Game 1: Grizzlies(0-0) at Clippers(0-0)

[DelontesLip]

Just got back from the game tonight. Great pick up of Crawford. And Hollins was really hustling out their in his minutes but He's still a liability on Defense though

That CP3 spin and drive the lane shot he made was ridiculous tonight.

Z Bo was really in Blake's head in the 4th and you could tell he was affected.

[mike3]

Love our atmosphere and highlights. Saying that, it's not all about highlights, our turnovers/defense still needs work.

JCrawford's jumpshot is so smoooooth. That last spin by Paul as he said^^ was awesome.

Clipper Nation! First win!

[mttwlsn16]

JCraw was ballin!!!
Cp butler DJ (minus the 9 TOs) Lamar (surprise) Blake all looked good
Loved the physicality. And Willie green was alright but needs to go not a fan

[jflipclip]

My notes:

With the starters, DJ had his moments but I thought on some his TOs, he was thinking too much, specifically those passes to cutting guys and what not. Those passes were good ideas but he executed them too early. Needs to work on closing out on big guys that could shoot (Gasol/Randolph had their day). IMO Blake was disappointing. Didn't really find his rhythm offensively. Defensively, got outplayed by Randolph. Randolph shouldn't be out-rebounding him. CP3 was good but when he doesn't establish himself early it always puzzles me... but then he shows up in the 2nd half to prove me wrong.

Crawford and Bledsoe were great. Crawford couldn't guard Gay but still. Bledsoe is a special player and just provides the team with an extra umph other teams will struggle with. Hollins is... not good. Turiaf should play ahead of him. Odom played good defense and I really like when he has the ball in his hands. He doesn't need the ball in his hands and that works well when he's playing alongside Bledsoe and Crawford, who both can get sporadic at times and them in check.

Willie Green, not that bad. I'm wondering who will get their minutes cut when Hill, Barnes, and Billups comeback.

[azncorruptedo17]

crawford's crossover on gay that broke his ankle... that was the play of the night haha

rudy gay was unstoppable though, there was no way anyone was stopping him, i think LO did a couple times, but he had his way with us.

z-bo had how many rebounds?! i don't know what it is but we get owned on the boards by memphis every time we play em. zbo and gasol is just a duo we can't beat

[thanumba2clippersfan]

I forgot to add this to my post last night. ZBO did some shady stuff. I can't believe no foul was called when he pulled Blake down. I thought he was gonna be thrown out of the game. O well we still won.

[mkwest]

In opener, Clippers' recipe looks good

“Last year we started with one team and pretty much ended up with almost a whole new team,” Griffin said. “The familiarity and having these guys back … even though we have seven new guys or whatever it is, I think we have that core group of guys that kind of can step in and know what to do right away.”

There’s belief that the next guy can get it done … and if he doesn’t, then the next one will. The team that was second-best in the league at protecting the ball last season coughed it up 22 times Wednesday night. Griffin and Chris Paul -- the faces of the franchise, the two guys chosen to address the fans on opening night -- scored only 23 points between them. And the Clippers still beat the Memphis Grizzlies, 101-92, in the continuation of what has become a testy rivalry.

“I love it,” Paul said. “But, I mean, how many nights are you going to hold Blake to [11] and me to 12? I told them in the locker room after the game, it’s fun to be a part of this, to have guys come off the bench and score effortlessly. [Jamal Crawford] had 29. [Eric Bledsoe] was unbelievable. And these are our so-called backups.”

“Man, I’ve never been on a team like this before,” Clippers center DeAndre Jordan said. “We have a mixed group of guys -- some vets, some super-vets, some young guys. The team camaraderie is crazy. We’ve only been together for two months, but it seems like we’ve been together for five years.”

J.A. Adande, ESPN

Underrated Clippers Ready To Pounce

“This is special team,” he said of the Clippers, while Blake Griffin held a mic of his own as the team greeted the crowd before their home-opening win over the Memphis Grizzlies.

A cynic might point out that similar words are spoken by team leaders at the start of home openers all around the league. But a realist, one without purple-and-gold tinted lenses, would see the validity in Paul’s words and recognizes that the All-Star point guard speaks the truth.

I’ve already gone on record with my prediction that Paul’s Clippers, and not the more celebrated Lakers, are the team from Los Angeles headed to the Western Conference finals. They might not be able to match the Lakers in star power, tradition or as a box office draw. What they do have, however, is the sort of talent, depth, chemistry and focus necessary to reach the conference finals.

The Clippers don’t need any time to get comfortable with each other. There are no internal hurdles this time around, no adjustment period for Paul like the one he needed last season, and no lingering drama surrounding this group (coach Vinny Del Negro‘s hot seat has cooled considerably since last season).

Perhaps most important is that the Clippers will spend the entire season sharing a building with the team — the Lakers — under the most pressure in the league to perform. Those are expectations the Clippers don’t have to worry about.

Sekou Smith, NBA.com

[Don Tommy]

I like being told how much better we will be than the Lakers, but seriously, can we get an article or two that doesn't reference them?

[mike3]

I reckon CP3 was just teasing us by not showing up and testing out his new teammates lol and it worked, he barely had to do anything until the last quarter and Memphis are a solid team. CP3 know's what he's doing... got it all planned

[maljanNBAfan]

I had a great time at the game. I've been back for a little bit just had to get settled in. I really enjoyed the game with my family. It got so loud in there and there was a lot of excitement. I guess I'll start with what I didn't like. Too many turnovers, we let Memphis get too many offensive rebounds, and there were a lot of bad calls from the refs.

Despite all that we still won. Crawford was on tonight along with Bledsoe. I think the team played a good game, but this team can be better. We should have a really good team this year. I'll probably post something in the morning. Time for me to get some sleep. Hope everyone enjoyed the game like I did.

Thanks for the recap and sharing your thoughts on the game with us. I agree that the Clippers are set up to have a strong year. We've got quite the crew of talent!

[mkwest]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bO90YULAOs&feature=plcp[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3UImAWxao58[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pnmfB0H4Zc[/youtube]

Jamal Crawford feels at home with the Clippers

"It's the kind of debut you dream about," Crawford said. "To play well and win in front of the home crowd, you knew it was going to be a sellout crowd and the energy was going to be there. You just want to play well."

"I haven't felt like this since I was in New York, mentally," Crawford said. "I feel like I've found a home. And for me, the last two years, I basically played on one-year contracts and that's always tough."

"The guys that called me -- DeAndre, Chauncey, Chris, Blake, Coach Del Negro, Gary Sacks -- they all told me I was their number one option for free agency at the guard position. When you feel wanted like that and see how the team is going, how you can fit in, it's very appealing."

He said this Clippers team is the most talented squad that he's ever been on.

"It's the best team by far," he said. "When you have guys like Grant Hill, a seven-time All-Star, and Matt Barnes, and Lamar Odom, Ronny Turiaf, all these guys coming off the bench with you, Eric Bledsoe, who is probably a rising star, I think it makes it that much more fun."

Melissa Rohlin, LA Times

The Crawford article also includes a video interview that is worth checking out.

[mike3]

hey mkwest. Big shout out to, and im sure other guys feel the same way. Love all the highlights/videos you post on here that are rare or you wouldn't normally see (or I know i wouldn't).

I always go here to see rare/interesting videos so credit to you! Thanks man.