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Clippers vs Nuggets Preview: Starting December off Right
The Clippers will hope to continue their strong November into December with a home matchup against the always-tough Denver Nuggets.
Game Information
Where: Inuit Dome, Inglewood, California
When: 7:00 PM PT
How to Watch: FanDuel Sports SoCal, AM 570
Projected Starting Lineups
Clippers: James Harden – Kris Dunn – Amir Coffey – Derrick Jones Jr. – Ivica Zubac
Nuggets: Jamal Murray – Christian Braun – Peyton Watson – Michael Porter Jr. – Nikola Jokic
Injuries
Clippers: Kawhi Leonard Out (Knee), Norm Powell Questionable (Hamstring), 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)
Nuggets: Aaron Gordon Doubtful (Calf), Vlatko Cancar Out (Knee), DaRon Holmes Out (Achilles)
The Antagonist
Despite being somewhat disappointing to start the season, the Nuggets have righted the ship to an extent, and have gotten their record to 10-7. The Nuggets’ defense has been mediocre at best, but their offense, predictably, has been very good. The reason is simple: Nikola Jokic is the best player in the NBA by a non-insignificant margin. When he’s on the court, the Nuggets will be a very solid team at worst. His scoring, playmaking, and ability to command the game are all incredible floor raising talents, and the Nuggets have just enough competent talent around him to get to a good record. Once they get Aaron Gordon back the Nuggets might well transition back to “very good” or even “great”, though I’m skeptical unless they get a better version of Jamal Murray than they’ve gotten so far.
Notes
Rotations in Flux: After being extremely healthy for the first 15 games of the season outside of Mo Bamba (I won’t even count Kawhi at this point), injuries have hit the Clippers in the last couple weeks. Norm Powell is close to coming back after a semi-extended absence, but Kobe Brown is still out and now Kevin Porter Jr. is out. Porter Jr. probably won’t be out for long, but it will be interesting to see how Ty Lue handles his absence. If Norm is still out, that will basically necessitate Bones Hyland minutes. If Norm is playing, Amir will move back to the bench, and Ty could theoretically cobble together a Miller-Amir-Mann-Nico-Bamba second unit without a “traditional” point guard. I’d guess Bones only plays if Norm is out, and that the Clippers will simply stagger Dunn to run the bench when Harden gets his breathers if Norm is playing. But we will see!
Russ’ Return: This will be Russell Westbrook’s first game back in front of Clippers’ faithful since his departure this summer in free agency. Russ was on the Clippers for about 1.5 years, during which he endeared himself to a lot of Clippers’ faithful through his energy, effort, relentlessness, and willingness to attack the rim. Of course, his inability to shoot and poor decision-making on both sides of the ball also earned himself a good amount of ill will, which was not helped by the major presence of Russ stans on Twitter. My guess is Russ gets a mostly if not entirely positive welcome in his return, and probably receives a hype video of some kind. While I did not enjoy the Russ experience at all, boos are unwarranted, and I think cheering at his intro and video is fine.
Locking up Jamal Murray: Murray has not been the same guy that he has been in prior years but is still the second most dangerous and important player on the Nuggets. The Clippers have two players in Kris Dunn and Derrick Jones Jr. who are good covers for Murray, and their job in this game will be paramount. It’s impossible to stop and very difficult to even slow Nikola Jokic, but if the Clippers can take Murray out, they should be able to keep the Nuggets’ offense at a reasonable level. Dunn and DJJ have been incredible on defense this year, and defending the Murray-Jokic two-man game will just be another notch on their belt if they can hinder it.
Clippers vs Nuggets Preview: Starting December off Right
Robert Flom