Clippers hope trip to Dallas gets them back on track
While trying to overcome their worst stretch since reviving their season starting in late December, the Los Angeles Clippers will visit the Dallas Mavericks on Friday while on a four-game losing streak.
The Clippers (34-36) reached a season-best two games over .500 on March 13 following a 7-1 run but are now on the four-game skid after consecutive defeats at New Orleans on Wednesday and Thursday.
Thursday's 105-99 loss to the Pelicans came without the Clippers' top three scorers playing: Kawhi Leonard, Darius Garland and Bennedict Mathurin.
Leonard has missed two games since rolling his left ankle in the loss last weekend to the Sacramento Kings, while Garland and Mathurin continue to recover from toe injuries.
Leonard is questionable on the most recent injury report, with Mathurin out and Garland not listed.
The Clippers managed to be far more competitive against the Pelicans on Thursday than they were Wednesday, when both Leonard and Garland were on the floor. Derrick Jones Jr. scored 22 points and John Collins added 18 in the Thursday game.
"We missed a lot of free throws, and we didn't convert in transition, which hurt us," Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue said after his team forced 16 turnovers but netted just eight fastbreak points. "We had a lot of advantages like three-on-twos, two-on-ones, four-on-twos and (were) just not capitalizing. That has been the theme the last three or four games."
The Clippers remain comfortably in possession of a play-in tournament spot in the Western Conference with 12 regular-season games remaining.
The Mavericks (23-47) will be out to end a 10-game home losing streak. They have also dropped 11 of their last 13 games overall.
Dallas fell 135-120 at home to the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday. The Hawks' total was tied for the fourth highest allowed by the Mavericks this season. Daniel Gafford had 24 points off the bench for the Mavericks, while P.J. Washington added 23.
In a sign of just how things have gone for the Mavericks this season, the Hawks' Jonathan Kuminga sank a 75-foot 3-pointer just before the third-quarter buzzer that was intended as a long pass to Jock Landale. According to the NBA, it was the sixth-longest made shot in league history.
A pair of Dallas rookies had solid performances in the loss as Cooper Flagg scored 17 points and point guard Ryan Nembhard had 12 assists to go along with eight points. Undrafted out of Gonzaga after spending time at Creighton, Nembhard has averaged 6.3 points with 4.9 assists in 49 games (21 starts).
"His ability to find his teammates, he did that at a high level for us, and we need him to continue that for his growth," Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd said of Nembhard. "His 12 assists and zero turnovers is something that you value. He values the ball. His teammates and coaches love when he's on the floor."
The Clippers won a 133-127 double-overtime thriller at Dallas on Nov. 14, which was one of just six Los Angeles victories before Dec. 20. James Harden and Ivica Zubac, who combined for 68 points and 25 rebounds in the Clippers' victory, have since been traded.