The Los Angeles derby came to an end, and the Clippers failed to hold on to their 21-point lead at home, losing to the Lakers on a 39-16 run in the fourth quarter. The reason for this is that the problem lies in the defense.
The absence of George and Zubac does have a great impact on the Clippers, but it is not fatal, after all, the team still has core supergiants such as Leonard and Harden. But Leonard couldn't step up and score in the final quarter to keep the win. Harden is also invisible, under tremendous pressure, Harden is obviously no longer as brave as he used to be, and it is not an exaggeration to say that this game is a "hell-level" performance. And there is not much contact between Harden and Leonard, there is no cooperation, and once he can't score, he is easy to be counterattacked.
The Clippers' fundamental problem is still defense, the interior basket protection is too poor, and the combination of Plumlee and Theis is not as good as Zubac. The speed is slow, the defensive awareness is poor, and the fans jokingly say that "Wei Shao is better than Theis when he plays inside". Not to mention the defense on the outside, in the absence of George, Mann, Harden, and Powell are basically undefended. The restriction on James, in particular, allows the opponent to play like a 28-year-old. The outside line can't keep an eye on it, the front line can't keep up, and the inside line can't stop it.
In the end, head coach Lu has to take the blame, perhaps because of the large lead in the first three quarters, and the lineup in the fourth quarter is a bit big. At one point, Plumlee, Tucker and Wei Shao were sent at the same time, this combination had no offense and defense, and the projection ability was almost zero, and Tucker, who was known for his defense, was also like an old man walking around, completely out of the state of a tough guy. It is easy to tighten first and then loosen, and it is difficult to tighten first and then tighten. The Lakers are chasing points strongly, and it is impossible for the Clippers to recover the decline.