Clippers Rumors: Ivica Zubac Out at Least 4 Weeks With Calf Injury

The Los Angeles Clippers announced Tuesday night that center Ivica Zubac's right calf strain would be reevaluated in four weeks, per multiple reports.

The center suffered the injury in Friday's 128-119 win over the Memphis Grizzlies, though it wasn't considered a major issue at the time—he wasn't even on the team's injury report ahead of Sunday's matchup with the Minnesota Timberwolves.

But it continued to be an issue leading up to the game and Daniel Theis was eventually given the start at center. Zubac was then officially ruled out early in the first quarter.

"It was a late scratch for Zu," head coach Tyronn Lue told reporters after the game. "He tried everything he could to play, some stuff in the hallway, went through layup lines. But just couldn't get it going. So it was smart for us to make sure that he didn't try and do something, play and do something worse to it. So the decision was made right before jump ball."

Zubac's extended absence is a major blow for a 24-15 Clippers team that has really found its mojo in the past six weeks, going 13-4 since Dec. 2. The team settled on a starting 5 of James Harden, Terance Mann, Paul George, Kawhi Leonard and Zubac, dropping Russell Westbrook to the bench.

That starting 5 is outscoring opponents by a whopping 16 points per 100 possessions when sharing the court together, per NBA.com. And while Harden, Leonard and George are the big names of that bunch, the Clippers have a net rating of 9.0 with Zubac on the floor and just 0.4 when he sits. Only George has a better on-court net rating (10.1) for the team.

In total, the 26-year-old center is averaging 12.4 points, 9.7 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game, shooting 65.5 percent from the field.

While he cleans up his fair share of offensive possessions on the interior, he's become an excellent defender. As Law Murray of The Athletic wrote, "According to Second Spectrum, Zubac holds scorers to 48.7 percent at the rim in his defense. Out of 87 players who defend at least 3.5 shots at the rim per game, only Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler holds scorers to a lower percentage (46.2) than Zubac."

The current duo left for the Clippers at center, Theis and Mason Plumlee, won't offer that level of defensive impact. For a team that has settled into a nice groove, the loss of Zubac is going to present some very real challenges on both ends of the floor.