On a recent revival with potential roster reinforcements ahead, the Los Angeles Clippers are feeling much better about their prospects heading into a matchup against the Charlotte Hornets on Sunday at Inglewood, Calif.
The Clippers made a late run to finish off their second victory in three games Friday by getting past the short-handed Oklahoma City Thunder 113-112. Los Angeles went on a late 7-0 run to rally for the win while getting a clutch three-point play from Darius Garland with under a minute remaining.
The face of the Clippers’ offensive pursuits now, Garland got off to a rough start particularly with turnovers from his point-guard position. After committing as many as nine turnovers in a game earlier this season, Garland had three Friday and had just five total turnovers in the past two victories.
“I’m very proud of him,” Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue said. “We know who he is. He’s a special player and just getting our offense right, getting our spacing right, understanding where we’re supposed to be on the floor, I thought he did a good job.”
Garland finished with 24 points against the Thunder while veteran Brook Lopez continues to deliver by adding a team-high 26 points. The 38-year-old is scoring 14.7 points per game this season, while shooting 42.1 percent from 3-point range.
“Trust means a lot to me,” Lopez said about teammates leaning into his basketball IQ that has been developed over 19 seasons. “Obviously, I trust my teammates. I trust the staff the same way. And none of this is going to work without trust. That’s the most important thing.”
Los Angeles is close to seeing Brandon Ingram make his team debut after heel surgery in the offseason. Ingram has scored at least 20.8 points per game in each of his last seven seasons and was an All-Star last season with the Toronto Raptors.
The Hornets have lost seven of their last eight games and arrive in the L.A. area following a 101-96 road loss to the Phoenix Suns on Thursday. Coby White scored a season-high 21 points in 20 minutes. Naz Reid scored 16 with eight rebounds, and Moussa Diabate collected 13 rebounds.
Charlotte entered the fourth quarter with a 76-72 lead and were within 97-95 with 21.2 seconds remaining before the Suns put the game away at the free-throw line.
Like the Clippers, the Hornets also are trying to recover from early-season turnover issues but any progress in that area was derailed against the Suns. A total of 27 turnovers tied a season high and marked the third time the team reached that number this season.
Phoenix turned those Charlotte turnovers into 38 points, which were a clear difference in the game. Every Hornets starter had at least four turnovers.
“That’s way too many opportunities for the other team to capitalize on,” Hornets head coach Charles Lee said. “We love to evaluate (if it was) forced or unforced? Of the 27, too many of them are going to be unforced. So, we have to look in the mirror, all of us, myself included, and figure out how we can keep tightening that up.”
Heading into Saturday’s NBA games, the Hornets led the NBA with 19.6 turnovers per game, while the Clippers were third at 17.8.
