PHOENIX – The Western Conference got better this first half of February.
The Dallas Mavericks landed Kyrie Irving, a player the LA Clippers were reportedly interested in, and the Phoenix Suns added Kevin Durant, who was introduced Thursday ahead of a Clippers visit to the Footprint Center, to the pre-all-star – Pause portion to complete the regular season.
The Clippers made moves, but they didn’t earn a star. They traded Luke Kennard and point guards Reggie Jackson and John Wall, acquiring wing Eric Gordon, center Mason Plumlee and combo guard Bones Hyland. Ultimately, they entered the trade deadline with an open standard contract roster spot and two traditional point guards and exited the deadline with one open standard contract roster spot and no traditional point guards.
The hot Herd Clippers’ point guard interest has since passed from Irving to Russell Westbrook, who was part of a three-team deal that sent him from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Utah Jazz before the deadline. The 34-year-old is currently on Jazz’s inactive list. While no decision has yet been made regarding Westbrook with Utah, the sides have met and had several productive discussions about his future as a member of Jazz. He also met with the Clippers.
As The Athletic reported Thursday, LA was given permission to speak with Westbrook and talks between franchise officials have begun. At that meeting, the two parties shared what role Westbrook could play. Westbrook will be meeting with Paul George and Kawhi Leonard in the near future as he continues to consider his options ahead of the March 1 deadline for waiving playoff eligibility. George already took the extra step ahead of the Clippers meeting with Westbrook to publicly vouch for his former Oklahoma City Thunder teammate.
Due to Westbrook’s potential availability in the buyout market, as well as a challenging Clippers schedule beginning Tuesday with an eight-game stretch against Western Conference teams at or above .500, LA’s new trade acquisitions have been on the spot.
Gordon entered Norman Powell as the sixth man in Phoenix, and his seven non-turnover assists combined with 13 points (5 of 5 free throws, 2 3s, including a 31-footer) stood out. Kennard never had a game with seven assists in his three seasons as a Clipper, while Powell never had a game with more than six assists in his eight-year NBA career. Only George has played more minutes in the fourth quarter than Gordon this week, and Gordon has half of LA’s 14 assists in the fourth quarter in the last two games. Gordon also showed his defensive utility, not only defending Devin Booker but further perfecting his chop-down streak:
Plumlee isn’t looking too hard for his shot, but he does provide starting center Ivica Zubac with some much-needed relief as a backup center. His first two games with the Clippers marked the first time this season that he didn’t play 18 minutes in a game. But Plumlee contributed six assists and just one turnover in just under 35 minutes. In comparison, Moses Brown (whose two-way contract has reached the 50-game maximum) has four assists and 14 turnovers in 288 minutes this season, while rookie Moussa Diabaté has three assists and nine turnovers in 171 minutes this season. Plumlee has also shown a willingness to play hard and rush defensively.
“We’ve been missing a guy coming in, Sub Zu out,” Leonard said Thursday. “Now Zu has the opportunity to rest a bit instead of playing those big minutes. He can be more efficient in the minutes he plays. Mason is a vet, has been in this league for a while and is good to have.”
Hyland, as a player who would be a third stringer, has the biggest adjustment to make if the Clippers were to add another rotation player. But in 32 minutes, Hyland has shown he can shoot and score, with a willingness to put the ball on the floor and play at a high pace for himself and his teammates. And while his steals haven’t resulted in points yet, Hyland has also shown how he can help the Clippers defensively with his stop at the attack point:
For what it’s worth, the new Clippers have already impressed George.
“Yeah, I think our chemistry was just great,” George said after the Phoenix game. “I think the new guys came straight into the game and they go straight into our offense. You know, they make the game easier for everyone. And they are — EG and Mason are veterans, and Bones kind of has that youthful flow, youthful play that we need. All three guys just fit in. It’s like they started the season with us. It was just an easy flow with these guys.”
Tuesday’s 134-124 win over the full-roster Warriors was a step in the right direction. The Clippers had the (rare) advantage of facing an understaffed Warriors team that is missing Stephen Curry and Andrew Wiggins home after three days off without travel. But the way the Clippers defeated Phoenix 116-107 on Thursday gave LA the momentum it craved as it headed into the All-Star break.
While the Suns didn’t have Durant, the Clippers were without Norman Powell (right knee injury management for the first time this season) or any points from Kawhi Leonard until five minutes from the end of the third quarter. Leonard scored 16 points in the final 17 minutes on Thursday to set a career high with the seven 3s he hit against the Warriors on Tuesday. George had consecutive 20-point games. Terance Mann scored 17 of 24 field goals against the Suns and Warriors and brought with him a level of energy and talent that has become indispensable. And LA’s new trio of second-unit artists have had a positive impact.
“We have everything we need,” said George. “We have playmakers, we have goal scorers. We have defensive stoppers. We just had to pull it all together and find an identity as a group that would carry us through the games. Because again, it’s going to be long – we’re planning a long postseason. So we have to have an identity that will carry us through this long distance.”
Most importantly, they win games. The Clippers were 23-24 last month but have since gone 10-4. Offensively, no team has been better during this period (121.8 points per 100 possessions), while defense is enduring a period in which teams are league-high 42.3 percent out of 3 in their last 14 games.
The only team in the West with a better record since Jan. 19 is the Suns, who gave the Clippers a much-needed win to take fourth-seeded at the break. When the Clippers return, they will host the Sacramento Kings. While the Clippers have the fewest total games (21) and road games left (8), the Kings have the most total games (25) and the second most road games (13). The Clippers are done with the bottom four teams in the NBA after beating the Rockets, Hornets, Detroit Pistons and San Antonio Spurs 10-0. They’ve also done Eastern Conference street games and are playing their best basketball.
Nevertheless, Leonard is not satisfied.
“Like I said, we’re still trying to get better,” Leonard said Thursday. “I don’t think we’re playing at championship level anymore, but you know, we’re getting better and we have to keep getting better.”
(Photo by Kawhi Leonard and Eric Gordon: Christian Petersen/Getty Images)