Three games into the early NBA season the Los Angeles Clippers are 2-1 and are a James Harden game-winning layup away from being undefeated. After a tough OT loss to Phoenix in their new building for their home opener, they went on the road and beat Denver and Golden State on a back-to-back.
Which is not easy to do, for any team.
But this Los Angeles Clippers team, led by head coach Ty Lue, might be different.
They lost all-star Paul George in free agency to Philadelphia and got bad news regarding their best player and two-time champion Kawhi Leonard before the season began, that he would be out for a ‘significant’ amount of time.
So what stands out about this roster led by a 35-year-old superstar James Harden? It’s their defense collectively.
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The Los Angeles Clippers Have A Defensive Identity
They held Phoenix to 103 points in regulation, then held both Denver and Golden State to 104 points in their building. They are third in the league in defensive rating (103.2) and after their 112-104 victory over the Warriors their head coach Steve Kerr said, “Clippers defense forced Warriors into a lot of bad passes and Warriors didn’t handle it well.”
It’s been just that for LA in this early season. They are consistently pressuring the ball on the perimeter, getting deflections, and keeping teams out of the paint by dominating all three games by outscoring their opponents 172-114.
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The attention to detail defending some of the most skilled players in their first three games, makes coach Lue proud. He said after their victory over the Warriors that he believes this team so far, “has the right intent and our hearts are in the right place,” that’s encouraging from a coach who has already won at the highest level so he knows what it looks like.
Harden, who is the unquestioned leader of this team, talked about this team’s ceiling defensively, “I think our group has a chance to be top-5 defensively” after the win against the Warriors.
A big reason for the ball pressure 25 feet from the basket, is because they know that they have a defensive anchor behind them in Ivica Zubac.
The big 7-footer consistently changes shots at the rim and has always been a factor for LA on defense since coming over in 2018 and his teammate Harden believes he can be so much more, “his goal is to be DPOY.”
So whether it’s the long athleticism of Derrick Jones Jr., the physical presence on the perimeter by Amir Coffey, or the instincts and anticipation from Kris Dunn this team has an identity and it’s on the defensive end.
If and when they get Kawhi back, he will just add to the ferocity this team executes on that end.
The Los Angeles Clippers return home Wednesday against Portland beginning a five-game home stand.