Clippers vs Knicks – Hunt the Unicorn
Like Charlotte’s Walker, Kristaps Porzingis is alone on an island. There’s him, there’s a borderline star in Tim Hardaway Jr., and then there’s the rest of the New York Knicks. They’re a bad team that beats other bad teams, and then turns around and loses by 30 to a contender. Essentially, this game will come down to two things.
The first is stopping Porzingis, who is averaging nearly 30 points per game. Blake Griffin has struggled in the past to defend the seven-footer, and Jordan has a hard time chasing down bigs that can shoot the three. The Clippers must simply do their best to contain him, because there is no “stopping” him. And by not paying too much attention to him, it will allow the team to focus more on individual matchups, in which they outrank their opponent at nearly every position.
The second is making sure the right Clippers team shows up. As was mentioned earlier, the Knicks aren’t exactly capable of taking down great teams. LA has looked both great and horrendous this season, with both huge wins and losses. If the team shows up with the right mindset and plays with effort, picking them over the Knicks becomes a no-brainer.