On a six-game home winning streak, the Los Angeles Clippers will welcome a first-time visitor to their new arena when they resume NBA Cup group play against the Sacramento Kings on Friday in Inglewood, Calif.
The Clippers and Kings both are 0-1 in West Group A play.
Long removed from a dreadful 0-4 start in their $2 billion building that James Harden suspected might be “cursed,” the Clippers now have their home in order and old scourges vexed.
The most recent guest to depart in defeat was the Orlando Magic, as Los Angeles earned a 104-93 victory on Wednesday without leading scorer Norman Powell, who was down with hamstring discomfort and will also miss Friday’s game.
Without Powell’s 23.3 points per game, the Clippers still were able to end the Magic’s six-game winning streak and become the first team to score more than 100 points against Orlando in two weeks.
“Norm has meant a lot to us; he’s been playing outstanding for us,” said the Clippers’ Amir Coffey, who stepped up with 18 points, his second-highest total of the season. “Since the start of the season I feel like he’s stepped into a big role and he’s been great. Just had to make some adjustments without him.”
If there was a point of contention, it was the team’s 25 turnovers that the Magic turned into 25 points. Harden scored 24 points but had five turnovers, as did fellow starter Kris Dunn.
“We knew it was gonna be nasty, but 25 turnovers just makes no sense,” Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue said of playing against the Magic’s rugged defense. “We’ve gotta be better all around the board in just taking care of the basketball.”
The Kings enter off a 109-108 loss to the Atlanta Hawks at home Monday when Keon Ellis scored a career-high 33 while making nine 3-pointers in 15 attempts. De’Aaron Fox scored 28 points, while the Kings were without DeMar DeRozan and Domantas Sabonis because of back injuries. Malik Monk (ankle) also was out.
“(My teammates) just kept saying, âLet it fly,'” Ellis said, according to the Sacramento Bee. “Same with the coaches. Everyone kept saying keep shooting it. I think everyone kind of knew I was on fire.”
Sacramento is 3-4 going back to Nov. 8 in a stretch that began with a 107-98 home loss to the Clippers. It is one of just two times the Kings failed to score 100 points in a game this season.
Fox leads Sacramento with 28.8 points per game, while Sabonis (20.2 points) leads in rebounds (12.5) and assists (6.6). The veteran DeRozan is scoring 22.9 points in his first season with the Kings.
Sabonis and DeRozan were full participants in practice Wednesday and Thursday and are expected to return against the Clippers. Monk is expected to miss his sixth consecutive game.
The Clippers will have to take a different route to a repeat victory over the Kings after Powell led Los Angeles earlier this month with 31 points and 12 rebounds. Fox led the host Kings with 31 points.