It was purely out of sheer necessity that the Clippers were forced to reshuffle their starting lineups and rotations Friday in a performance in Sacramento where the team, with only nine available players, came within seconds of ending a five losing streak.
Their next game, Sunday in Los Angeles against Memphis, could have a new look to coach Tyronn Lue’s rotations of choice. Last week, the coach said he expects to maintain a steady rotation and end his lineup experiments in a quest for continuity in two to three games, a period that has expired after a 128-127 loss in Sacramento that left the Clippers 33-32 leaves. and eighth in the Western Conference standings.
With the team no longer playing on consecutive days until March 31-April 1 and with several rest days in their schedule, the Clippers have nearly a month to build the rhythm with Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and teammates playing them all. have missed. season in a now-or-never bid to qualify for the first round of the playoffs and avoid the play-in tournament.
For the past few days, starting with a shootaround Thursday in San Francisco, the Clippers have prepared with expectations that Marcus Morris Sr. is on its way out of the base lineup, according to people not authorized to speak publicly on internal conversations. Such a change would be significant: Morris has started 155 of his last 156 games since March 2021, including the postseason, due to the Clippers’ belief in his value as a tough shotmaker better able to give Leonard and George space to operate in violation.
One question that arose after Friday’s loss was how the Clippers would fill such a vacant power-forward job. Nicolas Batum started against the Kings, with Morris missing a second consecutive game with what the team called a calf strain.
Little-used forward Robert Covington, who had 15 points and multiple deflections in a season-high 31 minutes against Sacramento, could be a contender. Covington’s 16-minute average is his lowest since his rookie season in 2013/14. He only played 40 or fewer games in a season on two occasions; this season he is at 38.
Lue’ talked to me and basically told me what his plan was; he just told me to stay ready,” Covington said. “You don’t know when things are going to change, but he just said keep doing what you’re doing. Like, things are going to shift.
“I loved it, just his deflections, I thought some blocked shots, driving closeouts, getting to the basket, getting the right play,” Lue said of Covington’s play against the Kings. “I thought he just did really well, on both sides of basketball.”
The Clippers’ defensive regression has led to the question of whether Covington could continue playing a more regular role after Lue solidifies his rotation.
“We’ve got two great defenders in (Leonard) and PG, Nico (Batum), (Terance) Mann, we’ve got guys who can really guard,” Covington said. “But I bring something different to this team. And it’s one of the things, one of the reasons they brought me here. It’s that disruptor on it. Being a disruptor off the ball. Seeing things and reading well. Watching games really develop, and just getting a knack for getting your hands on basketball. Create a chance for us on the defensive side and create transitional plays and get going.
“So I mean, that’s the way I’ve built my name.” If my name is mentioned, I will continue to do so.”
For at least a week, and possibly longer, another rotation decision has already been made for Lue. Backup security guard Norman Powell will be re-evaluated late next week after suffering a partial dislocation of his left shoulder in San Francisco on Thursday. Since the February 9 trade deadline, Powell, valued for his inside-outside game with 41% three-point shooting coupled with his 4.4 free throw attempts per game, has been part of a shifting mix of guards playing alongside Eric off the bench. Gordon, acquired from Houston last month, and Mann. Bones Hyland, the former Denver Nugget, has been part of the rotation to a lesser extent.
Powell’s injury leaves Lue with one less reserve backcourt, but so does Gordon in the starting line-up, where he has played the last two games. His 30-foot shooting range helps solve range problems caused by point guard Russell Westbrook’s sagging defenses.
Amid questions about the rotation that Lue will settle on, leaving Sacramento seemed like a certainty that the Clippers would enter a critical closing stretch with confidence despite joining Detroit and Houston as the only winless teams since the All-Star break.
Adding Gordon, Hyland, center Mason Plumlee and Westbrook in the past month has forced the team to “reprogram and fit the way a very different team plays, and I think it takes a while to put your stamp on a team … that’s already formed and playing in a way,” George said. “So you know, I think we kind of go through that. But again, we’re there.”
That has kept George positive about what he called the “big picture” of the team’s ultimate championship aspirations.
“I think you see the big picture of what we can be and what we will be,” George said. “I still believe we will be a hard team to beat in seven games. And these heavy losses may be lessons we’ve learned, how to exit, we haven’t done it yet, I’m sure we’ll figure it out. And when we do, we will be comfortable and confident in these moments.
