The LA Clippers are one of the deepest teams in the league and there’s no doubt about that. This team made the playoffs last year with Danilo Gallinari and rookie Shai-Gilgeous Alexander. They then upgraded to Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. They’ve proved to be a dangerous team every time they’ve played. Despite hiccups with the fitness of their lineup, the Clips sit second in the Western Conference behind the Lakers.
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While the NBA break has allowed Paul George to be completely healthy, it has cost the Clippers one major thing – their bench mob leaders. Both Lou Williams and Montrezl Harrell are unavailable for the first restart game against the Los Angeles Lakers. The pair finished first and second in the ‘Sixth Man of the Year’ race last season and are among the top 5 this season.
Williams will be serving a mandatory quarantine period of 10 days since he was spotted in a restaurant while away from the bubble. Montrezl left the bubble due to family reasons and has set no timetable for a return. They both will be missing for the first game of the restart, with no confirmation on whether Montrezl will return at all.
This has led NFL Hall of Fame member Shannon Sharpe to dismiss the Clippers threat for their opener against the Lakers. “The Clippers have issues of their own also. They will have to deal with Montrezl not being in the bubble. We know he’s not playing tomorrow, neither is Lou Wil.”
.@ShannonSharpe on NBA experts predicting the Lakers won't win the WC:
"No one's played the last couple of months so I guess they've cooled off on the Lakers & the Clippers have somehow heated up. I get it, we've lost Avery Bradley, but the Clippers have problems of their own." pic.twitter.com/6GZx2naS1L
— UNDISPUTED (@undisputed) July 29, 2020
LA Clippers holding on to success or chasing it?
The Clippers are 1.5 games ahead of the third-seeded Denver Nuggets heading into the restart. The issue with the Clips all season has been the full availability of their deep roster. The Clippers are undefeated while playing with no injuries this season. This is dangerous. However, with the games Kawhi Leonard and Paul George missed this season, the team hasn’t developed the rhythm needed for a playoff run.
This team’s health is wildly dangerous for the bubble. Them starting short-handed may see them struggle to hold on to the second seed. However, they will probably be the hardest team to beat in the playoffs if their full line-up is available to them.
Source: UNDISPUTED Twitter
