Pre-Game Clips

dboss made a great point on another thread.  Once we get everyone back, we will have run out of excuses.  Hopefully PP will be back tonight.  That's a start.  

Tonight is a game against another beast in the West.  Good news?  We are in all of our games regardless of who is on the floor or not.  Our issue is getting over to the other side of the final score.  It's not going to take a lot and yet it will take a lot.  It's the difference between winning and losing and the razor is wafer thin.  (Lame Monty Python reference!)

I've been going back and forth on this as to what we need.  I'm content to hold out just a little bit longer (two weeks max) and let this team get everyone back.  I think there is too much pressure and expectation on Kemba.  Think of him as a sped up Gordon Hayward.  We're not going to have to wait 2 years for him to get back to form.  His form is fine.  He needs a couple of more weeks to work the kinks out.  I like his energy and his new legs.  Look for him to have a big game tonight.  

The Clippers are no joke.  At least Paul George is trying to stir things up and get the Clippers up to the Lakers level although this initially looks like it backfired and in turn fired up the Lakers.  I'm expecting again for us to be in this game to the end but we really need to win a 4th quarter.  We're not the Golden State Warriors who used to win their games far before the 4th quarter.  Not yet.  We are a couple of tweaks or games from that being a reality.

What does everyone else see coming into tonight's game?  3 games left on this road trip.  Definitely need to steal one tonight and cross over into to the win column!

Other Games of Direct Interest -

1)  PHI lost last night to Portland sans Damian Leonard-We're only 2 games back in LC
2)  TOR @ BKN 7:30PM on ESPN -we have same number of losses as BKN
3)  MIL @ CLE - 7:30PM - a tough out  (LP) - MIL one ahead in loss column (LC)
4)  NOP @ IND - 7:00pm (LP) should be a very good game


db

Jaylen is a little dinged up, he plays so hard with so much energy. If he’s not right, maybe a night off will be good for him long term.

League-leading Los Angeles and Boston square off

https://www.espn.com/nba/preview?gameId=401267510

Boston Celtics (11-9, fourth in the Eastern Conference) vs. Los Angeles Clippers (17-6, second in the Western Conference)

Los Angeles; Friday, 10 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: The top-ranked Los Angeles Clippers play the Boston Celtics.

The Clippers have gone 8-2 at home. Los Angeles has a 10-2 record in games decided by 10 points or more.

The Celtics are 6-6 on the road. Boston ranks seventh in the NBA with 11 offensive rebounds per game led by Tristan Thompson averaging 2.7.

The Clippers and Celtics face off Friday for the first time this season.

TOP PERFORMERS: Paul George leads the Clippers with 5.5 assists and scores 24.4 points per game. Nicolas Batum is averaging 2.4 made 3-pointers and 9.6 points over the last 10 games for Los Angeles.

Jayson Tatum is averaging 26.8 points, 7.3 rebounds and 4.1 assists for the Celtics. Thompson is averaging 8.4 rebounds and 5.7 points per game over the last 10 games for Boston.

LAST 10 GAMES: Clippers: 8-2, averaging 116.6 points, 46.7 rebounds, 23.7 assists, 7.8 steals and 4.6 blocks per game while shooting 48.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 103.9 points on 45.5% shooting.

Celtics: 4-6, averaging 110.1 points, 44.1 rebounds, 22.2 assists, 8.5 steals and 4.2 blocks per game while shooting 46.4% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 107.6 points on 46.8% shooting.

INJURIES: Clippers: Patrick Beverley: out (knee).

Celtics: Payton Pritchard: out (knee), Romeo Langford: out (right wrist), Marcus Smart: out (calf), Kemba Walker: out (rest).



My comments:  The title of this piece says, "League-Leading Los Angeles ..." while in the body, it lists the Clippers as "second in the Western Conference".  What am I missing?

Well, they are 1/2 game back of Utah Jazz but they are tied with Lakers.  There is a rule where if you are associated with the Lakers, in this case a tie with them no matter where you are in the standings, you are "League Leading".  

gyso, I'm not only surprised and embarrassed for you but ashamed of you not knowing this overt NBA league rule as you have been on this site longer than I have but I'll forgive you just this once!

It's similar to the Tiger Rule in golf.  If Tiger is tied with several players for the same score, his name is ALWAYS at the top of the list of players.

But this public flogging should be stern enough that you with remember this for the rest of your life!! 

Love Always,

db  

P.S.  I hope the sarcasm between the lines is prevalent enough!!

dbrown4 wrote:Well, they are 1/2 game back of Utah Jazz but they are tied with Lakers.  There is a rule where if you are associated with the Lakers, in this case a tie with them no matter where you are in the standings, you are "League Leading".  

gyso, I'm not only surprised and embarrassed for you but ashamed of you not knowing this overt NBA league rule as you have been on this site longer than I have but I'll forgive you just this once!

It's similar to the Tiger Rule in golf.  If Tiger is tied with several players for the same score, his name is ALWAYS at the top of the list of players.

But this public flogging should be stern enough that you with remember this for the rest of your life!! 

Love Always,

db  

P.S.  I hope the sarcasm between the lines is prevalent enough!!

It's all good.

gyso wrote:League-leading Los Angeles and Boston square off

https://www.espn.com/nba/preview?gameId=401267510

Boston Celtics (11-9, fourth in the Eastern Conference) vs. Los Angeles Clippers (17-6, second in the Western Conference)

Los Angeles; Friday, 10 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: The top-ranked Los Angeles Clippers play the Boston Celtics.

The Clippers have gone 8-2 at home. Los Angeles has a 10-2 record in games decided by 10 points or more.

The Celtics are 6-6 on the road. Boston ranks seventh in the NBA with 11 offensive rebounds per game led by Tristan Thompson averaging 2.7.

The Clippers and Celtics face off Friday for the first time this season.

TOP PERFORMERS: Paul George leads the Clippers with 5.5 assists and scores 24.4 points per game. Nicolas Batum is averaging 2.4 made 3-pointers and 9.6 points over the last 10 games for Los Angeles.

Jayson Tatum is averaging 26.8 points, 7.3 rebounds and 4.1 assists for the Celtics. Thompson is averaging 8.4 rebounds and 5.7 points per game over the last 10 games for Boston.

LAST 10 GAMES: Clippers: 8-2, averaging 116.6 points, 46.7 rebounds, 23.7 assists, 7.8 steals and 4.6 blocks per game while shooting 48.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 103.9 points on 45.5% shooting.

Celtics: 4-6, averaging 110.1 points, 44.1 rebounds, 22.2 assists, 8.5 steals and 4.2 blocks per game while shooting 46.4% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 107.6 points on 46.8% shooting.

INJURIES: Clippers: Patrick Beverley: out (knee).

Celtics: Payton Pritchard: out (knee), Romeo Langford: out (right wrist), Marcus Smart: out (calf), Kemba Walker: out (rest).



My comments:  The title of this piece says, "League-Leading Los Angeles ..." while in the body, it lists the Clippers as "second in the Western Conference".  What am I missing?

This article was from yesterday.
Utah won last night to take a 1/2 game lead over the Clippers.
So, when the article was written the Clippers were tied for 1st place in the West.
The Clippers were second yesterday if you look at each team's win percentage.

Sorry, tj, going to have to side with gyso and the errant article. You've forced me to recall high school math!

Going into Thursday West should have looked like this since Clips played Wednesday and became 17-6. Jazz did not play Wednesday.

Jazz 16 5 .762
Clips 17 6 .739
Lakers 16 6 .727 1/2

Today, since Lakers won and Jazz won Thursday, they look like this:

Jazz 17 5 .772
Lakers 17 6 .739 1/2
Clips 17 6 .739 1/2

Formula for GB is best written as

{[A(w) - B(w)] + [B(l) - A(l)]}/2

where
A(w) Team A "wins"
A(l) Team A "losses"
B(w) Team B "wins"
B(l) Team B "losses"

I believe but can't yet prove if absolute valuing terms in [Brackets] make this work as well in general. Class for another day. Actually I don't think you can use absolute value to generalize this.

| (math operation) | - absolute value defined as

|A| = A if A is positive integer (any real number)
|A| = -A if A is a negative integer (any real number)

Since on neither of the days the Clips were in first, they cannot be league leading (for record)

Therefore, the individual who wrote the article is an idiot and doesn't know what he is talking about!

Quad Erat Demonstrata

db

TJ,

Swing and a miss. (math notwithstanding).

It doesn't matter when the article was written.
It doesn't matter when Utah won or when they took a 1/2 game lead.
It doesn't matter when the article was written or where the Clips were tied for 1st.
It doesn't matter that the Clippers were second yesterday.

What matters is that a single journalistic endeavor had a title that said one thing and in the very first line of that same endeavor, it said something different.

You get what you pay for my dad always said!!

db

I was told there would be no math.

Just drop to the conclusion and inference regarding reporters...something we already knew but now you have proof!!

db

We can settle this whole thing by going out to the Laker team plane and..never mind. Gruesome even for me.

Fake news

No Jalen tonight? Welp we’s in trouble agin