Clipperholics
Fansided

Takeaways from the first quarter of the LA Clippers’ season

By Brian Cullen

LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 1: Montrezl Harrell #5 of the LA Clippers stands at center court during the game against the Washington Wizards on December 1, 2019 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 2019 NBAE (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 1: Montrezl Harrell #5 of the LA Clippers stands at center court during the game against the Washington Wizards on December 1, 2019 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 2019 NBAE (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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LOS ANGELES, CA – OCTOBER 31: Montrezl Harrell #5 and Maurice Harkless #8 of the LA Clippers look on during a game against the San Antonio Spurs on October 31, 2019 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 2019 NBAE (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA – OCTOBER 31: Montrezl Harrell #5 and Maurice Harkless #8 of the LA Clippers look on during a game against the San Antonio Spurs on October 31, 2019 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 2019 NBAE (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images) /

William Updyke

Likes: The roster depth (even more than expected)

The sheer embarrassment of riches that comes with adding two future HOFers to a 48 win team is unbelievable at times. The top-tier depth is undeniable. At any given point, there is somebody who has stacked bodies on the court, taken literal souls.

But perhaps even more impressive, the fortification of every link in the chain.

Fit and role have defined this Clippers rebuild, sometimes to a fault -though those hyper-specialized Sindarius Thornwell minutes were always eagerly received. But somehow the fit has gotten even…fitter, the stretch fours can stretch, the guards have stats, the role players can become show players on any given night.

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I thought coming into the season that Shamet would step up big to carry the Clippers. Instead of taking a stride forward, half his games were spent trying to get back to where he was. I thought JaMychal was secured in the starting lineup. However, after experimenting with a lineup of tres Pats, the new starter emerged.

For everything that I thought I knew about the role-playing makeup of this team coming into the quarter-season, something new has come up to surprise me. On any given night, someone is ready to step up to the occasion.

Which is why I beg, please no more surprises, no more occasions to rise. Maybe we just run out the lineup we thought we had and give it a go? See what it’s like to know that one.

Dislikes: TESTING that depth

Seriously? Never doubted that the bench would be tested. When recovering the health of a key asset and perpetually maintaining that of another, any team’s depth will be called upon to rise up. That I expected. But this?

I didn’t think that a quarter of the season my list of players with injury concerns would include Landry Shamet (still?), Rodney MacGruder (again), and now JaMychal Green. I was fully prepared to squirm every time Paul George hit the deck, or the minutes load got into the danger zone for Kawhi. But the rock foundation of our rotation guys already showing cracks? No thank you.

Though Terrance Mann and Derrick Walton looked exciting in the pre-season, I don’t love the idea of them playing minutes in larger-than-expected roles this early in the season. Jerome has not been able to show confidence in a larger role on a consistent basis.

While I know we CAN rely on Lou and Trez to wade us through troubled waters, I don’t like that they are playing the 7th most minutes of any duo in the NBA (per stats.nba). I especially don’t like the idea of having to feel rushed about the returns of guys who are already supposed to be the relief.

What I Want to See: Consistency

Doc joked about not having seen his starters so little in practice in all of his years coaching. While I love a good practicing meme as much as the next, maybe a little on-court familiarity might go a long way. Maybe instead of guys trying to do too much, they can see that the guys around them are already enough.

Injuries will always be a part of this game, that’s unavoidable. What is avoidable is the expenditures of energy that can lead up to them. Taking a little pressure off the few relieves the pressure of the whole -maybe instead of racking up early fouls, we could see guys locked in early. Instead of lapses that prompt scoring supernovas we just see a little communication.

No lineup is perfect and no roster can keep everyone rested night in and night out, but maybe with a little focus and continuity, this lineup can find a happy consistency that keeps the depth in hand, without having to show its cards so often.

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