The Clippers lost 127-101 in Minnesota in an NBA Cup game. It was their fourth straight loss, and it dropped them to 14th in the conference.
The Clippers never had control of this game.
Their biggest lead all night was three points. Minnesota won the first quarter 34-24 and led 69-56 at halftime. Tyronn Lue had already used three timeouts by the 6:20 mark of the second quarter. The Timberwolves won all four quarters, and that is harder to excuse given who they were missing: Donte DiVincenzo and Anthony Edwards were both out.
The comeback lasted about four minutes.
An 11-0 run that started in the last half-minute of the third cut a 98-79 deficit to 98-90 with 8:30 left. Then Minnesota scored the next eight points. After a Clippers basket came a 15-0 run that made it 121-92 with 2:54 to play. Lue called timeouts at 90-106 and 92-114, and neither stopped the run. Baba Miller, Blake Wesley, Cam Christie, Keaton Wagler and Nick Martinelli played the last five minutes. LaMelo Ball scored nine in the fourth and finished with 24, hitting 6 of 15 threes.
Isaiah Jackson earned the best grade, and Keaton Wagler the worst.
Jackson gets an A-minus: 10 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals and 4 blocks in 22 minutes, with a -8 that was the third-best mark on the team. Darius Garland gets a C. He led the team with 24 points, made 10 of 22 shots and went 4 of 8 from deep, but he also had five turnovers and finished -19. Wagler gets a D. He made 2 of 11 shots, and going 7 of 8 at the line got him to 12 points. His -24 was the worst on the team. Rui Hachimura, cleared to play on October 30, posted the best mark at -4 in 26 minutes. Jaden McDaniels hit 11 of 15 shots, and Bones Hyland had 19 points and 8 assists in 20 minutes. Holding those two in check was what the defense most needed to do.
The next week matters more for the standings than this loss does.
At 1-4, the Clippers are one game behind the 2-3 Warriors for 10th and two and a half behind the 4-2 Mavericks for 6th. Their current pace works out to 16-66, though with 77 games left that says more about the injury list than about where they will finish. They play at Golden State in two days and host Toronto the next night. Max Strus, Yanic Konan Niederhauser, Brandon Ingram and Bradley Beal all have estimated return dates of November 8, the night the Pelicans visit. Jordan Miller's estimate is March 2. Until those four are back, the starters will keep carrying most of the scoring, and they outscored the bench 61-35 here.
Why did the Clippers lose to the Timberwolves by 26?
Minnesota led from the first quarter and stopped a fourth-quarter Clippers rally with an 8-0 run and then a 15-0 run. McDaniels made 11 of 15 shots, and Ball made six threes.
When are Brandon Ingram and Bradley Beal expected back for the Clippers?
Both carry an estimated return date of November 8, as do Max Strus and Yanic Konan Niederhauser. Jordan Miller's estimated return is March 2.
