Nicolas Batum des Clippers is always ready to answer the call – Orange County Register

Inglewood – Clippers’ veteran striker, Nicolas Batum, is not in a hurry to get on the ground. He sits patiently at the game after the match on the bench while waiting for his name to be called.

And when coach Tyronn read tells him, Batum is ready, still ready to play, whether for five minutes or the summit of the season of Friday evening 34 minutes.

Batum obtained his fourth start of the season against the New York Knicks while striker Derrick Jones Jr. made a slow return to the departure formation after having suffered a persistent groin injury. And the 36 -year -old French international player took advantage of his minutes, nailing five points to 3 points among his 17 effective seasonal points. He also recorded four assists, two blocks and two interceptions.

And typically, Batum has deflected the praise of his teammates, those who see most minutes and keys. He said it was easy to play when you have “altruistic superstars” in your team.

“It’s easy when you play with these three guys – James (Harden) Zu (Ivica Zubac) and Kawhi (Leonard),” said Batum. “Defense is so focused on these guys that you will get open photos. … It’s easy to play with these guys. You are just open, you just have to be ready to shoot.

Batum was ready, hitting 6 of his 9 shots on the ground and 5 out of 7 of the 3-point range during the 105-95 victory.

“Sometimes you have to intensify and make baskets to win the match,” he said.

Great moments are nothing new for Batum. He is twice Olympian, including a member of the French national team of 2024 who lost against the United States during the gold match in Paris. He was also appointed French player of the year in 2021 and a long -standing competitor at La Fiba.

But that does not mean that he assumes that he will have more minutes depending on his experience. He knows what Lue expects from him.

“I mean it was the speech I had with Ty as during the offseason after the Olympic Games and during the training camp,” he said. “I mean a few games I play 25, a few games for 5 minutes, a few games that I won’t play.

“But I knew, like maybe as Down on the road like the last 20 games, I could signify more (in) a match this evening (with) injuries, so I must be ready to intervene.”

The Clippers, currently classified n ° 8 of the Western Conference, will need the regular game of Batum in the last 19 games, starting with the key match on Sunday against the Kings of Sacramento, which are n ° 9.

“We have a very difficult section, I mean the last six, seven games after the break (when the clippers lost six of the seven) and we see that other teams are also starting to win,” said Batum. “I mean that Warriors returned to the right track, Sacramento too, (and) Minnesota. So, we are not winning the race, (but we) (must) make sure that we do not put ourselves in a bad position for the next 20 games. “”

International flair

Not only did Batum play a big role by beating the Knicks, Zubac (Croatia) finished with 16 points and 14 rebounds and Bogdan Bogdanovic (Serbia) added eight points and 12 rebounds.

“We respect together, it was a good team victory,” Batum told Eurohoops.

Sacramento at the Clippers

When: 6.30 p.m. Sunday

Or: Intuit Dome

TV / Radio: FDSNSC / AM 570