The Clippers have won seven straight, demonstrating how far they’ve come since the James Harden trade, Andrew Greif of the Los Angeles Times writes. Kawhi Leonard has scored 30-plus points in six of the last 10 games, and Leonard, Paul George and Harden are developing into a dominating trio.
“It’s exactly what I envisioned just how we should play and how we can play,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said. “The biggest thing is just PG, Kawhi and James making each other better on a night-to-night basis.”
We have more on the Los Angeles teams:
- Amir Coffey played 29 minutes for the Clippers on Thursday, scoring 18 points against Golden State. He saw 17 more minutes of action against the Knicks on Saturday after playing sparingly in the first 23 games. Lue said Coffey, who is signed through next season, bulled his way into the rotation, Greif tweets. “He’s earned the right to have the opportunity to play,” Lue said.
- The Clippers’ defense will be tested in all of their games before Christmas, Law Murray of The Athletic notes. They face top-10 offenses in the Pacers, Mavericks and Thunder during their upcoming three-game road trip, then host another top-10 offense in the Celtics. “We’re a defense-first team, and we’ll watch film, see what they like to do, prepare for them and do our best,” Ivica Zubac said. “We know Indy is a great offensive team, and then you got Dallas and OKC, some great offensive teams. But we got some good defenders on this team and guys with high IQ that read very well on defense that can make plays. It’s going to be a great test for us.”
- The Lakers list Anthony Davis (left adductor, hip spasm) and LeBron James (left calf contusion) as questionable for Monday’s home game against the Knicks, Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times tweets. Christian Wood (non-COVID illness) is also listed as questionable.
Good to see Harden George and Leonard playing for another contract. They have what it takes to win it. Westbrook should be applauded for going to the bench. He is a team guy. Hoping he gets ring.
If Leonard is healthy in the playoffs this year it will get real interesting. He knows what time of year to bring it.
If this Clippers team keeps it up, Ty Lue HAS TO win Coach of the Year.
Harden, Westbrook, George, Leonard, Mann, Hyland, PJ Tucker, Powell, Zubac, Plumlee, Coffey, etc.
Him being able to work with all of the Clippers different Alpha personalities on and off the court, AND be able to keep them all satisfied and happy would definitely be one incredible job.
That’s including keeping their other guys like Hyland, Mann, and Powell all happy as well.
From a purely basketball standpoint, it shouldn’t be that difficult. They have one of the most talented and deepest rosters in the entire NBA.
When they are healthy, the Clippers can easily roll out an 11 man rotation on any given night. I mean, when you are having to choose between Powell, Mann, Zubac, and Hyland to decide a team’s fifth and sixth best scoring options, that’s pretty insane.
Now, with all of that being said, other than Clippers fans and maybe their opponents, no one cares what they accomplish during the regular season. Everyone is just sitting back and waiting to see what they’re able to do come playoff time.
Honestly, the West is as wide open as it has ever been. Really, the Nuggets are the only team that’s even looked at as a consensus top team in the West.
The Timberwolves, Thunder, Mavericks, and the Kings are all unproven and fairly new to being atop the standings. Unlike most years, there really isn’t any single team that’s unanimously expected to dominate the West. Even the former Champs have shown to have their own fair share of flaws, because you cannot count on Jamal Murray staying healthy. That might not be a fair thing to say, but it is just the truth.
As currently constructed, the Clippers have as good of a shot as anyone to represent the West. Only time will tell their tale, but this just might be Paul George and Russ’ best shot at a title.
I knew Hardensbeardhasfleas would avoid this post like the plague lol