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Clippers vs Blazers Preview: Can The Clippers Get Their First Win Streak of 2026
The Clippers have won two games in a row, and have a chance to get their first winning season on the road against a beat-up Blazers team.
Game
Information
Where: Moda Center, Portland, Oregon
When: 7:00 PM PT
How to Watch: Amazon Prime Video, AM 570
Projected
Starting Lineups
Clippers: James Harden – Kris Dunn – Kawhi Leonard – John Collins – Brook Lopez
Blazers: Shaedon Sharpe – Toumani Camara – Deni Avdija – Kris Murray – Donovan Clingan
Injuries
Clippers: Ivica Zubac Out (Ankle), Bradley Beal Out (Hip), Derrick Jones Jr. Out (Knee), Chris Paul Out (Not with team)
Blazers: Damian Lillard Out (Achilles), Blake Wesley Out (Foot), Matisse Thybulle Out (Thumb), Jrue Holiday Out (Calf), Scoot Henderson Out (Hamstring), Jerami Grant Questionable (Achilles), Robert Williams Questionable (Knee)
The Big
Picture
The Clippers
have won two games in a row for just the second time all season, and are coming
off by far their best victory of the entire campaign. Their nearly wire-to-wire
win over the Rockets showed everything we thought this team could be preseason:
a superstar performance from Kawhi Leonard, precision floor generalship by
James Harden, nasty perimeter defense from Kris Dunn, and timely three-point
shooting from John Collins, Nic Batum, and Kobe Sanders. The Clippers looked
connected on both ends of the court for one of the only times this year, and
even more surprisingly, held together competent play for just about the entire
game. Two good games is not enough for a season turnaround, but if the Clippers
can keep it going for a third game I think people will start to get their hopes
up.
The
Antagonist
After a hot start to the year, the Blazers have slumped, largely due to injury. They now rank 22nd on both side of the ball, and are hanging onto the bottom of the play-in race by a thread. Few teams in the NBA have been snakebitten as hard as the Blazers, who have not had their presumptive starting point guard in Scoot Henderson all year and have been without veteran leader Jrue Holiday for weeks as well, in addition to other injuries. Those absences have forced more unheralded players into the rotation, with Caleb Love, Rayan Rupert, Sidy Cissoko, and Duop Reath all getting extended rotation minutes. The Blazers’ star is breakout forward Deni Avdija, but watch out for Robert Williams if he plays – he’s still been highly impactful when available.
Notes
John Collins Turnaround: Just like the Clippers in general, it’s too soon to say John Collins has turned his season around. However, he has easily put together his best three-game stretch of the season this past week, going for 20 and 4 against the Thunder (7-13 shooting), 17 and 12 against the Lakers (7-10 shooting), and 13, 5, and 5 against the Rockets (5-8 shooting) while shooting 6-10 from three across those contests. The defense has, if anything, been even more encouraging, as the discipline and rotations have looked better. This is the John Collins we thought the Clippers were getting, and if he plays closer to this level the rest of the year, the Clippers will be a much better team. His combination of shooting and interior scoring is just not replaceable, nor is his size on defense. Let’s hope this stretch turns into a rest-of-season type of deal.
Kris Dunn’s Shooting: Like almost every other Clippers player, I think Dunn has had a somewhat disappointing year after his awesome 2025 season. However, my feelings towards Dunn are entirely about his defense. His offensive production has been far improved this year, as he’s raised his scoring (6.4 to 8.4 points per game), field goal percentage (43.9 to 50), free throw rate (0.3 attempts per game to 1.1), and three-point shooting (33.5 to 39.1). Teams are still leaving him open from three, but he’s made them pay more frequently. And for recent trends, Dunn is 14-29 from deep in his last five games. More encouraging than the percentage (unsustainable) are the attempts – Dunn should be getting up 5+ attempts from deep per game considering how open he is most of the time, and the only way to make teams guard you more is by shooting. I don’t think Dunn will be Kyle Korver any time soon, but if his improved shooting sustains, the Clippers’ spacing could as well.
Clippers vs Blazers Preview: Can The Clippers Get Their First Win Streak of 2026
Robert Flom