Through their first 13 games, the Los Angeles Clippers are off to a 6-7 start. The team has now lost three straight after falling in their first NBA Cup outing on Friday to the Houston Rockets. Still, the Clippers have been battling while their best player, Kawhi Leonard, has yet to appear in a game.
On Sunday night, they have an opportunity to get back in the win column. Los Angeles will be home at the Intuit Dome to take on the Utah Jazz, who are last in the Western Conference at 3-9. Clippers fans may also get to see center Mo Bamba make his debut with the team, as he will be available to play.
Clippers Big Man Available To Make Season Debut On Sunday
Bamba Has Missed Los Angeles’ First 12 Contests
The Clippers have been without Bamba for the first 12 games, as he has been out with left knee soreness. The 26-year-old has been rehabbing with the G League’s San Diego Clippers. He played in their game Thursday, and Bamba finished with 13 points and 12 rebounds in 21 minutes.
There is a good chance that Bamba receives the bulk of the backup center minutes behind starter Ivica Zubac. While Kai Jones has been utilized as the backup center sans Bamba, his minutes have been dwindling recently. In the month of November, Jones has only played 38 total minutes.
The 7-foot Bamba agreed to a one-year, minimum deal with the Clippers in the offseason for $2,613,120. It’s unclear if Bamba will be on a minutes restriction to start his season, but it’s likely. Zubac is averaging 34.0 minutes per game thus far which is about 5.5 more than he has averaged in any other year. Part of that is due to his excellent play, but another part is due to not having another reliable big man.
Hasn’t Quite Lived Up To Draft Status
The idea of Bamba being a productive player has always been there, it just hasn’t necessarily panned out. He’s a stretch-five with plenty of athleticism and could be one of the league’s top shot-blockers.
The Orlando Magic certainly believed in him when they selected Bamba sixth overall in the 2018 NBA Draft out of Texas. In the six seasons he has played since being drafted though, only in one of them has he been inserted into the starting lineup full-time (2021-22 with Orlando). He averaged 1.7 blocks per contest that year, good for seventh in the league. Last season, he started 17 games for the Philadelphia 76ers when Joel Embiid was sidelined, but he didn’t see a second of action in their first round loss to the New York Knicks.
In 332 career regular season games (99 starts), Bamba has posted averages of 7.0 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks. He has shot 47.8% from the field, 36.1% from three-point range, and 68.1% from the foul line. Bamba’s career-high of 32 points came on January 19, 2022 while playing for Orlando against the 76ers.
Bamba won’t turn 27 years old until May 12, so there’s still time to change the narrative around his career. In the meantime, the Clippers hope he can provide meaningful minutes behind Zubac, who is in the midst of a career-year.
