Clippers Drop to 6th with 122-114 Loss to Pelicans

The Clippers fought hard, but ultimately the Pelicans were just better than the Clips, beating them 122-114 behind 36 points from Brandon Ingram.

Summary

The Clippers started of the game playing fairly well, with good ball movement and solid defense. Russell Westbrook was the key catalyst early, including hitting two catch-and-shoot threes, though Norm Powell missed several wide open attempts. The Clippers started to nurture a bit of a lead by attacking he rim, though they couldn’t quite push it to double-digits. Ty rode the starters, who were playing well, for a while, with the first sub being Terance at the 3:17 mark for Russ with the Clippers up 9. A minute later, RoCo, Bones, and Mason Plumlee entered with Kawhi as the lone starter. The mostly-bench unit continued to play well, and the Clippers entered the second quarter up 31-21 after a tough Ingram midrange jumper.

Russell Westbrook subbed back for Kawhi as the staggered starter. The Clippers’ offense remained ok despite some missed shots, but a series of fouls early got the Clippers in the bonus, with Bones and Plumlee being attacked on defense. Norm checked back in quickly for Bones, and the Clippers’ defense stabilized, but the fouls did not let up (with some iffy ones), so despite strong overall defense, the Pelicans kept up the pressure. Kawhi checked back in for Mann at the 7:51 mark with he Clippers up five, and Zubac came back for Plumlee two minutes later wit the Clippers up six. However, Zu’s 3^rd foul brought Plumlee back with the Clips up 49-43 and 3:37 to go, and the Pelicans pushed. They were helped by some bad Clippers’ offense, and the Pels took a quick lead before a Plumlee putback gave the Clippers a 56-55 edge entering halftime. The story for the Clippers was 19 points (efficiently) and five assists to zero turnovers for Russ, and a 16-8 foul disparity in favor of the Pelicans.

The third quarter started with a different energy, as Kawhi Leonard upped his aggression significantly. On the other end, Jonas Valanciunas attacked Zu, who couldn’t play as physical defensively with three fouls. The Clippers were able to hang ahead in a game with little rhythm due to foul calls. Then, Russ picked up his 4^th foul at the 6:30 mark, and was left in. The Pelicans went at him twice in a row for easy scores, getting them within one. Mann checked in, and the seesaw continued, with Norm getting some offense going at the rim but Ingram cooking on the other end. Bones came in for Nico at the 3:41 mark with the Clippers up one, and both offenses got going with lesser defenders in the game. The Clippers’ 3^rd sub didn’t come until 49 seconds left when Zu picked up his 4^th foul and Plumlee came in. After three, the Pelicans led 91-90.

RoCo and Russ checked in for Norm and Kawhi, and the Pelicans seized control, going on an 8-2 run that gave them a seven-point edge. Kawhi checked back in for RoCo, and a quick Clippers 5-0 spurt got them right back into things. However, the Clippers were never able to break through. Their offense was ok, if extremely Kawhi-centric, but their lineups, first with Bones and Plumlee out there next to Russ, and then Norm and Zu in for those two, could not get stops. Ingram sizzled, even against good defense, and Valanciunas gobbled up offensive rebounds as needed. Despite some Kawhi heroics, it never felt like the Clippers were going to win, and the Pelicans won 122-114 in a game that wasn’t quite as close as the box score.

Notes

Norm Struggles: Most of the Clippers outside of Kawhi, Zu, and Russ (first half) were ineffective, but none were probably as actively harmful as Norm Powell, whose team-high +7 is mostly because he played next to Kawhi and Zu nearly all game. Norm scored 12 points on 9 shots, which isn’t awful efficiency, but with Paul George and Eric Gordon out, the Clippers needed a lot more from him on offense. He had five rebounds in 32 minutes, but also gave away six backbreaking turnovers (the Clippers only had 13 total) and didn’t play well on defense. I understand why Ty Lue wanted him out there, but he really shouldn’t have closed this one out. It’s tough to come back from nearly a month out and play great on a team in a tough spot, but that’s what the Clippers needed from Norm, and he couldn’t deliver.

The Power Forward Spot: I see lots of complaining about Nic Batum and Robert Covington in this one, and I’m not sure why. Yes, they scored only six points between them on 2-6 shooting, but they’re not out there to create offense. The Pelicans by and large played them well, especially Nico, and they didn’t get many open looks (RoCo missed one, made one). But both Nico and RoCo played good defense, and were not the reason why this team lost. If anything, one of them probably should have been in to close to add more size and length on defense instead of one of the guards. The Clippers are old and slow in the frontcourt, and that applies to Nic and RoCo too – certainly, neither are perfect players. But they are not shot creators, so complaining about them not shooting more when they need to be set up seems odd – that’s a failure of the overall offense not getting open looks, not on those guys. If there’s an issue in the frontcourt right now, with Morris out, it’s Plumlee, who is providing nothing defensively at the rim.

Kawhi Greatness: The Clippers lost, but Kawhi Leonard was magnificent, scoring 40 points on 15-28 shooting with eight rebounds and four assists in 41 minutes. He played great defense, though it didn’t always matter against Ingram. For as frustrating as the Clippers have been, it’s tough to completely rule them out of anything with Kawhi playing at this level.

Standings Watch: This loss means the Lakers game on Wednesday is paramount. The Clippers, Pelicans, and Lakers all have 38 losses, so getting that extra win over the Lakers would be huge. The Clippers’ last two games are against the Blazers (auto win with their tanking) and Suns (who should probably have nothing left to play for by then), so if they win out, they lock themselves into a top-7 seed and a good shot at top-6. If they lose to the Lakers, a finish at 8 or lower becomes possible. Avoiding the play-in is of the utmost importance, and the Clippers can no longer control their fate – if the Pelicans and Warriors win out, the Clippers will be 7^th or lower. Still, Wednesday’s game is hugely important, and the Clippers should root against everyone else 5^th to 11^th in the West standings, with particular focus on the Warriors, Pelicans, Lakers, and Timberwolves.