Caleb Park & Miles Whittingham are sports reporters for The Lion. Caleb is a huge Clippers fan, while Miles roots for the Lakers. Ahead of Lakers @ Clippers on Nov. 9, the two chatted about their team’s start to the season.
Miles: Caleb, are you ready for this game tonight?
Caleb: Yessir, another easy Clippers win!
Miles: What? Lakers over Clippers all day.
Caleb: Come on now, the Clips have won 8 straight matchups against the Lakers. What makes tonight any different?
Miles: Y’all can’t keep Kawhi Leonard healthy. He’s out again! The Lakers have LeBron and Anthony Davis back healthy. The purple & gold can win any game when those two play.
Caleb: The Clippers just have the edge when they play the Lakers. And don’t count out Paul George. Four games with over 30 points this season and he’s dropping 25 points per game so far.
Miles: Every team wants to show out against the Lakers cuz we’re the Lakers. Props to PG but don’t forget about Russell Westbrook. He’s thriving in his new roll off of the bench. Over 23 points per game in his last three games. He’s looking like he did back when he played for Oklahoma City.
Caleb: I have to admit Westbrook has been looking a lot better now that he’s joined the Lakers bench unit, but it isn’t translating into wins. Three straight 20+ point performances and three straight losses. Clippers, on the other hand, have won four of their last five.
Miles: Wins against the Rockets, Thunder, and Spurs? Those teams are gonna be in the draft lottery next year! The Lakers have had the most difficult schedule in the league these opening 10 games. It’s a long season…
Caleb: Sure the wins weren’t particularly impressive on paper, but winning any game in the NBA is never guaranteed. And there is definitely something to be said about the momentum of a team on a winning streak vs. that of one that just dropped three straight games.
Miles: These losses came against the Jazz and Cavaliers. The teams with the second-and third-best records in the league within a span of four days. That’s a lot to ask of a team with lingering injuries to almost half of their roster. But hey, they’re gonna start a new streak tonight!
Caleb: What do you think about how the Lakers’ season has gone so far?
Miles: Obviously not great… Although there isn’t just one issue you can point to as to why the Lakers are 2-8. The team didn’t start the season with a fully healthy roster — Thomas Bryant and Dennis Schroder aren’t LeBron and AD, but they’re crucial role players. Combine that with the team’s adjustment to Coach Darvin Ham’s way of play and the need to gel as a unit, there were always going to be bumps in the road early on. It can be hard to build chemistry and win games when there seem to be a handful of injuries to different guys every game. But I’m still hopeful. What’s with your team? The Clippers gonna clip!
Caleb: I am honestly really happy with what the Clips have been able to do. I expected them to struggle a lot harder than they have with the absence of Kawhi but PG, Marcus Morris, John Wall, and other guys have really been stepping up and winning us games and keeping us close against some great rosters. Our offensive struggles will definitely get wiped out with Kawhi’s full return and our defense can only get even better. I am very excited about our prospects this season. And I can’t wait for the Clips to win their seventh win today.
Miles: In Tyron Lue’s dreams.
