Game Recap: Toronto Raptors Defeat LA Clippers 116-108

An undermanned Clippers team fought hard, but fell in Toronto on NYE

Dan Hamilton / USA TODAY Sports

Without Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, Nicolas Batum, and their two best centers, the LA Clippers fought hard in Toronto against the Raptors. Nine players were out in total, including five of the team's top rotation options. Despite that, it was still a close game down the stretch, but Toronto executed well enough to pull out the win.

The Clippers did get Reggie Jackson back from health and safety protocols in this game, and he played well after missing nearly two weeks. Reggie finished with 17 points on 5/8 from deep, and looked to be moving well. When asked after the game how he felt, Reggie said he felt good, and was just thankful to be back playing the game he loves. Reggie added some perspective, stating that he is far from the only person dealing with this, and was thankful to have a solid support system during his quarantine.

The Clippers' leading scorer was once again Marcus Morris, who finished with 20 points and 6 rebounds. This is the 5th-straight game that Morris has eclipsed 20 points, which is the longest streak of his career. He has continued to be a solid primary scoring option with both Paul George and Kawhi Leonard sidelined. Terance Mann and Amir Coffey also gave the Clippers solid production in this matchup, with Mann scoring 18 points on 7/10 shooting, while Coffey poured in a season-high 15 points on 5/9 shooting.

As good as the Clippers were offensively in this game, they got 18 less shots than the Raptors. Toronto grabbed 18 offensive rebounds, which led to this disparity in field goal attempts. While it is easy to point to the absence of Ivica Zubac and Isaiah Hartenstein as the reason for this, acting head coach Brian Shaw said the issue predates the absence of those two. Coach Shaw said that "It's not just a matter of not having Zu out there. There's been a few games where teams had their way on the offensive boards with us, even when we did have Zu and Isaiah."

Fred VanVleet closed this game out for the Raptors, scoring 8 of his 31 points in the final frame. This included consecutive buckets in the final minute, that helped put the Clippers away. VanVleet's co-stars stepped up in this one as well, with Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby combining for 51 points on 18/36 shooting. That trio was too much for the Clippers to handle in this one, especially down the stretch.

The Clippers will now travel to Brooklyn to face the Nets on New Year's Day.