The LA Clippers will be without both Danilo Gallinari and Lou Williams against the San Antonio Spurs, and may have to rely on the bench to get the win.
It’s been a rough stretch of games for the LA Clippers, who have dropped a season-high five straight games. The losses have admittedly come against some of the league’s stronger teams, like Denver, Utah and Golden State, but with questionable losses against Detroit and New Orleans in between, the Clippers have earned their fate.
To add insult to injury, quite literally, the Clippers could be without two of their top three scorers for the foreseeable future. Danilo Gallinari and Lou Williams, who are averaging nearly 40 combined points per game, will both be sidelined against the San Antonio Spurs with injuries.
Gallinari, who has uncharacteristically had a healthy season, left Friday’s game against the Warriors early due to back spasms. According to The Athletic’s Jovan Buha, he’ll likely miss the next four games, as he didn’t join the Clippers for their road trip which ends Friday in Chicago.
Williams has a less certain timetable, but odds are he returns earlier than Gallinari, as he is joining LA for the trip. He’s got a hamstring strain for the second time this season, and while it doesn’t appear to be a major injury, he’ll be missing his second straight game Sunday afternoon.
On Friday, the Clippers were forced to go deeper into their bench to compensate for the injuries, and should be expected to do the same for the time being. Players like Jerome Robinson and Johnathan Motley got extended run in particular, and Tyrone Wallace played more than 18 minutes for just the fifth time all season.
Montrezl Harrell should also get more run than usual, and he should be expected to have a big game against San Antonio — especially after a poor performance against Golden State Warriors. His four points were nearly a season-low, with the exception of a three-point performance against the Oklahoma City Thunder earlier in the year.
Of course, the starters will need to step up too. Tobias Harris and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander both did on Friday, combining for 52 points on 35 shots. The two were the only Clipper players to score in double-figures, and the duo also shot 21-22 from the free throw line.
If they can continue to bring that same level of efficiency, and the league’s best bench steps up when needed, the Clippers should feel prepared heading into San Antonio.
The LA Clippers will play the San Antonio Spurs this afternoon at AT&T Center at 4:00 PST. With a win, the Clippers will move to 25-21 on the season.