The Clippers hope to make history this season by getting to the Western Conference finals for the first time. The Lakers already created some, falling to 0-3 for the first time since 1978.
When the two Los Angeles teams banged into each other Friday, it was clear which one was better these days, the Clippers pelting the Lakers, 105-95, in a designated Lakers home game. Kobe Bryant told angry Lakers fans to shut up and "let us work" a day earlier, and the Staples Center crowd seemed compliant, the arena eerily quiet in the second half. Or maybe that was because of the Lakers' 16-point third-quarter deficit.
The Clippers ran the Lakers off the court in fastbreak points, 21-8, and bullied them in second-chance points, 20-7. Chris Paul was a delight with the ball, amassing 18 points, 15 assists.
To be remembered from now until April: The Clippers haven't won the season series with the Lakers since 1992-93. In fact, they took the series one other time in the 42-year history of their franchise, when they were the Buffalo Braves in 1974-75.
Ah, the Buffalo Braves. I remember them well. In fact, didn't the Celtics and Braves effectively exchange rosters the year before Bird's arrival (and if you are really interested, look here and see that Hondo finished his career on the Clippers payroll via the Braves-Celtics franchise swap)? Anyhoo, it seems like just yesterday (ok, maybe it's been a few weeks) that Kobe was telling everyone that this was the greatest Laker team ever, while World B. Metta Peace was projecting 73 wins. I'm not really catching those vibes any more in La La Land. But what do I know?
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