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Clippers vs Blazers Preview: Continuing Success at Home
The Clippers will look to maintain their eight-game winning streak at home in a contest against the young and frisky Portland Trailblazers.
Game Information
Where: Inuit Dome, Inglewood, California
When: 7:30 PM PT
How to Watch: FanDuel Sports SoCal, AM 570
Projected Starting Lineups
Blazers: Shaedon Sharpe – Anfernee Simons – Toumani Camara – Jerami Grant – Deandre Ayton
Clippers: James Harden – Kris Dunn – Norm Powell – Derrick Jones Jr. – Ivica Zubac
Injuries
Blazers: Donovan Clingan Out (Knee), Robert Williams III Out (Concussion), Matisse Thybulle Out (Ankle), Scoot Henderson Questionable (Quad)
Clippers: Kawhi Leonard Out (Knee), Kevin Porter Jr. Out (Ankle) Kobe Brown Out (Back), PJ Tucker Out (Away from team), Trentyn Flowers Out (G-League), Cam Christie Out (G-League)
The Antagonist
The Blazers are a somewhat surprising 8-13 and have been
frisky to start the year. Projected by most pundits to be the worst or
second-worst team in the Western Conference by a significant margin, the
Blazers are currently 13th in the conference but are only a few
games back of the Spurs in 10th. That being said, their Net Rating
is 27th, as they possess the 20th ranked defense and 27th
ranked offense in the league. Therefore, the Blazers are outperforming their
expected win totals by quite a bit, and it’s likely they fall back to earth
sooner or later. Still, they probably aren’t quite as bad as most NBA fans
would have thought coming into the season even if they are still a lottery
team.
Notes
The Turnover Battle: As all Clippers fans know, the Clippers have struggled with turnovers this season, ranking 28th in the NBA in turnover percentage. One of the only two teams worse than the Clips? The Portland Trailblazers, who rank 29th. The Clippers have several perimeter defenders who excel at forcing turnovers, and the Clippers should be able to make the Blazers cough up the ball on a regular basis. The key for the Clips will be mitigating the reverse scenario through careful ball control. As mentioned in the Wizards’ preview, if the Clippers can just win the turnover battle, they should have a pretty good chance of winning the game.
Terance Heating Up: After a very slow start to the season, Terance Mann has finally started to catch a rhythm in recent games, including scoring 10+ points in three of the last five contests. Mann had probably his best game of the season against the Nuggets, scoring 15 on 6-7 shooting and chipping in 3 rebounds in 25 minutes. More importantly, he had some real confidence and energy about him that has been lacking this season (though his defense has remained solid throughout). If the Clippers can get the real Terance Mann back in the mix, their already good stable of depth on the wing will get that much better. I’d still love to see him shoot more and be more confident, and Sunday’s game was a good step forward in that regard.
Blazers Players to Watch: One of the odd things about the Blazers is that despite being 8-13, most of their key players are not having good seasons. Scoot Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe, and Anfernee Simons have all been fairly inefficient from the field this season, and Deandre Ayton has continued to slip on the defensive end. Instead, they have had excellent contributions from unexpected sources, including reserve guard Dalano Banton and backup center Robert Williams III. Williams is out for this one, but Banton is a player who can do damage on both sides of the ball, as are forwards Deni Avdija and Toumani Camara. The Blazers do have talent on their roster, even if it’s not well put together or smartly coached, and the Clippers should know that, having blown a game against the Blazers at the start of the season. Hopefully the Clips play better in this one.
Clippers vs Blazers Preview: Continuing Success at Home
Robert Flom