The one team’s hot run had to end on Monday night, and it turned out to the Clippers’. The Cavaliers narrowly outpaced the Clippers all game but took control in the fourth quarter. Despite a late Clippers’ push, they fell to the Cavs, 118-108.

Summary

Kawhi Leonard was fantastic, once again. He finished the game with 30 points on 13/25 shooting, eight rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Unfortunately, though, none of his fellow front men showed up: Paul George and James Harden combined to go 6/19, collectively scoring fewer than Kawhi by himself (23).

The Clippers’ lack of size hurt them; not only are they down Ivica Zubac, but they also elected to play small. As a result, the Cavaliers’ big men showed out: Evan Mobley had an efficient 10 points (on 5/7 shooting) and nine rebounds and Jarrett Allen had 20 points, 17 rebounds, and was +11 in a game that the Cavs won by just ten.

Neither team shot particular well; the free throws and turnovers were even; and both teams only had one player in significant foul trouble. The difference in this Clippers-Cavaliers game was Cleveland’s six more shot attempts, a product of winning the offensive rebounding category by five.

Notes

Paul George, Take a Break: Paul George has been limited in respect to production and availability since he re-aggravated his groin. Moreover, after the game, Ty Lue said that he has been playing through pain. With the Wizards and Pistons next up on the road trip, the Clippers ought to consider resting George to fully address this injury before it gets worse. [To be clear, I am not saying the Clippers’ can take those games lightly overall.]

Standings Watch: The Clippers have already dropped from the third seed to the fourth; with a win tonight, they would have been tied with the Nuggets for the second seed. Overall, the Clippers did get a gift with the Timberwolves vs. Thunder game: one team had to pick up a loss, thankfully (if only they both could have lost). That game resulted in the Thunder dropping to 15 losses. Unfortunately, the Bucks could not beat the Nuggets, so they stayed at 15 losses as well. The top of the West is very crowded.

Clippers fall to crusading Cavaliers, 118-108
Kenneth Armstrong

The Clippers’ Grammys trip continues on in Cleveland, as the Clippers visit the likewise-hot Cavaliers. Check out our preview below:

Game Summary

Where: Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, Cleveland, Ohio

When: 4:00 PM PT

How to Watch: Bally Sports SoCal, AM 570

Projected Starting Lineups

Clippers: James Harden – Paul George – Terance Mann – Kawhi Leonard – Ivica Zubac

Cavaliers: Donavan Mitchell – Max Strus – Issac Okoro – Dean Wade – Jarrett Allen

Injuries

Clippers: Paul George, Probable (Groin); Ivica Zubac, Out (Calf); Moussa Diabate Out (Hand); Jordan Miller, Doubtful (Achilles)

Cavaliers: Evan Mobley, Out (Knee); Darius Garland, Out (Jaw); Ty Jerome, Out (Ankle)

The Big Picture

The Clippers took care of business in Boston with surprising dominance. Most teams go into the second game of a road back-to-back with an excuse in their back pocket: it’s just a schedule loss; it’s OK if we do not have it tonight. Well, the Clippers did not adopt that mentality; instead, they punched first (and second and third) while keeping everyone under 30 minutes.

The Clippers will need those legs against this Cavaliers team, but they do have a talent advantage. The Cavaliers will be without Even Mobley and Darius Garland—two of their best players. Moreover, Cleveland does not have a clear set of individual defenders who can take on Harden, George, or (especially) Kawhi.

The Antagonist

The Cavaliers are rolling right now: They have won nine of their last ten, are 15-8 at home (the Clippers are just 11-10 on the road), and have beaten the Bucks twice in the last two weeks. Moreover, their team defense is third overall over the course of the season and they are obviously not missing Mobley and Garland too much over the last few weeks. With a home court and pretty big rest advantage, the Cavaliers will be a tough opponent.

Notes

Standings Watch: The Clippers got a massive assist from the Detroit Pistons, who beat the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday. That means, going into Monday’s slate of games, the Clippers are tied with the Thunder and Timberwolves in the loss column (14 losses each). Because the Clippers have played two fewer games than both of those teams, LA is still one game back overall, putting them in the third seed. Moreover, the Clipper do not have much space behind them, as the Nuggets are just a half-game back in the fourth seed. While the Clippers have been on an incredible run, they still have a lot of work to do to cement themselves as a lock for a top-two seed. Oh, and hopefully this is a reminder not to take the Piston lightly when they see them this trip.

VIBES: One cliche that comes up every year is the idea that road trips are an opportunity to build “chemistry.” The Clippers clearly have chemistry on the court, but hopefully they are getting an opportunity to have fun and build friendships. Although things have gone well so far, it is undeniable that James Harden and Russell Westbrook have been prickly (to put it charitably) in other situations. Keeping things light and collaborative will be important for when the Clippers inevitably hit a rough patch in the second half of the season.

Clippers vs. Cavaliers Game Preview
Kenneth Armstrong

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!

Resting Clippers fall to Cavaliers, 122-99
Kenneth Armstrong

The Clippers play the second game of this back-to-back in Cleveland after beating the Hawks in Atlanta to increase their win steak to five. Today, they will try to get to six with a win over the Cavaliers. Check out our preview below:

Game Information

Where: Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, Cleveland, OH

When: 4:00 PM PT

How to Watch: ClipperVision, Bally Sports SoCal

How to Listen: AM 570 KLAC

Projected Starting Lineups

Clippers: Terance Mann – Luke Kennard – Paul George – Nicolas Batum – Ivica Zubac

Cavaliers: Darius Garland – Caris LeVert – Isaac Okoro – Evan Mobley – Jarrett Allen

Injuries

Clippers: 
QUESTIONABLE – Marcus Morris, Sr. (ribs); Robert Covington (personal)

OUT – Kawhi Leonard (rest); John Wall (abdominal); Brandon Boston Jr (G-League); Moses Brown (G-League); Jason Preston Out (G-League)

Cavaliers:
QUESTIONABLE – Donovan Mitchell (groin); Kevin Love (back)

OUT – Dylan Windler (ankle)

The Big Picture

Although the Cavaliers will have home court and rest advantages, they are coming off of a three-game, three-state road trip, so those advantages will be somewhat blunted. Donovan Mitchell may be out once again as well, as he has missed five of the last six games for the Cavs and is listed as questionable.

In respect to matchups, the Cavs will have the upper hand in the front court (which we’ll discuss more below), but the Clippers have superior wings and can hold their own at the guard spots. Terance Mann will try to stick Darius Garland, while the Cavs will struggle to find someone to take on Paul George.

The Antagonist

On the other hand, the Cavs’ front court is among the best in the league. Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen are All Star caliber bigs who are effective on both ends. Of course, one of the Clippers’ greatest weaknesses is their lack of big-man depth. Ivica Zubac will have his hands full on the boards and trying to defend pick-and-roll actions. This disadvantage will be amplified if Covington, Morris, and Kawhi are not available.

Cleveland also has the second best plus-minus in the league, the second best defensive rating, and are a league best in points allowed. If Kawhi sits as expected, the Clippers will have their hands full, even if Mitchell is unavailable.

Notes

Paul George’s Big Run: Over the last five games, Paul George is averaging 24.4 points, 5.8 rebounds, 6.6 assists, and 1.2 steals in 35 minutes on 55.6/43.8/90 splits. He has looked explosive and aggressive. Really, if he could lower his 2.2 turnovers per game, he would see his 12.8 plus-minus swell, given that so many of his turnovers are live-ball giveaways that lead to fast breaks for opposing teams.

Moussa Diabate Check-In: With Moses Brown pushing up against his 50-game cap, Diabate has been getting spot minutes on the main roster. Sometimes they do not come until garbage time, but he has been given a few opportunities with the core rotation. So far, this month, he has appeared in five games, playing an average of 8.3 minutes. He is shooting 28.6% from the field, is only grabbing 1.4 rebounds, and is a -4.8 plus-minus. His defense has also been an issue, prompting Ty Lue to sit him in the second half against the Hawks after giving him first half minutes. Diabate has a future with this team, but these last few games has quelled the notion that he could be the Clippers’ fix for the backup center position right now.

That about does it for this preview of the Clippers’ upcoming game 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!

Clippers vs. Cavaliers Game Preview: Make it 6?
Kenneth Armstrong

The LA Clippers beat the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday night in what ended up being their best game of this young season. Paul George—the reigning Player of the Week—put up 26 points on 10/20 shooting from the field (5/11 from the three) with 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and a steal in 40 minutes.

In our preview, we noted that the Clippers might be (even more) short handed than normal. But Reggie Jackson did in fact start despite his thigh/patella contusion and Luke Kennard came off the bench after missing a game and a half due to chest discomfort.

Check out our recap below:

Summary

Both teams came out on fire: through 12 minutes, the Clippers were shooting 52% from the field (53% from three) and the Cavaliers were at 67% (56% from three). The Clippers were led by—who else?—Paul George, who had 11 first quarter points, while the Cavs were led by Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley (14 and 12 respectively). Neither team was playing particularly tight defense, evidenced by the fact that there were only two total fouls called in the first quarter.

Despite their sharp shooting, the Clippers carried a six point deficit into the second quarter. But the Cavs’ biggest lead to that point was 12, and the Clippers’ continued to fight back, eventually evening up the score at 64 by halftime. Paul George ended the half with 18 points, and Mitchell and Mobley had 16 each.

Both teams slowed down a bit in the third quarter, as the Clippers barely edged out the Cavs, beating them 24-23. Paul George’s jump shots were not not falling at the same rate, but Marcus Morris, Sr. (who finished with 20 points), Reggie Jackson (18 on the night), and Mann (16) all helped keep the Clippers afloat.

The four quarter was a rollercoaster. The Clippers won the quarter by 1 point, but it took a 19-5 run in the final 4:37 to secure the win. Norm Powell tied it up with just over one minute to go, Paul George put the Clippers ahead about 20 second later, and then they were able to survive the foul-and-free-throw possessions to win the game by two.

Notes

Another Positive Norm Powell Game: Norm had an efficient 17 points (5/6 from the field; 6/7 from the FT line) and two steals in 28 minutes. Moreover, as noted above, he had two of the biggest shots of the game. Not only did he tie the game on a driving lay up, but he also hit a three with 8:46 to go that kept the Clippers within two possessions and made six free throws in the fourth quarter.

Paul George’s Team?: Much of the Clippers Nation discourse, understandably, revolves around Kawhi Leonard and his availability. But what Paul George has brought to the team over the last five games has been incredible and justifiably celebrated. After his stellar play last year (before he got hurt) and his recent production, though, it will be interesting to see if the Clippers have made a permanent shift to a PG-led team, instead of a Kawhi-led team. We won’t know the answer until Kawhi comes back and gets reintegrated but it is becoming increasingly clear that PG is still a superstar who should not see his usage diminished at all—even when Kawhi is 100% healthy. PG might not be the “clear number 2” after all.

That about does it for this recap of the Clippers’ game 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!

Clippers Upset Cavaliers in Thriller, 119-117
Kenneth Armstrong

The LA Clippers will face the Cleveland Cavaliers in LA on Monday night, coming off a loss against the Jazz on Sunday. Check out our preview below:

Game Information

Where: Staples Center, Los Angeles, CA

When: 7:30 PM PT

How to Watch: NBA TV

Projected Starting Lineups

Clippers: Reggie Jackson* – Terance Mann – Paul George – Marcus Morris, Sr. – Ivica Zubac

Cavaliers: Darius Garland – Donovan Mitchell – Caris LeVert – Evan Mobley – Jarrett Allen

Injuries

Clippers: *Reggie Jackson, questionable (knee); John Wall, questionable (rest); Luke Kennard, questionable (chest); Kawhi Leonard, out (knee injury management)

Cavaliers: Ricky Rubio, out (knee); Dylan Windler, out (ankle)

The Big Picture

This will be a back-to-back for both teams, though the Cavaliers will have a seven-or-so hour rest advantage. But the Clippers have started to find more consistency by embracing Paul George as the tip of the spear, Ivica Zubac as a 30mpg anchor, and Luke Kennard taking on a larger role.

Moreover, even with all of the Cavaliers’ defensive length in the front court, they still do not have a wing who can guard Paul George on a possession-by-possession basis. If Paul George can keep up his stellar play, the Clippers will have an opportunity to force the Cavaliers to make decisions about their rotations. Although the Clippers’ season has been a rollercoaster, what is still true is that George is an elite scorer who can change the landscape of a game.

Finally, the Cavs’ supporting cast does not particularly inspire fear. They only played three reserves more than 10 minutes on Saturday, and only Kevin Love took a significant number of shots. If the Cavs continue to play all of their starters 30+ minutes, the Clippers’ bench—led by John Wall and Normal Powell—might have an opportunity to run them off the floor.

The Antagonist

The Cavaliers are really good. They are 8-1 so far this season, which puts them second in the east and a top three team in the league. They also are strong where the Clippers are weak: they have two elite big men in Mobley and Allen, who have made them one of the best defensive teams in the league. Moreover, they have two guards in Garland and Mitchell who can attack the rim and find shooters (both averaging about 7 assists per game).

The Cleveland bigs and guards will both create problems for the Clippers. The Clippers only have one true center who gets consistent minutes, and their guards are both on the smaller and older ends of the spectrums. Reggie Jackson and John Wall will have to rise to the occasion by fighting through screens and trying to force Garland and Mitchell to give up the ball. And the Clippers as a whole will have to help Zubac on the boards and stay in front of their assignments on defense. If Zubac is forced to switch onto driving guards, Mobley and Allen will feast on hand offs and lobs.

Finally, at the time of writing this preview, it is unclear who will be available for the Clippers on Monday. Luke Kennard is still dealing with his chest issue, Reggie Jackson did not play the last quarter-and-a-half on Sunday night because he banged knees with someone, and John Wall has been sitting back-to-backs so far this year.

That about does it for this preview of the Clippers’ game 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!

Clippers vs. Cavaliers Game Preview
Kenneth Armstrong

It’s safe to say some GPAs will be getting a boost tonight after LAC secured a blowout win without both of their star wings. Read on for full Clippers vs Cavs player grades, with some abbreviated comments since I already wrote about this game and the Clippers are right back in action tomorrow against the Miami Heat.

Clippers Starter Grades

Patrick Beverley: A-. Was Pat even the point guard tonight? The Clippers essentially started all three of their guys who play the point primarily, so it’s hard to say. But whatever position you want to call him, Pat was great tonight. Nobody expects him to be a high-usage player offensively, but he picked his spots in support of Lou Williams tonight with surgical precision, finishing with 16 points on 5-8 shooting, including 4-6 from deep, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, and only one turnover. The Clippers won his 20 minutes by 26 points.

Reggie Jackson: B. On balance, the Clippers got a nice bit of production from Reggie tonight. But it was a story of the good mixed with the bad tonight, as he mixed some questionable shot selection with an active outing overall on both ends. You can knock his offensive decision-making, but you can’t knock 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals.

Lou Williams: A. Did you watch the game? If you didn’t, you should really watch it, or at least Lou’s minutes. He was magnificent in the pick-and-roll finding others, particularly Ibaka, and was the centerpiece of this win.

Nicolas Batum: B. I worry a bit about Nic in games like this. So much of what he adds comes in the margins, which is very helpful when Paul George and Kawhi Leonard are handling the big-ticket items, but secondary to those items when the Clippers’ stars aren’t dealing with them. Well, LAC found 128 points tonight, so I guess I was worried for nothing. That means we can give Nic a solid B for a quiet but solid outing, with just 3 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, and a block while playing good defense throughout.

Serge Ibaka: A. This was Serge’s best game as a Clipper. He had a season-high 21 points and a career-high 6 assists, producing a bunch of offense and looking really good in the pick and roll with Lou Williams. And defensively, where I’ve been a bit hard on Serge, he was great tonight, especially early in the game as the Clippers were establishing themselves (everyone slipped a bit in the third quarter with a big lead).

Clippers Bench Player Grades

Luke Kennard: B. Man, a B is a nice breath of fresh air for Luke considering how recent weeks have gone. But he had a perfectly nice night off the bench tonight, with 12 points on 4-9 shooting, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists, and his back-to-back threes in the final minute of the first half pushed the Clippers’ lead into double digits at the break.

Marcus Morris: A. Obviously you have to love Morris having his most points as a Clipper with 23, especially doing so on an efficient 7-14 shooting night. But what I especially like about this Morris outing is the rest of the box score: 6 rebounds (his third most in a game this season), an assist, a steal, and 2 blocks. That’s the guy you paid $64 million.

Terance Mann: B+. It wasn’t quite as big of a night as Terance has had in other games recently, but his confidence is clearly high right now and he was able to add 8 points and 6 rebounds in 20 minutes, aggressively getting downhill and earning eight free throw attempts despite 1-4 shooting.

Ivica Zubac: C. Zu got flustered after some early foul calls (only one of which was questionable, to be honest–he had some outsized reactions to properly-called infractions) and took himself out of this game mentally. Overall, his shifts were far from a failure, but he didn’t come in and make a positive change in the flow of the game like he has in recent weeks.

No Grades

Amir Coffey and Mfiondu Kabengele checked in for a few minutes at the end, but I don’t have anything for them in this one. Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, Jay Scrubb, and Daniel Oturu are all currently injured. Patrick Patterson was the sole unused substitute tonight.

213Hoops is an independently owned and operated L.A. Clippers blog by Clippers fans, for Clippers fans. If you enjoy our content, please consider subscribing to our Patreon. Subscriptions start at $1 a month and support from readers like you goes a long way towards helping us keep 213Hoops sustainable, growing, and thriving.

Clippers vs Cavs Player Grades
Lucas Hann

Things looked dim shortly before tip-off, when Kawhi Leonard was ruled out with a leg contusion, but the Clippers would draw great performances from their supporting cast and crush the Clevelend Cavaliers, 128-111, to extend their winning streak to 3.

Clippers vs Cavaliers Game Summary

The Clippers had some wrinkles to iron out early tonight as Ty Lue played an unorthodox starting lineup that featured Patrick Beverley, Reggie Jackson, and Lou Williams all playing together alongside Nicolas Batum and Serge Ibaka. The team had 2 points in the first 3 minutes of play as they got used to each other… then they turned on the afterburners and didn’t look back, putting up 30 points in the final 9 minutes of the opening frame and surpassing that output with a staggering 38 points in the second quarter, with Luke Kennard’s back-to-back threes serving as an exclamation point to end the half.

With a 70-58 halftime lead and a couple of friendly bounces to begin the third quarter, the Clippers found themselves with a quick 20-point lead and I found myself thinking that even if the team didn’t keep up their great run of shot making, they had built a pretty strong buffer to hold on to as the Cavaliers scrapped back.

That wasn’t meant to be. Lou Williams was a maestro in the pick-and-roll, Marcus Morris continued his elite run of form from behind the three-point line, Serge Ibaka had his best game as a Clipper on both ends of the floor (though he should buy Lou’s dinner as a thank you for all of his easy looks in the pick-and-roll), and Patrick Beverley picked his spots brilliantly to accent those three main contributors. If you only tuned in at the end of the night to watch Mfiondu Kabengele pick up a bad miss and a couple of fouls, you wouldn’t even know that Paul George and Kawhi Leonard were out–it was just like any other Clippers game.

While a number of Clipper role players had strong outings tonight, Williams was the clear star of the show as he finished with 30 points on 10-22 shooting to go with 10 assists (and just 2 turnovers) in 32 minutes–an offensive masterpiece. And those assists weren’t just “make the extra pass to the shooter in the corner” plays. Lou was beating his defender downhill, making something out of nothing, drawing help, patiently reading the defense, and dishing out dimes all night. Marcus Morris, who now has 14 double-digit outings in his 19 games this season (including 10 of his last 11), poured in a highly efficient 23 points on 7-14 shooting and stuffed the box score with 6 rebounds, an assist, a steal, and 2 blocks.

Game Notes

• Caffeinated: Amir Coffey was back with the Clippers today after being recalled from Agua Caliente in the G-League’s Orlando bubble. Coffey hadn’t been with the team for a little over a week, playing two games with ACCO, before presumably being brought back to provide insurance with George and Leonard both sidelined on the wings. Daniel Oturu had already departed the G-League bubble after picking up an injury last week, so the Clippers are currently without any roster players with Agua Caliente.

• Underground GOAT: As noted by The Athletic’s Law Murray, tonight was the 5th 30-10 double-double of Lou Williams’ career–all of which have come with the Clippers. In his last 6 games, Lou is averaging 21.7 points and 5.5 assists while shooting 53.6% from the field and 45.8% from deep. He’s always going to run hot-and-cold, but his offensive upside is still very important for this team, particularly on nights like tonight. I had opined that Williams should be starting in place of Paul George even before Leonard’s absence; here’s hoping that Lou can parlay this positive momentum into continued efficacy when LAC is back to full strength.

• The Cavs: Cleveland has now lost seven straight games, beginning with their 22-point loss to the Clippers two weeks ago. Their average margin of defeat during this losing streak is an unconsciable 20.7 points per game. I’m not here to rain in the parade of the Clippers cruising to a blowout win without both of their stars–this result is worth praising regardless of who they were lined up against–but the Cavs are in a very, very bad place after a relatively promising start to the season.

• Back-to-Back: The Clippers are back in action again tomorrow night, this time against the Miami Heat, who have won four of their last five games as they attempt to claw back into the Eastern Conference playoff picture with multiple key players returning to the lineup in recent weeks. If George and Leonard remain sidelined, managing fatigue will become crucial for a Clippers team whose offense is currently revolving around 34-year-old Lou Williams, who played 32 minutes in tonight’s game. 213Hoops’ Michelle Uzeta will have a full Clippers-Heat preview for you in the morning.

213Hoops is an independently owned and operated L.A. Clippers blog by Clippers fans, for Clippers fans. If you enjoy our content, please consider subscribing to our Patreon. Subscriptions start at $1 a month and support from readers like you goes a long way towards helping us keep 213Hoops sustainable, growing, and thriving.

Clippers Crush Cavaliers, 128-111
Lucas Hann

The Clippers rounded out their road trip nicely with a win against the Cleveland Cavaliers–check out how everyone did in this edition of player grades.

Clippers Starter Grades

Reggie Jackson: C. Reggie didn’t do much tonight, but it wouldn’t be fair to say he was bad either. Maybe just adequate, even invisible, for much of the game–and only 23 minutes, his fewest since entering the starting lineup when Patrick Beverley went down. He had 0 points on 0-3 shooting, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists. It was a forgettable outing for Reggie, but not a terrible one by any means. For an injury replacement starter, that’s adequate, but it doesn’t warrant more than a C.

Paul George: A. The Clippers won this game when Paul George took over in the second half, putting up 25 of his 36 points and shooting 9-12 from the field and 7-8 from deep in the second half. He also had 4 rebounds and 6 assists with 0 turnovers. It was an efficient offensive masterpiece, and the A is warranted not just in the box score but also in the visible impact he made on the game during important possessions in the second half to keep Cleveland at arm’s length and ultimately slam the door in their faces.

Kawhi Leonard: B+. Kawhi was definitely good tonight, but it wasn’t anything to write home about. He had an efficient, but low volume night scoring the ball, putting up 24 points on 9-14 shooting, and added 6 rebounds, 3 assists, a steal, and 4 turnovers to complete his line. That A:TO isn’t great, the scoring was pretty average for him, and he didn’t need to do a lot of leg work defensively against this Cavs team as the Clippers let their drop coverage bait Cleveland’s guards into taking a bunch of low-percentage shots in the mid-range.

Nicolas Batum: B. A ho-hum outing for Nic, with 7 points, a rebound, and a pair of assists in his 23 minutes.

Serge Ibaka: B+. Serge rebounded nicely from a dreadful game in Brooklyn, scoring 14 points on 6-8 shooting and adding 4 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks. It’s always a great sign when the Clippers get multiple assists from one of their centers, because that playmaking out of the short role (and sometimes off of offensive rebounds) creates golden shot attempts. He didn’t play a ton in the second half because Zubac was having a dominant performance, but he was good in the minutes he did play.

Clippers Bench Player Grades

Ivica Zubac: A-. Zu was the Clippers’ second-best player in the second half, dominating the paint on both ends of the floor and playing nearly 20 minutes straight through the third and fourth quarters. It was probably his best half of the season (maybe his best half as a Clipper?), but unfortunately we can’t pretend that his 8:44 of first-half court time didn’t happen, and he was bad in that shift. I can’t give him an A for that reason, but I’m willing to go higher than I thought I would for two reasons: first, he played over twice as long in the second half as he did in the first, so it’s weighted more heavily, and second, because his good second half play had a far greater positive impact than his poor first half play had a negative one. The line is impressive: 10 points, 16 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, and 3 blocks in 28 mintues. The second-half line is even more impressive: 10 points, 13 rebounds, 1 assist, and 2 blocks in 19 minutes.

Lou Williams: B+. Legitimately good scoring games have been few and far between for Lou early on this season, but he had one tonight, with 15 points on 5-8 shooting. He also added 3 assists, though he turned the ball over four times to get there. But he was the offensive sidekick to George as LAC pulled away in the second half, putting up 11 points on 4-5 shooting and doing a nice job keeping the offense running around George’s individual dominance.

Marcus Morris: D. Morris was a total nonfactor tonight, finishing with 3 points on 1-3 shooting, 3 rebounds, and 2 turnovers in 23 minutes of action. Given his place in the team’s hierarchy, you really expect him to make more of an impact on the game off the bench–he, like everyone, will have off shooting nights, but only 3 shot attempts and 2 turnovers? No assists, blocks, or steals? Only 3 rebounds when he plays in lineups where Ivica Zubac needs rebounding support? Other teams crashing the glass to go 3-on-1 against Zu, or grab boards when Zu steps up in help, has become all to common and Morris is typically the player who should have had the responsibility of helping on the glass.

Luke Kennard: C+. I mean, at least he made shots tonight? Luke had 9 points on 3-6 shooting, 3-4 from deep. But he also played 22 minutes and only took those 6 shots and 4 threes, which isn’t quite enough, and while there were moments where he was clearly trying to be a bit more aggressive, he also pressed a bit at times and as a result got into uncomfortable spots. He did have one really quick, decisive drive-and-dump off that ended up Zubac getting stripped as he went up for a dunk, and it would be nice to see more of that type of play from him going forward. Overall, Luke wasn’t impactful but as long as he’s hitting more than 40% of his threes, he’s a rotation NBA player. Maximixing the value of his minutes will mean a quicker trigger on those looks, and then I guess we’ll see how the other facets of his game develop in the coming weeks (and years) as he gets further away from his knee injuries and more adjusted to the Clippers (and, eventually, adjusts to life after Lou Williams, who is 34 and in the last year of his contract).

No Grades

Mfiondu Kabengele, Terance Mann, and Amir Coffey all played the last 4 minutes, maintaining the Clippers’ lead alongside Kennard and Zubac. Coffey didn’t really do much. Mann hit a nice three when the defense sagged in the pick-and-roll, but I’d rather not dilute his GPA with little garbage time assessments and instead focus on the nights where he gets real chances. And Fi… well, I’m pretty confident that he’s not long for the team (or league), and grading him at this point just feels a little mean. It’s not like he’s going to get high marks when his confidence and accuracy align like Carlton’s:

Patrick Patterson was the team’s sole unused sub. Daniel Oturu was again inactive as he presumably prepares to play with the Agua Caliente Clippers in the G-League’s bubble. Patrick Beverley and Jay Scrubb both remain sidelined by injuries–and it seems like Scrubb may be with ACCO for now as well.

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Clippers vs Cavaliers Player Grades
Lucas Hann