Derrick Jones Jr., who has started 13 games for the Clippers this season, is averaging a career-high 10.4 points per game. Katelyn Mulcahy / Getty Images
LA Clippers small forward Derrick Jones Jr. was diagnosed with a Grade 2 MCL sprain of his right knee and will miss at least six weeks, a team source told The Athletic Sunday.
Jones suffered the injury with 9:25 left in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s home game against the Boston Celtics when shooting guard Payton Pritchard collided with Jones’ knee going for a loose ball.
It is the same injury to the same knee and against the same team that caused Jones to miss six weeks earlier this season. In November, Jaylen Brown collided with Jones’ knee, and Jones just returned Dec. 28 from that injury after the Clippers went 5-12 without him.
Spoke with Derrick Jones Jr. about the collision with Payton Pritchard and his perspective on Jaylen Brown’s career night (Jones was on the Mavericks team that Brown earned Finals MVP against in 2024) pic.twitter.com/laeAuBtoHk
— Law Murray 🐐 (@LawMurrayTheNU) January 4, 2026
For the season, Jones is averaging a career-high 10.4 points, shooting 55.6 percent and making a career-best 40.0 percent of his 3-pointers.
Although Jones has played in half of LA’s 34 games this season, he’s been a sound piece alongside Kawhi Leonard, James Harden, Ivica Zubac and Kris Dunn when he’s been healthy. According to NBA.com, the five-man unit of Jones, Leonard, Harden, Zubac and Dunn has played only 20 minutes together this season, but the Clippers have a net rating of plus-42.8 and hold opponents to only 112.5 points per 100 possessions over that sample size.
The Clippers had their six-game win streak snapped against the Celtics. Now, Jones is expected to miss the rest of the 20 games on the schedule before the All-Star break.