By Steve Martin
February 22, 2010
The Clippers also had a coaching change as Kim Hughes took over for Mike Dunleavy. Two Clippers make their debut tonight as Drew Gooden and Travis Outlaw play their first games since being acquired at the trade deadline last week.
Gooden got dealt twice. First he was involved in the Dallas-Washington trade that saw Caron Butler move to Dallas.
Gooden never played a minute in Washington before he was dealt again by the Wizards to the Clippers as part of a three-team deal that saw Antawn Jamison wind up in Cleveland. Travis Outlaw and Steve Blake were part of the Marcus Camby trade with Portland. Baron Davis also returns for the Clippers after missing two games with back problems.
Tyrus Thomas has made an appreciable impact on the Bobcats defensive mindset in his first two games. The Bobcats have 17 blocks, 10 by Thomas, and they have held the last two opponents to 93 points per game. The opponents field goal average has dropped from .487% in the previous two games to .414% in the last two. Minnesota and New Jersey tagged the Bobcats for 90 points in the paint, while the Bobcats held Cleveland and Milwaukee to 54.
Nazr Mohammed continues to soldier on despite a bad back, he'll likely start tonight, but Thomas will likely finish at the center spot. You'll see the game on Fox Sports Carolinas at 10:00PM EST starting with Bobcats Live.
