The Clippers are coming off their worst loss of the road trip, but have the chance to turn things around against a Hornets team that is almost as bad as they are.
Game Information
Where: Spectrum Center, Charlotte, NC
When: 10:00 AM PT
How to Watch: FanDuel Sports SoCal, AM 570
Projected Starting Lineups
Clippers: James Harden – Kris Dunn – Kobe Sanders – John Collins – Ivica Zubac
Hornets: LaMelo Ball – Kon Knueppel – Brandon Miller – Miles Bridges – Ryan Kalkbrenner
Injuries
Clippers: Kawhi Leonard Out (Ankle), Bradley Beal Out (Hip), Derrick Jones Jr. Out (Knee), Jordan Miller Out (Hamstring)
Hornets: Josh Green Out (Shoulder), Grant Williams Out (Knee), Tre Mann Questionable (Ankle), Sion James Probable (Groin)
The Big Picture
After a few encouraging-ish performances, the Clippers fell back down to earth, hard, on Thursday night against the Magic. They gave the ball away non-stop, did not get back in transition, and just generally lacked the fight to compete with the hard-playing Magic. The result was a blowout, with the Clippers playing the deep bench most of the 4th quarter. The Clippers are now 4-11, and are 25th in the league in Net Rating with the 22nd ranked offense and 24th ranked defense. The sample size is getting larger and larger, and the Clippers are not really getting much better. Even if the return of Kawhi does help a lot on both ends, by the time he returns it will probably be too late. This is grim.
The Antagonist
While they have the same record as the Clips, the Hornets are slightly better than the Clippers on both ends, ranking 20th on offense and 23rd on defense. Their future, however, is much brighter, largely due to the play of rookie Kon Knueppel, who is currently the frontrunner for Rookie of the Year. Kon is averaging 18.3 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 3.0 assists while shooting 47.3% from the field, 40.3% from three (8.3 attempts), and 88.6% from the line (2.3 attempts). We all knew the shooting would be there, but the defense, playmaking, and creation are all way ahead of schedule. Outside of that, Brandon Miller is coming back as well, giving the Hornets further firepower and shooting. The Hornets aren’t good, but they are dangerous and have gotten better center play than expected from rookie Kalkbrenner and former Clipper Moussa Diabate.
Notes
Yanic Enters the Fray: With the Clippers looking lifeless in the 3rd quarter, Ty Lue turned to rookie big man Yanic Konan Niederhauser instead of struggling veteran Brook Lopez. Yanic played ok in his minutes, though it’s hard to have much judgment considering it was basically garbage time. As someone who was not a huge fan of YKN as a draft pick, I still think Ty going to him was justified. Brook has provided some shooting on offense, which is helpful, but his sheer inability to move has made him a negative defender, rebounder, and connective piece. There is value in his shooting and his general knowhow, especially when defending at the rim, but the Clippers need life, energy, and athleticism, and it makes sense to give Yanic a try. It could be a disaster (both Cam Christie and Kobe Sanders have had truly awful performances a couple of times when given big minutes amid their solid outings) but I think allowing Yanic to fail for a few games can’t hurt at this point.
Where’s the D(efense): The Clippers have seemingly infinite issues, but the big item looming over this season is the Clippers’ failing defense. I’ve written about this in like 50% of the previews, but the defense remains almost inexplicably bad. Nearly everyone on the team has stepped back on defense, from Ivica Zubac and Kris Dunn to James Harden. The combo of Brook being washed and Zu not being a defensive beast is the largest factor in the defense slipping, but the team’s overall inattention to detail and lack of physicality has been alarming. We are close to this being who the team is on defense, and if that’s the case, this team is doomed.