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Lindsay Rosenberg.

It's the 207 All-Star Weekend and the lone representative of the Los Angeles Clippers is a dancer.

Congratulations to Lindsay for making the trip to Las Vegas, but it's a sorry state of affairs that not a single Clipper was invited to partake in the festivities.

Unfortunately, the Los Angeles Clippers have not had the kind of year to warrant All-Star attention.

After a career year, two-time All-Star Elton Brand is averaging 20.7 ppg and 9.2 rpg. The numbers are certainly impressive, but pale when compared to last year's 24.7 ppg and 10.0 rpg.

Though a number of players on the Western Conference team were injured, Elton Brand was not picked by Commissioner David Stern as a replacement player.

Cuttino Mobley is shooting a solid 41.3% from behind the arc, 17th best in the league for players with at least 100 attempts. It wasn't enough for the three-point contest Saturday night.

Both Sam Cassell and Shaun Livingston have tremendous basketball handling ability, but neither was included in the skills challenge.

Understandably, the seldom used fan favorite James Singleton was left off of the sophomore team. He's a pretty flashy dunker but there was probably zero thought to invite him to the slam dunk competition.

Certainly Coach Mike Dunleavy was not positioned to coach the western team. That honor goes to the top coach in the conference.

Nope, the Los Angeles Clippers sit three games below .500 wondering what happened to all the promise that last season showed.

Chemistry, injuries, coaching, effort, bad luck . . . name it.

The Los Angeles Clippers have yet to prove that their second round playoff run was nothing more than a fluke.

The original goal of 50 wins? How about just finishing above .500?

A general rule of thumb is that 45 wins should garner a playoff berth, but with the Los Angeles Lakers, Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves, New Oreland/Oklahoma City Hornets, Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings all competing for the bottom three playoff spots . . . the Los Angeles Clippers may end up in the lottery.

While they're relatively strong at home (17-9), the road record of 8-19 is just abysmal.

Players like Corey Maggette and Singleton have requested trades though neither is expected to be moved before the February 22nd trade deadline.

Leading into the All-Star Break, Elton Brand was forced to sit two games with back spasms.

Not promising . . .

The Los Angeles Clippers will need more from their franchise player in Elton Brand. They'll need more from both their aged and youthful point guards (Sam Cassell and Shaun Livingston). They'll need their well paid center to earn his the extension that hasn't even kicked in yet (Chris Kaman). They'll need their hard slashing wingman to attitude adjust (Corey Maggette).

They'll need their coach to lead . . .

With all the talent on the Los Angeles Clippers, there is no reason they should have a 25-28 record at the break.

It's time to stop blaming training camp and the early nagging injuries. There's been plenty of time to course correct. Every time the Los Angeles Clippers made a little push they seemed to just crumble soon after.

Can the season be salvaged?

Absolutely; they're only a half game out of the playoffs.

If they play the way they were supposed to play all season, there's no reason they shouldn't be able to finish among the top eight in the Western Conference.

It's a real shame if they don't . . .

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