As I get older, I think my “hate” of NBA players or teams has just nearly gone away. I used to really hate other teams. Now I just view them as obstacles to overcome, but don’t really put the effort into hating anyone.

I’ll give Morris his credit, that being able to create your own shot against NBA defenders is not something everyone can do. Having someone with that ability to bail you out of bad possessions is an asset. But if your team’s offense is predicated on isos for Morris, sorry but you probably need a better coach.

I’m not saying Ty is a bad coach or can’t run a good offense. Which is why playing Morris as many minutes as he does just doesn’t make sense. You could easily replace his points with good offense and getting shots from more efficient players. Morris literally is 10th on the team in TS% and eFG%.

Clippers played 45 minutes with a true #5 on the floor. It made a big difference defensively.

Second unit is no longer a liability. They looked explosive offensively and may be a net plus over the starters in terms of execution and energy.

Top level ball movement made the game easier for the stars, and exposed the over dribbling of Paul George as well as Marcus Morris’ limitations. We saw Lue put Eric Gordon at the point in crunch time after a PG turnover, and PG willingly accepted the role.

Marcus Morris’ minutes dropped to 23. He needs to be at 15-20 but that’s a positive sign.

If we get a better defensive rebounding effort from the first unit, this team may be difficult to stop because of how good the 2nd unit is.

2nd unit was a revelation. They turned the game decisively in the Clips’ favor. Bones Hyland eschewed the logo 3s that he routinely shot in Denver to prove to the team that he has point guard chops, and he displayed that in spades. His constant dribble penetration got a lot of people shots, and he had a Pat Beverley like knack for grabbing loose balls and winning helter skelter possessions.

Miles Plumlee was remarkable. Great timing on following up missed shots. Can initiate offense. But I was most impressed with how he dogged Klay Thompson at the 3 pt line. I saw in the first half that he hung with Klay along the sideline and forced him to his dribble and thought ‘hmmm..I didn’t know he could do that’. Then in the 3rd quarter, he kept step for step for Klay at the top of the key and again forced him off the shot. It was at that point that I thought we had won the game, because if Klay couldn’t get easy shots off from the 3 pt line then GSW wasn’t going to be able to score enough points to win.

I also thought Eric Gordon was very effective. All 3 of these guys get dribble penetration and swing the ball from side to side very well. They also made the game easier for Norm Powell. Frankly, this second unit is explosive offensively.