Clippers at Spurs
The Los Angeles Clippers will try to bounce back from one of their worst losses of the season when they visit the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday night. The Clippers lost Friday night to the host New Orleans Pelicans, who were playing without leading scorer and rebounder Anthony Davis (strained abductor muscle). Los Angeles might have been caught looking ahead to the Spurs, who have won the first two meetings this season against the Clippers.
Tim Duncan continues to make history for San Antonio, as this week he became the fifth player to be selected to 15 All-Star Games, which also gave the Spurs at least one player in the event in 36 of the last 39 years, the most of any NBA team in that span. Stopping the veteran Duncan is just part of the battle, as San Antonio has put five players in double figures in scoring in 33 games this season. The Clippers will need better performances from their best 3-point shooters, as J.J. Redick and Jamal Crawford combined to shoot 1-for-11 from beyond the arc in the loss to the Pelicans.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, ESPN, Prime Ticket (Los Angeles), KENS (San Antonio)
ABOUT THE CLIPPERS (32-15): Los Angeles hasn’t lost two in a row since the last time it played two road games in two days, falling to the Spurs and Atlanta Hawks on Dec. 22 and 23, respectively. The Clippers gave up 125 points in the seven-point loss in San Antonio, as both teams had three players with at least 20 points. Blake Griffin is averaging 21.5 points in 15 career games against the Spurs and will look to take advantage of the aging Duncan.
ABOUT THE SPURS (30-17): San Antonio is a different team with Kawhi Leonard in the lineup, owning a 21-8 record compared to 9-9 without. He was limited to 23 minutes in Wednesday’s victory against the Charlotte Hornets and should be gassed up and ready for this matchup. He’s versatile enough that he could spend time guarding the two best players for Los Angeles, point guard Chris Paul and power forward Griffin.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Parker won his 700th career game Wednesday, becoming the fastest player to reach that milestone, getting there in 973 games.
2. Spurs F Marco Belinelli, who averages 9.7 points off the bench, is questionable with a strained groin.
3. Clippers C DeAndre Jordan shot 6-for-7 against the Pelicans to up his season field-goal percentage to a league-leading 73.3
PREDICTION: Clippers 97, Spurs 96