The Clippers can head into the All Star break with some momentum and a three-game winning streak if they take care of business on the road against the Jazz.

Game Information

Where: Delta Center, Salt Lake City, Utah

When: 6:00 PM PT

How to Watch: FanDuel Sports SoCal, AM 570

Projected Starting Lineups

Clippers: James Harden – Norm Powell – Kris Dunn – Derrick Jones Jr. – Ivica Zubac

Jazz: Isaiah Collier – Jordan Clarkson – Lauri Markkanen – John Collins – Walker Kessler

Injuries

Clippers: Kawhi Leonard Out (Rest), Ben Simmons Questionable (Return to conditioning), Drew Eubanks Doubtful (Ankle), Trentyn Flowers Out (G-League), Bogdan Bogdanovic Probable (Rest)

Jazz: Collin Sexton Out (Ankle), Taylor Hendricks Out (Leg), KJ Martin Doubtful (Return to conditioning)

Notes

Who Plays: The Clippers beat the Jazz over the weekend, but the Jazz were not playing nearly any of their veterans. The Jazz vets did play last night in defeating the Lakers, so there’s a chance they get rested on the second night of a back-to-back. However, this is the last game before the All Star Break, so maybe they just play anyway. For the Clippers, we know Kawhi Leonard will be out, but the status of several other players, including newcomers Ben Simmons and Bogdan Bogdanovic are up in the air. If the Clippers are short-handed and the Jazz play their guys, this is not a gimme win, not on the second night of a back-to-back on the road. It’s still a game the Clippers should win, but it would be a much more serious affair. If things swing the other way, this shifts into true “must win” territory for the Clips.

Clippers vs Jazz Game Thread: Closing the First Half of the Season
Robert Flom

The Clippers have made their moves at the trade deadline, and now need to work on actually playing good basketball again to break out of their current three-game losing streak.

Game Information

Where: Intuit Dome, Inglewood, California

When: 7:30 PM PT

How to Watch: FanDuel Sports SoCal, AM 570

Projected Starting Lineups

Jazz: Isaiah Collier – Svi Mykhailiuk – Lauri Markkanen – John Collins – Walker Kessler

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

Injuries

Jazz: Collin Sexton Out (Ankle), Taylor Hendricks Out (Leg), Jordan Clarkson Questionable (Foot), Cody Williams Questionable (Ankle), KJ Martin Questionable (Recent trade)

Clippers: Bogdan Bogdanovic Out (Return to competition conditioning), Kai Jones Out (G-League), Cam Christie Out (G-League), Trentyn Flowers Out (G-League)

The Big Picture

The Clippers have lost three games in a row, and it’s probably their most concerning three game slide of the season. Their loss to the Raptors was very bad, their defeat at the hands of the Lakers was humiliating, and the fourth-quarter collapse to the Pacers was frustrating. The Clippers’ vaunted defense has not looked nearly the same, while some of the issues that have plagued them all year – turnovers, stagnant offense, inconsistent shooting – have come back with a vengeance. More worryingly, nearly all of their individual players look tired, discombobulated, or just off, with only Derrick Jones Jr. and maybe Norm Powell playing at their usual levels (Kris Dunn is on defense but can’t buy anything as a scorer). The most nerve-wracking is Kawhi, who has not looked particularly good during this three-game streak. If the Clippers are going to make any noise, eventually Kawhi will need to look like Kawhi, and so far that level of play has come only in short spurts. We need to be patient, but the West is crowded, and the Clippers are starting to fall in the standings.

The Antagonist

The Jazz, somewhat shockingly, made no real trades before the deadline. While they were on the periphery of some larger deals, they were really only involved as a facilitator of salary and minor assets. More significantly, none of their veteran players – Collin Sexton, John Collins, or Jordan Clarkson – was moved off the team. Maybe the Jazz wanted to keep those guys around for some semblance of competence around their young players. Or maybe there just weren’t any good offers for any of those names. But considering how bad the Jazz are and how well Collins and Sexton in particular have played this year, it’s a bit surprising. Considering that the Jazz want to secure a spot at the bottom of the lottery, I’d expect their veterans to sit at an increasing frequency down the stretch of the season. We will see how many of them play tonight, and how much.

Notes

New Rotations: We got our first glimpse of Drew Eubanks in the game against the Pacers, and he looked fine. We also saw what Ty Lue’s first rotations post-departure of Kevin Porter Jr. and Terance Mann looked like, which will change when Bogdan Bogdanovic gets healthy, but are an indicator of what will come. Amir Coffey was still the Clippers’ sixth man, checking in for Kawhi Leonard. Then came Kris Dunn for Derrick Jones Jr., followed by Nic Batum and Eubanks for Norm and Zu. That left Harden with the bench, with whom he played for the last few minutes of each quarter. Then Kawhi would replace Harden at the start of the 2^nd and 4^th quarters, and the rotations would cycle from there. How Bogi fits in remains to be seen, but it seems like Amir’s spot on the 6^th man role is still there, while Dunn has been moved up in the rotation due to the departures of Mann and Porter Jr. What’s less clear is whether Bogdan will displace Coffey, Dunn, Batum, or Eubanks off the bench – or whether Ty will expand his rotation back to 10 while he figures things out.

Clippers vs Jazz Preview: Getting Back on Track
Robert Flom

The Clippers have a golden opportunity to end their three-game losing streak against a truly terrible Jazz team.

Game Information

Where: Intuit Dome, Inglewood, California

When: 7:30 PM PT

How to Watch: FanDuel Sports Network, AM 570

Projected Starting Lineups

Jazz: Keyonte George – Collin Sexton – Lauri Markkanen – John Collins – Walker Kessler

Clippers: James Harden – Norman Powell – Kris Dunn – Nic Batum – Ivica Zubac

Injuries

Jazz: Taylor Hendricks Out (Leg), Svi Mykhailiuk Questionable (Groin)

Clippers: Kawhi Leonard Out (Knee), Terance Mann Out (Finger), Derrick Jones Jr. Out (Hamstring), Kobe Brown Out (Back), PJ Tucker Out (Away from team), Cam Christie Out (G-League), Trentyn Flowers Out (G-League)

The Big Picture

The Clippers have lost three games in a row for the second time this season. This stretch could be read as glass half full or glass half empty. The glass half full is that these recent losses have come with a much more banged up Clippers’ roster than the first three-game losing streak, and that the team’s play isn’t slipping so much as they’re short-handed and on fumes. The glass half empty is that several of the injuries are long-ish term, which means if the Clippers are bad without Derrick Jones Jr. and Terance Mann, they might be a rough watch for a few weeks. The complicating factor is the pending return of Kawhi Leonard, who is clearly revving back up, but for whom it is impossible to have any real expectations at this point. If Kawhi can come back soon and look even remotely like last year’s Kawhi, the absences of Mann and DJJ should lessen significantly. But will either of those things happen? Who knows!

The Antagonist

The Jazz are very, very bad. In fact, in both record (5-19) and Net Rating (28^th) they place as the third-worst team in the NBA. Their offense is regular bad (22^nd) while their defense is unbelievably awful (30^th, below even the woeful Wizards). The most worrying part is that the Jazz are this bad even with several competent (or better) veterans on their roster. Lauri Markkanen is having a down year, but John Collins is having a bounce back campaign and Collin Sexton is a very effective offensive player. It hasn’t mattered, because the Jazz’s young guys have been that putrid. Isaiah Collier and Cody Williams are young rookies, but they have been worrying bad to start their careers (36.3 and 34.3 True Shooting’s respectively). Keyontae George has taken only a small step forward in his second year. Taylor Hendricks is out for the season. The list goes on. When the Jazz do (probably) trade Collins and Sexton, the Jazz will go from merely awful to downright unwatchable. But that has not happened yet. They are still a must-win for any reasonably competent opponent – like the Clippers should be.

Notes

John Collins, Still not a Clipper: It seems like there have been John Collins to the Clippers trade rumors since he came into the league. That’s not quite true, but I know they date back to at least the 2022 season (when Kawhi was out the entire year and the team needed a starting-level Power Forward with some juice) and continued through last season. Well, Collins is having quite the season after two down years, putting together very rare 50/40/90 splits (45.3% from three and 90.1% from FT both being significant career highs) in conjunction with good production at 18.1 points per game in just 29.1 minutes. Collins has, in fact, been the best player on the Jazz, and has been good enough to probably buy some positive trade value with 26.6M on the books for this year and a player option at that rate for next year. The Clippers probably won’t be the team to trade for him, but hey, maybe some contender will.

Bones Getting Bizzy: Bones Hyland has received real minutes the past couple games, and has done fairly well in them. The issues are the issues: he’s slight on defense, which means he’ll get targeted on switches, he’s turnover prone, and he’s not good at scoring inside the arc. However, the positives are that he’s a truly deadly shooter on a hot streak right now, launching 4.3 threes per game in just 11.4 minutes and cashing them at a 44.7% rate. That shooting opens up the offense for everyone else, despite Bones’ flaws as a finisher and decision-maker. With Kawhi, Terance, DJJ, and Kobe all still out, Bones will probably continue to receive minutes in the interim, and if he continues to shoot like this, might work his way into more of a role with the Clippers – or convince another team to finally liberate him from the Clips.

Clippers vs Jazz Preview: Breaking the Slide
Robert Flom

It might sound crazy to label this game a “must win” situation in mid-November, but for a Clippers team that is going to be less talented than most of their opponents this season, a game against the bottom-feeding Jazz truly is a game they have to secure.

Game Information

Where: Intuit Dome, Inglewood, California

When: 7:30 PM PT

How to Watch: FanDuel Sports SoCal, AM 570

Projected Starting Lineups

Jazz: Keyonte George – Collin Sexton – Lauri Markkanen – John Collins – Kyle Filipowski

Clippers: James Harden – Norman Powell – Kris Dunn – Derrick Jones Jr. – Ivica Zubac

Injuries

Jazz: Taylor Hendricks Out (Leg), Walker Kessler Questionable (Hip)

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

The Big Picture

The Clippers have dropped three straight games, falling from the high of 6-4 to a middling 6-7. It’s the way they have lost those three games that have been concerning, not necessarily the losses themselves – against simply better teams in the Thunder and Rockets (twice) – that have been concerning. The Clippers’ defense has fallen off significantly, getting carved up in each of those games by teams either missing a lot of players (Thunder) or possessing just an average offense (Rockets). Even more concerning, the two players who played the largest roles in the Clippers’ promising start – Ivica Zubac and Norm Powell – fell down to earth significantly. If Norm isn’t scoring an efficient 20+ points per game, and Zu isn’t consistently playing in a dominant two-way capacity, the Clippers simply don’t have enough juice on either end of the court. They need to get those two, if not up to the level of the first 10 games, at least closer to that.

The Antagonist

The Jazz are not only the worst team in the Western Conference by record (3-9), they are also worst in Net Rating by a significant margin (-11.1, with the next lowest being the injury-ravaged Pelicans at -8.9). The Jazz have the second-worst defense and fourth-worst offense in the entire NBA. The most that can be said about them is they play fast and have a few individually dangerous scorers, especially Lauri Markkanen and Collin Sexton. Still, this is a team that wanted to be bad, is bad, and should be easy prey on an average night for any NBA team worth their salt.

Notes

Rest Advantage: The Jazz are not only a worse team than the Clippers, but are at a severe rest disadvantage, being on the second night of a back-to-back and playing their third game in four days. The Clippers last played on Friday and are at home after a rough two games in Houston. If the Clippers can get a big lead on the Jazz early, the tired Jazz probably won’t have the legs to get back into things. Hopefully the Clippers come out hot and looking for blood after getting jumped by opposing teams in the past few games.

Mo Bamba’s Debut?: After missing the first 13 games of the season with a knee injury, backup center Mo Bamba is available. And not a moment too soon. Kai Jones, despite playing hard and having a nice play here or there due to sheer athleticism, has not earned the trust of the coaching staff, largely because he’s never in the right position and can’t set screens or do anything on offense that’s not finishing open dunks. The Clippers’ small-ball units have had a couple nice stretches, but have, as usual, been underwhelming on the glass and on offense without being dominant on defense. Mo, even though he’s been a largely “meh” player in his NBA career, should hopefully be an improvement on Kai and the Clippers’ micro-ball units. I’m very interested to see how many minutes he gets in his first game back.

Clippers vs Jazz Preview: A Must Win Game
Robert Flom

The LA Clippers fell to the Utah Jazz, 110-109 in a game that ended up being not very important.

Summary

Prior to tip-off between the Clippers and Jazz, it was announced over the PA that the Detroit Pistons had beat the Dallas Mavericks, securing the fourth seed and homecourt advantage in the first round of the playoffs for the Clippers.

That essentially rendered Friday’s game as meaningless, and Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue adjusted accordingly. While Paul George, James Harden, Terance Mann, and Ivica Zubac started the game, none of them played after the first quarter.

After halftime, neither Russell Westbrook or Norman Powell got back in the game. Even during his postgame press conference, the majority of the questions for Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue weren’t about the game that was just played.

All eyes have moved to the upcoming playoff series between the Clippers and the Mavericks. It will be the third time in five seasons that these two teams have met in the postseason. The Clippers won both of those series.

Lue went into a lengthy monologue when asked about the difficulties presented by the Mavericks star duo of Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving.

“Luka is one of those players. Usually you can take a guy out of the game, they’re best player, by blitzing and trapping and firing and getting the ball out of his hands. . .you do that and he still can have 40 points and 15 assists. He can pick you apart, he can beat you in other ways besides scoring the basketball,” Lue said.

“With Kyrie. . .one of the best one-on-one players in our game. I’ve always said he has no weaknesses offensively. The right hand, the left hand, pull up threes, off the dribble threes, catch and shoot threes, midrange pull-ups, floaters, posting up, he can do it all and I’ve seen it.”

But as far as how the Clippers are meshing as the regular season winds down, Lue believes they’ve gotten back to the team they were when they went 26-5 earlier this season.

Despite Kawhi Leonard being out, the Clippers have won four of the past seven games including impressive showings against the Denver Nuggets and Phoenix Suns. Including the games Leonard played, they’ve won seven of their last ten.

“It just shows what we’ve done to progress and get better because before it was hard to win without him [Leonard] on the floor,” Lue said. “We’ve definitely taken those steps, definitely gotten better defensively. That’s where it all starts. And I think we’re on a high right now, so we’re just excited to get started.”

Clippers vs. Jazz Game Recap
David Yapkowitz

The Clippers can lock up the 4-seed with a win against the tanking Jazz. This is about as must-win as it gets.

Game Information

Where: Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, CA

When: 7:30 PM PT

How to Watch: Clippervision, Bally Sports SoCal

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

Projected Starting Lineups

Clippers: Russell Westbrook – Norman Powell – Terance Mann – Paul George – Ivica Zubac

Jazz: Keyonte George – Johnny Juzang – Luka Samanic – Taylor Hendricks – Omer Yurtseven

Injury Report

Clippers: Kawhi Leonard out (knee), James Harden questionable (foot), Joshua Primo out (ankle).

Jazz: Collin Sexton day to day (illness), Walker Kessler questionable (nose), John Collins questionable (back), Jordan Clarkson questionable (back), Kris Dunn questionable (foot), Lauri Markkanen questionable (shoulder).

The Big Picture

The LA Clippers come into Friday’s game against the Utah Jazz with most of their key guys back in the lineup. After sitting out during Wednesday’s back to back against the Phoenix Suns, the Clippers will have Paul George, Russell Westbrook, Ivica Zubac, and Norman Powell available.

Kawhi Leonard has been ruled out though and James Harden remains questionable. It’s a big game in that a Clippers win clinches the fourth seed in the Western Conference and homecourt advantage through the first round of the playoffs.

Getting a win would essentially make Sunday’s matinee game against the Houston Rockets unimportant. It would be an opportunity to get guys more rest heading into the postseason.

The Antagonist

The Jazz come to town playing for lottery balls at this point. They held out their key guys during Thursday’s game against the Rockets. There’s no official word as to whether or not any of them will be available for the second end of a back to back, but it wouldn’t be surprising if they sat out again.

The Jazz are using this late season stretch to get a good look at several young, talented players they have on their roster. As the Clippers B-team showed against the Suns’ Big 3 on Wednesday, these guys are NBA players and anything can happen on any given night.

But this is a game the Clippers need to have standings-wise, so expect a sense of urgency from the jump.

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

Clippers vs. Jazz Game Preview
David Yapkowitz

The Clippers blew out the Jazz 131-102 in one of the easiest victories of the entire season.

Summary

The Clippers looked locked in on both ends to start this one, and the young Jazz, starting three rookies, appeared totally bewildered. The Clippers were up 13-2 within three minutes, 24-4 a couple minutes later, and 30-10 by the 4:04 mark when Russ and Norm checked in for Harden and PJ. The bench continued the onslaught, albeit at a slightly reduced pace, and the Clippers led 41-16 after one.

The Jazz scored six straight to start the second, but Russ and Harden answered with a flurry of points, and the lead quickly went right back up, getting into the 30s by the midpoint of the quarter. Zu and Mann came back for Theis and Russ, but Harden, Amir, and Norm played the whole quarter and PG never checked back in. At half, the Clippers led 75-42 and the game was effectively over.

Or was it? The Clippers scored with ease for much of the first half of the third quarter, but the Jazz did as well, with the Clippers’ defense notably loosening. The Jazz started to make headway in the second half of the period as the Clippers kept slipping, and got the lead down to 20 at one point late in the period. Fortunately, a quick 5-0 spurt got the Clippers back up 25 heading to the 4^th.

Because of how awful the Clippers’ garbage time units have been this year, Ty Lue kept his regular second unit in the game. After a few minutes and the lead remaining in the mid-20s, Ty pulled Harden, bringing Terance back in. Finally, at the 7:09 mark, with the Clippers up 116-89, Ty at last took out the rest of the regular rotation (outside of Amir Coffey, and kind of Mason Plumlee) for the deep bench. Garbage time ensued, and for once the third unit wasn’t horrible!

Notes

Now That’s a Win: Yes, the Jazz are tanking and young and terrible. Still, the Clippers came out with fire on both ends, played ball the right way for an entire half, and outside of a few silly turnovers, did not slack or let up. Regardless of opponent, they played very well and were able to end the game in the first half – not an easy feat in the NBA. Every single guy who played had a positive impact, just like in the Nuggets win, and back-to-back games like that is a very nice sign with the postseason in sight. There was some slacking in the third quarter, but not nearly enough to mar the victory.

Clippers vs Jazz Recap: Turning off the Music
Robert Flom

The Clippers are coming off a huge win last night and get to face off against a tanking Jazz team – but its late in the season with tired legs. Can the Clippers get the win anyway?

Game Information

Where: Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, California

When: 7:30 PM PT

How to Watch: Bally Sports SoCal, AM 570

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

Projected Starting Lineups

Jazz: Keyontae George – Collin Sexto – Brice Sensabaugh – Taylor Hendricks – Omer Yurtseven

Clippers: James Harden – Norm Powell – Terance Mann – Paul George – Ivica Zubac

Injuries

Jazz: John Collins Out (Back), Jordan Clarkson Out (Back), Walker Kessler Out (Nose), Lauri Markkanen Out (Shoulder)

Clippers: Kawhi Leonard Out (Knee)

The Big Picture

We all pretty much know the deal with this team. At this point: scrap out a few more wins to keep the 4 seed, get Kawhi healthy, and pray for favorable postseason matchups.

The Antagonist

The Jazz were a solid team to start the season, but trading away several key players before the deadline signaled the tank was on, and boy is it. The Jazz have lost 10 games in a row, are starting three rookies, and sitting nearly all their vets. Their young guys are talented and hungry, and all have shown flashes – but this is a game the Jazz are preparing to lose, and one the Clippers need to win.

Notes

Dominate Inside:

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

Clippers vs Jazz Preview: Back to Back Late in Season, What Could Go Wrong
Robert Flom

The Clippers finally broke their (regular season) losing streak in the state of Utah, beating the Jazz, 117-103. Kawhi is the headline, but check out the details below.

Summary

The Clippers went into halftime with a 13 point lead, behind 22 first half points from Kawhi Leonard. Kawhi started the game 5/5 and was efficient throughout the night. Ivica Zubac added 10 of his own, as the Clippers found him repeatedly in the paint. The Jazz were led by Talen Horton-Tucker’s 11 in the half, but the Clippers’ defense held them to just 46 points on 37% shooting from the field (22% from three).

Throughout the second half, the Clippers “played with their food,” as Dr. Shap would say. That is, they expanded their lead but also let the Jazz go on long enough runs to stay in the game. With about seven minutes to go in the fourth quarter, Collin Sexton hit a shot to cut the Clippers’ once 18 lead to just six. Ultimately, though, the Clippers responded well, led by—who else?—Kawhi Leonard. After a 12-0 run, the game was back in control—and over.

Game Medals

Gold Medal: In 38 minutes, Kawhi put up a season-high 41 points, along with five rebounds and five assists. He was 14/23 from the field and 6/8 from three. So far, this season, Paul George has looked like the player who is more capable of putting up high point totals on a nightly basis (averaging 23.5 points to Kawhi’s 21.6). But, tonight, Kawhi showed that he still has the assassin quality that we have seen the playoffs (although, to be fair, the Jazz were pretty short-handed).

Silver Medal: In 42 minutes, Zubac had 18 points, 12 rebounds, and two blocks. That 42 minutes, by the way, was a new career high, per Tomer Azarly. To learn more about Zubac’s value to the team, check out this article by Justin Russo.

Bronze Medal: In 37 minutes, Paul George had a relatively quiet 20 points and added six steals. Mann hitting two threes (out of five) almost topped George in my book; those shots are hopefully a sign that Mann will soon be out of his slump. But given that the Clippers’ defense held the Jazz to just 103 points, the edge goes to George’s six steals.

Clippers, Kawhi mute the Jazz, 117-103
Kenneth Armstrong

The Clippers are finally at .500 (10-10); tonight, they hope to get back into the “green” against the Utah Jazz on the road.

Game Information

Where: Vivint Smart Home Area, Salt Lake City, UT

When: 7:00 PM PT

How to Watch/ Listen: ESPN, Watch ESPN, AM 570

Projected Starting Lineups

Jazz: Keyonte George – Ochai Agbaji – Simone Fontecchio – John Collins – Ömer Yurtseven

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

Injuries

Jazz: Kelly Olynyk, Questionable (Shoulder); Jordon Clarkson, Questionable (thigh); Lauri Markkanen, Out (Hamstring)

Clippers: Mason Plumlee, Out (Knee); Brandon Boston, Jr., Out (G League Assignment)

The Big Picture

The Jazz are 3-7 in their last 10 games, while the Clippers are climbing, winning seven of their last ten. What’s more, Markkanen has already been ruled out, and Olynyk and Clarkson are currently questionable. Therefore, the length that gave the Clippers so many issues early this season—when the Clippers lost in Utah, 120-118—will be significantly paired back. This difference, as well as the Clippers’ more solid rotation in recent games, is why the Clippers are currently favored by 6.5 points.

The Antagonist

Six of the Jazz’ seven wins have come at home and the Clippers have never won in Utah during the Ty Lue era (0-6). Moreover, this year, in general, the Clippers have been poor on the road (3-7). If the Jazz get one or both of their “questionable” players off the injury report, the Clippers have shown themselves willing and able to lose in Utah, even when they have the superior lineup.

Notes

Schedule Talk: Now that the Clippers are finally back to .500, it is time for them to hold themselves to an even higher standard. That is, the Clippers have beaten some relatively tough teams over the last few weeks (Nuggets, Warriors, Kings, Mavericks); now, the Clippers need to start expecting to win those games because they have done it already. When the Clippers play the Kings and Warriors next week, the mindset should be that the Clippers are the favorites. If the Clippers cannot make that jump, they are going to have trouble in the new year (they started 2024 with the Heat, Suns, Pelicans, Lakers, Suns and (again)).

Watch This Space: The Clippers rank second in steals per game (9.1), while the Jazz lead the league in turnovers (17.8 per game). We might see a track meet in Salt Lake if these trends hold on Friday night.

Clippers vs. Jazz Game Preview
Kenneth Armstrong