The LA Clippers finished their first round series against the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday, and are still awaiting their second round opponent. Tuesday night's Game 7 between the Denver Nuggets and Utah Jazz will provide clarity as to Doc Rivers‘ next challenge. The Clippers, however, aren't sweating it.
The team scheduled a practice session on Tuesday afternoon, which included a film session, to mostly go over their own ‘stuff,' as Doc Rivers likes to call it. Rivers says he doesn't start preparing for any team until it's official.
“We don't prepare for both teams, we just prepare us,” Rivers said. “There's certain things you do no matter who you play, offensively and defensively, and so you work on getting that better. So then when you put in the game plan it's easier to put in, so that's what we're going to do.”
Rivers says he plans to watch the game with some of his coaching staff as they look towards their next opponent.
Both the Nuggets and Jazz have been scoring at high clips inside the bubble, and especially in the playoffs. The Jazz rank third in points per game in the playoffs at 119.3 points per game and the Nuggets rank sixth at 115 points per game. Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell has been the leading the league in scoring at 38.7 points per game, with Nuggets guard Jamal Murray right behind him at 34 points per game.
Overall, the league has seen an increase in scoring inside the fan-less bubble. Doc Rivers doesn't believe it's got anything to do with the lack of fans, in-arena sounds, or players being extra focused in the bubble.
“It's not the fans,” the Clippers' coach claimed. “Nothing to do with the fans. It's the backdrop. The baskets are like framed in. I'd say that. It's funny, the first day we walked in the gym, I actually jokingly said, ‘man, there's going to be some great shooting in this freaking place because it's just framed so well for you.'
“But I've got a feeling it's going to get harder as this goes on because the defenses are going to get better. I think the offensive teams, everybody — we've had way more practice than you normally would have going into a playoff series, and that's why the offenses are so sharp. But I think as things go on, you're going to see offensive numbers drop a little bit.”
A couple of players now, including Paul George, have called the courts in Orlando ‘a shooter's gym' due to the black background making the rim incredibly clear, as Doc mentioned.
“I think it is a shooter's gym,” George added. “I feel great shooting in it. It just has a great feel hooping-wise. I think it's just a hooping gym. I think a lot of guys are really shooting it well from behind the three especially.”
Game 1 between the Clippers and either the Jazz or Nuggets will be Thursday night at 6PM PST. The Clippers are probably hoping to take on the Utah Jazz, given their lack of depth and scoring options outside of Donovan Mitchell and Jordan Clarkson. The Nuggets have been one of the worst defensive teams inside the bubble, but still have the ability to create some mismatch issues with Nikola Jokic.
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