LOS ANGELES — Veteran Kevon Looney, as steady and durable as anyone in the league, was ruled out for Monday night’s Warriors game against the Clippers at the Intuit Dome with an illness.
Looney, 28, has been especially effective this season after slimming down over the summer. He ranks third in the NBA in offensive rebounds per game (4.3) despite playing roughly half as many minutes as everyone else in the top 10.
Looney’s role on the boards is part of why the Warriors, despite being the shortest team in the league, rank highly in rebounding metrics.
The Warriors (10-2) downgraded Looney from questionable to out on the 1:30 p.m. update on the official injury report. Steph Curry (left knee bursitis) and Lindy Waters III (left knee hyperextension) are each listed as questionable; De’Anthony Melton is out with an ACL sprain. The Clippers (7-7), on the second night of a back-to-back in their new building, remain without superstar Kawhi Leonard (knee recovery).
Last March, Looney lost his streak of 290 consecutive games played after getting a DNP. He has played in all but one game this season, having gotten a DNP against the Thunder — who went super small after Chet Holmgren’s injury.
The Clippers are one of only two teams to beat the Warriors this year. In their first meeting, at the Chase Center, Clippers center Ivica Zubac recorded 23 points, 18 rebounds (six offensive), two steals and a block. On the year, Zubac is averaging career-highs in both points (15.9) and rebounds (12.1) per game.
Without Looney, more onus will fall on Trayce Jackson-Davis and Draymond Green to slow down Zubac. Golden State is also likely to play more small lineups, with Kyle Anderson operating as the center.
Notable
— Both Brandin Podziemski and Steph Curry scaled “The Wall” — the Intuit Dome’s superfan section that inclines steeper than traditional stands — during shootaround.
“I tried to run as much as I could, probably got like three-quarters of the way up,” Podziemski said. “It tired me out.”
— When the Clippers beat the Warriors on Oct. 27, Golden State committed a season-high 21 turnovers. The Warriors are 8-0 when committing 15 or fewer turnovers and 2-2 otherwise.
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— Podziemski said the training staff is still trying to diagnose exactly what illness befell him earlier this month. He couldn’t finish the game in Washington because he felt dizzy and lightheaded, and then was sidelined the next game in Boston, too.
Podziemski returned to the lineup and has been playing without his protective mask since Nov. 12. After a pair of games in which he was hesitant offensively, Podziemski said he felt much better about his most recent performance — an 11-point, seven-rebound, five-assist game against Memphis.
— Clippers guard James Harden passed Ray Allen on the all-time 3-point leaderboard on Sunday night, slotting behind only Curry. The 2018 MVP is a career 36.3% career 3-point shooter and is 807 makes shy of Curry’s record.
