Injuries to Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, as well as problems with consistency, have the Clippers as underdogs when the playoffs start Sunday in Phoenix.
never allowed for consistency to build, leaving the Clippers to chase a top-four playoff seed — and the home-court advantage that comes with it — since the season’s first month. When the once-vaunted roster’s depth and talent struggled to find the court, and any rhythm, the front office remade the roster at February’s trade deadline with four new contributors. Those once-envisioned final eight relaxing weeks of the season were replaced by a two-month dogfight just to make the postseason.
The Clippers are in this position in part because Leonard missed 30 games, George 26 and Norman Powell, a candidate for sixth man of the year, 22. Dubbed the league’s deepest roster to begin the season, that depth also produced redundancy in some areas and gaps in others, the stars and role players never fully working in concert.
The Clippers are not whole, with George unavailable to start the series despite recently beginning shooting drills and it is unclear whether he can return later in this series. This is the lone first-round series without a two-day break between any of Games 1-4, which George called “bull—” on his podcast.
Suns guard Devin Booker, says of Clippers star Kawhi Leonard : “That’s a Finals MVP, a two-time champ, he’s seasoned.” Powell played inconsistently after returning earlier this month from a shoulder injury, but has reduced his turnovers recently and began outscoring other team’s benches by himself. His unique ability to draw fouls is a key factor against Phoenix, which allowed the NBA’s third-most free throws per game this season.
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