LA Clippers: Load Management May Be Needed in Second Half

This 2020-2021 NBA season has been much more manageable for the LA Clippers than the previous season due to the impact of COVID-19. While this season has been mostly stable, there are still serious adjustments that had to be made. One of the biggest differences is the number of games played this season being reduced from 82 to 72.

Another big difference is that the 2021 NBA All-Star Game is being played less than a month later than last year’s All-Stars Game. The game will be played on March 7th, as opposed to last year where the All-Star Game was February 16th, 2020. One of the biggest negative factors from a late All-Star Game is the short second half scheduling for all 30 NBA teams.

The 2021 NBA Playoffs are still expected to start on time despite the late start of the All-Star Game and break. The LA Clippers (23-11) are looking at a critical second-half schedule created by the NBA that is composed of 36 games in 77 days that includes the All-Star Game and break.

The second half of the season will be rough on the LA Clippers.

After the All-Star Game, the LA Clippers are looking at 34 games being played in 67 days. The most alarming stats is the Clippers have the fewest amount of games played after the All-Star Break. The Memphis Grizzlies will have 40 games to play after the All-Star Break due to some postponements from COVID-19.

There will be 17 nationally televised games for the LA Clippers after the NBA All-Star Break. The first game back from the break will be at home against the Golden State Warriors on TNT. After that comes a grueling process of multiple games composed of 33 games in 67 days.

After the Warriors game, the LA Clippers will only have six sets of two days off before playing their next game until the regular season is over after May 16th. Most importantly, the Clippers will have seven back-to-backs in the second half of the season.

The most difficult month for the LA Clippers will be in April, where there will be 15 games played. Five of those games in April will be played against teams currently sitting from the first to fourth place spot in the Eastern and Western Conference. The Clippers will also have two matchups against the Portland Trail Blazers, who are currently in fifth place in the West.

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This tough and grueling second-half schedule will be tough for the LAClippers and all the other teams in the NBA. With so many back-to-backs for all teams, there will be no doubt that fatigue and the risk of potential injuries could take place. For some of these playoff teams to remain healthy, they will have to be smart in how they play their star players.

There will be some concern for the current players that serious or nagging injuries could be more frequent during this second half-season. There will also be a limited amount of practices as a result of these games being played without much rest.

The idea of load management is a sin when to comes to many basketball fans and some media personalities but in a short second-half season with so many games, rest days are something that can not be pushed to the side. The LA Clippers have already had some concerning injuries this season with some of their main players. Only backup center Ivica Zubac has played all 34 games so far this season for Los Angeles. The last player to use a rest day was shooting guard Lou Williams in 135-116 win over the Washington Wizards.

Star small forward Kawhi Leonard has missed a total of seven games on three different instances of injury concerns. Star shooting guard Paul George has missed 10 games due to injuries including a seven-game stint with a concerning bone edema in his toe.

Unfortunately for Clipper Nation, the “no load management” trend might stall due to the short scheduling. While the thought of rest days is appalling to some fans, they will be essential for Leonard and the rest of the team to be healthy for the NBA Playoffs. Rest days and load management will be a necessary evil for fans and media for high-caliber teams with high-caliber players to potentially at their best for the NBA Playoffs.

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This second-half schedule may be beneficial for some of the young and developing players like Zubac, guard Terance Mann, and shooting guard Luke Kennard to progress themselves as reliable players for the LA Clippers with potential starters on load management. The spotlight of the second half of the season for the Clippers will be on first-year head coach Ty Lue. The pressure will be on him to determine the potential load management factor and how he keeps the Clippers healthy but still winning. This season’s NBA Championship will be determined by which team adapts to the remaining regular season, the grueling journey, and their mental toughness when the playoffs start.

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