The Clippers have won three games in a row and are playing some of their best basketball of the season as they welcome the Bulls to Inglewood.
Game Information
Where: Intuit Dome, Inglewood, California
When: 7:30 PM PT
How to Watch: FanDuel Sports SoCal, AM 570
Projected Starting Lineups
Bulls: Josh Giddey – Matas Buzelis – Leonard Miller – Guerschon Yabusele – Jalen Smith
Clippers:Kris Dunn – Derrick Jones Jr. – Kobe Sanders – Kawhi Leonard – Brook Lopez
Injuries
Bulls: Noa Essengue Out (Shoulder), Zach Collins Out (Toe), Jaden Ivey Out (Knee), Anfernee Simons Questionable (Wrist), Collin Sexton Questionable (Leg), Isaac Okoro Questionable (Knee), Josh Giddey Probable (Ankle), Matas Buzelis Probable (Ankle), Guerschon Yabusele Questionable (Foot), Jalen Smith Questionable (Calf), Patrick Williams Questionable (Ankle)
Clippers: Darius Garland Out (Injury Management), Jonn Collins Out (Neck), Yanic Konan Niederhauser Out (Foot), Bradley Beal Out (Hip)
The Big Picture
The Clippers pulled out one of their best wins of the season on Wednesday, a wire-to-wire blowout of the Timberwolves. While the Clippers gave up a lot of points, a bunch of those came in garbage time – they mostly shut down the Wolves attack, and forced a truly insane number of turnovers. On offense, Kawhi Leonard spearheaded the attack with one of his best games of the season, receiving strong supporting performances from Darius Garland and Bennedict Mathurin. It was the kind of performance Clippers’ fans have become accustomed to over the past couple months, and featured a number of awesome dunks both in transition and in the halfcourt. The Wolves did not play well, but the Clippers looked awesome, and are now over .500 for the first time since they were 3-2 in October. What a turnaround this season has been.
The Antagonist
The Bulls are having yet another disappointing season stuck in the middle of the NBA: too good to be at the bottom of the tanking barrel and way too bad to do anything in the postseason. The Bulls finally leaned into the tank at the trade deadline, sending away Nik Vucevic, Coby White, and Ayo Dosunmu among others for a cadre of young guys and random vets, but it was too late, and they were too far behind teams like the Nets, Wizards, Jazz, and Kings in the lottery race. Still, they lost a lot of games in February, and if they keep losing, they should have solid odds, especially with the flattened lottery. However, the Bulls are doing their usual Bulls nonsense and winning games in March, which has kept them from sinking into potentially more favorable draft position. The only real bright spot on the roster is Matas Buzelis, who is having a pretty solid sophomore NBA season. Also, keep an eye out for Leonard Miller, who was a throw-in in the Ayo trade but has flashed real potential for the Bulls in the past handful of games.
Notes
Beware the Ides of Mickey Mouse March: The Bulls might be a below average team, but they are kings of Mickey Mouse March, especially Josh Giddey. They have a tendency to win games they shouldn’t in the month of March, ruining their draft pick odds in the process – and also upsetting fans of opposing teams that are trying to win. Classic Bulls. The Clippers have been locked in for a while now, and they can’t let up even a little bit against Chicago. Every game from here on out (until playoff standings are locked in one way or another) is a must-win, more or less, and this is an imminently winnable contest. Hopefully the Clippers can secure an easy W.
