The Clippers won their opener 104-101 over Golden State in Honolulu, but they lost a lot of players in the process. Max Strus went down about 5 minutes in. He cut across the lane for a pass and came away with a partially torn plantar fascia in his right foot. He'll be re-evaluated in 4 weeks, which rules him out for the rest of the preseason and opening night.
That LA list is the story of this team's October. Strus and Brandon Ingram, still recovering from surgery in May on a partially torn Achilles, were both offseason additions, and neither will be ready for the opener. Bradley Beal's knee kept him out of the start of camp. Jordan Miller had rotator cuff surgery and won't be re-evaluated for 6 months. Yanic Konan Niederhauser's foot keeps him out past opening night, and Kobe Sanders is dealing with a hip impingement. Expect a lot of deep-bench guards who need the minutes.
Both teams are likely to be short on stars and long on players fighting for roster spots. That makes it a decent look at depth and not much else. For Toronto, the questions are whether the frontcourt gets healthy and whether Rajakovic gives Leonard even a short stint against his old team. For LA, it's who can hold up in a backcourt that keeps losing bodies. Nobody should read much into the score.