The LA Clippers have been without their best player, forward Kawhi Leonard, for their last four games. Not only did the Clips go a defeated 0-4 in that stretch, but they never broke 110 points in any of the four matchups. As of now, they rank as the third-worst offense in the league, averaging 109 points a game.
The Clippers last two losses have been particularly painful, coming on their home court and against opponents who were both only .500 coming into their respective contests.
On Nov. 8 against the Suns, LA simply had no offensive spark. In 41 minutes, veteran guard James Harden put up a measly 13 points on an even more abysmal 4 for 15 from the field. While his 13 assists helped spur center Ivica Zubac and forward John Collins to 21 and 19 point outings, respectively, the Suns still led through the entire second half of the game. The message was clear: If the Clippers are without Kawhi, they can’t be missing Harden too.
A quick look at the roster reveals why: Other than an equally injury-prone Bradley Beal, the Clippers find themselves without any true sources of self-creation if Harden can’t be a brilliant all-around engine.
Indeed, forwards Derrick Jones Jr., John Collins and Nicolas Batum each play their roles as off-ball cutting and spot-up threats, but they aren’t exactly confident putting the ball on the floor. Similarly, the roster can’t be in a good spot if LA is relying on guards Cam Christie and Kris Dunn to kick-start your offense, although they do provide staunch presences on the defensive side.
The point of concern comes, however, when Harden does perform and yet the Clippers still can’t pull through. On Nov. 10, the Atlanta Hawks came to the Intuit Dome, where Harden treated the hometown fans to a vintage showcase: a 35-point triple-double on 68% true shooting.
For that matter, watching this game brought me back to Harden’s glory days in Houston, in ways both good and bad. Late-game shot-decision debates aside, Harden looked unstoppable during his 19-point fourth-quarter explosion. However, the Clippers’ offense looked much like those old Rockets teams in the sense that everyone other than Harden was doing a lot of standing around.
The reason why that 2018-19 Houston Rockets team found more success with this system is because they led the league in 3-pointers made, while the Clippers shot just 31.6% from three as a team in this contest.
In an offensive framework where there’s so little movement, coaches sacrifice creating advantages for their offensive players through set actions in exchange for more space for their star to operate.
This works exceptionally well when role players score at their best when shooting standstill spot-up jump shots, but is less effective when a roster is filled with athletic slashing wings like Collins and Jones Jr. It wouldn’t be surprising to see head coach Tyronn Lue implement more movement and predetermined actions in games to come.
Of course, it’s easy for an unassuming Clips fan to brush these thoughts away with thinking that when Leonard returns this will go away. However, considering this team is the oldest in the league and Harden and Leonard both have rather spotty medical records, it’s not egregious to say that Lue needs to have his team prepared to win games with a few pieces missing.