Data doesn't lie|Revealing the Clippers' 10 wins in 12 games: Harden has become the king of singles efficiency + the Big Four have changed

The Clippers are 18-12 and already ranked fourth in the West, having won 10 of their last 12 games. Many people believe that the Clippers are among the championship contenders. Harden joined the Clippers and changed the Big Four, including himself. These changes have also significantly improved the combat effectiveness of the Clippers.

Since Tyronn Lue decided to replace Willis with Mann, the Clippers' new starting five (Harden + Mann + Leonard + George + Zubac) rank fourth in the league in net efficiency for a five-man lineup that has played at least 200 minutes, outscoring opponents by 16.5 points per 100 possessions. For comparison, the Nuggets' starting five, which won last season, had a net efficiency of 13.1 points per 100 possessions in 2022-23.

Harden: Change your style of play and stay comfortable without the ball

In the early days of Harden's tenure with the Clippers, he suffered a wave of consecutive defeats. At the time, he wasn't sure of his role on the court, but through many exchanges with Coach Lue, Harden finally figured it out. "I had to catch and shoot, and I haven't really had a catch-and-shoot since the Thunder days. ”

This season, Harden has shot 35 percent of his three-point shots from the spot, up from 27 percent last season. Better three-point shooting allowed him to shoot a staggering 43.4 percent from three-point range, and before that season, Harden's most accurate season was 39 percent in 2011-12, when he was still playing sixth man with the Thunder. In other words, if Harden maintains this form, he is likely to shoot more than 40% three-point shooting for the first time in his career.

More catch-and-shoot three-pointers have reduced Harden's workload and improved his efficiency when playing with the ball. Statistics show that last season, playing for the 76ers, Harden averaged nearly nine minutes of ball time per game, ranking second in the league, behind Doncic, using 66 screens per 100 possessions. So far this season, Harden has averaged just six minutes per game and only used 43 screens per 100 possessions.

Harden averaged 1.35 points per singles, ranking first among all 41 players who completed at least 50 singles! He surpassed teammate Leonard (1.19), former teammate Embiid (1.19) and MVP candidate Alexander (1.16) in singles efficiency.

Small card: Reduces dribbling and ball handling, and the shooting rate is greatly improved

With the arrival of Harden, the number of dribbles and balls in the small card has decreased significantly. However, this also frees up the small card. In nine games in December, he averaged 29.3 points, 6 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game, shooting an eye-watering 61.3%, 50% and 95.7% from the field and shooting from the three-point range and free throws.

As Tyronn Lue said, "That's the great thing about Harden, in the past, [Leonard and George] had to make every shot, had to create every shot." Harden's arrival has taken the burden off the cards and made it easier for them to play.

George: Turnovers are at a career-low low for the Clippers

George is another beneficiary of Harden's arrival, and like Jr. Ka, he has seen fewer balls and dribbles. Statistically, George averaged a career-high 20 half-court offenses per game last season, and that number has dropped to 13 this season. The most immediate effect is that George's turnover rate has dropped significantly.

Last season, George's turnover rate was 13.4%, and in 2021-22, it was as high as 15.2%, and so far this season, George's turnover rate is only 10.1%, which is a new low in the Clippers career and the second-lowest performance of his career.

Wei Shao: Fewer passing errors and focus on defense

After Wei Shao changed to the sixth man, he also changed. Since mid-November, Willis has averaged only about 20 minutes per game, playing more with the second team. There was a noticeable drop in his number of pass errors. Before the Clippers changed their lineup, Wei Shao's pass error rate was 4.2 percent, the second highest in the league, and after switching to the bench, Wei Shao's pass error rate was only 1.8 percent.

As playing time decreased, Willis focused more on the defensive end. The stats show that of the 233 players who defended at least 175 shots, Willis ranked fourth in the league in shooting percentage (40.5 percent) and 14th in the league in the percentage of opponents who shot their opponents (down 5.7 percent). Both of these statistics are ranked first in the Clippers.

The opponent felt the change in the Clippers

The Big Four have all changed, and so have the Clippers. Before and after the Clippers changed starters, they played against the Knicks. On Nov. 7, Harden played his first game for the Clippers, who lost to the Knicks by 14 points, 97-111. On Dec. 17, the Clippers met the Knicks again, beating them 144-122.

Knicks guard DiVincenzo felt the change in the Clippers acutely: "You can see that they've had a fluid performance, they've learned how to play with Harden's help, and these guys are getting used to Harden more and more. ”

Today's Clippers have become a powerhouse in the West that cannot be ignored. In their last 12 games, they rank third in the league in offensive efficiency of 123.1 and rank first in the league in true shooting percentage of 62.8 percent. Are you optimistic about the Clippers' championship prospects?