The Clippers close the preseason against the Nuggets on October 14, three days removed from last Saturday's loss at Toronto. The regular season then opens at home against the Kings on October 21, the first game to count toward a record still at 0-0.
Denver is a dress rehearsal, not the real test.
The Nuggets arrive off a 54-28 season and a top-five net rating of 5.2 last year, built around Nikola Jokic's 27.7 points, 12.9 rebounds and 10.7 assists and Jamal Murray's 25.4 points under new head coach David Adelman. The matchup favors the Clippers on rest: three days off and no back-to-back for Los Angeles against a Denver team playing the second night of a short trip on two days' rest, with only two days before its next game. None of it will show up in a standings column.
Sacramento is the one that actually counts.
The Kings arrive October 21 for the true opener, the first game of a season that has not started. Three more games follow within nine days: at the Lakers on October 23 and at the Thunder on October 25, a quick turn that will test the roster before it has settled.
Two day-to-day tags share a single target date.
Kobe Sanders, sidelined by a left hip and torso issue, and Bradley Beal, sidelined by a knee and leg issue, are both listed as day-to-day with October 14 as their estimated return — the Nuggets game itself. Whether either actually plays will say more about the roster's health than the score does.
The longer absences are not moving with the calendar.
Brandon Ingram's partially torn Achilles keeps him out until at least November 1, Max Strus's foot and leg injury to November 2, and Jordan Miller's shoulder injury into March. The Clippers carry a $193.7 million payroll, over the cap but under the $200.4 million tax line, with Darius Garland ($42.2M) and Ingram ($40.0M) as the two largest contracts — money that buys no certainty on when either wing group returns to full strength.
When do the Clippers play the Nuggets?
The Clippers host the Nuggets on October 14 in their final preseason game, airing on NBA TV.
When do the Clippers play their first regular season game?
The Clippers open the regular season at home against the Kings on October 21.
