Jamal Crawford gives Clippers needed boost
Thunder guard Russell Westbrook gets rid the ball after Clippers forward Luc Mbah a Moute, center, cuts off his drive during the first half of Friday’s game.
The Clippers are so much deeper now, so much less reliant on sixth-man phenom Jamal Crawford to be the guiding force off the bench.
But when the moment calls for Crawford to deliver, for him to show why he’s the only player in NBA history to have won the sixth man of the year award three times, the 17-year veteran still can produce.
With the Clippers in need of help in the fourth quarter Friday night against Oklahoma City, Crawford came through in a big way, scoring 11 of his season-high 19 points in the final 12 minutes to help Los Angeles escape with a 110-108 victory.
The addition of reserves Marreese Speights and Raymond Felton and the improved play of Austin Rivers and Wesley Johnson has changed Crawford’s role some with the Clippers.
“It’s a different challenge from the standpoint that I know I’m the same player, but we have a better group,” Crawford said. “So instead of just me attacking, it’s our group attacking as a unit. It’s a different challenge than I’ve experienced here, but I’m still figuring out when to be more aggressive and when to just lead the group as a whole. And that’s the balance.”
Crawford “sensed it early” in the game that his offense had to be on point.
He had been told by Clippers Coach Doc Rivers to stop passing up so many shots.
So Crawford listened.
“Doc tonight was like, ‘You passed a couple up. You’ve got to be aggressive,’ and that kind of turned me on,” Crawford said. “Once you see something fall early, later on you can go to it because you’re kind of in a rhythm at that point.”
When the Clippers were trying to extend their lead late, Crawford was right in the middle of the play.
Chris Paul made just the most incredible pass through what seemed like the entire Thunder defense, finding Crawford for a three-pointer that gave the Clippers a five-point.
“That’s why he’s Point God. That’s why he’s Point God,” Crawford, smiling, said about Paul’s amazing pass.
Did Crawford see a window for the Paul pass?
“The smallest of windows,” Crawford said. “I don’t think there’re 99% of people in the world who could make that pass.”
CLIPPERS AT MINNESOTA
When: 5 p.m.
Where: Target Center.
On the air: TV: Prime Ticket; Radio: 570, 1330.
Records: Clippers 8-1; Timberwolves 2-5.
Records vs. Timberwolves: Clippers 3-1 (2014-15 season).
Update: The Clippers will already be playing their third back-to-back game of the season. With a new and successful coach in Tom Thibodeau and rising talents in center Karl-Anthony Towns and forward Andrew Wiggins, Minnesota was expected to be a much improved team. But so far, the Timberwolves have been an early season disappointment. Wiggins is averaging 24 points per game and Towns 21.9 to go along with 8.3 rebounds.
Follow Broderick Turner on Twitter @BA_Turner
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