GAME 16: Thunder (6-7) @ Clips (11-4) 7PM PST Friday PRIME TICKET

[Max Headrom]

Nice to see the team continue to quietly take care of business. No drama, no headlines, no distractions, just basketball. Hope they can keep this up.

I mean, Lue seems to be the only coach that's been able to keep Kyrie under control and get the best out of him. The locker room effect alone was something I was looking forward to with Lue. He's a players coach but is also not afraid to hold stars accountable

[TheNewEra]

Still need to figure the Luke and Lou combo but this was a good team win even if the 2nd half didn’t go as smooth. Ty might want to blend the bench guys into the games a bit sooner. Zu should of played way more and Morris should of had way more shots.

Good win when you can still improve

[esqtvd]

I'm just glad we're winning games we're supposed to win. Last season, no game was a guaranteed win.

The mentality was "load management"--save it all for the playoffs. Even when not giving Kawhi the night off, the idea was to steam out to a huge lead and try to rest him and the rest of the first team.

Come the playoffs, we would just turn on the faucet. That was how Kawhi wanted it, and that's what we did. Trezz tried to warn everybody as early as January, but he was dissed.

This year, everybody has learned the lesson. Kawhi [AND PG!] are not disrespecting the regular season--and I would add, neither is the rest of the NBA. Over in Philly Embiid got a fire lit under his ass too.

People are out there taking care of business. Frankly, I think that's why the Lakers won last year and we didn't. Lakers came to play every night. We didn't, and when push came to shove, we got shoved.

[Captain Ballmer]

Batum who was listed as questionable is now out. His baby girl was born today. Happy times.

Correction. Lue said just now that Batum wants to play but the team and NBA are trying to see if they can make it happen. Technically he’s a game time decision.

And he’ll play.

This wouldn't happen last year. It was a legitimate reason to skip game but Batum wanted to be out there with the gang. On a cornerstone day of his life, he wanted his team to be part of it. I think our chemistry issues are clearly behind us.

[nickhx2]

agree.

and think about the reverence marcus morris offered to batum in post-game for his decision. i think it's fundamentally clear this team is on a different wavelength, chemistry-wise and leadership-wise.

what a difference a year, a new coach, and a jettisoned malcontent can make. the front office has done a fantastic job finding the right parts and the right people.

[Roscoe Sheed]

I’m happy they pulled the game out. However, I’m concerned that they still went into iso ball mode too much in the 3rd quarter. They need to keep the ball moving. If they don’t , I’m worried they will struggle in tough playoff possessions

[Max Headrom]

I’m happy they pulled the game out. However, I’m concerned that they still went into iso ball mode too much in the 3rd quarter. They need to keep the ball moving. If they don’t , I’m worried they will struggle in tough playoff possessions

I think last night showed that Kawhi and PG recognized that the team wasn't shooting well so they took it upon themselves to get to the rack to and kept the pressure on OKC defense. It's why you have two stars. To take over when the team is struggling offensively

[Roscoe Sheed]

I’m happy they pulled the game out. However, I’m concerned that they still went into iso ball mode too much in the 3rd quarter. They need to keep the ball moving. If they don’t , I’m worried they will struggle in tough playoff possessions

I think last night showed that Kawhi and PG recognized that the team wasn't shooting well so they took it upon themselves to get to the rack to and kept the pressure on OKC defense. It's why you have two stars. To take over when the team is struggling offensively

good point. I guess I was just having nightmare flashbacks to the collapses against Denver when iso ball reared it’s ugly head.

You are right though- sometimes when your team can’t buy a bucket, your superstars need to take it to the rack

[esqtvd]

I’m happy they pulled the game out. However, I’m concerned that they still went into iso ball mode too much in the 3rd quarter. They need to keep the ball moving. If they don’t , I’m worried they will struggle in tough playoff possessions

I think last night showed that Kawhi and PG recognized that the team wasn't shooting well so they took it upon themselves to get to the rack to and kept the pressure on OKC defense. It's why you have two stars. To take over when the team is struggling offensively

good point. I guess I was just having nightmare flashbacks to the collapses against Denver when iso ball reared it’s ugly head.

You are right though- sometimes when your team can’t buy a bucket, your superstars need to take it to the rack

The key being taking it to the rack, not hoisting lame 3-balls. Embiid is doing the same thing in Philly. 15 FTAs last night. Man up.

[playaloc916]

I'm just glad we're winning games we're supposed to win. Last season, no game was a guaranteed win.

The mentality was "load management"--save it all for the playoffs. Even when not giving Kawhi the night off, the idea was to steam out to a huge lead and try to rest him and the rest of the first team.

Come the playoffs, we would just turn on the faucet. That was how Kawhi wanted it, and that's what we did. Trezz tried to warn everybody as early as January, but he was dissed.

This year, everybody has learned the lesson. Kawhi [AND PG!] are not disrespecting the regular season--and I would add, neither is the rest of the NBA. Over in Philly Embiid got a fire lit under his ass too.

People are out there taking care of business. Frankly, I think that's why the Lakers won last year and we didn't. Lakers came to play every night. We didn't, and when push came to shove, we got shoved.

Exactly. Last year was filled with excuses... oh we only practiced with the entire team 2 or 3 during the whole year... no need to panac, the chemistry will improve just in time for the playoffs, etc... No. You need to freakin' beat the teams you're supposed to beat... You're supposed to keep working on chemistry until it becomes good, instead of procrastinating and leaving it until the last second. That's why the Lakers dominated. They weren't unbeatable, but 9 times out of 10, they did what they were supposed to do, and that's why they were the champs.

So far this season looks promising. The starters are looking great, but the bench has some work to do. But having new coaches like 007, Atkinson, and Billups, I think they know what they need to do. If we can stabilize Lou, I think the bench will be in good shape.

[playaloc916]

I think last night showed that Kawhi and PG recognized that the team wasn't shooting well so they took it upon themselves to get to the rack to and kept the pressure on OKC defense. It's why you have two stars. To take over when the team is struggling offensively

good point. I guess I was just having nightmare flashbacks to the collapses against Denver when iso ball reared it’s ugly head.

You are right though- sometimes when your team can’t buy a bucket, your superstars need to take it to the rack

The key being taking it to the rack, not hoisting lame 3-balls. Embiid is doing the same thing in Philly. 15 FTAs last night. Man up.

I have to give it to PG and Kawhi, they are being aggressive when things become stale. PG has done a particularly good job at slithering his way to the basket and getting fouled. When you have a guy like Doncic, who isn't the most athletic guy, get the rim at ease, it's crazy how more teams don't utilize the same strategies.

[esqtvd]

I'm just glad we're winning games we're supposed to win. Last season, no game was a guaranteed win.

The mentality was "load management"--save it all for the playoffs. Even when not giving Kawhi the night off, the idea was to steam out to a huge lead and try to rest him and the rest of the first team.

Come the playoffs, we would just turn on the faucet. That was how Kawhi wanted it, and that's what we did. Trezz tried to warn everybody as early as January, but he was dissed.

This year, everybody has learned the lesson. Kawhi [AND PG!] are not disrespecting the regular season--and I would add, neither is the rest of the NBA. Over in Philly Embiid got a fire lit under his ass too.

People are out there taking care of business. Frankly, I think that's why the Lakers won last year and we didn't. Lakers came to play every night. We didn't, and when push came to shove, we got shoved.

Exactly. Last year was filled with excuses... oh we only practiced with the entire team 2 or 3 during the whole year... no need to panac, the chemistry will improve just in time for the playoffs, etc... No. You need to freakin' beat the teams you're supposed to beat... You're supposed to keep working on chemistry until it becomes good, instead of procrastinating and leaving it until the last second. That's why the Lakers dominated. They weren't unbeatable, but 9 times out of 10, they did what they were supposed to do, and that's why they were the champs.

So far this season looks promising. The starters are looking great, but the bench has some work to do. But having new coaches like 007, Atkinson, and Billups, I think they know what they need to do. If we can stabilize Lou, I think the bench will be in good shape.

The two guys who took the blame for last year are doing just fine with their new teams. Just like Embiid getting serious now and carrying the Sixers, Kawhi and especially PG have turned over a new leaf. I credit Kawhi and PG not going off to their private locker room before the game [and booting the female staffers BTW] anymore and being their own team within a team.

As you may remember me saying during the offseason, the question wasn't if this team was a mess, but if this mess was a team. It wasn't, as it came out. Jovan did this franchise a big favor by exposing the crap that was going on and the seriousness that was lacking.


As for Lou, I'm more worried about getting Kennard straightened out. Luke is tied for team-worst plus/minus with Pat Pat at minus-0.8. Lou is still above water at plus+1.2 despite being asked to sacrifice his game for the team.

https://www.nba.com/stats/players/traditional/?sort=PTS&dir=-1&Season=2020-21&SeasonType=Regular%20Season&TeamID=1610612746



Otherwise I agree with what you said. If practicing hard is key to success, certainly playing the games hard is even more necessary. No more cruise control. We tried that last year and ended up in the ditch.