The Clippers close out their mini road trip with a visit to Atlanta in what should be a fun game between two teams that swapped notable players for each other at the deadline just over a month ago.

Game Information

Where: State Farm Arena, Atlanta, Georgia

When: 4:30 PM PT

How to Watch: FanDuel Sports SoCal, AM 570

Projected Starting Lineups

Clippers: James Harden – Kris Dunn – Kawhi Leonard – Nic Batum – Ivica Zubac

Hawks: Trae Young – Dyson Daniels – Zaccharie Risacher – Mo Gueye – Onyeka Okongwu

Injuries

Clippers: Norm Powell Out (Hamstring), Ben Simmons Questionable (Knee), Trentyn Flowers Out (G-League), Seth Lundy Out (G-League), Patrick Baldwin Out (G-League)

Hawks: Trae Young Probable (Achilles), Clint Capela Questionable (Personal), Jalen Johnson Out (Shoulder), Larry Nance Jr. Out (Knee), Kobe Bufkin Out (Shoulder)

The Big Picture

The Clippers pulled off a big win Wednesday night in Miami, improving to victories in four of their last five games. On the positive side, that winning streak combined with a bunch of losses from the Mavericks, Suns, Blazers, and Spurs have more or less solidified the Clippers as a top-nine team in the West. It would take a monumental collapse for the Mavericks or Suns to catch the Clips now. The bad news is that the teams above the Clippers in the standings, in particular the Timberwolves, Warriors, and Rockets, have all kept winning as well, with those squads on six, five, and four-game winning streaks respectively. The Clippers’ floor has been raised during this surge, but their ceiling remains unfortunately low unless they really keep up this level of winning and/or one or two teams ahead of them fall off. Still, they are doing all they can do, and that’s all fans can ask for.

The Antagonist

The Hawks have had a very odd season. They leaped up in the draft lottery to get the first overall pick and took Zaccharie Risacher (having a decent rookie season!). They then traded away Dejounte Murray, who they paid a steep price for in a trade and extension two years and one year prior. Early in the year, star Trae Young was struggling, but fourth-year forward Jalen Johnson was having a breakout season and De’Andre Hunter finally made good on his flashes with a breakout campaign of his own. Then, things shifted, as Johnson went out for the year with injury, and the Hawks traded away Hunter and longtime sixth man Bogdan Bogdanovic at the deadline. That’s a lot of stuff to have happen in less than one year. But here the Hawks are again, still in the play-in race, just like they have been basically every season since the play-in was instituted. It feels like the Hawks are doomed to mediocrity, but they’re a relatively young team, are fun to watch, and don’t have a ton of bad money on their books. There are many, many worse situations in the NBA right now.

Notes

The Return of Bogi: Bogdan Bogdanovic played in Atlanta for 4.5 seasons and was a key piece to their Eastern Conference Finals run in 2021. Bogi was a popular player in the city even though their teams in the years since that run were mostly mediocre, as he was one of the most effective bench players in the league during that time and provided a whole lot of fun moments. My guess is he gets a video montage of some kind, and while I don’t know about a full standing ovation, I think he gets his fair share of applause and cheers. Hopefully he stands out in this one – he’s close with Trae Young and will probably be extra amped for this contest. Bogi probably won’t repeat his 30 point effort from Wednesday night, but a big game would be huge against his former team.

Terance Mann Revenge Game: Terance Mann has been solid for the Hawks since he was traded to Atlanta at the deadline, scoring 9.5 points per game and shooting 64.2% from two (up from 50.8% this season as a Clipper) and 43.9% from three (up from 34.7% on the Clippers) while taking slightly more shots per game. Terance still hasn’t been a big scorer, but his minutes and all of his stats are up, and he’s been a key contributor to several Hawks wins. He will probably be very motivated to play against the Clippers, the only organization he knew until a month ago, and a team that gave him a large extension only to trade him five months later. It might not be a traditional revenge game, but I think Terance will play with some real oomph in this one.

Clippers vs Hawks Preview: A Fun One in Atlanta
Robert Flom

The Clippers are coming off two blowout losses but are back at home and should have a rested James Harden to help end their losing streak… as well as maybe one Kawhi Leonard.

Game Information

Where: Intuit Dome, Inglewood, California

When: 7:30 PM PT

How to Watch: NBA TV, FanDuel Sports SoCal, AM 570

Projected Starting Lineups

Clippers: James Harden – Norman Powell – Derrick Jones Jr. – Kawhi Leonard – Ivica Zubac

Hawks: Trae Young – Dyson Daniels – Zaccharie Risacher – Jalen Johnson – Clint Capela

Injuries

Clippers: Kawhi Leonard Questionable (Knee), PJ Tucker Out (Away from team), Trentyn Flowers Out (G-League), Cam Christie Out (G-League)

Hawks: Trae Young Probable (Hand), Jalen Johnson Probable (Shoulder), Bogdan Bogdanovic Probable (Leg), Cody Zeller Questionable (Personal), Larry Nance Out (Hand), Kobe Bufkin Out (Shoulder)

The Big Picture

The Clippers have lost two games in a row in utter blowouts for the first time this season. While that’s not exactly good news, the losses were not inexplicable. In fact, both games were true schedule losses, and the Thunder loss on Thursday will be one of the toughest games in terms of calendar/opponent that the Clippers will have all year. In short, the Clippers aren’t playing well right now – their turnovers are awful, the defense is slumping, and the team looks tired – but there are real reasons behind those issues. The Clippers certainly need to play better, with the turnovers in particular being extremely frustrating, but I’m not worried yet. And with Kawhi Leonard probably coming back tonight, the Clippers’ entire season is going to shift anyway. Hopefully it’s for the better.

The Antagonist

Despite being 18-16 with some quality wins (I’m writing this before the Hawks’ game against the Lakers last night) the Hawks have a -1.5 Net Rating, suggesting they might be playing a bit above their heads right now. Still, they have been a better team than expected due to a combination of factors – DeAndre Hunter becoming a legitimately very good player out of nowhere, Jalen Johnson taking the leap from good young player to star, and Dyson Daniels moving from fringe rotation player to one of the best perimeter defenders in the NBA. Those developments combined with solid center play, the playmaking brilliance of Trae Young, and decent depth has allowed the Hawks to remain in the East playoff race despite dealing with some injuries. They aren’t great, but they are a good young team on the rise.

Notes

Kawhi Back: It couldn’t be normal. I had a whole paragraph here on how Kawhi was not returning when the Clippers ruled him out Friday afternoon. Now I’m rewriting, as Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report and Shams Charania of ESPN have reported that Kawhi will be likely to make his 2025 debut in this game. Kawhi will be starting, but it’s unknown whether he will have a minutes restriction, and if so, what that restriction might be. Even if he only plays 20 minutes and is not close to peak Kawhi, his size, rebounding, and shooting should immediately make the Clippers better. Welcome back, Kawhi.

Terance Back: In other injury news, Terance Mann will be available for today’s game for the first time in a month, as he last played in a December 3 win against the Blazers. Mann was just starting to play better after a cold start to the year, and his return will allow Ty Lue to go back to a 10-man rotation. Presumably, Mann will be back on the bench unit, which is where he’d played the last 12 games of the season after starting the first 11. However, it will be interesting if the rotations look different now with Kawhi’s (hopeful) pending return, as someone from that top 10 will probably have to be out when Kawhi plays. I’d prefer that someone to be Kevin Porter Jr., who has been one of the NBA’s least efficient scorers and a nightmare to watch, but going small and taking out Mo Bamba makes sense. I also think it’s possible Terance himself does not actually return to the rotation, as he was already seeing reduced minutes before he got injured.

Clippers vs Hawks Preview: Getting Back on Course
Robert Flom

The LA Clippers suffered arguably their worst loss of the season, 110-90, to the short-handed Atlanta Hawks.

Summary

It may not have been a Sunday matinee game, but it sure felt like it. The Clippers energy from the start was non-existent. The Hawks swarmed the Clippers on the glass and did not look at all like a team missing several key players.

Thanks to a big first quarter by Kawhi Leonard, the Clippers only trailed by two, 31-29, at the end of the first period. But the second quarter, when Leonard went to the bench, was when things first got out of hand.

The Hawks took advantage of several Clippers turnovers to get out in transition and get easy buckets. They built a ten point lead and it just kept getting worse from there. The Clippers trailed by as many as 21 points in the second quarter before managing to get it to 61-44 at the half.

For fans expecting some sort of a comeback, it was not to be. The third quarter was more of the same, with the Clippers looking completely out of sync and the Hawks looking like the better team.

While Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue left the starters in for quite some time, he ultimately emptied the bench late in the fourth quarter.

After the game, Paul George admitted that from the outside it appears as if the Clippers think they can just turn on the jets whenever they feel like it, while suggesting a troubling thought this late in the season.

“We want to be a team that’s consistent. We want to establish an identity,” George said. “I’ve always spoke about having an identity and I think it’s extremely important. When your team has an identity, teams know what they’re going up against, and right now I don’t think we have an identity.”

George did mention that there’s a belief among the team that they can figure it out and ultimately get 16 wins in the postseason as has been their goal. But a more consistent and determined effort has to start rather quickly.

“We got to give a better effort. We got to have more intensity and play with just a little more pride,” George said. “I think collectively we got to have a little bit more pride when we step out on the floor.”

Clippers vs. Hawks Game Recap: Season hits a low
David Yapkowitz

Game Information

Where: Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, CA

When: 6:30 PM PT

How to Watch: Clippervision, KTLA, NBA TV

Tickets: For great deals on Clippers tickets, check out Barry’s Tickets!

Projected Starting Lineups

Clippers: Bones Hyland – Terance Mann – Paul George – Kawhi Leonard – Ivica Zubac

Hawks: Dejounte Murray – Wesley Matthews – Jalen Johnson – Vit Krejci – Clint Capela

Injury Report

Clippers: James Harden questionable (shoulder), Norman Powell questionable (leg), Russell Westbrook out (hand).

Hawks: Trae Young out (finger), Onyeka Okongwu out (toe), Saddiq Bey out (ACL), Kobe Bufkin out (toe), AJ Griffin out (leg/ankle), Mouhamed Gueye out (UCL).

The Big Picture

It’s that time of the season when pretty much everyone on an NBA roster is dealing with some sort of ailment/injury.

For the LA Clippers, they recently had a brief scare when Kawhi Leonard left the arena early against the Minnesota Timberwolves due to thoracic spasms. He’s seemingly okay though, as he’s played in each game since despite being listed as questionable and he did not appear on the injury report ahead of Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Hawks.

There have been a few new additions to the injury report though since that Wolves game. James Harden has missed the last two games with a shoulder issue and he’s once again questionable against Atlanta.

Sixth Man of the Year candidate Norman Powell suffered a leg injury during the Clippers loss to the New Orleans Pelicans and is also questionable.

Thankfully for the Clippers, this Sunday isn’t a matinee game. With a later start, perhaps the energy will be there from the get-go.

The Antagonist

The Atlanta Hawks come to town as the walking wounded. Several key players, including star point guard Trae Young, have all been ruled out due to various injuries.

Even so, this is a team that was competitive despite being incredibly short-handed during the first two games of their current road trip.

But even when relatively healthy, this is a team that is not very good. They’re likely locked in to the final play-in spot even with a losing record.

With both Leonard and George available for this game, this is one the Clippers need to put away early and see if they can get these guys additional rest in the second half.

Disclaimer: 213Hoops may receive compensation for some links to products and services in this post.

Clippers vs. Hawks Game Preview
David Yapkowitz

The Clippers closed out their seven game Grammys road trip with another tight game, beating the Atlanta Hawks, 149-144 to finish with a franchise-best 6-1 record across the trip. Check out how it played out below:

Summary

To start the game, Clippers did not look like a team that just flew into the city the night before. They put up 37 points in the first quarter and led by as much as 13 in the first two quarters. Unfortunately, that lead was gone—and the scored was tied—by half time because the Clippers gave up an 8-0 run to end the second quarter. Through one half, the Clippers were shooting extremely well (58% from the field and 52% from three), but their defense allowed the Hawks to likewise shoot over 50% from the field and three, as well as gave the Hawks a free throw advantage.

In the second half, the Clippers were led by Kawhi Leonard, who scored 22 of his 36 in the back half of the game, as well as James Harden (17 of his 30 in the half). The Hawks stayed in the game through timely shots by Trae Young, Dejounte Murray, and—annoyingly—De’Andre Hunter, who scored 27 points in 19 minutes. The Clippers were lucky Hunter was on a minutes restriction as he continues to ramp up from injury.

Notes

The Final Grammys Road Trip?: The Clippers’ infamous Grammys road trips are, of course, caused by the fact that the Crypto-dot-com Arena (née STAPLES Center) hosts the Grammys. With the Clippers moving to their own arena, one can assume these Grammys trips are no more. If so, going 6-1 on the final vacation is a pretty nice way to go out.

Managing Zubac: Ivica Zubac, who played against the Heat on Sunday night, sat tonight with the injury report categorization of “injury management.” It was probably the right call, given that the Hawks are not world beaters, but the Clippers missed him. The Hawks grabbed 13 offensive rebounds, leading to 19 second chance points. Although Plumlee and Theis were fine in their respective minutes, Ty Lue decided to close without a center; instead, the Clippers finished with Harden, Westbrook, George, Leonard, and Coffey. On Wednesday, back in Los Angeles, the Clippers will face one of their true demons—Jonas Valančiūnas—so hopefully Zubac will be ready to go.

Clippers finish Grammys trip with win over Hawks, 149-144
Kenneth Armstrong

The last stop of the Clippers’ Grammys road trip is Atlanta, where the Clippers will take on the Hawks, who are having a disappointing year but are on a four game winning streak. Check out more on this match up below:

Game Information

Where: State Farm Arena, Atlanta, Georgia

When: 4:30 PM PT

How to Watch: Bally Sports SoCal, AM 570

Tickets: For great deals on Clippers tickets, check out Barry’s Tickets! 

Projected Starters

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

Hawks: Trea Young – Dejounte Murray – Jalen Johnson – Garrison Mathews – Onyeka Okongwu

Injuries

Clippers: Moussa Diabate, Out (Hand)

Hawks: Vit Krejci, Out (Shoulder); Clint Capela, Out (Adductor); Mouhamed Gueye, Out (Back); De’Andre Hunter, Questionable (Knee); Saddiq Bey, Questionable (Ankle)

The Big Picture

The Clippers are walking into another game with a significant talent advantage. Although the Hawks have a talented back court, the Clippers have better players in Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and James Harden, who are also much bigger and defensively adept than the Hawks’ best players. Moreover, the Hawks have been, simply, bad this year—including at home, where they have a losing record (12-13). So long as the Clippers come out focused (something, admittedly, that has been an issue lately), the Clippers should have no problem taking down the Hawks.

The Antagonist

The Clippers are now 5-1 on the Grammys trip, but there have been a few ugly wins that reveal how much more work the Clippers have in front of them, especially on defense. And the Hawks’s offense will test the Clippers’ defense: league wide, they are third in points per game, fifth in second chance points, fourth in pace, and are one of the best mid-range shooting teams in the league. The pace metric stands in stark contrast to the Clippers, who are one of the five slowest teams in the league. This will be an especially important metric to watch as the Clippers are on the second night of a back-to-back.

Notes

Zubac’s Reintroduction: On Sunday, Ivica Zubac only played 18 minutes after returning from his calf injury. We can expect that number to stay pretty low for the next few games, but another thing to track will be how Theis is affected. Against the Heat, Plumlee played 26 minutes and Theis was a DNP-CD. Whether that will be the case going forward is unclear, although it looks like Plumlee will be given the benefit of the doubt.

Rooting Interests: On Monday, the Clippers want: Cavaliers over Kings; Hornets over Lakers; 76ers over Mavericks; Nets over Warriors; and Raptors over Pelicans. Unfortunately, the Raptors blew a chance to help the Clippers, giving up a comeback win to the Thunder on Sunday. The Clippers are currently third in the West but have the same number of losses as the first and second seeds.

213Hoops may receive compensation for some links to products and services in this post.

Clippers vs. Hawks Preview: Closing the Road Trip
Kenneth Armstrong

The Clippers won their fifth game in a row on Saturday night, beating the Hawks 120-113 behind star performances from Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.

Summary

The Clippers got off to an early lead, mostly behind multiple threes from Paul George, who was sizzling to tart. However, over the first quarter, the Hawks were able to work their way into a small lead of their own, as the Clippers’ offense went dormant over the second half of the period. The bench working their way in did not help matter, and the Clips trailed by six after one.

The Clippers’ bench did not look great on defense to start the quarter, so even though Norm, Nico, and Reggie all hit threes, the Hawks’ lead remained at around the nine to 11 point mark. That all changed when Zu returned for Moussa Diabate, as he strengthened the Clippers’ defense significantly and ate the Hawks up around the rim. PG continued to hit shots and find Zu in the short roll, and the Clippers eventually took the lead back around the mid-way point of the quarter. The rest of the half was frantic, with both teams turning the ball over and going up and down the court quickly. When the dust settled, Kawhi, PG, and Zu (39 of the Clippers’ 58 points) had the Clippers up five at half.

The third quarter was really mostly uneventful outside of Kawhi going off, as he scored 13 points in the period to keep the Clippers ahead. Nobody else on the Clippers really got going, but their defense was effective enough in holding the Hawks to 28 points, maintaining a three-point Clippers lead entering the final frame.

The Clippers had a 9-1 run to start the period sparked by seven points from Reggie Jackson, who looked in control and like he was having a ball. The lead briefly hit 12 after a Norm three before Trae Young restored order, and the Clippers lead was down to seven in the blink of an eye with 8:11 to go. Kawhi Leonard came back in to settle things down, and the Clippers right away got to work, with a Kawhi middy, Norm drive, and Reggie three swiftly getting the lead back to 12. Zu made a couple of free throws and had a dunk after a fantastic hustle effort by him and Mann to keep the ball alive, but a couple Murray drives brought the Hawks to down just 10 with 4:21 to go. Kawhi quickly answered with an and-one, dragging the lead back to 13, but the Clippers then fell apart, turning the ball over three straight times and gifting the Hawks a 9-0 run that brought the Clippers’ lead down to four with 2:09 left. Kawhi got to the line and made both free throws, at which point Nico checked in for Norm. Hunter scored, but PG answered with a very tough jumper, and after a Murray miss, Nico buried a corer three to put the Clips up nine with 49 seconds left. Some poor defense an sloppy execution made things interesting, but the Clippers made their free throws and won 120-113.

Notes

Eight-Man Second Half Rotation: Moussa Diabate filled in for RoCo as the second unit backup center in the first half, but recorded no stats in five minutes and was totally ineffective. In the second, Ty responded by excising Moussa and going with just three bench players. Mann returned early for Zu, allowing a Reggie-Norm-Mann-Kawhi-Nico unit to end the third, with PG coming in for Kawhi in the 4^th. The result was very high minutes for all key Clippers – Kawhi had 39, Zu and PG had 37, Mann logged 35, and Norm, Nico, Luke, and Reggie were all in the low 20s. It worked for this one, but the Clippers can’t to this strategy much, so hopefully RoCo and Morris return soon.

Kawhi and PG, Dominant Again: Kawhi Leonard and Paul George are the driving factors behind the Clippers’ win streak, and both played very well in tonight’s game. George dished six assists to two turnovers while collecting seven rebounds, and his threes and free throws made up for his 7-18 shooting. Kawhi scored 30 on 12-20 shooting and brought in 8 rebounds, all while not forcing the issue and consistently passing early out of double teams. The Hawks, much like all other NBA teams in the past month, simply had no answer for the Klaw. 10 assists to four turnovers isn’t an incredible ratio, but the Clippers will take it, especially on a night the stars scored 55 points on 38 shots. If they continue to play at this two-way level, the Clippers will continue to look a whole lot better.

Terance, Connecting: This was a fantastic Terance Mann game. Although he only scored two points and took three shots in 35 minutes, he collected eight rebounds and handed out seven assists to just one turnover while playing great defense. It would be nice to see him more aggressive in looking for his shot, but when he’s doing stuff like this it’s hard to complain.

Clippers Clip Hawks 120-113, Extend Win Streak to Five
Robert Flom

The Clippers return to the road to take on a surging Atlanta Hawks team, and will be missing at least one key role player.

Game Information

Where: State Farm Arena, Atlanta, Georgia

When: 4:30 PM PT

How to Watch: Bally Sports SoCal

Projected Starting Lineups

Clippers: Terance Mann – Paul George – Kawhi Leoanrd – Marcus Morris – Ivica Zubac

Hawks: Trae Young – Dejounte Murray – De’Andre Hunter – John Collins – Clint Capela

Injuries

Clippers: Robert Covington Out (Personal), John Wall Out (Abdominal), Marcus Morris Questionable (Ribs)

Hawks: De’Andre Hunter Questionable (Illness)

The Big Picture

A four-game winning streak has the Clippers tied with the Pelicans for 4^th in the West and just two games (though four losses) back of the Kings in 3^rd. Their winning streak has come against awful (Spurs), injury-riddled (Lakers), or just decent (Mavs) teams, but the effort, energy level, and vibes ae all far better than they were two weeks ago. The Clippers’ run has been powered first and foremost by their stars – Kawhi Leonard looks like a full-fledged superstar, and Paul George as an All-NBA level sidekick. If those two guys stay healthy and keep playing at this level, the Clippers will keep winning lots of games regardless of what else happens around them. That said, the second push for the Clippers’ winning is improved rotations, with no Moses Brown, few multi-guard lineups, and a whole lot more Robert Covington. The offense has soared, and the defense has been a lot better. For the first time, this feels like the team we all expected.

The Antagonist

The Hawks, too, have turned things around in impressive fashion, and sit at 8^th in the East after winning six of their last eight games. That surge, uncoincidentally, arrived roughly when Clint Capela returned to the lineup after a multi-week absence. While Onyeka Okongwu is good, Capela is a better rim-runner, rim-protector, and rebounder, and he bolsters the Hawks significantly on both ends. Trae Young and Dejounte Murray have both caught fire as well, especially Murray, and the Hawks too now more closely resemble their offseason projected team. Still, their bench isn’t great, and if Hunter is out they will have nobody to put on Kawhi Leonard. The Hawks are a dangerous team, yet the Clippers, even without RoCo and Wall and maybe Morris, have the clear talent edge.

Notes

RoCo Out: Robert Covington was ruled out a day early due to personal reasons, immediately sparking rumors that he is getting traded. While that is a possibility, the most likely reason he was ruled out, is, well, for some personal matter. Let’s just hope that the personal reason is a positive one (wedding, birth, etc.) and not a negative one.

Bench Unit: After spending much of the season out or on the fringes of the rotation, RoCo has been a critical element to it lately, and his absence opens up a spot. Ty Lue has said he would prefer not to go with three guards, though if Morris joins RoCo as an “out” he might not have a ton of choice. If Morris does play, the Clippers could either bring Nic Batum in early for Zubac to go small and then rotate Zu back in with the bench, or they could play Moussa Diabate or Moses Brown. Brown, notably, will be available after being in the G-League for a couple games to conserve his remaining two-way eligibility, so my guess is he slots into RoCo’s spot.

Attacking Trae Young: For as great as Trae Young is offensively, he has a strong case to be the worst defensive player in the NBA. The Clippers are also perfectly built to attack him and the Hawks, as any switch onto Kawhi or PG should mean a feast for the Clippers’ stars. Even if they “stash” Trae on Luke or Terance, those guys need to be aggressive in attacking Trae off the bounce and trying to draw fouls on him. There’s no reason for the Clippers to not relentlessly punish him anytime he’s on the court, especially against their starters, and getting him off the court through fouls would make the Clippers’ path to victory that much clearer.

First Night of Back to Back: As always in the first night of back to backs, there’s some strategy to rotations. If the Clippers are down big in the 3rd, does Ty pull his starters and try to conserve them? Will we see a ton of Kawhi minutes since he’s probably still not playing in the second games of back to backs? Will Luke or PG be playing on the second night? It remains to be seen, but don’t be surprised if the Clippers push very hard to win this one.

Clippers vs. Hawks: Going Back on the Road
Robert Flom

Despite playing a bad Hawks team at home, the Clippers could not get out of their own way, falling 112-108 after blowing a late fourth-quarter lead.

Summary

The Clippers’ new starting lineup with both Terance and Nico came out of the gates extremely strong, playing with a ton of energy and pace. Kawhi was the primry initiator of the offense, and made a particular emphasis to attack and get to the paint. Some cold shooting prevented the Clippers from taking a big lead, but they still had a small advantage when the bench started trickling in. First came Norm for Nico. Fine. The Clippers continud to hold on. Then Wall for Mann, a little less fine. Finally came Reggie and Moses for Morris and Zu, and the CLipprs fell apart on both ends. A Hawks run cut their lead to one point after the first.

Incredibly, Ty Lue started the second quarter with a Wall-Reggie-Norm-Mann-Moses unit. Predictably, this lineup was absolutely atrocious on both ends (though they did miss some easy-ish looks), and a 13-0 Hawks run had them leading by 10 after just four minutes, with a Zu for Moses swap a couple minutes in not helping much. Keep in mind this was a Hawks unit with Frank Kaminsky at center and fringe NBA player Aaron Holiday on the court. Kawhi came back for Reggie, which helped a lot at both ends, but the Hawks were rolling now, and the teams traded blows. The starters played ok, but the spark from the first quarter was gone, and the Hawks led by 17 at one point. The Clippers went on a small run to get the lead down to 10, but then disaster struck as Collins was left open for a lob and then Hunter got a steal that immediately led to another dunk, putting the Clips down by 14 at half.

The Clippers’ starting unit again began well, playing with the same intensity on defense as they did to start the game. The offense wasn’t quite as sharp, but the defense was good enough that the Clippers slowly and steadily chipped away at the lead. The offensive rebounding in the middle part ot he quarter was huge, as it resulted in two Morris threes that got the Hawks’ lead down to seven. At that point, the Clippers’ defense really locked in against the Trae-less Hawks, and finally got the lead down to 1 with 3:12 left. Norm and Wall came in, but the defense remained strong, and the Clippers soon grabbed a lead. Trae kept the Hawks attached, but the Clippers held onto a two-point lead going to the final frame. The only two bench subs the entire period for the Clips were Wall and Norm.

Zubac remained out there alongside Mann (who was out briefly for a few minutes in the third), while Nico checked in for Kawhi. This unit remained effective on defense, and while the offense was rough, transition and offensive boards kept them in. At the 9:13 mark, with the Clippers up 7, Moses checked in for Zu, a move I was dreading. Miraculously, between Hawks incompetence and two Brown dunks off nice feeds from Wall, the Clippers held even in the Brown minutes, and were up 7 at the 5:50 mark when Zu came back. Shortly thereafter, Morris and Nico came back for Wall and Mann, and that’s where the wheels fell off. The Clippers’ offense stagnated as the played not to lose instead of to win, and Trae Young got going in the pick and roll. In two minutes, the Clippers’ lead was gone – and Mann remained on the bench. The teams went back and forth for a few minutes trading buckets, yet in the end, it was Trae who came out on top, as he nailed two floaters in the final minute, and a Kawhi three followed by a Morris three (after a Mann offensive board – he’d finally checked back in very late) misfired. Trae made his free throws, the Clippers were out of timeouts, and the Hawks pulled out the road win.

Notes

Inexcusable Second Quarter: In case my commentary above isn’t enough, I need to return to that Reggie-Wall-Norm-Mann-Moses lineup, an incredible unit that has below average defenders at four positions, is absolutely tiny on the glass, and features severely duplicative talents on offense. Ty Lue said after the game that the three-guard units are “done”, and he in fact did not play Reggie in the second half, but the damage was done in this game, as that unit, which was a -13, cost the Clippers the game. In a tightly bunched Western Conference, each game matters in the standings, and that’s not even counting the morale boost a win would have brought tonight to end the five-game slide. It was an unacceptable lineup from Ty Lue – play Robert Covington, play Amir Coffey even (though that wouldn’t help much), or stagger one of the three forwards that started the game. My jaw was on the floor when that unit ran out, and I still kind of can’t believe it played real minutes.

Dominant Zu: After a quiet to bad couple of weeks from Zu, tonight was a return to form, as he dominated the undersized (Onyeka Okongwu and John Collins) or bad (Kaminsky) big men the Hawks put out there. He had 17 points on 6-9 shooting, 18 rebounds, and three assists in 37 minutes, and the Clippers were +8 with him on the floor. His activity on defense and on the offensive glass (eight offensive boards) was fantastic, and the Clippers dearly missed him when he was out of the game.

More Terance: At this point, if it wasn’t obvious enough already, Terance Mann needs to be a key fixture in the Clippers’ rotation. Not just playing 15 minutes, or 20 minutes, but at least 25 minutes, if not 30, just about every game. His point of attack defense, rebounding, energy, and ability to get downhill are all critical for a Clippers’ team that is lacking in each of those areas, and he’s a great fit in both smaller and bigger lineups. 35 minutes is a ton, but he should have played even more, as Norm played over him down the stretch of the 4^th, and the Clippers really could have used him out there. It’s been a great couple of weeks from Terance even as the Clips have crumbled around him.

Standings Watch: The Clippers, now sitting at .500 with a 21-21 record, are somehow still 7^th in the West because the Suns, Jazz, and Blazers also keep losing. However, they’re now three losses back of 5^th, and five losses back of 3^rd – and tied for the same number of losses as the 11^th seed Lakers. The bleeding needs to stop very, very soon, or they will be out of the play-in. There’s tons of games left, of course, but a chance at homecourt in any round of the playoffs if fading quickly, and it’s nearly impossible to make a deep playoff run from the bottom half of the postseason bracket.

Clippers vs. Hawks Recap: Clips Drop 6th Game in a Row in Brutal Home Defeat
Robert Flom

The Clippers square off against the Hawks in a contest of two teams that have been miserable over the past couple weeks and for much of the season.

Game Information

Where: Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, California

When: 6:00 PM PT

How to Watch: Bally Sports SoCal

Projected Starting Lineups

Hawks: Trae Young – Dejounte Murray – DeAndre Hunter – John Collins – Onyeka Okongwu

Clippers: Reggie Jackson – Paul George – Kawhi Leonard – Marcus Morris – Ivica Zubac

Injuries

Hawks: Clint Capela Out (Calf)

Clippers: Nic Batum Questionable (Ankle), Paul George Questionable (Hamstring), Luke Kennard Questionable (Calf), Moussa Diabate Out (G-League)

The Big Picture

The Clippers are in the bad place. They’ve lost five games in a row, six of their last eight, and suffered one of the most embarrassing losses of the entire NBA season to the Nuggets on Thursday. The Clippers can’t get healthy – every time they field a healthy roster, another player goes out to injury. After seemingly being injury-free a couple weeks ago, now Nic Batum, Paul George, and Luke Kennard are all dealing with lower-body injuries. Worse, their effort simply has not been there. The Clippers have not cared a whole lot about the regular season in the Kawhi-PG era, outside of maybe 2021, but have reached new levels of apathy this year. We are at the halfway mark of the season, the Clippers are 21-20, and they have a negative point differential due to a still-awful offense and a slipping defense. There’s plenty of time to turn things around, but the Clippers need to get urgent at some point, or they will be in the play-in. There’s also the matter of building winning habits in the regular season, and the Clippers haven’t flashed winning habits once this season. The last two weeks have been brutal to watch.

The Antagonist

It’s a battle of thoroughly disappointing teams in LA, as the Hawks are one of the more underwhelming teams in the Eastern Conference. The Hawks are 18-21, are middling on defense, and, shockingly for a Trae Young team, are bad on offense. Rumors have been swirling around Nate McMillan’s job for months, with the vibes matching those rumors. Young is putting up incredible raw numbers (27.5 and 10) but his efficiency has been bad, and the defense as abominable as ever. Young guys like De’Andre Hunter and Onyeka Okongwu haven’t taken steps forward. Veteran signings such as Justin Holiday and Aaron Holiday have not paid out. Dejounte Murray has helped on defense, but the offensive fit with Young hasn’t been great. The Hawks have missed the interior force of Clint Capela on both ends the past 10 games, and were without the shooting and creation of Bogdan Bogdanovic for most of the first two months, so they have some injury excuses as well Still, the vibes are bad, and the Hawks look thin.

Notes

Guarding Bogdan: Bogdan Bogdanovic is probably the most underrated shooter in the NBA. He’s currently shooting an even 40% from deep – while taking 8 attempts per game. When Bogdan catches fire, it truly seems like he can’t miss, and he can put up bundles of points in a hurry. He’s someone that can bury the Clippers, and as they’re often inattentive to off-ball movement shooters, they really need to be on top of him. If the Clippers can keep Bogdan in check and prevent Collins and Okongwu from living on the offensive glass, they really should be able to keep the Hawks’ offense from taking flight.

Starting Off Strong: It feels like the Clippers never set the tone in the first quarter. Either they go down big, or barely hang even. It’s truly rare when they come out swinging first and put the other team into an early hole. Such a start would be particularly important against the Hawks, who have awful vibes and might just pull a Clippers and give up early when punched in the mouth. It would be truly great if the Clippers can get a double-digit lead in the first quarter.

Play RoCo: We have seen Robert Covington play a lot the past two games, albeit mostly in garbage time, and it’s been refreshing. Yes, he takes some bad shots (and he’s been cold, though he hasn’t played consistently enough to gain any kind of rhythm) and doesn’t offer as much offensively as other Clippers. But still, we’ve seen him put it on the floor and draw fouls (it’s a tiny sample, but he’s getting to the line more per 100 possessions than Reggie, Morris, or Mann) and make some nice passes. More importantly, he’s one of the better defenders on the team. He’s fourth in rebound rate on the team behind just the pure big men (Zu, Moses, Moussa), third in block rate (behind Zu and Moses), and second in steal rate (behind PG). He’s not as quick as he used to be, but he offers switching, physicality, help defense, and rebounding. At some point, the Clippers need to play him in the rotation, or trade him for someone who will. He’s far too good to rot on the bench.

Clippers vs. Hawks Game Preview: Battle of Sadness
Robert Flom