After a string of dreadful seasons, the Los Angeles Clippers appeared on the fast track to title contention when they acquired Chris Paul from the New Orleans Hornets in 2011 to pair with budding superstar Blake Griffin. Three years later, the Clippers are still looking for their first Conference Finals appearance. The early returns this year aren't all that promising.
The Clippers don’t look anything like championship contenders
The Clippers were walloped by a short-handed Bulls team at home Monday night and don’t currently look anything like an elite team. Will they be able to turn things around?
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The Clippers are just 5-4 after being embarrassed at home Monday by a Chicago Bulls team missing both Derrick Rose and Pau Gasol. Even worse, Los Angeles appeared to have Chicago on the ropes early in the game, only to completely fall apart. The Clippers led by 14 points in the second quarter, but they fell victim to a 51-18 run over multiple quarters in a 105-89 loss. That's simply inexcusable for a team that portends to be a title contender.
Even in victories, the Clippers haven't been that impressive. The first game of the year was a three-point home win over the battered Oklahoma City Thunder. The next night was a seven-point victory over the dreadful Los Angeles Lakers, a win that needed a fourth-quarter comeback. The third win of the year was a six-point home win over the Utah Jazz. The last two victories over the Portland Trail Blazers and Phoenix Suns were solid, but were sandwiched between a blowout loss to the Golden State Warriors, a late home collapse against the San Antonio Spurs and the Bulls debacle.
Following the loss to the Bulls, the Clippers have an average point differential of -1.1. It’s true that Los Angeles has played mostly tough opponents, but it’s still jarring to see that negative number after nine games.
So what gives?
For one, the Clippers’ offense isn’t operating nearly as efficiently as it has the past few seasons. Last year, Los Angeles scored 109.4 points per 100 possessions, per NBA.com. That number was tops in the league. This year, the Clippers are at 104.9 points per 100 possessions. While that’s still a respectable number, it’s a stark difference from a league-leading offense.
Los Angeles isn't shooting as efficiently as it did last year, but there's only about a single percentage point difference in the true shooting percentages from the two seasons. A bigger issue at the moment is an utter lack of offensive rebounding, which is somewhat puzzling given the frontcourt of Griffin and DeAndre Jordan. Clippers head coach Doc Rivers is known for not putting an importance on hitting the offensive glass hard, but the stat is especially galling thus far this season.
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The Clippers weren't great on the offensive glass last year, ranking 20th in the league in offensive rebound percentage at 25.0 percent, per NBA.com. But this season, that number is a paltry 18.8 percent, which is by far the worst mark in the league. The next closest team is the Atlanta Hawks at 21.3 percent.
It would be one thing if the stress put on getting back on defense over hitting the boards actually led to a good defense, but that’s not the case here. Los Angeles is giving up 105.7 points per 100 possessions, per NBA.com, which ranks in the bottom third of the league. Last year, the Clippers had a top-10 defense.
Looking at the personnel, it's pretty easy to see some of the weaknesses. Matt Barnes isn't an NBA caliber starting small forward and there's simply little defense on the wing. J.J. Redick and Jamal Crawford aren't scaring anybody on defense and both players have also struggled shooting the ball thus far.
This issue was highlighted by Jimmy Butler and the Bulls down the stretch Monday. On this possession, the Clippers tried to use the much smaller Paul on Butler in the post. Butler had the advantage in size and strength, so Jordan came over to double. Crawford didn't rotate down to help on Taj Gibson, and Butler found Gibson for a wide open dunk:
On several ensuing possessions, Crawford tried to front Butler, but that doesn’t work either. Butler got free throws on one possession and an And-1 on the other thanks to a superb backdoor cut that caught Crawford napping:
Another issue -- one that has existed for several years -- is lack of quality frontcourt depth. Spencer Hawes was a nice addition, but the fourth big is Glen Davis. "Big Baby" looks as big as ever and probably can't be relied upon to play meaningful minutes.
Despite some of these glaring issues, the Clippers still have a lot of talent and are sure to improve upon these early season struggles. Playing some Eastern Conference patsies should help, and perhaps a move is made down the line to help address some of the personnel problems. It would also be nice if 2013 first-round pick Reggie Bullock develops into a meaningful contributor on the wing.
But even if the Clippers turn things around as expected, it’s hard to take them seriously as a championship contender given the strength of the Western Conference. It still could happen, but at the moment, Los Angeles seems destined for another early exit.
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