Rowan Kavner
Score: GSW 124 – LAC 117
Synopsis: Blake Griffin and J.J. Redick both mentioned the Warriors being “clutter-free” in the off days leading into the matchup Thursday against undefeated Golden State.
Next Game: 11/20
Tipoff: 7:00pm PDT
“Clutter-free” is a place the Clippers are trying to get to, and it’s a term Doc Rivers said he’s used for years. It’s when a team is the best it can possibly be because it’s prepared, the timing’s right, everyone’s on the same page and everyone’s playing freely and buying in.
But it takes a while to get that way, and it’s why even a 23-point advantage isn’t safe against the clutter-free reigning champion Warriors (13-0), who once again overcame a double-digit deficit against the Clippers (6-5) to remain undefeated in one of the most entertaining, intense regular season games of the year.
It’s a heavyweight matchup every time these teams meet now, but against the Warriors a knockout punch is all that can win, and no team’s been able to deliver it yet no matter what’s transpired the first three quarters.
Chris Paul (groin) provided everything he could’ve possibly been asked for, going from doubtful to starting to scoring a season-high 35 points while adding eight assists. Blake Griffin added 27 points, six rebounds and five assists.
The Clippers led, 41-25, at the end of the first quarter, with Paul and Griffin combining for 30 points, six assists and five rebounds on 13-of-17 shooting. The Clippers and their backups did their job by keeping that lead at double digits throughout the first half and the beginning of the third quarter.
But it takes 48 minutes of perfection against Golden State, and even the most minor of slippages can flip the scoreboard.
That’s what happened late in the third.
Stephen Curry, who finished with 40 points, cut the Clippers’ lead to single digits. The Clippers and Warriors traded shots, with both teams shooting at least 50 percent from the floor on the night, but free throws and a Draymond Green corner 3-pointer at the buzzer ended the third.
Just like that, it was a six-point game, and it only preceded the barrage of 3-pointers which would follow.
The long-range showcase kept the intensity at a peak throughout the fourth quarter, with the Clippers hitting 13 3-pointers and the Warriors hitting 17 from long range. The Warriors had a chance to take the lead early in the fourth but missed on a jumper attempt, and the Clippers answered with a 9-1 run midway through the fourth to take a nine-point lead.
Against the Warriors, it still wasn’t enough.
Six of the Warriors’ next seven baskets were 3-point makes, including three from Curry, who teamed with Andre Iguodala to take the Clippers’ win away from their grasps and subdue a Staples Center crowd which seemed sure it’d be the first to watch its team topple the reigning champs.
Key Moment: Paul hit a 3-pointer with 5:54 remaining in the fourth quarter to give the Clippers a 10-point lead. Three minutes later, the Warriors led by a point by going on a 14-3 run, with Curry, Iguodala and Klay Thompson each hitting 3-pointers. As good as Golden State was offensively and as strong as the Clippers were offensively most of the game, Rivers said it was the offensive lapses which doomed his team in the second half.
Clippers Star: Chris Paul – He was doubtful to play, yet he did much more than that. In the first quarter, Paul became the first player in the NBA to log at least 18 points and four assists in a quarter. Paul made or assisted each of the Clippers’ first 18 points of the game and went 5-of-9 from 3-point range. Just as importantly, Paul said he felt fine afterward.
Warriors Star: Stephen Curry – The sharpshooter had 13 points in the final 6:31, mounting the Warriors’ fourth-quarter comeback. The Clippers were successful for large portions of the game containing Curry, but all it takes is the slightest bit of room for him to maneuver. Curry posted a game-high 40 points and added 11 rebounds.
X-Factor: Harrison Barnes – Barnes scored five points in less than a minute to begin the fourth quarter and hit two 3-pointers in the first two and a half minutes of the fourth, cutting the Warriors’ deficit to a point. He was efficiently lethal, posting 21 points on 9-of-15 shooting and adding seven rebounds. Doc Rivers said after the game he thought the stretch sparked by Barnes changed the game.
QUOTES:
Chris Paul – “You’ve got to run them off, make it a lot tougher for them. As the game went on, they got a little bit more and more comfortable. With guys like that that can shoot it like that, you cant give them the opportunity.”
Doc Rivers – “One of our things before the game was the team that played the hardest the longest was going to win the game…They made every big shot. The difference right now for them is they just kept trusting. Their ball found everyone.”
Blake Griffin – “They trusted. The ball moved. Defensively, we stuck to our game plan, and they just trusted their game plan and saw it all the way through. They executed down the stretch.”
NOTES: Chris Paul’s 35 points were the most by a Warriors opponent this season … This was the first time the Warriors didn’t hold a double-digit lead in a game this season … Blake Griffin hit his first 3-pointer of the season … The Clippers’ bench went 4-of-7 from 3-point range … Griffin and Paul combined to shoot 24-for-42 … The Clippers play again tomorrow in Portland …