The Clippers beat the Grizzlies in a big way, and Harden teamed up with George Wei to beat the Grizzlies 117-106, and the Grizzlies' Morant suffered his first loss since his return. The Clippers are still unattended, but the Clippers aren't in the mess. Instead of forcing Westbrook into the starting lineup, Tyronn Lue continued to send Harden and Mann in the backcourt, with Coffey as small forward, George as power forward, and Zubac as center. In the game, Harden was outstanding, playing a huge role on the offensive end, both for breakaways and outside shots, but also for his ability to shoot from the open three-point range and pass the ball.
He single-handedly led the entire Clippers team, and Tyronn Lue didn't even dare to substitute him for a minute. In the first quarter of the game, Harden scored in conjunction with Zubac, and then he scored five consecutive points himself, attracting the attention of the defense, going all out on the defensive end, and successfully completing several blocks to help the Clippers quickly overtake the score. In the second quarter, Westbrook and Harden continued to play on the court, and the power of the two ball-carrying points was perfectly displayed, helping the Clippers to open up the gap again. Despite the Clippers' excellent performance, the Grizzlies tied the score with the offensive and defensive contributions of Smart and Bane Jalen Jr. during Morant's absence.
At the critical moment, the Clippers still maintained the halftime lead through the blocking offense of Harden and Zubac, as well as Zubac's scoring and Wei Shao's connected assists. In the third quarter, George finally ushered in a burst of time, and his individual ability was perfectly displayed, scoring 12 points in a single quarter, helping the Clippers extend their lead to 21 points and basically seal the victory. Over the course of the game, Willis, Harden and George scored 53, 22 and 17 points, respectively. In addition, Zubac had an eye-catching performance, scoring 15 points and 20 rebounds.
At present, the Clippers' tactical play is like that of the Rockets back then, with Harden dominating the game, and Tyronn Lue not limiting his play at all. Harden, Westbrook and George put in great performances, while Coffey's 13 points stabilized the situation, Powell contributed 13 and Mann scored 11. Tyronn Lue's personnel strategy is reminiscent of his time with the Cavaliers, when he used James frequently, allowing him to call two timeouts in a row without setting up a tactic. From the initial run-in period of the Clippers to the fact that Harden is once again playing a central role in the team, it can be seen that the team's labor pain has gradually disappeared.
Before Harden joined the Clippers, it was always thought that Zubac was mediocre on the offensive end, but the addition of Harden seems to change all that, and his passing makes Zubac shine. Recently, Zubac has even been even better than Capela at his peak. It is not difficult to understand why Zubac thanked Harden after the game, because playing with Harden does make a lot of money. Through this game, it can be seen that the Clippers have gradually found their own style of play under the leadership of Harden, the team's overall tactical performance is excellent, and the individual ability of the players has also been fully displayed.
For the Clippers, the key is how to balance Harden's playing space with the overall interests of the team, which is not only a test for Tyronn Lue, but also a key to the team's future development. Do you think the Clippers rely too much on Harden for their current tactical play?For the team, how can the other players be further played?