Clippers Take Down Nuggets in the 1st Preseason Games

The high-flying Clippers started the NBA preseason with some style. We saw some great previews of some players and it was an entertaining game to watch.

Lob City

We saw some amazing dunks, and it is clear that the Clippers are more athletic then they have ever been. Of course, DeAndre and Blake are still dunking as usual, but with new additions of high-flying, Wesley Johnson, and former dunk contest winner, Josh Smith, the Clippers put on a show last night.

Rebounds

Despite DeAndre Jordan grabbing 12 boards, the Nuggets killed the Clippers on the boards. The Nuggets controlled the board by 57-39, and it is obvious the Nuggets have got rebounding down. The Clippers are a great rebounding team. They have DeAndre Jordan who lead the league in rebounds last year, and they also have a great rebounder in Blake Griffin. And for the Nuggets to beat the Clippers in rebounding by 18 rebounds, that is pretty impressive.

Lance looks the Same

Lance Stephenson shot 2-10 from the field and 0-2 from the three point line. He really isn't looking good and he needs to improve. Doc Rivers is going to have to limit this man until he can prove that he can shoot, or else he will end up like he did in Charlotte.

Who is Joffrey Lauvergne?

Well, if you haven't heard about this man, it's because he has really done much, until last night. This man is the leading scorer in the NBA right now. So congratulations to Joffrey! Last night he scored 16 points and along with that he had 11 rebounds. He is looking great. Other players on the Nuggets also made their mark. Emmanuel Mudiay had 14 points and had a great shooting night after starting off a little rough. Will Barton had 12 points and 13 rebounds. Jameer Nelson had 10 points and 7 assists. However, one guy that was really disappointing was Kenneth Faried who had 0 points and 4 turnovers. Also Mudiay had 8 turnovers, which is really concerning for the starting point guard. Other than that, the Nuggets are looking really impressive.

Clippers are Thankfully Looking Better Than Their New Logo

The Clippers new logo isn't an upgrade, I will tell you that. I didn't see what was wrong with their old one. It looked great. Thankfully, the Clippers themselves looked better. Chris Paul had a great night finding people for dunks all night as he had 9 assists to go along with his 12 points. Blake Griffin had a pretty good night and played some good defense as he ended the night with 1 steal, 1 block, and 11 points. New addition Josh Smith looked great and will be a key to the Clippers success this season. He finished with 13 points and 8 rebounds. The Clippers are obviously improved with a lot more bench depth. I expect them to do even better than last year.