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LA Clippers: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander shines and other takeaways

By Ryan Snellings

LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 17: The LA Clippers stand for the National Anthem during a game against the Denver Nuggets on October 17, 2018 at Staples Center, in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 17: The LA Clippers stand for the National Anthem during a game against the Denver Nuggets on October 17, 2018 at Staples Center, in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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LOS ANGELES, CA – OCTOBER 17: Avery Bradley #11 of the LA Clippers looks on during a game against the Denver Nuggets on October 17, 2018 at Staples Center, in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA – OCTOBER 17: Avery Bradley #11 of the LA Clippers looks on during a game against the Denver Nuggets on October 17, 2018 at Staples Center, in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images) /

The Bad

Starting Guards

The starting duo of Avery Bradley and Patrick Beverley failed to impress in their first regular season together. Outside of a putback dunk, Bradley’s 8 points were forgettable. Beverley didn’t even score, going 0 for 8 from the field.

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The duo had some small bursts of defense, but did not live up to their self-proclaimed “Clamp City” name. If this team wants to be in playoff contention, the duo will need to up their games. It is already apparent that the guard-in-waiting in Shai is ready for more minutes, so too many bad games could lead to one of them coming off the bench.

Fouls

Many wanted to pin blame on the referees for the lost, but the fact of the matter is the Clippers fouled a lot. According to stats.nba.com, the Clippers committed 32 fouls compared to Denver’s 22. Keep in mind that a few of these were intentional in the last minute or so of the game.

Many of the team’s fouls came due to late rotation or just sort of slapping at the ball on drives. You won’t win games with the opposing team scoring 33 points on free throws like the Nuggets did last night. It’s only game one and is fixable, but has to be cleaned up in the long run.

Late Game Lineup

Speaking of fixing things, Doc Rivers may want to re-look at his end of game rotations. Towards the end of the game, Doc opted to go back with his starters, minus Gortat. This came after the team had made a run with many bench players on the court, including both Boban and Shai.

Inserting Beverley and Bradley back in may have helped on defense on paper, but the two seemingly killed momentum. They also did not produce on offense, with Beverley missing a wide open shot which would have tied the game.

In the future, Doc might need to feel things out a bit more. He may need to go with the hot hands over his starters and sort of feel out the game. For the first game of the year, going with the starters is understandable. Doc has to go with who he trusts.

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Next Up:

The Clippers face the Thunder tomorrow night at Staples. The Thunder will likely still be without Russell Westbrook who had knee surgery in the summer. This will be another tough test for the team against a likely Western Conference playoff team, so picking up a win while they are hampered could help a lot in the long run.

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