LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Not even a month has transpired since Mike Dunleavy relieved himself of one of his Clippers 
positions. He stepped down as coach but stayed on as the team’s GM, hoping it would make matters better. It didn’t.The team didn’t pick up its play for interim coach Kim Hughes. They went from seven to 14 games under .500 after the switch and are no where near being respectable, never mind a playoff contender.
On Tuesday, via written statement the team announced it had severed ties with Dunleavy: “The Clippers want to win now,” read the team’s statement. “This transition, in full conjunction with a full commitment to dedicate unlimited resources, is designed to accomplish that objective.
Yahoo! Sports reported on Wednesday that the team was informed after its 113-87 road loss in Orlando and Chris Kaman, the team’s center barely shrugged his shoulders.
Leaving aside the rampant speculation that with both coach and GM positions open the team is ripe for the picking, exactly who would want to pick it?
As Bill Plaschke of the Los Angeles Times wrote this morning, it won’t be above some to suggest that LeBron James could sweep into town, choose men to fill the jobs and make LA his personal playground.
The one position that isn’t open and still might be the stumbling block to making any changes to the team is that of owner. But at this point, without someone to blame, Donald Sterling might have left himself exposed to be named as the root of all that is problematic.
No one is left as a buffer. Gone since last year is Elgin Baylor, GM for decades who exited with sad stories to tell about what he characterized as racial discrimination and disrespect for his position. Dunleavy whose tenure with the team extends some seven seasons has been shown the door.
Will anything make a difference in what has been called the Clippers Curse? They have a basis for a good team n place despite Dunleavy’s trade deadline move to dump the league’s best rebounder, Marcus Camby.
To quote Hillel the Elder, if not now, when?
Paula Duffy is a national sports columnist for Examiner.com and the Huffington Post and regularly comments on sports/legal matters for radio affiliates of ESPN and Fox Sports. She founded the sports information site, Incidental Contact, is the author of a line of audio books designed for sports novices and in her spare time practices law in Los Angeles.
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