The Clippers pulled off an incredible road win on Sunday night and will face another challenging road game against the Rockets.
Game Information
Where: Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
When: 5:00 PM PT
How to Watch: NBA TV, FanDuel Sports SoCal, AM 570
Projected Starting Lineups
Clippers: Kris Dunn – Derrick Jones Jr. – Kawhi Leonard – John Collins – Brook Lopez
Rockets: Reed Sheppard – Amen Thompson – Jabari Smith Jr. – Kevin Durant – Alperen Sengun
Injuries
Clippers: Darius Garland Out (Toe), Bradley Beal Out (Hip)
Rockets: Fred VanVleet Out (Knee), Steven Adams Out (Ankle)
The Big Picture
The Clippers pulled off probably their most shocking win of the entire season on Sunday, routing the Wolves on the road in Minneapolis. Kawhi Leonard was absolutely dominant, as he has been for two months, John Collins was very solid, Kris Dunn played great defense on Anthony Edwards, and the Clippers got just enough scoring from the supporting cast to stay ahead of the Wolves. The Clippers’ defense was particularly impressive in limiting the Wolves’ attack, continuing their recent trend of improved play on that end. They won’t always be so good in their execution, but their level of effort alone will keep them winning games if they keep up what they’ve been doing.
The Antagonist
The Rockets are somewhat similar to the Clippers’ previous opponent, the Timberwolves, in that they have a very impressive record (32-19) and strong advanced metrics but are much worse than that in the vibes department. There have been a number of instances over the past month or so where coach Ime Udoka has been frustrated with his team, and a similar number of occurrences of the players being frustrated with each other. The Rockets are just an odd team that reshaped itself around offensive rebounding after the preseason injury to Fred VanVleet, but has lost that element with the season-ending injury to Steven Adams. The Rockets have a lot of talent, but the lack of shooting on the roster outside of Kevin Durant and Reed Sheppard has been glaring, as has the absence of a steady ballhandler. Their defense is legit, and Durant and Sengun are a good one-two punch, but the Rockets don’t seem like they have the firepower to be a true contender this year.
Notes
Reinforcements Are Here: Bennedict Mathurin and Isaiah Jackson will be active for the Clippers tonight for the first time. I don’t think that Jackson will be in the rotation (Brook is locked in as the starter and Yanic is playing too well as his backup), but we should get a long look at the Mathurin. My guess is that Mathurin comes off the bench for the Clippers, at least initially, but it wouldn’t be shocking if he started and Derrick Jones Jr. moved back to the bench. Mathurin has real flaws as a playmaker, defender, and decision-maker, but his raw scoring ability is needed on a Clippers team that has lacked juice on offense for much of the season. I would expect 20+ minutes for Mathurin right away, with Dunn, Kobe Sanders, and Jordan Miller all probably shedding a few minutes and Cam Christie probably leaving the rotation. I’m curious to see how Mathurin looks on a new team.
Rebound the Ball: The Rockets are not quite the offensive rebounding juggernaut the way they were earlier in the season when Steven Adams was starting, but they are still very good at collecting their own misses. They have size, length, and athleticism, and can dominate games on that end. The Clippers are a fine defensive rebounding team but will need to really hone in on the glass – if you force the Rockets into just a single shot, they aren’t going to generate a ton of good offense.
