Game 2 Round 1 2016

Robyn Dixon

Rowan Kavner  Digital Content Coordinator

PORTLAND - Both teams have taken care of business at home, with the Clippers going to 2-0 early last week before the Trail Blazers earned their first win of the series in Portland.

Here are the top five plays of last week’s Games 2 and 3.

Chris Paul draws three defenders on the drive, then weaves a pass through traffic to Blake Griffin for the good look on a one-handed finish.

Luc Mbah a Moute will often get C.J. McCollum as a defensive assignment. As McCollum tries to drive by him, Mbah a Moute steals the pass, then takes it all the way himself for the dunk.

Griffin gets the pass from Chris Paul at the top of the key, and with some momentum, makes a hesitation move and splits between Mason Plumlee and Damian Lillard for the dunk.

The Trail Blazers have done well limiting the always dangerous Paul to DeAndre Jordan alley-oop – but not every time. Allen Crabbe and Chris Kaman find out how lethal it can be on this early Game 3 drive.

Griffin puts the exclamation mark on a Game 2 win, rearing back and throwing down a fourth-quarter dunk on Maurice Harkless, who tried to come over and help.

top-five-plays-of-the-week-04-18-04-24

Top Five Plays Of The Week: 04/18 - 04/24

LOS ANGELES – Prince’s songs blasted from the speakers as Clippers players arrived at the practice facility and took to the court to get shots up before watching film.

The music legend died Thursday at the age of 57, which was felt especially by head coach Doc Rivers, who’d seen Prince perform multiple times. 

“You know, he started doing those concerts where he’d just call and say, ‘Hey, can I book the arena a week out? Two years ago we were in San Francisco and he did it, but I couldn’t go,” Rivers said. “I had a dinner date I tried to get out of with a bunch of guys, and we couldn’t get out of it. It would’ve been great to go.”

Obviously, that was Rivers’ last chance, something that saddened him to find out Thursday morning.

“Him and Michael (Jackson) were my two guys,” Rivers said. “To lose them both this early is just crazy to me. They both, growing up, it was Prince or Michael. Sometimes you had to take sides when you were a kid. That was really sad.”

Even those who never met the legendary musician felt his impact, including Blake Griffin.

“A fan of his music, and it sucks, man,” Griffin said. “Every time something like this happens, it just sucks, but it also makes you realize how precious any little moment is.”

Griffin said Prince’s influence will live on, and he respects how passionate Prince was about his art.

“It’s cool that somebody like that can leave such a huge legacy and such a huge impact on people that didn’t even meet him,” Griffin said. “We were all in the training room, more than half of us never met him or ever saw him in concert, but still he was such a big part of our childhood. It’s sad, but it’s cool that he had such a great, positive impact.”

princes-passing-felt-by-clippers-of-all-ages

Prince’s Passing Felt By Clippers Of All Ages

LOS ANGELES - How does a team go from the middle of the pack defensively to one of the league’s elite groups?

Start with looking at the offseason addition no one can get around.

Luc Mbah a Moute won’t be atop the league’s steals or blocks column and may not put up enough stats or play enough minutes to get recognized for national awards. But ask the Clippers where they’d be defensively without Mbah a Moute, and it’s a subject they’d rather not think about.

“He may be the single most important piece from last year, just defensively,” said head coach Doc Rivers.

The Clippers, of course, already had DeAndre Jordan, who’s now finished in the top four in voting for Defensive Player of the Year each of the last two seasons. But, one player can only bear so much responsibility.  

“We needed another wing defender,” Rivers said.

What Rivers didn’t realize when he acquired Mbah a Moute was he wasn’t just getting a solid defender; he was getting a defender who could guard four positions.

“Well, five,” said Mbah a Moute, who knows his role and believes he can guard anyone he’s asked to defend.

Mbah a Moute owned the best defensive rating on the team during the regular season among Clippers who played at least 30 games. He also held opponents this season to just .469 points per possessions in isolation – the best mark in the NBA among players with at least 50 defensive possessions.

The Clippers went 8-8 when Mbah a Moute came off the bench to start the year, then finished the regular season 42-19 when he started. 

“He wants to stop guys and help any way he can,” Jordan said. “That’s a great teammate to have.”

Need someone to guard Anthony Davis? There’s Mbah a Moute.

Need someone to defend a wing with size, such as Kevin Durant or Nicolas Batum? There’s Mbah a Moute.

A quick shooting guard, such as the one the Clippers are seeing this series in C.J. McCollum? Mbah a Moute's ready.

“I know whatever happens, I’m going to go out there and guard a team’s best player – whether it’s at the start of the game or some point during the game,” Mbah a Moute said. “I’ve got to be ready for whatever.”

At this point, eight years into his career, Mbah a Moute doesn’t need to watch much film on individual players he’s guarding. He’s seen enough to know the elite players’ tendencies, though younger players are an exception.

He hadn’t guarded McCollum much before, so he’s studying the guard’s film more diligently.

At 6-8, Mbah a Moute has the size to deal with bigger opponents, and he'll get some time on bigger Blazers such as Maurice Harkless and Noah Vonleh. But, he can also help on McCollum, who's shooting below 36 percent each of the first two games.

Paul still has the matchup on Damian Lillard, but Mbah a Moute’s presence gives J.J. Redick the ability to save much of his endurance for the offensive end if the Clippers need to give him a break. Redick scored 17 points in Game 2, while Mbah a Moute came up with three steals in 20 minutes – just another example of what might’ve been the missing link in turning the Clippers’ average defense last year into an elite group this season.

The Clippers allowed 103 points per 100 possessions last year, finishing in the middle of the pack defensively. This season, they allowed just 100.9 points per 100 possessions, stout enough to tie Golden State and Boston for the No. 4 defense in the league.

“Luc takes a lot of pressure off of not just DJ, but off of me, off of J.J.,” Paul said. “He takes the challenge every night – he defends, he runs the court, he sets screens. He does whatever we have to do to help win.”

And, with some assistance from Mbah a Moute, they’ve done that twice to start the series against Portland.

“It’s been simple – go in there and guard the best player,” Mbah a Moute said. “Whether it’s for 10 minutes, or sometimes one second, that’s what I do."

mbah-a-moutes-defensive-versatility-stands-out

Mbah A Moute’s Defensive Versatility Stands Out

nbaplatformservices

2016 Playoffs Practice: Doc Rivers - 4/21/16

2016-playoffs-practice-doc-rivers-4-21-16

2016 Playoffs Practice: Luc Mbah A Moute - 4/21/16

2016-playoffs-practice-luc-mbah-a-moute-4-21-16

LOS ANGELES - Every time Blake Griffin arrived early to the practice facility at the beginning of the season, he’d hear a sound.

The treadmill was running, and on top of it stood Cole Aldrich. This was before the Clippers’ backup center ever joined the rotation.

“He’d be the first guy in here,” Griffin said. “Doc (Rivers) challenged him to get into better shape, and he accepted it and it paid off.”

Rivers said he felt like Aldrich had more to give, and he believed conditioning played a part.

Griffin said Aldrich lost 25 pounds from the beginning of the year, a fact Aldrich confirmed as he sat at his locker nibbling on orange slices before Game 2 against Portland.

Every morning, Aldrich would arrive to the Clippers’ practice facility at 8:30 a.m. and get on the treadmill to keep his stamina up when he wasn’t getting minutes. He’d run, lift, and stick in the gym until practice two and a half hours later.

“That was just kind of my thing,” Aldrich said. “When I was going through that period of time and I wasn’t playing, it was just knowing at some point in time it was going to happen. I had to be in shape and be ready and kind of run with the opportunity.”

Aldrich had gone through situations throughout his six-year career with five different teams where his playing time fluctuated, so he didn’t let the beginning of the season get to him. It wasn’t until late December when Aldrich’s minutes started getting into double digits and he became a mainstay in the rotation.

When the chance arrived, he made sure he was physically ready to handle a substantially greater workload.

“I just go in with the same mindset every day of, ‘You’ve got to find a way to get better,’” Aldrich said.

Aldrich stopped drinking soda, pretty much the only thing he says he changed, and kept the workouts regimen. He joked that some guys swear by methods like “paleo” diets, but he still eats what he wants for the most part, he’s just smarter about it.

“I loved a good Mountain Dew, but no more Mountain Dew for me,” Aldrich joked.

His plan got him down to 250 pounds, one of the lightest weights he’s played at since entering the league, and something he knew he needed to do seeing how fast the pace was with the Clippers. Aldrich said the switch from the slower, more methodical triangle offense in New York to the quicker, freer style with the Clippers presented a challenge.

Playing at a smaller weight has helped him adjust.

“Maybe we should write down the Cole diet, because I don’t know what he did,” Rivers said. “But, he really worked his butt off.”

Aldrich’s production continues to rise, averaging 9.4 points and 8.6 rebounds to close out the year in April, including a masterful 21-point, 18-rebound, five-steal performance when called upon to start in Utah.

“He’s blocking everything that comes in the paint,” said DeAndre Jordan. “He’s gobbling up every rebound, he’s running, he’s dunking now, which is nice to see. He definitely helped our second unit out a lot.”

That was evident again Wednesday in Game 2 against Portland, as Aldrich and the backups helped propel the Clippers to a 2-0 lead, outscoring the Trail Blazers’ reserves by 33 points. Aldrich chipped in with eight points, eight rebounds and two blocks in just 12 minutes. 

Rivers said the minute Aldrich became part of the rotation is when he saw the bench take off, and as Chris Paul thinks about bench guys that surprised him this year, Aldrich’s name is at the top of the list.

Game 2 Round 1 2016

Top Five Plays Of The Week: 04/18 - 04/24

Prince’s Passing Felt By Clippers Of All Ages

Mbah A Moute’s Defensive Versatility Stands Out

2016 Playoffs Practice: Doc Rivers - 4/21/16

2016 Playoffs Practice: Luc Mbah A Moute - 4/21/16

How Cole Aldrich Lost To Gain

LA Clippers vs. Trail Blazers Game 2 Redux

Postgame Press Conference: Blake Griffin – 4/20/16