There are so many little details with the complex Clipper equation right now, and your thorough overview of a game that could have been overlooked or a trap–it was helpful that ORL was on a back to back, and shot just as bad as the Clips, and then worse–is great. The Clips have plenty of firepower with PG, Kawhi, Russ, & Zu all playing. Folks were worried about how Bones would fare after the trade, but he’s putting up such a good effort and shooting in these early games that it seems clear that he’s going to be fine. You mention Russ finishing at the rim and hitting short midrange shots, and also how he’s doing it, some added lift and better 1-ft. looks. He’s going to miss a few, but so far he’s well above the 1 or 2 additional makes that would get him to a creditable pct.

The note on Plumlee opens up a good question. I’m hoping Zu was held back because he’s a little tweaked and he wasn’t so necessary after the big push in the 3rd, getting him in better form for tonight. It was great to see Kobe Brown and it should be fun and interesting to see him as a rotation player. I think Moussa is an okay backup for the time being (behind Zu and Plumlee), just with rebounding and and his mobility on defense, playing with other guys who generate offense. Plumlee’s defense is a sore thumb for sure.

Kobe Brown’s little burst at the end of the first half filling the lane and attacking the rim for 2 key baskets really helped the momentum as we were only down -3. Russ came out smoking in the 2nd half and the Clips did a good job letting him cook against Cole Anthony, who looks even smaller vs Russ in person than he does on tv. What’s great about Russ’ game is that he’s much more efficient at the rim and in the midrange area. With the Lakers he missed so many layups. He had no body control or wiggle. He’s got that back now. The team is so much more effective when he looks for his shot at the rim or exploits a favorable match up.

PG just put on a clinic in Q3/Q4. His core seems so much stronger. He’s able to get defenders out of position without so much movement and flailing of the arms or the upper body. It’s all lower body hip shakes here and there and that allows him to maintain his form on his step back, side steps and drives into the lane. Also showing great strength in the paint. PG, Steph, Jokic and Luka have been elite to start the season.

In contrast, Kawhi looked quite tired on offense. No lift today. Really poor shooting inside the mid range area. His defense was great, however. He started to find his game in Q3/Q4 and that’s a good sign. His muscle recovery is slowly improving after daily practices/play.

Zu was a defensive monster again and also got some important buckets at the rim. I wasn’t that worried despite the very lethargic start because our defense was very good.
What worries me on D is Mason Plumlee. He sucks at PnR defense. Norm was a lot better these last 2 games. Bones sucks on D. He fouls too much but that can be rectified. Kobe Brown impresses me on offense. He fits in the NBA. Knows where to fill the lane; able to get a rebound deliver a good outlet pass and then run the floor. He just has the size and girth that we need to win extra possessions. He over-rotated and jumped too much on 1 v 1 D, but if he gets regular minutes, he’ll improve a lot.

We do need to figure out what we’re doing at the 4/5. I think Kobe Brown should get minutes before Tucker, but we need a better defender than Plumlee. The on/off with Zu vs Plumlee is staggeringly lopsided. Plumlee had a very good offensive game today and is a good offensive center. But we really need to protect the defensive glass and address PnR rotations and help coverage and I’m not sure he meets the mark.

I’m not a fan of Moussa, but he might help in this department defensively, but is basically a zero on offense. They probably need to make another move to get a 4/5 who is defensive minded but won’t kill you on offense. Maybe Wenyen 2.0?

Lakers have played a lot of tough games to start the season and are trying to figure out their rotations. They’re going to be primed to beat the Clips given it will be the 2nd night of back to back. But as soon as the Clips see the purple and gold they just look at that bench and say, ‘yeah, f**k those guys’ and ball. I don’t know if Lue is going to play Kawhi/PG, but we’re so thin right now with T-Mann out and no Harden/PJ yet and Bones, Norm and Zu nursing some injuries that I think they might play.