The primary downfall of every Los Angeles Clippers playoff run, since Doc Rivers became head coach and president, has been a glaring lack of depth.
As talented as Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, DeAndre Jordan and J.J. Redick are—and as machine-like as their starting five is scoring the ball—the Clippers can’t journey deep in the playoffs without a bench that, at times, is able to stand on its own. That or complement and support the starting five.
Instead, the Clippers have struggled, symbolizing Rivers’ inability to construct a team as well-rounded and balanced as those they need to beat, but that wasn't the case in L.A's 102-81 Game 2 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday.
One performance doesn’t mean much in the grand scheme, but so far Los Angeles has showed why its supporting cast is miles ahead of where it used to be.
Instead of staggering his starters’ minutes so the Clippers would have at least one of Paul, Griffin, Redick or Jordan on the court at all times, Rivers chose to feature an all-bench five-man unit in Game 2. It w ...
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Article written by Michael Pina
Once Clippers’ Achilles’ Heel, L.A.’s Depth Becoming an Asset at the Right Time
April 21st, 2016 by Michael Pina Leave a reply »
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