The Los Angeles Clippers are off to the best start in franchise history with their 9-1 record and they are doing it by locking in on defense. They currently have the league's best defense and they're having a lot of fun doing it.
"We are having a lot of fun right now," said Chris Paul, "and I think a lot of that has to do with our defense." The starting lineup of the LA Clippers includes three defensive specialists in Paul, Luc Mbah a Moute and DeAndre Jordan. Chris Paul starts the defense out front by being a pest on other point guards, Mba a Moute is often assigned to guard the opposing teams best perimeter players and Jordan is their cog in the middle.
Blake Griffin has a wide body he can use to bang with big men and the athleticism to challenge athletic players. J.J. Redick is not known as a great individual defender but he has consistently shown that he can play effective team defense for the Los Angeles Clippers. On the bench, they have Raymond Felton and Austin Rivers who likes to bother ball handlers. And the rest of the roster are buying into the system that the team is trying to do.
"We get excited on defense," said Blake Griffin. "Most of our emphasis coming from the players is on defense." The Los Angeles Clippers have the personnel to be a great defensive team and they have taken ownership of their defense. They are worrying more about their defense than their offense. They trust each other. They are communicating. And they are taking it personally when they commit a mistake on defense.
Everybody's happy," said Jordan. "We want to see each other excel and succeed out there. It's cool to see," the player said. Through 10 games, the only team that has really challenged them are the Oklahoma City Thunder. Their lone loss came against the Thunder and they almost suffered a second loss had Russel Westbrook made the final shot of their rematch.
The Utah Jazz scored the least points against the Los Angeles Clippers this season, with 75. The Portland Trailblazers, who has a lot of firepower care of Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum, were limited to just 80 points on 35.2% shooting. Lillard and McCollum weren't able to score ten points.
DeAndre Jordan is a quick and athletic guy who grabs rebounds and alters shots with his length and leaping ability. However, his free throw woes have allowed opposing teams to get him out of the game by employing the hack-a-Jordan strategy. If he can improve on his free throws, the Los Angeles Clippers could potentially make a deep playoff run because that means more playing time for him. For more news and updates on the NBA 2016-17, keep it here on Gamenguide!
