“Several veterans said it was the hardest training camp of their career. » Robert Covington announces the color. It must be said that Tyronn Lue did not hesitate to schedule two training sessions per day for his Clippers, which he did not do in recent seasons.
This is no coincidence, it clearly reflects a desire to get our hands dirty.
“It’s time to wake up”announces the Clippers coach Los Angeles Times. “With the new NBA, things have changed, but I believe we need to go back to the old way of working hard. We have an opportunity to be a very good team, but we have to put in the work. It won’t come overnight. I want us to work hard every day, play hard and make it come natural. »
The Clippers rely on physique
Los Angeles, which can finally count on Paul George and Kawhi Leonard in good health in October, a first since 2020, has already displayed its ambitions with the desire to return to the best defenses in the league. For that, you will have to put intensity on the floors, and that starts from the first training sessions.
“I think it’s the hardest training camp since I’ve been with the Clippers,” confirms Ivica Zubac, whose first camp dates back to 2019. “We do a lot, we run a lot, it’s very physical. We want to be the most physical team every night and that’s how we become one of the best defenses. »
But why are the Clippers more intense this fall than in other years, or than in 2022 for example? Kawhi Leonard, who was returning from a white season, has the beginnings of an answer.
“Last year, everyone was impatient for me to come back and I would say we missed some steps,” analyzes the MVP of the 2014 and 2019 Finals. “It was everyone’s fault, me, the coaches, the managers. I hope we can start from scratch. Tyronn Lue did a great job building our foundation and giving us the basics. »
