INGLEWOOD, CA — Darius Garland and the Los Angeles Clippers continue to struggle with turnovers to start the season.
The turnovers happened early and often for the Clippers, who fell to 1-3 on the season after losing to the Lakers on Wednesday, Oct. 28.
Isaiah Jackson won the tip-off against Lakers center Walker Kessler to start the game, but Garland was caught off guard and didn't recover the ball as he was still tying his hair while the ball rolled out of bounds.
Garland was responsible for five of the team's 24 turnovers on Wednesday. Rookie Keaton Wagler was one of four players to have three turnovers.
Coach Tyronn Lue expressed the importance of his team taking care of the ball before the game, but that didn’t come to fruition.
The Lakers managed
to capitalize on these turnovers and scored 31 points. The Clippers are also the first team since 2002 to have recorded three consecutive games with 24+ turnovers.
The Lakers managed to produce a 17-0 scoring run in the second quarter and outscored the Clippers 26-6 on fastbreak points, but Lue directed that result to the turnovers.
“I wouldn’t say fastbreak, I'd say turnovers that led to easy 3-on-1s or 1-on-0,” Lue said. “As far as transition, I don't think we did a bad job with that; I think our transition hurt us when we turn the ball over because nobody can get back when that happens.”
With Luka Dončić out, the Clippers managed to limit the Lakers' best available scoring option, Austin Reaves, with their defense.
Reaves was 6-of-16 from the field and finished with 16 points and six rebounds while turning the ball over eight times.
"I think over the four games defensively we've done a lot of good things and we are causing turnovers, but we are just giving it back,” Clippers guard Kris Dunn said. “If we can execute when we do cause turnovers or when we are in the half-court offense and execute, we give ourselves more than a great chance to win these ball games. ... If we can cut down the turnovers, what could the record look like?"
When do Clippers play next?
The Clippers can snap their three-game losing streak with a road win against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday, Oct. 30.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Clippers continue to struggle with turnovers to start 2026-27 season
