The Clippers did a great job at forcing turnovers.
One of the Los Angeles Clippers' strengths this season has been the pace of their offense, but as head coach Ty Lue knows, offense cant always be everything.
Here and there, the Clippers have shown flashes of being a complete team both offensively and defensively, and in the times where their defense has shown through, it's usually been something special.
Their blowout Sunday victory of the Sacramento Kings was certainly one of those stellar examples. The Clippers took down the Kings 138-109 and forced 20 turnovers on the Kings in the process.
Sacramento Kings guard Devin Carter (22) dribbles against LA Clippers guard Jordan Miller (right) during the fourth quarter at Golden 1 Center. Darren Yamashita-Imagn ImagesThe Value of Turnovers
Turnovers always have a two-fold purpose in basketball: not only do they take opportunities away from the opponent and limit their scoring, but it sets up your own team for scoring as well.
When it comes to defensive principles, forced turnovers are no better sign of how one team's defense has been able to dictate the pace of the fame and the Clippers' wi on Sunday was one of their best displays of that specific kind of prowess all season.
LA Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard (2) shoots against Sacramento Kings guard Daeqwon Plowden (center left) and center Dylan Cardwell (left) during the third quarter at Golden 1 Center. Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images"That's who we have to be. Offensively, we're not going to be great every night, but I think if we turn teams over, get out in transition: scoring in transition is huge for us. So, when we turn teams over, we usually have a great game offensively," Clippers head coach Ty Lue said.
As Lue said, turnovers translate into offense just as much as they signify defense. Those 20 turnovers that the Clippers forced translated into 29 points and even beyond the box score, forcing turnovers has a psychological impact on the opposition as well that firmly sewing the momentum in the Clippers' favor.
Sacramento Kings center Maxime Raynaud (42) handles the ball against LA Clippers forward Derrick Jones Jr. (5) during the third quarter at Golden 1 Center. Darren Yamashita-Imagn ImagesThroughout this season, the various aspects of the Clippers' game that's allowed them to pull themselves up from the bottom of the NBA have shown up in different ways.
Balancing Offense and Defense
Offense was the first and most obvious aspect of that game, with Kawhi Leonard having a career season and the later addition of Darius Garland transforming the team even more.
Now, the defense has been showing up in a big way an that's the most positive sign for what the Clippers can be both in the playoffs and going forward.
As Lue said, not every night is a great night offensively. Whether or not shots fall is simply up to what's in the air on a particular day, but defense is something that's always controllable.
The more that the Clippers bring it on the defensive end, the more success they're going to enjoy. Sunday was a prime example of that.