Written by Jasmine Robinson at FoxSports.com
In Paul Pierce‘s emotional homecoming game, the LA Clippers fall 107-102 to Isaiah Thomas and the Boston Celtics. Here are 5 takeaways from this afternoon’s loss.
1) Blake’s efforts weren’t enough
Blake Griffin did a little bit of everything on the offensive end, scoring 23 points, grabbing 8 boards, and dishing 4 assists. He went 9 for 19 from the field and 5 for 6 at the charity stripe. Griffin seemed to be the only player that came ready to play, which resulted in him carrying the team on his back for the entire game. There were many points throughout the game when he reminded us of that he is completely capable of running the offense, including a beautiful behind the back pass to Raymond Felton.
2) No J.J. or Austin
Starters J.J. Redick and Austin Rivers went a combined 3 for 17 from the field, and only contributed 11 points in a losing effort against the Celtics. For most of Rivers’ shots, the ball just wasn’t going through the hoop. But in J.J.’s case, he had a hard time getting open throughout the entire game. For someone like him who is always in constant motion running and cutting, Boston did an amazing job at making sure J.J. didn’t get any good looks. The good news is, the two of them can’t really play any worse than they did. Hopefully the two Duke alumni be able to lift the team to a win over the Toronto Raptors.
3) Isaiah Thomas is a good basketball player
5’9 Isaiah Thomas played larger than life against the Clippers. He scored 13 of his 28 points in the 1st quarter, which ended up being one of the factors that hurt the Clippers the most. Thomas himself is why the Clippers were getting their butt’s handed to them on the defensive end. Despite Austin’s best efforts guarding him, he couldn’t keep up with he little guy. Raymond Felton seemed to be doing a much better job against against him, but it still wasn’t enough to keep him from having some monster shots against this struggling Chris Paul-less team. This has been yet another game Thomas can add to his resume for this year’s MVP award.
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