Injury to Billups is a gut check to Clippers
The recent injury to Chauncey Billups could easily pass as an excuse to a disappointing Clippers season. Since joining Los Angeles on December 12th, he has been a central part of this team even though the spotlight doesn’t say so. He not only brought production (14.9 points and 4 assists per game), he also brought a veteran leadership that worked wonders for a young Clippers team.
“He’s the best guard I’ve ever started with in the backcourt since I’ve been in the NBA” said Chris Paul. “I trust him with everything, and that’s not just on the court. We need him, no question.”
When it was confirmed that he tore his Achilles tendon and would miss the rest of the 2012 season, I immediately thought ahead to the end of the season and what could come out of this. There are two ways the team can go from here: either they lose focus as a result of Billups’ leadership on the court or this is used as motivation, Randy Foye picks up the slack (with some help from Mo Williams, and the Clips keep rolling.
I believe that this team has the ability to overcome this adversity and avoid using it as a cop-out. Don’t get me wrong, losing a player as important as Billups is a perfectly legitimate reason for Lob City to lose their momentum and stumble. That doesn’t mean it has to be, though.
There is an opportunity here. It is within all realms of possibility for Blake Griffin and Chris Paul to lead this team to a good run in the playoffs, even though they are mostly alone in terms of performance. Players such as Williams and Foye will need to pick up the slack, but they are perfectly capable of doing so. This whole situation is a gut check for Los Angeles, and how they respond to it will reveal what kind of team they really are.
I’m expecting to see the same fire and adrenaline that we have seen to this point continue. Times like these open the door for a leader – or two – to emerge. Where others think these Clips are just a flash in the pan, I have this feeling in my stomach that they are here to stay (as long as management doesn’t find a way to muck it up).
Whether they return to being the red-headed stepchild of Los Angeles or win the NBA Finals, how the team responds to Chauncey’s injury will be definitive of their 2012 season as a whole. I say the bandwagon fixes itself and then some.
