SHAUN LIVINGSTON UPDATE

Sounds like Livingston is starting to look more and more viable as a risky player that could actaully contribute later on in the year as he continues to rehab. Here is the latest on his situation:

From Steve Kyler / Hoopsworld
08.22.08

...Livingston has been playing full contact, full court basketball in Chicago under the guidance of NBA trainer Tim Grover, and is said to be getting his explosiveness and swagger back. Supposedly Shaun is dunking the ball and attacking the basket against NBA guys in Chicago.

...he's not back to a 100%, but is closer to 75% to 80%.

...With NBA training camp set to open in less than 38 days it's not out of the question Shaun gets a deal - the question is will that deal be guaranteed and will Shaun get a chance to play himself back into the NBA elite. Someone could get themselves a very nice player if they take the risk.

From Clipper Steve / Clips Nation
08.21.08

...The other type of team that might be interested in Livingston (and in fact, the one that makes the most sense to my mind) is any team making do with a combo guard at the point. There are more of these than you might think. There is a dearth of true point guards in the NBA. Furthermore, there are a number of sublimely talented basketball players, who just happen to be under 6'3". These guys, sometimes called scoring points, sometimes called tweeners, have great scoring ability, but tend to be too small to defend NBA wings. If they end up playing the point, it's not their natural position on offense, and if they end up playing the wing, they struggle on defense. Ideally, they could play on the wing on offense and the point on defense.

Voila, in Shaun Livingston you have the yin to that yang. He's a true point guard, fully capable of running the offense, but also a big and very effective wing defender.

Monta Ellis. Gilbert Arenas. Allen Iverson. These are all shooting guards, scorers, who have played (or will play) much of their careers essentially out of position at the point. Golden State in particularly should take a long look at Livingston. It's a long shot to be sure, but imagine the backcourt of Ellis and Livingston in a few years if Shaun is able to recover. (Washington makes less sense, and Denver almost none. The Nuggets desperately need a point guard, but by trading Marcus Camby for nothing they seemed to indicate that Iverson will not be back next season. Livingston is too far away from contributing, and Iverson is too close to the door, for this to make much sense for the Nuggets.) Then there's free agent Ben Gordon. Any team interested in taking a chance on Gordon should consider bringing in Livingston and starting them together in the future.