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So far this season we have 9 teams with +2.5 SRS. If we count only games between them, then standings would look like that:

LAC 6-3 (4-0 home)
MIA 5-4 (4-1 home)
MEM 4-3 (3-1 home)
NYK 3-2 (1-0 home)
ATL 3-3 (1-1 home)
OCT 3-3 (2-2 home)
SAS 3-4 (2-2 home)
BRO 2-4 (2-1 home)
LAL 1-4 (1-2 home)

Sadly, the Clippers did well against the good teams then decided that loosing to the Cavs and Hornets was acceptable. They had a tough schedule opponent wise early on, but dealt with it pretty well. They have two 6 game win streaks sandwiching a 4 game loosing streak that would have been okay at 3. OT loss at OKC, then back to back on the road vs Nets and Atlanta is a difficult little stretch, but loosing to New Orleans was a little much. 4th in Ortg, 7th in DRtg with a 15-5 expected W-L, which would have them at a similar record to NY.

They have the 3rd best SRS behind OKC and San Antonio, so it's been a good start to the season, mainly defensively, and with guys like Blake and DJ doing better work on that end. We'll see how it continues to go, and again when Chauncey returns from the current injury.

December has been easy schedule wise, and I think there are a few more games of that, so it's been nice for the starters to sit out a good amount of 4th quarters.

...if the Clippers are nº1, it only means that the end of the world is near

They beat a lot of good teams and title contenders in December but they were all at home. They went on a road trip and beat the SAS in SA but then proceeded to stink it up leading to a 4 game losing streak. Now they had a home stand against bad teams and are 14-6. I'd really like to see them give the same type of effort on the road and if they can beat good teams on the road, then we can talk. They also seem to have let down games against poor teams now and again. The bench bailed the starters out against PHX and TOR consecutively.

aroba wrote:...if the Clippers are nº1, it only means that the end of the world is near

10 days left.

Cool they loss to cellar dwellars also

I agree with Guyver. I think they're 'picking their spots' too much in terms of when to show up and when not to, something which may pass for a team like the Heat but I don't think the Clippers should be doing that. They haven't proven anything and they don't have the luxury to say 'we don't worry about team X or team Y.' Not that they've been doing that publicly, but it seems like it with the effort they've shown against the 'bad' teams, which has come back to bite them in the ass.

They still have a lot of flaws even though they're the deepest team in the league; size is an issue all over the roster and Odom and Butler are huge question marks every game; their back up bigs are mediocre, at best. Shoring up that front line and possibly adding another decent wing could do wonders for them.

Oh yeah, forgot to mention; they're doing all this with Vinny Del Negro "coaching" them.... imagine next year when he's gone (and Paul stays)....

I kinda disagree. I feel like the Clippers main goal should be to make sure Paul/Billups/Griffin are healthy for the playoffs and that they get Odom in shape. Last year their run was submarined by 4 starters either being out or playing with injuries that would keep them out for weeks at a time in the regular season.

I think Paul realizes this which is why he has been picking his spots so much. Griffin plays so hard and gets fouled so much and you can see this year he has avoided getting hit a lot and is more perimeter based.

og15 wrote:Sadly, the Clippers did well against the good teams then decided that loosing to the Cavs and Hornets was acceptable.

It's pro basketball. The talent is close from 1-30 and often times its simply about match ups. Just because a team has a good record and is generally seen as one of the league's better teams, doesn't mean there are no teams with inferior records that might give them a tough matchup. Or, sometimes, teams just lose games.

It's kind of annoying the way any time a team with a good record loses to a team with a worse one, the "auto-analysis" is that they took the team lightly, they took the game off, they played down to their competition.

The team with the better record doesn't win every game, every night of the NBA season.

The Gibbet wrote:

og15 wrote:Sadly, the Clippers did well against the good teams then decided that loosing to the Cavs and Hornets was acceptable.

It's pro basketball. The talent is close from 1-30 and often times its simply about match ups. Just because a team has a good record and is generally seen as one of the league's better teams, doesn't mean there are no teams with inferior records that might give them a tough matchup. Or, sometimes, teams just lose games.

It's kind of annoying the way any time a team with a good record loses to a team with a worse one, the "auto-analysis" is that they took the team lightly, they took the game off, they played down to their competition.

The team with the better record doesn't win every game, every night of the NBA season.

Talent is close enough, but there are some big talent disparities among some teams. If you watched those games, outside of Waiters being hot vs Cleveland, they played fairly passively for most of the game because they tend to get the feeling that they can come back or turn it on when they want. The players themselves mentioned it. I'm not saying you can never loose to a bad team, but loosing the the Hornets after loosing 3 in a row was bad, but it was good for the team.

Wait a minute. The Clips AND the Knicks have winning records???

The world really must be coming to an end.

maxpower88 wrote:Wait a minute. The Clips AND the Knicks have winning records???

The world really must be coming to an end.

Could be the Finals matchup, too.

God, my head would explode.

The bench bailed the starters out against PHX and TOR consecutively.

I'd hardly call that "bailed out." It's not like the starters were getting beat they were just keeping it close. And Chris Paul is a known coaster for the first three quarters, that's always been his M.O. The bench just blew games open at the beginning of the fourth quarters so they didn't need the starters.

maxpower88 wrote:Wait a minute. The Clips AND the Knicks have winning records???

The world really must be coming to an end.

The situation's even crazier than you think. Not only are the Clippers and Knicks in first place, but the Lakers barely have a better record than the Magic, and the Clips are neck and neck with Golden State for the Pacific Division lead. (up by half a game)

the clips played down to their competition and took the hornets and Cavs lightly.

sorry bros.
that's what happened there.

as a fan...i have to to keep from crying about losing to the Pelicans with no Anthony Davis or Eric Gordon....to keep from crying that blake griffin posted the worst stat line of his career.

winning games over the top teams is a good sign....i'd rather win them than lose them.
it still means nothing until playoff time...close out time.
we have a lot of proving to do...and the proving won't happen before April.

Goals:
Starters Healthy (chauncey specifically)
Grant Hill healthy
going into the playoffs.

Bobbcats wrote:

The bench bailed the starters out against PHX and TOR consecutively.

I'd hardly call that "bailed out." It's not like the starters were getting beat they were just keeping it close. And Chris Paul is a known coaster for the first three quarters, that's always been his M.O. The bench just blew games open at the beginning of the fourth quarters so they didn't need the starters.

Personally, I expect the starters to totally blow out teams like NO, PHX, TOR in the 1st quarter. And definitely by halftime. That may seem like arrogance but I think this team is for real and they should not just try to coast and then squeeze out a victory against sub .500 teams in the 4th. They are too talented for that. Even CP3 said he needs to be more aggressive and look for his shot more in the 1st quarter. They allow teams to stick around and that gives them confidence. This is the NBA. Anybody can beat anybody on any given day if they have the confidence and belief that they can win.