Five take-aways from the Clippers’ 130-95 exhibition victory over Golden State

The Clippers played the Golden State Warriors, so of course there was going to be fallout.

Eight technical fouls between the teams — including five on the Clippers and the ejection of Chris Paul — served as a prelude to further animosity after the Clippers’ 130-95 victory Tuesday night at Staples Center.

Here are five takeaways from the game:

1. Golden State’s Shaun Livingston, who started in place of the resting Stephen Curry, was officially indoctrinated into the rivalry with his former team based on his comments after the game.

The veteran point guard appeared to be miffed by what he perceived as unnecessarily rough play by the Clippers’ Blake Griffin. “I’ve got 12 years in this thing, and you’re out here trying to throw elbows at me and wrap me up and do all that,” Livingston told CSNBayArea.com, referring to Griffin, who received a technical foul for complaining about a foul called against him.

“That makes no sense to me. Just play and you don’t have to do all of that. You’re big enough and strong enough that you can just box me out without doing all of that.”

Livingston was just getting started on the issue. “He’s going with all these antics; just play,” he said. “He’s out here wrapping me up, putting elbows to my forehead. OK, I understand. Don’t get me wrong. They want to beat us. That’s just what you have to deal with. I see it. I recognize it.”

Livingston also was perturbed by the chattiness of the Clippers as their lead mushroomed. “They were out there talking. If they want to talk, we want to talk,” Livingston said. “We’re not going to just back down. They’re up 20 and talking, up 30 and still talking. It is what it is. It’s the game. But just play the game. That’s all.”

2. The Clippers’ second unit finally looked first-rate. Austin Rivers scored 16 points and appeared increasingly confident in his jump shot. Josh Smith had two blocks and 13 points. Jamal Crawford finally resembled himself again. It took five preseason games, but the reserves finally looked like they belonged on the floor together.

Players had shown up early at the practice facility in recent days to work on spacing and ball movement before the start of formal practices, and it appeared to pay dividends against the Warriors. “This was a big game for us,” Rivers said, “because this should spark the momentum of us just getting better.”

Crawford said the increased depth will make him more dangerous. “Now I can kind of hide, so to speak,” Crawford said. “I don’t have to be aggressive every single play. I had 13 points on three shots, so there will be nights like this. I can be a lot less predictable about when I’m going to shoot and when I’m going to be aggressive.”

3. Rivers’ improvement was evident after spending much of the summer focusing on his mid-range jumper with assistant coach Sam Cassell. ”I know what I can do and what I can be,” Rivers said. “That’s why this year is so exciting.”

4. There’s still no clarity on the starting small forward. Lance Stephenson started for the first time in the preseason, but Coach Doc Rivers would not divulge whether Stephenson, Paul Pierce or Wesley Johnson would start once the season begins. “I have a clue,” Rivers said of his starting small forward, “but I really haven’t decided positively yet.”

Would Rivers disclose his clue? “Yeah, opening night.”

Whoever wins the job will have to adjust to four players who are entering their third season together. “It’s hard when you come in with four guys who have been playing together for three years. We all just kind of know [what to do] and it’s always flowing,” Griffin said. “Whoever you put in there, I feel like, is going to kind of feel like the odd man out until he gets that rhythm down.”

Stephenson acknowledged that it was easier for him to find a rhythm as a starter as opposed to coming off the bench.

5. Stephenson showed flashes of his potential as an elite perimeter defender. “He does have that ability,” Doc Rivers said. “He’s going to be way better defensively by midyear than he is now.

“He has some things he has to work on defensively in our schemes, just really get lower with that body. He’s an upright defender, and once he gets to that point where it’s natural for him, he has a chance to be a shutdown defender.”

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