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Lakers vs Clippers Preview: No Lou Williams, No Montrezl Harrell, No Problem?

Kevin Germany|
LOS ANGELES, CA - JANUARY 4: Lou Williams #23 and Montrezl Harrell #5 of the LA Clippers share a conversation during the game against the Memphis Grizzlies on January 4, 2020 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2020 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - JANUARY 4: Lou Williams #23 and Montrezl Harrell #5 of the LA Clippers share a conversation during the game against the Memphis Grizzlies on January 4, 2020 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2020 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images)
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Los Angeles Lakers Dwight Howard
(Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) – Los Angeles Lakers

Lou Williams is the Greatest Sixth Man in the Modern Era

The Clippers are also playing without my guy Lou Williams. This is a cataclysmic loss for the Clippers. I consider Lou Will to be the NBA’s greatest sixth man in the modern era and the second greatest sixth man in NBA history behind former Celtics great John Havlicek.

Havlicek is the clear GOAT because he has eight rings and is a 13-time all-star. Manu Ginobili and Andre Igoudala also have the rings but they are not certified buckets like Lou Will. Therefore, Manu and Iggy rank a close second in the greatest sixth man of the modern era rankings behind my guy.

Lou Williams is the literal GOAT as he has the all-time record for scoring has the most points coming off the bench in NBA history, as our Clippers colleagues at FanSided so eloquently put it.

But he has been tentative against the Lakers this season. Would this have changed in tonight’s game? Yes. He would have sensed water in the blood!

Here’s how.

Why Did Lou Williams Struggle vs the Los Angeles Lakers?

I was very surprised when I saw the box scores in the last two games. Lou Williams averaged a paltry 6.5 points per game in the last two games vs the Lakers. Why the low point totals? Lou Will was very tentative in the last two games.

He can typically get his shot off wherever and whenever he wants because he plays with such an unusual cadence, exploiting overzealous defenders to draw shooting fouls. But he was strangely passive in the last two games, deferring to Kawhi Leonard in the Clippers standard late-game horns pick-and-roll action.

Heavy on-ball pressure gives him some trouble in getting to his preferred spots. Avery Bradley is good at this. The Lakers do not have Bradley for the rest of the season.

There should not be any excuse now.

Could Lou Williams Have Exploited the Lakers Defensive Struggles?

Absolutely! There is a whole different skillset between guarding point guards and wings. The Lakers have several great wing defenders but Avery Bradley was their only reliable defender against opposing point guards. Lou Williams is technically a shooting guard but he functions as a point guard in the Clippers offense.

Based on the scrimmages, the Lakers struggle mightily guarding opposing point guards. Even noted defensive stoppers Alex Caruso, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Danny Green got burned quite a bit.

They are better playing help defense and guarding wings as opposed to pressuring ball-dominant guards. If Seth Curry, D.J. Augustin, and Ish Smith can go off in the scrimmages, imagine what Lou Williams can do in the real game.

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