Keys to the Game
1. Find Ways to Deal with the Pressure
The Clippers are first in the league in steals and second in the NBA in defensive turnover rate. CP3 figures to lead the league again in steals, but his apprentice Eric Bledsoe is just as good at creating turnovers. Paul is averaging 2.8 steals per 36 minutes, while Bledsoe is averaging 2.7. Matt Barnes, Jamal Crawford, and Blake Griffin all average over a steal a game, and when these guys get a steal, they get the ball to CP3 who always makes you pay in transition.
2. Attack the Offensive Glass
The Clippers are 24th in the league in defensive rebound percentage, primarily because DeAndre Jordan only gets 27 minutes per game and when he is off the floor, teams eat the Clippers alive on the boards. When they go small and play Griffin at the five or when they sub Ryan Hollins in, Jason Smith, Ryan Anderson, and Robin Lopez have to make them pay.
3. Attack the Rim
The Hornets play a perimeter game offensively, but that is going to have to change tonight if they have any chance of pulling this one out. You have to make the Clippers pay for gambling and for going small, and the way you do that is by attacking and getting to the line. The Clippers have yielded the 5th most free throw attempts in the league this season, as Ryan Hollins, Lamar Odom, and DeAndre Jordan have been fouling machines. Take it inside on those guys and get as many trips to the line as you can.
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Originally Posted by AD23forMVP
This had me rolling.
Knicks/Nets is a very close game on TNT.
