Rowan Kavner
ATLANTA – As fatigue sets in, so too does the schedule’s onslaught of quality opponents.
After falling to the Spurs on Monday, it doesn’t get any easier for the Clippers (19-9) on Tuesday against one of hottest teams in the league in the Hawks (20-7), who’ve won four straight games and 13 of their last 14 overall.
“Everybody’s schedule is crazy in the NBA, so that can’t be an excuse,” said DeAndre Jordan. “Everybody has guys who are banged up. We’ve got some things we need to correct and tighten up, but it’s still early in the season.”
There were times in Monday’s loss that head coach Doc Rivers said the bigs couldn’t get down the floor. He knows his team is tired, but he also knows they’ve got to push through. Jordan said there’s no time to dwell on a tough loss to the Spurs.
“That’s the thing about the NBA; there’s another game tomorrow,” Jordan said. “If we can win tomorrow, it’ll be a pretty good trip for us. We’ve got to correct some things and be ready to play in 24 hours.”
If the Clippers can salvage a win Tuesday, they’d end a two-game road losing streak before heading home for a Christmas night matchup against Golden State. As tough as Monday’s opponent was, it only gets tougher this week for a Clippers team that faces the Hawks, Warriors and Raptors their next three games. But Jamal Crawford’s not looking that far ahead.
“We have to take care of business (Tuesday) before we get there,” Crawford said.
LAST TIME OUT
Spurs 125, Clippeers 118: The final score says everything needed in this one. Both teams shot lights out and played little to no defense. The Spurs shot 75 percent in the first half and 63 percent for the game. The Clippers shot 50 percent from the floor. Chris Paul led the Clippers with 25 points. The Clippers made up a 17-point deficit and tied it in the fourth quarter but couldn’t come up with enough stops late.
Hawks 105, Mavericks 102: The Hawks nearly choked late but closed out the victory for their fourth win in a row. The Mavs finished with more points in the fourth quarter (39) than in the first half (38), but the deficit they dug early on was too great to overcome. Dennis Schroder scored a career-high 22 points for the Hawks.
NOTEWORTHY MATCHUP
Clippers’ Bigs vs. Hawks’ Bigs – Two of the NBA’s best power forward-center duos will go against each other as Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan get set for Paul Millsap and Al Horford. Griffin was the leading scorer in both games against the Hawks last year. The Clippers’ duo combines to average 32.3 points and 21 rebounds per game, while the Hawks’ tandem averages 30.5 points and 14.3 rebounds per game. Griffin has the edge in points on all four and Jordan has the edge in boards. If the Clippers are to win, they may need that to stay the case Tuesday.
TWO THINGS TO WATCH
Second Unit – Without the bench play, the Clippers never tie Monday’s game at 102 and have a chance to send the Spurs to overtime. They failed to finish the job, but it wasn’t the fault of a maligned bench unit that finally started to click Monday. They’ll try to repeat their bench success Tuesday.
“It was huge,” Chris Paul said of the backup unit’s play. “I said that when we came in after the game that we’ve got to put it all together. It’s like one unit has it one night, the other unit has it the other night. It just shows how dangerous we can be if we put it all together.”
Shooting – Two of the NBA’s most accurate shooting teams will face off in this one, as both teams are in the top five in the league in field goal, 3-point, true shooting and effective field goal percentage. The Hawks and Clippers are both in the top 10 in the league in points per possession. The Hawks are also in the top third in the league allowing the fewest points per 100 possessions.
NOTES
The Hawks are allowing the fewest fast-break points in the league…Both teams are in the top 10 in the league in assist-to-turnover ratio…The Hawks lead the league in assists per 100 possessions… Jeff Teague has missed the last three games with a hamstring injury for the Hawks… The Clippers and Hawks split the series last season, but the Clippers have lost the last five in Atlanta…Rivers played eight seasons for the Hawks…Jamal Crawford won one of his Sixth Man of the Year honors as a member of the Hawks…