The Clippers trailed by as many as 21 points and never led by more than two in a 114-106 loss at Toronto on October 10. Reserves Yuki Kawamura, Baba Miller and Nick Martinelli outscored the starting five, and Lue's closing lineup was built entirely from the bench.
Toronto's first-quarter run set the tone for the night.
The Raptors opened with a 9-0 run starting at the 11:08 mark of the first quarter, and the Clippers spent the rest of the game chasing. Toronto led by as many as 21 points and was ahead 57-45 at halftime and 89-72 through three quarters. The Clippers' only lead came early and topped out at two points, with just one lead change all night. The final was 114-106, dropping the Clippers to 1-1 in preseason after an October 4 win over the Warriors.
Reserves did the scoring once the result was decided.
Rui Hachimura and Darius Garland started and combined for 25 points, but both finished in the red, at -5 and -6. The bulk of the offense came from the bench: Baba Miller scored 10 on 3-of-7 shooting, Yuki Kawamura added 10 with four assists, and Nick Martinelli chipped in 9, pushing the reserves to 62 points against the starters' 44. Lue's closing five against Toronto's reserves was Blake Wesley, Cam Christie, Keaton Wagler, Martinelli and Kawamura, a lineup built entirely from that second unit.
Kawamura's efficiency separated him from the rest of the group.
Kawamura finished plus-12 in 14 minutes on 3-of-4 shooting, the best mark on the roster alongside Jahmyl Telfort's plus-15 in 10 minutes and Wesley's plus-11 in 16. Wagler sat at the other end: nine points on 3-of-9 shooting, including 2-of-6 from three, but a game-worst minus-14 in 23 minutes. Brook Lopez, minus-13 in 15 minutes, and Christie, minus-14 in 21, rounded out the weak side of the ledger. Kawamura earns the clearest mark among the reserves pushing for minutes; Wagler's volume without efficiency works against him.
The calendar gives Lue time before Denver arrives.
The Clippers get five days of rest before hosting the Nuggets on October 14 in a nationally televised preseason game, with the regular-season opener against the Kings still a week beyond that, on October 21. Nothing about this loss changes the larger picture: Ingram remains out, Beal and Sanders carry day-to-day tags, and the real story of nights like this one is the roster battle at the back of the bench, where Miller, Kawamura, Telfort and Martinelli are making their case.
What was the final score of the Clippers' preseason game against the Raptors?
Toronto won 114-106 at home on October 10, and the Clippers never led by more than two points.
Who led the Clippers in scoring against the Raptors?
Rui Hachimura led with 14 points on 3-of-8 shooting and a perfect 7-for-7 at the free-throw line in 19 minutes.
