Outrageous Statements About Clips/Cavs Game

Blake Griffin is Too Athletic

DeAndre Jordan is 6-11 with a 7-6 wingspan, a 9-5 1/2 standing reach and insane hops. Blake Griffin is 6-10, has a 36-inch vertical, and a poster with Kendrick Perkins...

And yet, the Los Angeles Clippers are a terrible defensive rebounding team.


Monday night, the Clips gave up 18 offensive rebounds. Blake Griffin, who has incredible strength, excellent agility, and outstanding leaping ability, is quite ordinary length-wise. It's why, despite great effort, he doesn't get a lot of blocks and isn't effective defensively. It's also why he needs to stop relying on his athleticism to get rebounds. Because he is so strong, he should be taking after players like Chuck Hayes and Anderson Varejao who use their bodies for leverage. Not only would this save wear and tear on Griffin's body, but it would also dole out physical punishment on the opposition in a way that doesn't also wear himself down. Zach Randolph, Griffin's apparent NBA foil, is a terrific example of a guy who uses his body to get rebounds. If Griffin boxes out with the same zeal he dives for loose balls, he could be a beast on the boards. 

Chris Paul is Selfish

Blasphemous I know, being that Paul, in my estimation, is the best teammate in the NBA. Beyond his distribution skills (second in the league in dimes), his leadership qualities, and his willingness to go to war with whoever is wearing the same jersey, Paul has the uncanny ability to simplify the game for everyone he plays with.   

But that's when Paul is attacking. That's when Paul is engaged, like he was during the Clipper's late fourth quarter run Monday night to tie the ball game. Trailing by nine with six minutes left in the game, Paul hit a three. Drove coast-to-coast for a teardrop. Created a lob dunk for Griffin. Then hit Crawford for a three. Tied ball game.

When he is engaged and active, the Clippers are dangerous. But Paul seems to drift through games, picking his spots. With the Clippers depth, especially with Eric Bledsoe ready to and capable of assuming more minutes, Paul needs to be aggressive, to assert himself at all times while he's on the floor.

Dion Waiters a Rookie of the Year Candidate? 

This is what we've been Waitering for (sorry, I couldn't resist). Dion Waiters dropped 28 on the hapless Clips, including 7-11 from deep and a couple of daggers late in Monday night's game. Remember, Waiters had a worrisome preseason that had many wondering if the former Syracuse alum was worth a lottery pick. A ho-hum start to the season (especially compared to Damion Lillard's historic start) only reinforced that line of thinking. But good-ness did he look special Monday night. 

Kyrie Irving's Comp is Chris Paul

He's very much like Paul, only he shoots like Paul passes and passes like Paul shoots. I'm not talking about form or stylistically. Paul is arguably the best precision passer in the NBA. He creates space and sets his guys up perfectly. His passing sets the table for his scoring opportunities. In Kyrie's case, the 20-year-old creates space for his jumper, which is as deadly and efficient a stroke as any in the NBA. His outside shooting forces defenders to crowd him, which allows him to get into the lane where he is an excellent distributor.   

Jamal Crawford Should Not Close Games

Let me slightly amend this. There are many nights when Crawford, the Clippers leading scorer, should not be in during crunch time. I say this because he and Paul are simply not a good defensive pairing. The reason Crawford has been so good thus far, is because the second unit has been perfectly assembled to maximize his talents -- four defensive-minded, typically passive offensive players, and Crawford. Eric Bledsoe, Matt Barnes, Ronny Turiaf (or Lamar Odom), and Ryan Hollins make up a strong defense that is active and gets blocks, rebounds, and steals. That sort of squad needs a player to jack up 15-18 shots a game in only 29 minutes of action. And while Bledsoe has really matured in his third season, looking Chris Paul-esque many times down the court both stylistically (that scoop layup they both do) and in the manner in which he controls the game's pace, he still makes too many bad decisions. Crawford alleviates Bledsoe of this burden especially when things get tight because he is about as good of an answer as any if the questions is, "How do we get a bucket?"

Crawford wows and mystifies people with his shooting exploits. It's exciting, back-and-forth basketball. But, it's back-and-forth because he gives points right back on the other side of the court. While there are times when Crawford's one-upsmanship gets the better of the other team, it hasn't worked out that way the last two games.  
   
Speaking of crunch time players, what happened to Caron Butler down the stretch? Clippers scored efficiently with him on the floor during his 22 minutes. He's like the anti-Crawford. Crawford excels at taking and making bad shots, while Butler is adept at taking and making good ones.