Clippers: Ivica Zubac listed as game-time decision for Game 6

The LA Clippers didn’t have center Ivica Zubac for Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals.

They still won the game, and DeMarcus Couins stepped up big time during Zubac’s absence.

While the Clippers didn’t seem to need Zubac’s presence, they could still use him back in Game 6 for sure.

Will Clippers’ Ivica Zubac play in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals?

CBS Sports has the LA Clippers’ Ivica Zubac listed as a “game time decision” for Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals. They also have Kawhi Leonard listed as a game time decision.

Zubac has a knee injury. He sprained his MCL.

While Cousins was a force offensively, scoring 15 points in his 11 minutes Monday night, the Clippers could use what Zubac does as a rebounder.

Zubac pulled down 41 rebounds in Games 2 through 4 of the Western Conference Finals. And the only reason he had few rebounds in Game 1 was because he only played 18 minutes.

Cousins only recorded two rebounds in the last contest. Nobody had double-digit rebounds for the Clippers other than Paul George.

The issue isn’t entirely that they’re missing Zubac, but that the injuries are continuing to pile on. Remember, it wasn’t too long ago when Serge Ibaka went down for the year. Zubac and Ibaka averaged a combined 13.9 rebounds per game this season, which was the top two averages on the team.

Cousins proved that he can hold it down offensively, but if Zubac is out again, the Clippers need to make sure they crash the boards harder than ever. Sustaining this type of success with this many injuries is much more difficult than getting it done in just one game.

The Clippers were able to slow Deandre Ayton without Zubac in game 5, holding him to just ten points on five of nine shooting. Cousins did well offensively, but the team as a whole still could’ve been a bit better on the rebounding end. If Zubac comes back, it’ll be a lot easier to handle the boards.