The LA Clippers have had one of the NBA’s best offense for some time, but it could be even better with more pace, passing and player movement in 2016-17.
It is early in the NBA preseason, but it’s clear the LA Clippers have been focused on movement more than ever. The ball has not been sticking in one player’s hands as much as last season, with teams like the San Antonio Spurs and Golden State Warriors proving for years that the more movement on offense the better. Those teams pass up good shots for great shots, and it looks like the Clippers are developing that mentality across the roster.
Coach Doc Rivers has said he wants his team to play with a faster pace this season and the movement in the 104-98 win against the Toronto Raptors was a great example of what we can expect from this Clipper offense.
Last season, the Clippers ranked 6th in offensive rating (per NBA.com), but the offense could have been even more potent with increased movement. They finished in the bottom third for passes per game at 289.2, well behind the Spurs (331.7) and Warriors (323.1).
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Ball and player movement leads to defenses having to scramble and rotate. Some of the best Clipper possessions against the Raptors had at least five passes and the ball hummed from side to side. The ball will always move faster than the defense, but the defense can catch up when it sticks to a player’s hands.
In the play in the first clip, the ball started on the right side, gets swung to the left side, and found it’s way into the hands of a wide open Austin Rivers for a right corner three. There are six passes in total and three screens. The player movement had the defense scrambling, and DeAndre Jordan sucked in Rivers’ defender when he rolled to the rim.
Later in the game, the quick passing gave Chris Paul a chance to probe the lane and forced the defense to collapse, leaving Blake Griffin open for an easy 16 footer.
The ball started on the left side, was sent to the right, and eventually ended up on the left where it started originally. There were five passes and two screens on this play, all giving the defense a hard time.
The final example is the best example.
The ball went side to side, forcing the defense to be in constant motion as the ball kept buzzing around. It starts on the right side with a pick-and-pop action. Griffin caught the ball and swung it to the weakside to Alan Anderson, who initiated a high pick-and-roll with Griffin. Anderson hit him on a short roll, Griffin made a quick touch pass to a wide open Paul in the corner, who passed up on that shot to drive baseline and dump the ball off to Jordan.
Jordan immediately sent the ball to an open Raymond Felton, who takes advantage of the defender trying to recover and hits a two-dribble pull up.
Of course, we’re still in preseason, but these types of plays and a new approach will turn a good Clipper offense into a great one.
Indeed, it’s been an efficient offense for years in the Lob City era, but so much pressure was on Paul to create, consequently keeping the ball in his hands more often.
It’s part of the reason why he’s astonishingly led the NBA in assist percentage (the amount of the teams baskets he’s assisted on while on the floor) for the last four consecutive seasons with an average of 48.8 percent — along with being the league’s best passing point guard, he’s also required to do a lot.
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Constant movement from the ball and players will ease that pressure off of Paul and make it an equal opportunity offense. If the LA Clippers truly adopt this good-to-great selfless mentality heading into the new season, they will easily have a top-five offense on their hands again.