Batum isn't in the starting five for Game 4 versus the Suns on Saturday, Tomer Azarly of ClutchPoints.com reports.
Batum will be replaced by Marcus Morris in the starting five Saturday. Batum is averaging 1.0 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 19.7 minutes across the first three games this series. He is shooting just 12.5 percent from the field over that span, likely prompting his demotion from the starting unit. However, with Kawhi Leonard (knee) out, he should still have a significant workload.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: Offers little despite start
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Batum closed with zero points (0-2 FG, 0-2 3Pt), four rebounds, one assist and one block across 21 minutes during Sunday's 119-114 victory over the Suns.
Batum started and played 21 minutes Sunday, and yet failed to produce anything close to 12-team value. While he has been able to pop off for a handful of voluminous scoring games, Batum's days of being a fantasy-relevant asset are well and truly behind him. He will continue to play a key role for the Clippers heading into the playoffs but the team will be hoping he isn't called upon to do too much heavy lifting.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: Ugly night Saturday
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Batum ended Saturday's 122-114 loss to the Pelicans with two points (1-2 FG, 0-1 3Pt), three rebounds and three assists across 24 minutes.
Batum remained in the starting lineup Saturday, although he once again came up well short when it comes to tangible fantasy production. Despite being declared the starter moving forward with Paul George (knee) sidelined, Batum is not a player to target outside of deeper formats. While he can occasionally turn the clock back, he is too inconsistent to be trusted as a productive asset.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: Sticking as starter after hot night
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Batum tallied 24 points (8-10 FG, 8-10 3Pt), five assists, three rebounds and two steals over 31 minutes in Monday's 124-112 win over Chicago.
Batum stepped into the starting lineup Monday with Marcus Morris (illness) unable to play, and the veteran came through with his best game of the campaign. Batum posted a season-high scoring total, notching all of his points -- and taking all of his shots -- from beyond the arc. His eight triples were one below his career-best total and marked the third time this season he has drained seven or more three-pointers in a game. After the game, head coach Tyronn Lue told Andrew Greif of the Los Angeles Times that Batum will remain the team's starting power forward the rest of the way, with either Morris or Robert Covington expected to serve as his backup when the Clippers are back to full strength. While Batum's red-hot shooting will surely fall off from what he delivered Monday, he can make enough cross-category contributions to be a useful fantasy option if he consistently receives 30 minutes.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: To step into starting role
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Batum will remain a starter for the remainder of the regular season, Tomer Azarly of ClutchPoints.com reports.
Batum drew a spot start in place of Marcus Morris (illness) on Monday evening, and he erupted for 24 points on eight made triples. It appears head coach Ty Lue is determined to stick with Batum down the stretch of the 2022-23 campaign at power forward, bumping Morris to a bench role.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: Starting Monday
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Batum is starting Monday's contest against the Bulls, Tomer Azarly of ClutchPoints.com reports.
With Marcus Morris (illness) unavailable, Batum will draw his 13th start of the season for the Clippers. The veteran forward has averaged 7.6 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.5 assists over 27.9 minutes per game across his outings as a starter this season.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: Increased usage looms
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Batum totaled 13 points (4-6 FG, 4-6 3Pt, 1-1 FT), one rebound, one assist and one steal in 20 minutes during Saturday's 131-110 loss to New Orleans.
Batum played well in the blowout loss, and if Kawhi Leonard's (face) injury forces him to miss a few games, Batum will emerge as the primary beneficiary. A potential Leonard loss is a lethal combination with Paul George (leg) unavailable through the end of the season, making Batum instrumental in an effort to keep pace in the playoff hunt.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: Scores 12 in victory
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Batum closed Thursday's 127-105 victory over Oklahoma City with 12 points (4-6 FG, 4-6 3Pt), two rebounds, three assists and two steals in 19 minutes.
Batum was held below 10 points in his seven appearances prior to Thursday's matchup, but he was efficient from beyond the arc during the comfortable win over the Thunder. He's scored in double figures just twice across 10 March appearances, averaging 4.9 points and 2.3 rebounds in 20.1 minutes per game.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: Scores six off bench
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Batum ended with six points (2-5 FG, 2-4 3Pt), two assists and two steals in 20 minutes during Wednesday's 134-126 win over the Warriors.
Batum has returned to a bench role over the last four matchups and has had a limited role in those appearances. He saw a slight uptick in scoring Wednesday but has averaged just 2.5 points and 3.3 rebounds in 17.0 minutes per game over his last four outings.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: Set to start against Sacramento
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Batum is in the starting lineup for Friday's game versus the Kings, Joey Linn of SI.com reports.
Batum will replace Kawhi Leonard (rest) in the starting five Friday. The 33-year-old forward is averaging 7.3 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 27.1 minutes across his 11 starts this season.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: Stellar line in elevated minutes
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Batum finished Friday's 176-175 double-overtime loss to the Kings with 19 points (7-12 FG, 5-10 3Pt), eight rebounds, two assists and one steal in 38 minutes.
The two extra periods helped prop up Batum's minutes count, but he was well on his way to finishing with a productive fantasy line by the end of regulation. That being said, the Clippers were without starting center Ivica Zubac (calf), which had a hand in Batum seeing more run than usual behind fill-in starter Mason Plumlee as a small-ball option at the position. In his previous five games before Friday, Batum had averaged 4.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.0 three-pointers, 0.8 blocks and 0.6 steals in 20.4 minutes, so fantasy managers are probably best off not drawing any grand conclusions from his performance against the Kings.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: Available Friday
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Batum (back) is available Friday against the Bucks.
Batum popped up on the injury report right before warmups, so this does make him a little riskier than usual for streaming purposes, but he will at least be in uniform and available for the contest.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: Questionable Friday
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Batum is dealing with lower back spasms and is questionable Friday against the Bucks.
The veteran forward is a very late addition to the injury report. Kawhi Leonard is resting Friday, so we could see more of Norman Powell and Terance Mann.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: Clutch three-pointer prevents loss
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Batum produced 10 points (3-4 FG, 3-4 3Pt, 1-2 FT), three assists, two rebounds, two blocks and one steal in 27 minutes during Saturday's 134-128 overtime win over the Knicks.
While his overall production was nothing spectacular, Batum might have provided the biggest play of the game, when he hit a three-pointer as time expired in regulation to send the game to overtime. Head coach Tyronn Lue has run a tight rotation at the moment, which has had a hand in Batum getting 27 minutes in two of the Clippers' last three contests. Batum's role looks secure enough at the moment for him to warrant some attention in deeper formats.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: Moves back to bench
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Batum is not starting Tuesday against the Bulls, Joey Linn of SI.com reports.
The 34-year-old made a spot start Sunday with Kawhi Leonard (knee), Paul George (knee) and Marcus Morris (ribs) sitting out, though he went scoreless in just seven minutes. Batum came off the bench in the prior five contests and averaged 6.4 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.2 assists over 24.2 minutes during that stretch.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: Starting Sunday
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Batum will start Sunday's game against the Cavs, Andrew Greif of the Los Angeles Times reports.
With Kawhi Leonard (knee), Paul George (knee) and Marcus Morris (ribs) sitting the second leg of a back-to-back, the Clippers will play with a skeleton crew on the wing. That means Batum will move into the starting lineup for the first time since Jan. 18. The veteran should be poised for a slight bump in minutes, but he still doesn't make for an overly appealing fantasy option. Looking ahead, the Clippers don't face another back-to-back until the first week of March.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: Returns to second unit
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Batum will not start Friday's game against the Spurs, Joey Linn of SI.com reports.
Batum saw a spot start with Paul George and Kawhi Leonard sidelined and will return to the bench with the superstar tandem healthy. In 34 bench appearances, Batum has averaged 5.8 points and 4.1 rebounds across 19.8 minutes.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: Enters starting lineup
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Batum will start in Wednesday's game versus the Jazz, Joey Linn of SI.com reports.
Batum and Norman Powell will replace Kawhi Leonard (rest) and Paul George (hamstring) in the starting lineup Wednesday. The veteran forward has averaged 7.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 29.8 minutes across his previous nine starts this season.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: Shifts back to bench
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Batum is not in the starting lineup Tuesday against the 76ers, Joey Linn of SI.com reports.
Batum started the past four games and averaged 4.8 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.3 steals in 29.0 minutes during that stretch. He'll return to the bench Tuesday with Paul George (hamstring) coming back from a five-game absence.
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Clippers' Nicolas Batum: Starting against ATL
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Batum is in the starting lineup for Sunday's game against the Hawks, Tomer Azarly of ClutchPoints.com reports.
Batum was cleared to play a few hours before the 9 p.m. ET tipoff, but he's not only available, he's jumping straight into the lineup with Paul George (hamstring) and Luke Kennard (calf) sidelined. Batum is averaging 10.0 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game across five starts this season.
