Injuries And The Clippers Do Bulls In, 96-86

The injuries are mounting and that is not good news for the Chicago Bulls. Guard Derrick Rose is missing. Taj Gibson has a tender ankle and can't play. And, Jimmy Butler, who is having a breakout season, injured his elbow early in the third quarter of Sunday afternoon's contest and sat out the remainder of the game.

The result: the Bulls were offensively challenged against a tough-minded Los Angeles Clippers squad, who won't back down from anyone. The Clippers got great games from DeAndre Jordan and Chris Paul.  Jordan hauled in 26 rebounds, 17 in the first half; the most rebounds at half than anyone in the league to date.  Chris Paul provided the scoring punch with 28 points. Jamal Crawford scored all of his 16 points in the second half, and the Clippers pulled away in the 4th quarter to win 96-86.

The Bulls are missing Derrick Rose but they aren't saying it. They're also missing Gibson and now Butler.

Pau Gasol is recovering from a bug and isn't 100%. He only scored 4 points on 2 of 13 shooting. Key reserve Aaron Brooks is in a slump and shot 5 for 17 from the field. In fact the Bulls shot 31% in the game, a surprisingly low figure. But that happens when your point-makers are out.

Coach Tom Thibodeau of the Bulls thought his team could have won the game.

"It doesn't matter whose out. That was a winnable game down the stretch and we didn't get it done," the coach said post-game.

Rookie F Nikola Mirotic scored a career high 29 points, one of the bright spots for the team.  Joakim Noah had another solid game scoring 13 points and grabbing 11 boards. But Mike Dunleavy only scored 3 points on 1 for 3 attempts. It is hard to win when two starters account for 7 points. 

"Somebody needed to score the ball," Mirotic said. "My teammates were trying to find me."

Jordan had a great game for Los Angeles. He had position and determination to get the ball close in, and wouldn't be denied.

"If he was doing that offensively he would be recognized as the MVP or one of them," Clippers coach Doc Rivers said.

Crawford was scoreless in the first half but erupted for 16 in the second to provide a good second option for the Clippers.

Chicago falls to 37-23 for the year and are fighting for playoff seeding in the tighter Eastern Conference.  The Bulls host the dangerous Washington Wizards on Tuesday at the United Center.

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Depleted Mavs fall to Clippers 115-98

Right out of the gate, the Dallas Mavericks were dealt a bad hand.

If Mavs fans thought Rajon Rondo being injured was bad, having big man Tyson Chandler and shooting guard Monta Ellis sidelined is a nightmare. In Monday night's game against the Los Angeles Clippers, both Ellis and Chandler went down in the opening minutes of the first quarter. Ellis with an apparent hip injury, Chandler with an ankle injury.

DeAndre Jordan took full advantage of the lack of Tyson Chandler down low and grabbed 27 rebounds while adding 22 points in the win. Chris Paul also cooked against the already depleted point guard line up for the Mavs, adding 21 points and 13 assists.

A positive for the Mavericks is backup forward, Charlie Villanueva, who dropped a season high 26 points.

Trying to overcome having three starters out was deemed too tall of a task for the Mavericks, who still hung around at times and shooting 40% from the floor to the Clippers 44%

The All-Star break can not come soon enough for Dallas. They need to get healthy and regroup to get into gear to make a push down the stretch.  It's possible that the Mavs can add pieces to the bench like Jermaine O'Neal and Amar'e Stoudemire who can add much needed size down low to help out Chandler on the boards.

This loss drops the Mavs to 2-11 against Western Conference playoff teams. Funny thing is, when the Mavs went on that 2011 championship run, they were 2-15 after New Years day against Western Conference playoff teams. Does history repeat itself? Only time will tell.

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Will new ownership produce a better product on the floor for the Clippers?

Earlier this month, Steve Ballmer officially became the new owner of the Los Angeles Clippers which subsequently marked the dawning of a new era of Los Angeles Clippers basketball. While the arrival of Steve Ballmer and the departure of Donald Sterling is exciting for the Clippers, will this change actually produce a better product on the floor?

I don't mean to curb the enthusiasm of Clippers fans, but they need to understand why it is that they are excited before they go insane like Ballmer did at the most recent Clippers rally. If Clippers fans want to say they are excited purely on the grounds that they can finally cheer for their team in good conscience, then they have every reason to be excited. But if they are excited because they think a championship is just around the corner, they may be in for some disappointment. 

                                             

I don't deny that having Steve Ballmer as their new owner is a good thing for the Clippers organization. I think it's a great thing for the organization, but not because I think it will result in the Clippers winning more basketball games. If you look at the team that they have on the floor right now, it isn't clear how much better they can really get. 

They have a top flight coach in Doc Rivers, the best point guard in the NBA in Chris Paul, and one of the top five best power forwards in the game in Blake Griffin. Not only that, but they have quality players around those two guys with DeAndre Jordan, Spencer Hawes, J.J. Redick, and Jamal Crawford. 

The Clippers right now are as good as they ever have been, and ironically, the building of this strong team was under the stewardship of Donald Sterling and not Steve Ballmer. Of course, with all the losing that the Sterling era went through, it stands to reason that Clippers fans can expect to see a more consistently competitive product on the floor, but that doesn't mean the product will be any better than what it presently is. 

If you look at this Clippers team, there really is not way to improve the team other than having Blake Griffin and Chris Paul get better as a duo. Ultimately, that will come down to those two players working on their game and perhaps some of the instruction they get from Doc Rivers. Steve Ballmer has zero control over how much better Chris Paul and Blake Griffin get and he also can't do much to better the roster since I really think the roster they have is as good as it can possibly be. 

At the end of the day, I don't see Steve Ballmer producing a better product on the floor for the Clippers. They may get better and eventually win a championship, but it won't be because Steve Ballmer arrived. His arrival energizes the fan base and gives people in Los Angeles better reason to cheer for the Clippers, which in and of itself makes his arrival a great thing for the Clippers. However,  I think it is important we clarify that and not make the mistake of thinking that the Clippers are suddenly going to win a championship because they got new ownership. 

---Ben Parker: follow me on twitter @nba_lord 

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Defining Moments......The Los Angeles Clippers

The Final Chapter has yet to be written.......

There are times when a victory can change the course of a series in the NBA Playoffs and today was no exception but ironically the same can be said of a defeat.  The Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Clippers engaged in a battle that will likely be remembered in the annals of time as one of the most significant playoff games in the history of the respective franchises.  The Thunder were 12 minutes, 720 seconds from escaping Los Angeles with a 3-1 series lead and a 90% chance of moving to the NBA's Western Conference Finals.  The Clippers and more so Chris Paul were 12 minutes, 720 seconds away from once again questioning one's place in the NBA after potentially preparing to suffer another second round loss and then it happened.

It was run that has been orchestrated in the past by the likes of the Thunder and the two time defending NBA Champion Miami Heat but the scoring outburst this time belonged to the Clippers and it came at the expense of one of the NBA's best defenses.  While on cruise control and at one point leading by 22 points in the first half, the Thunder was then outscored 38-24 in the 4th quarter by a resurgent Clippers team that was as close to being run out of their home arena as a franchise could be.  The plight of the Clippers has been well documented over the last 2 plus weeks and as the NBA world along with the real world were caught up with the salacious details, the players of the Clippers were united in a way that's greater than sports and entertainment, young men on a quest not only to win an NBA Championship but to also prove that they belong in a world that continues to shun them, disrespect them and treat them as the hired help.

The Thunder stood united behind the media's "MVP" in Kevin Durant, the "best basketball player" in the NBA.  It was a time where the eye test trumps the analytics of those who try to appear smarter than they are.  40 points on 50% shooting from the field, all the while converting 15 of 18 free throws should equate to a win for Durant and the Thunder but sadly that wasn't the case.  What was't visible in the numbers of the world of analytics is how the media's "MVP" failed to convert in the closing moments of the game.  Durant, standing at 6'10 seemed ineffective as the 6 foot Chris Paul crowded his airspace.  99.9 percent of the time 6'10 trumps 6 foot but when it mattered the most, Oklahoma City's Mr. Unreliable proved to be just that as he was pestered and bamboozled by the suffocating defense of the diminutive Paul.  As the war of attrition came to a close, a mini duel erupted between former UCLA teammates Russell Westbrook and Darren Collison.  Fueled by a three point shot by the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year Jamal Crawford to put the Clippers ahead for the first time in the game, Collison would have the last laugh as he scored the Clippers last 4 points on layups.

12 minutes, 720 seconds away from almost guaranteeing a spot in the Western Conference Finals to now having given birth to a franchise that's hungry for more than an NBA Championship.  Giving that team life is a colossal mistake on the part of the Thunder and the media's "MVP".  Due to allowing the Los Angeles Clippers to become only the 10th team in the shot clock era to win a playoff game after trailing by 17 plus points after one quarter of play, the Oklahoma City Thunder has opened the pandora's box of a city, a nation that will support this team as they not only fight for the right to win the champion but also to prove that yes they do belong against the will of those who continually try to oppress them.  Championship teams don't blow leads, championship teams come back from seemingly impossible leads.  The Oklahoma City Thunder has welcomed the Los Angeles Clippers to have their first of many defining moments.

The Final Chapter has begun........

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NBA Playoffs: Western Conference Playoffs 2nd Round Preview

San Antonio Spurs (1) vs Portland Trailblazers (5)

The Spurs were made to work hard to progress to the next round by the Dallas Mavericks, with the series going all the way to seven games. After scraping in to the playoffs in the last few days of the regular season, the Mavericks were pleasantly surprising, almost pulling off an upset the likes of which we have not seen since the top seeded Dallas lost to the eight seed Golden State Warriors in 2007.

Considering how well rested the Spurs were during the regular season, it was expected that they would be able to make light work of the Mavericks, but it almost seemed as though they were rusty in the first round. San Antonio lost a couple of close games that you would normally expect to see them close out, although it is hard to account for shots like the one Vince Carter made to win game three!

After being tasked with guarding Dirk Nowitzki in the first round, things are not going to get any easier for Tim Duncan, with LaMarcus Aldridge waiting for him in the next round. Aldridge believes that there can be no doubt that he is the best power forward in the league, it is going to be exciting to see how he plays against arguably the best power forward of all time.

Portland was excellent in their first round match-up with the Houston Rockets, winning the series in six excellent games. With two of the highest scoring teams in the league going toe-to-toe, the Blazers were able to survive the shoot-out, although it took a shot by Damian Lillard with 0.9 seconds left of game six to see Portland through.

LaMarcus Aldridge was a monster in the first two games, scoring 46 and 43 points in game one and two respectively. The Rockets switched their line-up to try and slow Aldridge down, starting Omer Asik in place of Thomas Robinson, but even this could not slow Portland’s big man down.

Lillard's game winner in game
six against Houston

Damian Lillard was another of the standout players in the first round, with the second year player playing with the poise of a seasoned veteran. His game winner in game six to send the Blazers through to the next round showed why his team so often defer to him in late game situations. The Blazers will need his sharp shooting again for this series, as these games will surely be decided by the finest of margins.

This is going to be a very interesting match-up, with the positional battles at power forward and point guard particularly exciting. The Spurs will need to call upon all of their experience, as well as their defensive prowess, to defeat a Blazers team that can explode on offense. This series will come down to which team is able to sneak a victory away from home, as the first team to do that will have a huge advantage considering how well they both play at home.

Winner: Spurs in 6

Oklahoma City Thunder (2) vs Los Angeles Clippers (3)

Oklahoma were made to work very hard to make it into the second round after being taken to seven games by the Memphis Grizzlies, with four consecutive games going into overtime. Zach Randolph was suspended for game seven after punching Steven Adams in the previous game. Had he been available for game seven, it is arguable that the Thunder could easily have been eliminated.

The controversial newspaper
headline

The press in Oklahoma was critical of their star player, Kevin Durant, as he struggled in the first few games of the series against Memphis, due to the irritable defense of Tony Allen, which Durant even admitted that it had affected him. One newspaper headlined with “Mr Unreliable” to describe Durant, so what better way to reply to the critics than scoring 33 points in game seven to lead his team, indeed his city, into the second round.

The Thunder will need Russell Westbrook to play like he did in games six and seven of the first round if they want to progress. He was aggressive, but not out of control as we are so used to seeing. Westbrook has a tendency to take bad shots, usually early in the shot clock too, so Scott Brooks will need to find a way to keep his point guard focused for this series.

The Clippers also needed to play seven games to navigate their first round opponents, the Golden State Warriors. They will be particularly pleased to put the last round behind them after it was overshadowed by the Donald Sterling saga. With that passed them, the Clippers will hopefully be able to concentrate on basketball once again.

DeAndre Jordon was massive for the Clippers, taking advantage of the absence of Andrew Bogut through injury. Against the Warriors, he averaged 12 points, 15 rebounds and 4 blocks per game in the series. If he can replicate these performances against Oklahoma, there is no-one on that roster who will be able to stop him.

Chris Paul has been struggling with a hamstring injury throughout the playoffs, but that did not stop him from having a number of big games in the first round. Paul is known for stepping his game up another level when playing against elite point guards, and he will certainly need to do this against the bigger, stronger and faster Russell Westbrook.

This should be a very interesting series, with two teams that have not seemed to enjoy the sight of each other over the last couple of seasons. The athletic Clippers big men will look to cause the Thunder problems, especially when Kendrick Perkins is in the game. The problem for the Clippers is that they have no-one who can defend, or indeed match the scoring output of the soon to be named MVP, Kevin Durant. Despite this, the balanced Clippers attack will be more than capable of outscoring this Thunder team.

Winner: Clippers in 7

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