Clippers vs. Thunder: Pregame Primer

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Los Angeles Clippers (36-22, 13-14 road) vs. OKC Thunder (42-15, 24-5 home)

TV: FS OK (Cox 37, HD 722, Tulsa Cox 27, DirectTV 679, UVerse 754)
Stream: Click here
Radio: WWLS The Sports Animal (98.1 FM, 640 AM, 97.1 FM Tulsa)
Time: 7:00 CT

Offensive Rating: Thunder – 109.8 (1st), Clippers– 108.1 (5th)
Defensive Rating: Thunder – 102.9 (9th), Clippers – 105.5 (18th)
Pace: Thunder – 92.9 (6th), Clippers – 89.2 (27th)

View from the enemy: ClipperBlog

The Clippers have been playing much better lately winning eight of 10 and are certainly a dangerous team coming in. The Thunder have ripped off two consecutive wins in dominant fashion, but it’s back to being tested a bit. The Clippers remain a tough matchup in my eyes because of Chris Paul and his ability in the pick and roll.

Los Angeles coming in: The Clippers last played Monday losing to the Grizzlies.

1. Russ. He played Chris Paul wonderfully in the last meeting with tons of focus and energy. He didn’t slack off, didn’t gamble, fought through picks and battled against him. That kind of effort is needed again.

2. Bigs. Nick Collison, Perk and Serge Ibaka did outstanding work on Blake Griffin, holding him to his worst outing of his young NBA career. The Thunder were physical, pushed him off the block and didn’t let him have anything easy.

3. Glass work. The Thunder can’t give the Clippers second chances. DeAndre Jordan, Reggie Evans, Kenyon Martin and Griffin all can play a big role on the boards, so cleaning up misses — especially long misses from deep jumpers — is key.

Tip at 7:00 CT. Go Thunder City.