Clippers Already Missing Ivica Zubac in One Key Area

For all intents and purposes, the Los Angeles Clippers overperformed since the trade deadline. The widespread consensus was that the Clippers would struggle after the departures of Ivica Zubac and James Harden and fall in the Western Conference standings. Instead, the Clippers didn't skip a beat and won 11 of their first 16 games after the deadline and made themselves the favorites to make the playoffs through the play-in.

That doesn't mean, however, that the Clippers aren't missing their departed starters. In fact, the absence of Zubac has been especially felt in recent weeks as the Clippers struggle on the boards. The Clippers gave up a whopping 22 offensive rebounds to San Antonio on Monday, highlighting the issue that has plagued them since Zubac became a Pacer.

Clippers Struggle Rebounding the Ball Since Ivica Zubac's Departure

The Clippers' rebounding problem is prevalent on both ends of the floor. They rank 25th in the league in offensive rebounding rate since the trade deadline, and 20th in defensive rebounding, per Cleaning the Glass. In seven out of the ten games they played in March, the Clippers had a lower defensive rebounding rate than the league-average of 71.3%. Similarly, they had an above-average offensive rebounding rate in only three of those games.

Looking at the roster, this is not entirely surprising. There is no one nearly as good on the boards as Zubac currently on the roster. With Yanic Konan Niederhauser suffering a season-ending injury, the Clippers only have two healthy centers on the roster: Brook Lopez and Isaiah Jackson.

Lopez spends most of his time on offense spacing the floor out on the perimeter. Even in his prime, he was never as good a rebounder as his frame would suggest. Jackson has more mobility and athleticism and has previously been a solid offensive rebounder. But, he is severely undersized at six-foot-eight. It's not like the Clippers have good positional size elsewhere on the roster. This makes it difficult for head coach Ty Lue to deploy lineups that can end possessions.

Over the last couple of seasons, rebounding has become even more important in the NBA. Teams are finding success in two-big lineups that can crash the boards. There is a general trend towards bigger and more physical lineups, as demonstrated by the three best teams in the NBA (Thunder, Spurs, Pistons) all having consistent success by deploying double-big lineups that can dominate inside the paint.

As they are currently constructed, the Clippers don't have the ability to do so. This prevents them from getting easy second-chance points and get out in transition by failing to secure the rebound. At this stage of the season, there is no good way for the Clippers to address this issue, making it a potential weakness that could come back to bite them in the playoffs. It will definitely be an area GM Lawrence Frank will address in the offseason.