After the LA Clippers’ opening loss to the Golden State Warriors by the score of 115-113, Clippers fans on twitter were posting very discouraging remarks.
I’m here to tell you now, Clippers fans, you should be very much encouraged on how your team played against an overlooked Warriors team.
Without the services of Kawhi Leonard and Serge Ibaka, and a red-hot Stephen Curry draining his first nine shots of the game, the Clippers made a valiant comeback and nearly pulled off an improbable victory. With a perplexed look on the face of Warriors Coach Steve Kerr, the Clippers turned a 19-point first half deficit into a one-point lead going into the locker room at halftime.
The LA Clippers showed a lot of fight despite being undermanned; similar to what they did in last year’s playoffs.
It would have been easy for the LA Clippers to fold once Curry started draining shots from all over the court. However, after being down 17 after the first quarter, Ty Lue switched Curry’s primary defender into the hands of Terance Mann, who slowed Curry down and made him take tougher shots in the 2nd quarter.
From that point forward, the Clippers had all the momentum, and you knew this game was going to come down to the wire. The capacity crowd at the brand spanking new Chase Center in San Francisco went from a state of frenzy in the first quarter to a state of shock in the second quarter.
The much-anticipated 2nd half did not disappoint, as there were several lead changes and both teams were very much engaged and gave one hundred percent effort in trying to win this game.
Unfortunately, in the end, the Warriors made more clutch shots than the Clippers, as they were led by two killer three-point daggers by Curry. No need to be ashamed of that, as Curry will do that to most of his opponents.
As for individual observations, after a slow start by Paul George, he picked up his game in the 2nd quarter and showed why he is considered a top ten player in this league. George finished with 29 points, 11 rebounds and six assists after that slow start.
Eric Bledsoe showed why he’ll be an integral piece of the Clippers rotation, as he scored 22 points on 10 of 16 shooting.
Reggie Jackson on the other hand, struggled from the field by going 4 of 19. However, he did make two clutch three-pointers in the 2nd half. Jackson will play much better as the season progresses.
So, Clippers fans, do not jump off the cliff after one tough loss in the opening game. This team has plenty of talent and toughness, and will hang in the Western Conference race until Leonard comes back sometime after the All-Star break. This was a very encouraging first game performance indeed.
Check out my podcast as I do a deeper dive into the Clippers vs. Warriors battle. Click on the following link to listen: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1546811331