LOS ANGELES — Patrick Beverley crowded chest-to-chest with Lonzo Ball before an inbounds pass in the first quarter while they were 94 feet from the basket. Moments later at midcourt, Beverley emphatically fouled the Lakers’ rookie point guard and watched him fall.
Ball still might turn out to be Los Angeles’ basketball star of the future, even after his awfully quiet NBA debut.
The present in this town still belongs to the Clippers, even without Chris Paul.
Blake Griffin scored 29 points and DeAndre Jordan added 14 points and 24 rebounds in the Clippers’ 108-92 rout of the Lakers on Thursday night.
Lou Williams added 12 points in the Clippers’ first game since Paul spurned the perennial playoff team after six years and forced an offseason trade to Houston. The Clippers will have a new look this season after adding Beverley’s tenacity and several new scorers, but they were still miles ahead of their Staples Center co-tenants in both teams’ season openers.
Beverley and the Clippers got little trouble from Ball, who had three points, four assists and nine rebounds in 29 minutes during the first game for the No. 2 overall pick from UCLA. He had about 40 friends and family members in the stands, including his voluble father, LaVar.
“We got blown out, so I didn’t play too well,” Ball said. “It was great to start out, but all I care about is winning, and we lost today. We’ve got to regroup.”
Ball is expected to revitalize his hometown team this season, but the rookie started out with all the nerves and mistakes that might be expected from any 19-year-old with the weight of a 16-time NBA champion franchise on his slender shoulders.
Beverley, who joined the Clippers in Paul’s trade to the Rockets, had 10 points while introducing Ball to high-level NBA defense.
“I just had to set the tone,” Beverley said. “I told him after the game, due to all the riff-raff his dad brings, he’s going to get a lot of people coming at him. He has to be ready for that, and I let him know after the game. But what a better way to start him off. I was 94 feet guarding him tonight. Welcome his little young ass to the NBA.”
Along with a handful of good-looking passes and a 3-pointer late in the first half, Ball went 1 for 6 from the field and committed two turnovers.
“He’s going to be a great talent, but he has to go through the tough times,” Beverley said. “He’ll appreciate this when he looks back on it.”
Brook Lopez scored 20 points in his debut for the Lakers, and Jordan Clarkson added 18.
“I wasn’t happy with what we gave our fans tonight,” Lakers coach Luke Walton said. “Obviously I heard the (boos), and we deserved it at those times.”