The Clippers were even more short-handed than expected tonight against the Cavaliers. With both Paul George and Kawhi Leonard out for rest, the starting line up was: Terance Mann, Norman Powell, Amir Coffey, Nicolas Batum, and Ivica Zubac.
Updated Injury Report:
OUT: Reggie Jackson (achilles), Morris (ribs), George (rest), Leonard (rest), Covington (personal), and Wall (abdominal).
With Donovan Mitchell back on the lineup, the Cavaliers were ready to take care of business against the Clippers. See our recap below:
Summary
The Cavaliers doubled-up the Clippers in the first quarter, 31-15. Donovan Mitchell (9 in the quarter) established himself early and the Cavaliers shot 55% as a group. The Clippers struggled to find an offensive flow, shooting only 21% from the field and missing all nine of their first-quarter threes.
The second quarter was not much better. The Clippers lost the quarter by 14 and found themselves down by 35 at one point. Norman Powell led all scorers with 11 at half time, but that was a third of the Clippers’ total points. Notably, Mann and Batum only played nine and six minutes respectively in the first half, which suggests that Ty Lue did not want to chase this game.
The second half was slightly better for the Clippers, but only because the outcome was already decided. The Clippers won the second half 65-58 and lost 122-99. Batum, Kennard, and Powell never returned after half time and the bench-plus-G-League crew handled most of the remaining minutes.
Notes
Well, at least this happened: Boston and Coffey had season-highs in points. Brown had a season high in rebounds. And Preston set his career high in points with 12 (6/12 from the field).
Around the NBA: The Clippers are now 28-25. They went into the game as the fourth seed, but the standings will shift by the end of tomorrow’s slate of games. Here are the Clippers’ rooting interests for Monday:
- Nets over Lakers
- Thunder over Warriors
- Pistons over Mavericks
- Raptors over Suns
- Hawks over Trail Blazers
- Kings over Timberwolves (in my opinion, at least)
That about does it for this recap of the Clippers’ loss against the Cavs. As always, check out The Lob The Jam The Podcast and Clips ‘N Dip for analysis throughout the week, and follow us on Twitter to watch the game with us!
