The Clippers are always confident that they have enough offensive firepower to outscore any opponent, but Tuesday night in San Antonio, the Clippers found out that the key to winning this round will be defense.
The Spurs got wide-open looks, shooting 48.8 percent from the field and 52 percent from three-point range.
"The open man always gets the shot. That's what they do well," Kenyon Martin said. "They do an excellent job of spreading the floor and making plays, and their guys are unselfish."
The Spurs' wings, Danny Green, Kawhi Leonard and Manu Ginobli, all made three three-point shots each.
"We've got to be able to lock down and stop easy baskets and wide-open three's," Clippers forward Blake Griffin said. "We've got to make it a little tougher on them."
Eight different Spurs hit three-point shots in their 108-92 win.
NOTES, QUOTES
Del Negro pays homage to Popovich
--Before the start of Game 1, Vinny Del Negro didn't wast any time conceding the coaching battle to Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich.
"Pop's done it. He's hung banners," Del Negro said. "He's been doing it for a long time, and he's a guy who I have a tremendous amount of respect for."
Del Negro played two seasons on the Spurs with Popovich as the head coach.
He said the Spurs' biggest strength was thier ability to fold in role players.
"It's easy to get guys to talk about their role, but what he does is that he gets guys to accept their role," Del Negro said. "Everyone knows that Tim (Duncan), Manu (Ginobili) and Tony (Parker) drives the ship. He guides it, and the other guys fit their roles and do their jobs. And that's why I think they've had consistent success."
--Clippers center DeAndre Jordan had a monster first quarter, scoring seven points and grabbing eight rebounds. But Jordan only played 11 minutes after the first, grabbing just one more rebound.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "Why wouldn't you want to do that?" -- Clippers coach Vinny Del Negro on whether he'd like to emulate the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs have won four titles since 1999.
ROSTER REPORT
PLAYER NOTES:
--F Blake Griffin scored 15 points on 7 of 17 shooting. Griffin also blocked three shots before his knee began to stiffen in the second half.
--F Caron Butler hit all three of his three-point shots in the second half. Butler finished with 15 points.
--G Eric Bledsoe tied a career high with 23 points off the bench. Bledsoe also grabbed four offensive rebounds and picked up three steals.
--G Chris Paul had a tough shooting night, making only 3 of 13 from the field. Paul did pass out 10 assists and finished with five steals.
MEDICAL WATCH
--G Chris Paul (strained right hip flexor) began grabbing the right side of his body in the second half, and eventually, had to leave the game. Despite a 3-of-13 shooting night, Paul said the injury isn't bothering him.
--G Chauncey Billups (left Achilles tendon) underwent surgery to repair his Achilles tendon. Billups is out for the remainder of the season.
--F Blake Griffin (strained left knee) suffered an injury last week, landing awkwardly on his left leg. Griffin played over 28 minutes in Tuesday's loss to the Spurs.
