Awesome Doc Rivers Post Practice Interview

http://www.nba.com/clippers/video/2013/10/17/DocOct17mp4-3014458

Answered a ton of good questions, 8 minute interview just about. Well worth the watch. Enjoy.

Great interview thanks for posting

JJ is the furthest away from being healthy.

Your welcome CB. Yea JJ being furthest away sucks. He's the guy we need to integrate the most. Barnes isn't a guy you really need to integrate and Bullock is a rookie so we can take our time at least a little bit more with him.

Yep, Doc gives good...interviews, lol. I like the part when someone (a lady reporter) asked him if he could trust DJ in the 4th quarter and he said yes. Then she preceded to say he didm't play that much in the 4th quarter and he replied...I wasn't here last year (with a smile in his eyes).

He doesn't seem concerned about the shots Mullens is taking either. I wonder if he's trying positive reinforcement.

^ It very well may be. But I'm thinking since its still preseason, he letting it all play out and then deciding what works and what doesn't before the real season approaches.

I'm sure JJ is fine. According to Doc Redick says he can play. But Doc seems to want to hold off on him.

I really think that the shots Mullens is taking are good shots for our overall offense. They're all open & bigs are gonna start coming out more & more. And he makes roughly a third of them because they're so open, I think 1 point per possession is fine, especially if it spreads the floor for Collison & Crawford to drive!

Almost all of the threes were open and within the flow of the offense. We just missed. Not to worry

Jamison was off too but it will come. Can Mullins post up?

It could be. I don't want Mullens to stop shooting three completely, but simply to incorporate some shots in the paint and some dunks. I think during the game against Sacramento he took 18 total shots, and 12 of those were 3 pointers. This all accounted for his low shooting %.

If he were to just cut down on the amount of 3 pointers he could probably be more efficient.

Yea I agree. 5-7 threes isn't too terrible if coaches want him to shoot but 2-12 from three and 18 shots overall is unacceptable on all levels for a backup big pretty much, even if he's starting. Blake Griffin shoots 14 shots per game to give you an example of how much that is.

When news started circulating that we were interested in Mullens I was shocked at the fact that he took many threes. Its rare to find big men that shoot like he does. Even though his % is low he still would be more successful at 3s than many other bigs. That being said even though he's a decent shooter for a big man his shooting % is low compared to players in all positions.

I think the lowering of three point attempts to 5 per game is perfect. Also, we need him to incorporate other shots like tear drops, dunks, layups, and others just so defenses won't lock down the perimeter when our second unit is on the court. By adding an inside element to his game Mullens will help make it difficult for defenses to shut down the second unit, because as of now if I'm the coach of another team I tell my guys to guard the perimeter because Mullens, Jamison, and the second unit lack an inside presence.

I'd guess there won't be many moments in close games where EITHER Blake or DJ isn't on the court. Doc has talked about the necessity for small-ball lineups, so I wouldn't be surprised to see Blake play some 5 this year with Barnes defending the opposing PF. Then Mullens or Jamison can stretch the defense while DJ mans the interior.

I doubt we'll see two backup bigs on the floor together very often unless it's against lesser teams.

I wonder if we'll seen CP3, JJ and Jamal on the court at the same time. All three of those guys are used to being on the court in the 4th.

Seems like that is essentially what he was saying, he's letting guys shoot if it is in spots that they can shoot from and later on he will address what is an open shot vs contested shot. So he will probably reign Mullen in with that part of his shot selection, but not the spots. Let's be honest though, we'd rather see Mullens shooting three's than long two's that he hits at a lower percentage and mid-range two's that he doesn't hit that well. If he's popping to 20 feet instead of three, he's a worse player. Of course the one we'd like to see more of is him rolling to the basket. Last year only 18% of his shots were at the rim, he needs to get that back up to his 30% at the rim in 11-12, then convert the majority of his long two's into three point shots, and his value as a role playing stretch big will start to climb up. I know, easier said than done, but I think he's capable, hopefully. Last season eFG%: 10-16 - 35.4% 16-23 - 31.5% 3PT: 47.7% Even if we're just doing regular percentages, he shot 31.7% from 3PT. There's probably no reason in his mind for him to aim to shoot the mid-range jumpshot. He's not a primary scorer for the team, and if he can't get shots at his best spots (at the rim or 3PT), then he should be passing to a better player really. That's how you become an effective role player. To the other point about the bench being shut down, you would actually think the bench has a bit of an advantage because while many teams can guard one perimeter big, not a lot of teams have two big men comfortable with guarding the three point line. So a lineup with....

Good points. Lets hope Doc also feels the same

Byron Mullen has gone 12-for-33 from 3-point range (36.4 percent)… why are we complaining so much? He had one off-night, lets give it some more time!

^ That's a very good point.

36% is the same as our first-choice SG shot from deep last year in his 22 games... and better than the 35% "Mr. Bigshot" managed in the playoffs.

I'm cool with Mully shooting 3's if he's open. It's not like he's going to be playing starters' minutes.