Clippers Discover Class Is Closed

The NBA schedule makers didn’t do the Clippers any favor by sending them to play the Portland Trail Blazers on the road so early in the season.

It ended up being a matchup where fairness was thrown out the window as the Clippers, who have nine players with three years or less of experience in the league, were outclassed by the Trail Blazers, who have only one player who has not played more than three seasons.

Shooting a sizzling 60.8% from the floor, Portland ran away to an 121-98 victory before a sellout crowd of 20,584 at the Rose Garden.

Damon Stoudamire scored 23 points, Steve Smith added 22 and Scottie Pippen also scored 22, including 16 in the third quarter, to lead a talented and deep Portland team, which finished with six players scoring at least 12 points.

The Clippers, who dropped to 0-2, were led by Lamar Odom (23 points and seven rebounds), Maurice Taylor (22 points and six rebounds) and Derek Anderson (16 points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals).

“To beat [Portland] we would have had to play a perfect game,” said Taylor, who bounced back with a strong game after fouling out in 26 minutes in the loss to Seattle on Tuesday.

“With Pippen and Smith out there at the same time, that’s some dynamite bullets. Anywhere you go, it could blow up in your face . . . having those guys on this team really put them over the edge.”

A glaring difference between the teams can be found under the assist line.

Portland--which played without Brian Grant, who is on the injured list--had 32 assists with Stoudamire leading with nine. The Clippers had 15, with Anderson’s four a team-high.

“We just have more experience,” said Greg Anthony, the Portland backup point guard who had 15 points and five assists. “We know how to get to the open spots and we make our shots.”

The Trail Blazers, who improved to 2-0, have outscored their first two opponents by an average of 21.5 points. Portland beat Vancouver, 106-86, Tuesday.

The Clippers didn’t play much defense at the start. The Trail Blazers made them pay by making eight of their first 10 shots and leading, 18-8, before the Clippers knew what hit them.

Taylor and Odom led the Clippers back and by halftime, Portland’s lead was cut to 59-51. In the third quarter, however, Pippen began to look for his shot.

With Stoudamire leading the break, Pippen took advantage of the open space given to him by the Clippers to help Portland break out to a 92-78 lead after three quarters.

“I was a little reluctant in the first half,” said Pippen, who had three points in the first half. “In the second half, I pulled up more whenever I could.”

Odom, who had another strong game after his 30-point, 12-rebound effort against Seattle, learned a lot from playing against Pippen.

“He’s so good at reading what you’re going to do, kind of like a boxer . . . like Evander Holyfield,” said Odom, who made five of 17 shots. “He waits, waits and waits and then as soon as you relax . . .”

In turn, Pippen was impressed with Odom’s play.

“He reminds me of myself only left-handed,” Pippen said of the Clipper rookie, who matched up against him often during the game.

“He’s a very talented player with a lot of skills. He has quickness, can handle the ball and is only in his second game. I think the sky’s the limit with him.”

But unfortunately for the Clippers, they wilted under Portland’s second-half pressure and finished shooting only 45%.

Although the Clippers gave up 121 points, Coach Chris Ford was not too disappointed with the team’s defense.

“We were trying to play an up-tempo game and when you do that you give up points to a really good team like Portland,” Ford said.

“We did play better defense despite the score. I saw some better individual efforts. I saw guys trying to do the right thing.”