I am will keep an running "SIMULBLOG" going during the game tonight.
CLIPPERS 101 SONICS 93
Obviously a very disapointing end to the season opener.
Sam Cassell dominated the 4th quarter with 3 3 pointers.
Cassell at 35 years old in his 38th minute of work on the floor from 3 is a shot I can live with but tonight he was read hot.
Flip Murray was Bob Weiss choice to try to stop Cassell and it didn't work. If Murray is the defensive stopper for this team it is a problem.
Turnovers were a huge issue tonight. Last season the Sonics turned the ball over 13% of their possessions last night they turned it over 20% of the possessions. That is the difference in the game.
Defensive rebounding was awful. The Clippers got 41% of the potential offensive rebounds in the 2nd half and 38% for the game. That number should never be higher then 30%.
With their poor rebounding and poor turnovers the Sonics gave away possessions.
Offensively, the Sups had some terrible possessions down the stretch, most notably was Flip dribbling into to traffic and turning it over when it was a one point game.
Sonics 75 Clippers 64 at the end of 3 Quarters
The bench has arrived. 11-1 run with the bench on the floor. The substitutions in the second half have made a lot more sense then what we say in the first half. Radmanovic was the first off the bench, followed by Collison, Murray and Wilkins.
The area where you notice AD being gone is the wrong guys are making decisions with the basketball. Ray Allen and Vlady both just committed turnovers where they forced passes that didn’t need to be made.
Defensively I felt the Sonics were playing well most of the night and we are beginning to see the dividends as the Clippers are missing shots.
Flip played very well in this stint.
Sonics 64 Clippers 57 with 3:50 left in the 3rd Quarter.
Ray Allen’s leadership is terrific. He just went out of his way to get Petro a play on a pick and roll to reward him for his effort and to allow him to gain confidence.
Reggie Evans just kills floor spacing. Evans would be a much better player if he understood his own inadequacies.
Sonics 50 Clippers 50 at the Half.
The Sonics defense doesn’t seem to be terrible but the Clippers are cutting through the lane and having a very successful offensive game with mid-range jumpers. At the half the Clippers have not made a 3 but are hitting 57% of their shots in the game.
The Sonics offense is close, but seems slightly off of its game. That may be as simple as the combinations on the floor.
Sonics 41 Clippers 36 with 3:58 left in the 2nd Quarter.
Bob Weiss’s substitution patterns aren’t smooth yet. Radmanovic didn’t play in the first quarter.
Vlady Radmanovic doesn’t look comfortable on the floor. He actually looks like he is lacking energy. He had a very lethargic pre-season.
The Clippers post players might be the worst passers I have seen in the NBA. Their front court is the turnover waiting to happen.
At times the Sonics offense seems to be lacking the movement it needs to have.
Last season the Sonics were #22 in forcing turnovers. Tonight the Clippers are throwing it all over the place. It is hard to tell how much is improved Sonics defense and how much is Clippers sloppy play.
As nice as Reggie’s post play early was he now has committed turnovers or missed badly the last three times he has gone to the basket.
Sonics 27 Clippers 26 end of 1st Quarter
Clippers got back in the game behind Sam Cassell. Cassell got 2 buckets on Luke Ridnour and then added two more on Flip Murray.
The Clippers closed the quarter scoring on 8 straight possessions.
The Clippers are running a high pick and roll with Cassell and Brand and the Sonics don’t have the answer
Sonics 16 Clippers 4 6:43 left 1st Quarter
Who would have thought the first bucket of the season would be scored by Johan Petro.
10 of the 12 Sonics first points came from Reggie Evans and Johan Petro.
Sonics open the game scoring on 8 of their first 11 possessions and 7 straight into the time-out.
Petro was terrific.
Storylines: Petro at center
Do the Sonics run more
Are the Clippers the most improved team in the West.
Inactive list: Sonics -- Vitaly, Mateen and Swift.
Clippers -- Corey Maggette, Shawn Livingston, Walter McCarty.
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17 comments:
Jerome James stats game 1:
4 fouls 8 minutes 2 points
Good Riddance!!!!
Supes have been disrespected from all the experts. They are picked to be topped by the Nuggets. Why?
You tell me!!!
They will be better than last year if Petro keeps playing the way he has and Vlade starts picking it up.The bench is very deep and look at the way Damien Wilkins plays. Flip needs to look out if he doesn't play better than Damien.
Flip is killing us. Dribble, dribble, dribble, all while not looking for anyting but his shot.
These aren't your grandmother's Clippers. This is better with Mobley, Cassell, and the two rookies. Do you think we could have used A.D. tonight? Damien should be playing ahead of Flip and we should get Alex Scales back. Danny better figure out that his act is getting old and the officials aren't going to let him get away with it like he did last year against Sacramento. I hope that they push him back to the end of the bench along with Flip. They can't make crucial turnovers during the game especially when you have an assasin named Cassell on the other side. Ray and Rashard can't carry this team on their backs the whole season. Vlade needs to find his shooting touch and not worry about becoming a power forward anymore because he is not that. The bad news is we lost, the good news is that we lost to these Clips just like last year and we ended up winning 52. It's a long season folks so don't start jumping off the Aurora bridge any time soon.
No idea why Petro didn't get any minutes in the 4th qtr. Seems like there's more energy when he's out on the floor.
No ball movement whatsoever when Murray is in the game. The ball doesn't seem to be moving as much as last year. Evans need to stop trying to be an offensive force. Vlady needs to stop shooting the ball just so he can get his numbers. What was up with the rotation in the 1st half?
At times the team played out of control. I hope the struggles is really due to the fact that Weiss needs to figure out his personnel.
Flip shouldn't be Luke's backup and shouldn't be guarding a deadly shooter like Cassell. I thought that D. Wilk should have been there to play the D. Flip was holding the rock too much and when he did the offense was stagnant and he turned it over. Where was Brunson? Isn't he the backup top Luke? No way whould Flip be a point.
blog tvwww.wirtualnafrancja.com
Nice Site! Good Work ;)
Nice line Fortson, you fat sh!t! You can't make fun of Jerome James and not take shots at Fortson. What a POS!
There is no viable excuse to let Casey go when Nate wasn't signed. If you look back in history and re-read Nate's comments about Sund (who would tell Nate how to coach) his move to Portland was not surprising at all. Totally inexusable and I blame Sund. He should never tell the coach what style they should play. If they want to play like the Dallas of old, these types of performances will continue to happen.
I hate to be this critical after 1 game, but Weiss was completley outcoached tonight. What was up with his substituion patterns and why didn't they put Wilkins (great defender) on Cassell.
In the end, what do you expect when management only pays their coach 2 million bucks. That's a joke in this day of age.
Hire Flip, are you kidding me? That tells us all how ignorant you are. Do you forget how much $$$ they were willing to pay a coach??? Flip earned twice as much.
If you are in tune with you're team and Nate didn't sign the contract right away - you knew there was problems. It's called spin control. Losing your top 2 coaches in one offseason is an embarrasement and slap in the face.
I blame the Sonics management for multiple problems and not spending money is the #1. If we are trying to win a championship and supposedly close with our current personnel, why didn't we bring anyone in besides Brunson to fill the holes that AD left us. Trying to operate a team with 50 owners will not work..If there are so concerned with money, why not sell the team to Balmer (who's already put a req into purchasing the team)? Schultz was in Europe on vacation when this all went down - enough said.
who the hell i8s this Balmer guy you guys are talking about??
If we play like we did last night all season, we won't win 30 games.
My biggest complaints:
1. Fortson's immaturity
2. Vladimir didn't look ready to play
3. Flip's play in the fourth quarter
4. Ridnour's still scared to shoot
5. The 3 guard lineup in the fourth quarter
6. Lack of fluidity on the offensive side of the ball, they looked like they were running a brand new system.
7. Bob Weiss, appeared he didn't know what subsitutions he wanted to make.
8. Evans poor decisions with the ball, trying to be aggesive when he shouldn't be.
I think the team will be fine, the talent is still there. But, they just looked like amateurs out there, I don't recall that kind've disorganization on offense the entire season last year. They still would've won the game if Cassell didn't have a career night. I'm not going to declare anything yet, but I hope this isn't a sign of things to come.
is Radman trying to make the mullet look part of the new NBA dress code? He should go back to the cornrows because it is still in style! LOLOLOLOLOLO!!!!!!!!
Based on all these comments i am never going to watch the Sonics again!!!!ha ha ha ha ha ha ha
I think Rad was trying to make a point to management about giving him more money so that he can afford to go to a REAL hairstylist not HairMasters!!!!!
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