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CLIPPERS WIN DIVISION

BY: Lars Lewis

   

   The Los Angeles Clippers since moving to ‘City of Angels’ had never swept the Los Angeles Lakers in the regular season. 

   That changed. 

   The Clippers in their entire franchise history had never won a division title. 

   That changed. 

   For many years Clippers fans were singing the late Sam Cooke’s iconic tune “A Change is Gonna Come”. Losing season after losing season, joke after joke, the Clippers were forever a punch line in not only the city of Los Angeles, the NBA, but professional sports in general. 

   Should I say it again? 

   The Clippers are the Pacific Division champions following an emphatic 109-95 victory over the Lakers at Staples Center Sunday afternoon. They have now made back to back playoff appearances for the first time since the 1991-1992/1992-1993 seasons, and they have secured a spot in the top four in the playoffs. 

   With the Clippers (51-26) safely in the playoffs and the Lakers (40-37) fighting for their playoff lives with five games remaining on their schedule, things have gone topsy turvy in L.A. 

   The newly crowned division champions will now play out the last five games and will await their first round opponent, who will pay a visit to Staples Center for game one of round one. 

   Should the Clippers stay in fourth at the end of the regular season, they will play the Memphis Grizzlies (52-25) who have already secured the fifth spot with an eight game edge over the sixth place Golden State Warriors (44-33). 

   With the Clippers holding a 2-1 advantage over the Grizzlies, the two teams will meet one more time in Memphis on Saturday April 13. 

   If the Clippers and Grizzlies meet in the postseason, there will be three keys to keep an eye on between these two clubs: 

   1. Blake Griffin vs. Zach Randolph.

   Griffin, who utilizes his raw strength and athleticism to overpower the opposition, averaged 14.3 PPG and 6.3 RPG in his three games against Memphis. 

   

   Randolph, who is adept at positioning and patience in the low post and baseline, also averaged 14.3 PPG but grabbed 12.0 RPG, doubling Griffin’s output in his three games against the Clippers. 

   With Griffin relying on sheer power and explosiveness inside the paint, and Randolph’s dirty but effective work down low, this matchup will be enjoyable to watch. 

  2. The Clippers’ run-and-gun offense against Memphis’ defense. 

   The Grizzlies as of Sunday boast the number one scoring defense in the NBA giving up only 89.8 PPG. With center Marc Gasol and Randolph patrolling the low post, Griffin and center DeAndre Jordan will have a tall task ahead of them in order to control the paint. 

   An x-factor in this matchup would be Memphis reserve shooting guard Tony Allen. The eight-year veteran from Oklahoma State has been a defensive specialist throughout his career. Allen, in a matchup with James Harden of the Houston Rockets back on March 29, held Harden to only seven points the entire game, the second lowest total Harden has scored all season. 

   The 6’4” Allen would be a difficult matchup for Clippers shooting guard Jamal Crawford. With Crawford being the more natural scorer and Allen being a shut down defender, this could be the matchup that could be the difference in the series. 

 3. The battle between the benches. 

   The Clippers’ bench is very deep with a blend of potent scorers that includes Crawford, Matt Barnes, and Eric Bledsoe along with vast playoff experience between Lamar Odom, Grant Hill and Chauncey Billups, who is still recovering from a groin injury. 

   The Grizzlies on the other hand have far less experience in the postseason and fewer scorers on their bench. With shooting forward Quincy Pondexter and power forward Ed Davis being the only two players averaging six points or more off the bench, the Grizzlies will have to lean on their starting five a bit more than the Clippers.  

   In a series that pits two defensively sound clubs, the edge would have to go to the Clippers based on their scoring prowess and overall speed. If Memphis can slow the pace and make it a half-court affair, they could pound the Clippers underneath and win. 

   With the Clippers finally atop the Pacific Division and setting their eyes on their first championship, they might have to climb over a very game and tough Grizzlies club in order to achieve that goal.