Blake Griffin, Chris Paul say defense was key to Wednesday’s rout at New York

Blake Griffin

Blake Griffin says players are trusting one another more on defense/Photo courtesy of Los Angeles Clippers, NBA.com

 

The Clippers played splendidly on offense Wednesday when they routed the New York Knicks 111-80 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. They shot 56.4 percent from the field, 39.3 (11 of 28) from 3-point range. The only area in which they didn’t really excel was the free-throw line, where they made just 66.7 percent (12 of 18).

But the Clippers wanted to talk defense afterward. They held the Knicks to 35.4 percent shooting from the field – 21.7 (5 of 23) from beyond the arc.

I think we’re just playing a little bit more consistently,” Blake Griffin said. “Guys are trusting each other and having each others’ backs, which is imperative on the defensive end.”

Said Chris Paul, to a reporter: “I actually called everybody in the huddle and said, ‘What’s making this fun is that we’re getting stops.’ It’s not even about the dunks and the lobs – that’s all good and everything. It’s funny that you didn’t notice that we were getting stops and that was the key to getting the lead.”