Since 1999, the Los Angeles Clippers shared arenas with the Lakers. That was until Steve Ballmer took the initiative to build the Intuit Dome, an act to get out of being the “little brother”. Tonight, that arena saw its first LA clash, and the Clippers came out roaring. The Lakers took a seventh loss to their city rivals in their last 10 clashes. But aside from being outclassed tonight, there was another major scare for the Purple and Gold.

A huge part of the Clippers’ victory over the Lakers was shutting down Austin Reaves. The undrafted Arkansas guard had been on a mighty stretch. But the Clippers’ suffocating defense curbed his output. Furthermore, their physical play also caused an injury scare late in the fourth quarter. In an attempt to rebound, Reaves clashed knees. He walked tenderly toward the bench late in the fourth quarter.

For Lakers fans, it was the worst sight with games against the Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors lined up this week. Fortunately, the injury doesn’t seem to be serious. According to Jovan Buha, the 26-year-old guard claims “he’s fine” and expects to suit up when playing the Washington Wizards.

Austin Reaves has managed to stay relatively healthy this season, playing in 35 of the available 40 games so far this season. Additionally, he has been a pivotal component of JJ Redick’s plans. Prior to the game against the Clippers, Reaves was averaging 22.2 points and 8.9 assists over the last ten games.

And although precaution against the Wizards would be understandable, for the Lakers losing Reaves could have led to severe consequences.

JJ Redick praises the Clippers’ identity after his first LA rivalry defeat

Tonight was the first time JJ Redick got a dose of the city rivalry. The Clippers are adversaries that have often got the better of the Purple and Gold in recent history. Tonight was no different. In their first game this season, the Lakers were outmuscled in many ways. Notably, a former player of their Ivica Zubac punished their rebounding inefficiency.

The bruising center added 21 points and 19 rebounds, his second consecutive such game against his former team. Moreover, with Harden pulling the strings, the offense was once again seamless. But rather than dealing with their cohesive attacking unit, JJ Redick found it difficult to figure a way past their defense.

“Every time we made a mistake, they made us pay. But we stayed together, our guys competed. We fought, we stay together. For us, this was a good process for us. Didn’t get the result we wanted. Did some really good things in the second half. That’s a real defense. They have a real defense and they are physical,” Redick admitted.

Whether it was Zubac taking dominion of the paint or the Clippers forcing turnovers, they put together a spotless game to vanquish the Lakers. They limited Anthony Davis to 16 points. With the offensive motor contained turnovers came at plenty. With Kawhi Leonard back and reaching his peak on both ends, the Lakers had to be at their best.

However, tonight, they just couldn’t find a way past their weakness. And the Clippers weaved a path around those, leading to a 102-116 win. With a game against the Wizards up next, Redick and the Lakers will hope to repair some of these errors as an elite Celtics defense could pose similar challenges as the Clippers did tonight.

What do you think the Lakers could have done better? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.