INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Coming into Thursday night’s game against the Indiana Pacers, the Clippers had lost two straight and head coach Tyronn Lue was adamant about the team’s effort needing to change.
Through the first quarter, that looked to have gotten through to the team. At the 11:13 mark of the 2nd quarter, the Clippers held a 44-22 lead. From that point on, the Pacers went on a 15-0 run and a 19-0 run and were ahead by 7 points with under 30 seconds to go in the half.
turning a 13-point deficit into a 6-point lead in less than 3 minutes of game action.
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) February 7, 2025
watch our entire 19-0 run late in the second quarter from tonight's win over the Clippers 🎬🍿 pic.twitter.com/H6j18vAYnt
The Pacers went on to close out the Clippers on a 12-0 run after being down 105-100, and win 119-112.
If you look at any positives from such a rollercoaster of a game, it would be the fact that the Clippers had 6 players in double figures in the scoring department, led by James Harden and Norman Powell’s 22 points each.
back-to-back Norm 🪣s pic.twitter.com/GFjxdDnr2o
— LA Clippers (@LAClippers) February 7, 2025
But the fact of the matter is the defense is now taking possessions off, Kawhi Leonard does not look like the same guy that returned with high efficiency and the ball on a string with his handle, and the team refuses to feed Ivica Zubac in offensive ruts.
At this point for the Clippers, just give the ball to Norman Powell and Ivica Zubac and get out the way. That about sums this one up for everyone else involved.
— Justin Russo (@FlyByKnite) February 7, 2025
Zubac finished with 18 points and 15 rebounds on 73% from the field and he did not have a single shot attempt in the 4th quarter.
Myles Turner even exited the game and did not return due to a head injury, so Zubac’s main defender was out for the game. It should be imperative to give Zubac touches in critical moments.
Two big reasons the Clippers lost the game were turnovers, which has bit them all season, and steals. The Pacers had a whopping 32 points off of turnovers to the Clippers 7, and 13 steals to the Clippers’ 5.
With the team struggling right now, they have now moved down to the 7 seed after losing 6 of their last 10 games.
The departure of Terance Mann, Bones Hyland and Kevin Porter Jr. will be felt for the next few games as they incorporate new faces Drew Eubanks, Patty Mills and Bogdan Bogdanovic into the rotation.
The team vibes are not ideal, but it is early February, with plenty of basketball left to play, and a much needed All-Star break coming up.
Now, the Clippers look to break their losing streak against the Utah Jazz on Saturday at Intuit Dome. Tipoff is set for 7:30 PM PST.