Dwyane Wade scored 28 points as the Miami Heat ran away from the L.A. Clippers 97-79 on Sunday. Blake Griffin, the Clippers' All-Star rookie, had 21 points and 16 rebounds, but had to claw for every point. Miami's defense keyed on Griffin throughout, which is rather easy to do considering that Eric Gordon remains out with an injured wrist. The Heat really had no one but Griffin to fear on the Clippers' roster; Ryan Gomes played well, but couldn't pry the ball from the hands of gunnin' Randy Foye and Baron Davis long enough to make an impact.
Clippers Vs. Heat: Dwyane Wade Lifts Miami As Blake Griffin Is Blanketed
That Griffin still managed 21 points -- mostly in spurts, usually near the end of the quarter -- is impressive. Every Heat big man had a shot at Blake, with Zydrunas Ilgauskas, surprisingly enough, likely doing the best work. Importantly, Chris Bosh was able to get some points off of Griffin (a fierce but unskilled defender) on the other end to ensure an advantage for Miami.
LeBron James, as I wrote on Sunday, was rather bad. It wasn't so much disinterest as unremarkable effort. He had some very LeBron-y plays, but hardly seemed highly motivated to leave it all out on the court. Should we judge him for that? I mean, if I were in Miami on the morning of Super Bowl Sunday, maybe I'd be distracted too.
Griffin did uncork two signature dunks. First, a putback dunk in the first half that’s totally casual ... until it’s not.
Later, on a breakaway, he preened for a windmill.
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