Welcome to the LA Clippers, Marcus Morris

[QRich3]

Read on Twitter

[MartinToVaught]

After seeing Rockets/Lakers last night, I actually think Doc's love of playing small ball can help us now. With Morris, we can use that same small-ball playbook against the Lakers with similar success.

[Dynamix]

He looks great in that City Edition jersey.

[TheNewEra]

I’m ready for this to start up and see what happens. Buyout market should start seeing names drop in a week or so

[Yogatti]

After seeing Rockets/Lakers last night, I actually think Doc's love of playing small ball can help us now. With Morris, we can use that same small-ball playbook against the Lakers with similar success.

We're most likely going to face the Nuggets before we even meet the Lakers in the WCF. And you know Glenn Nurse is going to have Trezz guarding Jokic the majority of the time while Zubac barely plays.

Nikola Jokic dropped 31-20-10 against the DPOY Rudy Gobert 2 days ago, what do you think he's going to do against midget Trezz in a playoff series.

[clipperlover]

After seeing Rockets/Lakers last night, I actually think Doc's love of playing small ball can help us now. With Morris, we can use that same small-ball playbook against the Lakers with similar success.

We're most likely going to face the Nuggets before we even meet the Lakers in the WCF. And you know Glenn Nurse is going to have Trezz guarding Jokic the majority of the time while Zubac barely plays.

Nikola Jokic dropped 31-20-10 against the DPOY Rudy Gobert 2 days ago, what do you think he's going to do against midget Trezz in a playoff series.

I honestly don't get how Jokic pulls it off. He appears to be aloof much of the time. He doesn't look like conditioning is a strong point. His lazy passes in the playoffs last year cost them key plays in the series vs Portland. He doesn't look this year like he learned from that. If Jokic had the drive of Kobe and MJ, he would be the most dominant player in the league. However, he is currently a phenomenal player even with his Jared Dudley physique.

Since we don't have Boban, we may have to sign Bogut to have some size available to throw at Jokic.

[og15]

After seeing Rockets/Lakers last night, I actually think Doc's love of playing small ball can help us now. With Morris, we can use that same small-ball playbook against the Lakers with similar success.

We're most likely going to face the Nuggets before we even meet the Lakers in the WCF. And you know Glenn Nurse is going to have Trezz guarding Jokic the majority of the time while Zubac barely plays.

Nikola Jokic dropped 31-20-10 against the DPOY Rudy Gobert 2 days ago, what do you think he's going to do against midget Trezz in a playoff series.

Him dropping 30/20/10 vs Gobert might actually suggest the opposite reality, that instead of focusing on trying to "shut down" or "stop" Jokic, you might be better off trying to contain their other guys and maximize your offensive output against the Nuggets and whatever lineups will best accomplish that are the ones to use.

[esqtvd]

After seeing Rockets/Lakers last night, I actually think Doc's love of playing small ball can help us now. With Morris, we can use that same small-ball playbook against the Lakers with similar success.

We're most likely going to face the Nuggets before we even meet the Lakers in the WCF. And you know Glenn Nurse is going to have Trezz guarding Jokic the majority of the time while Zubac barely plays.

Nikola Jokic dropped 31-20-10 against the DPOY Rudy Gobert 2 days ago, what do you think he's going to do against midget Trezz in a playoff series.

Him dropping 30/20/10 vs Gobert might actually suggest the opposite reality, that instead of focusing on trying to "shut down" or "stop" Jokic, you might be better off trying to contain their other guys and maximize your offensive output against the Nuggets and whatever lineups will best accomplish that are the ones to use.

Agree. Only averaging 25 ppg over his last 10 games got Jokic over 20 points a game, and he shot only 30% from distance in trying to step up his usage. He also flew up to 4 TO per game from his season average of about 2.5.

Hey, he's still a helluva player but it's hard as hell to up your usage and still get the same results as when you were just taking what the defense gave you. Tobias is a perfect example of this. His flight up to stardom has stalled at 19-20 ppg.

Play Jokic straight up and don't let anybody else kill you.

[Yogatti]

True. PG, Kawhi, Morris and Pat Bev will take care of the Nuggets perimeter player. The only threat is really Nikola Jokic.

I'm starting to feel Rockets might be the biggest threat in the playoffs for the Clippers. Zubac is unplayable in that series so there's only Trezz at the 5 for the entire series, although I'm sure Morris can play the 5 occassionally

Lakers couldn't beat the Rocket's midget line-up last night so Lakers size is really not a threat to Clippers at all

[TrueLAfan]

After seeing Rockets/Lakers last night, I actually think Doc's love of playing small ball can help us now. With Morris, we can use that same small-ball playbook against the Lakers with similar success.

We're most likely going to face the Nuggets before we even meet the Lakers in the WCF. And you know Glenn Nurse is going to have Trezz guarding Jokic the majority of the time while Zubac barely plays.

Nikola Jokic dropped 31-20-10 against the DPOY Rudy Gobert 2 days ago, what do you think he's going to do against midget Trezz in a playoff series.

Well, Jokic has averaged 20-11.8-4.4 on .467% shooting and .559 TS% against Midget Trezz and the Clips in their matchups in the last two years--all dropoffs, other than rebounding. And we've won 4 out of those 5 games. Jokic is a great player who has great games, but I don't see any evidence that he's going to walk over our current frontcourt.

p.s. the Midget averaged 15 and 6.8 in barely 20 mpg against Jokic. Shot 63% from the field and blocked more shots too. Hmmm.

[Roscoe Sheed]

It should also be noted that Harrell’s wingspan is over 7 feet. He definitely plays bigger than his height

[TheNewEra]

True. PG, Kawhi, Morris and Pat Bev will take care of the Nuggets perimeter player. The only threat is really Nikola Jokic.

I'm starting to feel Rockets might be the biggest threat in the playoffs for the Clippers. Zubac is unplayable in that series so there's only Trezz at the 5 for the entire series, although I'm sure Morris can play the 5 occassionally

Lakers couldn't beat the Rocket's midget line-up last night so Lakers size is really not a threat to Clippers at all

Should slow down a bit before conceding to the Rockets style over our own. Lakers shot 50% from the floor and they still don’t have as many capable scoring options as the clippers. Lakers really lost control when they got baited into going small with AD and they started shooting a bunch of 3’s they could not hit

[BenchOnaQUEST]

It should also be noted that Harrell’s wingspan is over 7 feet. He definitely plays bigger than his height

Exactly. Trezz is a beast! That's the main reason why he gets more PT than Zubac.

[esqtvd]

It should also be noted that Harrell’s wingspan is over 7 feet. He definitely plays bigger than his height

Exactly. Trezz is a beast! That's the main reason why he gets more PT than Zubac.

You can't play Zubac with the 2nd unit, just can't. No O. Basically his numbers are good because almost all his minutes came playing alongside Kawhi. It's amazing how much Trezz accomplished playing so many minutes alongside dreck like McGruder, Robinson, Mann, Walton and the maddeningly inconsistent JaMychal Green.

[esqtvd]

Excerpts from The Athletic [subscription only, and worth it]:

https://theathletic.com/1592235/2020/02/07/trade-analysis-the-athletic-experts-examine-the-marcus-morris-deal-for-the-clippers-knicks-and-wizards/

Discussion
Vecenie: Marcus Morris fits just about everything the Clippers look for when they talk about “Clipper DNA.” He’s tough and doesn’t take any ****, plus is skilled and is the kind of shooter this roster really could use.

But beyond that, my biggest takeaway is that he just gives them a lot of flexibility with their closing lineups. This could lead to Los Angeles playing some smaller lineups with him at the 5 next to Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. Or, they can play Harrell at the 5 with him at the 4 next to Kawhi and George. If it’s a bigger team, maybe you use Zubac with him at the 4. Or, they can just not close with him if they want a center surrounded by a smaller lineup. To me, the Clippers have the most versatile mix of potential closing groups in the NBA depending on matchup. This just adds to it.

What do you guys think of this?

Leroux: It is a steep price to pay but how many veteran forwards good enough to get playoff minutes on serious contenders were even on the market?

...

He is far from a perfect basketball player but checks a ton of boxes for the Clippers. Some of that may feel superfluous with Leonard and George ahead of him in the pecking order but having depth and multiple options are both exceedingly important in big series. There are not many people capable of guarding elite wings and Morris should be able to do enough to give Leonard some time off those assignments, which matters even more if he is shouldering a heavy offensive burden as expected. Plus, that lets George spend more time covering guards, which fits his defensive skillset better. Harkless is a worthwhile player who helped the Clippers this year but he fills a different defensive role and cannot shoot well enough to force opponents to respect him, something Trail Blazers fans know all too well. While Morris’ shocking 44% from three this season is likely an aberration, his career 37% mark from long distance is more than enough to keep opponents honest.


Partnow: Is the price even that steep? I don’t want to speak in absolutes, but a genuine championship contender like the Clippers should almost never make their own pick. The hit rate on late 20s draftees is pretty mediocre – around 35-40 percent become long term rotation players and maybe 10 percent become good enough to be top seven rotation players for a contender, math which is made more difficult by the fact that by definition, contenders don’t have a lot of minutes to give them.

All of which is to say, while a rental on Marcus Morris might be less than the value in a vacuum of the 27th pick, that pick is far less valuable to the Clippers than in a vacuum.

...

Leroux: One of my favorite parts of this deal from the Clippers’ perspective is that while I expect Morris to fill an important role in their rotation, they do not have to rely on him if his performance does not justify it. That gives Doc Rivers enough leverage to demand both buy-in and accountability on and off the court, which matters for any newcomer but particularly someone who likes to look for his own shot a little too often. LA has plenty of other options for any given moment and there will be times when Morris is the right lever to pull but he still has to build trust and equity as a part of a title contender.

[50CalClips]

Marcus Morris, a 6' 8" Baron Davis-looking dude

Watch this on mute...

Watch on YouTube

While listening to this...

Watch on YouTube

[50CalClips]

...

The more I learn about Marcus Morris, the more questionable he seems (sort of on the personal side of things)...

It's one thing to be a Dawg on the court, it's another to have punk-tendencies.

[BenchOnaQUEST]

Marcus Morris, a 6' 8" Baron Davis-looking dude

Watch this on mute...

Watch on YouTube

While listening to this...

Watch on YouTube

Just did that. Thanks for these 2 cool videos.

[50CalClips]

I don't know about that (in pink)...

Excerpts from The Athletic [subscription only, and worth it]:

https://theathletic.com/1592235/2020/02/07/trade-analysis-the-athletic-experts-examine-the-marcus-morris-deal-for-the-clippers-knicks-and-wizards/

Discussion
Vecenie: Marcus Morris fits just about everything the Clippers look for when they talk about “Clipper DNA.” He’s tough and doesn’t take any ****, plus is skilled and is the kind of shooter this roster really could use.

But beyond that, my biggest takeaway is that he just gives them a lot of flexibility with their closing lineups. This could lead to Los Angeles playing some smaller lineups with him at the 5 next to Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. Or, they can play Harrell at the 5 with him at the 4 next to Kawhi and George. If it’s a bigger team, maybe you use Zubac with him at the 4. Or, they can just not close with him if they want a center surrounded by a smaller lineup. To me, the Clippers have the most versatile mix of potential closing groups in the NBA depending on matchup. This just adds to it.

[b]What do you guys think of this?..

Marcus Morris seems like an easily provoked, insecure Punk.

Maybe this is him at his worst, not his normal self, IDK, but this is an ultra-b!tch move right here...

Watch on YouTube

[50CalClips]

Just hit them 3's and D-up.

L.A. Our Way.