After a nice win for the LA Clippers against the Utah Jazz in the first game with everybody back and active, the Clips aren’t getting an easier follow-up game. The Brooklyn Nets are next on the docket, and it’s going to take a great Clippers game to compete with the high-octane offense of Brooklyn.
There are several aspects of the game that I’m excited to watch for tonight, so let’s dive right into the three things we should be looking for!
LA Clippers vs. Brooklyn Nets Factor #1: How do they defend Brooklyn’s guards?
The LA Clippers have a lot of options when it comes to defending opposing scorers. Which is good, because the Brooklyn Nets have some dynamite scorers that need to be slowed down. Luckily for our defense, Kevin Durant won’t be playing, which whittles the Brooklyn attack down to, let’s see…
Um..
James Harden, Kyrie Irving and Joe Harris. (This offense has to be against the rules somehow.) There’s going to be a lot asked of Patrick Beverley, who is showing that he’s still one of the great defenders in the league.
I would expect that we’ll see Bev on Kyrie Irving. Harden isn’t getting to the line as often as he was with the Rockets, but he’s still the more prolific foul-drawer between the two guards. And for all his defensive strengths, Beverley is still committing almost 5 fouls per 36 minutes, and Harden could quickly get him into foul trouble and off of the court.
That leaves our other defenders to guard Harden. I wouldn’t be shocked to see a defense by committee from the LA Clippers on the Beard. Let Kawhi Leonard and Paul George take their turns on Harden. I doubt he sees many minutes on Harden, but Batum can play Band-Aid if rotations start to break down.
When the guys aren’t guarding Harden, they can take a smaller defensive assignment by sticking to Joe Harris and TLC, which will likely let them get a small breather in.
The final score will likely depend pretty heavily on how the two All-NBA level guards for the Brooklyn Nets are guarded by the LA Clippers.