2011-2012 Finish: 32-34

Season Highlight
This season was a bit all over the place for the Clippers. They started the season slowly with their management stagnant. Nothing much was happening. Sure stability can be a good thing, but standing still and watching the world go by isn't gonna get you far in the NLL. Then along came a new GM. And then, along came a new GM. Did I repeat myself? Yes. Why am I mentioning all this in the Highlight section? Well really the highlight of the season came when Jeremy took over the franchise and showed that a General Manager should infect "manage". He didn't blow up the roster or anything radical, but he made some subtle moves and eventually got the team moving forward. A 3-12 start to the season miraculously transformed into a playoff appearance - that's a highlight in anyone's book.


Season Lowlight
The pre-Jeremy days. The Clippers had parted ways with Lebron a season before under the guidance of veteran GM Dert. They were building a team around Ellis and Boozer - or were they? "Building" usually means things changing. Unfortunately for the Clippers, their GM seemed to go AWOL. There appeared to be a running battle with league management and the bad blood showed in the Clippers GM lack of involvement and finally ended very early in the season with Dert's departure. In stepped a bright new face - no not Jeremy, TJ. Yes, the Clips went through a few GMs. TJ lasted all of about 2 weeks before Jeremy was brought in for right the ship. But the instability was taking it's toll and a 3-12 start was the result.


Best Trade
It may seem weird and many might argue otherwise, but the best trade for the Clippers was sending away Carlos Boozer and Wesley Matthews for Mike Conely, an injured Varejao, a bunch of benches and a plethora of 2nd rounders. But surely the Mavs got the better players in this deal I hear you (greenmail) say. Yes Boozer and Matthews probably are better than Conley and an injured guy. But it's the effect the move had on the team dynamics that made this a winner. With Boozer and Matthews out of the lineup, Monta Ellis went to a new level and took the Clips to the 8th seed in the West. The 3 2nd round picks panned out nicely and Varejao was flipped into Paul Pierce after the draft. The Clippers are looking strong for season 12-13. Sometimes less is more.


Worst Trade
There simply wasn't a worst trade. And no I'm not going to pick something as being bad just for the sake of it.


Other Notable Trades
Matt Bonner was turned into Timofey Mozgov. The big Ruski was treading water in New York at the time and the Knicks were desperate to part ways. And while he's nothing special, Matt Bonner is even less special, so win-win really. However, perhaps the most interesting trades came after the 11-12 season had finished. Jeremy wasn't content to sit back and be content with taking the Clippers from the bottom of the west to the playoffs. He decided he'd go all out and put together a lineup that could challenge in 12-13. 2 key trades brought in some veterans who given the franchise a real shot at being the West's #1 team. Amare Stoudemire was acquired from the re-tooling Hornets - it cost some youth in Thompson, Bledsoe and a first rounder, but also managed to move the irksome contract of Tyrus Thomas. Then Varejao was moved for Paul Pierce. Two big moves that bring in ageing players, but they are guys who can still be a presence. A risk, but a good bold move at the same time.


Best FA Signing
Free agency came and went during the Clippers "down period". So it's no surprise that there is nothing to talk about here.


Worst FA Signing
Tony Battie, Roger Mason, Jason Collins. Wow - take your pick.


Star
Monta Ellis - G - this is a no brainer. Monta had an up and down start to the season. He was used at PG a lot and struggled for consistency. But when Boozer and Matthews were shipped out, Ellis went to SG and formed a game winning backcourt duo with Mike Conley. Ellis went off - as did the Clips. He was their highest scorer in all but 2 of the Clippers final 31 games that he played in in the regular season. He almost single handedly got the Clippers the 8th seed in the West.


Surprise
Tony Allen - G/F - acquired in the Boozer/Conley trade, Allen took on the starting SF role for the Clippers and started all 22 games he played for the franchise. Generally recognised as a defensive specialist, Allen brought his game to both ends of the floor for the Clips. While Ellis was lighting it up, Allen did his bit defensively yet still managed to average 12.1 ppg on 50% shooting.


Goat
VT would probably have an aneurism if I didn't hand this to ex-GM Dert. LOL. So there you go. Dert did let the team stagnate and things were looking grim. We'll give him a little sheep friend in temporary failure GM TJ who had an unsuccessful crack at the job before Jeremy joined to get things back on track.


Draft Report Card
The Clips traded their first round pick, #15 (which ended up Terrence Jones), in the deal to acquire Amare. It has it's risks, but if Amare stays healthy he could still be a force and the reward could be great. So in the end they only had a series of 2nd round picks - which they used very wisely. Will Barton and Darius Miller will be great bench contributors next season. The Clips have a big starting lineup, but they chew up a lot of cap, so cheap benches who contribute are going to be a necessity. Kostas Papanikolaou will stay in Europe but has some big raps and could be a good signing when he does come over. The Clips didn't have high picks, but what they did have they used wisely, so they get a solid B.


Looking to the Future
The future is now! Well a few months away. As already mentioned, the Clippers gave up a youth movement in favour of a, lets try and make a big splash now move. They have assembled one of the strongest starting 5s in the West, potential in the entire NLL. Conley-Ellis-Pierce-Amare-(Other), ok, its a starting 4, but it's a bloody good one. The key will be Amare and Pierce staying healthy - they are ageing players and things could go pear shaped if injuries strike, so there is certainly risk involved. But you've gotta love a bit of risk and the direction Jeremy is looking to go next season. The other main issue is salary. Star talent doesn't come cheap and with several empty roster slots, the Clips are sitting only $4.5m under the luxury tax. So they will need to spend wisely to fill out the roster.

Can Mozgov be a legit starter at C? The other 4 starting spots are well and truly covered - all Mozgov needs to do is get on those boards and use his big body. But he seemed allergic to hard work last season. Can the Clips find a cheap alternative up front? It will be interesting to see how they can fill out the roster.


Upcoming Free Agents
Vlad Rad, the under achieving Johnny Flynn and Julyan Stone. Nothing that you will miss there. Proabably not even worth trying to convince them to stay. Who they pick up and how much it will cost is more the question.