Clippers say all right things about defense, playing it though ...

The Clippers have become really good talking about defense. They just haven’t been as good at playing defense.

After only five games, it’s already become a recurring theme.

That was the case against the Orlando Magic, when the Clippers gave up 57 first-half points and fell behind by 15 points.

But when the Clippers clamped down on defense, they held the Magic to 15 third-quarter points and even took a lead.

“When we show up and we play on both ends and we get it going, we’re pretty good,” Blake Griffin said. “But ... we can’t rely on our offense, we have to rely on our defense. That’s something that you can control. That’s just effort.”

Statistically, the Clippers have the worst defense in the NBA, allowing a league-high 109.6 points per game.

They have allowed at least 100 points in four of their five games.

And next up for the Clippers are the two-time NBA champion Miami Heat and LeBron James on Thursday night.

“It can’t just be two guys out there running on defense,” DeAndre Jordan said. “It has to be all five of us. If two or three guys are running on defense and two aren‘t, there are going to be some guys out of place and not in sync. We all have to be on the same page.”

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