Five takeaways from the Clippers’ 114-86 win over the Orlando Magic

The Clippers beat the Orlando Magic on Wednesday, 114-86, winning their sxith consecutive game. Here are five takeaways from their performance.

1. Hello, Matt Barnes. After struggling with his shot early this season, the small forward had a good game against the Magic, finishing with 17 points on six-of-eight shooting. After the game, Clippers Coach Doc Rivers said that during Barnes’ drought, he didn’t say anything to him.

“I just believe guys are pros, and it’ll work out for them,” Rivers said.

2. Doc Rivers calls DeAndre Jordan “Dennis Rodman-ish.” Jordan had 16 rebounds and three blocked shots to go along with his eight points on Wednesday. A lot of the things that he does, such as setting screens and altering shots, don’t show up on the stat sheet. After the game, Rivers talked about Jordan’s contribution to the team.

“He does so many things for us,” Rivers said. “His pick setting, his rolling. It’s funny, he’s such an offensive weapon because he rolls so hard to the basket. Everytime he rolls, someone has to take him. He never gets the bucket, but it usually means J.J. [Redick]’s open, Blake [Griffin]’s open. He just does so many little things. Dennis Rodman-ish.”

3. When J.J. Redick is scoring it’s a good sign for the team. Redick has scored in double digits in the Clippers’ last eight games, including his 20-point performance on seven-of-11 shooting against the Magic. The Clippers have won seven of those contests. When Redick is scoring, Rivers said it means that something very important is going well for the team.

“When J.J. plays well, and I say it every night, it means that the ball is really moving because he’s the one guys that needs the ball to move for him to get a great shot,” Rivers said.

4. The Western Conference is very competitive. The Clippers have won six games in a row and have a 12-5 record, yet they’re in seventh place in the Western Conference. The top teams in the conference are all very close, with the Clippers just three games behind the first-place Golden State Warriors.

5. Clippers get the day off Thursday. After Wednesday’s win, Rivers decided to cancel Thursday’s practice and let the players have the day off. The Clippers will practice Friday, then play the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday at Staples Center at 7:30 p.m.

Follow Melissa Rohlin on Twitter @melissarohlin