It Was Over When …
the “Hack-a-DeAndre” method backfired on the Suns. Down 11 with five minutes left in the fourth, the Suns looked to slow the game down by sending DeAndre Jordan to the free-throw line. A solid method that has helped teams climb from deficits in the past (the Cavaliers did it just last week), Jordan, A known horrific free-throw shooters (arguably the worst in league history), put the game on ice by sinking seven of his 12 free-throw attempts in the fourth quarter. From the 12th FT on, the game was pretty much in the bag, with the all-bench unit being Doc Rivers’ physical victory cigar.
Dominantion
With this win over the Suns, the Clippers are now up 3-0 in the season series, winning six straight over their Pacific-division foe, and 8 of their last 10 over the franchise. Though it’s unlikely to happen, if the Clippers could fall into a playoff matchup with Phoenix, Chris Paul and company would enjoy their odds.
Chris Paul BYKE?
Coming into tonight’s game, Chris Paul was amidst his worst shooting stretch of the season, averaging 13.0 points on 31 percent shooting from the field (27 percent from three). Well, that poor streak ended tonight as Chris Paul dominated against the opposition, scoring 23 points on 63 percent shooting, as well as 12 assists, 8 rebounds, and 2 steals. In only one of those last 5 games did the Clippers take a loss (against Cleveland) so the impacts of Paul’s slump were minimal, but him playing at an elite level has to be a sign of relief for the franchise, especially with a touch schedule ahead.
You May Not Believe Me But…
Spencer Hawes scored 8 points in a 3-minute stretch during the third quarter. Like, really — and 6 of those 8 points came on back-to-back three-pointers. For perspective on how big a feat this is, Hawes is averaging 6.1 points in 17 minutes per game!
Dictatorship in Phoenix
I don’t know what’s going on in Phoenix, but coach Jeff Hornacek may have cost his Suns back-to-back wins. If you’re unclear, Hornacek has a policy in place where if your receive a technical foul for bickering at the officials, he sits you for the rest of the game — Goran Dragic was the victim against in a loss to Houston and Markieff Morris was the victim in tonight’s loss.
For a team that’s attempting to keep the Oklahoma City Thunder off their backs as they try and make the playoffs, I can’t see this dictatorial method paying dividends for the Suns. Jeff isn’t the first strict head coach, but I’ve never seen anything of this caliber and it’s costing his franchise dearly. My only question? Will we see this same style of coaching when the playoffs or a playoff game is on the line? Hopefully we get to see that situation come into fruition.
With a Win Over Phoenix…
and a timely loss by the Dallas Mavericks to the Anthony Davis’, the Clippers are now 5th in the Western Conference and .5 games behind the Houston Rockets for the fourth seed. Considering how the Clippers have inconsistently played up until this point, being .5 back from the 4th seed is a great sign going forward. With Dwight Howard (knee) injured, the fourth seed is definitely in reach. Anything higher than that will depend on the progressions of the Portland Trail Blazers and Memphis Grizzlies (the number one seed is pretty much locked unless the Warriors go through a historical rough patch).
Next Up
The lowly 18-24 Denver Nuggets. What’s the over/under in minutes on Blake Griffin and Jusurf Turkic getting into it? I say somewhere between 5 to 10 minutes.