The Clippers have put together two wins in a row but they cannot overlook the Houston Rockets tonight. Although the Rockets are the worst team in the league, the Clippers need to finish these last two games strong if they still want the third seed. A good first step towards having a focused game and an early blow-out would be fixing the turnover issues from the last few games. Check out a full preview of the Clippers’ game against the Rockets below.
Game Information
Where: Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
When: 6pm PT
How to Watch: Bally Sports SoCal
Projected Starting Lineups
Clippers: Reggie Jackson – Paul George – Kawhi Leonard – Marcus Morris – Ivica Zubac
Rockets: DJ Augustin – Khyri Thomas – Jea’Sean Tate – Kenyon Martin, Jr. – Kelly Olynyk
Injuries
Clippers: Amir Coffey – OUT (Health and Safety Protocols), Serge Ibaka – QUESTIONABLE (Lower Back Tightness), Kawhi Leonard OUT (Rest), Paul George OUT (Rest), Pat Beverley OUT (Rest), Terance Mann OUT (Personal), Reggie Jackson DOUBTFUL (Sore Right Achilles)
Rockets: Daniel House, Jr. – DOUBTFUL (Sore Ankle), Christian Wood – DOUBTFUL (Sore Ankle), Kevin Porter, Jr. – DOUBTFUL (Sprained Ankle), John Wall – OUT (hamstring)
The Big Picture
The Clippers are first in the league in three point percentage (41.6%); the Rockets are 28th (34%). The Clippers also lead the league in free throw percentage (83.9%); the Rockets are 27th (74%). Field goal percentage: Clippers, fifth, 48.3% vs. Rockets, 28th, 44.4%. Net rating: Clippers, second, 6.5 vs. Rockets, 27th, -7.3.
The point is that the Clippers are the far superior team. What’s more, the Rockets seem to be playing an eight-man lineup in recent weeks, with several guys playing 35+ minutes per game. John Wall, who had a pretty good game against the Clippers in their last matchup, is out due to a hamstring injury, so the Rockets are missing their only player who is liable to go off. The Clippers should be able to overwhelm the Rockets early and then hold them off with ease. Should.
The Antagonist
With that said, this is the NBA – bad teams beat good teams every night. If the Clippers want to avoid disaster, they need to clean up their turnover issues, which have been a big problem recently.
The Lakers – who were without their star players, to be fair – almost lost to this Rockets team just two days ago. Olynyk, specifically, is a pretty good player who can create matchup problems because he plays “center” but run around the perimeter on offense (and he only has two more games to try and beef up his free agent resume). And the Martin-Tate-Wood-Porter grouping (if healthy) can wreak havoc with their athleticism and energy. This could easily turn into a trap game, if the Clippers are not focused and sharp.
Notes
Will Serge Ibaka return? According to Ty Lue, the Clippers might welcome Serge back to the lineup tonight against the Rockets. What that will look like is beyond me, but now is better than never. Hopefully the Clippers can build an early lead to Serge can get out there and test out his back.
Turnover Issues: The Clippers had 17 turnovers last night against the Hornets; 16 against the Raptors; 22 against the Lakers; and 18 against the Raptors last week. The Clippers are generally an above-average team in respect to protecting the ball, but the turnover issues recently have been concerning. Let’s hope that the Clippers tighten it up tonight because it is not a light-switch they can flick when the playoffs start.
That about does it for this preview of the Clippers’ game against the Rockets. Comment below to give your thoughts on the game!