Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports
When it comes to the NBA Playoffs, the team that can use its bench most successfully will be tough to beat. The Los Angeles Clippers proved that Saturday by opening the playoffs with a 112-91 victory night over the Memphis Grizzlies.
The man of the hour for the Clippers was backup guard Eric Bledsoe, who brought various talents to the court that the Grizzlies couldn’t handle.
Bledsoe put in just over 18 minutes of action and did just about everything right for the Clippers. He made all seven of his field goal attempts and hit a free throw for 15 points. He grabbed six rebounds and had four assists. He hit some key hoops down the stretch and was there all the way in the game’s key moments to give the Clippers a lift.
His shooting percentage helped the Clippers net a field goal accuracy clip of 55.4 percent. The team that shoots well in the playoffs obviously can dictate various strategies of the game.
For the season, Bledsoe averaged 8.5 points, 3.0 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game in his third NBA season. He averaged 20.4 minutes each game.
Bledsoe ended the regular season with only four points in his last two games on 2-of-11 shooting. For him to come around and play as well as he did against the Grizzlies was obviously huge. It was the type of effort that will make the Clippers tough to beat in this series.
It’s going to be a tough series for both teams, but the Clippers should be feeling confident right now.
