Charlotte Bobcats big man Byron Mullens likes to shoot. He takes more than 14 shots per 36 minutes of playing time, despite the fact that he only makes about 39 percent of them. Specifically, he likes to shoot from outside — nearly 40 percent of the 7-footer's shots have come from 20 feet out or beyond, according to NBA.com's stat tool.
What he doesn't like to do is get back on defense after shooting. And when you're playing the Los Angeles Clippers, that's a problem, because as soon as you clang another triple, Blake Griffin's already all alone in the open floor and Chris Paul's already seen him and whoops, you're on my blog now.
I mean, it's not necessarily news that the Clippers can turn rebounds, defense and leakouts into offense quicker than just about any team in the league, with the possible exceptions of the Denver Nuggets and Miami Heat, but still — a three-second possession resulting in two loud points thanks to a hookup from the backcourt 3-point line remains pretty insane.
And, of course, CP3 and Blake weren't done.
The Clippers' All-Star pairing closed the first half with authority:
And offered more of the same in the third quarter:
... en route to running the Bobcats out of the gym, 106-84, at Staples Center on Tuesday night.
Charlotte hung around until midway through the second quarter, when the aerial assault dovetailed with some clampdown defense that resulted in a 15-3 Clipper run; a 13-4 third-quarter jolt, punctuated by that lefty Blake and-one, put the game out of reach for Mike Dunlap's squad. Griffin (24 points on 11 for 14 shooting, seven rebounds, six assists), Paul (seven points, 13 assists, four rebounds and two steals) and center DeAndre Jordan (13 points on a perfect 6 for 6 from the floor, four rebounds, four blocks) sat out the entire fourth quarter of the win, L.A.'s seventh in its last 10 games, which pushed the Clips' Pacific Division lead over the Golden State Warriors to seven games and drew them within 1 1/2 games of the Oklahoma City Thunder for second place in the Western Conference.
The Bobcats ... well, here's hoping they learned that leakout lesson.
Alley-oop video via SB Nation's Mike Prada.
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