After a stunning late victory in Memphis, the LA Clippers are heading to San Antonio to face the Spurs. Here are some keys to their would-be 15th win.
Montrezl Harrell was the hero behind the LA Clippers’ last victory thanks to his last-second tip-in, but now the Clippers will be back at full strength for this battle against the San Antonio Spurs thanks to Kawhi Leonard getting back on the court, so don’t expect anything less than a fun game.
Keys to the fifteenth victory
The main key in this game is understanding exactly where the San Antonio Spurs are at this moment. This is a team with plenty to prove considering that their playoff streak is on the line and that 6-13 record shows it.
Looking at ESPN’s league statistics, the Spurs are 13th in the league in points per game, but they are fifth in the league for the highest field goal percentage. They are a team that doesn’t score a lot, but they can score in droves to the point where a comeback is impossible. The LA Clippers defense is going to have to put up a big night to stagger that field goal percentage.
Luckily for the Clippers, they come in seventh for most points per game and they aren’t finding any shortage of players who come up clutch on the offensive side.
Leonard is putting up 25.8 points per game already and Paul George is right there with him at 24.8 points per game. Alongside Lou Williams and Patrick Beverley, this team can win games that they don’t necessarily play hard enough to win, and that is a great sign. That ability is a key not only in this game but also in every game they’ll play afterward.
The main threat for the Spurs is easily DeMar DeRozan, and the defense is going to have its hands full in guarding him. He’s averaging 221 points per game and provides a big offensive spark for this team. He also turns the ball over 2.6 times per game, so they will need to capitalize on his messy ball movement for him to not get hot.
If they can successfully shut him down, the Clippers defense will be the last key to winning this matchup.
If all those keys come through, this will be a fun game to watch thanks to the duo of Leonard and George turning it up alongside Beverley and Harrell on defense. The only thing left now is to see how the team plays, and the tip-off for that is at 5:30 pm PST at the AT&T Center.