Following a brutal stretch of the schedule that pitted them against a trio of legitimate contenders, the Clippers will look to get back to their winning ways Tuesday night when the Charlotte Hornets invade STAPLES Center.
While the Clips will have enjoyed a day of rest following Sunday's defeat against Houston, the Hornets are coming off of a humiliating defeat in Utah on Monday. Seriously. "Humiliating" is probably even underselling how bad this was. The final score was 94-66, but somehow even that doesn't do it justice. At two points in the game, Charlotte trailed 49-19 and 81-37.
EIGHTY-ONE TO THIRTY-SEVEN!
Now, the Hornets aren't exactly an offensive juggernaut (they score just 98.1 points per 100 possessions, good for 28th in the league), but that's just awful. Utah is certainly playing well, and they're the NBA's No. 1 defense since the All-Star break, but, wow. Way to show up, Hornets.
Sadly for the Clippers, there's almost no way Charlotte can play that poorly again...right? One would imagine they'll be more game for this one. These two teams met for the corresponding fixture in Charlotte back in November; a game the Clippers won easily by the score of 113-92.
Chris Paul and Blake Griffin dominated that game from start-to-finish. Griffin narrowly missed a triple-double, posting 22 points, 16 rebounds and nine assists, while Paul chipped-in with 22 points and 15 dimes.
The Hornets were in a terrible slump back then, but have righted the ship since (last night's brickfest in Utah, notwithstanding). They're among the gaggle of teams battling it out for the East's final playoff spot, and as of today, they're just a half-game behind eighth-place Miami. Still, they're 29-36 on the season, so it's not like they're some kind of world-beater.
While they struggle to put the ball in the bucket, what they can do quite well is prevent you from being able to do the same. Steve Clifford's bunch currently ranks 10th in the league in defensive efficiency, allowing 100.4 points per 100 possessions. The Clippers, by the way, rank 17th. However, LAC is also the No. 1 ranked offense, scoring 109.2 points per 100. Something's gotta give!
Charlotte's primary offensive threat is big Al Jefferson, who just returned last night after missing a few games with a knee injury. He scored 10 points and grabbed seven rebounds in 24 minutes. The Hornets will be without second-year forward Cody Zeller, who is nursing a shoulder injury. Guard Kemba Walker, who missed over a month with a knee injury of his own, returned to the lineup last Wednesday. He's yet to see 30 minutes in any of the three games since, though he's still been coming off-the-bench.
Former Clipper Mo Williams has been starting in Walker's place, and has been quite fantastic since joining the Hornets prior to the trade deadline. In 13 games with Charlotte, Williams is averaging nearly 20 points and over seven assists per game. However, those numbers have come down considerably since Walker's return.
Tonight's game kicks-off a semi-tough stretch of the schedule for the Clippers. After Charlotte, they'll face the Kings (road), Wizards (home), Pelicans (home), Knicks (road), 76ers (road) and Celtics (road) before coming home to take on the Warriors on the last day of March. Tonight's extremely winnable game with the Hornets would be a terrible one for them to lose.
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