New look Clippers hold off Warriors behind offensive surge

The LA Clippers used an offensive showcase to get past the Golden State Warriors, 134-124 in the debut of their trade deadline acquisitions.

Summary

The Clippers had one home game left before the All-Star break, a game in which their trade deadline acquisitions of Eric Gordon, Mason Plumlee and Bones Hyland made their Clipper debuts. All three played well in their first game in the Crypt, but more on that later.

The Clippers came out with the necessary energy and focus in the first quarter, using a 12-2 run to build a 16-7 lead and taking a 31-23 lead heading into the second quarter.

The second quarter, though, was when things kind of unraveled a little bit. Even with the absence of Stephen Curry, the Warriors are still a dangerous team with brilliant offensive play. They used a hot shooting quarter to close the gap and surge ahead by halftime.

The third quarter was when the Clippers regained control of the game. Kawhi Leonard was phenomenal throughout the game, tying his career-high of seven made three-point shots. He was crucial in the third quarter, setting the tone and doing everything on the court. He knocked down threes, he played the role of the facilitator, and he even had a throw down in traffic.

The Clippers built a double-digit lead heading into the fourth quarter and didn’t allow the Warriors to get any closer than ten points the rest of the way.

While Leonard’s stellar play was the story of the night, the Clippers’ new additions showed flashes of what they can bring to the team. Eric Gordon played point guard at times and showed his ability to keep the ball moving, Mason Plumlee hit the glass and played defense and showed his ability to start the break, and Bones Hyland showed his ability to get paint touches and to also be a facilitator.

“I thought they did a great job, especially that second unit pushing the pace of misses and makes, just getting the ball up the floor quick, attacking early before the defense gets set,” Tyronn Lue said after the game. “I thought Mason did a good job getting the ball out of bounds quick, we rebounded the ball, we busted out and then made the early advance pass which allowed us to get some easy baskets. It was good to see the guys and how they played and I like what I saw tonight.”

Prior to the trade deadline, there was plenty of chatter surrounding the Clippers supposed need for a true point guard, but if this game was any indication, they have that position settled between the trio of Leonard, Paul George, and Gordon. That group combined for 15 assists and after the game, Leonard spoke on Gordon’s ability to play point guard and the dynamic of the three of them playing the ball-handling, playmaking role.

“I think he did a good job, brought it up with confidence and pace, got us into our sets, so you know the sky’s the limit,” Leonard said. “We got to just keep pushing. He’ll bring it up, PG has been bringing it up, I have to bring it up at times. You got to just see who’s on the floor, see who’s time it is to be the point guard.”