Empty the Bench

Baron Davis doesn’t look happy in Los Angeles. Or, at least, he doesn’t look thrilled about playing basketball for the Clippers.

The gregarious, easy-going Davis of the Golden State Warriors days seems to have been replaced by a disinterested, disillusioned, and distant player who’s succumbing to the general numbness that inevitably envelopes those who pull on a bright-red Clippers jersey. Suiting up for LA’s ugly duckling is like a slow suffocation, with each passing game dragging formerly talented players down, down, down, until they settle into a black abyss of indifference. The Clippers are where talent goes to die, a sad fact of NBA life we’ll further explore later this week.

For now though, Baron Davis. What a shame. Really. I like Baron, and I can’t necessarily blame him for jumping ship and signing that hefty five-year, $65 million deal the Clippers kindly threw at him last summer. It didn’t make any sense at the time for LA, and it still doesn’t… but it’s the Clippers. For Davis, it was an opportunity to cash in on the best 4-year stretch of a career that began back in 1999 with the Charlotte Hornets. That mostly successful run with the Warriors ended on a high note, with Davis playing in all 82 regular-season games for the first time and averaging 21.8 points (42% FG), 7.6 assists, 4.7 boards, 2.3 steals, and 2.1 triples per. You knew that wouldn’t last, but in the words of Bruce Springsteen, the Clippers were “blinded by the light.”

Davis made a business decision in signing with the Clippers. Nothing more, nothing less, though being closer to his family was also a factor. I’m not so naïve or callous to suggest he has no interest in reviving the franchise, or winning games, or making some noise in the playoffs. Of course he does. Still, it’s been painful watching him struggle through this culture of losing. Last season he came back down to earth both statistically (14.9 points, 37% FG, 7.7 assists, 3.7 boards, 1.7 steals, 1.5 triples per) and physically (he missed 17 games). What’s more, his energy looks like it’s been sapped like a hollow beehive.

During Tuesday’s season-opening 99-92 loss to the Lakers, Davis wore a defeated look on his face (the beard is looking killer though). He’s apparently already battling a foot injury, so maybe physical discomfort was responsible for the gloomy demeanor. Still, he wasn’t having any fun out there; if he was, he did a great job of disguising it. That has to be disconcerting for the 73 Clippers fans still left out there; after all, it’s only the first game of the season! His final tally in just under 28 minutes: 1-10 FG for 2 points, 8 assists, 2 steals, 1 block and 2 turnovers. He also had three of his shots blocked.

Try to cheer up, Baron. Please. You still have a lot of fans out there. And hey, maybe there is a light at the end of the tunnel this season after all: TNT’s Reggie Miller and Mike Fratello both went on the record last night in predicting your team is going to make the playoffs this year. No, really, they did.