Although there is elite competition throughout the NBA, the main team to beat, especially in the Western Conference, is the Oklahoma City Thunder. Well, the LA Clippers play them tonight on the second night of a back-to-back, and after last night's loss to the Miami Heat, head coach Tyronn Lue ultimately mentioned his team will lose by a mile if turnovers are an issue once again.
Ty Lue on facing OKC tomorrow:
— Joey Linn (@joeylinn_) November 4, 2025
“If we turn the ball over like we did tonight, it won’t be close.”
In a one-point loss in which franchise superstar Kawhi Leonard missed the game-winner, the Clippers gave the ball away 20 times. From these turnovers, the Heat converted them into 37 points.
That is a ridiculous number, yet the Clippers let it happen to a team without their best player, Tyler Herro. The Heat were simply the more aggressive team on defense, so their winning, even when LA had a chance at the buzzer, is not surprising.
That said, Lue knows the caliber of basketball the Thunder play on, thus the careless mistakes must be corrected through practice this morning.
The LA Clippers' starting backcourt must do better at protecting the ball
While the team's turnover count last night was 20, the starting backcourt of James Harden(7) and Bradley Beal(3) had 10 of them. This negates Harden's eight assists, as his assist-to-turnover ratio was awful, and implies that Beal is not a reliable playmaker.
Furthermore, the Oklahoma City Thunder play a tenacious level of defense. Inside, head coach Mark Daigneault has his best forces lined up, protecting the paint. On the perimeter, it is a completely different challenge, as the Clippers will have to handle the ball against Cason Wallace and Alex Caruso.
Additionally, this task of limiting turnovers and ending the Thunder's winning streak will reach a new level of difficulty with Kawhi Leonard's status for tonight still unknown. He rolled his ankle at the end of the ball game against the Miami Heat and said after the game that his availability will be played by ear.
Either way, Harden, the leader of the backcourt and of the Clippers, has to be better at anticipating where the defense will be before passing the ball. Because he failed to do so, particularly in the clutch, Norman Powell got an easy steal, leading to two made free throws for Bam Adebayo.
Nonetheless, ten turnovers or fewer should be Lue's goal for the Thunder. If this can be done, and Harden scores like he has been all season, the Clippers will give Oklahoma City their first loss of the year.