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Ty Lue Reveals New Clippers Starting Lineup Without Kawhi Leonard

LA Clippers head coach Ty Lue revealed his new starting lineup.

Joey Linn

LA Clippers coach Tyronn Lue at a press conference during game five of the first round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at Crypto.com Arena.
LA Clippers coach Tyronn Lue at a press conference during game five of the first round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at Crypto.com Arena. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
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The LA Clippers will be without Kawhi Leonard for the entire NBA preseason. Leonard missed the last eight games of the 2023-24 regular season before making just two appearances in the playoffs.

This was the fourth-straight season Leonard was sidelined due to injury when the Clippers were eliminated. Leonard’s right knee was the cause of each absence, and it is again was has him sidelined now.

The Clippers are having Leonard focus on strengthening his knee in training camp, and head coach Ty Lue told reporters on Monday that his star forward will not play in the preseason finale on Thursday.

Kawhi Leonard
Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard (2) looks on from the bench during a preseason game against the Brooklyn Nets at Frontwave Arena. / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Lue has been experimenting with different starting lineups throughout preseason, and revealed what group he is sticking with in Leonard’s absence.

Per Lue, his starters right now are James Harden, Terrance Mann, Norman Powell, Derrick Jones Jr., and Ivica Zubac.

Powell was Lue’s sixth man last season, turning in an incredibly efficient offensive season off the bench. Averaging 13.9 points on 48.6 percent from the field and 43.5 percent from deep last season, Powell should give the Clippers a scoring boost in the starting lineup with Leonard out.

Lue will have a decision to make on who to remove from his starting lineup when Leonard eventually returns. Powell has been open about wanting to be a starter for the Clippers this season.

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Joey Linn
JOEY LINN

Joey Linn is a credentialed writer covering the NBA for Sports Illustrated's FanNation. Covering the LA Clippers independently in 2018, then for Fansided and 213Hoops from 2019-2021, Joey joined Sports Illustrated's FanNation to cover the Clippers after the 2020-21 season. Graduating from Biola University in 2022 with a Communication Studies degree, Joey served as Biola's play-by-play announcer for their basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer teams during his time in school. Joey's work on Biola's broadcasts, combined with his excellence in the classroom, earned him the Outstanding Communication Studies Student of the year award in 2022. Joey covers the NBA full-time across multiple platforms, primarily serving as a credentialed Clippers beat writer.

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