LOS ANGELES – It’s not that the Clippers were bad without Wesley Johnson. They went 4-1 and hummed right along with one of league’s best records as he nursed a foot injury.
What they learned while waiting for Johnson’s heel to heal, however, was just how important he had been to their league-best 8-1 start.
“When he was out,” point guard Raymond Felton said, “the defense was a whole lot different”
With Johnson in the second unit, the Clippers bench was one of the league’s best defensive units, allowing just 91.1 points per 100 possessions. Without him – and with Brandon Bass or Paul Pierce filling in – those numbers soared.