\jeff{krimmel}

The Clippers Looked Awful

The Los Angeles Clippers lost game three of their playoff series with the Denver Nuggets tonight by a score of 94-87. I watched the tail end of the third quarter and all of the fourth quarter, and let me tell you…the Clippers looked awful. The Nuggets looked bad too.

It was just a very sloppy final quarter, full of turnovers and personal fouls. And the Clippers couldn’t block out anyone. They were playing one of the worst zone defenses I have seen a professional team play. Not only were a bunch of shooters open for mid-range jumpers, the big guys underneath the basket were in great rebounding position. Typically when you play defense, you want to take at least one thing away from the opposing offense. The Clippers chose not to subscribe to this philosophy tonight.

I haven’t seen too many Clippers games this season, but it’s hard to see Elton Brand as an MVP candidate. He’s a solid 20 point, 10 rebound guy, which is a great thing to have on your team, but in no way does Brand dominate the game. He is a calming influence on the Clippers offense, but when they really need a basket, there is no guarantee Brand is going to come up with that basket, at least not like Kobe, Dirk, Dwayne, or LeBron would.

Oh well. Game four is on Saturday night, and the Clippers enter that game with a two games to one lead in the series. Win that one, and all they’ll have to do is one more in L.A. and they’re on to the second round. I’d really like to see that happen.