Opponent Scouting: LA Clippers. (19-15)
Sorry for missing a couple of games. We moved my office in the house and did some painting and other stuff. Hope everyone had a lovely Christmas and held their loved ones close.
Tonight at 7:00pm EST the Detroit Pistons will be facing the Los Angeles Clippers in Detroit at the LCA. The Clippers are on two days of rest after losing to the Sixers. The Pistons are also on two days of rest after getting blown out by the Hawks. The Pistons have lost 8 of their last 9 and the last 5 straight.
The Them:
The Clippers have been a little bit unsteady as they continue to work through some injuries and the never-ending Kawhi Leonard injury saga but they have held on and as they appear to be reaching full health as a team they are 19-15 and 5th in the West which isn’t a bad place to be. The offense has largely been a mess and they come into tonight with the league’s 29th-ranked offense, they of course counter that with an elite defense that ranks 3rd in the league.
Kawhi Leonard is currently listed as out for rest which seems bizarre given they just had two days off but whatever he’s out. With him out Paul George continues to be one of the quietest awesome players in the league. The combination of some playoff flops and the fact that he plays for the Clippers has hidden it a bit, but there should be full consideration given to the fact that he is one of the games best two-way players. Averaging 23 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists per game while playing consistently elite defense. Much of my respect for Paul George comes from him being one of the few guys who transitioned into being a elite offensive player that never really stopped giving high effort on defense. George prefers jumpers to driving but is still a silky smooth athlete who can get to the hoop and draw fouls.
After George (and Kawhi when he plays) the Clippers have a collection of very good NBA players. Three Pistons legends are on the roster. Marcus Morris is still a tough defender, solid shooter, and good enough in isolation to attack mismatches. Reggie Jackson has struggled with his efficiency this season but has good size defensively and will drop floaters on you all day. Luke Kennard comes off the bench and is one of the leagues best shooters while also providing a bit of creation.
After the former Pistons, Ivica Zubac is an underappreciated center who is really good at all the stuff you need a big man to do. He has good hands, a soft touch around the rim, knows where to be on defense, and plays hard. Norman Powell is an instant offense type off the bench, Nicolas Batum doesn’t put up big numbers but is a great glue guy who does some of everything. Terance Mann is potentially explosive. John Wall missed the last game and while he is a far cry from what he once was, he’s still an awesome passer and even with having lost a step he’s still more athletic than most.
The questions about Kawhi’s long-term health appear to never go away, and there is still some question about whether or not they have enough proper playmaking on the roster. But as sloggy as the offense can be, the defense is awesome.
Matchups to watch:
Pistons vs. Paul George: I’ve written this many times at this point. But the Pistons clearly have no good answer for George. The lack of big wing defenders on the current roster is stark. To make matters worse, George is good enough defensively to take Bojan out of the game for Detroit.
Duren vs. Zubac: Not exactly a headline matchup but should be a good one. Zubac is huge, physical, and effective. Duren will have his work cut out for him.
Pistons vs. Vibes: This is the kind of stretch that can put real strain on the locker room. The Pistons last three losses have all been fairly ugly and this is another good team. Getting a win to halt the spiral would be good.
Killian Hayes vs. Reggie Jackson: Two point-guards with good size who have to rely on tact and smarts over explosion offensively. It also stands out as one of the better options to hope the Pistons can win a matchup in the starting lineup. Jackson is still good, but the way Killian has played for the last month gives him a chance to get one over.
Saddiq Bey vs. Not being awful: No way around it. He’s had a couple of nice games sprinkled in but we are approaching disaster territory for Bey’s season. After a great start we are now almost to the new year and he’s shooting 30% from deep, averaging less than 2 assists per game, and his overall shooting efficiency has called to 53.7%. The splits from before and after moving to the bench (17 and 14 games respectively) are scary. His TS% had been at 56% but has been just 50% since the move despite the fact that he’s actually shooting slightly better from deep. Indicative that the positive shot creation he showed early on may have been a mirage. I was at the time and remain now fully against him coming off the bench, but its no excuse for his play to fall this far off.
Marvin Bagley vs. Finding his spots: One of the few spots in this game where you can see a clear matchup advantage on the Pistons’ side should be Bagley. The Clippers effectively have no backup center and pretty much all of their power forwards are just big wings. Bagley should have a good chance to wreck the interior of the Clippers when Zubac gets a breather.
So in conclusion…
Run for the hills if:
Paul George is getting hot while also shutting down Bojan
The Pistons cannot get anything going offensively
The Pistons bench gets outscored
Wink knowingly at your friends if:
Bagley does work when Zubac hits the bench
Bojan goes blow for blow with George
Luke Kennard gets PTSD from seeing Dwane Casey on the sideline and completely implodes.