Derrick Jones Jr. sprained his MCL weeks ago against the Boston Celtics, and the original timeline of an anticipated return date hovered around the New Year. Yesterday, being the 13th of December, marked a day under four weeks since suffering the injury, and Law Murray of ‘The Athletic’ reported that Jones Jr.’s recovery is moving faster than expected.
Tyronn Lue says that Derrick Jones Jr is ahead of schedule. More to come
— Law Murray 🎄 (@LawMurrayTheNU) December 13, 2025
Jones Jr. was one of the LA Clippers’ better performers this season before the injury, with averages of 10.5 points in 13 games, shooting 53.3% from the field and a near-automatic two-point percentage of 71.7%.
Of course, as the Clippers have done 19 times this season, they lost to the Celtics; after that game, they have won twice.
Thus, Murray’s update on Jones Jr. was much needed for fans of the Clippers. His dunks left memories nightly, and everyone on and off the court surely misses the key areas he contributed to.
The return of Derrick Jones Jr. could be the catalyst for a winning streak
The first report from Law Murray regarding Derrick Jones Jr. was directly from head coach Tyronn Lue. This was the positive news of the day, yet seeing visuals of Jones Jr. on the court would have been a concrete confirmation that the veteran wing could return sooner than later.
Murray quickly followed up on X (formerly Twitter) with footage of Jones Jr. working off to the side with Kobe Sanders, Kobe Brown, and lead assistant Jeff Van Gundy, then words from Lue about him in action during one-on-one and three-on-three drills.
Encouraging sign: Derrick Jones Jr (MCL) on the court with Jeff Van Gundy and the Kobes 27 days after knee injury pic.twitter.com/a4o2QVEP9t
— Law Murray 🎄 (@LawMurrayTheNU) December 13, 2025
It is not full-contact, five-on-five practice, so Jones Jr. still needs time before he is at 100%, but it is excellent to see the progress he has made in essentially four weeks on the sidelines.
Here's Tyronn Lue's update on Derrick Jones Jr. pic.twitter.com/S0ZDcOAt3O
— Law Murray 🎄 (@LawMurrayTheNU) December 13, 2025
If Jones Jr. is back before or on the first of January against the Utah Jazz, the Clippers will have 50 games remaining to make the most of. They will surely not win every one of them, but if LA can go on multiple win streaks and claim victory in 75% of what is left, the tenth seed in the Western Conference could be attainable.
That said, Jones Jr.’s resurgence could spark it all. The team did much better with him, and it is important to note that he started all 13 of his games, showing that Lue valued him as one of the Clippers’ best players on the roster.