Clippers opening night is tonight at Intuit Dome. The Los Angeles Clippers host the Sacramento Kings at 7:30 p.m. PT (10:30 p.m. ET) to start the 2026-27 season, the first after the offseason that sent Kawhi Leonard to the Toronto Raptors and brought heavy league penalties. ESPN lists the Clippers as 4.5-point favorites with a total of 227.5, and ESPN Analytics gives them a 65% chance to win. Tyronn Lue has named only one starter, Isaiah Jackson, and he gave new details Tuesday on how he will use rookie Keaton Wagler.
Yesterday’s Clippers starting lineup feature went through Wagler’s preseason box scores. This is the game-day guide.
Clippers Opening Night: Game Info
- When: Wednesday, Oct. 21, 7:30 p.m. PT
- Where: Intuit Dome, Inglewood
- Line: Clippers -4.5, total 227.5 (ESPN)
- Sacramento TV: NBC Sports California, per the Kings’ roster announcement.
- Last season: Clippers 42-40, ninth in the West, after a 6-21 start, per ESPN’s standings and the NBA.com preview. Their season ended with a 126-121 play-in loss to the Golden State Warriors on April 15, per ESPN. Sacramento went 22-60.
Lue on Keaton Wagler: “We Know He’s a Point Guard”
At Tuesday’s last practice before the opener, Lue said the No. 5 pick will play both on and off the ball next to Darius Garland, per WhyNBA. “Just seeing how he played in college, I think he started playing off the ball and then they took off when he was on the ball,” Lue said. “So he’s gonna have a little bit of both. You know, I think with his size, he can play some two. We know he’s a point guard.”
Lue said the goal is to make Wagler hard to guard: “having him on the ball when we need him to, come off screens when we need him to, just give him a different look and move him around a little bit so defense just can’t lock in on him.”
He also explained why he trusts a 19-year-old with the ball. “I know he’s young, but his confidence never wavers,” Lue said. “He had one turnover the whole preseason, and he played the most minutes. So we can trust him with the basketball.”
That turnover number checks out. ESPN’s box scores show Wagler with zero, one and zero turnovers in his three exhibitions, and his 81 minutes were the most on the team. Lue still did not confirm that Wagler starts tonight. Yahoo Sports’ Grant Mona projects Garland, Wagler, Derrick Jones Jr., Rui Hachimura and Jackson, but that is a projection.
The Clippers’ official practice availability from Tuesday:
Isaiah Jackson’s New Shot
Jackson told reporters Tuesday that he plans to shoot more threes, per WhyNBA. “I’m very confident,” he said. “I think that’s one of the main things me and the coaches here have been working on, just trying to expand my game.” He added: “I’ve just been working on my three ball non-stop, and so, yeah, I mean, I think I’m gonna take a lot more threes this year.” He made his only three-point attempt against Denver in the preseason finale, per ESPN. Jackson also said he now weighs 240 pounds, well above the 205 he has been listed at.
Clippers Injury Report
ESPN’s injury list for tonight:
- Bradley Beal: out, knee inflammation
- Brandon Ingram: out
- Max Strus: out, foot
- Yanic Konan Niederhauser: out, foot surgery
- Jordan Miller: out, shoulder surgery
Yahoo Sports reported that Strus partially tore the plantar fascia in his right foot five minutes into the preseason opener and was to be reevaluated in four weeks. Kris Dunn sat out the finale to rest and is expected to play, per Yahoo Sports and WhyNBA. The Clippers were optimistic that Kobe Sanders, held out of the preseason with a left hip impingement, would be available tonight, WhyNBA reported last week.
Lue’s message on defense, per the NBA.com preview: “We got to be a defensive mindset team and just go from there. It should be in our nature.”
The Sacramento Kings
Doug Christie’s team is rebuilding around youth. DeMar DeRozan was released and signed with the Denver Nuggets, and Russell Westbrook retired, per NBA.com. The main names:
- Darius Acuff Jr.: the No. 7 pick from Arkansas, where he averaged 23.5 points. Tonight is expected to be his NBA debut. “I’ve seen him be a primary ball-handler and just dominate the game,” Christie said on SacTown Sports 1140, per NBA.com. “He comes in early, comes back late.”
- Zach LaVine: played 39 games last season after finger surgery.
- Domantas Sabonis: back after playing only 19 games because of a knee injury.
- Keegan Murray: back after a finger injury limited him to 23 games.
Sacramento’s injury list, per ESPN: Ben Simmons is out with a ruptured Achilles, Maxime Raynaud with a dislocated knee and Dylan Cardwell with a calf strain. Malik Monk is day-to-day with a sore ankle. Raynaud averaged 12.5 points and 7.5 rebounds as a rookie, per NBA.com, so his absence and Cardwell’s leave the Kings thin behind Sabonis.
Three Things to Watch
- Wagler vs. Acuff. The No. 5 and No. 7 picks both make their regular-season debuts. Wagler played 81 preseason minutes, shot 10-of-33, and had nine assists against one turnover.
- Jackson against Sabonis. A 240-pound Jackson guarding a three-time All-Star, with Brook Lopez expected to back him up, per RotoWire via Yahoo Sports.
- Who replaces the missing scoring. With Ingram, Beal and Strus out, Hachimura, who scored 51 points in his three exhibitions, and Garland carry the offense.
Source Notes
- Ingram’s injury: ESPN lists Achilles surgery and WhyNBA says Achilles, but the NBA.com preview says heel. We list him only as out.
- Sanders’ status: WhyNBA’s report is from last week, and his status for tonight is unconfirmed. He is not on ESPN’s current injury list.
- Wagler’s age: 19, per WhyNBA and NBA.com.
What’s Next
After tonight, the Clippers play the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday, Oct. 23, and visit the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday, Oct. 25, per Yahoo Sports.
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