Poor shooting has been a drag

Coach Mike Dunleavy says the numbers do not lie.

Here they are, and those who love the pure jump shot should probably shield their eyes.

The Clippers, who have lost six straight games, are struggling heavily to score.

They have played 28 games and have yet to shoot 50% in any of them.

They have surpassed the 100-point marker once in their 14 December games -- not providing much of a chance for Lawler’s Law (first team to 100 wins) to end in the Clippers’ favor. That lone game, by the way, ended in a 108-103 loss to the Charlotte Bobcats.

They average 92.9 points, third-lowest in the league.

The Clippers are shooting 41.7% as a team, second-lowest in the league, and have finished below the 40% mark in 10 games.

The mark is a far cry from how they started the season by scoring 120 and 114 points against the Golden State Warriors and Seattle SuperSonics.

Injuries, a depleted rotation and players out of position can all be pointed to as the sources of the shooting woes.

“Bottom line is, you are what you are,” Dunleavy said. “You’ve got to get better shots. You’ve got guys shooting the ball from distances at times where they shouldn’t be shooting the ball from so far out and should be moving in and getting better shots.

“And settling at times, shooting too many shots with too much time on the shot clock where you don’t have any board coverage and a shot at getting offensive rebounds. Those are all the things you preach.”

The poor shooting is allowing teams to crowd Chris Kaman in the middle, packing a party in the paint whenever the center catches the ball.

“Some guys maybe aren’t comfortable out there,” Dunleavy said. “Some guys maybe haven’t played as much or guys coming back timing-wise. You’ve just got to get through it. That’s pretty much the bottom line -- your focus. If you are shooting the ball and think it’s going in, that’s a good part of the ball going in.”

Rookie Al Thornton is learning on the fly, with half of his career starts coming in the home-and-home series against the Phoenix Suns.

In the two games, Thornton scored a combined 18 points in 51 minutes.

“He doesn’t have a book on any of these guys yet,” Dunleavy said. “Who is a good defender, who comes, who strips, who does what. [It is a leaning experience] at both ends of the floor for him.”

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jonathan.abrams@latimes.com