Last Tuesday Vladimir Radmanovic wakes up to find out he has been traded to the Clippers, a moved he endorsed and was looking forward to. He flys to LA, takes a physical, meets with the coach and shows up for game time against Golden State without ever practicing with the team. And we all expected him to ride the pine and watch, right? Wrong! Coach went to him early and he didn't look as lost as he probably should have. Without any team practice he went for 14 points on 6 for 13 shooting and had a surprising 8 rebounds, 3 offensive, in 29 minutes. He also contributed 3 assists and 2 steals.
It was obvious, that even though Coach Dunleavy never played Chris Wilcox very much, he was not gun shy at all in putting Vladimir in the game. In fact, in his opening game with his new team, Coach even gave him important minutes in the fourth quarter as the Clippers tried to rally and he score 9 of his 14 points down the stretch.
As we all look forward to the balance of the season and the playoffs, it will be interesting to see how Vladimir Ramanovic blends in with his new team. In watching his first game with the Clips, it was obvious to me that this guy looks and plays like a small forward. At 6" 10" and only 234 lbs. he has quick feet, quick hands, great elevation, is very fast up and down the floor, and can guard quick players. He might even be able to play shooting guard if needed, and back up at power forward, even though there are now reports that the Clippers are going to sign Vin Baker and he would probably be spotting Elton. At the very least he gives the Clippers versatility and outside shooting, even from the 3.
This move was smart for the Clippers in that it gives them the long range outside shooting that keeps other teams from collasping on Kaman and Brand. That's the reason they gave for getting him. But I believe that the real reason is that they look at Vladimir as the starting small forward while Maggette is out, and becomes great insurance after Corey comes back if he injurs himself again. Quintin Ross will also see minutes at the 2 and 3 spots for important defensive matchups.
Well it was only one game, but from what I've seen so far, Vladimir has alot of potential with the Clippers squad. I think we are all going to like this guy.
JamFan
