Clippers continue road trip in Cleveland minus Billups

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02/08/2012 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Clippers eye a third straight win this evening, but their thoughts may be with their fallen veteran, as they continue a long road trip in Cleveland.

Los Angeles will be without Chauncey Billups for the rest of the season after the guard tore his left Achilles tendon in the Clippers' 107-102 overtime win in Orlando on Monday.

The injury occurred with 5:48 left in the fourth quarter when Billups attempted a cross-over move, but fell to the floor without contact from another player and needed help off.

Billups, who had 18 points before the injury, had an MRI at the Cleveland Clinic on Tuesday which confirmed the injury.

A five-time All-Star, Billups was averaging 14.9 points, 4.0 assists and 2.5 rebounds in 30.4 minutes a game for the Clippers. The 35-year-old is in the midst of his 15th NBA season, but vowed to return next season.

"I will be back," Billups told Yahoo! Sports. "I'm not retiring ... I will play again."

In Monday's win Chris Paul filled the stat sheet with 29 points, including 13 in the fourth quarter and overtime, to go with eight assists and seven rebounds. Blake Griffin had a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Clippers, who have won six of their last seven games.

"We just gutted it out," Clippers head coach Vinny Del Negro said of the win. "It was going back-and-forth and we got a couple stops at the end and we were able to convert."

The Clips could get a boost tonight, as Kenyon Martin could see his first game action. Martin played for the Xinjiang Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association during the NBA lockout, and was contractually obligated to wait until the end of the Tigers' season before returning to the NBA. He was cleared to play by FIBA, basketball's international governing body last week.

Los Angeles is 2-0 on a six-game road trip that also includes stops in Philadelphia, Charlotte and Dallas. The Clips are just 5-4 away from home this season, but have won four straight as the visitor. The Clippers' franchise has not won five in a row on the road since Nov. 3-20, 1974, when they were the Buffalo Braves.

Cleveland, meanwhile, enters tonight's tilt on a sour note after falling to old friend LeBron James and the Miami Heat on Tuesday, 107-91. Antawn Jamison ended with 25 points and nine boards for the Cavaliers, who have lost three of four.

Alonzo Gee and Kyrie Irving tallied 17 and 16 points, respectively.

"We had some crucial turnovers. They were just executing," Irving said. "They made their run. Closing out the third quarter and going into the fourth quarter, they had a lot of momentum."

The Cavs, though, have dominated this series of late, winning 11 of the last 13 and 14 of the most recent matchups, including nine straight in Cleveland, where the Clips haven't won since March of 2003.

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After all the trouble that’s ensued since Braylon Edwards allegedly punched one of LeBron James’ homeboys in the face at a club, the Cleveland Browns have sent away their last remaining player of worth to the New York Jets. This is a great move for Dirty Sanchez and all, but it’s even better for the Knicks. Now Donnie Walsh can say, “You get to haunt Braylon Edwards with your posse if you sign here!” next summer.

Putting that aside for a moment, the move is a clear indication that the new-look Jets are gunning for the Super Bowl this year. I don’t think that New York thought that Dirty Sanchez was going to be such a rock star. With a 75.2 passer rating that was killed against the Jets, Sanchez is doing an admirable job of managing games and putting the Jets in a position to win. The defense has been the major story in New York thus far, but the acquisition of Braylon Edwards makes this offense loaded with talent that can dent any defense…as long as Dirty Sanchez continues his meteoric rise.

Thus far, Edwards has been a non-factor in the NFL piling up just 139 receiving yards on 10 catches. He has yet to find the endzone, and with the Browns mired in the most unsexy quarterback controversy of all time (Anderson vs. Quinn...yawn), there going nowhere fast. Edwards is two seasons removed from a career year which saw him catch 80 passes for 1,289 yards and 16 touchdowns when the Browns were the spread killing monsters of 2007. In 2008, injuries slowed the receiver down to just 873 yards and three touchdowns though he played in all 16 games.

So that being said, we really don’t know if Braylon Edwards is just a flash in the pan, or a legit threat. At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, he is a prototypical receiver. But he’s also shown a strange, and unwarranted, talent for dropping passes. Lining up opposite Jericho Cotchery, a speed demon with 23 catches, 356 yards and a single touchdown, may give Braylon the open looks he needs. A change of scenery may also rejuvenate the star receiver.

In return, the Browns will receive Chansi Stuckey, online football betting a special teams player you’ve never heard of and a pair of draft picks. That’s a tall order for a guy whose only real value right now is in his name, and it shows no promise to the Browns that they can rebuild around those acquisitions. Braylon was the only reason to hope for the Browns to go 3-14 SU this year. Without him, they don’t have a single guy on offense that can scare any team.

For the Jets, it’s a response to the pounding that they took at the hand of the Saints. Thomas Jones and Leon Washington have averaged around 4.0 yards per carry each on the ground, but striking a fair balance between the passing and rushing attacks in New York has been a struggle. You have to believe that the trio of Dustin Keller, Jericho Cotchery and Braylon Edwards will give Sanchez the weapons he needs to unleash through the air. Theoretically, that would open up holes for the rushing game. But the proposed public option health care plan works in theory too. We need to see the proof in the pudding before we start loading up mega bucks on the New York Jets to take the AFC.

The one wrinkle in this whole thing is that Braylon could very well be suspended by the league for disciplinary action due to his “brawl” with LeBron’s friend. If that’s the case, the Jets may have to bench him for a few games leaving them with a somewhat depleted receiving corps for a few games. Also, this is a guy who gets in fights with people at clubs. New York may not be the best place for him. Just sayin’.

The Jets have a long week before they meet the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football Betting in a virtual pick ‘em game. Braylon’s excess baggage may be a distraction, and his curiously low production may be what we should be expecting of him overall, but for the Jets, taking a chance to strike gold is well worth it. At the end of the year, they can simply just blame it on their rookie quarterback.

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