The Clippers play their earliest game of the season thus far, challenging the New York Knicks on the road at a bleary-eyed 10:00 AM ET. Check out the full preview of the Clippers’ game against the scrappy Knicks below.
Game Information
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
When: 10:00 AM PT
How to Watch: Fox Sports Prime Ticket
Projected Starting Lineups
Clippers: Reggie Jackson – Paul George – Kawhi Leonard – Nicolas Batum – Serge Ibaka
Knicks: Elfrid Payton – Alec Burks – RJ Barrett – Julius Randle – Mitchell Robinson
Injuries
Clippers: Patrick Beverley Out (Knee), Nic Batum Questionable (Groin)
Knicks: Reggie Bullock Questionable (Neck)
The Big Picture
The surging Clippers have won 9 of their last 10 games, and have the second best record in the entire NBA behind the scorching hot Utah Jazz (winners of 11 straight). Despite missing Kawhi Leonard and Paul George for a couple games, and lacking Pat Beverley, the Clippers’ defense has continued to tighten, as they’ve risen from the 25th ranked defense after a handful of games to a very respectable 8th. As the Clippers have gotten more accustomed to each other and to the defensive schemes implemented by the new coaching staff, they’ve sharpened noticeably in rotations, switching, and being in the right positions on defense. Couple that with some dominant defensive performances from big man Ivica Zubac and you have a defense that looks as projected – one of the better defensive units in the NBA.
The Antagonist
The Knicks have gotten off to their best start in years under new coach Tom Thibodeau. They are playing harder, they’re playing smarter, and they’ve received a good mix of production from young guys and veterans. However, not to take anything away from the hard-fighting Knicks, but they’ve also gotten extremely lucky – teams are shooting well below expectations against them, especially on open threes, and their shot profile is pretty bad. Therefore, their 3rd ranked defense is going to tumble at some point, though they should still be a bit better than average on that end. On offense, they’re powered largely by Julius Randle, who’s having a monster season, and have received a lot of help from rookie point guard Immanuel Quickley (if only the Clippers could ever get production from their rookies!). The Knicks still don’t have enough shooting around Randle and RJ Barrett, and their forward situation is pretty dire, but this is still the most dangerous Knicks team that the NBA has seen since Carmelo Anthony left in 2017. They will fight for the play-in tournament, and they just might make it with how dire the bottom of the East is.
Notes
Ivica Turning Around: As mentioned above, one of the main reasons for the Clippers’ move up the ranks defensively is the improved play of backup center Ivica Zubac. After a woeful start to the season which had Clippers’ fans wondering if Zu was playing through an injury again, he has turned things around in a big way. For the season, he’s averaging 7.7 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 0.9 blocks in 18.8 minutes per game, and is shooting by far a career high from the field at 67.9% while also getting to the line more frequently and hitting his freebies at a career-high 83.3% rate. In short, he’s returned to the player he was last season, one of the more underrated young players in the NBA and a true starting-level center. He and Serge will face a test tonight in the Knicks’ defensively potent combo of Mitchell Robinson and Nerlens Noel, but Zu can hopefully acquit himself well once more.
Guarding Julius Randle: The biggest task for the Clippers will be stopping Julius Randle, who’s averaging an insane 22.2 points, 11.1 rebounds, and 6.0 assists per game (albeit in a hefty 36.6 minutes) while getting to the line nearly seven times per contest. He’s just been an absolute load to handle this season, leveraging his size, athleticism, and strength to bully his way to the basket repeatedly while an improved outside shot has warranted harder closeouts. While not a LeBron or Luka level passer, he’s still an excellent playmaker for a player of his size, and especially likes drive and kicks to open shooters as well as big to big assists to Robinson and Noel. Randle is so tough to guard because he’s a huge guy who moves with the speed and fluidity of a smaller player, but the Clippers have several good options to throw at him, especially Kawhi Leonard and Marcus Morris. If the Clippers can slow him down, they should be able to win the game.
Watch for Austin: Our old friend Austin Rivers has made quite an impact for the Knicks off the bench. We all know Austin is streaky, and he remains that way, but he’s had some scorching performances for the Knicks that have won them a couple basketball games. Austin is the Knicks’ 6th-leading scorer at just under 10 points per game, and leads the team with three-point makes with 27. It’s crazy that Austin was picked up so cheap (3 year, $10M deal with last two seasons non-guaranteed) when he’s a proven playoff performer and valuable veteran rotation guard, and he’s helped the Knicks a ton this year. The only downside is that the Madison Square Garden crowd hasn’t had a chance to watch Austin in person, because he has already turned into a fan favorite in the Big Apple. Good for Austin.
Blogging Buddies: For a Knicks-oriented perspective, check out our friends over at the Strickland. The Strickland was founded a few months ago by a bunch of other former SB Nation writers, and they do great work.
Well, that’s it for this preview of the Clippers’ early morning game against the Knicks. Stick around to talk about the game, and revel in watching Austin Rivers play basketball.