It s rare that it didn t have a negative impact on the team, but should the Clippers be cautious about using veteran forwards?

In the previous NBA regular season, the Boston Celtics, playing at home, narrowly defeated the Los Angeles Clippers 121-118. After this game, the Celtics, who had won two consecutive victories, improved their record to 7 wins and 7 losses, and their ranking was promoted to 11th in the Eastern Conference; while the Clippers, who had lost 7 of the last 8 games, had a record of 4 wins and 9 losses, continuing to rank 11th in the Western Conference.

Although the Clippers lost the game, the team's substitute striker Nicolas Batum actually performed well. Batum played 20 minutes and 17 seconds, shooting 2 of 4 from the field and 2 of 4 from beyond the three-point line. He scored 6 points, 4 rebounds and 2 blocks. He also had 1 turnover and 3 fouls, with a plus-minus of -1. Batum also hit two three-pointers on the offensive end in this game, providing some help and support to the team, and his performance on the defensive end is also remarkable. He also played a very good defensive effect, and his advantage in defensive experience is also quite obvious. Considering that Batum's role and tactical status on the court are very limited, it is already quite good for him to perform like this under such circumstances, and it seems that his condition has improved significantly compared with the previous games. At least he did not have any obvious negative impact on the team on the court.

In the NBA regular season last season, Batum played a total of 78 times in 82 games, averaging 17.5 minutes per game. He averaged 4 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 0.7 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game. He also had 0.4 turnovers and 1.4 fouls. He shot 43.7% from the field, 43.3% from the three-point range, and 81% from the free throw line. During the playoffs, Batum played a total of 7 times, averaging 24.6 minutes per game, 5.6 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2 assists, 0.9 steals, and 1.7 blocks per game. He also had 0.4 turnovers and 1.9 fouls. He shot 39.4% from the field and 39.4% from the three-point range. Since the start of this season, Batum has averaged 17.7 minutes per game in the first 13 games, averaging 3.7 points, 2.7 rebounds, 0.8 assists, 0.8 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game. He also has 0.5 turnovers and 1.9 fouls. He has shot 32% from the field, 31.1% from three-point range, and 100% from free throws.

Batum's state throughout the season has actually been very unsatisfactory. His offensive efficiency and three-point shooting percentage are both appalling, and his performance on the defensive end has also declined significantly. So far, his average plus-minus per game is only -3.1, which is shocking considering he hasn't played much playing time. Batum's performance in all aspects continues to decline as he ages. Of course, he can still use his advantages in experience and awareness to play a certain role at some times. In this game, Batum can indeed have a certain effect, but overall, it is unrealistic to expect him to provide more support for the team. The Clippers should actually learn from this experience, reduce Batum's playing time and allow young players to get more performance opportunities. Batum's performance in one good game and several bad games is not a good thing for the team's long-term development and record.