The LA Clippers fell to the Miami Heat despite yet another epic second-half comeback push. Down 23 at one point, the bench got it down to a two possession game late but ran out of time. The Heat, to their credit, clearly had heard of the Clippers’ late game heroics and held it together to win, 121-114.

Summary

The Clippers hung tough for the first eight-or-so minutes of the game, but eventually let the Heat get away from them. The Heat would end the first quarter up nine, and were led by 10 early points from Jimmy Butler (who was questionable before the game with a toe injury but ended up starting). Nico Batum led the Clippers, hitting 3/4 of his first quarter shots (including two threes). Overall, though, the Clippers started ice cold, shooting 31.8% from the field and 28.6% from three.

The Heat would extend their first quarter lead to 14 in the second, though a late-quarter layup by Eric Bledsoe send the Clippers into the locker room down 12 at the half. The Clippers continued to shoot poorly, missing all nine of their second quarter three point attempts.

Gabe Vincent went nuts to start the second half, hitting six threes. Duncan Robinson would add two and Max Strus added one in the third quarter. The Heat would eventually go up by 23 mid-third quarter, but the Clippers’ offense came alive as well, scoring 35 points to the Heat’s 39. The Clippers had a 15-6 run going late in the quarter until the Heat put up five unanswered to take a 16 point lead into the fourth quarter.

In the fourth, a rotation of Brandon Boston, Isaiah Hartenstein, Justise Winslow, Luke Kennard, Jay Scrubb, Terance Mann, and Amir Coffey kept battling in true Clipper fashion. Although they got the deficit down to four with 34 seconds left, there just was not enough time left to complete the comeback. The Heat, although they were outscored by nine in the fourth quarter, kept playing hard, hustling for offensive rebounds and getting to the free throw line.

Notes

Return of “A Tribe Called Bench?”: The Clippers’ bench outscored the Heat’s 64-18. They were led by 23 from Luke Kennard, 19 from Eric Bledsoe, and 10 from Justise Winslow. Winslow was a team-high +15 in his 26 minutes on his former home court. He also had a few great hustle plays that do not show up in the “box score,” such as stripping Tyler Herro, forcing a turnover, late in the game. As Justin Russo pointed out, the bench carried a huge load in the second half; in fact, Reggie, Ivica Zubac, and Nicolas Batum did not even play in the fourth quarter.

Scorching Hot from the Free Throw Line: The Heat were 26/27 from the line, primarily because Jimmy Butler was 16/16. The Clippers, on the other hand, were 23/32 (71.9%). What should have been a free throw advantage, simply based on attempts, turned out to be a liability. It was not the difference in the game on its own but, compounded by Gabe Vincent’s three point outburst, it played a big role in stopping the Clippers’ comeback.

That just about does it for our recap of this Clippers-Heat game. The Clippers head to Charlotte to take on the Hornet (who just beat the Lakers) on Sunday.

Clippers vs. Heat Recap: Comeback Clips fall short
Kenneth Armstrong

Coming off another double-digit win, the Clippers head south from Orlando to Miami to try to get above .500. The Heat — the top seed in the east — are a much tougher opponent, so it is imperative that the Clippers find a rhythm early.

Game Information

Where: FTX Arena, Miami, Florida

When: 5:00 PM PT

How to Watch: Bally Sports SoCal

Projected Starting Lineups

Clippers: Reggie Jackson – Terance Mann – Amir Coffey – Nic Batum – Ivica Zubac

Heat: Gabe Vincent – Duncan Robinson – Jimmy Butler – P.J. Tucker – Bam Adebayo

Injuries

Clippers: Kawhi Leonard Out (knee), Paul George Out (elbow), Marcus Morris Out (personal), Jason Preston Out (foot), Keon Johnson Out (G-League)

Heat: Jimmy Butler Questionable (toe), Kyle Lowry Out (personal reasons), Markieff Morris Out (return to competition reconditioning), Chris Silva Out (ineligible) and KZ Okpala Out (wrist)

The Big Picture

It has not always been pretty, but the Clippers are learning how to scrap their way through this road trip and find unexpected wins on this brutal road trip. But if you can get by the rollercoaster nature of the wins, the formula does seem sustainable:

1. During this road trip, Amir Coffey has averaged 14 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 2 assists on 44% FG% and 34% 3P%. For as surprising Amir’s rise has been, these are not flukey numbers.
2. Luke Kennard was the hero of the Clippers’ historic win in DC, hitting five threes, including seven points in the final 20 seconds. Again, though, he’s shooting 42.4% from deep on the road trip, which is actually 1.4% lower than his season 3P% (43.9%).
3. Finally, looking at the team as a whole, the Clippers are not vastly outperforming their season statistics on this trip. They have been 1% better from the field (2.8% better from three), only averaging 1.6 more assists, 2.6 more rebounds, and 1.4 fewer assists.

In sum, have the Clippers been playing better during this road trip? Slightly. Are they outperforming expectations? Absolutely. But is it a fluke? Not really—the comebacks are pretty wild, but the Clippers are not having an out-of-body experience. If the Clippers continue to play smarter and with their usual grit, this game in Miami is within reach.

The Antagonist

To beat the Heat, though, the Clippers will have to play above their season averages. Jimmy Butler will be the best player on the floor, and Bam Adebayo will probably be second. The Heat, along with having the best record in the eastern conference, have the second best home court record in the league (17-5).

Strategically, of all of the games on this road trip, this is the game for which the Clippers have the least reason to chase. As Lucas and the crew on TLTJTP have discussed, the Hornets and Pacers games are much more winnable, so playing our limited roster significant minutes to try and mount another underdog-win in Miami would jeopardize the end of the trip. (Lucas even flirted with punting this game and sending our starters straight to Charlotte.)

Notes

Clippers vs. Heat, 2021: Exactly a year ago, the Clippers beat the Heat on the road with a short-handed roster. Paul George and Kawhi Leonard were both out, but Nico Batum, Reggie Jackson, Lou Williams, and Marcus Morris, Sr. combined for 67 points to take a 109-105 victory. That was a huge win for last year’s “second tier” of the roster. It would be great to see history repeat itself. They also beat them in February behind a huge Morris performance.

Justise Winslow returns to Miami: Justise played 23 minutes in both of the Clippers’ last two games, putting up a +11 against the Magic and +9 in DC. He’s still not scoring much, but he’s been a welcome jolt of energy on defense and in transition. Serge Ibaka, on the other hand, has seen his minutes drop to 6 and 4 over the last two games. With the trade deadline approaching and the need to clear a roster spot for Amir, the Clippers will have to make some decisions. And this development might be a hint about what they’re thinking.

That does it for our preview of this Clippers-Heat match up. Stay tuned for a recap after the game!

Clippers vs. Heat Game Preview: Streaking to Miami
Kenneth Armstrong

Overcoming yet another slow start, the L.A. Clippers (7-4) clocked in a total team effort to down the Jimmy Butler-less Miami Heat (7-5), 112-109 Thursday night. Paul George was absolute dynamite yet again, tallying a team-high 27 points (11-25 FG, 3-9 3PT), four rebounds, five assists and three steals in 38 minutes of action. In yet another promising performance, Eric Bledsoe added in a much-needed 21 points (9-16 FG, 2-6 3PT), three rebounds, three assists and three blocks. With the game on the line, Reggie Jackson delivered when the Clippers needed him the most once again, en route to 22 points (7-17 FG, 6-6 FT), three rebounds and two assists. Read on for our full Clippers vs. Heat game recap.

Summary

We mentioned in our preview that with Miami, who were coming in outscoring opponents by a +60 margin in the first quarter this season, the Clippers especially needed to put their usual opening frame sleepwalks behind them. Instead, Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro proceeded to torch Staples Center along with a Heat unit shooting 68% (17-25 FG) from the field. Part of it was definitely the refs handing some free trips to the line to Adebayo early to get him going, but by the end of the quarter, it was just impossible to tell who played an overtime game last night. The Clippers got outrebounded 13-4. That can’t happen. Paul George still scored 11 in the opening frame to keep it manageable, but Miami ultimately took a 40-25 lead after one.

There’s just something about major momentum swings when the Clippers and Heat play. Out of the break, a trio of layups by Luke Kennard and Eric Bledsoe had the Clippers feeling good down just eight. Soon enough, however, Adebayo came back in and along with Gabe Vincent, disrupted the Clipper’s rhythm on both ends. With the deficit back up to 15, LAC took a timeout with 7:54 left. After the two teams traded early blows out of the whistle, spearheaded by Isaiah Hartenstein’s energy for LA, it was Kennard’s three-ball that woke up as Miami’s shooting began to fade. The Heat shot an abysmal 5-for-20 (25%) from the field and 1-for-12 (8.3%) from deep in the period. Meanwhile, after going 0-for-4 from deep to start, Kennard had a team-high 10 points off the bench in the frame, including a pair of back-to-back triples and timely tips and boards to ignite the Clipper faithful. The Clippers flipped the rebounding battle on its head as well, 15-8. With LAC collectively finding their flow a bit, they headed back to the locker room trailing just 58-56.

In the NBA, sometimes it’s just a case of make or miss, and unfortunately for Miami, Reggie Jackson and Eric Bledsoe had a whole lot of makes. In a quarter in which the Heat had seven offensive rebounds, they still shot just 9-for-27 from the field and 1-for-10 from deep as Duncan Robinson and Herro just did not look fresh out there. On the other end, Jackson and Bledsoe combined for 22 of the Clippers’ 30 as Tyronn Lue cleverly let PG rest for the latter half of the quarter. Although Miami continued to play hard, their misses four turnovers just couldn’t stop the Clipper momentum from taking over. Through three, the Clippers took a 86-78 lead to the fourth.

In the final frame, both teams put on a show in Downtown Los Angeles, but Lue and the Clippers pushed all the right buttons to pull out the victory. With 22 points on 8-for-10 shooting (3-4 3PT), Kyle Lowry went absolutely ballistic to give Miami a chance down the stretch. Not only did he deliver the initial mid-range blows to keep the Heat in range, but Lowry also finished some loud and-1 plays both in the paint and from deep at the expense of Ivica Zubac. Beyond Lowry, however, Miami just did not have enough compared to the well-rounded contributions from LAC. PG had another killer sequence this season in which he pulled down an offensive rebound, nailed a three and then drew a charge on Adebayo. With LA up just one, Batum stripped Adebayo from pulling down an offensive rebound, and then went on to blow up yet another Miami after-timeout (ATO) set on the last play of the game. Big Government hit two pairs of free throws with the final result on the line.

Clippers vs. Heat Game Notes

• Bled, Sweat and Miami Tears: Tonight’s game marked the second promising game in a row for Eric Bledsoe, who proved to be a better shooter tonight than Duncan Robinson. While the Clippers won’t need to rely on him to nail jumpers left and right like he did tonight, his defense and playmaking are clearly skills this team could use going forward. Being able to continue knocking down two threes a game wouldn’t hurt though.

• Batum Beast Mode: With six points (2-4 FG/3PT), six boards, three assists, two steals and three blocks, Nicolas Batum continues to be the perfect role player that any contending team would be lucky to have. You need someone to hit the open corner 3? Make the sideline inbounds pass while clinging to a 1-point lead? How about completely disrupting the play the opposing coach just took a timeout to draw up? Batum also blocked Herro on a drive and stole the aforementioned crucial final-minute board from Adebayo in this one. He’s unreal.
• High Five, Fives: Both Ivica Zubac and Isaiah Hartenstein got it done tonight. Although the Clippers lost the rebounding advantage 42-50, it was to the league’s best rebounding team, and clearly, more help needs to be given to both centers when the ball is up for grabs. That aside, there’s something to be said about bigs who can finish inside, hit free throws, make the extra pass and defend the rim without fouling (except in the fourth against Lowry in this case unfortunately for Zubac).
• Up Next: On the front end of LAC’s first back-to-back this season, the Clippers will host the Minnesota Timberwolves at Staples Center on Saturday, Nov. 13 at 7:30 p.m. PT.

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Clippers vs. Heat Recap: Clips Clutch Sixth Straight Win
Ralston Dacanay

The L.A. Clippers (6-4) look to keep their five-game winning streak alive at home against the fiery Miami Heat (7-4) Monday night. Read on for our full Clippers vs. Heat game preview.

Clippers vs. Heat Game Information

Where: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
When: 7:30 p.m. PT
How to Tune in: Bally Sports West, NBA TV, AM 570 KLAC, KWKW

Projected Starting Lineups:
L.A. Clippers: Reggie Jackson – Eric Bledsoe – Paul George – Nicolas Batum – Ivica Zubac
Miami Heat: Kyle Lowry – Tyler Herro – Duncan Robinson – P.J. Tucker – Bam Adebayo

Injury Report:
L.A. Clippers: Brandon Boston Jr. – OUT (G League – On Assignment), Serge Ibaka – OUT (G League – On Assignment), Keon Johnson – OUT (G League – On Assignment), Kawhi Leonard – OUT (Right Knee; ACL – Injury Recovery), Marcus Morris Sr. – OUT (Left Knee – Injury Maintenance), Jason Preston – OUT (Right Foot – Injury Recovery), Jay Scrubb – OUT (G League – Two-Way)
Miami Heat: Bam Adebayo – QUESTIONABLE (Left Knee Bruise), Jimmy Butler – OUT (Right Ankle Sprain), Marcus Garrett – OUT (G League – Two-Way), Tyler Herro – QUESTIONABLE (Lower Back Tightness), Markieff Morris – OUT (Neck – Whiplash), Victor Oladipo – OUT (Right Knee – Injury Recovery), Max Strus – QUESTIONABLE (Left Knee Sprain)

The Big Picture

From 1-4 to 6-4, the L.A. Clippers have found their groove, to say the least. During this stretch, the Clippers’ toughest win was a 99-94 nailbiter against Oklahoma City, the initial dub that set the LAC redemption tour in motion. Since Nov. 1, the Clippers have looked more and more like the group that the NBA last saw in the playoffs, with Paul “MVPG” George leading the way alongside a capable collection of unselfish players starring in their roles.

A major part of that has been the Clippers’ perimeter shooting regressing to the mean in a big way. In four of their five wins, the Clippers poured in at least 15 threes as a unit. In Tuesday night’s victory over the Trail Blazers, six Clippers finished in double-figures, including George, Reggie Jackson and Nicolas Batum, who combined for 69 of LAC’s 117 points. That isn’t to say the Clippers have had a luxurious amount of depth yet either, however. As Tyronn Lue mentioned postgame last time out, he and his staff are down to just 8.5 guys they’re comfortable with playing. That 0.5 is Justise Winslow, who’s averaging 5.4 minutes per game during the win streak. With Marcus Morris Sr., Kawhi Leonard and Jason Preston remaining hobbled, and four healthy bodies on assignment with the Agua Caliente Clippers, LAC will be rolling out their current Top 8.5 tonight against a team that will surely be the Clips’ toughest opponent thus far in November.

The Antagonist

After a busy offseason in which they reloaded with the free-agent additions of Kyle Lowry and P.J. Tucker, the Miami Heat have had their fair share of inconsistency issues early on so far. In the season opener, Miami demolished Milwaukee on their ring night, 137-95, and went on to collect convincing wins over Brooklyn, Dallas and Utah. The Heat have had multiple meltdowns as well, however, being held under 100 points in some ugly blowouts to Indiana, Boston and Denver.

Heading into the second end of their back-to-back in Los Angeles, the first such set in Heat franchise history, Miami will surely be seeing a bit of red against LAC after fumbling multiple chances to down the Lakers in overtime Wednesday night. During that loss, the Heat were beat up a bit by LAL. After playing the entire first quarter, Jimmy Butler was ruled out for the rest of the game due to a sprained ankle — his availability for tonight’s game will undoubtedly be something to watch before tip-off. (Update: Butler has been ruled out for tonight’s game, per Chris Haynes.) Meanwhile, foul trouble from Bam Adebayo and Dewayne Dedmon surprisingly forced the 41-year-old Udonis Haslem to take the floor for a stint.

Clippers vs. Heat Game Notes

• Miami’s Bench Herro: Tyler Herro has scored 203 points off the Miami bench this season, the most by a Heat reserve through the first 10 games of a season in team history. As result, the Heat’s bench has also outscored their opponent’s bench in nine of their 11 games this season. Prior to their loss to the Lakers, Miami’s bench was averaging 43.0 points, the highest in the league.
• Heat Starts: Miami has outscored opponents by a +60 margin in the first quarter this season (316-256). Conversely, even on this five-game streak, the Clippers have often been prone to falling behind in the opening frame (128-144).
• Second Half Security: In their last 10 second-half quarters, the Clippers have given up 30-point periods just three times. Picking up the defensive intensity out of the halftime break has been a major part of LAC’s recent success, and against a team that is pulling down the most rebounds per game in the league this season, it will be vital for the Clippers to get some stops down the stretch tonight.
• Check Your Local Listings: For the first of three games of the season, the local Clippers TV broadcast will be hosted on Bally Sports West, as opposed to its usual spot on Bally Sports SoCal.

Feel free to stick around and chat down below as this article’s comment section will serve as our live game thread tonight against the Miami Heat. Sign up for a free account and join the conversation!

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Clippers vs. Heat Preview: Turning Up the Temp
Ralston Dacanay

That was fun! The Clippers got some phenomenal performances from role players and an improbable shooting night from two-way player Amir Coffey, and found a way to beat the Miami Heat despite being without four starters due to injury. It’s safe to say that GPAs will be getting another boost after these Clippers vs Heat player grades.

Clippers “Starter” Grades

Reggie Jackson: B+. I have some conflicting feelings about Reggie in this game, but I went with B+ to err on the side of friendliness, even if it’s probably too generous. I thought he was mostly a non-factor offensively, thoughe stayed under control and ended up with 8 assists (mostly courtesy of great shot-making by teammates as opposed to him creating offense for others consistently) and didn’t have a turnover. He was also terrible defensively in this game… but he was basically asked to be LAC’s secondary guard defender because of absences, which isn’t something he should ever be expected to provide. And you have to give him credit for toughing out 24 minutes despite a pretty painful shoulder injury that was clearly limiting him. If LAC had bodies available, Reggie wouldn’t have come back tonight.

Lou Williams: A-. This wasn’t Lou’s 30-and-10 game from last night, but it’s immensely impressive for a 34-year-old backup to be pressed into starting duty and put up 30/10 and 18/10 on consecutive nights. While his individual efficiency didn’t have a banner night (18 points on 8-20 shooting and just 1-3 from the free throw line), he was the real mastermind between LAC’s offense for most of the night and forced the Heat into switching in the pick-and-roll, opening the door for Zubac to dominate the second half.

Terance Mann: B+. Mann was tasked with guarding Jimmy Butler for much of this game, and, well, Jimmy had a 30/10/10 triple-double. So while we can’t give Terance credit for “stopping” Jimmy, we can credit him for putting up a respectable fight, making the superstar wing work for his points, and contributing in his own right: 15 points on 5-8 shooting, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists, while using his size and athleticism to create looks in the paint and at the rim.

Marcus Morris: A. I’m tempted to go A- here, just because Marcus’ foul trouble in the second half feels like a significant enough drawback to dock him… but the reality is that he was just so, so good in this game that even one pretty glaring flaw isn’t enough to take him out of A territory. The Clippers led at halftime because Morris had 26 points on 9-11 shooting before the break, and while they had to do most of their second-half work with him on the bench, he managed to return late and hit a huge, difficult mid-range shot that pushed the advantage back to 8 with 1:34 remaining and essentially sealed the victory.

Serge Ibaka: C. I was really encouraged by Serge’s start to the game, with 7 first-quarter points and a pair of offensive rebound putbacks where he outhustled Bam Adebayo on the glass. But he just didn’t sustain any meaningful contribution as the game went on–not scoring in the second or third quarters and not even appearing in the fourth as Zubac clearly outperformed him. The big issue was that when Miami started switching pick-and-rolls to prevent Lou Williams from getting downhill, Serge was rentered entirely ineffective when the Clippers tried to hunt mismatches with guards defending Serge in the post. Zu’s ability to punish the Heat defense for those switches is what won the Clippers the game in the second half, making Serge’s inability to do so rather glaring.

Clippers Bench Player Grades

Amir Coffey: A. Listen, I think it’s fool’s gold to rely on Coffey, who shot 5-23 from deep in two games with the Agua Caliente Clippers last week before being recalled to the big leagues, coming into an NBA game and going 5-6 from behind the arc (with his only miss being blocked). But I also think you take wins however you can get them, especially when you’re down 4 starters and need a stroke of luck or two. Getting 50 points from Marcus Morris and Lou Williams was a great way for them to step up and replace Paul George and Kawhi Leonard’s production–but someone else has to step in and do what Marcus and Lou normally do. It’s kind of like Amir was Marcus tonight, and Marcus was Kawhi. Pretty cool. Bonus points–not that Amir needs them tonight–for letting Brian Sieman do what he was born to do.

Luke Kennard: B+. I thought Luke had a nice game on the whole tonight, making positive contributions offensively and defensively throughout the game. He had a few blunders on both ends, but that’s pretty much true of any player in any game (though it can certainly solicit more groans from the fans when a guy has been struggling for a while). Listen, Luke is a great three-point shooter. I don’t care when he misses, like his 0-3 start from deep tonight. He’s gonna make 40% or more over the course of the year, individual makes and misses aren’t meaningful. What I liked, though, was that he actually felt involved in the offense instead of just waiting for others to make plays for him, coming up with 4 assists. He was actually quite good defensively tonight as well, staying in good position and making several key interventions. His 8 points, including two big made threes, in the fourth quarter as the Clippers pulled ahead and away? That’s just a well-deserved reward from the Basketball Gods.

Ivica Zubac: A. I really didn’t like Zu’s first half, where I thought he made several mistakes and had poor body language that turned blame towards teammates or referees instead. But much like Morris was too good in the first half to not get an A, Zubac was simply too good in the second half to not get his. As I mentioned in the Ibaka note, the Heat began switching pick-and-rolls defensively, and Zu hammered them inside for 18 straight second-half minutes. He had 22 points on 9-11 shooting, 14 (7-7) of which came in the second half, and he even had a gorgeous dime to a cutting Terance Mann when Miami brought a double-team to one of his post-ups. The Heat more or less kept Lou Williams contained by switching Bam Adebayo onto him. Zubac was the Clippers’ counter, and he swung the second half back in their favor.

Patrick Patterson: D. I dunno, man. The Clippers are missing 4 starters. They only have 10 available players, including Amir Coffey on a two-way contract and soon-to-be-cut Mfiondu Kabengele. You’d think that Patrick Patterson, on an above-minimum contract, would have something to offer in a depth role on a night like tonight. But he played 7 ineffective first half minutes and didn’t make enough of an impression to get back on the floor in the second half, despite Reggie Jackson essentially playing with one arm and Marcus Morris getting just 9 second half minutes due to foul trouble. Amir Coffey played 17 second-half minutes at power forward while Patrick Patterson rode the pine. Not a great look for where PatPat is in the coaching staff’s eyes.

No Grades

Kawhi Leonard and Paul George were both sidelined with injuries. So was Patrick Beverley. And Nicolas Batum. And Jay Scrubb, and Daniel Oturu, both of whom are recovering in LA instead of with the Agua Caliente Clippers in Orlando. Mfiondu Kabengele was the sole unused sub for the Clippers 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 Heat Player Grades
Lucas Hann

Despite being down four starters, Marcus Morris stepped up and led the Clippers to a surprising 125-118 win over the Miami Heat. Read on for a full Clippers vs Heat game recap.

Clippers vs Heat Game Summary

The Clippers suited up for Monday night’s match-up against the reigning Eastern Conference Champion Miami Heat without Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, Patrick Beverley and Nicolas Batum. The squad was also on the back end of a back-to-back and their third game in four days. The team could have just thrown this towel for this match-up, but that is not in their DNA. Led by Marcus Morris Sr. and with impressive performances from Ivica Zubac and youngsters Terance Mann and Amir Coffey, the Clippers scrapped their way to victory, 125-118, and improve to 21-8.

First Half

Los Angeles started the game with the unusual combo of Terance Mann, Marcus Morris Sr., Serge Ibaka, Reggie Jackson and Lou Williams. Miami predictably hit the floor running, jumping out to a 7-0 lead after tip-off, exploiting Reggie Jackson’s inability to work through high screens. The Clippers settled in fairly quickly, however, with Marcus Morris Sr. leading the way.  

Morris displayed unusual offensive flexibility in the first quarter, supplementing his three-point shooting with aggressive drives to the rim.  Morris almost single-handedly keep the Clippers alive over the first 12 minutes, collecting 15 points on 5 for 7 shooting (including 3 from 3), three rebounds, two assists and a steal. 

Serge Ibaka also contributed in the frame, connecting for 7 points and snatching 4 rebounds.

It helped the Clippers significantly that two of the Heat’s starters got into foul trouble early. Duncan Robinson, who opened the game going 2 for 3 from long, was forced to the bench with over 8 minutes left in the opening period, with two. Kendrick Nunn was called for his second foul approximately two minutes later.

At the end of the first, the Clippers trailed by two, 35-33.  Notably, 22 of the Heat’s 35 points were scored in the paint. The Clippers got absolutely hammered inside all game.

The second quarter started with Luke Kennard, Ivica Zubac, Amir Coffey, Patrick Patterson and Lou Williams on the floor.  The Heat started on an uptick, extending their lead to seven on a another Robinson three. The Clippers bounced right back, however, going on a 7-0 run consisting of a Kennard layup, Coffey three and Zu flush.  Coffey was the highlight of the quarter, sinking three from beyond the arc.  

Reggie Jackson prompted a moment of concern with just under five minutes left in the half, injuring his shoulder and retreating to the locker room. (Jackson would return in the third quarter, but was in obvious pain when shooting – something to monitor.)

Morris continued his hot streak, connecting on three more long balls and logging a career high 26 points in the half.  

At the end of two frames the Clippers were out in front by 5, 67-62.  As a team the Clippers shot a solid 53.3 percent from the field and 55.6 from 3 point land.  Miami continued to dominate in the paint (38 points), and also outscored the Clippers 10-0 in fast break points.  

Clippers Halftime Stats

• Morris – 26 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists in 17 minutes.  
• Coffey – 12 points (all from behind the arc), 2 rebounds, 1 assist. 
• Zubac – 8 points, 5 rebounds
• Ibaka – 7 points, 6 rebounds, 1 steal.
• Williams – 6 points, 5 assists, 1 rebound.
• Mann – 6 points, 1assist, 2 rebounds.

Jimmy Butler was predictably best for Miami with 16 points, 5 assists, 5 rebounds and 1 steal.  Tyler Herro added 12 points, 4 rebounds, 1 block and Bam Adebayo 10 points, 4 assists, 6 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block. 

Second Half

The second half was a teeter-totter shootout, with neither team playing terribly effective defense.  The Clippers got solid performances out of nearly everyone, while Miami continued to eat in the paint and take advantage of mismatches involving Jimmy Butler.  

The Clippers entered the final frame with a 92-91 advantage.  Luke Kennard hit a couple of big buckets as part of a 12-2 scoring run, which was a welcomed sight.  With just under 5 left on the clock the Clippers had extended their lead to 11.  Despite solid performances from Butler, Adebayo and Herro down the stretch, Miami never recovered.  

The Clippers ended the game with six players in double figures: Morris (32), Zubac (22), Williams (18), Mann (15), Coffey (15) and Kennard (10).  

Miami was led by Butler (30), Adebayo (27) and Herro (27).

Game Notes

• Step Up: All In. This was an incredible and fun team win. As I noted in my preview for this game, the Clippers are, and will continue to be, an extremely difficult team to beat with their talent and depth. Tonight, every player that hit the floor (except perhaps Patrick Patterson), contributed solidly and believed 100% in themselves and in the franchise.  Many had career or season highs:

• Marcus Morris Sr. finished with a game high 32 points.  The 26 points he lodged in the first half was a career record. Mook really stepped up to be the leader on the court tonight; the go-to guy in the absence of Kawhi and PG.  Love to see it. 

• Amir Coffey had a stellar, well-rounded game, contributing 15 points (on 5 for 6 shooting from distance), three rebounds, two assists and a steal.  Career high for the young fella.

• Terance Mann had a season-high 15 points and also grabbed 7 rebounds. Along with Coffey, Mann showed tremendous poise, confidence and good judgment on the floor tonight. 

• Ivica Zubac had a season-high 22 points tonight, and came through meaningfully in the fourth quarter on both ends of the floor to ensure LA’s victory.

• Lou Williams had another solid game, connecting for 18 points and dishing out 10 assists. This is the second time in Williams’ career that he has had consecutive games with at least 10 assists. Lou’s confidence in his passing has just skyrocketed this season, and it has benefitted the team immensely.

• Sharing is Caring: Speaking of assists, this is the second time this season the Clippers have had consecutive games of at least 30 assists. The team had 31 assists Sunday against the Cleveland Cavaliers and again tonight.  Prior to this season, the Clippers haven’t had consecutive games with at least 30 assists since December of 2014.

• Next Up:  Clippers host the Utah Jazz for the first of two match-ups this week.  Wednesday February 17, 2021, 7 p.m.

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 Heat Game Recap: Morris’ 32 Leads The Way
michelle uzeta

Two teams trending in the right direction will get a rematch tonight after LA was successful two weeks ago. Read on for a full Clippers vs Heat game preview.

Game Information

Where: Staples Center, Los Angeles CA

Date:  Monday, February 15, 2021

Time: 7 p.m.

How to Watch: Fox Sports Prime Ticket, NBA TV

How to Listen:  AM 570 LA Sports

Projected Starting Lineups

Clippers: Patrick Beverley — Reggie Jackson — Lou Williams — Nicolas Batum — Serge Ibaka

Heat:  Jimmy Butler – Kelly Olynyk – Bam Adebayo – Duncan Robinson – Kendrick Nunn

Injuries

Clippers: OUT — Paul George (foot). DAY-TO-DAY – Kawhi Leonard (leg contusion)

Heat: OUT – Avery Bradley (calf), Goran Dragic (ankle), Meyers Leonard (shoulder), Silva (hip). DAY-TO-DAY – Gabe Vincent (knee)

The Big Picture

The Miami Heat (11-15) visit the Staples Center Monday night to face the Los Angeles Clippers (20-8) for the second time this season. In the earlier outing (January 28), the Clippers fell behind by double digits early, but went on a 20-2 run in the third quarter to fuel a 109-105 comeback win.  Nicolas Batum (18 points) and Lou Williams (17 points) led the way for Los Angeles. Tyler Herro, who had just returned after missing seven games with neck spasms, dropped 19 points for Miami.  

Notably, both teams were significantly short-handed in that first match-up. The Clippers were without the dynamic duo of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George due to health and safety protocols, and spark plug Patrick Beverley was also out due to injury. The Heat were down seven, including Jimmy Butler, Avery Bradley, Goran Dragic, Moe Harkless, Meyers Leonard, Chris Silva and Andre Iguodala. Monday’s match-up should look different than January’s, with at least Beverley, Butler and Iguodala available, but Miami is still far from full capacity and, at the time of this post, it is unknown whether LA will have the benefit of either George or Leonard by tip-off.

The Heat enter Staples Center fresh off a 94-112 Saturday loss to the red-hot Utah Jazz, snapping a four game winning streak. The Clippers are on the tail end of a back-to-back, having played and soundly defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday. Although many are looking right past Monday’s contest to LA’s much anticipated two game stretch against first place Utah later on Wednesday and Friday, the Clippers would be foolish to do the same. Miami boasts boast multiple players capable of double-figure performances and, despite Saturday’s loss, have been on a recent uptick. The Clippers need to put the Heat away early, and keep their foot on the gas if they want to ensure a victory.

The Antagonist

The Heat have a fairly successful history against the Clippers. The franchise is 36-28 all-time versus LA during the regular season, including 19-13 in home games and 17-15 in road games. 

This season the Heat have had a surprisingly slow start after representing the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals in last year’s bubble. Injury has been a major factor. The Heat are averaging a disappointing 106.2 points per game (27th of 30) and have an offensive rating of 106.9 (25th of 30). Miami currently sits in 9th place in the Eastern Conference with a concerning record of 11-15.

This 48 minute contest should end up with mark in the win column for Los Angeles, but Miami is a solid team that has not yet played up to its potential and as everyone knows, the NBA is anything but predictable.

Notes

• To be the best, you must be able to handle the worst… Miami is the worst in the NBA in numerous key categories this season, including  offensive rebounding (7 per game), turnovers (16.8 per game) and field goals attempted and made (82.1 / 37.8 per game).  The Clippers should be able to exploit these issues by focusing on pace and transition offense.  

• The Clippers’ sharp shooters should excel against the Heat’s anemic perimeter defense. The Heat have been fairly solid defending the rim this season but have allowed opponents to make 15.1 shots per game from behind the arc. This favors the Clippers, who attempt 34.3 three-point shots per game and rank first in three-point shot percentage (42.2 percent). Paul George, Nicolas Batum, Patrick Beverley, Marcus Morris and Luke Kennard all average over 40 percent from long, while Kawhi Leonard, Serge Ibaka, Lou Williams, and Patrick Patterson hit a respectable 38-39 percent. Advantage, Clippers.  

• Depth matters, and the Clippers have it. Kawhi Leonard was a last minute scratch for Sunday’s game against the Cavaliers, joining Paul George on the injured list. The absence of both of the Clippers’ superstars, who collectively average 51 points per game, did not phase the rest of the team. At all. As Lou Williams told Kristina Pink post-game “We don’t want to look like we’re scrubs without them!” Indeed. The Clippers put on a fantastic display, handling Cleveland with ease (128-111). Williams was absolutely spectacular, finishing with 30 points and 10 assists. Serge Ibaka had arguably his best game in a Clippers uniform, serving up 21 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 blocks. Marcus Morris also excelled, contributing 23 points, 6 rebounds, 2 blocks and a steal. Patrick Beverley was also a factor, with 16 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals. Luke Kennard (12 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists) and Reggie Jackson (8 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals) also deserve a mention. A TOTAL TEAM EFFORT. The Clippers are, and will continue to be, an extremely difficult team to beat with this type of talent and depth.

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Clippers vs Heat Game Preview
michelle uzeta

Despite missing three starters, the Clippers trumped in Miami in an up-and-down game. Check out our full set of Clippers vs Heat player grades.

Clippers Starter Grades

Reggie Jackson: B-. I was really waffling between a B and a B- for Reggie here, as he had a solid game with enough warts to keep him from earning effusive praise like he did Tuesday. I don’t love a 6-15 shooting night, but it’s far from horrible. I don’t love his shot selection, but it wasn’t egregious. I didn’t love his turnovers, but 6 assists to 3 turnovers is still fine. Defensively, he was a bit of a mess, especially when put on Tyler Herro to close the game–but what can you expect from a third string point guard thrust into a starting role? Overall, it was a solid B performance from me, maybe even a B+ considering reasonable expectations for a min guy. But I can’t look the other way on his late game errors. He almost single-handedly turned an 11-point lead with 3 minutes left into a loss with not only poor defense on Herro but a series of bad offensive decisions which culminated in calling a timeout when the Clippers didn’t have one left, giving Miami a free throw and possession back.

Luke Kennard: C+. Luke had a rough night shooting the ball, but he was actually pretty solid all-around aside from that. He was mostly solid on defense, shot 3-4 inside the arc, and added 4 rebounds and 3 assists. The problem is that while we have to live with the fact that Luke’s biggest contribution right now, by far, is his floor-spacing, so his value takes a pretty big hit when when he’s cold from beyond the arc. At least he shot though–6 3PA in 27 minutes still isn’t high enough volume, and he was still too gun-shy tonight, but it’s at least in the right territory.

Terance Mann: A-. Terance was the Clippers’ only real positive defensively on the perimeter tonight, a fact that was most glaring when he was off the floor. In the fourth quarter, with the Clippers going for a more offensive lineup, Tyler Herro was free from Mann and went off for 12 points on 5-10 shooting in the fourth after having just 7 points on 3-11 in the first three periods. In addition to that defensive impact, which doesn’t show in the box score, Terance made a good-but-not-great mark on the box score, with 12 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists on 3-6 shooting. Not quite the Terance gold standard (see Tuesday’s game for that), but he was very effective in his role tonight.

Nicolas Batum: A. If I had to guess which Clipper player was going to lead them in scoring in order for them to win a game without Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, Nic wouldn’t be at the top of the list (Lou Williams). He also wouldn’t be second (Marcus Morris), or third (Serge Ibaka), or fourth (Luke Kennard), or fifth (Reggie Jackson). But that’s what he did tonight, with 18 points on 6 made threes, including an absolutely ballistic 4-5 from deep in the third quarter as LAC surged to a 40-point period and a 19-point lead.

Serge Ibaka: C. Honestly, I think Serge is lucky to get out of this one with a C. Maybe because he was better defensively in the second half until the Heat found a way to exploit him and Reggie in pick and roll defense late in the fourth, maybe because he hit a couple of threes in the Clippers’ barrage from downtown, definitely because they got a win instead of a loss tonight. But he was atrocious finishing around the basket tonight and pretty awful defensively as well. The Clippers easily lost 10 points on one end with Serge missing easy lay-ins and 10 points on the other where he was nonexistent defensively.

Clippers Bench Player Grades

Lou Williams: B+. This wasn’t a vintage Lou Williams game, but it was a good Lou Williams game. The Clippers’ third-quarter three-point shooting is going to get all the headlines tonight, and deservedly so, but Lou was instrumental in both keeping the game close enough in the second quarter to make that run possible, and scoring enough in the fourth quarter to hold off Miami’s run. He had 17 points on just 9 field goal attempts, earned trips to the free throw line whenever the Clippers were in dire straits, and even added 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals.

Marcus Morris: B. Marcus had a rough night shooting the basketball, but he made a number of key improvements from Tuesday’s performance: he shot more, he took more threes, and he got into the lane. A 5-13 night isn’t great, but I’ll happily take Morris shooting the 8 threes that he put up tonight any game. Take out his 2-8 on those shots, and he was 3-5 inside the arc–3-3 inside ten feet and 0-2 on long mid-range pull-ups. Those two questionable shots aside, he did exactly what you’d want him to do offensively–the shots just didn’t fall from beyond the arc for most of the game. But they did in the fourth quarter, where he had 10 of his 16 points and shot 3-4 from the field and 2-2 from deep. The Clippers only managed 21 points in the final frame; they simply don’t win tonight if Morris doesn’t come through in the clutch.

Ivica Zubac: A. Much like with Lou and Marcus, Zu’s biggest contributions came not while the Clippers were surging in the third quarter, but while they were struggling. After dreadful team defense to start the game, Zubac came in and immediately righted the ship and really single-handedly set the tone. Time after time he stepped up and protected the rim, hustled after loose balls, and worked the offensive glass relentlessly. Even when the Clippers didn’t get a second shot, his tireless workrate in that department forced Miami to crash multiple defenders to box him out on every play and secure rebounds off of deflections, slowing down their transition attack.

Amir Coffey: A-. There’s a steep curve here for being pressed into duty on a two-way contract, but Amir gave the Clippers 16 mostly solid minutes on the wing. He had some gaffes defensively, especially against Gabe Vincent, but he was active off the ball and came up with 3 steals. Offensively, he found his way to 5 points on 5 shots, which isn’t spectacular in volume or efficiency, but what’s important is that it’s playable. The Clippers have needed him to be playable this week and he’s been that.

No Grades

Patrick Beverley, Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, and Jay Scrubb all remain on the injury report. Patrick Patterson, Daniel Oturu, and Mfiondu Kabengele were once again unused substitutes.

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 Heat Player Grades
Lucas Hann

That was… a weird basketball game. With both teams missing a handful of key players and struggling to play consistently on either end, the streaky Clippers were able to jump out to a big third-quarter lead and hold on to survive against the Miami Heat, 109-105.

Clippers vs Heat Game Summary

This one started about as poorly as it could have for the Clippers, as the Heat began the game 8-13 from deep and jumped out to an early big lead behind contributions from Gabe Vincent and Max Strus, Miami’s two two-way contract players who most fans have probably never heard of before. This is probably how other teams felt when Jamil Wilson, C.J. Williams, and Ty Wallace were lighting it up for the Clippers in 2018. The duo of Vincent and Strus had 22 of their 30 points in the first half as the Heat jumped out to a quick 21-9 lead, taking a 33-19 advantage into the second quarter.

Frankly, the Clippers were simply not good on either end to start the game. I noted on twitter that they lost both the execution and luck battles–the Heat were hot while the Clippers were cold, but they were also outplaying LA on both ends of the floor. The Clippers’ starting unit struggled to generate good looks, Serge Ibaka missed bunnies around the basket, and the team was constantly either dying on off ball screens or losing shooters to give Miami’s best marksmen clean looks from beyond the arc.

While the Clippers’ offensive downpour to take the lead came in the third quarter, the dynamic of the game changed in the second as Ivica Zubac came in and was immediately impactful on both ends. Time after time down the floor, he stepped up in help defense and protected the rim to turn the game into a slugfest and drag Miami’s offense down to the level of the Clippers’ sputtering attack. LA began doing just enough to chip into the lead: Lou Williams got to the free throw line, Ivica Zubac put in work on the offensive glass, Luke Kennard found 6 of his 8 points in the first half of the second quarter. The fight was present, and the Clippers were pretty much doing everything except hitting from three.

And then they did. After starting the game 1-14 from beyond the arc, Nicolas Batum’s trey with 4:15 left in the second sparked a stretch where the Clippers would hit 5-6 from beyond the arc, pulling into a tie before ultimately trailing by 2 at halftime. The shooting carried over into the third, thought: without their two offensive stars, LA put up a 40-point third quarter against Miami, largely due to shooting 9-14 from beyond the arc in the frame led by a 4-5 explosion from Batum.

The Clippers carried a 19-point lead into the fourth quarter, but the battle wasn’t over. Miami began the period on a 10-0 run, and Tyler Herro woke up, scoring 12 points on 5-10 shooting in the frame. The Clippers, cooled off from their third quarter outburst, managed to find just enough points to keep the Heat at arm’s length, as Lou Williams and Marcus Morris combined for 16 of the team’s 21 fourth quarter points after slow starts. Thing seemed to be in hand when a Morris three put the Clippers back up 11 with 3:17 to play, but the Heat weren’t done yet. With Terance Mann on the bench in favor of a more offensive-minded group, Herro found a groove against Reggie Jackson and Serge Ibaka’s pick-and-roll defense, and the game began to slip away due to a series of disastrous decisions from Jackson.

At 1:34, he badly missed a stepback three after passing up an open look and allowing the defense to recover. With 47.1 seconds left, he casually turned the ball over against Miami’s pressure defense and Bam Adebayo drove to the rim for a three-point play to cut the lead to 6. Then, when Morris was pressured on the inbounds pass, Jackson called timeout with 27.5 seconds left despite the Clippers not having any timeouts remaining, resulting in a technical foul that gave the Heat a free throw and possession back. All of a sudden, the lead was down to 3 with 20.1 seconds left, and as the Clippers evaded Miami’s pressure the ball found itself back in Jackson’s hands. He went to the free throw line and missed the first shot, but was able to calm his nerves and connect on the second shot to maintain a two-possession lead. The Heat would get three shots up from deep in the final 20 seconds as the Clippers scrambled defensively, but that four-point lead was ultimately the final margin.

Clippers vs Heat Game Notes

• Balanced Attack: It’s easy to feel like the Clippers need a standout performance from someone on their supporting cast in order to win games without their stars. While nobody would complain about a 30-point outing from Lou Williams or Marcus Morris, LA proved tonight that they can win by getting contributions from across the roster–all nine guys scored at least 5 points, 6 players reached double figures, and nobody scored more than 20 points.

• Playing Through Pain: With his continued hip discomfort confirmed by visible pain in the first half, Lou Williams built some positive momentum tonight as he added 17 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals on 4-9 shooting, earning 9 free throw attempts. As I just mentioned, this wasn’t a case of Lou going insane and bailing the team out with a hot night, and he actually wasn’t even on the floor during their amazing third quarter run. But while the team was clawing its way back into the game in the second quarter and desperately looking to hold on to its lead in the fourth, Williams was one of the only avenues for consistent offensive creation that the team could come up with.

• Checking Bam: After I was effusive in my praise for Bam Adebayo in the game preview, he was pretty underwhelming tonight. That’s fine–even superstars have slow nights, and Bam is still a phenomenal young player. It’s probably a testament to just how good he is that 16 points, 13 rebounds, and 7 assists can be seen as a disappointing night.

• Fatigue: Tired legs can always catch up to guys on long road trips, especially on back-to-backs, and especially when close games and short benches leave little opportunity to rest. In their current state, the Clippers hardly have third string players to play in garbage time, even if the game hadn’t come down to the closing seconds. All of the Clippers, but particularly Williams with his hip injury and Jackson, who has played 39 and 37 minutes the last two games, could start to feel fatigue on the second game of this back-to-back tomorrow in Orlando. Frankly, splitting these two games was the goal, so any success the Clippers find tomorrow would be gravy–what they really need is to hope that the fresh legs of Paul George and Kawhi Leonard are able to rejoin them sooner rather than later.

• Gabe Vincent: Okay, I might be being a little pedantic here, but can we please stop expressing shock at Gabe hitting a couple of threes against the Clippers despite shooting just 21.1% from deep on the season up to this point? A quick google search will show you that not only does Vincent–a two-way contract player–lack a meaningful sample of NBA shots to evaluate, but that a very large sample exists from his time in the NBA G-League last season… where he shot 40.6% from three on over ten attempts per game. It’s more surprising that he missed shots in his prior games than it is that he made shots 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.

Streaky Clippers Survive Heat, 109-105
Lucas Hann

The Clippers continue on their six-game road trip without three starters tonight. Read on for a full Clippers vs Heat game preview.

Clippers vs Heat Game Information

When: 5:00 PM Pacific Time
Where: American Airlines Arena, Miami, Florida
How To Watch: Fox Sports Prime Ticket, NBA League Pass

Projected Starters:
LA Clippers: Reggie Jackson – Luke Kennard – Terance Mann – Nicolas Batum – Serge Ibaka
Miami Heat: Kendrick Nunn – Duncan Robinson – KZ Okpala – Kelly Olynyk – Bam Adebayo

Injury Report:
LA Clippers: Patrick Beverley – OUT (right knee soreness), Paul George – OUT (health and safety protocols), Kawhi Leonard – OUT (health and safety protocols), Jay Scrubb – OUT (foot surgery)
Miami Heat: Jimmy Butler – DAY-TO-DAY (conditioning), Tyler Herro – QUESTIONABLE (neck spasms), Goran Dragic – QUESTIONABLE (groin), Meyers Leonard – QUESTIONABLE (shoulder), Moe Harkless – QUESTIONABLE (thigh), Chris Silva – QUESTIONABLE (hip)

The Big Picture

I wouldn’t go so far as to call the Clippers’ 9-point loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday a “moral victory,” but I have to admit that my concern levels are pretty low. LA, for the most part, hung close against a playoff team at full strength despite being down three starters, and put themselves in a position where they could have stolen a win if they’d been a little luckier and gotten a good scoring game from Lou Williams or Marcus Morris.

But while that loss isn’t particularly meaningful, the short-term outlook continues to be grim so long as Beverley, George, and Leonard are out. Without sweating the Atlanta loss too much, the Clippers are poised for a real setback in the standings as they continue on this six-game road trip. It is what it is–results without multiple starters don’t mean much as a measure of the team’s overall quality or outlook, but these games will have an effect on the standings. Over the next three games against the Heat, Magic, and Knicks, you’d hope that the Clippers can find a way to merge the same kind of fight they exhibited on Tuesday with some better shot-making.

They’ll have a real chance against the Miami Heat tonight, especially with the Heat playing on the second night of a back-to-back and having quite the injury report of their own. Of course, it’s possible that a flurry of Miami players who missed last night’s game return tonight with fresh legs. Wouldn’t it be just the Clippers’ luck to play the Hawks right when Trae Young and Clint Capela get back, just to play the Heat right when several of their rotation guys get back the next game?

The Antagonist

The Heat, fresh off of their NBA Finals appearance, have started the season… 6-11. Much like the current version of the Clippers, Miami’s early season struggles have a lot more to do with who is out of the lineup than who’s in it. Jimmy Butler has only played 6 games so far this season. Meyers Leonard has only made 3 appearances. Moe Harkless has only played 9 times. Tyler Herro has missed 7 games. And now Goran Dragic is missing time with a groin injury as well. It’s hard to scout the Heat without knowing what version of the Heat the Clippers will go up against. If the aforementioned crew remains sidelined, the Clippers should actually be favored tonight. If some guys return–Butler’s probably unlikely to play, but Herro and Dragic could–the Clippers could have a more difficult time with Miami’s firepower.

Either way, the best player on the court tonight will be Bam Adebayo. The 23-year-old big man broke out last year in his third NBA season, making his first All-Star team, and he’s putting up even better numbers this year: 20.7 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 5.4 assists per game while shooting 60.7% from the field. Defensively, he’s mobile enough to switch onto the perimeter, strong enough to defend in the post, and a great help-side rim protector. Offensively, he’s crafty in the lane, explosive at the rim, and precise as a distributor. Just this week, he put up a game-high 41 points against the Brooklyn Nets and nearly lifted the shorthanded Heat to victory over the trio of Kyrie Irving, James Harden, and Kevin Durant.

The Clippers are going to struggle with Adebayo–Ibaka in particular. Bam is the right kind of two-way threat who shouldn’t have much trouble shutting down Serge on one end and scoring on him at will at the other. With Ivica Zubac surging in recent games and better equipped to defend Adebayo at the rim and control the defensive glass, I’d hope to see a little more of him tonight. But Bam is also lethal in the mid-range, hitting 59% from 10-16 feet this season, so Zu’s slow-footed drop coverage could leave openings there. But if the other Heat remain sidelined, the Clippers might be able to survive a big night from Bam–Miami’s only other real firepower to speak of comes from Kendrick Nunn, whose contributions come with questionable efficiency and decision-making, and Duncan Robinson, who is perhaps the NBA’s best sharpshooter who thrives most when playing off of others but doesn’t create much on his own.

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 Heat Game Preview
Lucas Hann