Clippers’ J.J. Redick is happy with fewer preseason games

J.J. Redick plans to prepare for the Clippers’ first preseason game the same way he’d prepare for a regular season game.

“You want to build your habits, so I’ll do all my normal game-day stuff that I would normally do, in terms of extra shots, cold plunge after shoot around, eating and when I eat, all of that stuff,” Redick said before Thursday’s practice. “We only have six preseason games this year, and two of them are in China, so you really only have four because who knows -- are we getting hot packs in China, I don’t know.”

The Clippers play the Denver Nuggets on Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Staples Center. After that game, they will travel to Vancouver, Canada, to face the Toronto Raptors, then they head to China for two games before returning home for two more games at Staples Center.

According to the team, going to China has its pros and cons.

Said Clippers Coach Doc Rivers: “We probably lose seven practices because of the China trip. That’s a lot. You don’t have a lot of NBA practices. It’s tough.”

On the other hand, Redick pointed out that it’s a unique opportunity.

“I think the NBA is always going to go to China,” Redick said. “They love to use the statistic that there’s more people in China who play basketball than there are people, period, in the U.S. So it’s an important market.”

Redick is pleased that the Clippers preseason schedule has been reduced from eight games last year to six heading into the 2015-16 season.

“The less preseason games, the better,” Redick said. “I think I talked about it last year -- I know the big discussion last year was shortening the season and finding ways to get more rest. It’s pretty much a no-brainer. If you don’t want to worry about the TV conflict with the World Series, you just shorten the preseason and then build in the extra week or so of games in October.”

Heading into Friday’s game, two Clippers players are already a bit banged up.

Austin Rivers has a left ankle contusion, though he has no limitations, according to the Clippers. Lance Stephenson has ostitis pubis -- an inflammation of the pubic bone that is similar to shin splints. The team will monitor Stephenson at Thursday’s practice, and if he is okay, he will play Friday.