Ty Lue Addresses Clippers’ Seven-Day Break Before Season Opener

A free week right before opening night might sound like a gift, but head coach Tyronn Lue is looking at the gap on his calendar as something his team has to work through.

His group closes out the preseason on Wednesday night against the Denver Nuggets at Intuit Dome and will not play again until Wednesday, Oct. 21, when the Sacramento Kings come to Inglewood for the season opener.

That leaves seven days between games right when most teams are trying to find a rhythm, and Lue already has a plan for how to use them.

The Los Angeles Clippers split their first two preseason games, as they beat the Golden State Warriors in Hawaii and then lost to the Toronto Raptors in Vancouver.

Lue talked about the long layoff in a video of his comments that ClutchPoints writer Tomer Azarly shared on Tuesday.

"We've got to be smart about it, but we've got to get up and down because 7 days between games is a long time. We've got to try to stay sharp as best we can, have some scrimmages and play a lot," Lue said.

That is the right answer to me, since a week like this could easily turn into extra film sessions and light shootarounds, and a team with this many new pieces needs the running more than it needs the rest.

This roster has a lot of new faces, and plenty is still left to sort out before the games start to count.

Guard Darius Garland already talked about how excited he was after the team's first preseason win, but one win in Hawaii won't give a new group the trust it needs late in a close game.

The extra days should also give the coaches time to plan around the injury list.

Guard Max Strus went down five minutes into that opener with a partial tear of the plantar fascia in his right foot and will be reevaluated in four weeks, so the staff is still working out who can step up while he is out.

Rookie guard Keaton Wagler, the fifth overall pick, could use every rep he can get, and I think there is a strong case for giving him the start against Denver before the break begins.

Sacramento won't have the same issue, since the Kings close their own preseason on Friday against the San Antonio Spurs and will get five days between games instead of seven.

They are banged up as well, with center Maxime Raynaud set to be reevaluated in about two weeks with a knee injury and center Dylan Cardwell expected to miss at least two weeks with a calf strain.

Things move fast once the opener is over, as the Clippers visit the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday, Oct. 23, and then go to Oklahoma City to face the Thunder on Sunday, Oct. 25.

I think Lue is right to push his guys hard in practice this week, because a sloppy start in a stretch of three games in five days could put this team in a hole before Strus is even due to be reevaluated.