Clippers coach Tyronn Lue is expected to try out several starting lineups, experimenting with various looks in the team’s five preseason games.
In their first game against the Golden State Warriors on Saturday, Lue started Kris Dunn and Derrick Jones Jr. alongside James Harden, Norman Powell and Ivica Zubac. The latter three looked ready for the season. The others are going to need time.
With Kawhi Leonard watching from the bench, Harden, Powell and Zubac each scored in double figures in the first half in a 91-90 loss at the Stan Sheriff Center in Hawaii.
Warriors Lindy Waters III buried a 3-pointer at the buzzer to send the Clippers’ home with a loss. They play their second preseason game Tuesday at the new Frontwave Arena in Oceanside, home of their G League team.
“We have a long way to go,” Harden said in a televised postgame interview. “It’s a process. But we’re going to get better at it.”
Harden said earlier this week in Hawaii that he would “be probably, not probably, in the best shape I’ve been in five, six, seven years. I don’t really want to talk; I just want to go out there and show it.”
Harden indeed put on a show. He scored 13 points and had eight assists in 17 minutes, giving the Clippers the type of leadership they are going to need this season with Leonard on the bench to start the season and the departure of Paul George.
Zubac got his season started with 14 points and six rebounds in 18 minutes, while Powell had 11 points.
Jones Jr., a new addition who is considered a possible choice to replace George, went scoreless and had one rebound in 11 minutes. Dunn, starting in place of Leonard, also failed to score in his first start with the Clippers, but pulled down three rebounds.
Kevin Porter Jr. and Kai Jones have the potential to be solid contributors this season and both saw action in the first half. Porter scored seven points, while Jones added four points, six rebounds and three assists, the most assists he had posted in his short NBA career.
Stephen Curry missed all four of his 3-point attempts and finished with just nine points in 14-first half minutes.
The second half was left to players who will be battling for minutes in Lue’s rotation. Kobe Brown made a strong case for playing time with 11 points and nine rebounds off the bench all in the second half.
The game was sloppy, with 41 combined turnovers between the teams and 114 missed shots.
