Shaun's Taking Over The Show!

But that wasn't the most amazing thing that happened Wednesday night. Sure they interviewed Elton Brand after the game because of his 34 points. But as usual, they missed the point, the story behind the obvious. They missed the story that has been emerging the last couple of weeks. The one the exploded last night. The emergence of Shaun Livingston.

I wrote earlier in the season, that Shaun, coming back after a couple of injuries so early in his young career, was playing tentative, like he didn't want to get hurt again. I also wrote that Sam, was the Co-MVP because of his abilities, especially in the 4th quarter to bring home a win when the going got tough. Sam was to be the director of the show.

But I could see a change coming the last couple weeks. Reading Shaun's body language on the court, I could see a young guy who had had enough of losing, enough of his not playing up to his potential. He was starting to really push himself, to push the team, to establish himself as someone who could lead the team to victory. It is harder for a point guard to showcase his talent on a team that really isn't built around a fast break offense. Imagine if he was the point guard for the Phoenix Suns. He would have 20 assists every night.

The tentative Shaun Livingston was starting to vanish. Last night the more agressive Shaun finally exploded. In 36 minutes all he had was 12 points, 13 assists, 7 rebounds, 1 steal, and only 1 turnover. You could see the confidence in his shots, his passes. He was only a couple of rebounds away from his first triple double.

If he continues to play this way in the final games, we will see more games with 7 Clippers in double figures. The better he plays the more rest Sam gets. The most rest Sam gets, the better he plays, especailly in the 4th quarter when we might need him most.

All of the fans had better get ready, the Shaun Livingston Show is about to begin. Get a front row seat, you don't want to miss it.

JamFan