Los Angeles Clippers Have Leg Up for Now in Rivalry with Golden State Warriors: The Golden State Warriors still lead the league with a 23-5 record, but Christmas Days 100-86 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers served as a sobering reminder that theyre hardly alone atop the Western Conference. Head coach Doc Rivers club moved to 20-10 this season (just four games behind Golden State in the standings) and reasserted its edge over the team it outlasted in last seasons memorable seven-game opening round, avenging a 121-104 Nov. 5 loss the Warriors in Oakland. Rivers noted his teams growth subsequent to that contest after the game, telling reporters, Were better than we were. Jamal Crawford led the team with 24 points in just 28 minutes off the bench, but he wasnt the only one doing his part to make a statement in whats become one of the leagues most entertaining and competitive rivalries. Blake Griffin contributed an all-around performance with 18 points, 15 rebounds, six assists, two steals and a block, while seven-time All-Star Chris Paul added 22 points, seven rebounds, four assists and three steals of his own. And while his 14 points wont turn heads, center DeAndre Jordan played an important supporting role with 12 rebounds, two blocks and an efficient 6-of-8 outing from the field. Though Los Angeles made just 39.1 percent of its field-goal attempts and opened the game just 1-of-17 from the field, the Warriors 42.5-percent mark wasnt much better. The big difference is that the Clippers were doing the little things while Golden State was making the mistakes. Head coach Steve Kerrs club turned the ball over 16 times and grabbed six fewer rebounds, spotting the Clippers an opportunity to compensate for their poor shooting. Golden State also gave the Clippers 31 free-throw attempts, giving Griffin alone 13 shots from the charity stripe. Between the rebounding deficit and inability to protect the basket without fouling, one suspects the Warriors are seriously missing center Andrew Bogut. The 30-year-old 7-footer has missed his last eight games with a knee injury, and hes proven difficult to replace. Theres plenty to like about Draymond Green, David Lee and Marreese Speights, but Bogut is a far superior defender in the paint. In turn, the Clippers exploited an already marked size advantage. Griffin and Jordans 27-combined rebounds were the first hint, but the clubs 11 offensive boards were more telling. Even Paul had three offensive rebounds. Without Boguts size and physicality, the Warriors margin for error on the perimeter is slim at best. It certainly cant afford for Splash Brothers Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson to make just three of their 15 combined three-point attempts. The Clippers aggressive containment of ball-handlers flustered an ordinarily in-sync offense that ranks fifth league-wide in efficiency with 108 points per 100 possessions according to Hollinger Team Stats. The Warriors 86 points represented their lowest scoring output of the season, a testament to what Los Angeles uneven defense can accomplish when the effort is there. Theres little doubt about what Paul, Griffin and Co. can accomplish on the offensive end. But it will take these kind of two-way displays to build upon last seasons appearance in the Western Conference Semifinals. The rest of the competition will have too much firepower to withstand anything less. While the Clippers have struggled to exert consistent energy on both ends of the floor, their unique dynamic with the Warriors just might bring out a little extra heart. These teams may respect each other, but they dont like each other. Last seasons lack of holiday spirit made that point pretty vividly. As The Associated Press noted (via ESPN) after this Thursdays contest: Last years Christmas night game between the Clippers and Warriors at Oakland was a wild one. Draymond Green was ejected at the end of the third quarter because of his flagrant 2 foul against Griffin—who subsequently was thrown out with 10:43 remaining after an incident involving himself and Andrew Bogut earned Griffin his second technical foul. The uneasy relations continued into the postseason and cultivated a subplot thats helped make this one of the NBAs premier matchups. By April, Griffin was taking exception to comments Thompson made about the formers penchant for flopping. Good as the basketball between these teams has been, its the collective personality clash that keeps things particularly interesting. Some added holiday pageantry and a national audience certainly doesnt hurt. Playing on Christmas Day is special, Lee told reporters before the game. You know its a bigger stage than a normal regular-season game would be, and we enjoy that and we enjoy the challenge of facing a good Clippers team that we beat once this year. Its two teams that have had fun the last couple years playing against one another. Riding a franchise-best start under Kerr, the Warriors evolution has made that stage even bigger. Thursday nights game went pretty smoothly aside from some mild jawing. Kerr earned a technical foul for arguing a call, and Griffin picked one up after stepping Harrison Barnes in what could be interpreted as mild taunting. But dont let the relative lack of theatrics fool you. This game mattered to both sides. Coming off Tuesdays shocking 115-105 loss to the now 9-20 Los Angeles Lakers (san Kobe Bryant), the Warriors were looking to avoid just their second two-game losing streak of the season. Now 12-3 at home, the Clippers could use some momentum of their own. They play their next eight games at STAPLES Center and may be poised to climb the standings from the current perch at the No. 5 seed. Gutting out a compelling victory against the rival Warriors isnt a bad start. Read more NBA news on BleacherReport #Basketball #NBA #NBAPacific #LosAngelesClippers #fantasybasketball
Posted on: Fri, 26 Dec 2014 09:32:24 +0000
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