A few quick things from the Clippers 108-100 loss to the Hornets:
- The Good – I’m a little sick of speculating on what motivates Baron, but I’m going to do it anyway. I’m guessing the combination of Baron playing at home, playing against his former team, and playing against fellow UCLA Bruin Darren Collison did the trick tonight. Baron’s stats were the good kind of ridiculous: 18 points on 8-for-14 shooting, 17 assists, and only one turnover. What was the difference offensively? As usual, it was because he got into the paint and created. Baron shot only three attempts outside of the paint for the Clippers. That’s the kind of ratio needed for Baron to regularly shoot a high percentage from the field. Sadly for Baron, the great night came in a losing effort. Tonight marks the first time in Baron’s ten-year career in which his team has lost when he’s tallied at least 15 assists.
- The Bad – The Hornets shot 69 percent from the field in the second half. Seemingly every perimeter look went in, especially down the stretch. The Clippers’ defensive rotations just seemed a bit slower in the second half. Perhaps it was fatigue, as the Clippers uncharacteristically played only 8 guys, one of them being Eric Gordon who hasn’t played in ten days.
- The Ugly – Chris Kaman couldn’t buy a bucket to save his life tonight. Kaman went 3-for-15 from the field tonight, with his only makes coming from dunks. That’s right: Kaman went 0-for-12 on non-dunk attempts. Wide open jumpers, easy layups, 5-foot jump hooks, it didn’t matter. Kaman missed them all.
