Comments on: Clippers vs Rockets Game Thread: Run it Back

By: Thretch

Thretch — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 16:36:57 +0000

Not sure Banton takes minutes from anyone. Mostly a “Break-glass” roster player, particularly with Garland unavailable. But he’s last on the list. I like him, but not even sure he’ll get a 2nd 10-day contract.

I Jackson? I don’t remember ever seeing him play. Bu it’s nice to have another big on the roster. Don’t think he’ll take YKN’s minutes … but if Brook gets hurt we’ll need Jax.

By: John Maclean

John Maclean — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 08:41:55 +0000

How about we just throw caution to the wind against Denver with Brook and everyone else launching threes? If it works we can try to steal one. But if it backfires and we’re getting buried in the 3rd, then rest everyone to help keep Denver fresh to take out Portland the following night. A Wash.

I think that with a healthy DJ and KD, and a motivated Kawhi, we can out-hustle the Lakers with a modicum of energy/effort. They just aren’t very tough.

Ty showed some mastery of minutes management (alliteration intentional) in the Houston mini series before the break so perhaps he will figure out how to play this b2b to minimize damage to seeding. He’s clever at this type of thing.

This is the most fun stretch of the NBA season so really looking forward to the action no matter how it plays out for us.

By: Oodypkt

Oodypkt — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 04:14:12 +0000

And it might be funny if Kawhi leads us into the playoffs, eliminate some top seeds and get bounced out in the 2nd round anyway, as is our tradition. Then, in the offseason some contenders comes knocking on our door to try to get him, and that team is actually OKC. 🙂
It’s poetic if he has to pair with SGA anyway, be it 7 years later.
If we get offered young stud like one of J-Dub, Chet or Cason+I-Hart, with picks, including our FRPs back. We would take it.
OKC don’t need to do that, I get it. But If they get bounced out and end it badly this year, anything is possible.

By: khyber jones

khyber jones — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 03:31:36 +0000

I an interested to see if I-Jax and Banton have some real game, but if they don’t feature into the team’s plans, then I don’t want them taking minutes from YKN, Sanders, Miller, Christie.

By: khyber jones

khyber jones — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 03:30:43 +0000

Kawhi knows that without Zu and James we’re not a top 10 offense (as we had been prior to the trade). Unless the young guns show some rapid growth and Mathurin finds the best version of himself playing next to the best player he’s ever played with, then this is not a great team. It’s a team that can go into the first round just based on Kawhi, but they’re not getting past the #1 or #2 seeds in the west.

The team we had last year and the team we had prior to the trade deadline could’ve competed with those 2 teams and had a puncher’s chance to win.

By: Oodypkt

Oodypkt — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 03:19:10 +0000

We will have blended-in period for Ben/I-Jax in the next couple weeks before DG comes back. This might turn out to be a blessing in disguise when looking back. I actually dream of quirky line-up like Ben-Sanders-Miller-DJJ-Kawhi to throw some curve balls to team.
If garland comes back in the early March and need a couple more weeks to adapt, we are looking at around 8-10 games to finish the season, if healthy, with everyone going full steam.

By: Oodypkt

Oodypkt — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 03:07:00 +0000

Happy for him.
Hope he establish himself as a main rotational guys going forward.
Let’s see.

By: osamu6238

osamu6238 — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 02:56:10 +0000

It’s sad to see how Kawhi has talked on occasion that the Clippers aren’t contenders, and how they did a “180” at the deadline. Feels like he thought they maybe were turning a corner and was surprised they were “sellers”.

While, yes realistically they’re not contenders, I think still a lot of room to surprise some teams down the stretch. While OKC is still obviously the far favorite, they aren’t nearly the wagon they were last season due to injury. No one else in the west is really separating themselves. Should we really think the Spurs are the 2nd best team and will make it to the WCF during their first playoff run since they had LaMarcus Aldridge, Demar Derozan, and Derrick White. Denver is always a contender, but haven’t been as dominant and I think have the toughest remaining schedule. Houston feels like they’ve been inconsistent at best, and have some drama to deal with.

Just feels like besides OKC, the west is pretty open. OKC just takes some injury luck and who knows what would happen. I understand the Clippers probably have been ready for their next chapter for the last few seasons, but just sad that they lost 2 of their best players when they were playing their best basketball.

By: mlslaw1

mlslaw1 — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 02:34:52 +0000

So we have Jokic tom and then the Lakes on a B2B while Den travels to a team, the Blazers, who we are fighting with for position. On the face of it, it looks like 2 Ls for us and a W for the Blazers taking advantage of a soon to be tired Den who will fite like hell to take us down. That’s what it feels “on the face of it.” But, looking a lil deeper—we are home for both games and we are or should be well rested from the AS break.

The other way to look at this game with Den is that, even with Zu, I always thot Joker would school him — much the way Luka schooled him — and we’d succomb. Seems like it went that way a lot. But now we’ve got a revamped team and I just don’t see how Joker would dominate BY (aka Brook Yanik) any worse than he did Zu. As to Y, just don’t get faked out of the gym and give him a clear, easy path. Make him work with your leaping ability and youth. And I think we hang in both these games—a lot of smothering D, steals, some good shooters (Kawhi, Collins, and the rest if they’re on) and real depth. Murray is the guy who we have to limit to some extent—don’t let him go off.

I think they’re gettable without Gordon.

By: JCplusULTRA

JCplusULTRA — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 22:27:47 +0000

Jordan Miller officially signed. I hope he got more than the min. Hopefully he got all the cap space available.