Josh Smith has been one of the many things for the Clippers that has not gone according to plan this season. He is averaging just 4.7 points per game on 35.6 percent shooting, has a PER of 11, and all of that has Doc Rivers playing him less than 15 minutes a game. He’s not adding the depth they need, although his defense has been good. Sunday against the Raptors in Los Angeles, the Clippers had trailed by 29 (it was 63-34 at the half) but in the fourth quarter but had cut the lead to six when Smith missed a three (shooting 30 percent from there on he season. and what followed was a 6-0 Toronto run that was the dagger.
After the Clipper loss we knew there was a bit of a meltdown in the Clipper locker room, now we have the details thanks to Dan Woike of the Orange County Register.
Josh Smith and an unspecified Clipper coach were involved in a frustration-fueled argument following the Clippers’ 91-80 loss to Toronto Sunday.
Profanities and yelling made their way through the cement walls separating the Clipper locker room from an adjacent room where the media was waiting to speak to head coach Doc Rivers.
It’s not clear what the argument was about, or if anyone else was involved. The Clippers should be frustrated, they are 2-7 in their last nine and have fallen below .500 on the season at 6-7 — this is a terrible start for a team that fancies itself a contender.
Josh Smith is part of the problem with the Clippers, but he is far from the biggest on. That honor goes to the team defense — the Clippers are 22nd in the league in defensive rating, giving up 104.3 points per 100 possessions — and after that we can get into rebounding and other embarrassing parts of the Clippers’ game.
The players and Rivers tried to play everything off after the game as no big deal. Normal locker room stuff. And I guess it is normal for a team that had high expectations and is struggling. The Clippers need to turn this around quickly before their hole gets any deeper.
