Can the Clippers Slow Down the Heat?

The game of the year, the game you CAN NOT miss, the Miami Heat travel to Los Angeles to play the… Clippers. Alright, maybe it’s not the most appealing matchup on paper, but you can’t take away from the game. The Clippers may be 12-24, but most of those losses came from early in the season, and the team playing now is a lot different from the team back then. Los Angeles has won seven of its last ten games, and looks to make it eight for 11 against the Heat. Now Miami isn’t just some push over team, I’m not sure if you’ve heard or not, but they have a trio down there now with the likes of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh and have won practically 20 straight; losing only once since starting the season 9-8 (the team is now 30-9). The game looks to be a good one, as long as both teams show up.

The Los Angeles Clippers have risen above the likes of pushovers this season with the improved play of Eric Gordon, and the arrival of rookie forward, Blake Griffin. These two aren’t the only ones producing though, as Baron Davis came back from early season struggles (long story short, he was out of shape) and has come back strong to help try and lead this team back to winning ways of the past. The supporting cast this year looks a lot more energized as well, with rookie Al-Forouq Aminu, DeAndre Jordan, rookie Eric Bledsoe, and Ryan Gomes, who have all fit in well with what new head coach Vinny Del Negro is doing here in LA. While the team has a lot of talent, some of it raw, the struggles and learning curves are what slowed the team, which were due to the youth and inexperience the team has. Only Rasual Butler, Brian Cook, and Baron Davis are over the age of 30. While the team is coming strong now, you can expect the team to continue its fast play from the past month.

The Miami “Heatles” as LeBron likes to call them, have finally played the way those in South Beach expected them to. Starting the season 9-8, everyone was calling for the head of Coach Erik Spoelstra, even the players themselves. Turmoil surrounded the team, and then came the return home for LeBron who had to face his old team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, in Cleveland. While the city showed up, so did James, and had his best game of the year (up to that point) and since that game the Heat have not looked back, losing only one game in the past 22. Now the team looks nearly unstoppable, and have even blown out another Los Angeles team, that being the Lakers who many know as the better LA team. The question is, can anyone slow down the Miami Heat?

 The Clippers have the advantage at Point Guard with the experienced Davis running the show at point, against the younger Carlos Arroyo. The Heat have struggled against good point guard play, case in point, losing to the Boston Celtics twice who have Rajon Rondo, the Dallas Mavericks who have Jason Kidd, the Hornets with CP3, and the Utah Jazz with Deron Williams as prime examples. Baron Davis has been playing like the point guard of the past, when he’d lead teams to the playoffs and upset top seeded opponents, so Arroyo may not be able to contain the fired up Davis. You should expect a good game from Baron, as he’s played well as of late regardless of who guards him.

 The matchup of the game could possibly come with Dwyane Wade guarding Eric Gordon and vice versa. The two young guards have a lot of upside on the offensive end, but what may define the way the game goes is how well they perform on the defensive end. If Gordon can keep Wade from going off on a scoring rampage like he is very capable of doing, then it forces the team to find another scoring option besides LeBron. Also, when D-Wade has struggled in games, the Heat usually don’t do too well, which is how the Boston Celtics have beaten Miami, by limiting Wade. Containing Wade though isn’t a simple act to do though, even with Gordon playing well on the defensive end lately. Offensively, Gordon isn’t some lackluster player either, as he leads the team in scoring with an average of 23.5 points a game. Since playing for the United States national team over the summer, Gordon has been much more confident in his game, and the Clippers have benefited as a team with him being the go to guy late in games. The only worry for either team is the amount of fatigue players get from guarding another star player, as defending one well can tire out a player and therefore having his offense suffer. How these two players matchup could either be the difference between a win and loss.

 Blake Griffin, the consensus Rookie of the Year thus far, will matchup against the third of the trio in Chris Bosh. Griffin has been everything the Clippers expected he would be when they drafted him first overall a year ago, but had to wait until this year to fully see him at work due to the knee injury that sidelined him last season. The physical player has been putting up numbers, and is averaging a double-double this season, with averages of 21.8 points and 12.6 boards a game. Many know Griffin for his dunks though, as he has been a human highlight reel since game one of the season. Bosh has more of the challenge trying to slow down Griffin, since Blake will find his shot eventually as he constantly attacks the basket. Bosh who is more of a finesse player, will have a tough time trying to find his shot as Griffin will rough him up in the paint forcing him to take outside shots, which Bosh can make, but when he’s one dimensional, he tends to lose some confidence, therefore taking him out of the game, giving the Clippers an advantage by taking away one of the Heat’s top scorers. All Los Angeles needs is for Blake Griffin to show up and play as physical as they know he can be, regardless, this should be a good matchup for both teams.

 One player that the Clippers are going to really miss for this game is their center Chris Kaman, who has been hobbled by ankle problems as of late. Kaman could have provided a size advantage along with DeAndre Jordan, against the smaller Heat front court. Although Kaman hasn’t played well, the Clippers could still use him as an extra body to put on Bosh. Kaman had averages of 10 points and 7 rebounds in 10 games before the injury, which is a drop off from his 18 points and 9 rebounds last year. Kaman’s fill in though, Jordan, has played well defensively as of late, with an average of 7 points and rebounds, and almost 2 blocks a game. One standout game though, was when Jordan had 6 blocks in one game alone, which really speaks volumes for what he has done for the team lately. How he matches up with Ilgauskas and Erick Dampier will be seen, as Jordan is a bit undersized at the center position, although his athleticism makes him harder to guard. The battle of the boards could determine this game, with rebounds playing a huge role in Miami’s fast break game.

 Although the game isn’t getting much hype as it’s only the Clippers, this game could mean a lot to the “other” Los Angeles team. If the Heat think this game is a free game in their schedule, they better think otherwise, because if they think they just have to show up to win, they will be sadly mistaken. The Clippers will take advantage of whatever the Heat give them, and run them out of the gym if it comes down to it, just ask the Nuggets. The game is on Wednesday at 10:30 ET and 7:30 PT.