NBA Roundup: Lue still sees hope for Clippers; Clowney sparks Nets; Thunder driven by Cup defeat
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The Los Angeles Clippers are 6-18 and tied for 13th in the Western Conference, yet head coach Tyronn Lue maintains the season is far from lost.
Lue pointed to recent tight losses against Memphis and Minnesota as evidence the team is close to a breakthrough. “We’ve really played some good basketball and had a chance to win those games,” he said. “One big shot, one big rebound, one less turnover—do those things and you can start winning games.” Despite the slow start, the Clippers sit only three games behind the West’s final play-in spot.
Nets forward Noah Clowney finds stride
Noah Clowney attributes his recent surge to letting go of worries about outside perception. After beginning his third season conservatively, the 6-foot-10 forward is averaging 16.6 points over his past 16 games, shooting 45 percent from the floor and nearly 40 percent from three-point range.
Now a full-time starter at 28.1 minutes per game, Clowney has helped improve Brooklyn’s spacing alongside Michael Porter Jr. and Nic Claxton; the trio owns a +3.37 net rating in 304 shared minutes. “It’s always easier to play with Mike because of the gravity he brings,” Clowney said.
Thunder still fueled by last season’s NBA Cup loss
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander told Andscape’s Marc J. Spears that Oklahoma City’s 16-point defeat to Milwaukee in the NBA Cup final remains a source of motivation. “It showed us the formula for losing,” he said. “Before the schemes, before the scouting report, before the shots going in or not, you’ve got to bring a certain level of intensity, focus and fight if you want a chance to win.”
Source: Hoops Wire
