Memphis Grizzlies 105 - Los Angeles Clippers 82 - Back to Reality
by Dennis Lin on Mar 14, 2011 9:21 PM PDT
in Game Recaps
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PrintIt sounds strange to say, but before tonight’s 105-82 loss to the Grizzlies, the Clippers had, at least of late, grown accustomed to playing with a lead. What made this development even more unusual was that it had come away from Staples Center. In the opener of their five-game road trip, which came to a disastrous end tonight, the Clippers outscored the Bobcats in every quarter before pulling out a 92-87 win. In Boston, the Clippers nearly choked away a 23-point lead but managed to hold off the Celtics for another narrow victory. The Clippers weren’t so lucky in New Jersey, where they squandered a 20-point cushion, but still led most of the way before losing in overtime. Then, against the Wizards, the Clippers went ahead early in the first quarter and never looked back on their way to one of the easiest wins of the season.
So when Zach Randolph made a 15-foot jumper midway through the second quarter to give the Grizzlies a 37-26 lead, the double-digit deficit felt oddly unfamiliar. Yet, as the next two-and-a-half quarters unfolded, the Clippers bricking jumpers right and left while the Grizzlies did as they pleased, all the unpleasant memories of the disjointed team we saw earlier this season came rushing back with a vengeance.
Mo Williams: 11 points, 2 assists, 5 turnovers
DeAndre Jordan: 7 points, 3 rebounds, 2 blocks (15 minutes)
Randy Foye: 8 points, 1 assist, 3 turnovers
Ryan Gomes: 0 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist (Gomes left the game in the third quarter with a bruised right knee)
If you add up the scoring totals, you'll see that the starting lineup combined for just 34 points, a number Randolph (30 points on 12-for-18 shooting, 12 rebounds) nearly matched by himself. Which is ridiculous. I can understand a few players having off nights, especially against defenders like Tony Allen and Shane Battier, but for all five starters to lay stinkers? You're going to get blown out, and that’s precisely what happened to the Clippers. Even the bench (48 points) outscored the starters, but that's less a product of an impressive effort by the second unit than it is all the garbage time that was played in this one -- basically, the entire second half.
Even when the Clippers finished the first quarter down just a point, it was only a matter of time before the Grizzlies broke this one wide open. Turnovers were a glaring issue in the teams' last matchup, an 84-83 Memphis win in which the Clippers coughed up the ball a season-high 27 times, and the Clips were at it again, throwing lazy passes that were easily deflected or picked off and converted into easy baskets at the other end. Tonight, the Grizzlies had 14 steals and scored 24 points off the Clippers' 19 turnovers. A lot of these points were scored in transition, with the Grizzlies getting 30 fast break points against a defense that constantly found itself on its heels.
Meanwhile, the Clippers finished with just 2 points on the break. But they couldn’t get anything going in their halfcourt sets, either. Much credit is due to the Grizzlies defense, which seemingly had its hands in every passing lane, but the Clippers simply didn’t move the ball and only mustered 4 assists in the first half. Eric Bledsoe momentarily revived the team when he came into the game midway through the first quarter and aggressively drove to the rim nearly every time he touched the ball, but for the most part, his teammates just stood around and watched. Really, it’s no surprise that the Clippers shot just 40 percent from the field (including 4-for-17 from 3-point range) when you consider that most of their opportunities came outside any sort of flow on offense. Even the decent looks wouldn’t go down, but that’s what happens when you don’t develop any rhythm to begin with.
This might have been Griffin’s worst game of the season. He freed himself for one dunk, but other than that, it was as if he wasn’t even on the floor. The Grizzlies did an excellent job of crowding him on pick-and-rolls, not giving him space to operate, and when Griffin got the ball down low, the Memphis bigs simply stood tall and forced him to shoot over them -- something he did with little success. On defense, he was absolutely dominated by Randolph, who had six offensive rebounds and got whatever look he wanted when he wasn’t putting back a miss.
You can't put all the blame on Griffin, though. It was an all-around disappointment by the entire team. I did, however, like what I saw out of Bledsoe. After scoring 23 points in 22 minutes against Washington, Bledsoe had another strong performance, this time leading the Clippers in both points (19) and assists (4). That 4 assists was a team-high speaks to how poor a game the Clippers played, but that’s beside the point. For entire stretches tonight, Bledsoe was the only thing the Clips had going for them, as he was getting to the rim, drawing defenders and either finishing himself or dumping it off to a teammate for a score. On one sequence in the fourth quarter, he came off an Ike Diogu screen and was instantly doubled. The early-season version of Bledsoe might have panicked and thrown an errant pass, but this time he waited for both defenders to collapse on him, turned, spun and whipped a dart to a diving Diogu for an easy dunk. Things are slowing down for the rookie, and despite the fact that he’s played more than a few minutes in garbage time lately, we’re beginning to see evidence of that growth.
One last takeaway: This was a disturbing loss because the Clippers play the Grizzlies twice in April. Chances are, the Grizzlies won't replicate what they did tonight in completely shutting down the Clips both inside and outside, but more turnover-heavy games could equal more embarrassing blowouts before season’s end. Against Memphis’ relentless perimeter defense, it all starts with taking care of the ball, and if the Clippers can’t do that the next time out, they’ll be in for another long night.
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Absolutely the most listless game I have seen played in the last two years
Nobody on the Clips except Bledsoe expended any effort tonight. I hope this was just a “call it in” long road trip performance rather than signs of things to come. I feel sorry for the fans who paid $$ to watch Blake tonight. He had no energy or drive whatsoever.
Listless indeed....
but the game against Golden State last year tops this for the most pathetic effort I’ve ever seen in an NBA game – the Clips got blown out by 30 by a Golden State team that had so many injuries they had to bring up several D-leaguers just to fill the roster. I think one even started and scored over 20. Several Clips, including Kaman and Davis, literally quit playing. The effort was so bad that Sterling justifiably should have withheld paychecks.
Griffin may be burning out but an 82 game schedule will do that for many rookies. Randolph showed what hard work can do for a guy with limited athletic ability.
i remember that..
i think it was the game where curry had 20-5-5 after the first quarter, and a triple double nearly by halftime.. i think that was anthony morrow’s breakout game as well..
by isaacthegrreat on Mar 15, 2011 11:45 AM PDT up reply actions
Agree!
I don’t what was up with the clips but every team has to go through jet lag or road game tired legs,
this team must be really be badly coached or something, I see things that the avg. bball fan can see, about what you need to tell your team to get them motivated when your playing with tired road legs but even with fresh legs the clippers are badly coached on the offense and defense ends, this has happened all season.
Brian H Faux
Nice recap- thought I was reading the usual steve perrin
excellence, but then realized it was dennis lin. Actually, the other bright spot other than ebled for clips fans is the rich pool of writers here and at clipperblog.
by KeithClossrules on Mar 14, 2011 9:37 PM PDT reply actions
um...
Clips Nation. Not Clipperblog.
In this world, you must be oh so smart or oh so pleasant. Well, for years I was smart. I recommend pleasant. - Elwood P. Dowd
by Steve Perrin on Mar 14, 2011 9:49 PM PDT up reply actions
What is Clipperblog lol?
Man I got them buzzin' buzzin' buzzin' buzzin, Like da-da-da-da-da-da-da -Mann
“rich pool of writers here and at clipperblog”
by Michael White on Mar 14, 2011 9:53 PM PDT up reply actions
I don't know what loss is worst, the Jersey one or this blowout
Gomes had to leave midway through the game with a bruised right thigh
This is a great thing! Not wishing anything bad on Gomes, since he sounds like a great guy, but this will give more playing time (assuming he is injured and out for a days) to Aminu and Moon! Not that I think Aminu is all that, but I want him to prove me wrong! This is the only positive aspect of the loss, which is good because I was about to go binge drinking on the 710 overpass lol!
Man I got them buzzin' buzzin' buzzin' buzzin, Like da-da-da-da-da-da-da -Mann
Nice write up Dennis...
Sorry that you got stuck with such a stinkeroo of a game. All I can say is I’m glad that I didn’t have to write it.
A great write up on a bad game. Thanks for stepping up.
In this world, you must be oh so smart or oh so pleasant. Well, for years I was smart. I recommend pleasant. - Elwood P. Dowd
Appreciate it, Steve
I had fun writing it, even despite the final score. But if it’s another bad blowout next time, you might have to consider booting me out of here.
Would not say the Wizards game was easy either
They made a big run but you after they pushed our lead down to 4 they ran out of plays to use the energy was going down and without Lewis or Blatche no easy buckets. The Clippers do not have the same aggressive edge on offense and the pace is much slower looking forward to the off season to get some deals done to fix the holes on the team.
Clippers from the field
Players who shot better than 50%
Diogu- 3 for 3
Jordan- 3 for 5
Bledsoe- 6 for 11
Kaman- 7 for 13
Everybody else was under 50%, and there were some really bad ones. Led by the terrible threesome platooning at SF. Moon, 1 for 6. Aminu 1 for 7. Gomes 0 for 4. Barf.
If you are going to go 1-6 at least have no turnovers and 4 rebounds
Even when Moon fails he is better than Gomes and Aminu.
When will VDN see this?
I’m tired of watching him sit the pine.
"Failure is not fatal, but failure to change might be." - John Wooden
by Erik O on Mar 15, 2011 7:48 AM PDT via mobile up reply actions
Was listening on the radio
When I heard Aminu jacked two 3’s in the 2nd quarter on one possession I knew we are in trouble. We should be able to yank him directly after a 3PA.
"The need to be right - the sign of a vulgar mind."
VDN you are a complete ass-hole.
How do you take Griffin out of the game with 5:30 left and Griffin only played 31 minutes? VDN you broke Griffins’ streak of scoring double figures in every game. He brought back the integrity of the Clippers.Griffin sells out every arena in the country. You don’t run plays for him and you substitute like an idiot. Yiou treat him like shit.Griffin was pleading with you to play. Randolf played until 2 minutes left. Who would want to play for you, you are a stupid fraud and so are your stooge assistent coaches. You take the heart out of your players. That why Chicago dumped you and Rose couldn’t stand you. This isn’t the first comfortation with Griffin. Defend this the fans of VDN.
Gordon is also not happy with you.
Setting screens
This game was ugly, and the lethargic play was awful..enough said..yikes!!
Real quick though, it seems like lately (tonight especially) the Clipper bigs either aren’t setting good screens, or the guards don’t use them well. No one is getting open off them.
A New Model for the Clips?
Maybe the Clippers organization should stop looiking at the OKC Thunder as a model and start looking at the success of the Grizz as something the Clips can emulate.
Let me see if I can get this right. The most important thing the Grizzlies did was make one of the all-time bad trades in which they gave away a top of the line PF for his not nearly as talented brother.
But that’s not all. They also made some pretty bad draft choices—a very disappointing point guard who will never justify a no.4 selection, a “stud” shooting guard who began his career decline at age 21, and one of the all-time worst draft choices in the No. 2 slot with Hasheem Thabeet.
Combine that with picking up a career long disappointment in Zack Randolph and wildly overpaying for Rudy Gay and there you have it—a winning team with some pretty decent upside given that none of their top players outside O.J. Mayo have reached their peak.
Did I mention the horrible ownership situation?
Blundering Your Way Toward the Top—The Grizzlie Model for Success.
Road to .500!
1. Acquire DeLorean
2. Invent flux capacitor
3. Achieve 88 mph
4. …
5. Name John R GM of the Clippers
It is a crime if this team does not make the playoffs.
What new leaf would that be?
I have been 100% consistent for my, what, oh the whole time this blog has existed?
One man's jabs are another man's humor
Like I said, thin-skinned crybabies lately.
I'll see next year as a playoff year
I know this team can play like they did back in January.
Ahhh, January… What a prosperous time for Clippers and the Clipper fans <3
by Ricekrispy10 on Mar 14, 2011 11:28 PM PDT up reply actions
Sure they can
And they can play like they did in Feb.
The season is one long game punctuated by breaks every 48 minutes.
I did have a bad feeling about this game
I do wonder if the average clipperfan is a bit manic-depressive. When we win it’s like we are ready to win it all, if we lose it’s like we are the worst team in the league.
Relax people, every team has these games. Let’s hope the team will learn and adapt.
Well, there goes VDN's chances at another 41-41 season!
"look, you can find any coach you want, bring him in here and run the situation. But I don't think they are going to do as good a job as I do." -Mike Dunleavy Sr.
i'm so speechless
loosing is 1 thing not giving effort is aonther… how many of you guys are baseball fans my Braves should give me more to cheer for sure
by Brian Ahmed on Mar 15, 2011 5:01 AM PDT via mobile reply actions
game agaisnt the 76ers
i want my Griffin dunking on FElton poster.
This team will grow
as they have games like this. Right now they can not dig down and battle back, they get down on themselves and then they think too much about what to do and what not to do, and then the other team is up by 20. Ok a healthy EJ is going to help a lot, and GM Olshey needs to find a very confident 3 point shooter off the bench to calm things down when it gets out of control. I agree the only bright spot right now is Bledsoe. Nice review Dennis!
Didn't see the game
If I did no doubt I’d be disappointed.
However, they won 3 of 5 on the road trip, including Boston at home, and came within a BG free throw of winning a fourth.
I will take 60 percent on the road all day long. I also haven’t seen the team play without effort this year. If that becomes a trend I’d be concerned.
I like the team with Mo. What is the record? How many road wins? Contrast that with BD. With EJ the team is pretty special. Yeah they need a couple tweaks but I don’t think there’s cause for alarm at this point.
"[Fans are] not technically a lot of times savvy. They don't understand and they don't weigh issues the way that [I] weigh them."
Mike Dunleavy, Sr.
by Jax on Mar 15, 2011 8:37 AM PDT via mobile reply actions
LOL
Man, I gotta give it up. This comment was much funnier than my Back to the Future reference.
I try
If everyone held the same opinions, the world would be a pretty boring place. I’m not surprised that you disagree wiht my take.
However, I agree that the Back to the Future reference was pretty funny.
"[Fans are] not technically a lot of times savvy. They don't understand and they don't weigh issues the way that [I] weigh them."
Mike Dunleavy, Sr.
Back to reality
whoops there goes gravity
"Baron is one of those guys who feeds off the crowd, but if the crowd sucks, he just feeds himself." - Bill Simmons
"the next time i check in a hotel and the previous guess doesnt put toilet seat down and i fall into the toilet. im gonna be pissed "-Ron Artest
hey hey hey! this is just one loss guys let's not get carried away
lets look at the upside please. we learned something from this loss. Like when you don’t make shots or play defense you lose. See we didn’t know that before so now we do and we can move forward and win the championship now YAY!
wine um, dine um, 69 um
by flightofthegriffin on Mar 15, 2011 2:43 PM PDT reply actions
Imagine if the Clippers had a team with
Blake Griffin, Zach Randolph, Marcus Camby, and Chris Kaman all on the same team. What an embarrassment of riches!
oh wait…
Blake Griffin is coming, hide your MBengas
And given that you have almost $45 million tied up in these guys, who plays the other three positions?
oh wait….
"Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted" – Albert Einstein
by Another son of Mike Smith on Mar 15, 2011 7:17 PM PDT up reply actions
Eric Gordon, Baron Davis and MLE small forward.
If you (or really Sterling) don’t want to spend then that’s one story, but there is no reason why you couldn’t have those 4 players and a lot more talent to go along with it.
by Michael White on Mar 15, 2011 7:20 PM PDT up reply actions
Would you seriously spend your money on those four guys?
"[Fans are] not technically a lot of times savvy. They don't understand and they don't weigh issues the way that [I] weigh them."
Mike Dunleavy, Sr.
Of course, why not? I like having good players on the team.
And it makes it much easier to make an impact trade. Happy with Griffin and want to move Zbo this year? Zbo’s expiring contract, the Minny pick and another pick for Deron Williams sounds pretty good. Want to ride it out and make a run this year? You have the option to use bird rights to re-sign Randolph and then you have Kaman’s expiring contract to play with next year. Don’t want to do that, you have Camby’s expiring contract the year after.
You layer contracts so that you have expensive contracts rolling off at different times. And yes, you have to spend money. Kaman, Griffin, Randolph and Camby are all valuable, so I have no problem spending money on those players. Especially when the revenue stream (for LAC) easily supports the expenditures.
by Michael White on Mar 15, 2011 7:39 PM PDT up reply actions
Well, I think we all like having good players on the team
The question is whether it is prudent to spend the lion’s share of the available cash on four big men. Of course, you are stating that you would take the four with their existing contracts – I’d agree with that.
"[Fans are] not technically a lot of times savvy. They don't understand and they don't weigh issues the way that [I] weigh them."
Mike Dunleavy, Sr.
We really don’t know if it is the lion’s share of the available cash. A reasonable person could suggest that DTS has the capability to take on those contracts and then some.
All I can say is if 1) my goal is to put together a winning team and 2) I had the revenue base the Clippers enjoy that this is the basic framework of how I would do it. The cap rules easily provides the ability to have those 4 players and add other pieces.
by Michael White on Mar 15, 2011 8:32 PM PDT up reply actions
Of course, why limit yourself to those four players?
Because they were previously on the team? I can think of a number of players that I would take before some of them for a better mix. But I get your point.
"[Fans are] not technically a lot of times savvy. They don't understand and they don't weigh issues the way that [I] weigh them."
Mike Dunleavy, Sr.
you do realize
that Eric Gordon, Baron Davis, Al Thornton, DeAndre Jordan, Mike Taylor, and probably some scrub was on the team at the time those four were.
Also, being a soft cap, the Clips could have added players at the MLE. Hell, the Clips could do it their way by being cheap and fill the rest of the roster with minimum players.
Blake Griffin is coming, hide your MBengas
Clips got used to having the lead
and the opposing teams cutting the lead. That’s why once the Grizzlies took the command the Clip’s motivation went down the drain, hence the lethargy and lack of intensity. Again the coaching staff should have made adjustments on this, but the game results proved otherwise.
by Jakespeed on Mar 15, 2011 6:58 PM PDT via mobile reply actions
future of the clips
and so it goes…nice article over at chasing23 about the prospects of this team:
http://chasing23.com/2011/03/can-the-clippers-break-their-curse/
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