Getty Kawhi Leonard of the LA Clippers.
The matchup of one of the league’s top defenses against one of the top offenses lost some of its anticipation without Kawhi Leonard playing as the Los Angeles Clippers traveled to take on the Utah Jazz Wednesday. Los Angeles struggled, allowing Utah to run away with the victory 110-96. Going into the game both teams held a 3-1 record and were also coming off of a win. Clippers leader forward, Leonard who has started all four games this season did not play in the game due to “load management, knee” as the NBA now requires teams to list a specific body part.
Lou Williams #23 of the LA Clippers handles the ball against the Utah Jazz. (Getty)
The Clippers attempted to fill the void of missing Leonard forcing Lou Williams the team’s sixth man into the starting lineup. This game lineup included Ivica Zubac, Patrick Patterson, Landry Hamet, Lou Williams and Patrick Beverly. Williams stepped in place and paced with 24 points, 16 before halftime and JaMychal Green finished with 23 points and 8 rebounds in total but it was not enough to keep up with the Jazz.
During the Kawhi-less game, the Clippers turned the ball over 20 times allowing the Jazz to take control. They went for a combined 53 points between Mike Conley and Donovan Mitchell. Conley had a season-high of 29 points and Mitchell scored 24 points. Conley also made 11 of 17 shots, including five 3-pointers, and had five assists.
GettyMike Conley #10 of the Utah Jazz reacts to a play against the LA Clippers
Throughout the entire game, the Clippers were down, and going into halftime Utah was winning 52-51. After halftime, the turning point in the game happened in the third quarter when the Jazz scored a total of 38 points. Conley took over and scored 18 points along with him and Mitchell who combined for six straight baskets to spark a 32-8 run for the Jazz. Conley finished the run with back-to-back three-pointers, giving the Jazz an 84-63 lead with 4:21 left in the quarter.
According to USA Today reported by AP “I just wanted to get back to who I am,” Conley said. “I hit one, hit two and could feel it going. I felt the energy from the crowd and my teammates and said, yes, this is the game.”
Conley’s enthusiasm set the tone for the game and his teammates followed,
As Eric Walden of the Salt Lake Tribune reports Donovan Mitchell stated “We all felt it. We all felt his excitement. Mike’s a pretty calm guy, but he was yelling and screaming. So once we saw that, we were feeding off that, too.”
Donovan Mitchell, on Mike Conley: “We all felt his excitement. Mike’s a pretty calm guy, but he was yelling and screaming. So once we saw that, we were feeding off that, too.”
Clippers head coach, Doc Rivers reflects on tonight’s loss against the Jazz.
“We are about where we should be, tonight was a tough game… there was a lot of points sitting out of the game for us and we struggled shooting baskets”
Although it was a disappointment without the Clipper stars playing, Leonard will be returning for their next game on Thursday against the San Antonio Spurs. He will also be visiting his old home as he played for the Spurs from 2011-2018. The Clippers are now ranked tenth in the West but have plenty of time to change this. Utah now moved to 4-1, and the Clippers fell to 3-2.