Now they have a problem
I just finished filing my story on today's ugly loss to the Golden State Warriors and thought I'd shed a little more light on the story since I didn't have much space in the paper to write.
Basically, now I think the Clippers are in trouble. The first six games weren't a surprise considering the injuries and misfortune the team suffered in training camp.
There were even a lot of things to be encouraged about in those first six games.
Then came the loss to Sacramento on Wednesday, and this stinker today. The problems are getting worse, not better. The team is resorting to jacking up 3-pointers way too often, not hustling and playing hard on defense, and hanging their heads on the bench.
There were about five times Saturday when I saw a Warrior have an open look at the basket and not one Clipper running toward him to contest the shot. That's just a lack of effort, and in the NBA, where effort and motivation can blow with the wind, the most serious kind of problem.
Anyway, below is the game story I just filed:
Al Thornton sat quietly in front of his locker, legs splayed out wide, arms crossed, a blank, disgusted look on his face.
He has been disappointed in the way the Clippers are playing at the start of this season, but never like this.
``I don't know what's going on or what to say,'' the second-year forward said after the Clippers 121-103 loss to the Golden State Warriors Saturday afternoon at Staples center.
``I think there are some cracks (in the team). Maybe it might be with the character or the drive. You can see it in the play. There's a lot of issues right now. I hate it for the fans.
``To me, it's real basic: Are guys motivated or not? You got to look yourself in the mirror.''
In other words, now this 1-8 start to the season is beginning to hurt.
``You want to start pointing fingers,'' Clippers center Chris Kaman said. ``But there's no one to start pointing fingers at except yourself and everybody's got to come together, dig down and work harder.''
Saturday's game was billed as a reunion between Corey Maggette and the Clippers and Baron Davis and the Warriors. The two traded places over the summer during one of the wildest off-seasons in recent memory. Saturday was their first meeting of the season.
Maggette had 17 points, five rebounds and three assists despite getting into early foul trouble. Davis had 25 points, 11 assists and three steals.
But an undrafted rookie from Georgia Tech by the name of Anthony Morrow stole the show from everyone, scoring an astounding 37 points on 15-of-20 shooting.
``It's just a feeling I had,'' Golden State coach Don Nelson said of the decision to start Morrow on Saturday. ``This is one of the most exciting things I can remember in a long, long time. I've been in the league 30 years I've never seen a performance like that from a guy that got his first opportunity, really. He had the game of a lifetime.''
Over in the Clippers locker room though, they were more concerned about their own problems. It was hard to say which aspect of their play was less inspiring: at the offensive end where they resorted to shooting 26, 3-pointers (making only six of them) when their stagnant offense broke down and ended up 39 percent from the field; or on defense where they allowed a player to score 30-plus points on them for the third straight game?
``We have to get off to better starts, stop digging ourselves in the hole,'' Baron Davis said. ``I think there are times we're out there playing with uncertainty and you can't be effective that way. I think chemistry is important. Right now that's something we really have to concentrate and work hard on. ...We're still looking for that rhythm out there, that flow.''
But most of all, they're looking for answers.
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