacking a main scoring threat, but they do have many good role players and up-and-comers. 1998 #1 pick C Luis Schell will be coming off the bench for the third straight year. His sophomore year was much better than his rookie year, and he could break out to get 13 ppg 7 rpg off the bench. 3 year vet PG Stephan Fisher won Rookie of the Year in '97, and is a three year starter, but has to be considered a disappointment as he struggles for 10 ppg 7 apg. The Trailblazers won't survive in this West. Sacramento Kings The Kings have been a good playoff level team, but never a Championship threat. I'm not sold that they'll be there at the end of this season. There really is no star/main scoring threat, although SF Tim Mullin has had two really solid seasons and two pedestrian ones. Which Mullin will show up? The bench is led by SF/SG Ronald Kelly, who will put up double digits coming off the bench for this team. In the East, they're a playoff team. But not here in the West. Seattle Supersonics The Sonics are another good but far from great team. They've been in the postseason 3 times in the last 4 years, but never doing much of anything. C Chad Daly is the leader and is a One-Time All-Star. He has the potential to put up monster numbers, like 23 ppg 10 rpg. He's still in the early years of a big contract, but he justifies the money he gets. SG Andre Delessio won the Sixth Man of the Year Award his rookie year, and his role has only increased. He could break out this year, but 16 ppg is safe to assume. I think this team has the talent to make it to the postseason. Next: Your Los Angeles Clippers __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers

05-04-2003, 11:11 PM	#10
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	After going through the West, I'm scared for my team. They haven't done very well in the past, and the West is stacked with good teams. The Clipper's sordid past: 1996: 37-45 1997: 33-49 1998: 33-49 1999: 44-38 Made Playoffs So, this appears to be a team on the rise. I haven't even looked at the players yet, so allow me to introduce to you and myself the 12 angry men that will be the 2000 Los Angeles Clippers: At Center, from Milwaukee Public High School, 6 foot 10 inches tall, Zack Horry! At 20, Horry is very young, but doesn't have a whole lot of upside. He will play above average defense and get his share of boards. Predicted stats: 10 ppg, 9 rpg At Forward, 6' 9" from Loyola-Chicago, Caleb Hammonds! Caleb is the unquestioned star of this team. Only named to the All-Star team once, he is also a 3 time All-League team member. He has two years remaining on his max contract. Luckily, this man is the consummate professional, a community leader, and a man who wants to stay and help the Clippers become the cream of the NBA. I'll probably resign him to a max contract in two years. Predicted stats: 24 ppg 10 rpg From Western Kentucky, a 6 foot 7 inch Forward, Isaac St. John! Isaac is in the third year of a five year, $30 million contact. The past two seasons he's been a solid starter, and a great role player who plays tough defense. His career so far hasn't been spectacular, but he's getting good money to play an important role in a team that could make the playoffs. Predicted stats: 13 ppg 3 apg 6' 8", from Stanford, at Guard, Kenyon Haskins! At 34, Haskins is the cagey vet of this team. He's got a great outside shot, but his skills are deteriorating. I've got him under contract for two more years at 7 million per year, not too terrible. Maybe he can help provide the leadership needed to take this team to the playoffs this season and next. Predicted stats: 10 ppg. From Murray State, a 6 foot 8 inch Guard, Alejandro Cleaves! Alejandro is a converted SG, but he passes the ball well enough for me to trust him to run our offense. He'll also be a scoring threat, as he's got a decent outside shot and has a track record of putting points on the board. At 29, this is his final year in his current 3 million dollar contract. Predicted stats: 15 ppg 8 apg. I'd like to resign him if it's for cheap. The Bench David Fabrizio will be the sixth man. This is his first year in the league as we picked him up with the 19th pick. I think we got a good deal for that pick, as Fabrizio can score both inside and outside pretty effectively, as well as dish the ball out pretty well. He will spell both Cleaves and Haskins. Cs Nate Krauss and Owen Drake are big men who play good defense, but that's about it. They won't be much of a threat to score, but Drake could potentially dominate the boards. PF Mark Baker can put up some points from inside or out, but plays no defense and is a non-threat on the boards. We're hoping that Hammonds plays the bulk of the minutes here anyway. SG Gary Patterson was the fourth pick in the draft in 1999, but had a noneventful rookie season. He can shoot from deep, and has a decent amount of potential, but won't be seeing a massive amount of minutes. PG Albie Borgman has a great outside shot as well, and can dish the ball out adequately. He's third on the depth chart behind Fabrizio, though, so his minutes will most likely be limited. Those are the 11 players who have a chance at playing in a game. Realistically, we have a 8 or 9 man rotation, as Patterson, Borgman, and possibly Drake will see their minutes limited. We've got some good defenders, so I'm going to Coach an aggressive, trapping defense. I'm hoping we can create a lot of turnovers while not having many ourselves. We will press now and then, but won't overdo it. We'll probably play a half-court offense as we've got some age in the lineup and don't want our starters to tucker out too early. We'll look to score from both inside and outside, as we can get it done from both. Our primary scoring threat is definitely Hammonds. He's our star. Next, I'm going to tell Haskins and Cleaves not to be afraid to shoot the ball. We'll hope that Hammonds draws double teams and can kick it back to the sharpshooters. If Hammonds has the monster season I think he's capable of, we could make the playoffs. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers

05-01-2003, 01:52 AM	#2
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Atlantic Division Boston Celtics The Celtics have been quite the pedestrian team since 1996. They've made the playoffs once, but were swept out in the first round. They're a team that has traditionally played tough defense, holding the league mark for least points allowed in a season. This season, like many previously, they don't have much scoring punch. They'll be relying on their first round draft pick (#23 in the draft) Mason Ratliff, a 6' 10" SF who has a good inside game but little else, to contribute points immediately. 10 Year Vet PF Cory Drew could be good for a consisent double double if given adequate minutes, though he's not that talented. This team really doesn't look all that good, though it will be gritty on defense. Miami Heat Consisently good but never great, the Heat hope to break through this season. They've been to the playoffs all four years that this league has been running, and even have an above .500 postseason record. They've never made the finals, though. This veteran team is led by one-time All-Star SG Dylan McCutchan, a 34 year old with a career 24.3 ppg scoring average. C Earvin Madarang will contribute about 19 ppg and 9 rpg. Three time All-Star SF Scoonie Curry has a deadly outside shot, and could be good for 18 ppg 6 rpg and 4 apg. The time is now for the Heat. Can they rise to the challenge? New Jersey Nets The Nets have been one of the worst NBA squads over the past four years, although they did exit from the first round of the playoffs once. They still look to be aways from respectablity. The past two years they've had the first pick in the draft, first picking up a SG who they immediately shipped to the Magic, and this past draft they drafted PF Maxwell Parker, a bruiser who can tough it out in the paint. He's a good, not great, scorer right now, but has ample room to grow. He should end up a good pro. Parker's frontcourt mate C DeeAndre Hoiberg will be good for 14 ppg 10 rpg. Another lottery finish is in the cards for the Nets. New York Knicks 1997 NBA Champions, this team has been consisently good, only missing the playoffs once in the last four years. Four out of their five starters could potentially average over 15 ppg, but it will have to been seen if they can play nice together. No one on the team could really be called a "star", although PF Brendan Zimmerman and SG Phillip Rayburn have both been named All-Stars once. The big question mark is the starting PG Bob Griffey, who in three seasons has managed only 112 minutes on the court. This team will make the playoffs, but just doesn't have the star or playmaker to win it all again. Orlando Magic This could be a team on the rise. Until last year, the Magic stunk. Then David Stern said the magical words "With the second pick in the draft, the Orlando Magic select South Flordia center Jerod Brady." That next season, led by Brady, the Magic stormed all the way to the finals, losing to the Jazz in six. Last season, Brady got 22.1 ppg 9.6 rpg on his way to Rookie of the Year, All-Star, and All-League Third Team honors. He still has room to grow as well. Another young gun is SG Ricky Steitz , who is entering his third season out of high school looking to build on a 19.3 ppg career average. This is a young team with some more solid players, a team that could be a force in the future. Philadelphia 76ers Much like the Heat, the 76ers have been good, but not great. Only once have they missed the playoffs, but never have the gotten to the second round. SG Devon Marion is entering the third year of a big money deal. 3 time All-Star, 3 time First Team All-NBA, he is coming off a 24 ppg season. He is now 31, so it's time to produce. He's backed up by SF Tim Mikan and Luis Szczerbiak, who look to average 17 and 13 ppg respectively. This team will again make the playoffs, and maybe Marion can will them to a title, but probably not. Washington Wizards Two first round exits from the playoffs, and a sub-500 winning percentage hound the Wizards. Three time All-Star C Bryan Nystrom, 29, leads the attack. He's coming off a 21.8 ppg 9.8 rpg season, and is definitely the main scoring option of the Wizards. The cast around him, however, is a bunch of underachievers and guys who are getting their first chance to start. It's a transition year for the Wiz, a transition year that will end them up in the lottery. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers

05-01-2003, 05:14 AM	#3
Ragone Pro Rookie Join Date: May 2002 Location: Kansas City, Mo	The house rules I'll be using are pretty simple. If I don't think it would happen in the NBA, I won't do it.. Don't plan on winning much with the clippers then? Good luck

05-01-2003, 12:51 PM	#4
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Central Division Atlanta Hawks Another Eastern Conference team that has played well enough, but all it has to show for it is two first-round exits. They're coming off a lottery campaign. They are led by 36 year old tank C Hahn Abdur-Rahim who will be good for 18 ppg 10 rpg. PG Courtney Abbot has all the skills along with a deadly shot from three, put hasn't been able to put up numbers better than 16.3 ppg 7.8 apg. If the Hawks want to passively watch the lottery next year, he'll have to step up. New Orleans Hornets This team has a .500 record over the last four seasons, but three playoff appearences, including one series win. However, they too are coming off a lottery campaign and hope to right the ship this season. SF Trenton Perkins, 29, is a balanced threat who can do a good amount of everything. His career average of 23.3 ppg 7.0 rpg is great, but last season he took a downturn in all categories, though he still appears to have the skills. 32 year old PG Kenyon Patterson is not a stereotypical point guard, but more of a scorer. If the Hornets hope to return to the playoffs, Perkins will have to be a great playmaker as well as scorer/rebounder, because Patterson ain't getting it done. Chicago Bulls The Bulls have been one of the best teams in the league these past four years. They only have one finals appearance to show for it, losing to the Utah Jazz two years ago in 1998. Three time All-Star, multiple time All League Team SF Micah Bullard is the heart of this team. The whole backcourt is strong, with SG Larry Springer both an inside and outside threat and PG Aaron Benjamin nailing threes and dishing the ball around. This is a dangerous team, who didn't finish as strongly last season, but looks to challenge again in 2000. Cleveland Cavaliers This is a team that has had mixed results. They've made some decent pushes into the postseason twice, but last season they were a lottery team They're hoping that the no. 7 pick this season, SF Cody Lewis and his sharpshooting can help the team get back to their former glories. 33 year old SG Jessie Mann is a two-time All-Star and is good for over 20 ppg. If Lewis turns out to be a gamer, they could be back in the playoffs. Detroit Pistons Terrible, terrible team. Four straight lottery years, and little to show for it in terms of good young players. They have drafted poorly, it would seem. There isn't even anyone worth mentioning individually on this team. They're headed back to the front of the lottery. Indiana Pacers Another team that hasn't yet seen the playoffs, SF Nick Kim hpoes to lead his Pacers to the promised land. Kim, 29, is a threat from inside and out who avered 23.3 ppg last year in a year cut short by injury. SG Javier Lovellette, 34, was signed to a mid-level exception last season and could put up 17 ppg. In a weak East, they may have enough to go to the playoffs. Milwaukee Bucks This is beginning to get repetitive. A poor team that left in the first round the only time it made the playoffs, this team looks to be on the downswing. SG Frank Holman is 32 and only signed for one more season, though he could put up 17 ppg. C Gavin Storm is an assured double double but is also only signed for one more season. Things don't look good for the Bucks. Toronto Raptors A traditionally strong team that made the finals four years ago and the playoffs every year since, Toronto continues to look strong. The leader is obviously PG Jay Cheaney, one of the leagues elite players. He's a perennial All-Star, and he won the MVP award in 1996. He's 30 and has two seasons left on his deal, so the time for the Raptors is now. Cheney could realistically put up 25 ppg and 7 apg. C Devon Outlaw was 1996's Rookie of the Year, and a two time Defensive Player of the Year. He's a beast on the boards and in the paint. Finally, PF Trenton Cann has a nice outside touch and is no slouch on the boards either. To me, this is the most impressive team in the East. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers

05-01-2003, 01:57 PM	#5
MylesKnight College Benchwarmer Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Neptune Beach, Florida	Very Solid idea for a Dynasty, RonnieD.. Good Luck to you & the Clips.. __________________ IT'S ALL ABOUT THE BLACK & GOLD!!

05-04-2003, 11:33 PM	#11
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Predictions for the 2000 Season Playoff Teams from the East 1. Toronto Raptors 2. Chicago Bulls 3. New York Knicks 4. Orlando Magic 5. Philadelphia 76ers 6. Miami Heat 7. New Orleans Hornets 8. Indiana Pacers Playoff Teams from the West 1. Utah Jazz 2. Phoenix Suns 3. Golden State Warriors 4. Houston Rockets 5. Seattle Supersonics 6. Los Angeles Clippers 7. Minnesota Timberwolves 8. Sacramento Kings East Finals Raptors over Bulls, 4-2 West Finals Suns over Jazz, 4-3 Finals Suns over Raptors, 4-2 MVP Award Nick Stockton [or Alan Whitney, Jordan Malone, Micah Bullard, Jerod Brady] Defensive Player of the Year Drew Hepbron [or Devon Outlaw, Jake Barkley] Rookie of the Year Cody Lewis [or Thomas Tobey, Isaac Quigly, Antonio Mourning] Well, that's it for preseason activities. I'm going to go a week at a time, I think. I won't actively coach the games, just putting in the settings and watching. Hopefully, this will be a good seasons for the Clippers. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers Last edited by RonnieDobbs : 05-04-2003 at 11:34 PM.

05-05-2003, 12:12 AM	#12
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Week One I've decided I'm going to do an in-depth look at one game a week. What better game than opening night? Clippers @ Bulls We start by travelling to one of the better teams in the NBA. 1st Quarter - Bulls 29, Clippers 24 Not a bad quarter at all. We shot the ball extremely well at 58%. Kenyon Haskins hit two three pointers to lead the team with 6 points. It's been a real even effort for us overall, but both Hammonds and Curry picked up 2 fouls. For the Bulls, Micah Bullard took 11 shots and made 5 for 11 points. He's a real gamer. Hopefully we can shut him down and take the lead. At the Half - Clippers 49, Bulls 41 We came out shooting very well to start the second quarter, but Chris Hammonds quickly picked up his third foul. This is not good, as he's the man on this team and he'll enter the half having clocked only 9 minutes. Rookie David Fabrizio has had a great game, with 11 points at the half from the bench. Owen Drake has 9 boards, while the Bulls are led by 13 points from PG Aaron Benjamin and 14 boards (!) by PF Marvin Williamson. 3rd Quarter - Bulls 71, Clippers 71 The Bulls came out on a 17-8 run to take the lead, but the Clippers came back to tie it. Fabrizio went ice cold, going 0 for 4 during the quarter. Kenyon Haskins has 12 and Owen Drake has 10 points and 12 rebounds. The Bulls have five players in double figures, with both Bullard and Benjamin scoring 19 so far. Final - Bulls 108, Clippers 97 The Bulls came out in the 4th with guns blazing, and the Clippers could never catch up. The Bulls scoring was just too much for the Clips. Hammond was never really a factor in this game, with foul trouble and poor shooting. He finished with 10 points on 3-of-10 shooting. Clippers Leaders SF Isaac St. John - 17 points SG Kenyon Haskins - 14 points C Owen Drake - 10 points, 14 rebounds Bulls Leaders PG Aaron Benjamin - 27 points, 8 assists - PLAYER OF THE GAME PF Albie Griffin - 26 points PF Marvin Williamson - 12 points, 23 boards Rest of the Week Jazz 94, Clippers 89 A tough home loss where we actually hung with the great Jazz for all game except the last three minutes. Jordan Malone killed up with 20 points and 10 assists. David Fabrizio has a solid game, leading the team with 18 points. If we continue to struggle, I may have to find a way to insert him into the lineup. Nets 104, Clippers 78 Ugh. Hammonds finally has a good game, 30 points and 10 rebounds, but no one else does anything. For the Nets, PG Tyson Rice (who was a Clippers backup last season) is off to a scorching start and rang us up for 27 points in 45 minutes. Impressive. Record After this Week: 0-3 Clippers Leaders Caleb Hammonds - 17.7 ppg 5.7 rpg Isaac St. John - 13.7 ppg David Fabrizio - 12.7 ppg Summary This team is shooting terribly. The game against the good teams were good, we played tough. The Nets game was an embarassment. This team isn't going to the playoffs at this rate. I need guys to start stepping up like Hammonds did during the New Jersey game, or else it's going to be a long season. NBA Player of the Week Magic C Jerod Brody takes it, averaging 28.8 ppg 10.3 rpg. Looks like the next huge star is making his prescence known. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers

05-05-2003, 11:33 AM	#13
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Week Two Week Two starts with what will become the best rivalry in basketball. Clippers @ Lakers 1st Quarter - Lakers 27, Clippers 16 The Clips come out shooting terribly in the first quarter, only getting 27% of their shots. Alejandro Cleaves leads the team with 6 points, and Caleb Hammonds goes 0 for 4 from the field. Lakers PG Omar Swift (8 pts) and SF Cole Kukoc (6 pts) lead their attack. At the Half - Lakers 56, Clippers 38 We play a marginally better second quarter. No one on this team is stepping up though. Cleaves now has 8 points to lead the team, and Hammonds is now 0 for 6 from the field. For the Lakers it's the Swift and Kukoc show, as they've put in 17 and 15 points respectively. 3rd Quarter - Lakers 94, Clippers 71 Our best quarter yet, but also the best one for the Lakers. Hammonds, Borgman, and Cleaves all have 10 points. Omar Swift leads the Lakers with 20. Final Lakers 115, Clippers 93 Cleaves leads the team with 16. Hammonds finishes with 15 on 25% shooting. This is getting bad. PG Omar Swift leads the Lakers with 25, including three three-pointers. Clippers Leaders PG Alejandro Cleaves - 16 points PF Chris Hammonds - 15 points, 10 boards, 5 assists SF Isaac St. John - 14 points, 7 boards Lakers Leaders PG Omar Swift - 25 points PLAYER OF THE GAME SG Hayden Sedran - 20 points, 8 boards SF Cole Kukoc - 19 points, 11 boards Rest of the Week Rockets 98, Clippers 84 We blew a lead in the fourth quarter here. Hammonds, still shooting poorly, puts in 21 points and 12 rebounds. Isaac St. John adds 15 points as well. For the Rockets, Philip Yong scored 27 while Drew Hepbron gets 11 points 10 rebounds 3 blocks. Raptors 103, Clippers 100 Chris Hammonds continues to stink it up, getting 14 points on 19 shots. The Raptors are led by Devon Outlaw, who puts up 19 points 15 rebounds, and Jay Cheaney who added 15 points 11 assists. Record After the Week: 0-6 Clippers Leaders PF Chris Hammonds - 17 ppg 8.5 rpg SF Isaac St. John - 13.3 ppg PG David Fabrizio 11.3 ppg Summary Well, I've got to do what I can to stanch the bleeding. Alejandro Cleaves is benched and will be the new sixth man. David Fabrizio will be the starting PG. Also, I tell Fabrizio and Isaac St. John to shoot the ball a little more. Also, I work during the practices on our post game, as I want to slow the game down and give Hammond some high percentage shots. Maybe he'll start making some. NBA Player of the Week This weeks winner is Suns PG Nick Stockton. He had games of 34, 9, 34, 29, and 42 while consistently getting around 10 assists. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers Last edited by RonnieDobbs : 05-05-2003 at 11:36 AM.

05-05-2003, 12:16 PM	#14
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Week 3 Hoping to get that first win against the lowly Mavs, who have been doing well this season. Mavericks @ Clippers 1st Quarter - Clippers 25, Mavs 21 Hammonds does what he does best, picking up 2 fouls in the first three minutes. Argh. The Clippers started well, hitting their first 5 shots. Isaac St. John responds to my changes to get him more involved, putting up 14 first quarter points and playing all 12 minutes. For the Mavs, Levi Holloway has 7 points and rookie SF Thomas Tobey has 5 points in 5 minutes off the bench. At the Half - Clippers 50 Mavs 43 This was the quarter of Zack Horry. He was huge this quarter, going into the half with 11 points, 12 rebounds, and 4 blocks. He was dominant in the paint. Fabrizio hasn't been shooting as much as I'd like but he does have 5 assists. For the Mavs, Tobey is now up to 10 points to lead the team off the bench, including two three pointers. 3rd Quarter - Clippers 73, Clippers 63 Caleb Hammonds has a good third quarter, as he now has 12 points and 7 boards. Fabrizio is also shooting better, as now he's got 11 points. Mavs C Lavar McAdoo was about all they had going for them that quarter, as he's now got 20 points and 8 boards for the game. Final - Clippers 86, Mavericks 85 Whew, we almost blew this one. We were actually down one with 45 seconds left, but rookie David Fabrizio drove to the paint and laid it in. A last second shot by the Mavs Donald Rubini failed to find the net. Clippers Leaders SF Isaac St. John - 18 points C Zack Horry - 16 points, 15 rebounds, 4 blocks PG David Fabrizio - 13 points, 7 assists Mavs Leaders C Lavar McAdoo - 26 points, 11 boards, 6 assists PLAYER OF THE GAME SG Levi Holloway - 13 points Rest of the Week Clippers 99, Nuggets 98 Hey, it's a winning streak! Hammonds has another good game, putting up 33 points and 14 boards. C Nate Krause comes off the bench for 18 points in 18 minutes. Fabrizio gets 9 assists but only 5 points. The Nuggets were led by PF Grant Cardinal, who is having a smashing year so far. He put up 35 points on my guys. Clippers 96, Spurs 82 Hammonds puts up 21, but Fabrizio comes through with 20 points and 9 assists. C Nate Krause again comes through when Horry gets into foul trouble, as Krause scores 19 points and grabs 18 rebounds. Spurs SG Julio Church scored 14 points on 30% shooting. Clippers 98, Sonics 91 Sweet, that's four straight! Hammonds has a 31 pts/11 boards game, and Fabrizio, who is solidifying my decision to start him, adds 15 points and 8 assists. The Sonics' Delessio and Daly had good games, putting up 23 and 21 respectively, but it wasn't enough. Record after the Week: 4-6 Clippers Leaders PF Hammonds - 19.9 ppg 9.3 rpg SF St. John - 14.1 ppg PG Fabrizio 12.1 ppg 4.9 apg Summary That's more like it. Good defense, and Hammonds is starting to play like the potential All-Star he is. I'd like to see more scoring, but a 4-0 week is fine by me. NBA Player of the Week This week it goes to Jazz PG Jordan Malone. He scored 47, 30, 39, and 26 points this week while dishing the ball out well. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers

05-05-2003, 03:34 PM	#15
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Week Four Clippers @ Timberwolves 1st Quarter - Clippers 33, Timberwolves 28 Hammonds comes out of the gate hot, scoring ten points in the first four minutes of the game without missing a shot. He finishes the quarter with 15 points, going 6-for-6 from the field and 3-for-3 from the line. Fabrizio has five first quarter assists. Alan Whitney was "held" to only 7 points in the first quarter, but managed to get four assists, showing how valuable a player he is. At the Half - Clippers 60, Timberwolves 58 Now this is a good game. Both teams are playing excellent basketball. "Fabrizio to Hammonds" seems to be the order of the day today. Hammonds goes into the lockerroom with 21 points, missing only once from the field. Fabrizio, who is 1-of-3 from the field, has ten assists at the half. Isaac St. John, with 11 points 5 rebounds 3 assists is also having a solid game. It's still the Alan Whitney show for the T-wolves, although his 14 points at the half is good, but not great for him. 3rd Quarter - Clippers 82, Timberwolves 70 A good quarter for Fabrizio, who ignited an 8-0 run to help solidify the lead. He now has 8 points and 12 assists, while Hammonds had a bad quarter, finishing with 26 points 6 boards. T-Wolves PG Jake Barkley has 14 points to go with Whitney's 16. Final - Clippers 101, Timberwolves 98 A nice victory that we almost lost out on in the last minute, but clutch free throw shooting won out. A good road win against a good team. Clippers Leaders PF Hammonds - 29 points, 11 rebounds SF St. John - 21 points PG Fabrizio - 10 points, 16 assists Timberwolves Leaders SF Whitney - 29 points, 9 rebounds, 9 assists PLAYER OF THE GAME PG Barkley - 14 points, 6 assists Rest of the Week Clippers 100, Mavericks 98 Hammonds puts in 26 points and 13 boards, while St. John continues to be an excellent #2 scorer with 21 points. For the Mavs, Levi Holloway scored 18 but Lavar McAdoo was shut down by my big men, and not a prescence in the game. Clippers 96, Kings 71 Hammond is the man. 34 points, 15 rebounds. Fabrizio didn't shoot well from the field, but got 9 assists. Zack Horry got a double double. For the Kings, Ronald Kelly led the team with 14 points off the bench. He's going to be a free agent this summer, and is only 23. He will be a breakout star next season I'm predicting, once he gets a chance to start. Record After the Week: 7-6 Clippers Leaders PF Hammonds 22.2 ppg 10.2 rpg SF St. John - 15.2 ppg PG Fabrizio - 11.7 ppg 6.2 apg Summary This team is finally clicking. Hammond is playing like the stud he is, and we're riding a league-high seven game win streak. NBA Player of the Week C Jerry Carr of the Portland Trailblazers. A solid player but not considered a star, he had four double doubles, averaging about 19 ppg 15 rpg for the week. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers

05-05-2003, 04:54 PM	#16
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Monthly Review Eastern Conference Playoff Standings New Orleans Hornets 9-4* .692 - Philadelphia 76ers 9-7* .563 1.5 Toronto Raptors 9-4* .692 0.0 Cleveland Cavaliers 9-6* .600 1.0 Washington Wizards 8-8* .500 2.5 Chicago Bulls 9-9* .500 2.5 New Jersey Nets 8-9* .471 3.0 Atlanta Hawks 7-9* .438 3.5 Milwaukee Bucks 6-8 .429 3.5 Orlando Magic 8-10 .444 3.5 Detroit Pistons 6-10 .375 4.5 Boston Celtics 5-11 .313 5.5 Miami Heat 5-11 .313 5.5 New York Knicks 5-11 .313 5.5 Indiana Pacers 2-10 .167 6.5 This has been a pretty tight conference thus far. Many of the good teams here (Raptors, Bulls) haven't separated themselves from the pack. Surprises includ the Cavs start, and the Knicks and Heat starts. I would expect things to change in the future though for those two teams. Western Conference Utah Jazz 11-4* .733 - Phoenix Suns 11-4* .733 0.0 Los Angeles Lakers 10-5* .667 1.0 Houston Rockets 10-6* .625 1.5 San Antonio Spurs 12-8* .600 1.5 Golden State Warriors 8-5* .615 2.0 Sacramento Kings 8-6* .571 2.5 Los Angeles Clippers 7-6* .538 3.0 Dallas Mavericks 10-10 .500 3.5 Minnesota Timberwolves 7-7 .500 3.5 Portland Trailblazers 6-7 .462 4.0 Memphis Grizzlies 7-9 .438 4.5 Seattle Sonics 5-9 .357 5.5 Denver Nuggets 5-9 .357 5.5 I'm surprised by the Lakers start. I don't think they'll have the legs to continue that high in the standings, but they may be good enough to be a playoff team. I think we'll see the Kings and Spurs fall off, with the Timberwolves and Sonics getting a little better. League Leaders Scoring 1. Alan Whitney SF Timberwolves 30.5 2. Jordan Malone PG Jazz 29.1 3. Nick Stockton PG Suns 29.0 4. Eric Macauley PG Cavaliers 26.1 5. Jessie Mann SG Cavaliers 26.0 6. Trenton Perkins SF Hornets 25.4 7. Tim Langhi SG Pistons 25.4 8. Micah Bullard SF Bulls 24.5 9. Grant Cardinal PF Nuggets 24.3 10. Phillip Yong SF Rockets 24.2 Rebounding 1. Alfonso Posey PF Mavericks 13.5 2. Caleb Hammond PF Cavaliers 13.2 3 Marvin Williamson PF Bulls 12.8 4 Evan Radejevic PF Jazz 12.6 5 Manuel Lapchick C Pistons 12.4 6 Carlos Boykins PF Wizards 12.2 7 Isidoro Peeler C Hornets 12.1 8 Jerry Carr C Trailblazers 12.0 9 Renato Boykins C Kings 12.0 10 Ivan Longley C Spurs 11.8 Assists 1. Aaron Benjamin PG Bulls 9.9 2. Nick Stockton PG Suns 9.3 3. Jesus Roberson PG Magic 9.1 4. Corey Shireman PG Celtics 9.0 5. Jay Cheaney PG Raptors 8.5 6. Jim Oneal PG Warriors 8.5 7. Jordan Malone PG Jazz 8.0 8. Donovon Thurmond PG Sonics 7.6 9. Jake Barkley PG Timberwolves 7.6 10. Colin Childs PG Knicks 7.5 Other Clippers Isaac St. John is third in steals with 2.4 per game. Caleb Hammond is second in FT attempts, with 8 per game. Kenyon Haskins is ninth in 3-point %, with .542. Major Injuries Kings SF Tim Mullin is out for 3 weeks with a broken jaw. Magic PG Ricky Steitz is out for 2 weeks with a broken collarbone. Transactions No major transactions. NBA Player of the Month - Nick Stockton, PG Suns Stockton certainly played like a superstar for the first month of the season. He's been averagine 29 ppg, 9.3 apg, and 5.4 rpg. He had two triple doubles this month, raising his total in the last five years to nine. He led his team to a tie for the conference lead. Other players being considered were the Jazz's PG Jordan Malone and Timberwolves SF Alan Whitney. NBA Rookie of the Month - Mason Ratliff, SF Celtics Ratliff is the only rookie who is truly been a star for his team. He is averaging 18.7 points a game and notched one double double. Other rookies in consideration were the Clippers' PG David Fabrizio and the Lakers' C Isaac Quigly. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers Last edited by RonnieDobbs : 05-05-2003 at 07:32 PM.

05-05-2003, 09:57 PM	#17
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Week Five Clippers @ Warriors 1st Quarter - Warriors 25, Clippers 23 We've played them pretty even so far, no team really playing poorly or well. My big men have been collecting fouls, with Horry getting 2 and the three others each getting one. Zack Horry got 4 points and 3 boards and Fabrizio dished out four assists. For the Warriors, second-year man Dominic Ellis has been a beast, getting 14 points on fantastic shooting and getting to the line alot, hence my foul trouble. At the Half - Clippers 54, Warriors 50 The Warriors played the first half of the quarter tough, but we came roaring back at the end to take the lead. Caleb Hammonds (I'll get the name right from now on) leads with 14 points, but only 2 boards. The rebounding slack has been picked up by Horry and reserved PF Mark Baker, who each have 5. Fabrizio has six assists and four points. Horry also shut down Ellis in the second quarter, holding him to 2 additional points. Meanwhile, Ernsest Meanwell added 12 points this half. Third Quarter - Clippers 79, Warriors 79 This is shaping up to be a real battle. Fabrizio was a little shaky this quarter; he scored six points, but he had three costly turnovers. The Warriors were hot this quarter, and took advantage of every opportunity they had. Warriors C Dominic Ellis is sick. He's got 28 points - 9 of 12 from the field, 10 of 12 from the line. I'm hoping Caleb Hammonds will push through this quarter and improve on his (so far) sub-par performance. Final Warriors 106, Clippers 97 Alas, it was not to be, no matter how hard Isaac St. John tried. He had 11 points in the fourth and seemed to be the only Clipper who knew his ass from a hole in the ground. Hammonds and Fabrizio were like ghosts this quarter, and we got destroyed on the rebounding. They must have gotten literally fifteen more rebounds than we did that quarter, many of them offensive. I'm not a hampy camper with this performance. Clippers Leaders SF St. John - 21 points PF Hammonds - 20 points C Horry - 19 points 11 boards Warriors Leaders C Ellis - 33 points, 9 boards SG Meanwell - 19 points PG Oneal - 12 points 11 assists Rest of the Week Clippers 99, Heat 93 A good win for us over a pretty decent team. Hammonds scored 31 with 8 rebounds and Fabrizio put up a solid 15 with 12 assists. Once he becomes consistent, he'll be a great PG. Zack Horry got an double double with 16 rebounds, and he is really making me feel good about my decision to start the previously backup center. For the Heat, C Earvin Madarang was huge, scoring 35 and grabbing 10 boards, but the rest of the team didn't help him out enough. Clippers 95, Celtics 88 This game was tied going into the fourth, so I'm glad we played some clutch basketball to get a good win. Isaac St. John leads the team with 21, but suffers a concussion in a collision with Celtics SF Mason Ratliff in the fourth quarter that will have him out for four days. Caleb Hammonds adds 17 points and 11 boards. For the Celtics, SF Ratliff scored 19 and continues to impress as a rookie. Unfortunately for Boston, it doesn't look like he's got too much upside. Record After the Week: 9-7 As the scoring averages have begun to stabilize, I will no longer post statistical leaders by week, now only by month for the team. NBA Player of the Week Los Angeles Clippers PF Caleb Hammonds in a surprising move. Perhaps they were just compensating for the great games he'd had before and didn't win it. This is the second PoW Award in Hammonds's career. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers Last edited by RonnieDobbs : 05-05-2003 at 09:57 PM.

05-05-2003, 10:10 PM	#18
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	If anyone reading this would like to include anything else, go in to detail on anything else, please let me know. I'd be more than willing to. I'm very open to constructive criticism, although I don't think I'll be making this less detailed. I'm extremely immersed and enjoying it. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers

05-05-2003, 11:51 PM	#19
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Week Six Clippers @ Jazz This was at the end of the week, so Isaac St. John is back in the lineup. 1st Quarter - Jazz 28, Clippers 17 This was a physical quarter which saw the Clippers shoot sub-30% and both teams backup and starting centers collect 2 fouls. You couldn't say any Clipper had a good quarter, although Hammonds leads the team with 8 points on 1-8 shooting from the field. Jazz PF Evan Radejevic has 6 points and 5 boards, while Jordan Malone is having an effective game. At the Half - Jazz 46, Clippers 45 Jazz C Nick Stoudamire collected his third foul after two minutes, and by the end they fouled 11 times this quarter. At the half, four of their players, including Stoudamire and Radejevic, had three fouls. Malone had two. The Jazz were handcuffed this quarter, and we went to the line a lot. Hammonds goes into the half with 22 points, 10 on free throws, and 7 boards. 3rd Quarter - Clippers 74, Jazz 68 You could tell that the Jazz's defense was restrained this quarter, as the Clippers kept pounding it in a getting good looks. The Hack-a-Caleb defense isn't working too well. He's got 30 points and 11 boards and is 16 of 17 from the line. Zack Horry has 15 points 5 rebounds as well. Jordan Malone was pretty much the Jazz's only option, and he's got 12 points 5 assists. Final - Clippers 99, Jazz 98 Evan Radejevic foulded out with two minutes left and his team down one. After that, no one scored. The Jazz played really well as you would expect the two-time defending champs to do, but we played tougher. A great game for the boys, beating a great team on the road. Clippers Leaders PF Caleb Hammonds - 34 points 15 boards PLAYER OF THE GAME C Zack Horry - 15 points 7 boards Jazz Leaders PG Jordan Malone - 18 points 7 rebounds 7 assists PF Evan Radejevic - 17 points 10 rebounds Rest of the Week Clippers 86, Rockets 85 The Rockets were without their star Philip Yong for this game, and we escaped with one. Hammonds put up 21 and 10, while SG Kenyon Haskins had a good game with 17. Rockets C Drew Hepbron scored 20, grabbed 10 boards, and shut down Zack Horry, but it wasn't enough. Knicks 118, Clippers 83 Caleb Hammonds injures his foot in the second quarter and was out for two days. It showed, as we had little punch here. PF Mark Baker scored a career high of 23 starting for St. John. Haskins also added 15 for two solid games in a row. Knicks SF Omar Alston explodes for a career high of 36 as well. Suns 105, Clippers 102 Again we were without Hammonds and St. John, against one of the best teams in the league. Fabrizio showed flashes of brilliance here, carrying the load and scoring 38 points and 7 assists. PF Owen Drake added 17 points and 11 boards in Hammonds's abscence. For the Suns, Nick Stockton scored 29 and PF Jamie Case added 17 points and 14 rebounds. Clippers 80, Mavericks 78 Ugly, ugly game. Hammonds scores 22 and grabs 18 rebounds, but no other Clipper has any luck today. Luckily we played the Clippers who were led by C Lavar McAdoo with 13 points. Record After the Week: 12-9 NBA Player of the Week Jordan Malone, PG of the Utah Jazz, takes his second PoW Award for the season. While the Clippers managed to contain him, other teams weren't so lucky, as he had games of 31p/13a, 37p/10a, and 31p/13a,. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers Last edited by RonnieDobbs : 05-05-2003 at 11:51 PM.

05-06-2003, 02:18 PM	#20
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Week 7 Grizzlies @ Clippers I wanted to do a blow out for one of these, and I thought this would suffice. 1st Quarter - Clippers 26, Grizzlies 24 This was the quarter of Caleb Hammonds, especially in the final six minutes. He finishes the quarter with 10 points 8 rebounds and 2 assists. C Nate Krauss, subbing for a foul-plagued Zack Horry, finished with 11 points and 5 rebounds. The Grizzlies were led by 8 points and 5 rebounds by PF Chuck McKie. At the Half - Clippers 40, Grizzlies 39 Not really pretty. All their big men got in foul trouble, by my team couldn't take advantage. Hammonds is leading with 15 points 11 boards and 3 assists. For the Grizzlies, journeyman PG Justin Olsen is making a name for himself this season, and has 13 points at the half. 3rd Quarter - Clippers 73, Grizzlies 70 This was a good quarter for both teams, although the Grizzlies starting C and PF both leave with 4 fouls. Hammonds continues to dominate, with 19 points 13 rebounds and 7 assists. Fabrizio had a good quarter, and now has 13 points 6 assists. It's all Olsen for the Grizzlies, as he has 25 points 5 assists. Final Grizzlies 96, Clippers 95 Man, we blew that one. They took charge when a lot of our starters were resting, and then we couldn't grab it back. C Zack Horry missed a last second shot for the win. Clippers Leaders PF Hammonds - 19 points, 14 rebounds, 8 assists C - Krauss 18 points, 13 boards PG - Fabrizio 13 points, 8 assists Grizzlies Leaders PG Olsen - 31 points, 9 assists PLAYER OF THE GAME PF McKie - 17 points, 11 rebounds Rest of the Week Clippers 91, Pacers 87 Hammonds, Horry, and St. John all had double doubles, led by Hammonds's 28 points. The Pacers were led by PF Jalen McAdoo's 22 points 8 rebounds. Spurs 123, Clippers 75 Ugh. Just terrible. Hammonds getting a double double the only remote positive. He still didn't shoot well. Three Spurs scored over 20 points - PG Dominic Zimmerman (24), SG Julio Church (22), and C Ivan Longley (22 with 11 rebounds). I'd like to forget this one, against a team I didn't think would do well this season. Clippers 103, Trailblazers 89 Nice to see we can rebound from a horrible loss. Hammonds gets his obligatory double double (24 and 11), Fabrizio adds 17 points and 9 assists, and SG Cleaves comes off the bench for 13. 1998 1st overall pick C Luis Schell has 18 points in 16 minutes, a good case for a starting shot. Spurs 93, Clippers 70. Damn, our second 20+ point loss to the Spurs in three days. Hammonds has 19 points and 14 rebounds, but no one else did all that well. Rookie PG David Fabrizio is becoming maddeningly inconsistent. Spurs C Ivan Longley torches us for 32 points and 15 rebounds. Record After the Week: 14-12 NBA Player of the Week In the ultimate slap to the face of Clippers fans, Spurs C Ivan Longely is given the awards mainly for going to school of Zack Horry and Nate Krauss. He really only scored a lot against us, but he's a beastly rebounder, also having games of 18 and 19 boards this week. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers Last edited by RonnieDobbs : 05-06-2003 at 07:18 PM.

05-06-2003, 03:30 PM	#21
Radii Head Coach Join Date: Jul 2001	I'm reading! I don't have any of the NBA games so I don't know how they play really, but a good read so far

05-06-2003, 08:23 PM	#22
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Thanks, Radii. I'm having a great time doing this. Week 8 I had this all written out but then my machine crashed, so I lost my post. Therefore, no detailed look this week. Mavericks 84, Clippers 79 Ugly, ugly game where neither team seemed able to buy a bucket. The lowly Mavs got the better of me here, although Hammonds pulled his double double and St. John had 17 with 11 rebounds. The Mavs were led by SG Levi Holloway's 24 points and 19 rebounds. Wizards 90, Clippers 72 Stratch everything I said about the last game, as this was even worse. The team is in a rut, and they barely scratched 30 percent shooting. Wizards C Xavier Cronin had a rare scoring outburst, putting up 18, twice his season average. Clippers 92, Warriors 91 Hm. This is starting to worry me. We lose to the terrible teams and get a great victory over the Warriors one game later. Caleb Hammonds disappeared this game, although Isaac St. John (21 points) and David Fabrizio (20 points 11 assists) picked up the slack. Warriors C Dominic Ellis scored 29 in the losing effort. Nets 104, Clippers 92 When it rains it pours. One game away from beating the Warriors, we lose to the Nets. Hammonds essentially had his typical game, including 10 of 11 from the stripe, but no other Clippers bothered to show up. Nets PG Tyson Rice, a backup Clipper last season, is quickly becoming a star at 29 as he gets 27 points 9 rebounds 8 assists on the Clips. SG Jerry Maggette added 28 as well. Record after the Week: 15-15 NBA Player of the Week Timberwolves SF Alan Whitney grabs the award for the 11th time in his career. He average 31 ppg this week, although his team struggled to a 1-4 record. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers

05-06-2003, 09:04 PM	#23
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Monthly Review Eastern Conference Playoff Standings Toronto Raptors 19-9* .679 GB - New Jersey Nets 16-12* .571 GB 3.0 New Orleans Hornets 16-8* .667 GB 1.0 Cleveland Cavaliers 13-10* .565 GB 3.5 Washington Wizards 15 13* .536 GB 4.0 Philadelphia 76ers 12-12* .500 GB 5.0 Milwaukee Bucks 12-12* .500 GB 5.0 Chicago Bulls 13-15* .464 GB 6.0 Boston Celtics 10-14 .417 GB 7.0 Orlando Magic 14-19 .424 GB 7.5 Detroit Pistons 9-15 .375 GB 8.0 New York Knicks 11-18 .379 GB 8.5 Atlanta Hawks 10-17 .370 GB 8.5 Miami Heat 8-20 .286 GB11.0 Indiana Pacers 5-18 .217 GB 11.5 Well, maybe I'm not the best judge of which teams are going to be good here. The Nets, while in a weak division, are a big surprise to me and obviously a surprise to my team when they thromped us. Things haven't changed drastically since last month, so perhaps this is the natural order of things. Western Conference Playoff Standings Utah Jazz 19-9* .679 GB - Golden State Warriors18-8 .692 GB 0.0 Phoenix Suns18-8 .692 GB 0.0 Los Angeles Lakers17-8 .680 GB 0.5 San Antonio Spurs22-14 .611GB 1.0 Memphis Grizzlies15-12 .556 GB 3.5 Los Angeles Clippers 15-15 .500 GB 5.0 Houston Rockets12-12 .500GB 5.0 Sacramento Kings13-13 .500 GB 5.0 Portland Trailblazers 13-13* .500 GB 5.0 Dallas Mavericks 15-15 .500 GB 5.0 Minnesota Timberwolves 13-18 .419 GB 7.5 Seattle Sonics 11-19 .368 GB 9.0 Denver Nuggets 19-7 .346 GB9.0 Man, what a tough conference. Note that we are currently in a five-way tie for the last two playoff spots. It's only going to get tougher from here on out as well, as we still see the teams at the top many more times. League Leaders Scoring 1 Alan Whitney SF Timberwolves 30.5 2 Nick Stockton PG Suns 28.8 3 Jordan Malone PG Jazz 27.3 4 Tyson Rice PG Nets 26.4 5 Eric Macauley PG Cavaliers 25.6 6 Jerod Brady C Magic 25.5 7 Jessie Mann SG Cavaliers 25.3 8 Tim Langhi SG Pistons 24.8 9 Phillip Yong SF Rockets 24.0 10 Trenton Perkins SF Hornets 24.0 Rebounding 1 Alfonso Posey PF Mavericks 13.5 2 Ivan Longley C Spurs 13.0 3 Caleb Coleman PF Cavaliers 12.9 4 Marvin Williamson PF Bulls 12.9 5 Isidoro Peeler C Hornets 12.5 6 Renato Boykins C Kings 12.5 7 Devon Outlaw C Raptors 12.4 8 Carlos Boykins PF Wizards 12.2 9 Manuel Lapchick C Pistons 12.2 10 Drew Hepbron C Rockets 11.9 Assists 1 Jesus Roberson PG Magic 9.5 2 Aaron Benjamin PG Bulls 9.5 3 Jordan Malone PG Jazz 9.3 4 Corey Shireman PG Celtics 9.2 5 Nick Stockton PG Suns 9.0 6 Jake Barkley PG Timberwolves 8.5 7 Dustin Olsen PG Grizzlies 8.4 8 Jay Cheaney PG Raptors 7.9 9 Courtney Abbott PG Hawks 7.9 10 Donnell Rubini PG Mavericks 7.8 Other Clippers Isaac St John is 9th with 1.9 steals per game. Kenyon Haskins is 10th with a .503 field goal percentage. Caleb Hammonds is 3rd with 8.4 free throw attempts per game. Kenyon Haskins leads the league in 3 point percentage with .583. David Fabrizio is 3rd in turnovers per game with 3.5. Major Injuries Cavs rookie SF Cody Lewis will miss the rest of the season with a ruptured achilles. It is possible but unlikely that he would be back for the playoffs. Transactions No major transactions. NBA Player of the Month Spurs C Ivan Longley wins the award this month. He is currently averaging 16.5 points per game and 13.7 rebounds per game. I don't think he really is deserving of this award, whereas Nets PG Tyson Rice really had an unbelievably solid month. He went from a 5 ppg backup to scoring 26 ppg while leading a bad team to a good record. NBA Rookie of the Month Los Angeles Clippers PG David Fabrizio takes the award this month, and I think he deserves it. He had that 38 point outburst against the Suns and has overall shown signs of being a quality point guard for many years in this league. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers Last edited by RonnieDobbs : 05-14-2003 at 02:43 AM.

05-06-2003, 09:08 PM	#24
Coffee Warlord Head Coach Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Colorado Springs	This is really the first I even knew of the FBB game. Worth the 20 bucks? Play well? Blah blah blah?

05-06-2003, 09:15 PM	#25
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	L.A. Clippers Leaders PF Caleb Hammonds - 21.3 ppg, 10.8 rpg, 2.9 apg The unquestioned leader of this team. He's also the most consistent, and shows a great ability to get to the line and get other teams' players in foul trouble. Missed a couple of games, but I think will get better as the season goes on. SF Isaac St. John - 14.1 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 1.9 spg A good role player, St. John can occasionally score into the 20s when needed. I hope to have a better second option in the future, but for now he will do. He also plays great defense. PG David Fabrizio - 12.3 ppg, 6.8 apg, 1.6 spg He has done pretty much all I could hope for upon promotion to the starting lineup. His flashes of brilliance are great, but he's got to become consistent and stop turning the ball over. He'll have patches of terrible play where he hands the ball to the other team a few times in any quarter. C Zack Horry - 10.6 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 1.1 bpg He's a role player, and he's filling that role perfectly. He provides tough defense, can dominate on the boards, and is a capable scoring threat. I like Zack a lot, and unless we can find a star C somewhere he's my long-term plan. C Nate Krauss - 8.1 ppg, 4.9 rpg Nate's done a good job subbing for Zack and Caleb. SG Kenyon Haskins - 6.9 ppg Haskins is hurting from my inside game, which neglects his only skill - his outside shot. I may look to switch things up and start Cleaves instead. SG Alejandro Cleaves - 5.7 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 2.4 ppg Alejandro has done well in limited time. He may be an upgrade over Haskins, but I'm not expecting much. I'll give Haskins a little more time. PF Mark Baker - 5.5 ppg, 3.1 rpg Mark is entirely adequate as a backup PF/SF. The rest of the Clippers were not common enough contributors for me to write about (essentially garbage time guys). __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers

05-06-2003, 09:20 PM	#26
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	CW, my basic feelings on the game: I generally like it a lot. It's got enough depth for me, and I really have no problem "making up depth" when I find it to be a little lacking. However, I think for a lot of people here they may be disappointed in the depth when compared to OOTP or CM. I think it's more in line with FOF2001 (don't have FOF4) in terms of depth. The guys at the OOTP boards would have a field day with this, as the AI can sometimes be suspect. Great players sit on the bench, no. 1 overall picks see 2 minutes a game. Like the Nets PG Tyson Rice in my game. Last season, he played 6.9 minutes a game for me, now is averaging 26.4 ppg for the Nets. It wouldn't happen in the NBA. However, the bottom line for me is fun. And I've had fun with this the whole time I've had it, but especially with this diary. Also, something I don't know much about, the online league stuff is apparently quite good. Plus, if you have Coaching a Dynasty, you can import college draft files. Not sure how this would translate to TDCB, although I imagine they don't jive. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers Last edited by RonnieDobbs : 05-06-2003 at 09:23 PM.

05-07-2003, 01:07 AM	#27
MrBug708 Head Coach Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: Whittier	Its a good program, I've always liked it as well

05-07-2003, 09:23 PM	#28
RPI-Fan Pro Starter Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: Troy, NY	I'm a big fan - I even did a dynasty (Sacramento Emperors!), a ways back. __________________ Quis custodiets ipsos custodes?

05-08-2003, 04:59 PM	#29
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Week 9 Lakers @ Clippers 1st Quarter - Clippers 30, Lakers 26 A good offensive quarter from both teams, but 3 Clippers and 2 Lakers picked up 2 fouls each in the first quarter. Caleb Hammonds has 9 points and Kenyon Haskins has 8 with two 3-pointers. The Lakers have had a very balanced effort, led by SG Heydan Sedran with 7. At the Half - Clippers 50, Lakers 45 Both teams went ice-cold halfway through the second quarter, and barely scored for six minutes. The Clippers were led by Caleb Hammonds with 17 points 5 boards and 3 assists. David Fabrizio has 11 points and 5 assists, and only 3 turnovers (which is an improvement, I guess). For the Lakers, Sedran has 13 at the half. 3rd Quarter - Clippers 68, Lakers 68 A pretty ugly quarter for us which saw our free throw percentage, a usual strength, drop dramatically. Hammonds continued to play well with 21 and 8 boards, and Fabrizio has 14 points and 6 assists. The Lakers outside shooters continue to do well, with Sedran, PG Swift, and SF Kukoc all in double figures. Final - Clippers 91, Lakers 84 We get one back on the Lakers to go to 1-1 for the season. A good game where we held on at the end. The gane was actually only a one point game with a minute left, and we took them to town. Clippers Leaders PF Hammonds 28 points, 14 rebounds PG Fabrizio 18 points, 6 assists Lakers Leaders SG Sedran 24 points PG Swift 15 points, 6 assists Rest of Week Kings 91, Clippers 80 Caleb Hammonds disappeared this game, and shot under 20%. That makes it tough to win. St. John came through with 21, but that's not nearly enough. Kings C Renato Boykins had 20 and 14 boards, and PF Quincy Morgenweck had 20 and 12 rebounds. Clippers 108, Pistons 96 David Fabrizio has another big game, scoring 27 and adding 9 assists. Most of those were to Hammonds, who put up 30 points and 16 rebounds. The Pistons were led by C Trenton Martin with 17 points and 6 rebounds. Trailblazers 101, Clippers 85 We never led in this one. Hammonds led the way with 22 and 7 assists, but only 2 rebounds as we got killed on the boards. Fabrizio had 15 points and 10 assists. Blazers C Jerry Carr had 22 points 15 rebounds 7 assists, and PG Stephen Fischer scored a season-high 23. Record After the Week: 17-17 We're playing very mediocre ball right now. We'll have good games, but our consistency is way too low. I wish Fabrizio would stop turning the ball over and become a good number 2 option, but I don't know if he's got it in him right now. NBA Player of the Week Knicks SG Phillip Rayburn is this week's winner. He averaged 22 ppg this week, and is shooting 45% from three point land this season. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers

05-13-2003, 12:02 PM	#30
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Week 10 Forgot to mention this in the last post, but Isaac St. John will miss this week with a broken finger. Sonics @ Clippers 1st Quarter - Clippers 21, Sonics 17 Ugly first quarter, with both Hammonds and Horry, as well as two Sonics, picking up 2 fouls. Luckily we go 11-11 from the line, and hench our lead. C Zack Horry got 5 points and 4 rebounds before getting into foul trouble. The Sonics are led by SF Liebman, giving them 7 points from the bench. At the Half - Clippers 50, Sonics 41 A good quarter where we draw a ton of fouls, and 4 Sonics have 3 fouls at the half. I really like this offensive switch I made, as it just wears teams down. Hammonds has 12 points and 6 boards, including 8 for 8 from the line. PF Mark Baker, starting for St. John, has 7 points and 5 boards. SF Liebman has put in 10 points off the bench for the Sonics. 3rd Quarter - Clippers 72, Sonics 72 A 13-3 run at the start puts the Sonics ahead. The Sonics were just hitting everything this quarter en route to putting up 31 points. Sonics PG Thurmond now has 15 points and 6 assists. For the Clippers, Caleb Hammonds had a big quarter and now has 22 points 8 boards. Fabrizio has 15 points 4 assists 3 steals. Final - Sonics 99, Clippers 90 Ugh, what a terrible fourth quarter for us. The Sonics continued shooting hot, while Hammonds was throwing up bricks left and right. Clippers Leaders PF Hammonds - 25 points 11 rebounds PF Baker - 16 points 9 rebounds Sonics Leaders C Daly - 19 points, 6 boards, 4 blocks PLAYER OF THE GAME SF Tarlac - 17 points, 5 rebounds Rest of the Week Clippers 86, Timberwolves 84 PF Hammonds shot the ball 29 times, and made 10 for 24 points. The Clippers were down by 12 to start the fourth, so this was a good comeback. We also "held" T-wolves SF Whitney to 26 points. Grizzlies 111, Clippers 95 Caleb Hammonds disappeared this game, and Fabrizio stepped up with 27 points, but it wasn't nearly enough. The Grizzlies brought a very balanced attack, led by PF Chuck McKie's 19 points and 12 rebounds. Record After the Week: 18-19 NBA Player of the Week Grizzlies PG Dustin Olsen is this week's winner. He put up 17 points and got 9 assists against the Clippers. So far this season, he has 22.4 ppg 8.4 apg. This is his first time winning the award. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers

05-13-2003, 05:54 PM	#31
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Week 11 Clippers @ Wizards 1st Quarter - Clippers 24, Wizards 23 I'm surprised we're doing as well as we are, considering we got destroying on the rebounding this quarter. They had so many second shots, even a handful of third and fourth shots. Hammonds was hot, netting 11 while Wizards SG Hahn Fuller put up 7. At the Half - Clippers 50, Wizards 46 Pretty much a continuation of the first quarter. We're shooting very well, but they're getting many more shots due to offensive rebounds and Clippers' turnovers. Hammonds has 14 and Fabrizio has 7 with 4 assists. Hahn Fuller now has 13 to lead the Wizards. 3rd Quarter - Wizards 68, Clippers 64 Terrible quarter where we can't even buy a bucket. Hammonds leads with 22 and 6 boards, but also has 5 turnovers. Isaac St. John had a strong 3rd Quarter, ending up with 10 points 4 rebounds 4 assists. Wizards C Xavier Cronin has 11 points and 8 rebounds. Final - Wizards 93, Clippers 86 We just ran out of steam here. We had them within 3 with 4 minutes left, but then let it slip away. We're certainly losing a lot more than were winning now, and the playoffs are looking to be a lot less certain. Clippers Leaders PF Hammonds - 37 points, 9 rebounds PG Fabrizio - 6 points, 7 rebounds, 10 assists Wizards Leaders SG Fuller - 19 points C Cronin - 12 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists PLAYER OF THE GAME Rest of the Week Hornets 99, Clippers 97 We actually played really well this game, just short of well enough. SF St. John led with 26 points and Hammonds got 18 while shooting well. PF Samuel Bing of the Hornets got 16 points and 11 rebounds to lead the balanced Hornets attack. Timberwolves 76, Clippers 71 I'm glad I didn't have tickets to this one. Isaac St. John got 19, while Hammonds added 17 and 18 rebounds. The leader for the Timberwolves, of course, was SF Alan Whitney who scored 31. Clippers 98, Timberwolves 94 We return the favor to the T-wolves at their place. Hammonds had 21 points and Horry added 16 and 9 rebounds. Whitney disappeared for the T-wolves, who were instead led by SG Brandon Garrett's 17 points. Record After the Week: 19-22 NBA Player of the Week Rockets C Drew Hepbron is this weeks' PoW Award winner. The defensive threat played well in all 5 games this week, getting 4 double doubles and menacing the paint for the Rockets' opponents. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers

05-13-2003, 06:20 PM	#32
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Week 12 Clippers @ Lakers 1st Quarter - Clippers 25, Lakers 19 This was the quarter of Caleb Hammonds, as he got 13 points and 6 rebounds. Isaac St. John played tough defense and came up with 3 steals and 6 points. The Lakers outside shooters were hot for the first half of the quarter, and are led by SF Cole Kukoc with 7 points and 4 boards. At the Half - Clippers 41, Lakers 35 Atrocious shooting from both teams this quarter. Hammonds has 18 and 11 boards, while St. John is now at 11 points 6 rebounds. For the Lakers, Swift, Sedran, and Kukoc, their starting shooters, all have 8 points. 3rd Quarter - Lakers 57, Clippers 56 Eeeeeeeew. Man, this Clipper team is really starting to stink it up. At the half, we're shooting 38 percent. Luckily, the Lakers are shooting even worse. Hammonds has 22 points and 12 rebounds, while PG Swift leads the Lakers with 14. Neither team is getting many assists, though, as a total of 20 have been made so far this game. Final - Lakers 80, Clippers 71 Once again, the Clippers just run out of gas before the game is over. Today's game was an offensive nightmare. Bricks, turnovers, and terrible defense were the story of the fourth. Clippers Leaders PF Hammonds - 28 points 16 rebounds SF St. John - 16 points Lakers Leaders PG Swift - 19 points SG Sedran - 18 points Rest of the Week Warriors 103, Clippers 96 Probably PG David Fabrizio's best complete game yet, with 24 points and 14 assists. Caleb Hammonds added 24 and 10 boards. Warriors PF Malik Douglas had 24 points 19 rebounds, SG Ernest Meanwell added 23. Clippers 124, Pacers 101 An increasingly rare game where pretty much everything seems to go right. Hammonds put up 35 and 10, while Fabrizio scored 22 for his second straight good game. C Nate Kraus came off the bench for 19. The Pacers were led by SF Nick Kim's 24 points. Hornets 106, Clippers 99 We go into the All-Star Break on a sour note. Hammonds muscling up 38 points and grabbing 14 rebounds wasn't enough to stop the Hornets, led by SF Trenton Perkins's 40 points. Record After the Week: 20-25 NBA Player of the Week For the second time this year, Los Angeles Clippers PF Caleb Hammonds is named the winner. He averaged over 31 points and 12.5 boards per game this week. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers

05-13-2003, 06:53 PM	#33
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Monthly Review Eastern Conference Playoff Standings New Orleans Hornets 25-12* .676 GB - Washintgon Wizards23-17 .575 GB 3.5 Toronto Raptors 25-14 .641 GB 1.0 Chicago Bulls25-18 .581 GB 3.0 Cleveland Cavaliers20-16 .556 GB 4.5 New Jersey Nets 20-20* .500 GB 6.5 Philadelphia 76ers 16-18* .471 GB 7.5 Boston Celtics 17-19* .472 GB 7.5 Orlando Magic 20-24 .455 GB 8.5 Milwaukee Bucks 16-23 .410 GB 10.0 New York Knicks 17-26 .395 GB 11.0 Atlanta Hawks 15-24 .385 GB 11.0 Miami Heat 15-27 .357 GB 12.5 Indiana Pacers 10-24 .294 GB13.5 Detroit Pistons 12-27 .308 GB 14.0 This month, it's the Washington Wizards that I'm surprised about. My L.A. Clippers was one of the teams they ran through this month. The Bulls and Magic have been playing better recently, and could make good 2nd half pushes. Western Conference Playoff Standings Phoenix Suns 28-10* .737 GB - Utah Jazz 27-13* .675 GB 2.0 Golden State Warriors 27-14* .659 GB 2.5 San Antonio Spurs 31-18* .633 GB 2.5 Sacramento Kings 23-17* .575 GB 6.0 Los Angeles Lakers 21-18* .538 GB 7.5 Memphis Grizzlies 22-21* .512 GB 8.5 Dallas Mavericks 22-21* .512 GB 8.5 Houston Rockets 19-22 .463 GB 10.5 Portland Trailblazers 18-21 .462 GB 10.5 Los Angeles Clippers 20-25 .444 GB 11.5 Seattle Sonics 19-25 .432 GB 12.0 Minnesota Timberwolves 18-27 .400 GB 13.5 Denver Nuggets 14-24 .368 GB 14.0 The Clippers are falling my friends. 3 games out of the playoffs at the halfway point. It's still pretty much anyone's season, although the Suns, Jazz, and Warriors are the obvious cream of the crop here. League Leaders Scoring 1 Alan Whitney SF Timberwolves 29.4 2 Nick Stockton PG Suns 29.1 3 Jordan Malone PG Jazz 26.0 4 Tyson Rice PG Nets 25.7 5 Jerod Brady C Magic 25.3 6 Micah Bullard SF Bulls 25.0 7 Jessie Mann SG Cavaliers 24.5 8 Phillip Yong SF Rockets 24.1 9 Eric Macauley PG Cavaliers 24.0 10 Trenton Perkins SF Hornets 23.9 Rebounding 1 Ivan Longley C Spurs 13.3 2 Alfonso Posey PF Mavericks 13.3 3 Marvin Williamson PF Bulls 13.1 4 Devon Outlaw C Raptors 12.5 5 Caleb Coleman PF Cavaliers 12.5 6 Renato Boykins C Kings 12.2 7 Carlos Boykins PF Wizards 12.0 8 Drew Hepbron C Rockets 12.0 9 Malik Douglas PF Warriors 11.9 10 Manuel Lapchick C Pistons 11.6 Assists 1 Jesus Roberson PG Magic 9.7 2 Nick Stockton PG Suns 9.0 3 Aaron Benjamin PG Bulls 8.8 4 Corey Shireman PG Celtics 8.8 5 Jordan Malone PG Jazz 8.6 6 Jake Barkley PG Timberwolves 8.5 7 Dustin Olsen PG Grizzlies 8.2 8 Courtney Abbott PG Hawks 7.9 9 Jim Oneal PG Warriors 7.9 10 Jay Cheaney PG Raptors 7.7 Other Clippers Isaac St John is 9th with 2.0 steals per game. Caleb Hammonds is 3rd with 7.8 free throw attempts per game. Kenyon Haskins leads the league in 3 point percentage with .589. David Fabrizio is 2nd in turnovers per game with 3.7. Zack Horry is 5th in Fouls-per-game with 3.1. Major Injuries Cavs rookie SF Cody Lewis will miss the rest of the season with a ruptured achilles. Transactions Jazz Trade SG Damian Perdue to the Grizzlies for C Alejandro Montana. A trade of no real consequence, although both are very young. NBA Player of the Month This month's winner is Bulls PG Aaron Benjamin, as he led the team to a great month. This is the first time Benjamin has ever won this award. He is averagine 15.2 ppg and 8.8 apg. NBA Rookie of the Month Los Angeles Clippers PG David Fabrizio takes the award for the second consecutive month. As his coach, I can vouch for his performance. He's pretty much my second best scoring threat, and to get someone like that as a rookie out of the 18th pick is great. He's averaging 13.9 ppg 6.9 apg. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers Last edited by RonnieDobbs : 05-14-2003 at 02:42 AM.

05-13-2003, 06:56 PM	#34
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	Clippers Team Stats I'm going to alternate this with individual stats as neither change too much over the course of one month. Points Per Game: 91.0 (28th) Points Allowed Per Game: 95.0 (9th) Rebounds Per Game: 47.6 (29th) Assists Per Game: 21.8 (25th) Blocks Per Game: 5.2 (29th) Steals Per Game: 9.0 (11th) Turnovers Per Game: 14.2 (20th) Field Goal %: .434 (17th) __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers Last edited by RonnieDobbs : 05-14-2003 at 12:01 PM.

05-14-2003, 01:25 AM	#35
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	All-Star Weekend!!! Rookie All-Star Game Sophomores 109, Rookies 105 Rookies Brian Bibby C Wizards Mason Ratliff SF Celtics David Fabrizio PG Clippers Maxwell Parker SF Nets Joshua Baker PF Kings Cameron Kelly PG Jazz Isaac Quigley PF Lakers Joseph Rupp SG Nets Eddie Walton C Clippers Antonio Mourning SG Hornets Sophomores Julio Cone PF Cavaliers Jerod Brady C Magic Jordan Schenk SF Jazz Jonathon Crum SF Raptors Edwin Potapenko PG Kings Rookie-Sophomore Game MVP Kody Kemp PF Trailblazers Gary Patterson SG Jalen Schwartz C Raptors Alexander Aridge SG Heat Donnell Rubini PG Mavericks 3-Point Shootout First Round Alan Whitney SF Timberwolves Nick Stockton PG Suns Earnest Meanwell SG Warriors Jordon Malone PG Jazz Eric Macualey PG Cavaliers Micah Bullard SF Bulls Julio Church SG Spurs Alexis Crotty SG Grizzlies Round Two Macualey Stockton Malone Whitney Final Macauley - 11 Stockton - 9 Slam Dunk Contest Won by Daniel Ilgauskus, PF of the Spurs. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers

05-14-2003, 01:49 AM	#36
RonnieDobbs High School JV Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Boston, MA	*THE 2000 NBA ALL-STAR GAME* Western Conferences All-Stars Starters C Jerry Carr, Trailblazers The 29 year old Carr is attending his second All-Star game, having previously been selected in 1998. He is currently averaging a career high 17.9 ppg, along with 10.1 rebounds and 3.5 blocks. He is also shooting the best he has in his career by far, although still only at .454. PF Malik Douglas, Warriors Malik has been named two his second straight All-Star game at the age of 31. Douglas is part of the brusing frontcourt of the Warriors, averaging 18 points a game, 11.8 boards and 3.4 blocks. He too has raised his shooting this season a noticably amount to .475. SF Alan Whitney, Timberwolves 5-Time All-Star starter Alan Whitney is showing few signs of slowing down, except for the team he is trying to drag through the season. He's doing it all this season, scoring 29.4 a game and getting a great number of rebounds, assists, and steals. Were he on a winning team people would be calling him an MVP candidate, but unfortunetly the T-wolves are headed to the lottery. SG Andre Dalessio, Sonics Delessio will be starting in his first ever All-Star appearance at 26. A former Sixth Man of the Year, he's starting with the Sonics and averaging a career-best 17.1 ppg. He has also shown the ability to rebound well for a 2-guard. He has, though, shown himself this season to be kind of lazy on the defensive end. PG Nick Stockton, Suns The 27 year old Stockton is enjoying his fourth straight All-Star appearence, and could be well on his way to his third straight MVP award. He is putting up 29.1 ppg, 9.0 apg, and 5.5 rpg. And he's doing this all in the final year of his contract. Stockton will be a huge free agent this offseason, and has pushed all contract talk until after the season. His eyes are set on the ring. Bench C Dominic Ellis, Warriors Ellis joins teammate Douglas on the 2000 All-Star team. This 23 year old young turk has been taking the Western Conference by storm in his sophomore year, and gets his first All-Star nod in return. He's averaging 20.4 ppg and 9.4 rpg. PF Caleb Hammonds, Clippers The way he's carried this team, he certainly deserves it. Hammonds, 27, hasn't been to the All-Star game since 1996, but his 22.3 ppg and 10.9 rpg is enough to make the cut this year. SF Philip Yong, Rockets At 25 Yong is headed to his second straight All-Star Game. He has truly had a break-out season this year, catapulting himsef into the upper echelon of players in the NBA. He is scoring 24.1 ppg, and at 6'9" has the versatility and defensive acumen to shut down the best scorer on the other team, no matter what position. SG Heyden Sedran, Lakers The 23 year old former second round pick is in his first All-Star Game in his first season of many with the Lakers. He has a sweet outside shot, and is scoring a career high 20 ppg this season. PG Jordan Malone, Jazz Of course Malone is the other point guard. The 28 year old Malone is having his most prolific season yet, scoring 26 ppg and adding 8.6 apg. Eastern Conference All-Stars Starters C Jerod Brody, Magic Two seasons, two times starting in the All-Star Game for Brody. He's getting better by the week it seems, and this season he is leading a young Magic team into a fight to get into the playoffs. His numbers this season include 25.3 ppg and 11.6 rebounds per game, and he will probably increase these as the season goes on. He's an incredible talent. PF Carlos Boykins, Wizards The 32 year old veteran Boykins, signed for the mid-level exception this offseason by the Wizards, is playing in his third All-Star Game. 18.8 ppg and 12.0 rpg are his numbers, but what makes him special is that his veteran leadership and will to win are pushing a less than talented Wizards team towards the playoffs, and possibly even a division crown. SF Trenton Perkins, Hornets The 11-year vet is playing in now a 2-time All-Star. He's a great scorer, at 23.9 ppg, and a good rebounder for his position, with 6.8 rpg. He's an extremely versatile player as he can score from inside and out, can dish the ball and also play defense. He's also a minute eater, averaging 36 mpg this season. SG Jessie Mann, Cavaliers The 33 year old Texas A&M graduate is playing great in his veteran days. He's averaging 24.5 points and 7.1 rebounds and is the glue that holds the Cavaliers together. On paper, they don't look like much, but in a weak East they're putting together wins, and may end up in the post season once again this year. PG Aaron Benjamin, Bulls It's a bunch of firsts for the 30 year old veteran, as he got his first career PoM Award this month and now will appear in his first All-Star Game. Benjamin has been the quarterback for a team that has underachieved a bit this season, but appears to have gotten things together recently and is poised to get a cushy seed for the postseason. His stats aren't unbelievable: 15.2 ppg, 8.8 apg, 5.5 rpg. However, his heart and leadership are what got him into this starting spot in the All-Star Game. The Bench C Devon Outlaw, Raptors Former Defensive Player of the Year Outlaw is invited to his second straight All-Star game. The man isn't much of a scoring threat, only getting 13.9 ppg this season. However, he also gets 12.5 rpg and 3.3 bpg and is a huge defensive force in the paint. The man has three career triples doubles, but never has he gotten more that 7 assists. That's blocking ability. PF Samuel Bing, Hornets First time honoree Bing is, at 29, a steady double double man. The Hornets have got to be happy, as they have him for 3 more years for only 14.2 million dollars. This season, he's averaging 15.9 ppg 10.3 rpg. SF Micah Bullard, Bulls Bullard gets his fourth All-Star nod in five seasons, leading a potent Bulls offense with 25 ppg. Surprisingly for such a consistenly excellent players, he has never won a PoW Award. SG Devon Marion, 76ers A somewhat surprising pick for his fourth straight All-Star Game, the league's conventional wisdom says that at 31 Marion is past his peak. His numbers are down this season, only getting 17.6 ppg and 4.5 apg, both career lows. PG Tyson Rice, Nets The feel-good story of this All-Star Game. This 29 year old struggled to find garbage time minutes with the Clippers the last three seasons, but apparently the Nets saw something in him that the previous ownership didn't; he's having a great season. He's getting 25.7 ppg and 7.1 apg. I think if he were doing that for us we wouldn't be worried about playoffs right now. The Game East 123 - West 114 MVP: PG Aaron Benjamin (23 points, 14 assists) __________________ ----------------------------------------- Lookin' forward to great seasons from my 'Skins, Cubbies, and Red Sox (please humor me) Proud Manager of the BOSTON WYCKYD SCEPTRE Also attempting to Right The Ship with the Clippers