LOOKING FORWARD

There are clouds of optimism hovering over the other side of Tinseltown. Blake Griffin and new head coach Vinny Del Negro are both looking forward for a renaissance in Clipper land. Griffin tries to bounce back from a DNP rookie season due to injuries, while Del Negro is aching for vindication following his firing from the Chicago Bulls two months ago. The Los Angeles Clippers are on a rebuilding mode and are currently trying out many free agents, among those includes Tracy McGrady and Adam Morrison. Hoopsworld featured a special report on both Griffin and Del Negro on its NBA Saturday news.

Blake Griffin:

"I could care less about the curse (on the Clips) or what people say. There's no such thing. It's just about being around our new guys and being around our new coaching staff. Also, I can keep working on my game and improving into the kind of player I need to be and that they want me to be.

"I really tried to study the game from a different perspective and every night, I tried to watch a different player and take notes in my head to take something away from each game. We definitely have a talented team. I'm just looking forward to getting everyone together and getting started."

Vinny Del Negro:

"We want to build around character guys. Obviously you need talent but I feel like we've added some talented character guys around our young nucleus. Bringing back Blake obviously is a huge plus so we feel good about that. We still have some work to do with a couple more slots available but the development of our young players will be key to how we get everybody on the same page as quick as possible and change the culture there a little bit, in terms of the attitude and the approach to things.

"Blake is great and he's working hard. We just have to calm him down a little, he's so anxious to get out there. He's a great kid and everyone knows how talented he is but we want to be smart. He feels really good taking it one step at a time and we still have awhile before we get going before training camp. The process, with his work ethic, will take care of itself. But we're just excited to see that he's healthy and moving and working out a bit. I think people will enjoy watching him.

"Well it's about the players, the development of the players. Just getting them all on the same page, having them do a much better job defensively, and rebounding the ball. We'll play the right way. Guys have to buy into it and that might take a week, a month, six months, or a year. It just depends. I think we have some good character guys, a lot of talent, and now it's my job to blend it all together."