Clippers vs. Warriors: 3 things you need to know

EAST
(1) IND vs. (8) ATL | (2) MIA vs. (7) CHA
(3) TOR vs. (6) BKN | (4) CHI vs. (5) WAS
WEST
(1) SAS vs. (8) DAL | (2) OKC vs. (7) MEM
(3) LAC vs. (6) GSW | (4) HOU vs. (5) POR

The Los Angeles Clippers will host the Golden State Warriors in what promises to be one of the most entertaining first-round playoff series this season. It's difficult to evaluate the series properly given the enormous Australian question mark hovering over it - more on that in a minute - but there's no safer bet for games that will make it worth your while to stay up late.

Steph Curry and company will be in Los Angeles on Saturday to open up the seven-game series. Here are the three things you need to know:

These teams hate each other

While they still haven't admitted as much, familiarity has certainly bred contempt between these two teams. Games on Oct. 31, Dec. 25, Jan. 30, and March 12 all involved a great deal of drama and, what's more, the teams split the four games, with the Clippers owning only a three-point cumulative edge.

Let's look back at some of the earlier dramatics. First, on Oct. 31, Warriors coach Mark Jackson had a sideline dust-up with Clippers forward Blake Griffin, which served as a precursor to a blow-up between sides.

Fast forward to Christmas Day, when Draymond Green gifted Griffin an elbow to the chops, leading to Green being tossed and, eventually, Griffin being tossed for a subsequent scuffle with Andrew Bogut.

The third outing didn't bring any fireworks, but Griffin was once again in the middle of things on March 12, with Warriors veteran Jermaine O'Neal reportedly seeking him out and waiting for him outside of the locker room following the game.

Andrew Bogut, 7-foot question mark

It's unlikely that Andrew Bogut sees any action in this series, which is a damn shame not only because of his role in the melees above but because he's also the spine of a very effective Warriors defense.

Bogut has a cracked rib, something that normally involves a six-week recovery period and is difficult to play through given the risks associated with it (like a punctured lung). If Bogut sits out the entire series, this won't be quite the same Warriors squad.

The Warriors can survive, on average, without Bogut, but opponents shot 61.2 percent in the restricted area against Golden State when Bogut sat this season, compared to 56 percent when he was on the floor, a dangerous stat considering the Clippers were the league's second-best team in that space, shooting 67.7 percent.

Big against small

To be honest, there are a hundred good angles to look at in this series, like Klay Thompson's emergence as a top defender being tested against Chris Paul, the question of who guards Steph Curry, whether David Lee has a chance at survival against Griffin, and more. But Bogut's potential absence highlights another interesting twist in the series:

The Clippers are at their best big, the Warriors at their best small.

Of all Warriors lineups that played at least 40 minutes this season, the three best are all small looks: Draymond Green at the five or Green at the four with an additional center. The Warriors play their best when Curry, Thompson, Andre Iguodala, and Green share the floor, which more or less has to be the case if Bogut's out, anyway.

However, it means they're going to be at a size disadvantage, because the Clippers are likely to keep Griffin and DeAndre Jordan on the floor together plenty. While they don't have great frontcourt depth, all of their top-10 lineup iterations involve both bigs, and they've averaged 29.6 minutes per game together.

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