2015 NBA Playoffs: Clippers/Rockets Preview

The 2-3 matchup in the Western conference features two teams coming from opposite situations in a head on collision that should be one of the most entertaining of the 2nd round of the playoffs. The Rockets ease in with a five-day break after a beat down of the Dallas Mavericks in a 4-1 series win. The Clippers come in from a 7 game battle and had one day off in which they needed to travel to Houston for game 1. Now you throw in Chris Paul out for game 1 after a hamstring injury during his heroic game 7. The odds are starting to look stacked against the Clippers. I don’t think they are though.

The biggest factor is going to be Paul. Against the Spurs Paul averaged 22 points and 7.9 assists while putting in 39 minutes per game in his 7 game stretch. Paul is the clear mental and emotional leader of the team and the loss of him for an extended time would be crucial, but watching him play with the injury in game 7 makes me think he will be back by game 2 or 3, and him at 50% is a huge task for the Rockets. James Harden is the Rockets superstar on offense, but brings little to the defensive front. Point guards Jason Terry and Pablo Prigioni will be guarding Paul, and lets just say neither of them are the defensive wizards that Danny Green, and Kawhi Leonard are. Paul managed against the Spurs best and I could see him absolutely dismantle the weak point guards in Houston.

While Paul is the heart and sole, the duo of Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan is what gives the Clippers the luxury of competing in game 1 potentially without Paul. Griffin averaged 24 points in his last series, which may not be surprising, but the 13 rebounds, and 7 assists are. He is becoming an overall complete player, and I am starting to think the time he had off due to injury this season has given him the endurance to go 40 minutes per game and be a matchup night mare for either Terrance Jones and Josh Smith. DeAndre Jordan, and how he plays against Dwight Howard, will be the must watch matchup of the series. Jordan has played to a more efficient defensive level, than the former 4 time All-NBA defensive 1st team center. Howard hasn’t been healthy in recent times and while he looks to be doing well, looking at him for instant offense in the paint will be a tough task, even if you can spread Griffin away from the basket.

James Harden may be the most un guardable player in the NBA, but throughout this season, when guarded by JJ Reddick his shooting % was held to 38%, a few off from his 44% season average. Reddick cannot hang all game, but a defensive annoyance like Matt Barnes, and the top towers protecting the rim, Harden will have to make incredible plays all series to win games.

While I thought the Clippers bench would be their downfall against the Spurs, players like Austin Rivers, and Glenn Davis stepped up in multiple games. Adding instant offense like Jamal Crawford and they do have a formidable rotation. The Rockets have size on the defensive front when it comes to role players, but it was seen in the first series the Rockets will let you shoot yourself in or out of games, as the Mavs shot themselves home in the first round. The thing is that JJ Reddick, Crawford, and even Matt Barnes have hit big threes in clutch moments in the last series, and Griffin has developed himself an outside shooting game. The Rockets may want shoot outs, but I am concerned that they may live and die getting into shootouts. The wings Corey Brewer and Trevor Ariza will be the two who need to shut down Reddick and Crawford, and while the two are great defenders, Doc Rivers was able to get them open against Green and Leonard, while one of the two was not on Paul and they were able to hit enough shots to bury the Spurs and their strong defense.

Back to Rivers and the last advantage the Clippers have in this series is the vet coach. Kevin McHale is a great coach and has not been the downfall of his team, but Doc Rivers is arguably the best coach still in the NBA playoffs. He has a way of keeping his team together, and it can back to a team down 3-2 and on the road against the defending champs. Chris Paul opened the game 0-7 and the Clips were 24 minutes away from an early exit. Rivers kept his team in contention and tied at the half. When his superstar got hot in the second half, scoring 15 of his total 19, the team was in perfect position to take that game and eventually the series. The mental stability has always been Pauls’ and the Clippers downfall in recent years but the mental toughness that was displayed against the defending champs is what makes me think this team is just now ready to blossom into a problem for the entire league.

The Rockets earned the 2 seed this season, but to me the Clippers are the better team player for player. I will pick the Clippers to win this series, mainly on the disclaimer that I do not believe Paul will be sidelined for more than 1 game. I would be surprised to see the Clips win game 1 but I would back the Clippers at +120 to win the series, and would look to go back after game 1 and bet them again in the hopes that Paul will be a little rested and here to dominate games 2-7. If Paul were fully healthy this would be my favorite play of the year, but if he can give you his leadership, and big shots in the final minutes the Clippers are now battle tested as a team enough to get by in this series and I am still confident that they can go down 0-1 and come back to win this series in six games.

Parkers picks

CLIPPERS +120

CLIPPERS in 6 +400

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