The Clippers vs Nuggets preview starts with two names that have not yet appeared in a preseason box score: Bradley Beal and Kobe Sanders. The Los Angeles Clippers (1-1) host the Denver Nuggets (2-1) on Wednesday, October 14, at 7:30 p.m. PT at Intuit Dome, on NBA TV and KTLA, according to NBA.com. ESPN’s injury report lists both guards as day-to-day with an estimated return date of October 14. That is an estimate, not a clearance, and the Clippers have not said either will play.
The Clippers are coming off a 114-106 loss to the Toronto Raptors in Vancouver. Our Clippers vs Raptors recap covers that game. This piece looks ahead to Wednesday and to the bench players who are pushing for minutes.
Clippers vs Nuggets Preview: The Injury Report
Here is the Clippers’ status as listed by ESPN, with the latest reporting behind each entry:
- Bradley Beal (right knee): day-to-day. On October 7 he was doing individual player-development work, not five-on-five, and the Clippers said his inflammation was still being managed, per Tomer Azarly of ClutchPoints.
- Kobe Sanders (left hip): day-to-day. Also limited to individual work on October 7, per Azarly.
- Max Strus (right foot): out. He has a partially torn plantar fascia and will be reevaluated in four weeks, per ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk.
- Brandon Ingram (Achilles): out, and not expected to be ready for the start of the season.
- Yanic Konan Niederhauser (foot): out for the start of the season, per The Athletic’s Law Murray.
- Jordan Miller (left shoulder): out after rotator cuff surgery, with a reevaluation in six months.
Sportsnet’s injury listing for the game shows the same group: Beal and Sanders as game-time decisions, and Strus, Ingram, Niederhauser and Miller out. Our Clippers practice report from last week has more on Beal.
The Bench Battle
The clearest takeaway from Vancouver was that the Clippers’ reserves outplayed the starters. In the ESPN box score, the starting five of Darius Garland, Derrick Jones Jr., Rui Hachimura, Brook Lopez and Cam Christie combined for 44 points, and the bench scored 62. The starters were all in the minus column.
- Yuki Kawamura: 10 points on 3-of-4 shooting, four assists, plus-12 in 14 minutes.
- Baba Miller: 10 points on 3-of-7 shooting, four rebounds, two steals and a block in 16 minutes.
- Nick Martinelli: nine points in 16 minutes, including 4-of-4 at the line.
- Jahmyl Telfort: two points and five rebounds, plus-15 in 10 minutes.
- Blake Wesley: six points and two assists, plus-11 in 16 minutes.
Those numbers match in the ESPN and CBS Sports box scores. Hoops Nightly reported that Tyronn Lue closed the game with Wesley, Christie, Keaton Wagler, Martinelli and Kawamura, an all-bench unit except for Christie, who had started.
Telfort’s spot on the preseason roster came after the Clippers waived guard Fletcher Loyer on October 6, according to CBS Sports’ transaction log and Yardbarker. Hoops Rumors reported Telfort’s signing as the replacement. With the regular season opening October 21, these games are where end-of-bench players make their case.
Wagler and the Starting Lineup
Keaton Wagler, the rookie who hit the game-winner in Honolulu, came off the bench in Vancouver. He scored nine points on 3-of-9 shooting, with two three-pointers, and was minus-14 in 23 minutes. Lue said before Saturday’s game that he wanted to try different starting groups with Strus out, according to the Press Enterprise. The first try produced four points in the first 5:52.
That leaves the starting lineup open. If Beal plays Wednesday, he would be the obvious candidate for Strus’s spot. If he does not, Lue has Christie, Wagler, Kris Dunn and Wesley to choose from.
The Garland Question
Garland played 19 minutes in Vancouver, scored 11 points with four assists, picked up a second-quarter technical foul and did not play in the second half, according to the Press Enterprise. We have not found any explanation from the Clippers or Lue for why he sat. In the preseason, that could be anything from a planned minutes limit to a coaching decision. Until someone asks Lue, it remains unexplained.
Scouting the Nuggets
Denver is 2-1 in the preseason, according to ESPN. The Nuggets lost 109-97 to the Utah Jazz on October 4, won 117-106 at Utah on October 6 and beat the Chicago Bulls 133-128 on Sunday.
Nikola Jokic had 22 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists against Chicago, per CBS Sports and ESPN. Aaron Gordon scored 25, and CBS Sports lists him at 18.3 points per game this preseason, which leads the team. Jamal Murray had 13 points in that game, according to CBS Sports. The only Denver injury on ESPN’s report is Spencer Jones (hamstring), listed as day-to-day. Sportsnet lists him as a game-time decision.
The Nuggets will be on a two-city trip to Los Angeles. After Wednesday at Intuit Dome, they play the Lakers on Friday, October 16, at Crypto.com Arena.
The Schedule After Denver
Wednesday is the Clippers’ last scheduled game before the regular season, according to NBA.com’s Clippers schedule. They open at home against the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday, October 21, then visit the Lakers at Crypto.com Arena on Friday, October 23. They host the Lakers at Intuit Dome on October 28. That gives Lue one more game to settle the rotation and a week of practice after that. Whatever Beal and Sanders can do Wednesday will shape how much he can plan around them.
What to Watch Wednesday
- Beal and Sanders. The first real health signal before the opener.
- The rebounding against Jokic. Toronto grabbed 18 offensive rebounds to the Clippers’ eight on Saturday. Denver’s frontcourt is a bigger test.
- Ball security. The Clippers cut their turnovers from 22 in Honolulu to 15 in Vancouver. Keeping that up against Denver would be a good sign.
- The bench minutes. Kawamura, Miller, Martinelli and Telfort have made their case. The question is whether Lue gives them more minutes.
The Clippers’ official channel posted a Hachimura clip after Vancouver:
Unconfirmed
- Whether Beal or Sanders plays. The October 14 return date is ESPN’s estimate.
- Why Garland did not play in the second half in Vancouver.
- Lue’s starting lineup for Wednesday.
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