Clippers’ Justise Winslow getting acclimated to wide-ranging role

ONTARIO — Justise Winslow’s motivational greeting Instagram station connected Monday was succinct: “Any fool tin know, the constituent is to understand.”

Like clockwork, for 106 days and counting, the Clippers’ caller forward/wing/guard posts those sorts of messages – each written by manus connected a achromatic committee – each greeting astatine 7 a.m.

The versatile 25-year-old’s execution connected the tribunal with his caller teammates isn’t rather similar clockwork yet, but with their help, helium said he’s moving hard to not conscionable cognize – but to recognize – the nuances of Coach Tyronn Lue’s violative and antiaircraft sets.

“Guys are helping maine if I don’t cognize a play, conscionable communicating that,” Winslow said aft the Clippers’ preseason crippled successful Dallas past week, erstwhile helium had 5 points and 3 assists and defended Luka Doncic afloat court.

The 6-foot-6 Winslow said helium bonded with those guys implicit a circular of play astatine grooming campy successful San Diego

“I went golfing and that (stuff) was fun!” Winslow said. “I’m not the best, I can’t thrust – but I tin thrust a bully play cart and I tin putt. So that’s erstwhile I made each my friends, erstwhile I went golfing.”

“Off the court, they’ve been truly good,” Lue said of Winslow’s acclimation. “On the tribunal has been a small tougher, due to the fact that guys are playing retired of position. We got guys out, with nary constituent defender and Marcus and Nico missing games, it’s conscionable been tough.

“But they’re learning, each day, picking up things each azygous day, truthful conscionable gotta proceed to conscionable support getting better.”

Winslow’s long, winding way to L.A. has been littered with injuries, including 1 that required hep replacement country and others that included a sore near wrist and a backmost strain to a torn labrum successful his close shoulder.

The Houston autochthonal arrived successful the Clippers’ grooming campy feeling healthy, helium said, and anxious to assistance nevertheless indispensable – whether that’s astatine halfway oregon constituent guard.

“I didn’t cognize helium was arsenic bully a passer arsenic helium is,” Lue said earlier the Clippers’ 4th and last preseason crippled Monday astatine Ontario’s Toyota Arena. “I cognize helium played a small constituent defender successful Miami and with our constituent defender situation, with Jason (Preston) going down, he’ll beryllium playing a small backup point, helium been playing the four, helium been playing the five. … truthful we conscionable gotta support learning the plays, antithetic positions and I deliberation he’s gonna beryllium truly bully for us.”

Starting with a regular dose of greeting inspiration.

About those, Winslow explained: “I conscionable felt similar with COVID and everything, we’ve benignant of been done arsenic a community, past two, twelvemonth and a half, I conscionable felt similar myself included, but conscionable the radical successful wide conscionable request it, request motivation, request affirmative things to look guardant to, inspiration, information from our peers.

“So arsenic overmuch arsenic I’m trying to dispersed it to different radical and effort to uplift them and assistance them propulsion through, it’s besides a bully connection for me,” helium added. “To assistance maine find that equilibrium to commencement my day. It’s conscionable been a hectic twelvemonth and a fractional with the Black Lives Matter question and COVID, going to the bubble, batch of radical losing their jobs truthful conscionable trying to dispersed immoderate inspiration.”

BEVERLEY’S EARLY IMPACT

Former Clipper Patrick Beverley spent clip pregame chatting with erstwhile teammates and Clippers staffers and officials – including embracing Lawrence Frank, the team’s president of hoops operations, successful a lukewarm hug.

Traded this offseason to the Minnesota Timberwolves, Beverley has made an aboriginal content connected his caller squad that isn’t dissimilar Winslow’s aboriginal messaging: positively inspiring.

“Unique happening astir Pat is having been with him erstwhile helium came into the league, helium had that spot connected his enarthrosis that’s benignant of been everything that helium is about,” T-Wolves manager Chris Finch said earlier tip-off connected Monday.

“And helium inactive has it arsenic a vet who’s had rather a spot of occurrence successful the league for idiosyncratic who went undrafted, went to Europe and did each the things helium had to spell done to marque it present successful this league. So with that spot connected his shoulder, radical recognize he’s a self-made NBA feline and that unsocial carries a batch of weight.”

MORRIS OUT AGAIN

Marcus Morris Sr. didn’t spot the tribunal this preseason. The 11th-year guardant who’s had to woody with genu soreness precocious wasn’t listed connected the Clippers’ wounded study Sunday, but the squad held him retired for the 4th accumulation crippled – to beryllium cautious, Lue said.

“He’s doing good,” the manager said. “Just privation to marque definite helium got immoderate bully practices successful earlier we conscionable threw him retired determination successful the game, so, we got 10 days to signifier and we’ll beryllium capable to effort to get him going. So conscionable privation to beryllium astute astir it.”

Paul George besides missed his 2nd preseason crippled Monday, sitting to rest. Reggie Jackson besides rested.

The Clippers started Ivica Zubac, Nicolas Batum, Terance Mann, Eric Bledsoe and Luke Kennard successful their last preseason crippled earlier the regular play begins Oct. 21 astatine Golden State.