Clippers @ Suns Tuesday WCF game thread 6-22-2021 - Game 2

[RON_IN_OC]

i don’t think he comes back until game 3 at the earliest.

If he's truly at home in LA, this is probably a good assumption. If he were really day to day, meaning get that last negative test and cardio screen and he plays, then he'd probably be close by in PHX.

I get he's only a 1 hour plane ride away, but why risk any unnecessary travel or 3rd party contact at this point????

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[JCSunsfan]

I am thinking that Frank is probably the better option off the bench vs Cousins.

what we know about this Clippers team is that they are excellent in making game to game adjustments. That is Ty Lue but it is also the players. They start their post game by doing players only film sessions for hours. Then the players bring their observations to the sessions with the coaches.

Monty and CP3 are food at this too.

Wow. Quinn Snyder and Dic Rivers were exposed as coaches. Neither made necessary adjustments.

 

[Mainstreet]

Cam Payne talks about how he developed his under handed layup.

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[Chaplin]

If he's truly at home in LA, this is probably a good assumption. If he were really day to day, meaning get that last negative test and cardio screen and he plays, then he'd probably be close by in PHX.

I get he's only a 1 hour plane ride away, but why risk any unnecessary travel or 3rd party contact at this point????

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Well the travel and 3rd party contact wouldn’t be a risk by definition because he would have tested negative if it came to that.

 

[JCSunsfan]

If he's truly at home in LA, this is probably a good assumption. If he were really day to day, meaning get that last negative test and cardio screen and he plays, then he'd probably be close by in PHX.

I get he's only a 1 hour plane ride away, but why risk any unnecessary travel or 3rd party contact at this point????

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Not really. He was at home in LA for the break between series. Then he tested positive which meant he was under quarantine. He cannot travel. He cannot come back to Phoenix until his quarantine is lifted. Quarantine is quarantine regardless of what anyone thinks the risk is.

Rhe last thing cp3 wants to do right now is risk suspension for violating protocol.

 

[Larry Schweikart]

Clippers could easily shoot worse in game 2 as well. They had a bunch of made threes from guys that just arent going to do it consistently.

This.

Clips (esp George) shot insanely well. They have nowhere to go but down.

On the other hand, I said after the Nuggets series, the Suns did not play particularly well: they missed a ton of layups in that series. They did not miss layups yesterday.
I got the sense that the whole team was in a flow, and even though the Clips were hitting 3s like crazy, the defense was great until the last 2 minutes. Even then, two 3s only made the game close. It really was nearly out of reach by then. Ayton played a great game---exactly what Williams wants him to do: set pick, roll, elevate, dunk. No soft stuff.

And I thought overall we had a couple of guys with off-shooting nights.

Watched Atlanta/Filthy: Embiid was a force, but reminded me of Jucoc in the sense that he is the first, main option, and if he doesn't take the shot, they have to scramble for Plan B.
I never thought they were truly integrated into a team concept. The point guard for the Hawks was taking 29 footers. Made a couple, missed a ton.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

This.

Clips (esp George) shot insanely well. They have nowhere to go but down.

On the other hand, I said after the Nuggets series, the Suns did not play particularly well: they missed a ton of layups in that series. They did not miss layups yesterday.
I got the sense that the whole team was in a flow, and even though the Clips were hitting 3s like crazy, the defense was great until the last 2 minutes. Even then, two 3s only made the game close. It really was nearly out of reach by then. Ayton played a great game---exactly what Williams wants him to do: set pick, roll, elevate, dunk. No soft stuff.

And I thought overall we had a couple of guys with off-shooting nights.

Watched Atlanta/Filthy: Embiid was a force, but reminded me of Jucoc in the sense that he is the first, main option, and if he doesn't take the shot, they have to scramble for Plan B.
I never thought they were truly integrated into a team concept. The point guard for the Hawks was taking 29 footers. Made a couple, missed a ton.

I have seen comments from Clippers fans saying "this was just a feel out game" or "we just took their best shot". What I don't think they understand is that this team can bring that energy and level of play every single game.

 

[Dr. Jones]

Some things:

I don't think Cousins sees much of the floor in game 2. His minutes were mostly fools gold to me.

T. Lue did the same thing in the first two rounds. Play a lot of guys, throw paint at the wall, then dial it in for games two and three. We must defend our home court IMO. This must be a high priority as the Clips didn't lose at home to the Jazz last series.

Can we really expect Booker to have a career night in game 2 again? Because that's what we needed in game 1 to win IMO.

We basically shot our season percentage from the three point line. So did they.

Cam Payne is a great spark plug but may be too volatile (IMO) when things heat up. He's kind of a hot head sometimes. Again..... It could hurt us in a big spot soon.

Great game. And Booker announced himself to the world IMO. His league wide cred went up a thousand times on Sunday.

Last one and I hope I am wrong: Hopefully CP3 comes back for game 2 but him being in LA makes me think he isn't planning on a practice or walk through for a couple more days. WE NEED TO WIN GAME 2 IMO.

 

[Dr. Jones]

Also..... Paul George is shooting 41.1% from three for the season.

He shot 7-15 yesterday which is only ONE above his average. Don't expect him to miss many more than he did yesterday folks. Especially if we plan on switching every possession. Somehow, we should work to keep Mikal on him. Or Jae in the post. These have to be big points for Monty and the coaches to focus on.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

Also..... Paul George is shooting 41.1% from three for the season.

He shot 7-15 yesterday which is only ONE above his average. Don't expect him to miss many more than he did yesterday folks. Especially if we plan on switching every possession. Somehow, we should work to keep Mikal on him. Or Jae in the post. These have to be big points for Monty and the coaches to focus on.

I get where you're coming from , but he was also making a bunch of tough shots. The same shots that stopped falling later in the game. His season average includes a lot of games against bad defenses, but he was pretty well defended yesterday, but made tough shots. Maybe he will make the tough shots all series, but I would guess he will at least have a couple off shooting nights and I don't know if the Clippers survive if he does.

 

[Chaplin]

Not really. He was at home in LA for the break between series. Then he tested positive which meant he was under quarantine. He cannot travel. He cannot come back to Phoenix until his quarantine is lifted. Quarantine is quarantine regardless of what anyone thinks the risk is.

Rhe last thing cp3 wants to do right now is risk suspension for violating protocol.

This is a key point. I'm sure the Suns had a day or two off before getting back to work in Phoenix, so why wouldn't CP3 go home to his family? He still has to take COVID tests regardless where he is at, so he took it in LA. It's simply incorrect to assume he is in LA only because the expectation is that he won't play until Game 3. If he hadn't gotten the positive diagnosis, he would have flown back to Phoenix for practices last week, just like he probably does during the entire season.

 

[Mainstreet]

I thought Game 1 was the Clippers best chance to get a win on this trip but that doesn't mean they can't steal a game. The Suns were coming off a long layoff and they were playing without the presence of Chris Paul. He is like having another coach around. The Suns are vulnerable without Paul to close out games.

The Suns can play better but Devin Booker played insanely good so it's unlikely he can play much better. Booker more than did his part.

I expect Paul George to keep doing exactly what he did in the series opener. His shooting is unreal. I was trying to watch for the best ways to guard him. Defending George from the side might be the most effective way but Cam Payne bothered him on one play when he brought the ball down low. I think George is going to shoot over most defenders. He is going to get his points so the Suns might be better off defending his teammates other than to make sure every shot is contested.

 

[Covert Rain]

I get where you're coming from , but he was also making a bunch of tough shots. The same shots that stopped falling later in the game. His season average includes a lot of games against bad defenses, but he was pretty well defended yesterday, but made tough shots. Maybe he will make the tough shots all series, but I would guess he will at least have a couple off shooting nights and I don't know if the Clippers survive if he does.

Paul George was this kind of player before. When you get put next to Leonard there is only so many balls to go around. It's not like this guy was a role player playing above his station the last 5 games. It wouldn't surprise me if he remains consistent which means the Suns have to shut everyone else down. They can't let the other role players or bench have a great night. I seriously doubt George vanishes for any meaningful stretch in the series.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Paul George was this kind of player before. When you get put next to Leonard there is only so many balls to go around. It's not like this guy was a role player playing above his station the last 5 games. It wouldn't surprise me if he remains consistent which means the Suns have to shut everyone else down. They can't let the other role players or bench have a great night. I seriously doubt George vanishes for any meaningful stretch in the series.

agreed. Guys, this is what the Clippers do. They’re the best shooting three ball team in the league. That’s what makes them dangerous. We’re the deepest and best overall team in the league. That’s what makes us so dangerous. We saw both things on display in Game 1 and I expect that to continue in Game 2.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

Paul George was this kind of player before. When you get put next to Leonard there is only so many balls to go around. It's not like this guy was a role player playing above his station the last 5 games. It wouldn't surprise me if he remains consistent which means the Suns have to shut everyone else down. They can't let the other role players or bench have a great night. I seriously doubt George vanishes for any meaningful stretch in the series.

Not sure where this comment came from. I have never suggested that PG is just a role player or that he can't consistently put up great performances. I just think that he is making a lot of tough shots and they won't fall at a high percentage every game. If we keep getting him to force up contested shots then he will likely have a couple off shooting games and I don't know if the rest of the Clippers will be able to make up for it. Of course this is assuming that Kawhi remains out.

 

[Covert Rain]

Not sure where this comment came from. I have never suggested that PG is just a role player or that he can't consistently put up great performances. I just think that he is making a lot of tough shots and they won't fall at a high percentage every game. If we keep getting him to force up contested shots then he will likely have a couple off shooting games and I don't know if the rest of the Clippers will be able to make up for it. Of course this is assuming that Kawhi remains out.

Not saying you said that. I am saying that a couple off shooting games isn't likely to happen (a la a role player playing above his station). Paul George has been the go to guy before. This is not a new role for him. I don't think he is anymore likely than Book to have more than one off night. That can't even enter our minds if we want to beat the Clippers.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Not saying you said that. I am saying that a couple off shooting games isn't likely to happen (a la a role player playing above his stations). Paul George has been the go to guy before. This is not a new role for him. I don't think he is anymore likely than Book to have more than one off night. That can't even enter our minds if we want to beat the Clippers.

the one thing in our favor here is the fact that there really is no rest for the road weary Clippers. Two day turnaround for Game 2 and George did fade down the stretch. Hopefully the grind of this round continues to do that to him because if Kawhi is out for good, and George starts to cool off a little, that could really help in a game 2 where Devin Booker doesn’t have one of the best WCF performances ever.

 

[Covert Rain]

the one thing in our favor here is the fact that there really is no rest for the road weary Clippers. Two day turnaround for Game 2 and George did fade down the stretch. Hopefully the grind of this round continues to do that to him because if Kawhi is out for good, and George starts to cool off a little, that could really help in a game 2 where Devin Booker doesn’t have one of the best WCF performances ever.

Agree. That's party of the reason I am enjoying seeing the other matchups going the distance. The playoffs is a slog.

 

[Mainstreet]

Agree. That's party of the reason I am enjoying seeing the other matchups going the distance. The playoffs is a slog.

The Clippers have nice depth but it may take it's toll on the starters such as Leonard.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Agree. That's party of the reason I am enjoying seeing the other matchups going the distance. The playoffs is a slog.

I really think if not for Covid Chris, we would have been able to beat the breaks off the Clippers within 5 games. They have been run ragged and losing Kawhi would have been a killer.

hell, that all might STILL happen. But I think this goes 6 until I see CP3 clearing protocols early.

 

[95pro]

Not sure where this comment came from. I have never suggested that PG is just a role player or that he can't consistently put up great performances. I just think that he is making a lot of tough shots and they won't fall at a high percentage every game. If we keep getting him to force up contested shots then he will likely have a couple off shooting games and I don't know if the rest of the Clippers will be able to make up for it. Of course this is assuming that Kawhi remains out.

I’m with you.

the shots he was making were crazy, well contested, step backs, you name it, it went in it seemed.

I would agree that he won’t make the same percentage of tough shots like he did. The percentages he’s been making shots have been averages of the season, IMO we have much better perimeter defense and close outs than most of the league.

I don’t expect him to keep making that percentage of shots with our defense.

 

[Cheesebeef]

I’m with you.

the shots he was making were crazy, well contested, step backs, you name it, it went in it seemed.

I would agree that he won’t make the same percentage of tough shots like he did. The percentages he’s been making shots have been averages of the season, IMO we have much better perimeter defense and close outs than most of the league.

I don’t expect him to keep making that percentage of shots with our defense.

But he’s made those shots against us all season though. Those shots are what he shoots with regularity. Teams aren’t doubling off George during the season leaving him wide open a lot guys.

that said, he’s been on an All-Time Playoff George ROLL and hopefully he’s due to fall back to earth in game 2.

 

[Mainstreet]

I really like to see this from Deandre Ayton on offense and defense.

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[dscher]

I really like to see this from Deandre Ayton on offense and defense.

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Yup.

 

[Chaplin]

We are currently on our longest win streak of the season.