Has any of the Clippers' young nucleus taken to developing a new skill over the summer, and if so, who brought something to training camp that we haven't seen before?
Larry, Rancho Santa MargaritaEP: I asked a few of the players what they worked on over the summer to improve their game:
Craig Smith: "I've been working on my jump shot a lot more. I think it's going to free a lot of things up because guys anticipate me getting to the basket a lot. They play a lot of bigger, stronger guys against me (more length against me) and that gives me opportunities to knock down open shots."
Smith said he worked at the 15-17' range and even on his three-point shot a little bit.
Al Thornton: "I pretty worked on everything but I put an emphasis on defense. I think I've got the tools to be a pretty solid defender. I need to be more aware so I watched a lot of film on defensive techniques - and just made sure I was in better shape."
Which players did Thornton watch on film? Bruce Bowen, Shane Battier and Ron Artest.
Blake Griffin: "I improved my shot. I really spent a lot of time working on my shot - improving rhythm, footwork, everything."
Like Smith, Griffin worked on the 15-17' range to about 20', not quite in three-point territory.
DeAndre Jordan: "I worked on a lot of offensive things to try and develop my game. It's cool to dunk and have little highlights but people are going to start playing it - OK, whatever #9 is just lobs, that's it. So I'm just working on my post moves and obviously my free throws to try and improve that."
Jordan said he's being mentored by Camby who is wealth of knowledge on defensive anticipation.
Eric Gordon: "More of a post up game and just beating my man off the dribble. I was mostly catch-and-shoot last year. I was looking to be more creative this year."
Gordon wants to increase both his rebounding and assist numbers.
Eric Pincus,
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