The Clippers have won six games in a row, but will face a pretty tough challenge in continuing their streak in a back-to-back on the road in Chicago against a competent Bulls team.
Game Information
Where: United Center, Chicago, Illinois
When: 5:00 PM PT
How to Watch: FanDuel Sports SoCal, AM 570
Projected Starting Lineups
Clippers: James Harden – Kris Dunn – Kobe Sanders – John Collins – Ivica Zubac
Bulls: Coby White – Isaac Okoro – Matas Buzelis – Jalen Smith – Nikola Vucevic
Injuries
Clippers: Kawhi Leonard Out (Knee), Derrick Jones Jr. Out (Knee), Bogdan Bogdanovic Out (Hamstring), Bradley Beal Out (Hip), Chris Paul Out (Not with team)
Bulls: Noa Essengue Out (Shoulder), Zach Collins Out (Toe), Josh Giddey Questionable (Hamstring), Patrick Williams Questionable (Ankle)
The Big Picture
The Clippers have won six games in a row, making them officially the hottest team in the NBA. Most of their wins in that stretch have been ugly, and last night’s game was certainly no different. A monster James Harden performance plus just enough from role players was able to get the Clippers over the finish line against the Wizards, but that level of play will not suffice against better teams. On the other hand, with so much talent out due to injury, it’s fair to question how much more the Clippers can really muster with the guys they have on hand. As long as they play hard, and with energy, and get star-level outings from Harden, they should at least be able to compete, and that’s all you ask for until Kawhi returns.
The Antagonist
The Bulls have significantly outperformed their advanced metrics this year, as their -3.0 Net Rating would indicate a fairly bad team and the Bulls are 20-22. The reason for the discrepancy (similar to the Lakers) is simple: the Bulls have won a lot of clutch games. The result is another season of mediocrity, with the Bulls once again seeming destined for the play-in tournament. Even worse, the Bulls have done their “winning” largely on the back of veterans without much upside or that will stick long-term with the team: Nikola Vucevic, Zach Collins, Kevin Huerter, Coby White, Ayo Dosunmu, Dalen Terry, and Jevon Carter are all heading into free agency this summer. Meanwhile, rookie lottery pick Noa Essengue played just six minutes before undergoing season-ending shoulder surgery. Josh Giddey (solidified as a decent starter) and Matas Buzelis (nice improvement in his sophomore campaign) are the only long-term building blocks, and that’s not exactly the most promising core. The Bulls are decent, and fun enough to watch, but this feels like the definition of a gap season.
Notes
More from Zu: I continue to think this has been a disappointing season from Ivica Zubac. Zu’s raw stats are only down a bit: his raw performance numbers are still quite good. But he just hasn’t seemed as forceful this year as last, and the number of truly dominant performances is way down. Zu has had plenty of 14 and 10, 12 and 8, and 15 and 11 type games, and that’s good starting center level play. But last year Zu got All-Star and All-NBA buzz for a reason, and it was for exceptional two-way play he has not unlocked this year. Zu’s defense, in particular, does not seem as impactful to me (advanced stats and the Clippers’ overall dip on defense bear this out). The Clippers will need Kawhi to get healthy to make a push for the postseason, but if they want to actually make any noise they need the Zu of last year to show himself more consistently.
