The Clippers went into Tampa Bay and defeated an injury-riddled Toronto Raptors team. The score holds true to the lopsidedness of the game, but there were many moments of bad basketball being played by the Clippers. Let’s take a look at who earned which grades.
CLIPPERS STARTER GRADES
Patrick Beverley: C. In his return to the starting unit, Pat’s performance was very “meh.” And it’s hard to tell if that’s due to him being rusty, or if the Raptors’ length frustrated him — so we’ll go with a mixture of both. The length of the Raptors did stymie Pat though, forcing him to pick up his dribble after being stuck when driving to the basket. His defensive contributions were solid I guess, but with the Raptors missing all of their good guards he didn’t stand out as much on that end. He did finish with 6 boards on the night, but I’d expect that Pat will look better as he finds his flow again being on the court with the starters. Again, “MEH” from Pat Bev.
Paul George: C. Let’s get right to it: SIX turnovers from PG tonight, including a few really weird ones in which his passes were not even close to being on target. His shot failed him early in the game and then some foul trouble created an out-of-sorts PG for the majority of the game. To his credit, he stayed relatively engaged on defense throughout the game — highlighted by a third-quarter sequence in which he scored a fastbreak layup after poking a ball loose from behind, and then taking a charge shortly after. He did finish with a team-best plus-27, but there wasn’t a whole lot of good outside of that. Let’s hope that these kinds of games are left in the regular season.
Kawhi Leonard: B+. Game 1 (last week) of Raptors vs. Clippers was similar to the 2019-2020 season matchups between the two teams being that Nick Nurse and Co. forced Kawhi to be a passer. Well, Kawhi got some payback this time around. Still, with getting up just 10 shots in 30 minutes, he had a lot more freedom in attacking one-on-one matchups — getting downhill to draw fouls, finish at the rim, and find teammates. He looked crisp for the most part and that’s what you like to see heading into the playoffs. Kawhi finished with 20 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals.
Marcus Morris Sr.: B+. Outside of some little knocks that he took towards his last minutes on the courts, I liked everything about Marcus Morris tonight. He’s really exceeded expectations in terms of fitting in with the team and not taking away from the others. Like the last Raptors game, he feasted as a floor-spacer and took advantage of his few opportunities as an ISO player. I didn’t think he had much of an impact elsewhere on the court outside of a few defensive possessions where he looked good, but that’s not to say he was bad. This level of play should be good enough to help the Clips win some playoffs games.
Ivica Zubac: A-. I know it’s been talked about quite a bit throughout the season, but I can’t stop crediting Zu for his growth as a pick-and-roll player. He’s been so great in both the short roll and reading the defenses that on occasion he’s almost single-handedly destroying opposing teams’ gameplans. Toronto did their usual double-teaming on Kawhi, but he found Zu time after time for dunks, quick little post moves, and then extra passes once the defense committed. This is going to be important during the playoffs when teams commit to taking the ball out of certain Clippers’ hands, and Zu’s dual-threat capability as a roller makes him a more lucrative option than a non-finishing-above-the-rim guy like Boogie or any small-ball option. And to top off all that was right with this performance, we have the luxury of knowing that Zu will be sticking around the starting lineup upon Serge’s return to the court.
CLIPPERS BENCH PLAYER GRADES
Rajon Rondo. B+: Rondo displayed perhaps one of his better shifts as a Clipper during the second quarter of this game against Toronto. No, the competition wasn’t great, but the stringing together of three three-pointers and incredible passes to Zubac dunks really was fun to watch. This flurry was a big reason why he’d finish with 11 points and 4 assists in 15 minutes. Not that a veteran like Rondo needed this kind of game, but it was somewhat important due to how Toronto made Rondo look last time around — crowding the paint and taking away driving opportunities while letting Rondo clank three-pointers. Reggie would come into that game and somewhat save the day down the stretch. Rajon isn’t going to shoot like this every game but it’s nice to know that he’s capable of it from time to time.
Nicolas Batum: B. It was another 5-point performance — could have been more if he had his corner three falling — but in true “handyman” fashion he pulled down an impressive 9 rebounds and 4 assists in just 23 minutes. Really short analysis, but he was who he has been all season long — which is good news. I think Nico enjoys playing against Toronto.
Reggie Jackson: C+. For the first time in what feels like forever, Reggie made his way back to the second unit. He entered the fold as Pat Bev’s replacement and assumed the role of a spot-up shooter. The only problem with that was that none of those shots were falling — which made him far less impactful on the court. He tried to get himself going but that led to some of those classic Reggie moments, including an unforced fastbreak turnover. The shooting isn’t going to fall off of a cliff, so this game is more of an anomaly. Ultimately, Terance Mann (more on him below) played phenomenally and stole some Reggie minutes. It happens.
Terance Mann: A+. I never played in the NBA, but being someone with some high-quality basketball experience, it’s HARD to play consistently when you’re in and out of the lineup so often — so shoutout to Terance for always being able to hoop when his number is called. Not only did he “hoop” against the Raps, but he was also nearly flawless while on the court. At a perfect 7/7 from the field with a three-point make, Terance Mann’s 20 points were the highlight of the day — although, his mother may have something to say about that.
NO GRADES
Jay Scrubb made his NBA debut and went scoreless in 4 minutes, while Boogie got an early 7-minute shift but didn’t do much with those minutes. Luke Kennard, Daniel Oturu, and Yogi Ferrell also saw the court for a few minutes of garbage time, while Patrick Patterson was the only healthy Clipper to not see the court. Amir Coffey missed the game due to the NBA’s health and safety protocols, and Serge Ibaka remained out with a back injury.
