Brooklyn Nets vs. Los Angeles Clippers: Postgame Grades and Analysis
In a game that became a complete drubbing early in the first half, the Los Angeles Clippers obliterated the Brooklyn Nets 123-84 on Friday.
The Clippers starters gave their home fans a show in the limited minutes they played, scoring a combined 69 points on 29-of-39 shooting. Chris Paul was the orchestrator of the ultra-efficient attack, handing out 17 assists in just 24 minutes.
The Nets were clearly outmatched from the opening tip and all but folded in the first quarter. The only individual player who didn't look out of place was Mason Plumlee, who led the Nets with 16 points.
| Chris Paul | A+ |
| Blake Griffin | A |
| DeAndre Jordan | A+ |
| J.J. Redick | A |
| Jamal Crawford | B+ |
| Rest of Team | B+ |
| Joe Johnson | D+ |
| Brook Lopez | F |
| Mason Plumlee | B- |
| Jarrett Jack | D- |
| Rest of Team | C- |
Los Angeles Clippers
Chris Paul: A+
Chris Paul looked like he was playing the game at a different speed than anyone Brooklyn threw at him. It was like bullet time in Max Payne or Neo after he figured out his potential in The Matrix.
He got to wherever he wanted on the floor, and once he was there he set up his teammates perfectly with precision passing.
It was a clinic in traditional point guard play, as he only shot the ball five times, less than one-third of his assist total.
One of the biggest beneficiaries of Paul's distribution was Blake Griffin, who scored 24 points in just 25 minutes.
Griffin looked like the pre-2014-15 version of himself, attacking the rim a lot more than settling for the available mid-range jumpers. That approach led to an 11-of-14 shooting performance.
DeAndre Jordan: A+
Paul was to Brooklyn's point guards as DeAndre Jordan was to its centers. Like his floor general, Jordan was just on a different physical level than the Nets bigs.
That was abundantly clear on an alley-oop finish in which Jordan flat-out buried Brook Lopez.
He finished with 14 points on 7-of-7 shooting, grabbed 12 rebounds and blocked two shots.
J.J. Redick: A
J.J. Redick did exactly what he was supposed to: manipulate the opposing defense by moving without the ball and demanding its attention on the perimeter.
With that great off-the-ball play, he got himself open plenty of times and took advantage of the clean looks, hitting 3-of-4 from three-point range and 6-of-8 overall. He finished with 17 points in 20 minutes.
Jamal Crawford: B+
The Clippers bench didn't fare much worse against the Nets, thanks in large part to the spark provided off the bench by Jamal Crawford.
He was just 4-of-10 from the field, but he still had a very efficient night because of the way he was able to get to the line. He went 7-of-7 from the charity stripe and finished with 17 points.
Rest of Team: B+
All 12 Clippers who suited up got to play in this blowout, as the starters rested the entire fourth quarter.
Glen Davis, Hedo Turkoglu, Spencer Hawes and Austin Rivers all made solid contributions, scoring a combined 31 points and shooting 13-of-27 from the field.
Rivers looked a bit more acclimated to his new surroundings, shooting 4-of-7 from the field and dishing out six assists off the bench.
Brooklyn Nets
Joe Johnson: D+
Joe Johnson struggled to keep up with Redick when the Clippers had the ball, and he didn't make Redick work too much on the other end.
He settled for a lot of jump shots and went 4-of-12 from the field on the way to nine points. He could've taken advantage of his size by attacking the rim more or taking the ball into the post.
Brook Lopez: F
Other than when he got dunked on by Jordan, it was pretty easy to forget Lopez was ever even playing in this game.
He did next to nothing to making an impact on either end of the floor, scoring four points on 1-of-3 shooting and grabbing one rebound.
Mason Plumlee: B-
The only Nets player who didn't look completely overwhelmed by the size and athleticism of the Clippers was Mason Plumlee.
He managed to beat Jordan and Griffin down the floor a few times for easy looks in transition and almost always finishes above the rim.
It wasn't all good, though. He only grabbed three rebounds in 25 minutes and went 4-of-11 from the free-throw line.
Jarrett Jack: D-
As much as Jarrett Jack struggled to disrupt what Paul was doing for the Clippers, he may have been even worse when he had the ball.
He wound up with just three assists, compared to 11 shot attempts. He made three of those looks on the way to seven points and posted a game-worst plus-minus of minus-38.
Rest of Team: C-
Extended garbage time allowed Brooklyn's bench to put up some meaningless shots and stats, as Darius Morris and Jerome Jordan joined Plumlee in double figures with 11 points each.
Young players Cory Jefferson and Markel Brown were also able to take advantage of extended minutes, combining for 17 points.
The 48 points from Brooklyn's bench easily trumped the output of the starting five.
Coming Up Next
The Nets will continue their road trip on Saturday, taking on the Utah Jazz at 9 p.m. ET. They'll be in for another tough matchup inside against Derrick Favors, Rudy Gobert and Enes Kanter.
The Clippers, meanwhile, will go on the road to take on the Phoenix Suns Sunday at 6 p.m. ET. The eighth-place Suns will be playing with desperation, as they try to hold off the now-healthy Oklahoma City Thunder for the final playoff spot out West.
Andy Bailey covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him @AndrewDBailey.
