Although the LA Clippers improved their offensive scheme in the summer, one weakness that remained unresolved was their transition defense. This was evident at times against the Guangzhou Loong Lions, but it was more pronounced last night against the Denver Nuggets.
Furthermore, Clippers' assistant coach Jeff Van Gundy went viral for having t-shirts made for several coaches participating in training camp that their transition defense was a problem against the Nuggets in the playoffs, and this, in turn, helped the players, as every direction they would look, the merchandise was being worn, and a reminder would be given.
Thus, Van Gundy and Tyronn Lue were clearly trying to eliminate this issue before the preseason, but the solutions they came up with did not work, as the Nuggets just copied their postseason game plan in 2025 against the Clippers and used it last night to expose the same matter.
The Denver Nuggets proved the LA Clippers have a lot more work to do than most think
Years ago, players discovered a loophole to commit fouls during transition plays or when anticipating them. If the opposing team were out of the bonus, this would increase the foul count for that quarter, with no additional penalty.
However, the league addressed this issue at a time when it became necessary, and since then, there is no way to prevent a transition bucket other than running back and playing effective defense without forcing the referee to whistle upon excessive contact.
Moreover, last night, in the LA Clippers' second preseason game, the Denver Nuggets went with their intuition that the same issue in the first round of the 2025 playoffs would still be present, and they were right, as multiple clear-path fouls were called in the first quarter of action.
This gave the Nuggets more opportunities to score, ultimately leading to an eight-point win. Had LA fully corrected this flaw before the Guangzhou Loong Lions, they could have been 2-0 in the preseason.
From this game onward, the Clippers' coaching staff must work on precise timing. This means that right when they attempt a shot, everyone in a position to get a rebound needs to crash the glass, and the rest must take off on a full-court sprint to limit the opponents' fast-break offense.
This will take practice, but Lue still has time, with over a week to go before the Clippers' regular season begins on October 22nd.