Despite high expectations entering the season with a veteran roster, the Los Angeles Clippers’ opening night performance left much to be desired. In front of a packed out Delta Center on the road, the Clippers kicked off their 2025-26 campaign with a disastrous 129-108 loss to the Utah Jazz Wednesday night.
Trailing by as much as 37, the Clippers never led.
Winning the opening tip off, Utah got off to a quick start and did not look back. The young Jazz roster found its spark early on offense, dominating the entire game. Utah finished the night shooting 55% from the field and 39% from 3-point range.
With a bevy of new additions to the roster, the Clippers struggled to establish chemistry as turnovers and miscues plagued the team’s disappointing start. Los Angeles turned the ball over 11 times in the first half with eight being unforced errors.
With 3:09 left in the first quarter, Jazz guard Walter Clayton Jr. intercepted a pass and fed forward Ace Bailey on the other end who dunked, giving the Jazz a 19-point lead and forcing Tyronn Lue to extinguish a second timeout to stop the bleeding.
A 16-3 run to end the first quarter had the Jazz ahead 43-19 after 12 minutes of play.
Four Jazz players were in the double figures after two quarters as forward Lauri Markkanen and center Walker Kessler each had 15 points. At the end of the night, Kessler led the Jazz with 22 points. Markkanen and forward Brice Sensabaugh each had 20 points with Markkanen adding four 3-pointers.
Los Angeles began the 2nd quarter with a spirited response that was anchored by center Brook Lopez who drilled three shots from beyond the arc to eat into the big deficit. Lopez finished the night with 15 points and five made 3-pointers. Center Ivaca Zubac led the Clippers with 19 points and guard James Harden contributed 15.
Despite small runs by the Clippers, the Jazz were able to find responses utilizing the 3-point line. With 46 seconds left in the half, a big block by Kessler and a 3-pointer by Sensabaugh on the other end erupted the crowd onto its feet. Guard Keyonte George capped the big first half with a layup that rattled in to put an exclamation point on the Jazz’s strong first half.
Shooting 72% from the field and 57% from beyond the arc, Utah led 78-47 at halftime.
The Clippers attempted to set the tone out of halftime, opting for 3-point shots to cut into the large deficit but struggled to find success. Utah picked up where it left off in the first half with a 11-2 run across two minutes forcing a quick timeout from a frustrated Lue with 7:44 left in the 3rd quarter.
Despite a valiant effort from the Clippers throughout the final two quarters, the big deficit was too much to overcome. Both sides substituted in their benches for the majority of the 4th quarter.
Los Angeles drops to 0-1 to begin the season and with an impressive opening night, the Jazz improve to 1-0.
The Clippers will look for a bounce back win, taking on the Phoenix Suns in their home opener on Friday at Intuit Dome. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. on FanDuel Sports West.