FanHouse MikeDunleavy

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Anyone who has watched the L.A. Clippers so far this season pretty much has the same question: what's up with Chris Kaman?

The guy's been playing some ball and doesn't seem to resemble the player of past years. But according to coach Mike Dunleavy, nothing at all is up.

"The only difference with him is he's shooting the ball," Dunleavy said before the Clippers dismantled the Warriors, 118-90, on Friday night. "And I mean literally shooting the ball. He's always been able to shoot the ball but always had this kind of mentality of 'I can't take too many shots,' or 'I need to get closer to the basket.' "

On the eve of yet another rebuilding season, the Los Angeles Clippers revealed on Monday night that Blake Griffin's knee injury was far more serious than initially feared: he's been diagnosed with a stress fracture in his left kneecap (the patella, to be precise) and could be sidelined up to six weeks. He suffered the injury in the team's final preseason game.

ORLANDO -- Danny Granger has all the makings of a great player who may get lost for many years.

Playing for the Indiana Pacers already makes him look like he's standing alone on an island -- waiting to get rescued.

"It doesn't matter how many points you score. If you don't win games, no one really cares,'' Granger told FanHouse Wednesday night before the Pacers played the Orlando Magic. "I've proven I can score. Now I have to prove we can win.''

Granger averaged 25.8 points last season when he won the NBA's Most Improved Player Award, becoming the first player in league history to raise his scoring average by at least five points in three consecutive seasons.

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Who doesn't like a list, especially on a Monday morning when that's about all you can handle?

Training camps are opening, so here are five coaches likely to start feeling the heat if their teams don't get off to good starts.

Mike Dunleavy, L.A. Clippers: The Clippers head into the season with expectations, which might not be the best news for Dunleavy. He's got to figure out a way to reconfigure his relationship with Baron Davis so that the veteran point guard once again can thrive. If Dunleavy and Davis aren't on the same page, there's no hope in L.A.

Golden boy NCAA champ Tyler Hansbrough, a lottery pick of the Pacers, isn't getting off on the right foot -- err, shin -- in Indianapolis. A nagging shin injury Hansbrough dealt with at the start of his senior season at North Carolina has returned, and the rook has been deemed to be out "indefinitely." That means he'll miss at the least the start of training camp this week, and perhaps the preseason or the opening weeks of the regular season.

The news ain't good for Mike Dunleavy, either. Lil' Dun missed the majority of 2008-09, and he won't be ready on time for this season either. Indy coach Jim O'Brien told media Dunleavy won't likely be practicing until November, which puts the forward on schedule to miss at least a half-dozen regular season games.

The injuries have opened up an opportunity for other players, though. Like Rod Benson.

You know what they say. "The best laid plans of mice and men with beards and their own film companies ..."

Needless to say, Baron Davis did not have the kind of season he was hoping for in his debut with the Clippers. He essentially fulfilled every negative concern that's been posited about him during his career. Injury-riddled. Inconsistent. Poor leadership. Bails at the first sign of trouble. You know, Baron Davis before the Warriors tenure.

And in an effort to convey a sincere desire to turn things around, Davis is using some pretty blunt assessments of his own play. The buck stops at the beard, apparently.

On Tuesday night, fortune finally smiled on the Memphis Grizzlies. After constantly finding themselves on the wrong end of an errant heel from Lady Luck's rumba, they got their turned to dance with her and ended up with the No. 2 overall pick. Finally fortune smiles on the downtrodden. Or did it?

Mike Dunleavy doesn't appear to be bluffing regarding the Clippers "obviously" drafting Blake Griffin. Which means highly touted Spanish point guard Ricky Rubio would fall to Memphis. Their other option is UConn big man Hasheem Thabeet. On the surface, this looks like a win-win situation for the Grizzlies. But if we dig deeper, it may turn out to not be so great after all. Par for the course for the Memphis Grizzlies.

Clippers president Andy Roeser tried to be coy when talking about what player his organization favored with the first overall pick, heaping mountains of praise on Blake Griffin but also maintaining that the basketball staff would put their heads together and talk things over before sharing the decision first with team owner Donald Sterling and then with the world.

Coach (and GM) Mike Dunleavy, though, sees no need to play things so close to the vest. "Clearly, we're taking Blake Griffin," Dunleavy told the Los Angeles Times. But what about Ricky Rubio, the Spanish point guard? Is Dunleavy selling Rubio short by announcing his decision so quickly?

Moments after learning that his team had won the 2009 NBA Draft lottery, Clippers president Andy Roeser had a look of euphoria. Within an hour later, he was already back to work taking questions from reporters in a post-lottery conference call.

Roeser didn't come right out and say the Clippers were going to draft Blake Griffin, but he certainly didn't hold back any compliments when talking about him, either.

For a full transcript of his comments, from his thoughts on Mike Dunleavy's job security ("We have every intention of opening camp with Coach Dunleavy this year -- although I think that we have every intention of approaching some things differently, too.") to his not-so-vague comments about which veterans need to improve ("Baron Davis did not have a particularly good season. He knows that; we know that."), keep reading.

Clippers VP Andy Roeser, the lucky (and fashion forward) fellow who took home the winning envelope in tonight's 2009 NBA Draft Lottery, jumped on the phone with reporters after the proceedings ended. He did not shy away from his feelings on presumed top pick Blake Griffin.

"He's a terrific athlete, he's athletic and strong," Roeser said. "He's a terrific person, and I think any franchise would be happy to have Blake Griffin for a long time." Roeser followed this with a substantial pause, then an afterthought comment that teams will be pleased with other players, too. (As in, "we'll be happy with Blake. Y'all can be happy with Hasheem Thabeet.")

Roeser later said he has "a pretty good idea what we're going to want to do" but that he wants to sit down with owner Donald Sterling before telling the world. Roeser isn't a "basketball person" in the organization, but he made it pretty clear who the Clippers have been dreaming about. Mike Dunleavy was among the dozen NBA execs in attendance for Ricky Rubio's weekend playoff games in Barcelona, but ... it's Blake. It's Blake.