The Battle of L.A. was all but a battle. The Paul-less Clippers welcomed back J.J. Redick, while the Lakers were still without future Hall of Fame inductees Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash.
Lob City was in full effect from the opening tip Friday night at Staples Center. Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan were dunking from every which way; by lobs, breakaway steals, and even fast breaks. After one quarter, the Clippers led 43-25 thanks to J.J. Redick and Blake Griffin. Griffin tallied 20pts after one, and ended up with 33pts (12-15 FG), 12rebs, and 4ast. Redick reached double figures after one, and finished with 19pts. DeAndre Jordan added 13pts, 10rebs, and 7blk. The backup point guard to Chris Paul, Darren Collison, also played well in his new role, tallying 20pts and 7ast. All of the Clippers’ starters rested the entire fourth and final period.
The Lakers really missed Kobe and Nash in this one. The Lakers totaled for 21 turnovers in this game, and were outscored 8-31 in the third quarter. Kendall Marshall led the Lakers with 16pts and 10ast. Wesley Johnson and Robert Sacre each added 14pts. Other than that, the Lakers had nothing else to look back on from this game.
It seems as if there is a new beast in L.A.
