L.A. Clippers Down Star, OKC Thunder Takes Front Court Hit

The Oklahoma City Thunder are taking on the L.A. Clippers on Thursday, in a game that both sides are short handed in this battle.

Nov 4, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; LA Clippers guard James Harden (1) dribbles the ball against Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) in the first half at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Oklahoma City resumes their regular season slate on Thursday after four days off due to falling in the NBA Cup Semi-Final to the San Antonio Spurs. Making the trip to Vegas shifted their previously schedule L.A. Clippers game from Wednesday to Thursday, setting up a back-to-back with the Thunder traveling to take on the Timberwolves Friday night on Amazon Prime.

The Thunder and Clippers each submitted their first injury report for this contest on Wednesday night, as both teams are short handed.

Oklahoma City does get sharpshooter Isaiah Joe back into the fold, after he missed the team's last four games with a knee contusion. He is off the injury report on the front end of this back to back and the Thunder need his shooting ability. So far this season, Joe is shooting 41.9% from beyond the arc, launching 6.9 3s a night. Both represent a career-high for the Arkansas product.

Though, the OKC Thunder take a massive hit to their front court depth on the front end of this back-to-back against the L.A. Clippers. The Thunder will be without starting center Isaiah Hartenstein with what is tabbed as Right Soleus Injury Management. Hartenstein missed six games for a right soleus strain earlier this season before playing in Saturday's semi final game. His understudy, Jaylin Williams, will miss Thursday's contest with right heel bursitis.

The only other members of the Thunder on the injury report are rookies Thomas Sorber and Nikola Topic, who have yet to make their NBA debuts as Sorber is ruled out for the season after tearing his ACL back in September.

For the L.A. Clippers, who are riding a four game losing streak and are 1-9 in their last ten games, star guard James Harden is ruled out with a left calf contusion. Key forward Derrick Jones Jr. is dealing with a knee sprain while Bradley Beal is out for the season.

How the Oklahoma City Thunder navigate having a short handed front court will be key in this contest as the Bricktown Ballers not only attempt to get back in the win column but keep the Clippers losing. Oklahoma City owns L.A.'s pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, right now tied for the best odds to land at the top spot in a loaded draft class.

Stay tuned to Thunder on SI for complete coverage of this matchup with the Clippers and the entire season for the Oklahoma City Thunder.