(Photo by Glenn James / NBAE via Getty Images)
Early on in the season, Kevin Garnett was seen at the Clippers training facility working with Blake Griffin on positioning in the post. The videos showed an instruction of using the body to back a defender deep below the basket.
That’s not exactly what has been reflected in recent games.
Once again, a Clippers game comes down to a late game possession down by one. And once again, as Blake turns and posts some fifteen-plus feet from the basket, the result does not work out in the team’s favor.
To put this wholly on Blake would be unfair, and credit the Mavericks defense for the blitzing and double-teaming that contributed to his rough night. The inconsistency of the team, best evidenced by the polar differences in the finishes to the first and second halves, is clearly the greater concern.
Still — and this might be recency bias speaking — one gets a sense that these post ups are appearing more often, and at the cost of the stellar face-to-the-basket play evidenced in more recent years.
X-Factor: The Clippers had 17 turnovers last night, leading to 21 Mavericks points off of those turnovers. The giveaways have been a issue for LA this season more than in any previous year in the Chris Paul era.
Clippers record when turning it over 15+ times, CP3 era
16-17: 6-15
15-16: 11-6
14-15: 8-7
13-14: 22-7
12-13: 20-13
11-12: 8-5 https://t.co/UOvkshJGZ4— Law Murray ℹ (@LawMurrayTheNU) March 24, 2017
Major Moment: With 0.9 seconds left in the game, Chris Paul sent the inbounds pass to a running J.J. Redick, who found the space to quickly turn and launch for a three-pointer from the right corner. It was an open look and a well designed play to get the shot, but it ended up just a bit long.
The Definition: Given the closeness in the ever-changing standings, some considered this game a must-win. Others, pointing out the weak remaining schedule as compared to other teams fighting for playoff seeding, feel more confident about the chances to earn the 4th seed.
The outcome is likely neither as dire as the former nor as inconsequential as the latter, but it does make the chances of taking the season series against the Utah Jazz on Saturday all the more important.
In the 4th quarter Chris Paul got a tech, dribbled it off his foot, and airballed a 16 foot jumper.
Chris Paul’s career playoff record is 31-42. He’s 21-29 in the playoffs as a Clipper.
Hey, remember when the Clippers ran Blake and DJ pick and roll? I don’t blame you if you’ve forgotten. They ran it about 15 times when Chris was injured.
Mike Dunleavy used to talk about using Blake as the ball handler in the pick and roll. That was 8 f**king years ago. In the 8 f**king years since we’ve seen that play run less than 50 times.
Alvin Gentry had Blake facing up and attacking the rim. He hasn’t done much of that since. The only other time he attacked like that was the 2015 playoffs when he was one of the 3 best players in the NBA.
It’s clear that Blake isn’t 100% healthy. He’s holding off on major surgery until he signs his next contract. He might be on the same path as Amar’e Stoudemire and Chandler Parsons.
This isn’t about choosing between Blake or Chris.
The franchise is f**ked either way.
The best course of action is to rebrand and rebuild. Aim for having a young and exciting playoff team by the time the new arena is built.
The Chris Paul/Blake Griffin era is going to die a very slow and very expensive death. And the only thing they’ll have to show for it is a pair of jerseys hanging in the rafters of the new arena.
Trying to blame Chris Paul for the Clippers troubles in the playoffs is nonsensical. Paul is the reason the Clippers get to the playoffs.
Paul’s first season with the Clippers was the 2011-12 season. That season they made the playoffs, after missing the playoffs each of the previous five seasons. The year before Paul got here the Clippers finished 13th in the West. His first year here they finished fifth. They have made the playoffs all six seasons he has been here. In the more than 30 years they have been in LA, they only made the playoffs four other times and all four of those were with lower seeds than any of the Chris Paul years.
His 21-29 playoff record means only two things.
1. He consistently gets his team to the playoffs and often gets it to the second round.
2. The GM has failed miserably in improving the team around him so that the team can advance beyond the second round.
The problem is Rivers. I have said so for three years, and more and more people are realizing I have been correct all of that time.
The Clippers winning percentage the year before Rivers got here was .683. Now it is .589. He has hurt the Clippers over and over again with his many bad judgement roster moves. The year before he got here, the Clippers were poised to improve to the point they could win a ring. Four years of terrible transactions later, the Clippers are a less quality team than they were before Rivers got here and they now have no realistic way of improving.
Rivers has been as disaster for the Clippers and now he likely will leave for Orlando and try to escape the blame for what he did here.