Last season, the Clippers hired Neil Olshey, a former soap opera star, as their new GM.  Clipper fans said this must be Hollywood.

Mike Dunleavy then went on to arbitration with Donald Sterling and won $13.5 million.  Clipper fans said this must be the Clippers.

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It’s hard to say which Mike Dunleavy was worse at, coaching or managing.  His stringent offensive control never allowed Baron Davis to ever get the Clippers into a flowing offense.  His playbook was the size of a physicians reference book, only more confusing and much more useless.  The trade of Marcus Camby to the Blazers for Steve Blake and Travis Outlaw still stands as absurd.  Why rent those two players for 37 games and miss out on a chance to re-sign Marcus Camby?  To get a better look at them?  Neither were offered contracts by the Clippers the following season.  Dunleavy was fired as GM less than one month following this trade.

The Clippers have moved forward since then and have given the reins to the smooth talking, say the right thing at the right time, Neil Olshey.  The jury is still out on his performance thus far.  He struck out on signing Lebron James last season.  But let’s face it, so did many other good teams.  And a DVD on local places to eat in L.A. probably didn’t win the King over when convincing him to play for the red, white, and blue.  But Olshey has said the right things about developing the young talent on this team.  He has talked about playing “the right way,” and “building the right culture.”

Olshey got some slack for trading away Baron Davis and first overall pick Kyrie Irving for Mo Williams and Jamario Moon.  But I think it stands as the correct trade for now.  The Clippers will miss out on Kyrie Irving, but they were able to unload the albatross of a contract Baron never lived up to.  The Clippers will get the financial security to re-sign emerging center Deandre Jordan and will get to spread the floor with Mo Williams.  And lets face it, they don’t need to get any younger with their core players Blake Griffin and Eric Gordon 21 and 22 respectively.

Olshey has one main area to address for the Clippers, and that is the gaping hole at the small forward position.  Last season, the Clippers acquired Ryan Gomes via free agency giving him a three year-$12 million deal (talk about a step down from Lebron James).  After some flashes of success in Minnesota, Ryan Gomes was downright terrible in a Clipper uniform.  Vinny Del Negro went with him as a starter for defensive purposes, but he had career lows in field goal percentage (41 percent), free throw percentage (71 percent), rebounds per game (3.3), and points per game (7.2.)  He also does not have a polished go-to move that most NBA small forwards have, except for a stand still jump shot that surprises even him when it goes in.

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The Clippers Future: Neil Olshey’s Way - The 110 Report - The 110 Report - A Los Angeles Sports Site

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Fast forward to May 17, when the NBA’s Annual Draft Lottery was held in Secaucus, New Jersey. Much to the surprise of mathematicians and NBA executives alike, the Clippers’ pick won the entire lottery, giving the Cleveland Cavaliers two of the top four picks. The shocking pick had the eighth best shot at winning, a miniscule 0.028 percent.

For the Clippers the deadline deal hinged mainly on the need to cut ties with Baron Davis’s salary and not the draft, as Davis is still owed $28 million over the next two seasons. GM Neil Olshey ultimately decided to risk the draft pick in favor the salary dump, and at the time of the trade, was adamant that the that the lack depth in the draft made the trade a simple one.

“The drill is, as always, is ‘Is the player you’re getting back more valuable than the potential you could get in the draft?’” said Clippers general manager Neil Olshey. “Our analysis at this point in February is that it was more valuable to get a 28-year-old All-Star point guard that we have for the next few years, cap flexibility to make sure we take care of business and re-sign DeAndre Jordan and have flexibility to take care of Eric Gordon as well, as opposed to speculating on another kid that’s 19 years old with one year of college experience. And I’m not that high on the draft to begin with this year.”

Olshey didn’t know then that the he would have had the chance of picking Duke point guard Kyrie Irving, whom the Cavaliers are expected select first on Thursday. This begs the question, is dumping the Baron Davis salary worth losing a consensus No. 1 pick, in Irving? Of course.

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Despite No. 1 Pick, Clippers Still Right in Baron Davis Deal - The 110 Report - The 110 Report - A Los Angeles Sports Site

Lakers Win Ugly as Bench Folds - The 110 Report - The 110 Report - A Los Angeles Sports Site