Game 31: Los Angeles (17-13) @ Utah (12-15)

[Ranma]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/DanWoikeSports/status/680967847774822400[/tweet]
[tweet]https://twitter.com/LAClippers/status/680968197001052160[/tweet]
[tweet]https://twitter.com/DV3__/status/680967996525776897[/tweet]

[Neddy]

damn old man Pierce and hot stuff JJ takes the cake on this one.

[Ranma]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/DanWoikeSports/status/680968472822587392[/tweet]
[tweet]https://twitter.com/dingyu/status/680968492409995264[/tweet]
[tweet]https://twitter.com/BobbyMarks42/status/680968788792049665[/tweet]
[tweet]https://twitter.com/huthutraul/status/680968524899024897[/tweet]
[tweet]https://twitter.com/FredKatz/status/680968646534033408[/tweet]

[Akklaim1]

Jj was just unreal tonight. For this game Curry was wearing a Clipper uniform.

[Akklaim1]

And I couldn't help but notice that (fellow) Chelsea fan sitting behind the baseline on the visiting bench side.

[Ranma]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/DanWoikeSports/status/680969652944556033[/tweet]
[tweet]https://twitter.com/FlyByKnite/status/680969511416279041[/tweet]

[Wammy Giveaway]

But Paul Pierce did make a 3 that ended the Jazz's chances at a usurping.

[og15]

Jamal brings swag though, can't undervalue the impact of swag

[Ranma]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/DanWoikeSports/status/680970982991908865[/tweet]

[nickhx2]

thanks, paul. for one night you weren't the worst player on the floor. though that might go to jamal crawford by default today.

[exculpatory]

Oh my goodness!

Blake Griffin goes down with a quad injury yesterday, & Doc lets the Truth play 27 minutes.

20 points on 6-11 & 5-7 from 3, & 5Rs & 2As. And the game icing clutch 3!

You actually saw vintage Truth tonight, Clips fans.
Watch what happens if Doc gives him minutes from here on out.
This kind of game is exactly why Doc convinced him to play the last year of his magnificent HOF career with you.

PS He passed KG & became #15 on NBA All Time Scoring List with 26,032 points.

[mkwest]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/isaaclowenkron/status/680973124200824836[/tweet]
[tweet]https://twitter.com/ClipsNationSBN/status/680973039727718400[/tweet]
[tweet]https://twitter.com/ClipsNationSBN/status/680973101950210048[/tweet]
[tweet]https://twitter.com/ClipsNationSBN/status/680978723697471488[/tweet]
[tweet]https://twitter.com/ClipsNationSBN/status/680978454356094976[/tweet]
[tweet]https://twitter.com/Mahster/status/680974392969400321[/tweet]

Kyle Montgomery did Pierce a solid by giving him the interview first. JJ's expressions were too funny.

[illastrate]

Jamal brings swag though, can't undervalue the impact of swag

Can't get enough of that 1 for 10 FG swag...

[og15]

I'm glad I'm not the only one

[Forte IV]

I'm sorry but who are the 4 idiots who voted yes on this ridiculous poll? Come on lol

[Ranma]

I'm sorry but who are the 4 idiots who voted yes on this ridiculous poll? Come on lol

I'm one of the four. One win doesn't mean anything and the team could remain competitive upon Griffin's return. However, I based my vote on the way the season has gone and the lack of progress undertaken during Doc's tenure. The team couldn't close out games with Griffin, so pardon me for not being optimistic that it can handle adversity without him.

Having said that, I think the team will likely make the playoffs, but for me, that's not good enough. We have to at least advance beyond the 2nd round, otherwise, we haven't moved forward as an organization.

I'll be happy if the team surprises and exceeds expectations, but I wouldn't call it idiotic to think that a team that's taken a step backwards this season will ultimately fail in its goal to advance. I guess it depends on your aspirations. I have a championship as my immediate aim with this team. If you think making the playoffs is good enough, that's short-changing the talent on this roster and continuing the stagnant progress under the Rivers era.

Griffin's injury would be just another excuse for Doc to dismiss his failures. I wouldn't be surprised to find out that our lack of depth and capable roster construction somehow led to Blake's injury.

[Wammy Giveaway]

Normally when I make votes like this, they end up turning into reverse jinxes. This has happened many a time when I wished hard for ejections of Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, DeAndre Jordan and Doc Rivers, but they never get thrown out. Two of the four have been sent to the showers early, so I've since then cut back on those wishes.

The only reason why I do believe their season is lost is due to having a 3-1 collapse. Earlier in the season, I wrote a post on all of the eight teams who suffered 3-1 collapses before them. Some of them lost their superstars to the very teams who defeated them. Others missed the playoffs completely for quite a number of years. Either way, teams were forced into painful rebuilds because the collapse itself was so monumental. The only team to have recovered quickly from a 3-1 collapse was the Los Angeles Lakers in 2006, losing to the Suns on a 3-1 comeback, needing just one year of playoff regression and a superstar trade for Pau Gasol in 2008.

But note this: the 3-1 collapse is by no means a cop out. This is more the equivalent of a punishment than it is an excuse. Consider the following:

1. Two three-game losing streaks
2. Two times of being a lottery team (under 0.500)
3. Ejections of Blake Griffin (2) and DeAndre Jordan (1)
4. The most hated team in the NBA, per Howard Beck
5. Blake Griffin is lost to injury

[LACtdom]

If our season is over just because we've temporarily lost Blake Griffin and can't recover in this weak WC then we wouldn't be a strong enough team to win it all anyway.