The LA Clippers begin the final week of the regular season with a home game against their neighbors down the hall in the LA Lakers.
Game Information
Where: Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, CA
When: 7PM PT
How to Watch: Clippervision, Bally Sports SoCal, ESPN
Projected Starting Lineups
Clippers: Russell Westbrook – Norman Powell – Kawhi Leonard – Nicolas Batum – Ivica Zubac
Lakers: Dennis Schroder – Austin Reaves – LeBron James -Jarred Vanderbilt – Anthony Davis
Injury Report
Clippers: Paul George out (right knee), Eric Gordon questionable (right hip), Marcus Morris Sr. questionable (back).
Lakers: D’Angelo Russell questionable (foot), Mo Bamba questionable (ankle), Scotty Pippen Jr. out (ankle).
The Big Picture
With three games remaining in the regular season, the Clippers control their own destiny. Win all three and they guarantee themselves no worse than sixth place in the Western Conference and thus avoiding the play-in. Lose any of these upcoming games and things can get a little tricky.
Fortunately for the Clippers, they should have the advantage in these games, starting with the Lakers in a nationally televised game that has a lot more meaning than many would have thought about a month ago.
The first thing going for the Clippers is that they have dominated their head-to-head matchups against the Lakers for the past few seasons. The last time the Lakers beat the Clippers in a regular season game, Doc Rivers was still the head coach and they were in the bubble. The Lakers have not beaten the Clippers since Tyronn Lue has been the head coach.
The second thing the Clippers should have in their favor is being well-rested. They have not played since Sunday’s loss to the New Orleans Pelicans, while the Lakers are coming off the front end of a back-to-back in Utah in a game that went to overtime and saw key players play heavy minutes.
The third thing is the Lakers actually might not field a healthy roster. With the second game of a back-to-back, it’s a possibility that one or both of LeBron James and Anthony Davis sits out.
In any case, this is a game the Clippers cannot afford to lose. Every game becomes the ‘biggest game of the season’ with the possibility of slipping to the play-in hanging in the balance. Even with the status of Paul George yet to be determined, the Clippers are good enough to beat any given team in a single game. But why leave things to chance? The formula is simple, win out and they’re in. It starts against the Lakers.
The Antagonist
The Lakers have ended up as one of the most surprising teams in the league over the second half of the season. This was a team that was dead in the water not too long ago, and a second straight season of not even making the play-in tournament seemed like the expected outcome. Instead, they have done an about-face and have clinched at least a play-in appearance.
Coming into the game, the Lakers are currently in seventh place in the West. They have a lot hanging on the outcome of this game as well if they want to avoid the play-in. They hold the tie-breaker against the Golden State Warriors, who are currently in fifth, and a win would vault the Lakers into that spot.
It’s unclear though who will actually suit up for the Lakers. They too have rested players like LeBron James and Anthony Davis due to load management, and their last game against the Jazz didn’t quite end the way they would have wanted it too even though they got the win. Davis was forced to play 42 minutes with James coming close at 38.
Regardless of who suits up, there will be some tired legs on the court and the Clippers need to take full advantage of that. Young players who like to push the pace such as Terance Mann and Bones Hyland should be used properly. It’s possible the Lakers end up starting both James and Davis and depending on how the game goes, making an executive decision for the second half.
