The Blake Show - Lob City

As of today, the Clippers are the best team in the NBA.

This is not my opinion but a fact. With the league’s best  record of 24-6 and currently riding a franchise record winning streak of 16 straight games the Clippers appear to be unstoppable.

Naysayers will understandably rush to check the Clippers’ schedule in hopes of derailing the “Lob City”  train with accusations of an easy schedule. Sadly they will be forced to find another way to stop this machine as wins against playoff bound teams such as the Grizzlies, Lakers, Spurs, Trail Blazers, Atlanta, Miami, Denver and Boston prove otherwise.

How did this happen you ask?

It all started with Blake Griffin getting drafted to the Clippers with the 1st overall pick in 2009 but who had to sit out his first year due to injury. The Clippers went 29-53 that season and finished outside the playoffs in the 12th spot near the bottom of the Western Conference. Griffin would be cleared to play in 2010-11 and shocked the world with his athletic dunks turning him into an instant All-Star and a household name around the world. That still wouldn’t be enough as the Clippers finished the year with only 3 more wins at 32-50 and even lower than the previous year at the 13th spot in the West to end the season.

As phenomenal as Blake was, he would need help and it came in the form of Chris Paul.

In several confusing hours that perhaps could only be explained with the help of X-Files FBI agent Fox Mulder, Chris Paul became a Los Angeles Clipper. The Clippers finished the 2011-12 season in 5th place with a 40-26 record, beat the Grizzlies in a 7 game 1st round playoff series but came up short getting swept in 4 games against the Spurs in the 2nd round.

With that we come full circle. The Clippers’ run and gun style known as “Lob City” are the new kings of L.A. even though 5 All-Stars make up the Los Angeles Lakers’ starting lineup. To be fair, the Clippers bench is riddled with talent and arguably the best 12 man roster in the NBA. The Clippers bench plays just as intense as the starters and are capable of closing out games giving the stars a well deserved breather keeping their legs rested for the next game.

All this to say the Clippers deserve to be where they are and are have had fun getting here. They’re not only destined to make noise in the playoffs but if they can avoid their Kryptonite (Grizzlies and Spurs) who slow the pace of the game essentially shutting down “Lob City”, they could be headed to the NBA Finals. With a team history of no Division Titles, Conference Titles or Championships since the team was founded in 1970, even naysayers have to admit it would be fun to watch history made one lob at a time.

Lob City Rises

NBA Seasons:
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2008-2009 : 14th (19-63)
2009-2010 : 12th (29-53)
2010-2011 : 13th (32-50) Enter Blake Griffin
2011-2012 : 5th (40-26) Enter Chris Paul

Old Golden State Warriors News Rewrapped as New

Making preseason predictions is a major part of any sport and is also a big money maker. As summer winds down magazine racks are full of NBA, NFL, NHL and NCAA sports magazines printing everything from teams season records, championship contenders and finals MVPs before a single game has even been played.

I know being humble is an important personality trait but I suddenly feel the need to give myself a little bit of credit. I predicted Oklahoma City Thunder James Harden would win the 6th Man award after a preseason win against the Dallas Mavericks 5 days before the 2011-12 NBA season started.  
I followed up that comment a few months later with a post on my Addicted to Ballin' blog reiterating that prediction Prediction of 2012 NBA 6th Man of the Year: James Harden
In all fairness, that is old news.

By time you get around to reading this you will likely have already been bombarded with news about the Golden State Warriors beating the Miami Heat last night 97-95. You will also hear how well the Warriors are doing with a record of 15-7, sitting pretty in 2nd place in the Pacific Division and 5th overall in the Western Conference. Now before I get labelled as a bandwagoner for what some might consider false predictions or sudden epiphanies, I’m here to say in a nice way, “I told you so.”

I feel that if those of us who go out on a limb and carve predictions into the cement known as the internet can get raked over hot coals for being wrong, why not high-five ourselves for being right.

I had a strong feeling we would see an improved Klay Thompson this season who has scored 20 or more points 4 times in his last 7 games and 6 times in November pushing his season average from 12.5 ppg to 16.5 ppg. To be fair, assuming Bogut would be playing significant minutes might have been wishful thinking but I’m sure Andrew Bynum fans know the feeling. Although I love Monta Ellis’ game, he often needed the ball too much. With him leaving the Warriors they have performed exactly as expected. Link to full post on October 14, 2012: Hip Hoop Junkies

Even prior to making the Klay Thompson prediction, I picked the Golden State Warriors as my # 3 overall sleeper team to make a splash in 2012-13 NBA season. I foresaw them fighting for the 8th spot come playoff time and they are currently sitting in the 5th spot in the West. They exceeded my expectations but are still no surprise as they play very similar to the Oklahoma City Thunder, with great ball movement and balanced scoring. Link to full post on October 2, 2012: Addicted to Ballin'

Will this Golden State Warriors run last until the end of the season? I’ve been told they will burn out and come back to earth, and yes, I am well aware only ¼ of the season is complete. So maybe its too early to come out and say “I told you so.” With the media hype from last night’s Warriors win and on air personalities ignoring them at 14-7 then suddenly giving them praise at 15-7, I felt the need to say “Thank you but that ain’t news to me.”