The Clippers will look to continue their winning ways at home with a contest against the tanking Nets.

Game Information

Where: Intuit Dome, Inglewood, California

When: 6:00 PM PT

How to Watch: FanDuel Sports SoCal, AM 570

Projected Starting Lineups

Nets: Egor Demin – Drake Powell – Michael Porter Jr. – Noah Clowney – Nic Claxton

Clippers: James Harden – Kris Dunn – Kawhi Leonard – John Collins – Ivica Zubac

Injuries

Nets: Haywood Highsmith Out (Knee), Cam Thomas Out (Ankle), Nolan Traore Out (Illness), Noah Clowney Doubtful (Back)

Clippers: Derrick Jones Jr. Out (Knee), Bogdan Bogdanovic Out (Hamstring), Bradley Beal Out (Hip), Chris Paul Out (Not with team)

The Big Picture

The Clippers are, somehow, just four games under .500 as we rapidly approach the trade deadline. They are still in 10^th place in the West (with the Grizzlies and Mavs lurking behind them), but have closed the gap on the 9^th place Blazers to two games (one loss), the 8^th place Warriors to four games (three losses), and the 6^th place Suns just 6.5 games (six losses). A true run into the playoff picture remains unlikely, but the window is still cracked open for the Clippers. The schedule is about to get much, much harder (more on that below), so the Clippers’ stacking wins in January was needed. Let’s see if they can keep that momentum going forward, especially if they’re able to remain mostly healthy during the second half of the season.

The Antagonist

After being fairly frisky for the first couple months of the season, the Brooklyn Nets (wisely) have revved up the tanking engines. The Nets have lost four in a row and nine of their last 10 to fall to the third-worst record in the East and fifth-worst in the NBA. Considering this is the last year they own their pick for several years, they were always going to tank at some point. Veterans like former Clipper Terance Mann are getting moved out of the rotation or towards the fringes in favor of prospects (the Nets are playing four rookies big minutes right now), with those vets likely to be shipped off by the trade deadline in less than two weeks’ time. Michael Porter Jr. is still starting, which means the Nets have an All-Star playing big minutes, but it’s clear they are ready to start losing a lot of games. Hopefully the Clippers can oblige.

Notes

Cleaning Up: The Clippers really need to win this game (and their following game against the Jazz on Tuesday), because the schedule is going to get real hard, real soon. After that Jazz game, 11 of the Clippers’ next 12 contests are against playoff teams, and a whole bunch of those games are on the road. The entire month of February is a gauntlet, though the All-Star Break will be huge for the old Clippers to get their legs back under them. Things lighten up again in March, but the Clippers will have to stay attached in February to keep postseason hopes alive. Winning these next two games will get the Clippers to just two games under .500 and hopefully allow some breathing room even if they string together losses in February.

Trade Target: Day’Ron Sharpe is someone I have my eyes on as a Clippers’ trade target. The 25-year-old big man has been one of the better backup centers in the league for 2.5 years now, and is on a cheap contract the Clippers could easily match with Brook Lopez or Bogi (plus some second-round picks) without giving up a first-round pick. Sharpe is an incredible offensive rebounder who would bring much-needed physicality to the Clippers’ bench unit. I don’t think he’d cost a first and is under contract with a team option for next year that would still fit into the Clippers’ cap space plan.

Paper Eating Time: Most of you reading this probably know about this, but I made a bet of sorts on Twitter that the Clippers would not go 15-3 at any point in this season. Or rather, that I’d print and eat the Tweet if they would do so. Well, if the Clippers win today they will have gone 15-3 in their last 18 games, which would make it time for me to eat paper crow. If this does happen, I’d arrange a public viewing of the eating at some time in the near future.

Clippers vs Nets Preview: Get the Win At Home
Robert Flom

The Clippers continue their road trip with a visit to Brooklyn to talk on the young and shockingly feisty Nets.

Game Information

Where: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York

When: 4:30 PM PT

How to Watch: FanDuel Sports SoCal, AM 570

Projected Starting Lineups

Clippers: James Harden – Kris Dunn – Kawhi Leonard – John Collins – Ivica Zubac

Nets: Egor Demin – Ziaire Williams – Michael Porter Jr. – Noah Clowney – Day’Ron Sharpe

Injuries

Clippers: Kawhi Leonard Questionable (Ankle), Derrick Jones Jr. Out (Knee), Bogdan Bogdanovic Out (Hamstring), Bradley Beal Out (Hip), Chris Paul Out (Not with team)

Nets: Michael Porter Jr. Probable (Knee), Haywood Highsmith Out (Knee), Ben Saraf Out (Knee)

The Big Picture

The Clippers had one of their first “good losses” of the season on Wednesday. Most of their defeats have been somewhere between frustrating and disastrous, with a combination of laziness, sloppiness, and inconsistency leading to awful losses. The loss to the Knicks, however, was fine; the Clippers mostly played hard, they looked competent on defense, and fell to a very good team on the road. Obviously, a win would have been nice, but it was a tough draw and they performed fairly well. It’s also not a game you’d expect the Clippers to win when charting standings; they’ll just need to continue to win they games that they should.

The Antagonist

The Nets are not good. However, they are better than people thought they’d be, as they have an 11-23 record and have some quality wins over good teams. Surprisingly for a younger team, the Nets are better on defense (20^th) than offense (25^th), and have had stretches of defensive excellence. The Nets’ best player by far has been Michael Porter Jr., who has had an All-Star caliber season as a go-to scorer that has dominated without holding the ball in his hands. Porter Jr. is shooting the ball lights out, and is utilizing coach Jordi Fernandez’s extensive playbook to consistently get open looks even with opposing defenses scheming to stop him. Supporting MPJ are the Nets’ duo at center Sharpe and Nic Claxton, who are both at the “solid starter” level, and former Clipper Terance Mann, who is providing his usual competence. The Nets’ rookies (they have five of them) have been up and down, but Egor Demin has come to the forefront as a shooter and playmaker.

Notes

Containing MPJ: Easier said than done, but for the Clippers to have a good chance of winning this game they need to keep Porter Jr. in check. That doesn’t mean limiting him to 0 points, or even 10 points. But if he gets to 30 on his usual efficiency, the Clippers might be in trouble. There are a few keys to defending MPJ. Like all great shooters, the Clippers have to avoid fouling him on jumpers as much as possible, especially threes. Second, while MPJ loves to get open from deep, he’s also a fantastic cutter that the Clippers can’t let get repeated looks at the rim on backdoor runs. Finally, they have to make him put the ball on the deck and make plays for others. MPJ has improved as a passer this year, but it’s definitely not his forte, and he’s at his most comfortable when he’s looking to score.

John Collins, Surging: Outside of Kawhi Leonard’s turn towards unstoppable superstar, no Clipper has had a bigger impact on the team’s improved play than John Collins. Collins was frankly a disaster for the first six weeks of the season, but in the past few weeks has looked like the player the Clippers thought they were getting. Collins has been making his spot-up threes, he’s been solid on defense, he’s crashed the glass on both ends, and he’s limited turnovers by avoiding dribbling and isolation attacks. Far from a hindrance, Collins has been a plus on both offense and defense of late, and the Clippers will need him to continue that level of play to continue winning games at a steady clip.

Clippers vs Nets Preview: Clips Need to Get This One
Robert Flom

The Clippers will hope to continue their winning ways against the tanking Nets on the road in Brooklyn.

Game Information

Where: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York

When: 4:30 PM PT

How to Watch: FanDuel Sports SoCal, AM 570

Projected Starting Lineups

Clippers: James Harden – Norm Powell – Kris Dunn – Kawhi Leonard – Ivica Zubac

Nets: D’Angelo Russell – Cameron Johnson – Ziaire Williams – Noah Clowney – Nic Claxton

Injuries

Clippers: Jordan Miller Out (Hamstring), Cam Christie Out (G-League), Trentyn Flowers Out (G-League), Seth Lundy Out (G-League), Patrick Baldwin Out (G-League)

Nets: Noah Clowney Probable (Wrist), Ziaire Williams Questionable (Illness), Trendon Watford Questionable (Illness), Cam Thomas Out (Hamstring), Day’Ron Sharpe Out (Knee)

The Big Picture

The Clippers just continue to win games. The first quarter against the Knicks was rough, but the last three were mostly pretty good, as the Clippers came from 14 points down early to a fairly comfortable win down the stretch. Once again, it was the trio of James Harden, Kawhi Leonard, and Ivica Zubac that led the way, and a real “Big 3” seems to be coalescing in Inglewood. Norm Powell also had his best (offensive) game since his return from injury, which is a positive, and the Clippers showed they could win against a good team even without much from Bogi. It is a little scary how good the vibes are with the postseason less than a month away. That’s not usually how we feel about the Clippers at this time of year.

The Antagonist

After starting the season as a relatively competent and feisty team under new coach Jordi Fernandez, the Nets have fully entered tank mode in the second half of the season, going 3-16 since the All-Star Break to fall towards the bottom of the standings. The Nets still have real NBA talent on their roster, but when they play, how much they play, and how hard they play are all question marks on a game-to-game basis. Oddly enough, both of their last two wins have come against the Hawks and Lakers, two good teams that are trying to win games, so the Nets definitely can surprise against teams that have their guard down. Still, this is a franchise that is trying to lose as many games as possible through the end of the year.

Notes

Get the Win: I’ve said this all year when the Clippers have played bad teams, and the Clips have nearly always obliged. This will almost certainly be the easiest game left on the Clippers’ calendar – the only chance they get an easier one is if one of the Kings, Warriors, or Rockets are fully locked into their seed by the time of those last three games and are resting all of their guys. Thus, this is a game the Clippers simply have to win. Ideally they win in a blowout and can rest their key players in the second half, but at the end of the day the win (and no injuries) is all that matters.  

Programming Note: I am going to be on vacation the next week or so without my computer, so there won’t be any full game coverage in that time, just prescheduled game threads. Go Clippers!

Clippers vs Nets Game Preview: The Last Easy Win
Robert Flom

The Clippers will try to get another win at home against the tanking Nets.

Game Information

Where: Intuit Dome, Inglewood, California

When: 7:30 PM PT

How to Watch: FanDuel Sports SoCal, AM 570

Projected Starting Lineups

Nets: Ben Simmons – Keon Johnson – Ziaire Williams – Noah Clowney – Nic Claxton

Clippers: James Harden – Norman Powell – Kris Dunn – Kawhi Leonard – Ivica Zubac

Injuries

Nets: Cam Johnson Questionable (Ankle), D’Angelo Russell Questionable (Shin), Ben Simmons Questionable (Back), Nic Claxton Questionable (Hamstring), Cam Thomas Doubtful (Hamstring), Trendon Watford Doubtful (Hamstring), Bojan Bogdanovic Out (Foot), Max Lewis Out (Leg)

Clippers: Kobe Brown Out (G-League), Kai Jones Out (G-League), PJ Tucker Out (Away from team), Trentyn Flowers Out (G-League), Cam Christie Out (G-League)

The Big Picture

The Clippers’ win on Monday combined with the Lakers loss pushed the Clippers back into 6^th in the Western Conference – at least temporarily. The West is as crowded as ever, with the Clippers just three games back of the 3^rd place Grizzlies but also just two games ahead of the 11^th place Spurs. The victory over a short-handed Heat team was not particularly impressive, but the Clippers’ defense the last three quarters of the game was pretty good, and the process on offensive was much better. If the Clippers, especially Derrick Jones Jr., Kris Dunn, and Nic Batum, can start hitting more of their open shots, they will look a lot better. Hopefully those players’ shooting slumps are close to ending their course.

The Antagonist

As you can probably guess by the above injury report, the Nets are in full “Capture the Flagg” mode in pursuit of a top draft pick in the loaded 2025 NBA Draft. Some of their players are legitimately injured, while some are maybe dinged up but being held out because the Nets were winning too many games. The Nets are just 13-26, but had a much better record about a month ago, before they traded away Dennis Schroder and Dorian Finney-Smith and started sitting guys out. They have lost five games in a row, and are dedicated to losing. If they actually played their full roster they wouldn’t be bad – there’s a lot of talent on that injury report – but it seems unlikely they will play their best players much the rest of this season if they even “survive” the trade deadline. It’s going to be a free-fall to the bottom for the Nets, who are probably hoping to not even get to 20 wins by the end of the season.

Notes

Get the Win: This is a truly must win game for the Clippers. They are at home, basically healthy, against a tanking team playing on the second night of a back-to-back. This is about as friendly a schedule game as there is, and in this competitive Western Conference every single win matters. Even if it’s ugly, the Clippers have to get the victory in this one. Hopefully they can push the tired Nets to a blowout, but they can’t be complacent. Even if the Nets organization wants to tank, the players on the court are trying to win and are playing for future deals. The Nets won’t just lay over and die, the Clippers will have to make the effort to win. Hopefully they do just that, and this is an easy victory.

Return of Keon Johnson: The Clippers selected Keon Johnson as the 21^st pick in the 2021 Draft – their highest pick since 2018 when they took Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jerome Robinson at 11 and 13. They moved him in the Norman Powell and Robert Covington trade, but he was only on the Blazers for another year and a half before being moved to the Suns. He’s finally ended up on the Nets, and has played in almost every game for Brooklyn this year. Unfortunately… he’s still not very good. Keon is scoring 8.4 points and grabbing 3.4 rebounds per game, not bad production in 21.5 minutes. However, he’s shooting just 36.1% from the field and 30.3% from three (43.7% from two), for an ugly 46.9 True Shooting. Keon only turns 23 in March, so he still has time to turn his career around, but he has not been good at much so far in his career outside of some exciting plays now and then. Things can still change, but it looks like a very smart move by the Clippers to pivot off Keon early while he still had value.

Clippers vs Nets Preview: Getting the Easy Win
Robert Flom

The LA Clippers used a 22-0 run in the fourth quarter to surge past the visiting Brooklyn Nets, 125-114.

Summary

There’s three things you can count on in life; death, taxes, and the Clippers with a slow start on Sunday afternoon games.

In this go-round, the Clippers found themselves down 16-0 in the first quarter. When Mikal Bridges came down court and drilled a three-point shot mere seconds after the opening tip, it felt like it was going to be one of those games.

With the starters sleepwalking through the first quarter, it was the second unit along with Terance Mann who got the Clippers back into the game. Mann knocked down back to back three-point shots to put the Clippers on the scoreboard and then the bench unit led by Russell Westbrook completely erased the Nets 16 point lead.

Even though the Clippers still kind of slogged through the rest of the game, it was that bench energy that helped wake the Clippers up. Being the leader of the second unit is a role that Westbrook has embraced and he knows that some nights he’s going to be relied upon to spark the team.

“It’s my job. . .my energy is a huge part of my game and what I can bring to the team every night when we have slow starts, which is going to happen in an 82-game season,” Westbrook said after the game. “Tonight I tried to use my energy to try to make an impact on the game whether it’s offensively or defensively, whatever is needed for our team.”

The Clippers still found themselves trailing by double digits at the half, 61-49. Throughout the third quarter, it was more of the same. The Clippers were missing layups and the Nets were knocking down three-point shots.

Each time the Clippers looked like they were going to spark a run a cut into the Nets lead, Brooklyn would answer with a well-timed three-pointer. Right at the end of the third quarter, Westbrook knocked down a three to beat the buzzer and give the Clippers a little momentum.

With the Nets ahead 114-103 a little more than halfway through the fourth quarter, was when the game changed. The Clippers responded with a 10-0 run to pull within 114-113. Kawhi Leonard gave the Clippers their first lead of the game at 115-114, and they never looked back after that.

While the 22-0 run that the Clippers ended the game on stands out, it was their defense effort, according to James Harden, that set the tone for the comeback.

“When we’re engaged and doing the things necessary to guard and get stops consecutively, we’re an extremely unbeatable team,” Harden said. “They came out and punched us in the mouth, and in the four quarter we played Clippers basketball and got some stops.”

Clippers vs. Nets Recap: Fourth Quarter Onslaught
David Yapkowitz

The Clippers finally return from their long break to face off against a mediocre Nets squad.

Game Information

Where: Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, CA

When: 12:30 PM PT

How to Watch: Clippervision, Bally Sports SoCal

Projected Starting Lineups

Clippers: James Harden – Terance Mann – Paul George – Kawhi Leonard – Mason Plumlee

Nets: Spencer Dinwiddie – Mikal Bridges – Cam Johnson – Dorian Finney-Smith – Nic Claxton

Injury Report

Clippers: Ivica Zubac out (calf), Moussa Diabate out (hand)

Nets: Ben Simmons out (back), DayRon Sharpe out (knee).

The Big Picture

The LA Clippers get back to work after having a four day off period following their last game against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The main issue facing the Clippers right now is how to navigate the injury to Ivica Zubac. It’s a bit ironic that in a season where the Clippers stars have been 100 percent healthy, the team’s iron man goes down with for an extended period of time.

Nevertheless, it’s part of the game and the Clippers depth is going to have to rise to the occasion. While neither Mason Plumlee nor Daniel Theis are starting caliber players, they’re both solid and will be heavily called upon in the next few weeks. Expect a lot of small ball too.

The Antagonist

The Brooklyn Nets come to town with a little bit of confidence, having beat the LA Lakers on Friday while snapping a four-game losing streak.

Despite their record, this is not a team for the Clippers to take lightly. They have a pair of wings in Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson capable of having big scoring games. Nic Claxton is an athletic, high energy big man that can give the Clippers trouble inside with no Zubac. They have a super-sub in Cam Thomas who can drop 30 in any game.

The Nets won their previous meeting back in November when the Clippers were sputtering in the immediate aftermath of the James Harden trade. Things are much different now, as the Clippers have been one of the hottest teams in the league.

Sunday matinee games have never been that friendly to the Clippers. This Nets team is capable of getting out and pushing the tempo and the Clippers will need to be sharp from the the opening tip.

Clippers vs. Nets Game Preview
David Yapkowitz

The second game of the Clippers’ James Harden era went even worse than the first one, as the Clippers dropped 100-93 to a short-handed Nets team in a brick and turnover fest.

Summary

This game may have broken my brain because of how bad it was. The short-handed Nets lost their leading scorer Cam Thomas in the early 3^rd, didn’t even play well, and still beat the Clippers by seven in a game that wasn’t as close as its score indicates. That’s how bad the Clippers were. No traditional recap or blow by blow since this game didn’t deserve it, so let’s just hop right into notes.

Notes

Shot Distribution Uneven: As Shap pointed out on the post-game TLTJTP, you could always tell when the Clippers of the past couple years were moving the ball well when Nic Batum got up a lot of shot attempts because he is such a smart player that he usually only takes wide open looks. This game was the opposite, as PG took 20 shots, Westbrook 18, Kawhi 15, and nobody else more than 9. The Clippers bricked a ton of open shots, but they also did not move the ball well or generate much flow in the halfcourt. Instead, each star player in turn forced shots, with the Clippers looking good when they did (PG had a flurry in the 2^nd) and bad when they didn’t (the entire rest of the game). The stars just need to be integrated together a lot more, and that will take time.

Turnovers, Turnovers: The Clippers somehow only had 15 turnovers in this game. It felt like 50, maybe because eight of them came in the 4^th quarter. While the Nets are a solid defensive team and have lots of length on the perimeter, most of the Clippers’ turnovers were completely unforced. Again, some of this is just new teammates figuring each other out, but a lot of it is the sloppiness we’ve seen far too often in the 213 era.

Terance Returns: After missing the first six games of the season with a sprained ankle, this was the first game of the 2024 season for Terance Mann. While Terance didn’t score and missed both of his threes, his defense and energy were as good as ever, and he also got four rebounds in his 19 minutes. Not a great outing by any means, but a fine showing for Terance to shake off some rust.

Good PJ: This was by far PJ Tucker’s best game as a Clipper, as he scored three points in 21 minutes (making his first field goal), brought in six rebounds (three offensive and defensive), had three assists, had a steal and a block, and was a team-leading +10. The activity on the offensive glass was great, and he was solid defensively (though he can no longer hang with quicker perimeter players). I also liked that Ty Lue brought him in early for Zu, so that he could play with the starters more and have his weaknesses offensively and defensively offset by the size and skill of PG and Kawhi. That being said, he gets offensive rebounds because nobody bothers guarding him, and he really cramps spacing. He’s an option but is not someone that should be relied upon like this.

Bones Was Left Out: If anyone has seen Deadwood, yes, this is a reference to EB was left out. Anyway, Bones Hyland did not play in the second half, logging just six minutes in this one. It figured that Bones would get squeezed with the Harden trade and the return of Mann, but it really hurts to know that his role is going to shrink considering how many positives he does bring. It’s just hard to roll out a lineup with him, Norm, and Harden defensively – though that could be improved by staggering Russ instead of Harden with the second unit.

Clippers Lose to Nets 100-93 in Hideous Outing
Robert Flom

The Clippers will try to climb back over .500 against the injury-riddled Nets on the road in Brooklyn.

Game Information

Where: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York

When: 4:30 PM PT

How to Watch: KTLA, AM 570

Projected Starting Lineups

Clippers: Russell Westbrook – James Harden – Paul George – Kawhi Leonard – Russell Westbrook

Nets: Ben Simmons – Cam Thomas – Mikal Bridges – Dorian Finney-Smith – Day’Ron Sharpe

Injuries

Clippers: Terance Mann Questionable (Ankle), Mason Plumlee Out (Knee), Brandon Boston Jr. Out (Quad)

Nets: Nic Claxton Out (Ankle), Lonnie Walker Probable (Knee), Cam Johnson Doubtful (Calf)

The Big Picture

The Clippers are 3-3, which isn’t bad, especially considering all of the turmoil in the early season, but also isn’t great considering how easy their schedule has been. Hopefully James Harden slowly grows more comfortable on the Clippers and the offense starts to take off in the next few weeks. The Clippers making the trade for Harden gives them a full season to integrate him – but the Western Conference is brutal and they can’t afford to fall behind the pack record-wise. In the meantime, they need to overcome the loss of backup big man Mason Plumlee to injury, as he will likely miss multiple weeks with a sprained knee. However, the Clippers will benefit from the return of Terance Mann, which is imminent.

The Antagonist

The Nets are 3-4, around on pace for a team most thought would be decent and in the play-in race, but they’ve gotten there in an interesting way. Projected as a scrappy, defense-first team that would struggle on offense, the Nets instead boast the 7^th best offense in the NBA thus far but just the 25^th ranked defense. That’s partially due to injuries to Cam Johnson and now Nic Claxton, with Claxton in particular being a massive loss on defense. The offense being strong is mostly because of one Cam Thomas, the third-year guard who has shown scoring proclivities before but has been ridiculous to start the year. Thoms is averaging 28.7 points on an efficient 58.8 True Shooting and can just make shots from all over the court. With Claxton out, the Nets might lean even more into outscoring opponents rather than stopping them.

Notes

More Harden Pick and Rolls: James Harden spent a good amount of his first game with the Clippers off-ball, and while he’s a threat because of his shooting ability, it’s a waste of his talents. I’d like to see the Clippers run more pick and rolls with him as the ball-handler, especially with Russell Westbrook or Terance (if he plays) as the screener to get them into the short roll. Harden is the best passer and third best scorer on the team, and while he still needs to get used to his teammates and the Clippers’ playbook, the sooner he takes the reins of the offense more fully the better.

The Bench Rotation: The bench might be shaken up completely in this one with Plumlee’s absence and Mann’s potential return. Does PJ Tucker serve as the backup center, with Mann, Norm Powell, Bones Hylan, and a starter (likely Harden) alongside him? That unit seems awfully small and poor defensively. Does Moussa Diabate get a chance at center alongside Tucker? That would compromise the offense, though playing alongside Harden, Bones, and Norm would help. But that’s a five-man unit and doesn’t count Mann, so if Mann is active and Moussa plays, does Ty Lue go 10-deep or does someone else (likely Bones) get cut from the rotation? If Mann does play, my guess is PJ is the backup center. If not, I think Moussa gets another shot.

No Benaissance: After a lot of hype in preseason and training camp I was excited to see Ben Simmons this year. But sadly, the Ben revenge tour has not happened. Simmons is averaging a career high in rebounds and remains a solid playmaker, but his defense just isn’t what it was a few years ago, when he was a defensive player of the year candidate. Worse, he’s simply a non-threat on offense, averaging just 6.5 points per game in 31.8 minutes on a mere 6 shots. Despite all of the talk about him not shooting, prime Ben Simmons was a menace in transition and a bully around the rim on smaller guys. That player just seems to be gone. Hopefully he just needs more time, but he looks like a role player right now.

Clippers vs. Nets Preview: Getting Back Over .500
Robert Flom

The Clippers finally completed their six game Grammy’s road trip in Brooklyn to take on the Nets, who were severely short-handed. The Nets played with pride, though, and almost stole this one from the Clippers. Check out our recap of this exciting Clippers vs Nets game below:

Summary

The Nets were lights-out from three in the first half of this game: 8/12 in the first quarter and 4/9 in the second. They were led by Cam Thomas, who had 22 first-half points, and Royce O’Neale, who had five of the Nets’ 12 threes through twenty-four minutes.

Despite the Nets’ hot shooting, the Clippers—led by Norman Powell, who had eight points in four minutes—finished the first quarter on a run and earned a two point lead after one frame. Then, in the second quarter, the Clippers grew their lead to 11. The Nets’ shooting, though, kept them in it, chipping the lead down to just two at half time.

The third quarter was extremely chaotic and exciting—at least from the Brooklyn perspective. But, in the end, we ended up about where we started: Going into the fourth quarter, the Clippers held a three point lead after winning the third by one. But the Nets got their home crowd into the game with some impressive plays from Cam Thomas and Nic Claxton.

The Nets continued their spirited play in the fourth quarter. A 14-0 Nets run gave them an eight point lead with 6:20 remaining in the game, to which the Clippers responded with a 9-0 run to get the lead back, prompting a Nets time out with 4:39 to go. From there, both teams landed big punch after big punch. But Kawhi and Zubac figured out how to do a *better* job on Cam Thomas, forcing a few turnovers, while the Clippers found ways to score.

In the end, the Clippers won 124-116 despite Cam Thomas’ 47 points.

Notes

Rotation Watch: For the last few games, Ty Lue has kept to a nine-man rotation: Powell, Jackson, Batum, and Covington playing off the bench (or eight, with no Covington). Today, though, Luke Kennard was the first guard off the bench. He had a tough time knocking shots down, but it was nice to see Kennard get shots up and the Clippers were +9 in his first half minutes. Covington did not play in the first half, so Ty Lue did in fact have three guards on the court at the same time, which he’s tried to avoid as of late.

Reggie Jackson started the first half with Morris having been ejected. Then, Batum and Powell came in for Zubac and Mann. And then Kennard and Zubac came in for George and Leonard to end the first quarter. This was notable for two reasons: First, Kennard got a second shift after shooting poorly in the first half. Second, PG and Kawhi spent a lot of time sitting at the same time, which has been rare as of late.

The closing unit was: Jackson, Powell, George, Leonard, and Zubac, although Batum made some huge plays in relief for Zubac, who sat at times because he had five fouls.

Medal Stand: As many of you know, the Podcast Crew at the Lob The Jam The Podcast award medals after each Clippers win. I’ll go:

Gold—Kawhi Leonard: Although he was not great tonight, he had nine points in the fourth quarter and almost single handedly brought the Clippers back from their eight point deficient deep into the fourth quarter.

Silver—Ivica Zubac: Zubac was +27 in 30 minutes, put up 19 points on 6/9 shooting and grabbed 12 boards. He also had three steals, a block, and was 7/10 from the free throw line. He did a bit of everything, including defending at a high-level with five fouls in the fourth quarter.

Bronze—Reggie Jackson: Reggie was not perfect. In fact, he had a few bad stretches tonight. But he was a team-high (tied with Zubac) +27 in 26:38 minutes, put 12 points on 5/10 shooting, and took a huge charge from Nic Claxton while the game was still in the balance.

Honorable Mention—Paul George: PG should probably be on the metal stand, given that he had a team-high 29 points on 10/20 shooting. But I am going to dock him for a bad clutch-time turnover and because he only had three points in the fourth quarter.

Dishonorable Mention—Marcus Morris, Sr.: I have no clue what Morris said to get bounced so quickly, but it must have been bad. Regardless, in 17 minutes, he had two points, one rebound, and three fouls. Not great.

Who is on your metal stand? Tell us your Gold, Silver, and Bronze in the comments!

That about does it for this recap of this Clippers – Nets matchup. As always, check out The Lob The Jam The Podcast and Clips ‘N Dip for analysis throughout the week, and follow us on Twitter to watch the game with us!

Clippers close out inspired Nets, 124-116
Kenneth Armstrong

The Clippers will stay in New York to take on the Nets on Monday night after beating the Knicks on Saturday. This one was going to be awkward. . . But now it might be less awkward (maybe?). Check out our preview below to read why:

Game Information

Where: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, NY

When: 4:30 PM PT

How to Watch: NBA TV

How to Listen: AM 570 KLAC

Projected Starting Lineups

Clippers: Terance Mann – Paul George – Kawhi Leonard – Marcus Morris, Sr. – Ivica Zubac

Nets: Edmond Sumner – Seth Curry – Joe Harris – Royce O’Neale – Nic Claxton

Injuries

Clippers: 
OUT – John Wall (abdominal)

Nets:
QUESTIONABLE – Markieff Morris (knee); Ben Simmons (knee)

OUT – Kevin Durant (knee); T.J. Warren (lower leg)

The Big Picture

The Clippers are 3-2 on this road trip, and Kawhi Leonard and Paul George have generally looked really good. In four games (they sat out the Cavaliers game), they are combined averaging 50.6 points, 14.8 rebounds, and 9.3 assists (and five turnovers). They are both shooting about 44% from the field and 39% from three. What’s more, they are both playing 39 minutes a night.

The two stars—along with Norman Powell, who has been great on this trip—have been able to paper over the weaknesses of the roster and some of the coaching decisions. So, although the Clippers still have a lot of work to do, they should still be heavily favorited over this short-handed Nets team. With Durant, Irving, and Simmons expected to be out, the Clippers will have the best four or five available players on the court. Plus, the players the Nets are getting in return for Kyrie will not be available yet.

The Antagonist

On the other hand, the Clippers have been on the road for nine days now. Leonard and George have played a lot of minutes, especially since Ty Lue is only playing eight men right now. The Clippers may simply run out of gas, while the Nets are home and have been resting since Saturday afternoon. After all, the Nets are 16-8 at home and just beat the Wizards despite missing Durant, Irving, and Simmons.

Note

As all of Clipper Nation knows by now, it was reported that the Clippers put in a “strong offer” for Nets’ guard Kyrie Irving. Without picking a side, I am going to concisely summarize the popular arguments for and against trading for Kyrie. In the comments, chime in with your opinion! Should the Clippers have traded for Kyrie?

Editor’s Note: Kyrie Irving has been traded (though still not officially) to the Mavs, leaving this question a moot one, but I’m leaving in the discussion!

Summary of the Pro-Kyrie Argument: Putting a third star next to Kawhi Leonard and Paul George would make them the championship favorites. Kyrie solves the “point guard” need and adds another scorer, which the Clippers need because Leonard and George are prone to chucking up bad shots late in games. After all, he is a 27 point a game player on 48/37/88 splits. Every team would benefit from someone who can score like that.

Although he has been a locker room issue in the past, Ty Lue has coached him before and Leonard is one the most respected stars in the league. If the Clippers makes this move, it means that Steve Ballmer and Jerry West agree that they can manage him and that he will do well in our culture. If Ballmer and West agree, then Clipper Nation should not worry. They are much better managers than Joe Tsai and Sean Marks, who are responsible for the Nets’ off-court drama.

Summary of the Anti-Kyrie Argument: Kyrie is not a “traditional” point guard; he is another ball dominant player, which the Clippers do not need. He only averages 5.3 assists per game, which is about the same as Paul George. Moreover, Irving shoots the ball 20 times a game—more than George and Leonard by at least three. The Clippers need a point guard who will move the ball instead of take shots away from George, Leonard, and Powell.

He also makes too much money. The Clippers would need to send three to four players plus perhaps a first round pick. A consolidation trade would be good for the Clippers, but that is too high of a price for their depth. Plus, he will be a free agent in July and wants a deal about the size as Leonard’s. The Clippers will not be able to have a sustainable roster with three $40 million players (who are all over thirty, by the way).

Finally, Irving has been a locker room cancer throughout his career. He demanded a trade from the Cavaliers, left Boston after saying he wanted to stay, and has now asked out of Brooklyn. He uses his platform to share dangerous content and doubles-down—with arrogance and ignorance—when he is called out. Clippers fans do not want to cheer for a person like that, and the team’s chemistry will suffer as well. Maybe not now, but eventually.


That about does it for this preview of the Clippers’ upcoming game against the Nets. As always, check out The Lob The Jam The Podcast and Clips ‘N Dip for analysis throughout the week, and follow us on Twitter to watch the game with us!

Clippers vs. Nets Game Preview
Kenneth Armstrong