Warriors Head South for Intra-State Matchup Against a Clippers Team on the Rise
After taking care of business and beating the Utah Jazz at home, the Golden State Warriors will travel to Los Angeles to face the Clippers before returning home to versus the Milwaukee Bucks. The Clippers have had an interesting start to their campaign, led by Kawhi Leonard, who’s in a scorching-hot mood recently. These two teams seem to be in similar form at the moment, but the Clippers got off to a truly abysmal start, recording five-game losing streaks three separate times. They recorded six straight victories before getting battered by Boston last night, 146-115.
Similarly, the Warriors have won six of their last eight contests. While they were beaten down by Oklahoma City on Friday, they were pleased to welcome back their “Big Three” yesterday, though one of their contributions was short-lived. Following an argument over multiple calls, Draymond Green got a double technical and was ejected. His coach voiced his disappointment post-game regarding the four-time all-star’s mental lapse, simply saying, “We need him.” It’s difficult for the Warriors to win without their defensive catalyst on the floor, which is where tomorrow’s battle will start.
As mentioned above, Leonard has torn it up as of late. He has scored 30+ in five of LA’s last seven games, including a 55-point performance against the Eastern Conference leaders, Detroit Pistons. Golden State has to make it a priority to disrupt the Clippers’ star and never let him get into rhythm. The issue, however, with overly focusing on stopping Leonard is that there’s another former all-star by his side. Where ‘The Claw’ finishes, ‘The Beard’ starts. James Harden has multiple ways to beat teams, whether that’s through scoring or creating for others. So far this season, his 25.7 points scored on average are his personal best since the 2019-2020 campaign, where he finished third in MVP voting.
For the Warriors offensively, the steady output of Stephen Curry will once again be looked at for inspiration. To unlock the typically rigid defense of the Clippers, Golden State may look to get Curry moving off the ball, contrary to his often ball-dominant playstyle. The best shooter of all time is at his best when he moves, which keeps defenses on their toes but also opens up lanes for teammates to score. I believe that the Jimmy Butler-Leonard matchup will be critical to the tale of this tilt. Two players with similar strengths and approaches to the game, these two veterans should shadow each other all night. Butler will be the primary candidate to restrict Leonard, and if he manages to contain such a formidable opponent, the Warriors should likely come out on top.
