Clippers change course

Bobby Simmons returned to Staples Center Tuesday night. He must have liked what he saw…in his old team.

And as Simmons scored 13 points, Clipper management also liked what they saw; a much improved team on their side, and a good but overpaid forward on the other.

The Clippers soundly beat down Simmons and his new squad, the Milwaukee Bucks, 109-85, and find themselves tied for the best record in the Western Conference.

The Clippers, of course, are a franchise less experienced at winning than any in professional sports. Clipper selections have been known to cry on draft day. The team has eight last place finishes in 12 years. So letting go of the man voted the league’s Most Improved Player would seem like perfect Clipper-logic (read: idiotic).

Last season, Simmons’ points-per-game jumped from 7.8 to 16.4, a big reason the team’s win total jumped from 28 to 37. With a 24-year-old player breaking out and becoming a popular player, keeping him would seem to be an offseason priority. But they didn’t. And fans murmured to themselves: here they go again.

Not so fast. The Clippers’ biggest addition of the offseason had a much bigger effect Tuesday than its biggest subtraction. Sam Cassell flirted with a double-double, dropping 23 points and nine assists on the helpless Bucks, who came in at 4-1.

Simmons signed with the Bucks for five years and $47 million. Sounds like the Carl Pavano deal. The Clippers cannot afford to pay "nice" players that kind of dough, especially ones with just one good season on the resume.

"I love having Bobby, wish we could have worked it out," coach Mike Dunleavy said. "They made him a great offer that he couldn’t refuse."

The unsaid ending to that quote: "…and an offer that we would have been stupid to match."

And Tuesday’s game hammered the point home. Simmons did score eight in the second quarter, but it wasn’t enough to prevent the Clippers from stretching their lead to 55-44 by halftime. On the season he is averaging 14.0 points and 5.8 rebounds. No one is confusing the guy with Tracy McGrady.

Remember, this is a franchise that hasn’t won 40 games since Shaq was the Rookie of the Year. The Clippers would only crack 30 wins twice in next nine seasons. As achievements go for someone in the NBA, 30 wins falls somewhere in between not catching yourself in your zipper and successfully making a grilled cheese sandwich.

These, however, are the new Clippers. Since taking over in 2003, Dunleavy has led the team to win increases each year, from 27 to 28 to 37. Now they lead the Western Conference. And while few are comparing them to the San Antonio Spurs, the team’s first playoff berth since 1997 seems a reasonable expectation at this point.

"My mentality from day one has been that we are going to win," Dunleavy said.

This year the team has taken another giant step in that direction. And it all started with leaving enough cash to take on Cassell, who makes $6.74 million this season. His arrival would have been impossible with a new deal for Simmons and owner Donald Sterling still holding the purse strings tight enough to choke a power forward.

And although the aging point guard (Cassell turns 36 Friday) has just a year left on his contract, he has been just what the Clippers needed. Dunleavy called him a "character," and says Cassell’s energetic personality has been a positive influence on team chemistry. More importantly he brings a veteran presence used to winning. He will help keep the team focused and get them out of the eventual ruts every team eventually runs into.

On top of that, he helps the players around him. Elton Brand, one of those players who has never sniffed the playoffs, is scoring 23.3 points per game this season, noticeably above his 19.6 career average. His shooting percentage, 57.1 percent, stands out from his 49.8 career figure.

Could this all be an anomaly? It’s the Clippers, they will find a way to blow it right? Possibly. But not likely. The atmosphere on this team has changed. And between Cassell, Brand, and Corey Maggette, the Clippers have a plenty of talent to reach the playoffs.

Seems as if fans at the Staples Center have seen the last of the abysmal basketball they are used to.

Well, at least from the team in red and blue.