Blake Griffin’s defense is the key to beating Warriors’ Death Star lineup

October 4, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant (35) shoots the ball against Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin (32) during the first quarter at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
October 4, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant (35) shoots the ball against Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin (32) during the first quarter at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

The LA Clippers’ best chance to beat the Golden State Warriors’ new and improved small-ball lineup rests on the shoulders of Blake Griffin and his defensive ability.

The Golden State Warriors’ “Death Star” lineup of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Andre Iguodala, Kevin Durant and Draymond Green is going to wreak havoc on the league this season, just like the evil empire. It’ll be on Blake Griffin to play Luke Skywalker and blow that lineup up for the LA Clippers.

They are one of the few teams that might be able to withstand the constant barrage from this lineup, and it starts and ends with Griffin’s defense on Durant. This would allow the Clippers to stay big with DeAndre Jordan at center guarding Green and overwhelm the Warriors’ frontcourt, relying on their lone advantage of size and rebounding.

This is an incredibly tall order for Griffin. Durant has all the moves a crafty guard has but stands at 7’0”, despite an underselling listing of 6’9”. At his height, most who guard him have a hard time affecting his shot because he can just shoot over them, not to mention creating additional space with his speed and handle.

Griffin has the athleticism to stay with Durant and may be able to force Durant into difficult shots. They only matched up briefly in the preseason when the Warriors crushed the Clippers 120-75.

On that one possession, Griffin’s hands were not active enough and he was playing Durant more for the drive by not getting into his body. Durant very comfortably rose up and drilled the mid-range jumper.

Last season Griffin only played the Oklahoma City Thunder once due to injuries, but matched up with Durant several times when the Clippers would switch pick-and-rolls.

In the first example when he switched onto Durant, he doesn’t allow him to just rise up for the jumper and moved his feet effectively to take away the driving lane. As Durant tried to counter, Griffin used his quick and active hands to knock the ball loose. Even though Durant recovered the loose ball, he’s forced into a very difficult shot and misses.

Later in this same game, they get matched up again. The Thunder cleared out the right wing to take advantage of Griffin and give Durant the room to work. Durant tried a double crossover move to get to the baseline, but Griffin stayed with him and forced an offensive foul.

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Durant is a brilliant offensive player, capable of hitting many difficult shots off the dribble, but he becomes less efficient in those scenarios. If — and it’s a pretty big if — Griffin can force Durant into those difficult shots, the Clippers can also force Durant to have to guard Griffin in the post where he is giving up 11 pounds to him.

There the Clippers have the advantage and will force the Warriors to have to decide if they want to double Griffin in the post. If they do double him, that will allow Griffin to find the open man and the Warriors to scramble, leading to open shots.

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When the “Death Star” lineup is put on the floor against the LA Clippers, it’ll be on Blake Griffin to jump in his X-wing and use the force to blow it up. At least, that’s the idea.