Sports Illustrated - 21.10.2019

*NEW ACQUISITION

Starters

LANDRY

SHAMET

10.9 PPG; 2.3 APG;

41.4 FG%; 45.0 3FG%

SG

ENEMY LINES

A rival scout weighs in

They pried away the guy

who was the best player

in the playoffs, so that

obviously gives them

a certain standing.

KAWHI LEONARD is definitely

in the conversation

as the best player

in the league. His

dominance on both

ends, playing defense

and creating shots at

a high level—those are

nice qualities.... It’s

great having wings in a

wing game, but [pairing

Leonard with PAUL

GEORGE] doesn’t offer

the same floor balance

as, say, the Lakers

pairing LeBron, who’s

a wing, with Anthony

Davis, who’s a big. If

[Leonard and George]

clustered together on

the wing, there’s some

overlap, that could take

a little bit away from

them.... The team has

a lot of hard-playing,

aggressive role guys

who are productive.

LOU WILLIAMS never

seems to age [he’s

32], and he can still

score at a high clip.

He’s done it every year,

and I wouldn’t expect

it to stop. That’s a big

weapon.... LANDRY SHAMET

is a smart guy who can

make a shot and knows

how to fit with other

good players. Those

are qualities that let

you contribute sooner

rather than later. On

one hand his rookie

year was surprising,

but he has such a

mature game that, on

the other hand, it made

sense.... IVICA ZUBAC has

shown some promise

but isn’t there yet, and

MONTREZL HARRELL has

been in a backup role

playing starter minutes,

so handling the five

will be a challenge for

them against some of

the bigger teams....

JAMYCHAL GREEN should fit

well. He can play a more

important role than

people realize.

TELLING NUMBER

Paul George looked like two

different players during 2018–19.

Before the All-Star break he was a

bona fide MVP candidate, playing

topflight defense and shooting like

Steph Curry. Then he injured his right shoulder

on Feb. 26. After shooting 40.3% behind the arc

before then, George hit only 33.8% OF HIS THREES

(and 39.7% of all field goals) through the end of

the season. His struggles directly impacted the

Thunder, who went 11–12 down the stretch before

losing in five games to Portland in the first round.

PG underwent surgery this summer and is

expected to be out until next month. While he

will not have to carry as heavy a burden with the

Clippers as he did in OKC—Kawhi Leonard is a

much more efficient superstar teammate than

Russell Westbrook—L.A. gave up a load of assets

to acquire George. In a tightly packed West, the

difference between a playoff exit and a title run

could absolutely hinge on his health. —R.N.

33.8%

Projected Lineup

Bench

SF

KAWHI

LEONARD*

26.6 PPG; 7. 3 RPG;

1.8 SPG; 49.6 FG%

PATRICK

BEVERLEY

7. 6 PPG; 5.0 RPG;
   3.8 APG; 40.7 FG%

PG PF

PAUL

GEORGE*

28.0 PPG; 8.2 RPG;

43.8 FG%; 38.6 3FG%

C

IVICA

ZUBAC

9.4 PPG; 7.7 RPG;

0.9 BPG; 53.8 FG%

LOU

WILLIAMS

20.0 PPG; 5.4 APG;

42.5 FG%; 36.1 3FG%

SG C

MONTREZL

HARRELL

16.6 PPG; 6.5 RPG;

1.3 BPG; 61.5 FG%

90

JOHN W. MCDONOUGH (WILLIAMS)

LOS ANGELES

2018 – 19 RECORD 48– 34 2nd in Pacific

Clippers COACH DOC RIVERS 7th season with Clippers

∂56 wins ∂Win NBA Finals ∂Owner Steve Ballmer will try to imitate Kawhi’s laugh. It will go horribly wrong.

THE
WEST

Crystal Ball: