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LOS ANGELES — Being the caller feline connected an NBA squad is simply a batch similar being the caller kid astatine school, Clippers Coach Tyronn Lue said recently.
“Who’s gonna beryllium your friend? Who you gonna bent retired with? Who you gonna beryllium with astatine the luncheon table? Things similar that,” Lue said, “So we conscionable trying to fig it out.”
Fortunately for Eric Bledsoe, a people quiescent fellow, the acclimation process successful this, his first play backmost with the Clippers aft playing for the squad from 2010-2013, is being helped by the information that each the guys successful his caller concern are beauteous cool, helium said.
“They conscionable told maine to conscionable play my game, spell retired determination and play my game,” the 6-foot-1 defender said aft breaking done with 21 points connected 9-for-16 shooting successful the Clippers’ 112-109 victory implicit the Miami Heat. “‘Don’t interest astir the mistakes, that comes with it.’ They welcomed maine with unfastened arms and truthful it’s been beauteous amusive done the struggles, conscionable gotta support it going.”
If Bledsoe has shown signs entering Saturday’s crippled against Minnesota that he’s warming up offensively arsenic helium gets amended acclimated, Luke Kennard is showing however overmuch amended helium tin beryllium defensively present that he’s settled successful arsenic a second-year Clipper.
“Definitely, coming into a caller system, antiaircraft system, learning everything, learning however we privation to play,” said Kennard, who besides has made strides offensively, taking 3.1 much 3-pointers per crippled and averaging 2.9 points much done the archetypal 11 games this play than helium did successful the aforesaid span to commencement the past one.
But helium said getting to cognize his teammates amended particularly makes a large quality connected the antiaircraft extremity of the tribunal because, well, it’s easier to speech to them.
“Getting comfy with everybody and what we need, what we want, arsenic a unit, oregon arsenic a team, for me, it’s conscionable connection was the large happening going into past offseason,” said Kennard, who is averaging a career-high 1.6 deflections per crippled (fourth-most connected the team) and posting a career-best 106 antiaircraft standing truthful far.
“Kind of made a database of things I truly wanted to amended connected and you’re like, ‘How tin you truly enactment connected connection successful the offseason?’” Kennard continued. “It’s big, conscionable adjacent one-on-one stuff, conscionable talking and, and being large with what you’re saying. I deliberation it’s helped maine a batch conscionable to beryllium successful the close spots, and that’s big. If you’re benignant of successful and out, not truly decisive connected what you’re doing, the connection has helped maine beryllium much decisive connected the antiaircraft end.”
And eventually, helium mightiness perceive much than 2 words from Bledsoe, oregon truthful joked Lue.
“I mean, erstwhile we get him to accidental 2 words that means he’s getting comfortable,” Lue said of the 31-year-old Bledsoe, who has started the play shooting conscionable 37.1% from the tract and 20.5% from 3-point range.
“He doesn’t speech a lot, he’s to himself, but it’s the aforesaid happening that Luke went done past year, you know? Just trying to recognize and erstwhile you travel to a caller team, it’s different.
“I’ve been connected 7 teams erstwhile I played,” Lue added, “so to travel successful and effort and acceptable successful and bash the close things, you know, it’s tough. We cognize Bled, he’s a large player, we recognize what helium tin do. The happening that ne'er wavered was his defence and however helium had the hardest duty each azygous nighttime that we played, and the discourtesy was gonna travel and you spot he’s getting much and much comfortable.”
It helps, again, to person radical astir supporting you, messing with you.
“I got large teammates,” Bledsoe said. “And T-Lue messed maine with a batch successful signifier trying to get maine to speech … helium told me, ‘You ain’t gotta accidental thing to me, but I’m gonna messiness with you.’ So it beryllium fun, to beryllium honest. It’s each affirmative energy.”
JOHNSON BOUNCES BACK
After spraining his ankle during his 2nd G League crippled connected Thursday, Clippers rookie Keon Johnson was shooting astir with adjunct manager Shaun Fein earlier Saturday’s crippled astatine Staples Center, with conscionable immoderate kinesiology portion connected his near ankle.
In the 3rd 4th of the Agua Caliente Clippers’ 101-93 triumph implicit the Ignite, the 21st wide draught prime rolled his ankle aft challenging a jumper and had to beryllium helped disconnected the floor.
Johnson was 6 for 6 for 12 points erstwhile helium was injured, pursuing up connected a superb play opener 2 days prior, erstwhile the 6-foot-5 defender scored 24 points connected 10-of-14 shooting successful a 115-101 triumph implicit the Ignite.
“His ankle helium said is beauteous good,” Lue said earlier tipoff Saturday. “He bounced backmost truly speedy and I conjecture it’s bully erstwhile you’re young, you tin bounce backmost similar that.
“And his archetypal mates games, I thought helium did truly well, playing the G League … precise aggressive, precise efficient, and truthful he’s learning. Nineteen years old, the enactment he’s been putting successful in the summertime and present passim the people of the play he’s getting amended and better, he’s starting to understand.”
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