Chris Paul and DeAndre Jordan to Start for Clippers Day After Car Accident

DeAndre Jordan will start on Wednesday one day after he was involved in a car accident in Play del Rey. Chris Paul will also return after missing the last three and a half games with a hamstring injury.

The Los Angeles Clippers received some good news on Wednesday.

Point guard Chris Paul and center DeAndre Jordan will both be in the starting lineup when against the New Orleans Pelicans, 24 hours after Jordan was injured in a car accident in Playa del Rey.

Jordan was involved in a minor fender bender on Tuesday afternoon in Playa del Rey. According to TMZ Sports, which was the first to report the accident, one person was sent to the hospital, and Jordan walked away with just a minor scratch, as evidence by a bandage on his left forearm on Wednesday in New Orleans. 

Teammate Chris Paul arrived on the scene to provide a State Farm assist for the Clippers' big man. Paul was not involved in the accident, but reportedly was close by and arrived with members of the Clippers staff, which gave Jordan a lift to the airport to catch the team's flight to the Big Easy.

"I think people are just taking the State Farm thing too serious," Jordan joked to ESPN's Justin Verrier at the Smoothie King Center before the game. "I'm playing tonight, so that's good. We can't afford for anybody else to be out. I'm just very fortunate that I'm OK and that everybody else that was involved was OK." 

Both Jordan and Paul are pitchmen for the insurance company and star together in multiple commercials that air nationally. Paul's return to the lineup is from a hamstring injury, and has nothing to do with the accident, that left Jordan's car totaled.

"I won't be seeing that car ever again," he said. "It was scary. I was like 'Doc [Rivers] is going to be pissed. I'm late to the flight.' But like I said, I'm a lucky man. I'm just glad everybody's OK." 

The cars involved were a black Tesla and an SUV. 

Local

Get Los Angeles's latest local news on crime, entertainment, weather, schools, COVID, cost of living and more. Here's your go-to source for today's LA news.

Reported kidnapping leads to pursuit that ends in standoff in Compton

Luka Doncic and defensive-minded Mavs take a chippy 101-90 win over Clippers for 2-1 series lead

J.J. Redick (hamstring) and Blake Griffin (knee surgery) will not play in the game on Wednesday. 

Contact Us