NBA Playoffs 2014: Los Angeles Clippers vs. Golden State Warriors series preview
The Los Angeles Clippers (57-25) made a big splash in the offseason, hiring Doc Rivers as their head coach and acquiring J.J. Redick in a sign-and-trade. During the season, they picked up Glen Davis, Danny Granger and Hedo Turkoglu. The Golden State Warriors (51-31) have gone through turmoil throughout the season but still managed to win 50 games.
Series Schedule:
Game 1 in Los Angeles: Saturday, April 19, 3:30 p.m. ET, ABC
Game 2 in Los Angeles: Monday, April 21, 10:30 p.m. ET, TNT
Game 3 in Oakland: Thursday, April 24, 10:30 p.m. ET, TNT
Game 4 in Oakland: Sunday, April 27, 3:30 p.m. ET, ABC
Game 5 in Los Angeles (if necessary): Tuesday, April 29
Game 6 in Oakland (if necessary): Thursday, May 1
Game 7 in Los Angeles (if necessary): Saturday, May 3
Season Series: Split 2-2
| Los Angeles Clippers | Golden State Warriors |
| DeAndre Jordan | Jermaine O’Neal |
| Blake Griffin | David Lee |
| Matt Barnes | Harrison Barnes |
| J.J. Redick | Klay Thompson |
| Chris Paul | Stephen Curry |
| Los Angeles Clippers | Golden State Warriors | |
| Pace | 98.39 | 98.53 |
| Offensive Rating | 109.4 | 105.3 |
| Defensive Rating | 102.1 | 99.9 |
Warriors’ center Andrew Bogut will likely miss time with a rib injury and the Warriors will no doubt miss his rebounding and shot blocking ability. That is certainly going to hurt the Warriors because they are going to have a lot of trouble dealing with Blake Griffin, who is playing at the highest level of his career. The addition of Andre Iguodala has helped the Warriors become one of the league’s elite defensive teams, but they will probably have trouble slowing the Clippers, who had the league’s best offense this season.