The Clippers are in the middle of their most arduous part of the regular season, playing six games in nine days — a stretch that threatens to push them to their limits.
Making matters worse, injuries are proving difficult to avoid.
With Kawhi Leonard and Ivica Zubac out, the Clippers saw their four-game winning streak end in a 112-99 loss to the Chicago Bulls at the Intuit Dome on Monday night.
The Clippers sorely missed Leonard (right knee injury management) and Zubac (left eye corneal abrasion) — they shot just 39.4% from the field and 21.4% from three-point range.
Chicago (19-25) opened an 18-point lead in the third quarter before the Clippers clawed back to within nine points in the fourth. But the Bulls eventually put the game away when Zach LaVine hit back-to-back three pointers with 1:24 left for a 15-point lead. He scored 11 of his game-high 35 points in the fourth quarter.
Norman Powell had 27 points and James Harden had 17 points and 10 assists.
Terance Mann had 12 points off the bench for the Clippers. Mo Bamba started at center in place of Zubac, finishing with 10 points and seven rebounds.
The Clippers (24-18) were playing on back-to-back nights after defeating the Lakers on Sunday. They will play another back-to-back set on Wednesday and Thursday against Boston and Washington, respectively.
“Just got to be mentally tough,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said before Monday’s loss. “I think the stretch we’re going through right now, we talked about it before it hit, and just got to be mentally tough. Take it game by game. Don’t look at it as six games nine nights, or four in five. Just take it game by game. Our guys have done a good job with that.”
Zubac, who played in the Clippers’ first 41 games, will undergo additional exams on his eye, Lue said.
”…It did swell up on him last night and it was a tough blow,” Lue said. “Hopefully we can get him back sooner than later.”
