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(Photo by Bill Baptist/NBAE via Getty Images)

Buzzer Reaction

Los Angeles Clippers

107

Final Recap | Box score

94

Houston Rockets

No Daily Dime tonight.

Tweet(s) of the Game

Combine CP3 & Blake in 4Q with Jamal Crawford hitting 30-foot bombs? Yeah, you're not beating LAC too many times when those forces converge.

— Jason Friedman (@JasonCFriedman) November 10, 2013

(And then Andrew steals the show…)

The Three Foulsketeers. RT @DanWoikeSports: Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and JJ Redick all have 3 fouls.

— Andrew Han (@andrewthehan) November 10, 2013

With Rep. Collison’s vote cast, Lawler’s Law goes into effect. RT @fosterdj: ColLAWson Dagger ugh sorry

— Andrew Han (@andrewthehan) November 10, 2013

Efficiency Flow

The Depth Charge

No shot chart tonight as Mullens didn’t attempt a shot (!).

ClipperBlog Live’s Best Moment

As is the trend in almost all CBLs, the crew spends way too much time talking about Byron Mullens and the backup big man situation. Also discussed: Blake Griffin’s post moves, DeAndre Jordan’s rebounding and tonight’s Darren Collison sighting.

Check Your Messages

Harden’s Struggles
You probably heard over the course of the broadcast about how James Harden has historically struggled against the Clippers in his career, but it’s even worse than just wins and losses.

Over his career, Harden has averaged 16.4 points on 44.3 percent shooting from the field.

In his 14 games against the Clippers, however, Harden’s averages drop to 11.8 points and 34 percent shooting.

How big does a sample size have to get before we start to believe in it?
– D.J. Foster

Bad Wins? Good Losses?
Early in a season, it can be tough to keep things in perspective. But freaking out over a few November losses is about as ill-advised as booking a ticket to the Finals after a 17-game win streak in December. For the past two seasons, Chris Paul has helped the team to a number of “bad wins” — victories in games the Clippers should have lost (which ultimately leads to an inflated record without addressing any underlying problems). For now, I’d rather see evidence that the team is improving its trouble areas in a loss than see them pull out a victory without addressing what ails them.

Which brings us to tonight: On the one hand, the starters are continuing to improve their defensive rotations (which we know are already respectable). On the other, the drop-off from the starters to the bench at the end of the first was just devastating. You’ve got to love Doc’s second-half line-up adjustments and the pluck the team found when it clamped down on defense to close out the third. But is that sustainable? While we figure that out, let’s just call it a “good bad win,” and see whether it carries over to Monday.
– Patrick James

The Clippers’ Identity
So maybe the Clippers are just a defensive team masquerading as an offensive team to start the season, or maybe they’re just a team without an identity.

Whatever the case might be, they’re a team that was finally able to win while they figure out exactly what they are, as they beat the Houston Rockets 107-94 on Saturday to snap a two-game losing streak and avoid a winless road trip.

“No, not that I know of,” Clippers coach Doc Rivers said when asked if the team had an identity yet. “We’ve proven we can score a lot of points in some games. We’ve actually played some defense for a couple quarters. It will come together. … I can’t forge an identity on anybody. It always plays out and you figure out what you are.”

As long as the Clippers can win games while they figure out what they are, they are fine without having an identity right now.

“I’ve thought about an identity all of zero seconds,” Rivers said. “I think we have to figure out what we are first.”
– Arash Markazi over at ESPN LA

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