The Los Angeles Clippers have been without one of their stars all season, and now the Oklahoma City Thunder will have to adjust to being without one of theirs temporarily.
On Monday night, the two teams will face off in Oklahoma City, with the Clippers still missing Kawhi Leonard and the Thunder without Chet Holmgren. Leonard has not played this season due to inflammation in his right knee and won’t be traveling with the Clippers on their upcoming three-game trip, starting with Monday’s game.
This game marks the second of four meetings between the teams this season. Oklahoma City won the first matchup 105-92 in Los Angeles on November 2, with Holmgren playing a significant role, scoring 10 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. Clippers coach Tyronn Lue mentioned that Holmgren’s skills made the Thunder particularly challenging to defend.
However, Oklahoma City will be without Holmgren for at least eight to ten weeks after he sustained a pelvic fracture during the first quarter of Sunday’s game against the Golden State Warriors. Holmgren fell hard on his right hip while defending a layup near the rim, resulting in a right iliac wing fracture. The team expects him to return this season.
Holmgren is averaging 16.4 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 2.6 blocks per game this season.
Despite trailing by 30 points late in the third quarter on Sunday, Oklahoma City pulled within six points before ultimately falling to the Warriors, 127-116.
The Thunder will need to adapt even more, as they were already thin in the frontcourt with Isaiah Hartenstein, Jaylin Williams, and Kenrich Williams all injured. None of these three have appeared in a game this season.
Oklahoma City’s defense, which ranks best in the league with 100.3 points allowed per 100 possessions, will be significantly impacted by Holmgren’s absence.
The Clippers’ defense is also among the top five in the league, allowing 107.7 points per 100 possessions.
After losing their first matchup with the Thunder, the Clippers dropped to 2-4 for the season but have since won four consecutive games, including a 105-103 home victory over Toronto on Saturday. During this four-game winning streak, Clippers center Ivica Zubac has been averaging 14.8 points and 12.3 rebounds. Zubac has played in at least 68 games in each of the last four seasons.
The Clippers have lost six consecutive games in Oklahoma City and haven’t won there since March 3, 2020. The Thunder are 2-0 in the second game of back-to-backs this season.
