I've got a Blake Griffin debut post over at TrueHoop, but there was far more to take away from Friday night's performance.
 Can the Clippers’ second unit make The Jump? (Johnny Vy/NBAE via Getty Images) |
- Keeping in mind that the Blazers spent much of the evening working on post sets, there was a lot to like defensively from the Clips. On more than one occasion, small-big combinations such as Sebastian Telfair-DeAndre Jordan, Baron Davis-Chris Kaman, Eric Gordon-Craig Smith did nice work covering the Portland pick-and-roll. Jordan's reads and reaction were particularly noticeable. Foul shooting aside, S/R defense was the weakest part of DJ's game last year. If he can evolve into a big who can use his agility to cut off penetration and funnel ballhandlers to the wings, he's going to be incredibly useful. How were the rotations off the action? Good, not great. What I really liked, though, was the Clips' defensive timing on Portland's post sets. Knowing when and from where to double a big man with the ball is one of those nuances that Top 10 defensive teams handle with aplomb. On a couple of instances, we saw Eric Gordon swoop down from the perimeter and blanket LaMarcus Aldridge, preventing that patented turnaround jumper.
For all the discussion we'll have this fall about who should be starting at the 3 and which bigs should be on the floor together, the Clippers' team defense will be the most decisive factor that determines whether we're watching a 32-win team or a No. 7 seed. - Sebastian Telfair is a terrific backup point guard for this team. With all that's happened since Bassy was drafted by Portland in 2004, it's easy to forget about his preternatural vision for the game. Last night was a firm reminder just how much he can do in transition and in early offense sets. Telfair and Jordan teamed up for one of the prettiest moments of the night — an early pick-and-dive where Jordan quickly spun off the screen and dashed to the hole. Telfair threaded the needle with a perfect bounce pass, and Jordan finished emphatically. On the break, Telfair was devastating — five or six transition assists by my count (Telfair finished with 10 assists in 21 minutes). He's simply one of the best transition practitioners in the league. If you surround him with some horses and a couple of guys who can guard the basket and clean the glass, then the Clippers will have a bunch of second quarter spurts this season … as long as Bassy doesn't shoot the ball (0-4 FG).
- I don't like to put too much of a premium on things like body language because there are guys in the NBA who look like killers but don't help you win basketball games. That said, Baron Davis has come to play. He's clearly interested in orchestrating a team offense. With timely passes, he's rewarding guys who can get to the basket without the ball. He chalked up eight dimes in 24 minutes last night.
- Blake Griffin's game was as advertised — activity, power, speed, balance, athleticism … and a shaky face-up jumper. Griffin missed both attempts from beyond 15 feet Friday night, and each was uncontested. If the Clippers situate him on the perimeter offensively when he's playing the 3, then one of two things will happen: Either he'll learn to hit that shot and, in turn, command defensive attention out on the wing, or he'll allow defenses to sag down low in half-court possessions, which makes life more difficult for Chris Kaman on the block and Eric Gordon off the dribble.
- Kaman's shot looks as pure as ever. He's always been a fairly good shooter when faced up and given plenty of space, but last night, he was able to turn around and square up in traffic and still hit that 15-17 footer. Chris is in great shape right now and he did solid work as the Clippers' basket defender during his 16 minutes of action. He overcommitted a bit on a couple of defensive possessions against Greg Oden down low, but otherwise, he looked like prime Chris Kaman for the first time since the start of last season.
22 Responses
great post. thanks.
hope to get there monday night.
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Posted on October 10th, 2009 at 8:58 am
If Dunleavy plays Blake at the 3 (…i thought he was just joking) or Camby at the 4 this season I WILL MURDER HIM!
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Posted on October 10th, 2009 at 9:54 am
i thought we looked really good last night. I thought our bigs looked really solid, Kaman, Camby, DJ and I even like Smith who is really thick! I feel Blake Griffin is going to be a monster but he definately looked like a rookie at certain points and at times just stood around watching the action. Our wing players looked great, EG is going to have an amazing year! Butler is way taller than I thought, once he gets his shot down he’s going to be awesome! I really like this team, especially the clipper spirit dancers, they’re already in mid season form! i’m really excited for this season!
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Posted on October 10th, 2009 at 10:37 am
Team looked great and had a great time at the game (besides for the asinine FD.com chanting crew). Bassy was my player of the night.
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Posted on October 10th, 2009 at 10:38 am
Clipper security warned us early in the 1st quarter that if we continued we’d get kicked out. That just motivated us even more. We tried to get kicked out in the 4th quarter to call their bluff, but at the end they just told us we’d be kicked out next time. As far as the Clippers winning in a pre-season game, it’s a preseason game only Dunleavy is trying to win.
The Clippers are probably going to get off to a good start with an easy schedule, a motivated BD, and lucking into Griffin. If 35-40wins is good enough, keep Dunleavy, but the Clippers will never reach their potential with him. He’s never coached any team to their potential.
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Newtybar Reply:
October 10th, 2009 at 12:40 pm
You are killing the atmosphere.
As someone else put it:
“This is a new, different team from last year, and I don’t want them in a bad atmosphere like that. We as fans need to support the team and not bring them down.”
Blake Griffin’s first game out and you are already instilling negativity and doubt in his mind. Nice work. You are more counterproductive to the Clips than anything.
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ClipperFan1066 Reply:
October 10th, 2009 at 1:28 pm
I agree with Newtybar. As much as I have disliked Dunleavy in the past, and still don’t particularly love him now, you MUST respect what he did this off-season as a GM, and as a coach, he has an entirely different team (personnel + attitude) this year.
PLEASE do not start with the negativity and lack of fan support this early on. If the fans can’t get behind this team, they are going to struggle and perhaps limit their potential. If we ever go on a losing-streak, then fine, let Dunleavy know where he stands with the fans, but until then don’t be such a pessimist.
Because yes, you are killing the atmosphere.
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Agreed Reply:
October 10th, 2009 at 2:45 pm
Agreed.
It really does say a lot about a persons lifestyle when they deliberately come to a website to spread negativity.
“FireDunleavy” does this everyday year round.
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bongstradamus Reply:
October 11th, 2009 at 4:26 pm
I’ve spewed my bile over Dunleavy the coach as well. But this offseason, Dunleavy the GM got my respect. I’m really blown away with how he even moved Z-Bo in the first place, adding Telfair and Smith and Butler was just icing on the cake. He put us in a good position, filled us out with good talent, and as a result I’m willing to see how it goes with the new team on the floor.
I think its a little premature to be chanting to fire him, theres been a pretty dramatic change to both the tone of the organization and the attitudes of the players on the team. They do deserve our support.
If we’re 3-17 after the first 20 games though….then Dunleavy the Coach might have something to worry about.
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Posted on October 10th, 2009 at 11:38 am
I have tickets to Monday’s game, I hope I am no where near this moron. If I am, count me in as one who will complain to staff if he disturbs my enjoyment of the game. I pay to get in too, and I have a voice too.
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Posted on October 10th, 2009 at 3:16 pm
Well I won’t be there monday or probably any of the other preseason games, I don’t know about all the other people that were yelling. Everyone sitting around us joined in and told us to turn up the heat on the chanting. Besides 1 person who gets his tickets comped from the Clippers, everyone else told us to keep going, shook our hands…. I guess Clipper managment told their employees to hit the message boards.
It’s a sporting event. I can’t believe Clipper employees get so riled about a little chanting during timeouts and free throws.
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kirbs Reply:
October 10th, 2009 at 8:24 pm
Their not hiring clowns on Monday night then?
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briguyx Reply:
October 11th, 2009 at 3:42 am
This is so typical. People disagree with the FireDunleavy guy and he immediately assumes Clipper management is behind it. No, it’s fans, real fans that have hope for the new season.
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cappy Reply:
October 11th, 2009 at 4:45 am
Can we start a “Ban FireDunleavy” chant?
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Game Reply:
October 11th, 2009 at 2:45 pm
I attended the Portland game after buying a half season’s worth of fourth row baseline seats. While I enjoyed the game greatly, I can’t believe that the team lets these losers chant whatever they want whenever they want. This isn’t a “free speech” issue. This is a private event and thousands of people were impacted by four morons.
I am writing an email to my sales rep asking him to forward it to the right person (Andy Roeser?). To the extent that the the fan sites are indicative of the broader Clipper fan base (which I believe it is), it is clear that the majority of fans find FireDunleavy’s tactics ridiculous and a huge distraction to what is supposed to be a positive game experience.
We have power – write an email to your sales rep asking Clips management to eject these guys and ban them immediately. If enough people send an immediate, consistent message that this should not be tolerated, Clips management is much more likely to listen.
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bongstradamus Reply:
October 11th, 2009 at 4:35 pm
Hecklers are up there with hot dogs as far as being part of the experience of a major sporting event.
If they started kicking and banning hecklers across the league like this, there would be armed riots anytime a replacement referee blew a whistle in Detroit, Dallas and NY.
Newtybar Reply:
October 11th, 2009 at 5:47 pm
He’s right, they should be aloud to heckle. They should just be less idiotic about it and choose the appropriate times.
Newtybar Reply:
October 11th, 2009 at 5:46 pm
There were no “other guys” …you four were the only one chanting. You must be delusional, because no one around you was joining it. Only you four stood up and chanted. I do think a couple people around me agreed with you and think that Dunleavy should be fired, but no… no one got up and chanted. We were UP for goodness sakes.
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Posted on October 10th, 2009 at 5:32 pm
IF the Clippers can stay healthy they SHOULD win 40 to 45 games. Kaman played great because no one guarding him, but if there is an elite defender guarding him thats when he will throw up bricks. The one who needs the most pt because he has a higher ceiling is DeAndre Jordan. He is only 20 – 21 years old, has better athletism than Kaman and with more time his game and ft will develop. In a few more years he can become a 20 and 10 center for many years to come.
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bongstradamus Reply:
October 11th, 2009 at 4:42 pm
I think DeAndre is keeping Kaman honest. If I was Chris, I’d be fearing for my job.
Maybe its the ghost of Elton Brand, because Sam Dalembert has the same problem with Marresse Speights in Philly.
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Posted on October 10th, 2009 at 6:09 pm
[...] ClipperBlog’s take, including high praise for Sebastian Telfair as a backup point guard. [ClipperBlog] [...]
Posted on October 11th, 2009 at 3:43 pm
I realize many people seem to be down on Mike Dunl… I just want to say give him a break
Lets start fresh this year
Hes got some great players
lets beat the Lakers at home on opening night to start the season out with a bang!!!!
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Posted on October 12th, 2009 at 2:48 pm
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