| More Than Ever, Clippers Need Kaman Authored by Graham Flashner - December 14, 2007 - 2:51 pm
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At a more modest level, Elton Brand goes down, and Chris Kaman responds with the year of his life.
Not that this is how Kaman would’ve wanted it. Mention Brand’s injury and Kaman can only give a painful shrug. After all, it was he who was playing Brand one-on-one last summer, when Brand drove to the hoop and tore his Achilles tendon.
Kaman knows it wasn’t his fault, but the minute Brand went down, the Clippers’ season changed irrevocably. Twenty-five points and ten rebounds per game went down when Brand‘s leg crumpled. And Kaman had to be aware of what every Clipper watcher was thinking: if he didn’t rebound from a disappointing 2006-07 campaign, the team would take up residence in the Pacific Division basement.
The Clippers could only depend so much on Corey Maggette and Tim Thomas – a 6’10 journeyman who replaced Brand in the starting lineup, and who still feels most comfortable hoisting threes from all points on the court.
When Brand went down, the Clippers not only lost their top scorer, but their most formidable post-up presence. And with point guard Shaun Livingston still rehabbing from his own devastating injury a year ago, Sam Cassell aging rapidly, and Brevin Knight still green, there was no margin for error. Kaman had to step up..
What nobody anticipated was the remarkable degree to which he has. With career-best averages of 18 points and 13 rebounds a game, he’s already demolished his previous accomplishments.
“I worked hard over the summer,” Kaman said after a 100-94 loss to the Miami Heat last Sunday. “Worked on my post-up game, my jumper, my conditioning…. I had to come out strong.”
This year’s version is faster, more mobile, and more versatile. Against Shaquille O’Neal and Alonzo Mourning, Kaman demonstrated an arsenal of moves, from the feathery jumper to the quick spin in the lane. He now routinely draws double and triple-teams, which the Nets deployed unsuccessfully in a recent Clippers win. Don’t be shocked to see him make the All-Star team.
It was only a year ago that the Clippers wondered if they’d invested in a lemon. They’d rewarded Kaman for a breakout ’05-96 campaign by signing him to a five-year, $52 million contract extension, only to see him regress sharply, to a 10.1 average,
7.8 rebounds and 45% shooting which, if you watched him enough last season, felt more like 35%.
Kaman looked tentative and a step behind, frequently drawing in-game lectures from teammates and coaches. The cutting of his famously wild hair didn’t help. Like Samson losing his locks, Kaman’s game lost its power.
Kaman freely admits the big contract eventually played a factor, though not at first. “It was a relief once I signed it, and I felt great starting last season knowing it wasn’t hanging over my head,” Kaman said.
But then a notoriously provocative L.A. Times columnist got into Kaman’s head, flogging the contract on his radio show and in the paper, and Kaman was soon second-guessing himself. Pressing too hard, and battling a series of nagging injuries, the 25-year-old center never got untracked.
This season, Kaman has become the player the Clippers envisioned all along. There’s still a big learning curve ahead – in the Miami game, Kaman got visibly frustrated with the physical play of O’Neal and Mourning, and all but disappeared in the second half – and with the new respect being accorded him by opponents, Kaman can expect bigger poundings ahead.
Along with his teammates, Kaman is just trying to keep the Clippers above water until Brand’s (hopeful) return. The Clippers’ 4-0 start fooled nobody, and they’re now limping along at 9-13. “We’re all just trying to pick up the pieces,” says Kaman.
So far, at least, it’s Kaman who’s done the heavy lifting. |
