Game 9: The Battle of Los Angeles Part I
Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 1:50 am
Los Angeles Clippers VS Los Angeles Lakers
Where: STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, CA
When: Saturday, January 14th, 2012 @ 7:30PM (PST)
TV:
/ 
/ NBATVRadio: KFWB News Talk 980
PG: #3 - Chris Paul SG: #1 - Chauncey Billups
SF: #5 - Caron Butler PF: #32 - Blake Griffin
C: #6 - DeAndre Jordan
Reserves
Foye | Gomes | Thompkins | Cook | Evans
PG: #2- Derek Fisher SG: #24 - Kobe Bryant
SF: #9 - Matt Barnes PF: #16 - Pau Gasol
C: #17 - Andrew Bynum
Reserves
Morris | Kapono | Artest | McRoberts | Murphy
Inactive List:
Eric Bledsoe (Lateral Meniscus, Right Knee) and Mo Williams (Sore Right Foot) are out.
Josh McRoberts (Big toe injury) and Troy Murphy (Gastroenteritis) are probable.
Steve Blake (Costochaondral fracture) and Derrick Caracter (Meniscus, Left Knee) are out.
Team Leaders and Statistics
Blake Griffin - 23.3 Points (6th) and 10.8 Rebounds (6th)
Chris Paul - 8.8 Assists (5th) and 2.8 Steals (1st)
DeAndre Jordan - 3.4 Blocks (1st)
Team Performance
98.8 Points Per Game - 8th Overall
37.0 Rebounds Per Game - 30th Overall
22.1 Assists Per Game - 9th Overall
96.5 Points Allowed - 22nd Overall
13.1 Turnovers Per Game - 2nd Overall
16.3 Turnovers (Opp.) Per Game - 10th Overall
Offensive Rating: 107.3 Points Scored Per 100 Possessions - 4th Overall
Defensive Rating: 104.9 Points Allowed Per 100 Possessions - 22nd Overall
Kobe Bryant - 30.3 Points (1st), 5.7 Assists and 1.0 Steals
Andrew Bynum - 13.9 Rebounds (3rd) and 2.1 Blocks (6th)
Team Performance
94.6 Points Per Game - 13th Overall
46.8 Rebounds Per Game - 1st Overall
21.8 Assists Per Game - 10th Overall
89.9 Points Allowed - 4th Overall
16.6 Turnovers Per Game - 27th Overall
11.8 Turnovers (Opp.) Per Game - 30th Overall
Offensive Rating: 103.1 Points Scored Per 100 Possessions - 13th Overall
Defensive Rating: 97.8 Points Allowed Per 100 Possessions - 5th Overall
The players speak...
Bynum on Clippers Saturday night. "big game. We can say its just another game but it's really a big game"
Beto Duran
Kobe if rivalry w Clippers developing "There's a lot of talk. I'm sure as hell going to answer the bell"
Beto Duran
Kobe Bryant very complimentary of Chris Paul: "He has a similar engine to mine. Extremely competitive, extremely feisty."
Mark Medina
"These statement games — I mean, it's big in college," the power forward said. But speaking of the NBA's abbreviated 66-game schedule this season, Griffin said: "We could win 10 statement games and lose the other 56."Clippers Coach Vinny Del Negro said one key to defeating the Lakers is "we have to control their rebounding … control them on the glass," and the Clippers have their work cut out.
Jim Peltz, LA Times
“Preseason is all good and well,” Paul said. “But it’s really not the intensity of a regular season game. This is a division game for us, a big game for us. And we’ve got to take care of our home court just as it’s their home court, too.”“It’s not just a matter of just stopping [Kobe], but you have to slow him down and account for him,” Griffin said. “But at the same time you can still beat a team even if one guy has 40 or 50 [points].”
Eric Patten, Clippers.com
Another day, another game with 5 All-Stars. 4 of those All-Stars will likely be starting alongside each other on February 26th, but on Saturday night, they'll be playing against each other for bragging rights until the next showdown that will take place 11 days later. This game was recently upgraded to NBA TV status, so the rest of the country can catch a glance of the Los Angeles co-tenants going head-to-head.
The Lakers are currently on a 5-game winning streak (4 against sub-.500 teams) and Kobe has a streak of his own with 3 games in a row of 40 or more points (averaging 31 attempts per game). The Clippers are 4-1 in the month of January and coming off of hard fought victory over the Miami Heat. The Clippers were able to pick up both preseason victories against the Lakers, but today is where it counts. With a win the Clippers could move back into the top spot of the Pacific division and tied with the Spurs and Nuggets for 2nd place in the Western Conference.
The Clippers must keep the rebound battle somewhat close. The Lakers are currently the best in the league at cleaning off the glass, while the Clippers are dead last. Defensive rebounds means defensive stops. We can't afford to give them multiple looks on the offensive end. Our primary strength happens to be controlling the ball. We rank 2nd in the league, while the Lakers opponents rank first in the league for the least amount of turnovers.
We need Paul to be aggressive like what we have seen against the Heat and Houston. I expect him to show up early given what is at stake and the quality of the opponent. DeAndre's defense has varied from game to game, but he is showing progress. He's not biting every single fake as he did in the preseason. He's been more patient at picking and choosing his battles. We will need for him to be on his game while going up against Bynum. Gasol's length is not something that Blake has been comfortable with in the past, but we will need him to overcome that obstacle and be effective when the Lakers' starters are in the game. Butler will likely be given the assignment of guarding Kobe, but Butler will have help. Too bad one of them is Eric Gordon who has done admirable job against Bryant over the years. Kobe has taken 31 attempts in each of his last few games. Odds are that he'll take something around that tonight. We have to make him work for those shots. Billups is getting the job done at the foul line, but he's got to tighten up the shooting percentage. In preseason he was was 7 of 11 from the field and 5 of 8 from the perimeter. During his first 6 games, he's 34% from the field and 33% from 3. We can't afford to have him chucking.
