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When the doors to the Bren Center gym at UC Irvine opened up to the media today, it was a little different that what Steve Perrin reported yesterday. The team had just completed 2 practice scrimmages, and many players were icing their knees and cooling down after a hard workout. Some players continued to work on some skills, such as DeAndre Jordan, Chris Paul, and Nikoloz Tskitishvili all working on their free throws.
One player that really caught my eye was Luc Mbah a Moute, who is on a non-guaranteed contract, and needs to really show something to the coaching staff if he wants to be on the roster past October. He was off to the side of the main court shooting 3 after 3, making his fair share. With small forward being the most open position for someone to make an impact, watching him work on the 3 pointer was great to see.
Afterwards, coach Doc Rivers shared his thoughts on two of the Clippers new additions, Lance Stephenson and Josh Smith. When questioned about how Lance has been in regards to his reputation as a difficult player, Doc responded by saying "he has been great, that reputation is something I have not seen."
When asked about the position Clippers fans can expect to see Smith playing off the bench this season, his response was the 5, with Paul Pierce playing the 4, along with "the three", which consists of Lance Stephenson, Austin Rivers, and Jamal Crawford.
Rivers also mentioned that they have not put much half court offense in yet, and have only run one play in practice, so Clippers fans can expect little to no half court offense for the first pre-season game.
Notes from Day 3:
Lance Stephenson said that last season in Charlotte was a struggle, but he feels comfortable with the Clippers so far. He also said that he thinks the Clippers are the team to watch this season (in regards to excitement).
Josh Smith mentioned that the only problem for the Clippers so far is over passing.
Mamadou N'diaye is very very tall. The 7'6" junior was seen around Bren Center, along with other members of the UC Irvine basketball team. N'diaye definitely looks like a giant among boys.