| Clippers Fall To The Occasion Authored by Graham Flashner - May 13, 2006 - 5:52 am
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With the eyes of Los Angeles upon them, with Kobe Bryant on an early summer vacation and the Clippers having Staples Center all to themselves in May, they couldn’t capitalize against a Phoenix Suns team that was there for the taking.
“We let one get away,” said Elton Brand.
The Suns’ 94-91 victory gave them a 2-1 lead in the Western Conference semi-finals, and reclaimed the home court advantage that the Clippers thought they had stolen in Phoenix.
On a night when Steve Nash took nine shots and made three; when the Suns shot 37% and were held under 100 points; when the Clippers bench outscored the Suns bench 30-6- they still found a way to lose.
“If you told me, defensively, that were going to hold them to 37% and 94 points, I’m thinking we’re going to win this game,” said coach Mike Dunleavy.
But they didn’t, because of one significant adjustment by Suns coach Mike D’Antoni.
The Suns started Tim Thomas ahead of James Jones, and put the 6’7 Shawn Marion on Sam Cassell. Denied his favorite low-post spots, Cassell was a non-factor, shooting 2-10 and sitting out a large portion of the fourth quarter in favor of point guard Shaun Livingston, a curious tactic considering that Livingston had his most undistinguished game of the playoffs, shooting 1-5 and committing bad foul, and was totally out of sync running the offense.
“I made a bet on my defense,” said Dunleavy. “Shaun’s size and quickness allowed us to play the pick-and-rolls better.” For his part, Cassell back his coach. “We was winning,” he said. “You don’t change what’s broken. Coach had a feel for the way they were matching up.” But during the 12-6 run that carried the Suns from a three-point deficit to a three-point win, at a time the Clippers most needed a big shot at the end, Cassell was too cold to deliver, missing a wide-open three moments after being reinserted into the game.
With the Suns playing bigger and with more defensive intensity, the Clippers hardly resembled the confident group that took apart the Suns 122-97 in Game 2. In that game, the Clippers out rebounded the Suns 57-26; in Game 3, the teams were virtually even. And while the Clippers matched the Suns on the defensive end, it was their offense that went AWOL. After scoring 11 points in the first quarter, Elton Brand finished with a quiet 20, as the Suns threw double teams at him from every direction on the court.
Cuttino Mobley had a quiet 14 points. Chris Kaman had an even quieter 11.
“We didn’t make shots,” said Dunleavy. “We took some bad shots in the first half – we should’ve been down double-digits.”
Instead, they were tied at the half, mainly because the Suns weren’t shooting any better. The double-digit deficit came early in the fourth quarter, but with the Clippers offense completely adrift, Vladimir Radmonovic suddenly broke out, hitting three consecutive three-pointers and a put back to cap a 16-2 surge that turned a 74-63 deficit into a 79-76 lead. Suddenly, the Suns were revisiting the nightmares of Games 3 and 4 against the Lakers.
As exhilarating as it was, it turned out to be all the Clippers had. Leading 85-82, they succumbed to the pressure of the moment, leaving Shawn Marion open for a game-tying three pointer, committing a series of critical turnovers and fouls, and failing to stop Nash from hitting the biggest shot of the game, a fadeaway jumper with 3.6 seconds after the Clippers had closed to within a point.
Even so, the Clippers had a final shot. They needed a magic moment, a stunning turnaround, the kind of dramatic shot that defines a franchise, the kind that’s made the Lakers legacy what it is. But Radmanovic’s three-point heave wasn’t close, and the Suns, who rode a monster game from Marion (32 points, 19 rebounds, 4 steals) took control of the series.
The Clippers can console themselves that they’ll shoot much better in Game 4 - but so will Phoenix. After losing Game 1 despite shooting 60% and scoring 123 points, and losing Game 3 despite holding the NBA’s most feared offense to 94 points, the Clippers have to be wondering if they have what it takes to three of the next four games.
“The bottom line,” said Dunleavy “is that this could be a long series.”
Or not. |
