One Big Ty Lue Mistake Cost Clippers the Game Against the Warriors

The season is over for the Los Angeles Clippers. Unfortunately, it was earlier than many Clippers fans were hoping for. After a miraculous in-season turnaround, there was hope that the Clippers could at least make the playoffs. Instead, they suffered a disappointing home loss in a game they were heavily favored in.

What makes the loss even more frustrating is that the Clippers were in total control for most of the game. With less than ten minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Clippers had a 13-point lead. The Warriors certainly deserve a ton of credit for sticking with it and mounting an improbable comeback. At the same time, head coach Ty Lue deserves a demerit for an obvious lack of adjustment.

That mistake involves Brook Lopez. The 38-year-old center not only played the second-most minutes on the Clippers, but also played the entire fourth quarter. Even when the Warriors were outexecuting the Clippers offensively and getting good looks from three every time down, Lue stuck with Lopez, and this proved to be costly.

Too Much Brook Lopez Proved Too Costly for the Clippers

It's not a surprise that Lopez would struggle against Curry and the Warriors' offense. Even in his prime, Lopez was a slow-footed center who had trouble getting out in the perimeter and closing out on shooters. Five-out spacing consistently caused problems for teams that have Lopez as their defensive anchor, as he is far more comfortable and effective staying near the rim.

This continued to be the case against the Warriors. In the fourth quarter, Golden State made its run with Curry, Brandin Podziemski, Gui Santos, Draymond Green, and Al Horford as its primary lineup. Kristaps Porzingis and De'Anthony Melton gave them a few minutes as well. These groups caused all sorts of issues for the Clippers' defense.

Taking advantage of Lopez's inability to chase shooters and close out, the Warriors went 8/11 from downtown. Horford went 4/4 and Curry was 2/3. When Lopez started to overreact with hard closeouts, the Warriors went to the rim at ease, and the Clippers had no one protecting the rim. The Clippers were 14/18 from the field and scored 41 points in the final ten minutes of the game.

Lue may have thought that he didn't have an option other than Lopez. Isaiah Jackson was active, but didn't see the court after missing the last nine games with an ankle sprain. The Clippers don't have another healthy center on the roster. When Lopez was on the bench, LA deployed John Collins as the small-ball five.

Not having a Plan B in a game when Lopez was obviously going to struggle is a mistake. Putting a more mobile Nicolas Batum out there or relying more on Collins in the fourth quarter could have been the difference for the Clippers.

Instead, Lue said that he was "pissed off" and "disappointed" in the way they executed, per team insider Justin Russo. He pointed to a play where they "helped too much" on a Porzingis post-up. While game plan execution could have been the culprit, the Clippers could have been helped by better personnel out there. And that is on Lue.

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