Clippers Still Working to Shake off Preseason Rust as Regular Season Begins

LOS ANGELES — The atmosphere at Staples Center was nothing short of electric for what was undoubtedly the most hotly anticipated home opener in the history of the Los Angeles Clippers.

Even after a subpar preseason, during which the Clippers went 2-6 while struggling to hit perimeter shots and clean the glass.

Those 19,060 fans who filled the building for the team's 143rd consecutive sellout were treated to free "Hardcore" shirts, fancy projection mapping on the court for introductions, new stats-centric graphics on the central console and the occasional glimpse of Steve Ballmer, the man behind so many of the new bells and whistles, going nuts while seated next to NBA commissioner Adam Silver.

The Clippers had everything going for them, except...well, the whole basketball thing taking place on the club's stylish, new court. All the high-tech window dressing wound up as little more than lipstick on the pig that was L.A.'s 93-90 victory over the banged-up Oklahoma City Thunder.

Kevin Durant, Reggie Jackson, Jeremy Lamb and Anthony Morrow were already on the shelf due to injury when the game began. Russell Westbrook joined them there in the second quarter after suffering a small fracture in his right hand from a collision with Kendrick Perkins. 

The All-Star guard, who piled up 38 points in Portland the night prior, left the floor with all of two points and four assists in nine minutes.

And yet, OKC managed to hang around, despite 22 turnovers and an abundance of bricks (6-of-21 from three). Sebastian Telfair could've given the Thunder a lead with eight seconds left, if not for Chris Paul and DeAndre Jordan clogging the lane. Serge Ibaka, whose confrontations with Blake Griffin came early and often, could've sent this slogfest to overtime had his clean look at a 27-footer at the buzzer not come up dry.

"We were talking in the third quarter about this being one of those scary games," Paul said afterward. "The other team can make a few shots and be back in the game, and that's what happened. At the end of the day, it is a win and we'll take it."

You might not have known it was a win, though, based on the team's demeanor after the game. "I walked into the locker room and said, 'Guys, we won, but we didn't play well,'" said head coach Doc Rivers, with the understatement of the young season.

The Clippers lost the rebounding battle to OKC, 47-33. Their defense was spotty, affording driving lanes and open looks for Telfair, Andre Roberson and Perry Jones III, the last of whom piled up a career-high 32 points on 10-of-17 from the field, (9-of-11 from the line).

Offensively, L.A. shot a less-than-scintillating 39.1 percent from the floor (7-of-30 from three), with noted sharpshooters J.J. Redick and Spencer Hawes combining to miss 9-of-10 from beyond the arc.  

"I don't know if it's nerves, but I think everybody is a little apprehensive going out there," Hawes noted.

Griffin appeared to have some opening-night jitters of his own, at least at the outset. He started out 2-of-8 from the field in the first half.

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But Griffin's night, like that of the team as a whole, wasn't entirely terrible. The 25-year-old forward finished with a flurry, knocking down 6 of 10 from the floor after the break—and, perhaps more impressively, a pair of pivotal free throws down the stretch.

"I have to keep being aggressive," said Griffin. "I've been through enough games to know that the first half play doesn't dictate the rest of the game, so I've got to keep the confidence and keep putting up [shots]."

Paul, meanwhile, took full advantage of Westbrook's absence. He scored 16 of his 22 points after Sebastian Telfair was forced into action as OKC's primary point guard, torturing the diminutive New Yorker with hesitation dribbles, quick spin moves in the post and his usual array of mid-range jumpers.

And amidst all the Clippers' bricks, Matt Barnes, he of the abysmal preseason, managed to knock down some shots on the way to his seven points.

"That's just kind of a sign that the preseason, when it comes down to it, doesn't really have much effect on the regular season," Griffin added. "I was very happy for him."

But even the missed shots weren't entirely disheartening. "Our offense just wasn't working tonight, but I like the shots that we got," said Rivers.

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Indeed, the Clippers got plenty of wide-open looks against the feisty Thunder, only to see long balls from Hawes, Redick and Jamal Crawford (16 points, 2-of-8 from three) rim out more often than not. The effort was there, as was the execution (for the most part), even if the results weren't.

This isn't to say that the Clippers should be encouraged by the result. Hanging on for dear life against a depleted opponent—one playing on the second night of a back-to-back, no less—doesn't exactly bode well for L.A.'s championship aspirations.

But, as Griffin said, "At the end of the day, we have a win. We would've liked to have played better, of course, but at the end of the day, we've got to move on."

Added Rivers: "The good news is, we have 81 more games to fix it, and we're going to try to do that."

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