AYKIS ALERT
Your friend Aykis16 will be on the XO Communications Crossover tonight. The short show is live in the arena sometime after 6:30 but before the game. So show up at 6:30 and check out Aykis16's pregame show debut!
SCOUTING REPORT
The Clippers have won three games since the start of March. The Kings have won, uh, four. This is not exactly a game which shall capture the imagination of a nation.
L.A., a cesspool of bad offense, scored 85 points in Portland last night. Rasual Butler, Chris Kaman and Steve Blake all led the way with, uh, 14. Baron Davis is healthy (I suppose) and starting; he shot 5/14, and has shot 40.3 percent this season. Drew Gooden and Eric Gordon are also starting, and DeAndre Jordan lives to destroy Kings.
The Clips are 28th in the league in team offense: 23rd in shooting, 29th in turnovers, 10th in offensive rebounding (word up to Gooden, D.J. and Marcus Camby R.I.P.), 24th in foul drawing. The Kings held the Clips an Offensive Rating of 92 in March, 96 in late February and 100 in mid-February. So the Kings, not a good defensive club, can keep L.A. from scoring efficiently. A good sign, yes?
The Clips aren't completely terrible on defense (though statistically worse than the Kings): L.A. has the No. 10 defensive rebounding squad and doesn't foul much. For the Kings, it's about getting clean looks near the rim and from deep, and not turning the ball over. Gooden's not a very good defender, and Kaman's overrated on that end (though he can block shots from the weak side and rebound).
KEY BATTLE
Beno Udrih vs. Baron Davis. If Udrih drops 20 assists, I will drop $10 into a local hobo's coffee mug. If Davis shots 50 percent or better from the floor, I will shoot myself.
BOLD PROCLAMATION
Baron Davis will not shoot 50 percent or better from the floor.
BOLD BROCKLAMATION
Emboldened by Jason Thompson's first three of the season in the closing moments of Tuesday's loss to San Antonio, Jon Brockman evokes an image of J.R. Smith, eventually scoring three points on 1-27 from beyond the arc. "Let's see them make me 'diversify' my game, now!" Brockman fired back.
DETAILS
7 PM PT. Two game threads (7, 8:15) and a post-gamer (9:45). Join us, won't you?