Rowan Kavner
LOS ANGELES – It wasn’t the six losses that concerned Doc Rivers after the preseason.
The main struggle of the preseason Rivers felt needed to be addressed was the Clippers’ lack of rebounding, after failing to beat any opponent on the boards.
“That’s it,” Rivers said. “I’ll feel better, at least I can go to the second area, but that’s the area. We’re not going to win if we don’t rebound better.”
There’s no immediate answer for the fix, although Rivers has some ideas. Rivers said if he knew for sure, the problems would be gone. The Clippers finished the preseason with 289 rebounds, while their opponents brought down 371 boards.
Rivers said the team just needs to figure it out somehow.
Leak outs play a role, and Rivers said the Clippers want to run so badly the guards will take off when they don’t have the ball yet, but Rivers thinks the primary reason for the problem is opponents’ dribble penetration. Rivers said that forces the Clippers’ bigs to come out and help, leaving forwards and centers available for easy buckets, put-backs and rebounds.
Rivers doesn’t believe the problem is individual. He has a player in DeAndre Jordan who led the league in rebounds last season and possesses, according to Rivers, “Bill Russell tendencies.”
“We need people to help him, you know what I mean? We’ve got to join in,” Rivers said. “DJ is fantastic in what he’s doing on the glass, offensive and defensive glass. He’s been fantastic. We’ve all got to pitch in and help him. It’s not just the bigs, the guards too.”
That’s something the guards recognize.
“We got outrebounded in, I think, every preseason game, and we understand that,” said guard Jamal Crawford. “We have to value possessions…We feel like when our defense is set, we know what we’re supposed to do.”
Rivers said the better defense the Clippers play, the better they’ll start rebounding. He also believes that’ll lead to more dominant performances from Jordan, and he’s pitched that thought to the team.
Despite having Jordan on the squad, the Clippers still finished in the middle of the pack in rebounds last season. Forward Blake Griffin said the rebounding is an area of weakness, and it’s been a focus in practice since the preseason ended.
Griffin believes the fix is about finding bodies and making it a team effort. He knows the Clippers are physically capable of better rebounding performances, but he doesn’t think the lack of rebounds have to do with a player’s skillset.
“Rebounding’s not purely athleticism,” Griffin said. “It’s about really going and getting it. DJ does a great job. I need to do a better job of, especially when I’m out on the perimeter guarding a stretch four or something like that, of coming back in and pursuing the ball and not leaking out. That’s something I’ve been working on.”
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