OFFICIAL LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS 2024 OFFSEASON THREAD

[HIM]

I would really like to wash these dudes in their own arena. They play well at home doe.

 

[P C H]

Got us catching an L tonight

Portland is such a tough place to play at, and w/ it being our opener I think we'll compete well but drop this one.

Regardless, I hope I'm wrong. Just glad to see us playing games that matter. Can't stress how important it is start out strong. I want like 11-4 or something like that.

 

[lawdog1]

^^^ I can see that. Plus, they've already played a game and we haven't. Wouldn't surprise me if we miss a lot of shots early because of rust/overenergized. If that happens and they start out hot, will make it tough. Either way, I'm excited.

 

[P C H]

First sub was Austin in for Luc. Got a look at him playing the 3

Also doc staggering Blake and CP. I dig it. Also like the fact that Felton isn't in the prigioni role and is actually in the rotation.

 

[lawdog1]

Not bad so far. Blake looked a little tentative with the J at first, but knocked down that 3 nicely. CP really picking his spots. Mo produces.

 

[lawdog1]

Second unit killing right now:

 

[lawdog1]

Second unit killing right now:

2nd half offense ugly so far. Team is trying way to hard to get JJ going.

 

[lawdog1]

Having JJ and Jamal in right now is a terrible idea...

Going ok, actually.

 

[HIM]

 

[lawdog1]

Kind of backed into the win at the end, but I'll take it. Road W against a quality team is a great way to start the season.

 

[P C H]

Great win.

Starters were meh, bench was awesome, especially defensively. Blake and CP both looked really good.

We got good Mo speights today, hopefully that stays that way.

1-0 baby

 

[Nipsey3000]

last 2 min of the game was atrocious. kept fouling and stopping the clock and offense was non existenet.

but the bench played well.

unlike a few here...i liked DJs chippy-ness

attitude was different. we are slightly meaner hearing chatter during the game and CP3 after the game.

loved to see blake perform the rim run and seal. i think he did it twice tonight and got an easy bucket out of it.

LAC didn't get much out of JJ and we still won pretty handily.

just that last 2 mins or so...smh.

 

[lawdog1]

^^^ Last two minutes was a classic case of a team trying not to lose, rather than playing to win. Just play.

I didn't have a problem with DJ last night. Plumlee set the tone with the physicality of the game. He was holding DJ and going over his back from the jump. DJ just responded to it in kind.

 

[HIM]

My emotional comment had nothing to do with plumlee. He should have had a T before that with the way he was treating the refs. Sarcastically clapping at them after every call, yelling,cussing at them. Then he continued to do it after getting a T. He should have been ejected lowball.

We'll lose a couple games this season due to suspensions/ejections.

 

[lawdog1]

What's up with our schedule though? 2 games in 6 days...

 

[HIM]

Mo has won me over in the span of two games. 4 charges taken through 3 quarters. 

Good thing DJ is already a terrible shooter. His right thumb shouldn't affect his game much.

AR again 

Please no collapse today.

 

[P C H]

Austin Rivers looks great. Doc has played him a lot at the 3 and it looks great through two games.

Bench ahead of schedule. Speights lacks rim protection but rotations are on point. Great position defender.

Love the look of the team so far and the rotations.

 

[lawdog1]

Good win today. Starter got off to a sluggish start but played well in 3rd quarter to open up the game. Bench was strong. Mo has been the standout of the new guys, but Felton is real solid. Just makes winning plays. Austin gets the game ball though.

Can't sleep on Phoenix tomorrow.

 

[P C H]

Obviously AR's output is unsustainable but this is the type of aggression IMO we need from him off the bench

He's the only guard and Wing on the team who can get to the rim consistently. He has a cat quick first step and a killer crossover man. I think we're better when he's playing downhill and putting the pressure on the defense. (Kind of why I was upset when we resigned jamal because when they are in the game together he tends to defer to him too much for my liking)

Hopefully he keeps up the aggression and consistency but I've loved what I've seen from Austin thus far through two games

 

[lawdog1]

^^^ I think Austin has improved on his finishing around the basket as well. He's always been able to get there pretty well; now he's finishing off plays as well - with either hand.

Everyone seems to have come to the realization that he's not a PG and that's for the best.

 

[P C H]

^Exactly. 100% correct. Besides, there aren't many "PG's" in the stereotypical sense anyway anymore, especially heading 2nd units. Bringing Raymond Felton along helped big time in that regard.

Some news and notes:

@LAClippersStats 51m51 minutes ago
Dating back to last season, the starting 5 of CP/JJ/Luc/Blake/DJ have won 7 consecutive games. (Regular season) Going further into last season, this starting 5 has won 14 of their last 18 contest
 

Our starting 5 is very good, but we knew that already

 ‏@LAClippersStats 1h1 hour ago
The @LAClippers have now started the reg season at 2-0 for the 3rd consecutive season and are looking to go 3-0 for the 2nd straight season

 @LAClippersStats 1h1 hour ago
Through 2 games, the @LAClippers are 2nd in the league in Opp points per at 90.5 ppg and 3rd in the league in Def RTG at 95.2 PPG

 @LAClippersStats 1h1 hour ago
Austin Rivers avg of 13.5ppg this season so far is the highest point avg he's posted through the first two games of a season in his career.

 @LAClippersStats 2h2 hours ago
The @LaClippers are 9-2 in their last 11 meetings with the @Suns #ItTakesEverything #SunsatLAC

https://twitter.com/LAClippersStats/with_replies

 

[P C H]

Defense is far ahead of our offense through 2 and a half games so far. Not coincidentally, Redick's early struggles coincide with this.

 

[HIM]

Doc's rotations have been absolutely beautiful so far through the first three games.  I love it.

Don't even care that Speights is missing those shots. Take the wide open shots and they'll start falling.

Austin Rivers doing it again. Looks like the "he's only in the league because of his dad" jokes can officially die.

Blake really out here. Dudes really forgot who he was with those missed games last year. 

Little thing I've noticed through the first three games. DJ and Blake are actually boxing out. I wish someone could make a compilation video of the last couple of seasons. They would just rely on their athleticism to get boards but now they're looking for bodies. Doesn't matter if you get the ball, just make sure your man doesn't get it. Just checked and sure enough, we're 6th in opponents Offensive rebounds after being 27th last year. 

JJ really close to breaking out of that mini slump from 3, I think.

Overall I'm loving the look of the team. Haven't really had a great game yet and we're 3-0 with none of them really being close.

Looking forward to Wednesday's matchup. I will be in attendance.

 

 

[P C H]

- Clips emphasis on boarding is bleeding into the regular season. Haven't seen Blake attack the glass like this since his rookie season. Hopefully this is a thing for him for the entire season

- Continuity is also bleeding through through 3 games. This was an elite defense last year and through 3 games it's still very much there. Holding opponents to 93ppg. Next week will give us a better gauge of where we're at on that end of the floor.

- This version of Austin Rivers is fantastic. Constantly playing downhill and playing below the free throw line. Love it. Him and Raymond together kind of keeps Jamal Crawford in check and Jamal looks a lot more controlled.

- I love the bench so far and this team looks a lot more seamless than it was at this point last season and a big reason for that is continuity. Just loving the way this team looks.

3-0

 

[jumpmanpro97]

The bench actually looks helpful. I hated mo speights on the warriors, I still kind of hate him