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Clippers vs Thunder Preview: Extending the Win Streak
The Clippers will try to push their winning streak to five games on the road against the West-leading Oklahoma City Thunder.
Game Information
Where: Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
When: 5:00 PM PT
How to Watch: NBA TV, FanDuel Sports SoCal
Projected Starting Lineups
Clippers: James Harden – Norm Powell – Derrick Jones Jr. – Terance Mann – Ivica Zubac
Thunder: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander – Lu Dort – Aaron Wiggins – Jalen Williams – Chet Holmgren
Injuries
Clippers: Kawhi Leonard Out (Knee), Mo Bamba Out (Knee), PJ Tucker Out (Away From Team), Cam Christie Out (G-League), Trentyn Flowers Out (G-League)
Thunder: Chet Holmgren Questionable (Hip), Isaiah Hartenstein Out (Hand), Jaylin Williams Out (Hamstring), Kenrich Williams Out (Knee), Nikola Topic Out (Knee)
The Big Picture
I wrote a ton about the Clippers in my player grades here, so I won’t go in too much depth in this post. Suffice it to say vibes are pretty strong with the Clippers winning their last four games and pushing their record to 6-4 after 10 games. Their defense is excellent, they play hard, and they’ve gotten just enough on offense to get by. They have also generally played entertaining games and been fun to watch, outside of some frustration with Kai Jones and Kevin Porter Jr.
The Antagonist
The Thunder have lost two of their last three games after starting the season 7-0 and winning all seven by double figures. To be fair, their two losses have been a close defeat at the hands of the suddenly flaming hot Nuggets and a blowout against the similarly hot Warriors after Chet missed most of the game, so it’s not like they’re losing to scrubs. But they have also been revealed as beatable, and their offense continues to be just “good” instead of “awesome”. They will presumably come out with a vengeance in this one after their loss last night – I’d expect a very strong start from them, regardless of whether Chet is playing or not.
Notes
Ty Lue’s 10-Game Sample Is Up: Ty Lue has famously liked to judge his team in 10 game increments. Well, the first 10 games are in the books, and it’s time to see what Ty Lue adjusts after this first benchmark. It’s possible the answer, at least in obvious rotation terms, is nothing. Kevin Porter Jr.’s last two games might have been enough to save him from the proverbial chopping block (there’s really no evidence Ty would have gone away from him anyway, regardless of how awful he was). Terance Mann has disappointed as a starter, but the Clippers aren’t playing him that much regardless and the starting unit as a whole has played fine. Kai Jones seems the guy closest to losing his spot, having been benched in multiple second halves of games, but the Clippers might not want to play small all the time when Zu isn’t in the game. If I had to pick any rotation adjustment Ty will make it would be removing Kai from the rotation entirely, but I don’t know if I’d bet on it.
Does Chet Play: Thunder star big man Chet Holmgren left the game against the Warriors last night with a hip injury, and based on his being ruled out of that contest and the painful nature of the injury, there’s a good chance he might miss this game too. If he’s out, the Thunder will be down their first, second, and third string big men, with the biggest active player on their roster being third-year forward Ousmane Dieng. Chet being out changes everything. The Thunder will still have a ferocious perimeter defense and an MVP-level player in SGA, but their interior defense will go from great to non-existent, and they’ll lose firepower on offense as well. This becomes a winnable, albeit still challenging game if Chet does not play.
Clippers vs Thunder Preview: Extending the Win Streak
Robert Flom