After that embarrassing collapse to the Kings, where they still lost despite holding an 18-point lead with only five minutes left, the Clippers redeemed themselves a bit during Wednesday night’s win over the Wizards.
JJ Redick had a season-high 31 points and seven threes, and three of his co-starters followed through, as Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, and DeAndre Jordan each scored 20-plus points and also rebounded or assisted 10 or more times. The Clipps won, 133-124.
The team should be in a prime position to continue regaining some momentum for the playoffs. They’ve already beaten the Suns thrice this season, compiling an average winning margin of 13 points and holding them to under 42 percent shooting in each of the three meetings.
The Clippers are 10-10 in their last 20 games (8-12 ATS). In that span, they are netting 108.8 points and shooting over 48 percent from the floor.
Devin Booker’s 70-point game last week brought some attention to the lowly Suns, who are all the way down to the 14th place in the West. All of that buzz is gone now, though, as the 20-year-old is currently dealing with a knee injury, and has already missed last Tuesday’s game.
That contest was a 95-91 loss to the Atlanta Hawks, where Tyler Ulis posted a 15-point, 10-assist double-double and TJ Warren had a team-high 24 points on 11-for-20 shooting. It was the Suns’ 11th defeat in their last 12 games (4-8 ATS).
Even without the scoring prowess of Booker and the recently-shut down Eric Bledsoe, Phoenix’s young core is still an explosive bunch – Warren averages 20.3 points on 54.7 percent shooting in his last six, Ulis is putting up 12.1 points and 9.8 assists since becoming a starter, and Chriss is continuing to show glimpses of being a strong, athletic power forward.
The Suns are respectably at the 11th spot in scoring (106.9 PPG), but they are at the bottom six in points allowed (112.8 PPG), offensive efficiency, and defensive efficiency.
