New-look Clippers aim for continued success vs. visiting Bulls
After scoring a season high in points and making a bit of NBA history in the process, the Los Angeles Clippers will carry plenty of momentum into a matchup against the Chicago Bulls on Friday at Inglewood, Calif.
In a 153-128 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday, the Clippers moved a game over .500 and became the first team in league history to go 15 games under the break-even point, then rally to go one game over in the same season.
The revival started with James Harden and Ivica Zubac on the roster and has continued after they were traded, replaced by Bennedict Mathurin and Darius Garland via trades. The Clippers have won six of their past seven with their new look.
"I'm just proud of our whole coaching staff and our players. It's not just me," head coach Tyronn Lue said. "I try to set the mood, I try to set the environment to make sure everyone's comfortable, everyone's enjoying it. When you're 6-21, it's kind of hard to enjoy, but our guys were still in it."
That was the Clippers' record on Dec. 18, and they have gone 27-11 since in a run that started when Kawhi Leonard became the primary focus of the offense. Leonard scored 45 points against Minnesota and has averaged 30.0 points in 34 games since Dec. 20 and has been the Clippers' leading scorer in 16 of the past 18 games.
"I'm just happy we got the same jersey on instead of being on the opposite side of the ball," Garland said of playing with Leonard. "I'm super happy to be able to run the flow with him, swing him the ball as much as I can, and just watch him go to work."
The Bulls will make the 14-mile trip from downtown Los Angeles to Inglewood after a 142-130 loss to the Lakers on Thursday. Josh Giddey just missed a triple-double with 27 points, 15 assists and eight rebounds. Matas Buzelis added 22 points, while Tre Jones had 18. Chicago shot 53.7%.
The Bulls are 3-3 since an 11-game losing streak and 1-2 on a road trip that ends Friday.
Buzelis' output came after he scored a career-high 41 in a victory over the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday. He has averaged 27.7 points over the first three games of the trip.
"My mindset before I go into a game is everything is earned; nothing is given, nothing is a guarantee," Buzelis said, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. "I believe I can do it consistently, but I have to do it. I have to show it."
The Bulls also are familiar with trade-deadline change. They dealt Ayo Dosunmu, Coby White, Kevin Huerter and Nikola Vucevic, while adding nine second-round picks as well as Jaden Ivey, Collin Sexton and Anfernee Simons.
Sexton (leg), Simons (hand), Isaac Okoro (knee) and Patrick Williams (ankle) all have missed multiple games of late.
The Bulls trailed by 10 points in the first quarter against the Lakers, then rallied to take a seven-point lead in the second before trailing 67-62 at halftime. They were within seven with 8:45 remaining before the Lakers took charge. Chicago couldn't stop Luka Doncic, who scored 51 points.
The Bulls rolled to a 138-110 victory at home over the Clippers on Jan. 20 when Buzelis had 21 points.
Chicago is trying to sweep the two-game series for the first time since the 2021-22 season. Los Angeles has gone 5-2 against Chicago since.