The Los Angeles Lakers head back across town to face the LA Clippers on Wednesday, Oct. 28, just four days after beating them 125-117 at home. The Lakers vs Clippers rematch tips at 10:30 p.m. ET at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, with Los Angeles carrying a perfect 3-0 record into a building where the home team enters on a two-game losing streak and missing five rotation players.
The Lakers lead the early season series 1-0 and have not lost since opening the year. The Clippers, at 1-2, are trying to avoid a third straight defeat as they adjust to a thinned-out roster. The biggest question entering the night is whether the Clippers can slow down a Lakers offense that leads the league in scoring through three games.
Los Angeles Lakers At LA Clippers Game Information
- Date: Wednesday, Oct. 28
- Time: 10:30 p.m. ET
- Venue: Intuit Dome, Inglewood, CA
- TV/Streaming: NBA League Pass, Spectrum Sports Net, Spectrum Sports Net +, KTLA, ClipperVision
- Series: Lakers lead 1-0
Can The Clippers Slow Down Luka Doncic And The Lakers Offense?
Luka Doncic leads the Lakers in scoring at 34.3 points per game, assists at 8.0 per game and ranks second on the team in rebounding at 7.3 per game. The Lakers as a team average 128 points per game on 54.5% shooting from the field, both figures that lead their matchup with the Clippers by wide margins through three games apiece.
Doncic scored 52 points in the Lakers’ 132-123 win over the Utah Jazz on Oct. 25, their most recent outing. He also had a hand in the first meeting with the Clippers on Oct. 24, a 125-117 Lakers win. The Clippers allow 113 points per game of their own, which does not suggest a defense built to contain a Lakers attack averaging 15 more points a night.
What Is The Status Of The LA Clippers’ Injury List?
The Clippers are without five players for Wednesday’s game. Forward Rui Hachimura is out with left leg quadriceps soreness and has a projected return date of Oct. 30. Guard Bradley Beal (right knee inflammation), guard Max Strus (right foot plantar fasciitis), center Yanic Konan Niederhauser (recovering from right foot surgery) and forward Brandon Ingram (recovering from right Achilles surgery) are all out, each with a projected return date of Nov. 8.
That leaves Darius Garland as the clear focal point of the Clippers’ offense. Garland leads the team in scoring at 24.0 points per game and assists at 7.0 per game, with Isaiah Jackson pacing the Clippers on the glass at 5.7 rebounds per game.
The Lakers have their own absences but a shorter list. Guard Cameron Carr (right oblique strain) and forward Adou Thiero (left knee inflammation) are both out, with Wednesday listed as the projected return date for each.
What Do Recent Results Say About Both Teams’ Form?
The Lakers have won three straight, including back-to-back wins over the Golden State Warriors and the Clippers before closing out their recent stretch with the win in Utah. Los Angeles has outscored its last three opponents by an average of better than 15 points.
The Clippers have split their five most recent games, with losses to the Toronto Raptors, the Lakers and the Oklahoma City Thunder sandwiched around wins over the Denver Nuggets and Sacramento Kings. Los Angeles is 1.000 in the Pacific Division standings while the Clippers sit two games back at .333, tied with Phoenix for second in the early group.
What Is The Key Matchup To Watch?
The Lakers’ ball control against the Clippers’ turnover-forcing defense stands out as the matchup likely to shape the pace of the game. Los Angeles averages 16.3 turnovers per game, well below the Clippers’ own giveaway rate of 22.7 per game, while the Clippers average 12.3 steals per game to the Lakers’ 11.0. If the Clippers can speed the Lakers into mistakes without Beal, Ingram and Hachimura available to create easy offense on the other end, they can keep the game closer than the raw scoring numbers suggest. If Los Angeles protects the ball the way it has through three games, with 64.4% shooting on two-point attempts, the Clippers’ shorthanded roster may not have enough answers.
What To Watch
Wednesday marks the second meeting of the season between these two Los Angeles teams, with the Lakers looking to sweep the season series to this point and stretch their win streak to four. For the Clippers, snapping a two-game skid while missing five rotation players, including Ingram and Beal for extended stretches, would mark a notable step as they try to stabilize an 1-2 start.
The Lakers return home to face the Portland Trail Blazers in their next outing, a matchup previewed in Trail Blazers vs. Lakers preview: Doncic faces thin Portland. The first meeting between these two Los Angeles clubs is detailed in Clippers vs Lakers preview: both 1-0 in early West showdown, and Doncic’s 52-point outburst against Utah is covered in Lakers beat Jazz 132-123 behind Doncic’s 52 points.
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