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Clippers vs. Warriors Preview: Kawhi Out
The Clippers’ last game before the All Star Break is a road contest against the Warriors with Kawhi Leonard out. Not great, bob.
Game Information
Where: Chase Center, San Francisco, California
When: 7:00 PM PT
How to Watch: ESPN, Watch ESPN, AM 570
Tickets: For great deals on Clippers tickets, check out Barry’s Tickets!
Projected Starting Lineups
Clippers: James Harden – Paul George – Amir Coffey – Terance Mann – Ivica Zubac
Warriors: Steph Curry – Klay Thompson – Andrew Wiggins – Jonathan Kuminga – Draymond Green
Injuries
Clippers: Kawhi Leonard Out (Adductor)
Warriors: Chris Paul Out (Hand)
The Big Picture
The Clippers are stumbling a bit heading into the All-Star break, having been demolished by Western Conference rivals New Orleans and Minnesota and barely scraping by against the Pistons in their last three games. In worse news, it was announced late yesterday that Kawhi Leonard would miss this game with an adductor strain. Adductors are tricky, but thankfully the All Star Break is here, so fingers crossed this is the only game Kawhi misses with the injury. At this point, it would be great just to get to the break with the rest of the team unscathed.
The Antagonist
The Warriors have won their last five games and moved back
into the play-in mix in the Western Conference. As has been the case for the
last decade, their success has largely been driven by the brilliance of Steph
Curry, who isn’t quite at peak levels but is clearly still a top 10 NBA player
at worst. Their reshaped starting lineup, with Draymond at center and Kuminga
and Wiggins on the wings, has done wonders, giving the Warriors more
athleticism and downhill burst while maintaining defense. The bench has also
been overhauled, with Trayce Jackson-Davis and Kevon Looney barely playing,
Moses Moody out, and Brandin Podziemski and Lester Quinones being the two main
guys. I still don’t believe in this team as a contender, but they are looking
much better than they were a few weeks ago.
Notes
Replacing Kawhi: My guess is that Amir Coffey will start in Kawhi’s place. Ty has gone to Amir more and more in recent weeks, and he’s started other games that Kawhi or PG have missed. The bigger question is what happens on the bench. Does Daniel Theis play next to Mason Plumlee in a big lineup? Seems bad against the Warriors. Will Brandon Boston continue to get a look? Will Kobe Brown, the more natural forward, get a shot? Might PJ Tucker even be dusted off after Ty said he would get chances in the second half of the season? I’m very curious, especially after the Clippers looked so small against the Wolves.
Chasing the Win: As I posted on Twitter yesterday, the Clippers’ older players on pace to play the most games they have in many years – Kawhi since 2016, Russ since 2013, and PG and Harden since 2019. I would like to see them play a bit less and get more opportunities for rest after the All Star Break. As important as the 1 seed is, freshness and health are even more important, and I’m a bit worried of the Clippers’ stars burning out at this rate. Still, with the All Star Break occurring after this game, I’d guess Ty Lue plays his main players huge minutes to chase the win, knowing rest is right around the corner. It’s possible he doesn’t even go to a 9th man in this one, but I do hope that he does.
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