LOS ANGELES – Writers more talented than the one named above have written volumes about basketball using jazz music as a way to describe the free-flowing movements on the court.

Jazz, like the best basketball, can be loosely planned and beautifully precise all at once, with the saxophonist and the drummer briefly sharing a look or the cellist quickly hearing a specific pattern of notes, telling him what comes next.

While separate, they form something together.

For a basketball team, the more continuity you have from year to year, the easier it becomes to understand the unspoken languages, using situations as forms of communication. And, when you reach that point where a look is as good as word, you can start creating masterpieces.

Eight games into the NBA season, the Clippers have reached this point, and in a bit of a surprise, the best improvisations are coming on the defensive end of the floor, where they’re far and away the best in the league.

“We understand each other better. We cover for each other. We know the schemes better,” Clippers forward and ace defender Luc Mbah a Moute said. “It’s everything – on the ball, the weak side, talking better, knowing when to switch, when not to switch, reading each other better.”

It’s not as if the Clippers were defensively illiterate last season. After inserting Mbah a Moute into the starting lineup on Nov. 29 last season the team ranked fourth in points allowed per 100 possessions (100.4), the preferred measurement unit for defending.

But, this season, whether it’s maturity, better players, better coaching, better schemes or, simply, continuity, the Clippers are even better.

“It is a different thing,” forward Blake Griffin said. “I feel like I keep repeating myself, but we just take ownership of defense differently. There’s a different feel. Not to say in years past we haven’t… but, this year it’s all about getting stops and getting out into transition. We’re not worried about our offense.

“We have guys … we can score the ball. Defensively has been our focus and our focal point, and it’s shown.”

As of Thursday morning, the numbers as well as the team’s 7-1 record – best in the NBA – easily illustrate Griffin’s points.

They’re allowing 89.3 points per 100 possessions. The second-best defense, Charlotte, is allowing 6.1 more. They’ve got the 10th-best offense in the league, a unit that’s climbing after a very slow start.

And, their net rating, the difference between their offensive and defensive efficiency numbers, is 16.1. For a reference point, the Golden State Warriors’ net rating during their 24-0 start last season was 15.7.

The depth of that margin, though, comes from their dominating defense, which Coach Doc Rivers sees as something that’s actually disheartening Clipper opponents.

“It kind of breaks the spirit on the other end on their defense because they can’t score and they’re thinking about scoring,” Rivers said. “It’s good. We’ve just got to keep doing it and keep getting better.”

Their intensity on the defensive end hasn’t wavered whether they’re leading by 10 or 30, so far, and the Clippers view this is as a positive sign. It’s something they consider to be the next step in their growth as a team.

Right now, though, the biggest gains have been in their ability to react to one another on the defensive end, to use the advantage of time together to shut down offenses.

“Knowing our system and knowing what we’re trying to take away, I think, is key on the defensive end. The improvisation part is just knowing who the next guy is, whoever is closest, knowing the rotation,” Griffin said. “We like to keep (DeAndre Jordan) near the hoop, but if it doesn’t work out like that, we’re just scrambling around. And, when we get a chance, we try to reset.

“I think it’s just trust.”

Contact the writer: dwoike@scng.com